Chapter 1412: Reeling Them In!

　　Moments ago, when the shield sprang up around Planet Vast Expanse, the thick-headed young woman quickly gathered up all of the items and corpses, including Meng Hao, and put them into her bag of holding. She did it so quickly her younger brother had no time to intervene.

　　In her simplistic way of thinking, everything she had collected was worth keeping. And yet, she feared that people might look down on them for collecting so many miscellaneous items, which could eventually cause problems when it came to the marriage agreement.

　　Seeing the numerous incoming beams of light, the young woman got very excited. She quickly straightened her garments and put on a very haughty expression. Then she looked back at her nervous younger brother. Glaring, she said, “Look tough! Remember, you’re the heir of the Yun Clan!”

　　There was no time to say anything else, as the beams of light flew at top speed and came to a stop in front of their flying shuttle.

　　In the lead was a man wearing a violet-gold robe. His hair was long and white, and he bore the semblance of a celestial being, with eyes that sparkled as if with lightning. He looked the brother and sister duo over, only glancing briefly at the young man before focusing his attention on the young woman. Then his eyes widened slightly.

　　Behind him were tens of thousands of other cultivators, all of them wearing very serious expressions, almost as if they had come to meet a powerful enemy.

　　The pressure weighing down from all of these powerful experts was incredible. Although they kept their power in check, the starry sky was still trembling, and everyone nearby could feel the weight of the pressure. The young man on the flying shuttle was shaking and could barely stand up straight. His blood was boiling, and he almost felt as if it were about to explode.

　　From the look of it, if these people let much more of their aura out, this young man’s body, and those of many of the other cultivators in the area, would be shredded to pieces, killing them instantly.

　　His older sister had it a bit better off, but was still gritting her teeth and trembling in body and mind. However, she didn’t seem to have lost any of her enthusiasm. Apparently… she couldn’t see the fierce gleams in the eyes of these powerful experts from the Vast Expanse School.

　　Clasping hands and bowing deeply, she said, “I am Yun Shan of the Yun Clan. This is our clan’s current heir, Yun Feng. Senior members of the Vast Expanse School, greetings!” Then, she quickly pulled out her Yun Clan identity medallion and held it high above her head.

　　Behind her, Yun Feng nervously clasped hands and bowed his head, cursing inwardly.

　　In response to Yun Shan’s words, the eyes of the experts from the Vast Expanse School glittered. The old man in the leadership position frowned. He looked closer at this girl who called herself Yun Shan, gaze lingering on her bag of holding as he completely ignored the identity medallion.

　　After a long moment, he said, “Yun Clan….”

　　The entire time, his eyes were focused on her bag of holding, as if his gaze could actually pierce inside and see Meng Hao. After a moment, his eyes glittered, and he suddenly shook his head and laughed.

　　“Unlock Vast Expanse. Extend the Starpath. Summon the million disciples. Unveil the Vast Expanse Skyway. Welcome the honored guests!” Apparently, when this man spoke, his words were followed like law. The other powerful experts of the Vast Expanse School bowed their heads as rumbling sounds suddenly emanated out from Planet Vast Expanse. Shockingly, two giants appeared, who bore glittering starlight on their shoulders as they strode forth. In turn, that light began to form into a pathway.

　　At the same time, numerous beams of light appeared behind the giants. Astonishingly, a million cultivators appeared, all of whom wore the uniforms of Vast Expanse disciples. They fanned out to stand on either side of the path of stars, and as they did… a Skyway formed, lined by a million disciples.

　　All of the rogue cultivators out in the starry sky stared with wide eyes. There were some among them who weren’t aware of the significance of the bell tolling seven times. But everyone knew what it meant when Planet Vast Expanse was unlocked in such a way, with starlight-bearing giants emerging, and a million disciples forming a road.

　　“That’s the Vast Expanse School’s most prestigious welcoming ceremony!”

　　“It’s been years since the Vast Expanse School did this. Just where exactly did that brother and sister team come from?!”

　　“A million disciples forming a road…. The Vast Expanse School would only hold this ceremony for someone incredibly extraordinary!!” Everyone was completely shaken.

　　“Please, after you!” said the man in the violet-gold robe, flicking his sleeve and stepping aside. He smiled lightly as he spoke, but his eyes were glued on Yun Shan’s bag of holding. The other experts from the Vast Expanse School looked on with thoughtful expressions for a moment before they also stepped aside, leaving the entire path of starry light stretching out unhindered in front of the flying shuttle.

　　Yun Shan’s eyes were wide as saucers as she stared at the scene. It was something she couldn’t have imagined happening, not even in her dreams. And yet, it was playing out right here in front of her. Despite her usual thick-headed personality, even she couldn’t help but feel a bit suspicious.

　　“Was the Yun Clan really that incredible in the past?” she said to her brother. “I can’t believe a down-and-out clan like them… would actually cause the Vast Expanse School to hold a ceremony like this.

　　“Hmm. I guess the Yun Clan must have a lot of big secrets that I never found out about. Later on, I’ll have to spend a few spirit stones to run a more thorough investigation into them.” Of course, her train of thought led her to a strange conclusion, like it usually did. Looking very excited, she immediately stepped onto the path.

　　She walked along as arrogantly as ever, occasionally chattering to her younger brother.

