Chapter 662: What a Coincidence

Before leaving, Yi Tianyun plundered all the peddler’s Treasures, not leaving behind a single Spirit Stone. For a scammer, being allowed to live was already a mercy; all those Treasures could be considered the price for his life.

‘Of all the people to scam, he dared to try me? He even wanted to beat me up at the end.’ Yi Tianyun definitely wouldn’t hold back. He took everything, not leaving a single coin behind.

Soon, the peddler came to his senses and found himself swimming naked in the river outside, with absolutely no idea what had happened!

“W-what am I doing?”

The peddler was dumbfounded; he’d even lost his recent memories. Yi Tianyun had erased that period of time to better ensure He Rongkun’s safety. Although the Celestial Realm was vast, there was always a chance they might cross paths, so he had removed that segment of the peddler’s memory.

At the same time, all the eligible Cultivators at the Ascension Divine Hall began to flood inside. Yi Tianyun followed them in.

The environment here was no different from the Ascension Divine Hall in the Netherworld—they were basically identical. Aside from the Teleportation Divine Pattern on the top floor, there wasn’t the slightest difference. This meant the trial’s content was also the same: first climbing a ladder, then ascending the steps. Nothing had changed.

The only difference was that successfully reaching the top would earn a Martial Arts reward! This was one of the greatest temptations. The trial not only improved one’s cultivation but also granted a Martial Arts reward—who wouldn’t jump at the chance?

As Yi Tianyun walked toward the passage, he immediately saw a familiar figure: the young man from before.

“I heard you almost got into trouble just now?” a middle-aged man snapped at He Rongkun.

“N-No… This disciple just saw that he was about my age and figured it wasn’t easy for him to come here, so I just offered a few words of advice. I didn’t say anything more.” He Rongkun hung his head pitifully, like a child who had done something wrong.

“Didn’t do anything? I only told you to ignore those scammers, not to tell others to ignore them! If you provoked them, even I couldn’t handle them. Some of them have higher cultivation than your master!” This man was undoubtedly He Rongkun’s master, Wei Feizhou. He wore a look of utter exasperation.

His cultivation was decent enough—third-level Core Formation Stage—making him a respectable master. But his words were true; if He Rongkun were to randomly cause trouble outside, Wei Feizhou really would have a hard time fending off those peddlers.

Some of those peddlers were even at the seventh or eighth level of the Core Formation Stage. A few were legitimate, but most were scammers looking to make a quick buck and leave. In this day and age, being kind-hearted just means you’re a fool!

Clearly, the faction He Rongkun belonged to wasn’t a major power.

Yi Tianyun smiled knowingly. ‘So that’s why. He only offered to help because he saw someone his own age. The kid’s pretty simple-hearted.’

“S-Sorry, Master. I won’t do it again…” He Rongkun apologized profusely.

“You dare think about a next time?” Wei Feizhou glared at him.

“N-No, there won’t be a next time…” He Rongkun said hastily.

Seeing his disciple nod earnestly, Wei Feizhou finally sighed. “Rongkun, as your master, I know you have a kind heart, but the world is a wicked place. Just because you help people doesn’t mean they’ll repay you. Besides your own family, you can’t trust anyone else. Understand?”

“I understand, Master.” He Rongkun nodded to show he understood.

“Good that you understand. Get ready; you’ll be going up soon.” Wei Feizhou finally broke into a smile, patting him on the shoulder. “Do your best in a bit. If you can’t handle it, just come back down. But I believe you can definitely climb to a higher step this time. You’ll at least make it to the first three hundred steps!”

“I will!” He Rongkun was full of confidence. Then, catching a glimpse of Yi Tianyun walking over from the corner of his eye, he smiled. “Looks like that peddler didn’t give you any trouble…”

“Thanks to your reminder, I wasn’t scammed.” Yi Tianyun walked over with a smile, conveniently leaving out the fact that he was impossible to scam in the first place. “We didn’t do anything, so what trouble could he have caused? We didn’t run around telling everyone he was a fraud, so naturally, he left us alone.”

“Is this the friend you were advising earlier?” Wei Feizhou frowned, looking Yi Tianyun up and down, but he couldn’t get a read on him.

“Yes, this is the friend I was advising.” He Rongkun smiled at Yi Tianyun. “That’s great. The trial is about to begin. You can get ready to participate.”

“No, I’m not participating. I just came to take a look.” Yi Tianyun smiled. He certainly wasn’t going to participate; there was no point.

‘I’m the master of the Ascension Divine Altar, so why would I participate? Besides, my cultivation has already broken through to the Saint King realm. The trial would have no effect on me. At most, it would give me a few million, maybe ten million experience points. What’s the point of that for me now?’

“You’re not participating?” Both He Rongkun and Wei Feizhou were stunned. Not participating? Was he just here to wander around? Most people who came here were either taking the trial or selling things outside. It was that simple.

It was rare to see someone just wandering around, especially someone as young as Yi Tianyun, who should be taking the trial with the others.

Wei Feizhou’s frown deepened. He looked at Yi Tianyun and asked, “If I may ask, young friend, what sect or faction are you from? And your master, did he not come with you?”

“I don’t belong to any sect or faction. I’m just a Loose Cultivator, just taking a stroll,” Yi Tianyun replied with a smile.

“No sect, just a Loose Cultivator?” Wei Feizhou shook his head. He had thought Yi Tianyun might be a disciple from a decent faction, but now it seemed he really was just aimlessly wandering.

‘But even if he’s just wandering, he should still give the trial a shot! He’s already here; not going would be a waste of an opportunity.’

“If you’re not going, that’s a real shame…” He Rongkun shook his head, then smiled. “I almost forgot to introduce myself. I am He Rongkun. And you are, friend?”

“Yi Tianyun,” Yi Tianyun said simply.

“Yi Tianyun?” He Rongkun froze for a moment, then murmured, “Yi Tianyun, Yi Tianyun… that name sounds a little familiar!”

“Familiar?” Yi Tianyun was a little puzzled, but then he smiled. “It’s probably a coincidence. The world is a big place; there must be plenty of people with the same name.”

“I remember now! Sometime before, when I was passing Luoyu Mountain with my master, I saw a stunningly beautiful woman standing on the edge of a peak, calling the name ‘Tianyun.’ She was saying something about not knowing when she’d see Tianyun again. I wanted to look at her a bit longer, but my master dragged me away, saying I shouldn’t stare, or I might invite a fatal disaster…”

He Rongkun scratched his head in embarrassment and chuckled. “It’s probably just a coincidence. I’m not sure if the person she was calling for was also named Yi, but I definitely heard her say ‘Tianyun’…”

As he rambled on, the expression on Yi Tianyun’s face changed. ‘Could he have seen Shi Xueyun?! It can’t be such a coincidence, can it? The very person I decided to help happens to have news of Shi Xueyun!’