Once Sect Master Chen Xuanhua sent out his orders, the normally peaceful and elegant Qing-Yun Sect suddenly turned busy. After having practiced their welcome for the past half-year, the disciples began their assigned jobs in an orderly fashion; within only a few moments, sweet incense and spirit herbs were placed all over the entire Qing-Yun Sect, and the light haze caused the sect to seem even more elegant and mysterious.

　　“Elders Chen, Lu, Huang, all three of you immediately leave to greet and guide this very important guest at ten thousand miles away!”

　　“Yes, Sect Master!” The three Foundation Stage elders immediately departed under Chen Xuanhua’s orders. These three had all been elders who’d given Fang Xing the choice of what discipline to follow when he’d entered the inner courts. All of them were in the early tiers of Foundation Stage, and they held a high status within the sect ranked just under the four chief elders, but they were only qualified to be a guide when faced with such an important guest.

　　“Rukuang, Baoyan, the two of you depart to greet the guest at three thousand miles away in order to serve as their protector!”

　　“Yes, Sect Master!” Tie Rukuang and Shuwen Valley’s chief elder had received their orders, and they left to fulfill their duty immediately.

　　“Qin’nyao, Shanhe, you two shall stay at two thousand miles away! Get ready to welcome the guests with spirit tea and spirit fruits!”

　　“Yes, Sect Master!”

　　And so left the Danxia and Shanhe Valley chief elders.

　　Although all of the elders’ had been tasked with simply welcoming and greeting a guest, these jobs were not looked upon lightly at all. Instead, the elders actually felt a sense of pride to do them.

　　“Remaining Qing-Yun disciples, follow me to the sect entrance to welcome the important guest. Prepare to conduct ancient welcoming rituals, musical instruments ready….”

　　A single guest from Fuyao Palace had sent almost the entire Qing-Yun Sect into a frenzy.

　　Although Fang Xing was supposed to be stuck in seclusion at the Valley of Hidden Dragon, the temptation was too great for him and he snuck out. The two outer sect disciples who were supposed to watch over him had stayed well clear of Fang Xing, so how would they dare to anger him now? Fortunately, Fang Xing didn’t swagger and show himself in front of anyone, and instead had made his way to a better vantage point atop the Peak of Flying Stone to view the event from afar.

　　About an hour later, a carriage made from excessively precious jade came flying in from the northeastern sky. The carriage was approximately thirty feet long and five feet wide, with detailed and complex patterns carved on its side, the patterns combining into an exquisite design that was both elegant and delicate. In front of the carriage were eighteen yellow-turbaned men flying at the front to guide the way, and on both sides were twelve beautifully-dressed and ingenious-looking maids and servants. A few old women—whose cultivation levels couldn’t be determined—followed closely behind at a languid pace.

　　Qing-Yun’s elders Chen, Lu, and Huang were only allowed to carefully follow behind some thousand feet away, and the four chief elders could only follow behind the few old women. Despite their status, they were unable to be any closer to the carriage.

　　Ten thousand feet away from the Qing-Yun Sect, Sect Master Chen Xuanhua had already stepped onto his cloud and was waiting to greet them with his hands cupped. He raised his voice and called, “Current Sect Master of Qing-Yun Sect—Chen Xuanhua—welcomes the arrival of the fourth princess of Fuyao Palace….”

　　The carriage paused slightly as a soft voice came from inside, “You are too kind, Sect Master.”

　　Chen Xuanhua quickly replied, “The arrival of the fourth princess to our Qing-Yun Sect is our pleasure. Xuanhua shall offer you our best hospitality. As for being ‘too kind’, please reclaim your words, as I am not deserving of such praise. Our new residence of the Breakwater Grand Hall has recently been completed, and not a single person has stayed there since. Please slightly alter your path so you may rest at the hall. If there is anything else the esteemed princess may need, Xuanhua shall have it prepared….”

　　“That would be great. Sect Master, please show the way,” the person within the carriage gently said.

　　Chen Xuanhua bowed as he guided them down the path.

　　The carriage soon drew close to the ground and began to slowly follow Chen Xuanhua towards the front of the sect. The Qing-Yun inner court disciples were prepared ahead of time, and they began to play various instruments such as zithers, flutes, standing harps, and pan pipes, forming a melodious and magnificent welcome for their important guest. There were even spirit animals and cranes that had been taught to gracefully dance. It was all bright and welcoming, to the point the Qing-Yun Sect entrance actually seemed quite like a fairyland.

　　The soft and gentle voice within the carriage rose again. “Sect Master, Si’nyang’s arrival has been after a long and tiring trip. You need not be so kind.” Although her words were polite, there was a hint of laughter contained within.

　　Chen Xuanhua’s face reddened as he immediately understood their guest wasn’t interested in all these welcoming performances he’d prepared. He soon waved his hand and all the performers took away their instruments while someone else came around to gather the dancing spirit animals and cranes.

　　The sect doors returned to its usual quiet, and the carriage made its way inside. This time, an old woman behind the carriage waved her sleeve, and all the yellow-turbaned men, the maids, and the servants returned to her. This was when everyone realized that all these turbaned men had been formed from yellow clothes stitched with various spells, and those maids and servants had merely been from folded paper.

　　Flying slowly, the carriage did not completely land as it followed Chen Xuanhua towards the Qing-Yun Sect’s main peak, where a new and giant hall rested at the top. In comparison to the halls already in use within the sect, this was by far the most imposing and extravagant, and its location was also at the Qing-Yun Sect’s highest point. At this moment, its doors were tightly shut and all the windows had been sealed shut by spells, as if it were hiding some sort of treasure within.

