My Crazy Upgrade System

How could Yi Tianyun not know what Shi Xueyun was thinking? She was nurturing the Merak Sect to become his strongest backing, to protect everything he held dear. Perhaps with its current strength, it wasn’t nearly enough to stand against the world, but at least that had always been her goal.

She asked for nothing in return, silently giving her all for the entire Merak Sect, and for him.

After their tender moment, they looked at each other and smiled. There was no awkwardness, only a feeling of warmth.

"Aunt, that’s right, there’s something very important I forgot to tell you. Or rather, something I need to verify!" Yi Tianyun’s expression turned serious.

"Go on," Shi Xueyun said. She didn’t get up, but continued to lean lazily against his chest. If anyone else were to walk in and see them, they would surely be dumbstruck.

Although the two of them had no blood ties and were only a few years apart in age, the scene was still a bit too scandalous.

Yi Tianyun then explained everything. He told her about the situation with the Celestial Extreme Mansion, the matter of the Profound Celestial Spirit King, and the question concerning the Merak Sect’s founder.

After he finished explaining, Shi Xueyun sat up, her fine brows knitting together. "I’m not too clear on that myself," she said. "We’ll have to ask the ancestors."

She then stood up and led him to find the ancestors. She wasn’t very clear on these historical matters. To her, who the founder was didn’t matter as much as managing the sect in the present.

Soon, they found the ancestors. Having received a great deal of resources, they were all cultivating diligently, and their cultivation bases had improved considerably. However, there were still limits. The older one got, the weaker their Blood Qi became. This was just like Yi Tianyun’s situation in the past; if one’s Blood Qi was too weak, it was impossible to cultivate, let alone achieve a breakthrough.

"Ancestors, what was the real name of our Merak Sect’s founder?" Shi Xueyun’s question was blunt and to the point.

When the ancestors saw Yi Tianyun, they scrambled to their feet. Their attitude toward him was completely different now; they wouldn’t dare show the slightest disrespect. If not for Yi Tianyun, these old women would have died long ago. Who among them would still dare to act high and mighty?

’If they had put on arrogant airs, I wouldn’t have minded kicking them out to sleep outside and reflect on their actions. Fortunately, these old women were sensible and didn’t do anything out of line. Some elders just take things for granted, assuming they’re entitled to everything, or even that they were the ones who nurtured me.’

’If they really thought that way, I would’ve slapped them silly and told them to get out of my sight. I was taken care of by Shi Xueyun, not by these old fossils.’

"The real name of our founder..." The ancestors frowned, then shook their heads. "We actually don’t know. All the records were erased. There’s simply no information about the founder. At most, we know he was a man. We don’t know anything else."

"Is there no other information besides that?" Yi Tianyun felt a pang of disappointment. He had hoped to confirm his suspicions, but the information was incredibly limited.

"Well, as for other information..." The ancestors exchanged awkward glances, but they spoke up anyway. "The most we know is that he was the Palace Master who abandoned a female disciple... That female disciple then became the next Palace Master, and she was the one who expelled all the male disciples, leaving only women in the sect."

This was the Merak Sect’s dark history, something they were naturally reluctant to speak of. It was almost certainly true and was the fundamental reason why the Merak Sect was composed only of female disciples. A single heartless man led to the birth of a Merak Sect with only female disciples and no men.

The sect only opened its doors later, and even then, only to accept male Outer Disciples. This was only done because they were being threatened by other sects.

Yi Tianyun had heard this information before, so it wasn’t exactly a secret. Still, hearing it retold was a bit awkward.

"You don’t even know his name? Not even his surname?" Yi Tianyun couldn’t help but feel disappointed.

"His surname... we don’t know. But we do know a little about his given name," one of the ancestors said after a moment of thought.

"What name?" Yi Tianyun asked.

"Tianxuan. That was the name of the first Palace Master. As for the surname, we don’t know," the ancestor said, shaking her head.

"Excellent!" Yi Tianyun broke into a smile. "That’s more than enough. It’s just as I thought. The first Palace Master of our Merak Sect was the master of the Celestial Sinking Ruins! After leaving the Merak Sect, he didn’t go far. Instead, he established the Celestial Sinking Ruins right here. That’s quite a surprise."

"There’s such a story!?" They were all astonished. They had lived here for so long without ever knowing who the master of this place was. At most, they knew he was called the Profound Celestial Spirit King; they had no idea what his real name was.

Yi Tianyun smiled and quickly called out, "Elder Xuan! Elder Xuan!"

Elder Xuan appeared in a flash. Seeing Yi Tianyun, he said respectfully, "Master, how may I help you?"

"What was your previous master’s real name?" Yi Tianyun asked.

"My previous master’s name was He Tianxuan," Elder Xuan answered truthfully.

"And did this senior ever establish a sect?" Yi Tianyun inquired.

"That I do not know. I only know that my previous master would constantly stare at a portrait and often mutter to himself," Elder Xuan said.

"A portrait?" Yi Tianyun smiled. "Is it still here?"

"It is not. My previous master instructed that it be burned for him after his death. I have already burned it." Elder Xuan then added, "However, I can create an illusion of it for you to see, Master."

"Then do it, quickly," Yi Tianyun gestured for him to begin.

With a light wave of his hand, a misty scene appeared before them, and a painting quickly materialized in front of their eyes. Since Elder Xuan could conjure an entire Illusion Realm, creating the illusion of a single painting was no problem at all.

They all got a clear look at the person in the painting, and one of the ancestors cried out in shock, "That—that’s our Ancestral Founder!?"

The other ancestors also exclaimed in shock. Portraits of their Ancestral Founder were still preserved; in fact, portraits of every successive Palace Master existed, with the sole exception of the Profound Celestial Spirit King.

"It seems the Profound Celestial Spirit King cared a great deal..." Yi Tianyun shook his head. "So why did things turn out this way? Elder Xuan, do you know anything about it?"

"I’m not entirely sure. I only ever heard my previous master ramble on about being sorry, about how he had failed her... I don’t know the rest," Elder Xuan said, shaking his head.

Yi Tianyun nodded, deciding not to probe any further. Let the past be the past. The important thing was that he now knew the truth. The Merak Sect was indeed founded by the Profound Celestial Spirit King, meaning it shared the same roots as the Celestial Extreme Mansion!