Chapter 693: Great Demon 56
Tan You opened her mouth, revealing her small, sharp teeth. "There’s always a way."
The Clan Leader of the Peacock Clan laughed. "Jin Yao, this young one of yours has a temper just like you. It looks like the Grand Tournament of the Clans will be quite a show this time."
"I remember when you participated in the Grand Tournament. You dominated the Immortal Monarchs of your generation across the Nine-Layered Heavens so completely they couldn’t even raise their heads. Even after all these years, few dare to act brazenly in your presence."
"If it weren’t for that, no one would dare to cause trouble right under your nose now that you’ve brought Little Jinzi back."
Tan You suddenly raised her head, her beady eyes fixed on Jin Yao. ’So this old ancestor of mine had such a glorious past? What a pity I couldn’t see it for myself.’
’And are Immortal Monarchs not allowed to bring people from the lower realms to the Nine-Layered Heavens?’
Jin Yao tapped Tan You on the forehead. "It’s no big deal. It’s the first time our Golden Ring Snake clan has had a little girl. Besides, if I can’t handle it, there are still four old ancestors above me. We’ve got connections!"
Tan You said, "I’m not scared. I was just wondering, why are there only six Golden Ring Snakes in our entire clan?"
’She really didn’t like thinking of herself as just another snake, but there was no helping it. That was her species. What could Tan You do?’
Jin Yao chuckled. "Our numbers may be few, but our quality is high. A single one of us is enough to hold off an entire army. Little Jinzi, you have to do your best, too. Don’t tarnish the great name of your elders."
A surge of fighting spirit filled Tan You. "Don’t you worry, Old Ancestor! I’ll cultivate with everything I have, and when the time comes, I’ll slaughter them all!"
Jin Yao froze for a second before his narrow eyes crinkled into a smile. "Such big talk for someone so small."
The Clan Leader of the Phoenix Clan chuckled. "Little Jinzi is even better at stirring up trouble than you are, Jin Yao. She was still in the lower realms when she shattered the schemes of many Immortal Monarchs from the Upper Realm. She’s already a thorn in their sides, so you’d better watch her closely."
Tan You put on an obedient act. "I’ll definitely focus on my cultivation and won’t go anywhere."
’The ones who sneak out are usually the ones who get killed. I have no intention of becoming cannon fodder. My life is my own, and I’m going to fight to take it back.’
Jin Yao was noncommittal. "Can you really sit still?"
Tan You flicked the tip of her tail. "Just you watch. I may not be good at much else, but my patience is absolutely top-notch."
’I’m not a real child, after all, and I know the road ahead is arduous. How could I even think of running around before I’m strong enough? That’s just asking to be killed.’
’It’s just that in this Cultivation World, my prison sentence was getting longer and longer. And to top it off, it was self-imposed. Tan You’s feelings on the matter were... complicated.’
And Tan You was true to her word. Less than a day after arriving in the Nine-Layered Heavens, she went into secluded cultivation. During this time, some young members of the Demon Clan and even a few Human Clan Immortal Monarchs heard the news and tried to visit her, but they were all turned away at the border of the Golden Ring Snake clan’s territory.
Tan You remained in seclusion, completely ignoring the gossip of the outside world. Gradually, it seemed that the Nine-Layered Heavens had forgotten all about her.
Until one day, fierce winds suddenly howled and dark clouds gathered over the Golden Ring Snake clan’s territory. This celestial phenomenon immediately attracted the attention of countless Immortal Monarchs.
In an instant, countless prying eyes were fixed on Jin Yao’s territory from the outside. But Jin Yao couldn’t be bothered with them. He was watching Tan You face her tribulation—her thirteenth Heavenly Tribulation, also known as the Ascension Heavenly Tribulation, a trial so feared by Cultivators in the lower realms that their faces would pale at its very mention.
