Chapter 351: Why the High Regard

Han Daozi worked quickly.

With a raise of his hand, his every move seemed to carry the momentum of the heavens and the earth.

As Han Daozi performed his hand seals, the world around them seemed to undergo a subtle change.

—Not that Song Jiulai could tell, anyway.

"Done."

After landing, Han Daozi extended a finger and pressed a talismanic seal onto Song Jiulai.

"I will entrust the array to Chen Miaomiao, but you are its core. As long as you are alive, no one can enter without your permission. With just a wisp of your Divine Sense, a single thought will allow you to see every part of this place."

Song Jiulai felt a peculiar sensation spread through her.

It was as if this entire domain was hers to command.

The feeling was intoxicating, making her feel powerful, arrogant, vainglorious—

Ahem!

Han Daozi knew what was happening just by looking at Song Jiulai.

"You’re only in the Foundation Establishment Stage; your Divine Sense is still too weak. I don’t know how you awakened it so early, but someone must have helped you. The method was perilous, yet you managed to survive. For such a small sect, you certainly have no shortage of fortuitous opportunities."

And why wouldn’t he think so? In Han Daozi’s eyes,

no matter how miraculous the Longevity Sect was, it couldn’t change the fact that it was weak.

Even if the Longevity Sect had countless disciples, to a Cultivator like him, wiping it out would be as easy as lifting a finger.

It needed protection precisely because it was so weak.

Han Daozi didn’t want to see this interesting little Sect he’d discovered be casually wiped out by someone.

"It’s all luck, just luck."

Song Jiulai chimed in enthusiastically, the way one does when offering a humble, perfunctory response to a compliment.

But to her surprise, Han Daozi’s face grew stern. "Fortuitous opportunities and luck are not to be conflated! How can you simply dismiss your opportunities as ’luck’?"

Song Jiulai: "..."

’What’s the difference between the two?’

System: "Let me check the dictionary."

Song Jiulai: "..."

Seeing Song Jiulai’s blank expression, Han Daozi said irritably, "For an unorthodox practitioner like you to have come this far, it can’t be summed up as simple luck. A so-called fortuitous opportunity is something that is destined to be yours. Of course, whether or not you can actually obtain it depends on your own abilities at the time. Sometimes, when an opportunity arrives, a moment of indecision means you miss it, and then it’s gone for good."

"It’s not like luck, which is a purely random and unpredictable variable."

Song Jiulai: "..."

She didn’t quite get it, but she tried to wrap her head around it.

"So you mean this opportunity was always meant to be mine?" Song Jiulai asked blankly. "And if I don’t take it, no one else can?"

"Correct."

Stroking his beard and gazing at the sky, Han Daozi shared a theory that contradicted the prevailing views of the Cultivation World. "It is said that one’s opportunities are determined by fate. Some people’s paths have been laid out by the Heavenly Dao from the very beginning."

Han Daozi sighed. "Cultivation is supposedly about defying the heavens and changing one’s fate, but how can anyone truly go against the heavens? We can’t even break out from under this sky. In the end, every one of us is nothing more than an ant in the palm of the Heavenly Dao."

That sounded rather defeatist.

And it was a defeatism that sounded somewhat familiar to Song Jiulai.

Her master, Chihe Zhenren, had once told her that the sky above the Yunzhou Continent was sealed.

To put it simply, not even a Great Cultivator could leave the planet.

They had no idea what the world outside was like.

Therefore, the concept of a "universe" didn’t exist on the Yunzhou Continent.

Han Daozi’s words undoubtedly corroborated what Chihe Zhenren had said. It seemed quite a few people knew that the sky over the Yunzhou Continent was sealed.

Song Jiulai wondered, ’Is it possible the sky isn’t sealed, but rather that a barrier has been placed over the Yunzhou Continent, one that even the top figures in the Cultivation World can’t break through?’

After all, sealing off a person’s Immortal Path... she had recently binged a ton of novels and discovered this was a pretty common trope!

Of course, in Han Daozi’s eyes, the current Song Jiulai couldn’t possibly understand the reason for his lament, so he said, "I was just speaking my mind. Don’t take it too seriously."

After all, she was still a long way from reaching that stage.

Song Jiulai knew not to press the issue and simply said, "If that’s the case, if those opportunities were always meant for me, does that mean by accepting them, I’m also taking on some kind of responsibility?"

This wasn’t just a wild guess on her part.

In the Liuyao Secret Realm, she had seen writings that mentioned a Liu Yao associated with the word "Huaxia."

It was too much of a coincidence.

The bead Liu Yao had left her was still in her Sea of Consciousness even now.

It had forcefully carved open her Sea of Consciousness, granting her Divine Sense.

At the very least, there was something undeniably strange and inexplicable about it.

If she hadn’t entered that Secret Realm, would she have been unable to obtain its treasure?

But now, hearing what Han Daozi said... could it be that treasure had truly been left for her to take?

But why? And what was the price she had to pay in return?

There’s no such thing as a free lunch, right?

"You could say that," Han Daozi said with a nod. "Cause and effect are cyclical; the same is true for the Heavenly Dao. Behind every opportunity lies a hidden design. To put it bluntly, you don’t get something for nothing."

Song Jiulai fell into thought.

She had never been one to believe in things like fate.

After all, as one of the Huaxia people, she didn’t go in for feudal superstitions.

But here in the Cultivation World, all bets were off.

It wasn’t unheard of for some Cultivators to truly glimpse a fragment of future Heavenly Destiny and leave hints behind.

The crucial part was that the situation was a bit delicate.

Because she also had a high-tech system to account for.

Han Daozi waved his hand. "Those seven hundred disciples of yours, when are they arriving?"

He was dying to see just where Song Jiulai was going to conjure up seven hundred disciples!

Song Jiulai muttered, "They won’t necessarily all stay here. They might go to other places, too."

It wasn’t like they were guaranteed to stay put in the Longevity Sect.

Han Daozi looked slightly confused but didn’t press for details.

In any case, it would all happen in the next few days.

The foundation was laid. How the place would be built would now be up to the players to decide.

Song Jiulai had set up a rough framework; aside from a Sect emblem, she was letting the players have free rein. She had only one condition: "Just don’t build a statue of me. It’s so embarrassing to look at!"

The System, however, was quite supportive. "Isn’t this a sign of your children’s pure devotion to you? Aren’t you the least bit moved?"

Song Jiulai: "..."

’Moved, my ass.’

This was the very reason she avoided strolling down the main street these days.

It was just too embarrassing.

Seeing that Song Jiulai had no other business for him, Han Daozi left and returned to the main street of Wang’an County to continue his feasting.

He looked just like a carefree old man.

He would even break into a beaming smile from time to time.

Zhai Xiaotian found him there. Seeing his expression, he asked, "Senior, is the matter settled?"

Han Daozi waved a dismissive hand. "It was a trivial matter. There’s nothing to settle."

Zhai Xiaotian, however, gave Han Daozi a meaningful smile. "It is rare to see you show such benevolence in your worldly travels, Senior. Do you truly hold that Sect Master in such high regard?"

Han Daozi shot Zhai Xiaotian a sideways glance.