　　The truth, however, was that these spells were there simply to prevent any dust or insects.

　　As they arrived at the grand palace hall, Chen Xuanhua personally went to open the doors. As soon as the doors were opened, the interior was seen to be bright and elaborate, with highly valuable decorative pieces that had been saved by the sect for all of its years. Such inner decor left even the old women nodding softly in approval as they shared a smile with each other, as though to say the Qing-Yun Sect had indeed prepared their welcome well.

　　Atop a peak far away, Fang Xing was dumbstruck. “Holy sh*t, how much good stuff does that hall have…?”

　　The golden crow was also drooling. “If only we could go and rob it clean!”

　　Fang Xing looked at him with disdain. “Is that all you’re interested in?”

　　The crow rolled his eyes. “If you’re not interested, why are your eyes so lit up?”

　　“I was thinking. Instead of robbing that hall, why not kidnap the person inside the carriage? She must be rich!”

　　The golden crow was flabbergasted. “With our cultivation level, we’d be dust before we even reach the carriage, and you’re talking about kidnapping… why don’t you think of something more realistic!”

　　“What do you know! This is called having big aspirations!”

　　There was a movement in front of the Breakwater Grand Hall. The carriage’s curtains opened and revealed a graceful-looking woman wearing numerous valuable jewels and a white muslin veil covering her face. As she stepped out of the carriage, Chen Xuanhua immediately lowered his head and did not dare to look at her. She nodded softly—unconcerned by whether he actually saw or not—and walked into the hall.

　　The few old women behind the carriage walked up, one of them stopping to fold the carriage into her storage sack before smiling towards Chen Xuanhua. “Our master has had a long and tiring trip. This is not intended to be rude to you, the esteemed sect master. Please kindly forgive us!”

　　“Not a problem at all!” Chen Xuanhua hastily replied.

　　The same old woman smiled again. “After coming to the Qing-Yun Sect from such distance, it is us who have disturbed you , Esteemed Sect master; please do not be so polite with us. In fact, we are here at the Chufung Kingdom because we have something to ask for.” She let out a slight pause before continuing, “Our head imperial master would like to craft a mystical weapon—the Square Diagram of Jambu—and so is in need of a map of all the mountains, valleys, lakes, cities, and towns within a hundred-thousand-mile radius of the Qing-Yun Sect. Would the esteemed sect master be able to lend a helping hand?”

　　“A map?” Chen Xuanhua was a little surprised. He’d already known that the Fuyao Palace would not send people out just for fun, so there had to be an underlying reason, but he didn’t expect that what they were after was actually a map. However, he did not dare to question it and immediately accepted. “Since the Fuyao Palace has given its orders, Xuanhua shall command his disciples to create exact copies and measurements of all the geography within this hundred-thousand-mile radius, to be handed to the fourth princess….”

　　The old woman nodded. “Our Fuyao Palace isn’t royalty; there’s no need to call our master a ‘princess’. It is best to just simply refer to her as Xuan Si’nyang. The map, however, is more important; three months should be enough, right?”

　　Chen Xuanhua quickly calculated and replied, “It should be enough!”

　　The woman nodded again, seeming quite satisfied. “In that case, thank you, Esteemed Sect Master.”

　　Seeing as the woman was about to leave, Chen Xuanhua quickly asked, “What shall we call you?”

　　The old woman laughed. “You can simply call me Granny Qian. If you have any questions in the future that are not suitable to ask my master, you can look for me!”

　　Chen Xuanhua noted this before replying, “Xuanhua has prepared a dinner banquet to welcome you, if Princess— if Xuan Si’nyang is….”

　　“Since it has been prepared by the esteemed sect master, our master would not refuse. We shall follow whatever the sect master has prepared for us.”

　　Chen Xuanhua felt a sense of relief. “Please have Xuan Si’nyang rest well before she joins. Xuanhua shall make sure all is adequately prepared!” He then turned to leave while sending all of the disciples back. At the same time, he made an order that no disciples were to make any trouble or create a scene during this time period; if they were to offend the important guest, a heavy punishment would await them.

　　Once night had fallen, spirit wine and spirit fruits—ones that were so rare not even the sect master or chief elders would eat—were all prepared. Then, Sect Master Chen Xuanhua once again arrived at the Breakwater Grand Hall, standing outside while inviting the Fuyao Palace Guest Xuan Si’nyang for the dinner banquet. Those inside didn’t delay much longer, and a few old women opened the door so a purple-dressed Xuan Si’nyang could walk out gracefully.

　　The quality of this banquet was so high that only the sect master and the four chief elders were permitted to join. Once they sat down, these five Foundation Stage cultivators appeared rather nervous and were extremely polite. When they spoke, they avoided saying anything particularly great and just focused on avoiding making any mistakes, leading to a lack of conversation and a somewhat dull atmosphere. Xuan Si’nyang also did not eat any of the spirit fruits, did not drink any of the spirit wine, and didn’t speak a single word, either; it was as though she was a dummy made from a block of wood.

　　Since it seemed to be a touch awkward, Sect Master Chen Xuanhua broke the silence with a smile. “While there may not be any heavenly geniuses within the Qing-Yun Sect, there are a couple of pupils who have somewhat decent innate talent. Please forgive us for being superfluous, as we have no better ways, but how about we call them out to show you their most proud studies, to help liven things up for our very important guest here today?”

　　Xuan Si’nyang still showed no response, but one of the old women sitting below her nodded and answered on her behalf, “Sure!”

　　Chen Xuanhua then nodded towards the four chief elders, signaling that they could bring out everything they’d prepared.