Ordinarily, she shouldn’t have been facing the Ascension Stage Heavenly Tribulation less than a thousand years after arriving in the Immortal Realm. But the Immortal Spirit Qi in the Nine-Layered Heavens was simply too rich. That, combined with Tan You’s own diligence and the blessing of the Golden Ring Snake clan’s Crown—the embodiment of the clan’s fortune—meant that ever since she entered seclusion, her cultivation had been skyrocketing uncontrollably.
The eleventh and twelfth-tier Heavenly Tribulations had also caused a stir, but they weren’t major milestones, so Jin Yao had been able to conceal them for her. This Heavenly Tribulation for ascending to Immortal Monarch, however, was something he could not hide.
That was why Tan You’s tribulation was causing such a massive commotion.
A Bai Ze stood watching from a distance, its lips pressed together. Amid flashes of lightning and peals of thunder, a great white python coiled and writhed within the thunderclouds. The python moved with relentless purpose, and it seemed to have the upper hand against the tribulation lightning crashing down upon it.
"This is too dangerous." The Bai Ze practically forced the words through its teeth. Because it was favored by the Heavenly Dao, its cultivation had always been smooth sailing. Even its own tribulations had never been this difficult.
But it had been present for almost all of Tan You’s tribulations, and truthfully, her Heavenly Tribulations were always exceptionally perilous.
"Little Jinzi is even using the Heavenly Tribulation for Body Refining. She’s a pure-blooded Golden Ring Snake. The Golden Ring Snake clan is even rarer than our Bai Ze clan; that alone tells you how arduous her path to growth is."
Another Bai Ze commented calmly, "Although we are favored by the Heavenly Dao and our cultivation path is clear, when it comes to combat strength, we are indeed no match for the Golden Ring Snakes."
The first Bai Ze sighed and said no more.
Jin Yao stood beside the Bai Ze, hands clasped behind his back. He appeared calm, but inwardly, he was burning with anxiety. ’It’s just the tribulation to become an Immortal Monarch. How can it be this powerful? This phenomenon... it’s almost like when I awakened my Emperor’s Soul.’
’But I was already a fifth-grade Immortal Monarch back then. Tan You isn’t even an Immortal Monarch yet. Has she already reached that threshold at such a young age?’ At this thought, Jin Yao was filled with a mix of worry and anticipation, and he couldn’t stop his hands from clenching into fists.
"Relax. You don’t want Little Jinzi to see you and laugh," a voice said. Just as Jin Yao was growing tense, four men in white robes suddenly appeared beside him. They watched Tan You with appreciative eyes as she faced her tribulation.
Jin Yao turned his head. "First Brother, Second Brother, Third Brother, Fourth Brother! Why are you all back? Did something happen on the front line?"
"Not at all," the white-haired man in the center said with a smile. "The front line has been peaceful recently. There are occasional minor conflicts, but they’re easily handled. We returned so suddenly because we sensed that a promising new junior has appeared in the clan. She has already touched the threshold of the Power of Laws."
Jin Yao’s suspicions were confirmed, but he felt not a shred of jealousy. "I knew I had a good eye. Once Little Jinzi cultivates for a few more thousand years, the next Grand Tournament of the Clans is going to be spectacular."
The white-haired man leading them nodded slightly. "She’s so young. To have cultivated to this level at her age... her talent is truly extraordinary."
"Back then, I thought young Jin Yao was a prodigy of the ages, having cultivated an Emperor’s Soul as a mere fifth-grade Immortal Monarch. We were considered astonishingly talented in our day, too, but we only comprehended the Power of Laws after reaching the eighth-grade Immortal Monarch realm."
"Who would have thought that before young Jin Yao could even get too smug, Little Jinzi would come out of nowhere and completely steal his thunder."
A man with a roguish air grinned. "Young Jin Yao, how does it feel to be outshone?"
Jin Yao didn’t mind at all. "I should be asking you that, Ancestor. How did you feel back in your day?"
"Clever boy, turning my own question back on me." The man casually slung an arm around Jin Yao’s shoulders. "This little girl... she’s really something else. You did a good thing, bringing her here."
"If she had stayed in the lower realm, I doubt she would have ever reached this stage."