　　“Come on, follow me. Keep your head up. Don’t forget, we’re from the Yun Clan, and you’re the heir!

　　“See how seriously they take us, little brother? The Vast Expanse School! Hahaha!” Although Yun Shan was nervous, her eyes sparkled brightly, and as she walked along, the disciples of the Vast Expanse School bowed respectfully. As for all of the rogue cultivators who had been locked in place earlier, they could do nothing but watch jealously as she entered Planet Vast Expanse.

　　Her brother walked along behind her, more nervous than ever. Something very strange seemed to be going on, especially when he realized that the Vast Expanse School hadn’t even checked their Yun Clan identification medallions. The reason for that most likely had nothing at all to do with the conclusion his sister had reached.

　　However, there was nothing to be done about the situation now. The old man in the violet-gold robe followed not too far back, and behind him were the tens of thousands of other powerful experts of the Vast Expanse School.

　　Yun Feng’s scalp tingled as he walked nervously behind his sister, following closely by the forces from Planet Vast Expanse. “This… this isn’t a welcoming party,” he thought, “this… is a security escort!”

　　As they proceeded through the starry sky, they eventually reached… Planet Vast Expanse itself!

　　Planet Vast Expanse was gargantuan, so big that you couldn’t see from one end to the other. The location in which they arrived featured a boundless land filled with mountains, more than a million of them, with even more hidden beneath the fog and clouds which spread out everywhere.

　　There were towering palaces which rose up from the peaks of the mountains, giving the entire place the feeling of a majestic, preeminent sect. Chain bridges connected the million mountain peaks, making it easy to see the borders of what was apparently the preeminent Vast Expanse School!

　　As soon as Yun Shan and Yun Feng entered the planet, they saw the million mountains, and their minds began to spin. Off to the side, the old man in the violet-gold robe smiled and began to explain.

　　“There are many cultivator clans on Planet Vast Expanse, but when it comes to sects… there is only the Vast Expanse School! In fact, all of those other clans exist only because of the Vast Expanse School.

　　“The Vast Expanse School is the very foundation of Planet Vast Expanse, and we have eight temple complexes, with the complex you are looking at now being the eighth.

　　“As for the lands of our sect, everything under the sky belongs to us!

　　“However, the true sect is inside of Planet Vast Expanse. Actually, the planet is hollow, and furthermore… is even larger on the inside than it is on the outside. That is the true core of the Vast Expanse School.”

　　The brother and sister duo couldn’t help but gasp as the old man’s voice echoed out. They saw the boundless mountains, they saw the numerous pagodas and palaces, they saw the countless cultivators flying to and fro. At first, they had assumed that what they were looking at was the entirety of the Vast Expanse School, but now they realized that it was only… a small portion.

　　This was one of only eight outer temple complexes.

　　“If the outer temple complexes are like this,” thought Yun Feng, “then I can only imagine how astonishing the inner core is beneath the surface of the ground….” He was left panting, and for the first time, a gleam of desire appeared in his eyes.

　　Even as the young man was shaken, his sister suddenly began to laugh.

　　“Not bad. Not bad at all,” she said. “The Vast Expanse School truly deserves its reputation as the ultimate Daoist society. The Yun Clan definitely falls short, although only by a bit.” Although her face was a bit ashen, she tried to look unimpressed. The sound of her brother’s rapidly increasing heart rate was turning into a quite a headache, though.

　　The old man in the violet-gold robe laughed lightly. Then he spoke a single sentence, a sentence that contained such power that the air in the area suddenly locked everything in place, motionless.

　　“The ceremony has been completed, the sect has been assembled, and the formalities have been spoken. Fellow Daoist, the time has come for you to show your face!”

　　The old man’s eyes glowed as they came to stare fixedly at Yun Shan’s bag of holding.

　　At the same time, rumbling could be heard, and a powerful wind kicked up as numerous spell formations formed. The million disciples swirled through the air, lining up to form an even larger grand spell formation.

　　The tens of thousands of powerful experts flanking the man in the violet-gold robe all unleashed explosive energy which cased the sky to dim and everything to shake.

　　Down below, countless auras erupted out from the million mountains, making the entire place seem like the underworld!

　　The eruption of energy caused blood to spray out of Yun Feng’s mouth as he teetered on the brink of unconsciousness. His sister stared in shock, and also coughed up blood, her face turning pale white and filling with confusion and shock.

　　She looked around at all the surrounding cultivators radiating powerful energy and realized that she had never seen so many powerful experts gathered together in one place.

　　“Seniors, you….” she said, forcing the words out of her mouth.

　　Of course, the old man in the violet-gold robe was being careful not to push things too far. After all, he could kill this brother and sister team with a single thought. After a moment, he frowned. Considering the level of his cultivation base and his age, he was adept at judging character, and at detecting when people were putting on an act. From the look of things, this brother and sister duo had no idea what was actually going on.

　　The old man’s heart thumped; reaching out with his right hand, he made a grasping gesture, causing Yun Shan’s bag of holding to fly out toward him. Instead of grabbing it, though, he simply waved his sleeve.

　　A bang rang out as the bag of holding burst open, causing countless random objects to spill out everywhere, including corpses….

　　The old man’s eyes flickered. Ignoring the miscellaneous objects, his mind trembled as his eyes came to focus on one corpse in particular!

　　As soon as he saw it, his eyes began to shine with unprecedented brightness!