Who Let Him Cultivate?! (WX)

“Everlasting, you’ve just been through a battle. You must be exhausted. There’s no need to trouble yourself.”

“Ah? But I'm not tired yet...”

“We appreciate the sentiment, Everlasting. You should get a good rest.”

“But the Buddhist Kingdom is my territory, after all. How could I have guests prepare the dishes? As it happens, I have some offerings here...”

While the Everlasting Immortal Fairy was speaking, Lu Yang reached for the last piece of pastry, but upon catching the Epoch Immortal’s gaze, he guiltily placed it back down. He had thoroughly enjoyed himself earlier, snacking while watching the three immortals’ melee.

The Epoch Immortal. “...”

You really don’t stand on ceremony, do you?!

“I’ll have someone prepare the food right away.” With that, the Epoch Immortal transmitted an auditory message to Abbot Mingyu, instructing him to bring out fine spirit dishes for the celebration.

Before long, various bowls of paste were displayed before the group, bubbling and gurgling, clearly freshly made.

The Heaven Mandate Immortal and the others quietly cast questioning looks at the Epoch Immortal. What are you treating us to?

The Epoch Immortal coughed awkwardly and transmitted another auditory message to Abbot Mingyu. “I didn’t tell you to bring these. Bring some spirit fruits and pastries or something.”

Fortunately, when everyone was together, what mattered was the company and atmosphere, not the fare. Before long, a harmonious atmosphere returned.

The Five Ancient Immortals reminisced about the past, their laughter filling the air. Caught up in the jovial atmosphere, Lu Yang laughed along, chiming in from time to time.

The Nine-Layers Immortal grew curious. “Young Friend Lu, you seem to be very well-informed about our experiences in the ancient era.”

Before Lu Yang could respond, the Everlasting Immortal Fairy stepped forward with pride. “Of course! I’ve told Xiao Yangzi everything about our days back in the ancient era!

“For instance, Nine-Layers, you spent a fortune on natural treasures to create unusual phenomena during your Immortal Ascension Tribulation, so that the world would remember you were the first to become an immortal.

“And Epoch, you once asked me who among the numerous heroes in the world could become an immortal, then proceeded to disparage everyone and declare yourself the first to attain immortality, after which you got thrashed.

“And Qilin, that sword array you knelt on that softened at the slightest touch was forged by the Heaven Mandate Immortal.”

The Everlasting Immortal Fairy counted on her fingers as she recalled what she had told Lu Yang. With each revelation, one of her listeners’ expressions contorted dramatically.

Only the Heaven Mandate Immortal remained unperturbed and didn’t hold grudges.

Lu Yang sensed a subtle shift in the harmonious atmosphere.

The Epoch Immortal rose with a smile and walked over to Lu Yang. “Young Friend Lu, resurrecting Everlasting is a deed of immense merit. Let me toast you.”

Xitian Temple had no wine, so the Epoch Immortal raised a bowl of paste instead.

Although it was meant as a gesture of gratitude, Lu Yang couldn’t shake the feeling that the Epoch Immortal’s gaze glinted with danger.

“Young Friend Lu, let me toast you too.”

“Me too.”

The Nine-Layers Immortal and the Qilin Immortal rose in succession, each raising their bowl of paste to toast Lu Yang.

Fortunately, the Heaven Mandate Immortal had already settled his score with Lu Yang and no longer held a grudge. He kindly stepped in to smooth things over. “By the way, Young Friend Lu, did you encounter anything interesting outside the Box World?”

“Yes, yes. Tell us what it’s like outside the Box World now.”

The others were equally intrigued.

Lu Yang’s expression grew somewhat peculiar. “I wouldn’t exactly call it fun. At first, I was just hospitalized—that is, seeing a physician... then I encountered a zombie crisis... and later discovered that the whole crisis had been orchestrated by a place called Zhutian Civilization...” He recounted his experiences before arriving in the Box World.

The immortals listened with rapt attention. The world outside was vastly different from what they had imagined.

“Should we undo the seal and open the Box?” the Nine-Layers Immortal proposed.

They had refined the stars into continents for the purpose of resurrecting the Everlasting Immortal Fairy and preventing the mastermind from escaping. Now that the Everlasting Immortal Fairy had been resurrected and Yao Sheng had been vanquished, there was no longer any need to maintain the seal.

They had all lived through the ancient era and knew the vastness of the starry skies. It was a grandeur the people of the Box World had never witnessed. It would be a good chance to show them the true starry sky.

