In the rear hall of Invincible Sect.

　　“Master, I don’t think Bai Ze is a simple character. It would be better if you minimize contact with him,” Yi Qing spoke sternly to Shen Ying for the very first time.

　　“He’s nice,” Shen Ying retorted as she chewed on a pastry. He knows how to serve dishes too. The best part about him is he looks delicious.

　　Yi Qing suddenly stopped stir-frying and turned to Shen Ying, “Master, you have been hidden away from the world for a long time. You don’t know how sinister people can be.”

　　“He’s not a person.”

　　“A beast’s heart is equally sinister!” Yi Qing hurriedly added, “If he has an ulterior motive… We better send him back as soon as possible.”

　　“Don’t be so pessimistic. Didn’t he say he came to play?” Shen Ying stared longingly at the food in the wok and nudged Yi Qing, “Quick, give it a quick stir, it’s going to burn!”

　　“Master…” Yi Qing frowned and stirred the contents of the wok. “He is obviously spending extra effort to please you; please don’t be so easily bought over.”

　　“Er…” Was she that gullible? “Don’t worry, Furball doesn’t talk much, but he’s not a bad person.”

　　“Master!” Yi Qing turned to her in shock. “You… You are not really looking for a Dao partner right?”

　　“A Dao partner?” Shen Ying stared blankly at Yi Qing and remembered who he was talking about. “I have not thought about it… But I am getting on in years. Even if I do want to date him, it isn’t that big of a deal, right?”

　　“No!” Yi Qing yelped, slamming the spatula down onto the floor.

　　Shen Ying jumped, “Why?”

　　“Because…” he thought for a long time but was unable to conceive of a good reason. Who knows why?

　　He just hated the sight of that beast hanging around Master.

　　He could not care less for the food in the wok anymore. Yi Qing grabbed Shen Ying’s hand and said, “Master, trust me. Looking for a Dao partner is a huge thing. You cannot be careless about it. That Bai Ze does not look like a good person…. nor a good beast. What’s more, you’re a cultivator. You shouldn’t partner him.”

　　“…” I didn’t say I want to partner Furball. She didn’t have that strange a taste.

　　“I agree with him,” Lonemoon suddenly raised his hand before Shen Ying could answer. His expression was sombre, “I don’t care if you look for a partner, and you can look for anyone you want except Bai Ze.”

　　“Look, Master, even Father Niu says so! Yi Qing nodded furiously. This was the first time he agreed with something Lonemoon said. “Master, you need to reconsider.”

　　Lonemoon: “…” Who’s your Father Niu!

　　“So according to you guys, what kind of partner should I look for?”

　　“…” Yi Qing stopped short. He kept quiet for a second trying to envision someone pleasing to the eye, but he realised that no one around him was able to match up to his master, who was perfect in his eyes. Just thinking about another person hanging around Master made his heart race with anger.

　　“In any case… in any case, it cannot be Bai Ze! The divine race has always only existed in stories. No one has seen a true divine being. We can’t be sure if he’s for real,” Yi Qing shook his head. “Oh yes, you cannot choose that Yi Feng either. He is a beast control cultivator, yet he acknowledges a beast as his master. He’s definitely not a good man.”

　　The so-called bad Yi Feng: “…”

　　Hey, are you forgetting that I’m right here?

　　“Sect… Sect Master Shen,” he could not help but say something to make his presence known. Had they called him out here to criticize him?

　　“Please calm down. My Spirit Master is indeed the legendary ancient divine beast Bai Ze.”

　　He glanced at Shen Ying and subconsciously pursed his lips. He was uanble to believe that his Spirit Master had such a strange taste in partners.

　　“My Spirit Master does not belong to this world. He got injured by accident and fell down here. By pure luck, he chanced upon my ancestors, who were caught in a stampede at the Mirage Sea. Spirit Master chased those beasts away and saved my ancestors. Then, he handed down the beast control techniques to my Yi FAmily. That was how my family achieved its standing in the Upper Azure World. Besides the divine race, no one else in this world can control tens of thousands of beasts,” Yi Feng explained. Thinking of something, he added, “Besides Great Immortal Shen, of course.”

　　“All these years, Spirit Master has been thinking of a way to get back to his world, but the boundary between the Three Azure Realms cannot be easily surpassed, even by those of divine race. The Yi Family has thought of many ways before, but we still are unable to break open the realm gate.”

　　“The Yi Family’s ancestors promised Spirit Master that if they achieved Immortal Ascension, they would do all they can to help Spirit Master return to where he came from. But up till now, no one in the Yi Family has achieved Immortal Ascension – no one can even so much as step into the Immortal Realm, much less the Divine Realm.” His expression was one of pure guilt, “So… all these years, he has been stuck with the Yi Family. It is because of his presence that the water beasts in Mirage Sea dare not step up onto the shore to enter the Upper Azure World.”

　　“And that Black Spirit Blossom…” he glanced at Lonemoon, “That is the only thing Spirit Master has with him that is of the divine race. It is said that the flower can connect the three realms. That is Spirit Master’s only hope of returning home. He has given such an important item to Sect Master Shen… that proves his sincerity.”

　　“Did you say this flower can break open the realm gate?” Lonemoon took out the Black Spirit Blossom and raised it up between them, not believing his ears.

　　“That’s right!” Yi Feng nodded. “Spirit Master mentioned it before. That’s why he personally protects this flower and never lets anyone near it, unless they’re trying to help him break open the realm gate”

　　Lonemoon studied the flower, but no matter how long and hard he stared, he was unable to find anything special about it apart from its emanation of Spirit Qi. Even Radish could not tell it was that special.

　　He handed the flower over to Shen Ying, “Shen Ying, use your cheater eyes to take a glance.”

　　“…” The corner of Shen Ying’s mouth twitched as she received the flower and turned it around in her hands to study it from all angles. She did not find anything special either. “I have never seen this flower…”

　　Huh?

　　“Only strong spiritual power can make use of this Black Spirit Blossom to break open the realm gates,” Yi Feng explained. “It is said that the spiritual power needed is comparable to the amount used when one ascends to immortality. There is only one such flower on this Earth. If…”

　　Before he could finish, he heard a crack. Shen Ying had clenched her fist. The pure, white, delicate flower in her hands was crushed into powder.

　　…

　　(⊙_⊙)

　　Yi Feng could almost hear his own heart shattering

　　“Sect Master Shen, you…”

　　“It’s open.” Before Yi Feng could finish, Shen Ying interrupted him. She unclenched her fist and revealed a small crack on her palm. It looked like a bolt of flashing white lightning. The bolt floated into the air.

　　The group: “…”

　　Σ(°△°|||)

　　Holy shit, has she really opened it?

　　So all they had to do was to crush the flower? Has the Yi Family been working so hard for nothing all these years?

　　“But…” he studied the crack which was about the size of his own eyeball. “This is such a small crack. Can it really take us to the Divine Realm?”

　　“Oh, then open it up,” Shen Ying answered callously. She stuck her finger into the crack, hooked onto its side and pulled her finger outward forcefully.

　　They heard a series of loud cracking sounds. It appeared as effortless as tearing a piece of paper. In place of the small crack was now an opening, two- to three-feet wide.

　　She really tore open the realm gate.

　　“Tell Furball to go home for dinner!”

　　Yi Feng: “…”

　　Lonemoon: “…”

　　Yi Qing: “…”