Moreover, when they set up the seal, they had assumed that all living beings in the universe had been gathered within. But based on Lu Yang’s account, there were still living beings outside, likely in remote places beyond their reach.

“Sure. I have no objections.”

“I agree.”

“I agree too.”

The Four Ancient Immortals voiced their stance one by one.

“That’s pretty good. Once we get out, we can help Xiao Yangzi find his original planet and look for my North Star while we’re at it,” the Everlasting Immortal Fairy said cheerfully.

In truth, the Midheaven Emperor-Lord had always misunderstood the seal. Undoing the seal required not the combined efforts of the Four Ancient Immortals, but that of the Five Ancient Immortals.

Lu Yang felt a growing itch to see the world outside. When he had first arrived in the cultivation world, he had resigned himself to never seeing his former world again. Since it was impossible, he had set aside all thoughts of his past life and focused on enjoying this hard-won new life.

Who would have guessed that my own world is outside the Box World? And there are still so many unanswered questions out there. What has become of the Blue Planet? And what has become of Zhutian Civilization?

“But since we’re completely removing the seal, we don’t have to rush. There’s still much preparation to be done,” Lu Yang said earnestly. Although he was eager to see the outer world, such matters couldn’t be hurried.

Removing the seal and opening the Box World would cause a monumental upheaval for the entire cultivation world, especially for those capable of traversing the universe. Great Xia shouldn’t face significant problems, since its cultivators were generally law-abiding. However, the cultivators and demons in the Buddhist Kingdom, the Demon Region, and the East Sea were another matter. Once they caught wind of this, they would swarm out like a hive of bees.

The dissemination channels, contingency plans, and behavioral regulations all required thorough consideration.

In any case, they couldn’t possibly sit down and decide to undo the seal over a meal and then simply go ahead with it right after eating. At the very least, they needed to inform Yun Zhi, Jiang Ping’an, and the others beforehand.

“Fair enough. Let’s take it one step at a time then.” The Heaven Mandate Immortal and the others smiled. The last thing they lacked was time.

Seeing that everyone had eaten their fill, the Everlasting Immortal Fairy asked, “What are your plans? Would you like to visit our Dao-Seeking Sect?”

“Sounds good.”

The Heaven Mandate Immortal and the Nine-Layers Immortal had visited the Dao-Seeking Sect before. After the timeline alteration, the Epoch Immortal had made a brief stop there to seek out the Everlasting Immortal Fairy and Yun Zhi. Only the Qilin Immortal had never set foot there before.

Before leaving Xitian Temple, Lu Yang paid Xinding a visit. Xinding was perfectly suited for Buddhism, steadily advancing in his cultivation and already making a name for himself in the Buddhist Kingdom. Lu Yang felt that with Xinding’s talent, becoming the next abbot in due course wouldn’t be an issue.

Only then did he depart with peace of mind.

The group of six—five immortals and one Transcendent Tribulation cultivator, which rounded up to six immortals—traveled at unparalleled speed, arriving at the Dao-Seeking Sect in no time.

~~~

“Senior Brother Dai, I’ve brought a few guests to tour our sect...”

Lu Yang made his way to the Great Mission Hall with practiced ease and pushed open Dai Bufan’s door, only to find the room empty.

After asking around, he learned that Dai Bufan had taken sick leave. Lu Yang found it regretful. Having the Four Ancient Immortals visit the Dao-Seeking Sect is such a momentous occasion! It’s so unfortunate that Senior Brother Dai can’t enjoy it.

He had no choice but to lead the Five Ancient Immortals to Heaven’s Gate Peak to look for Yun Zhi.

“Big Senior Sister, I heard Senior Brother Dai has taken sick leave. What happened to him? I’d like to pay him a visit.”

Yun Zhi raised an eyebrow, equally puzzled. “He’s sick? He was perfectly fine when I spoke with him just now.”

“What did you tell him?”

“Nothing much. I just told him that the Nine-Netherworlds Creed and the Radiant Sun Creed had turned themselves in to Junior Brother Man, that I had brought back the Midheaven Emperor-Lord, that the Four Ancient Immortals had refined the stars into continents to deal with Yao Sheng, that I had helped them eliminate him, and that the Four Ancient Immortals would likely be visiting our sect, so I asked him to make preparations.”

Yun Zhi pondered for a moment. “That’s all.”