Unparalleled Rival! 7: Celestial Connection (Patreon)

7: Celestial Connection

Soon, Tian Lang and Xu Yinxing left the secret testing area. The woman composed herself once the effect of the statues ceased to subtly influence her spirit. Still, her face remained dark, and she avoided looking at Tian Lang actively.

On his part, Tian Lang kept thinking about the “illusions” of the tests. Like dust in the wind, the memory of what happened while he was trapped in those false worlds began to fade; after all, they were false memories temporarily implanted in his mind.

He didn’t have a sister, he wasn’t a child playing in the forest, and he wasn’t an almighty celestial being with a harem of beautiful women waiting for him.

Perhaps that last one was a memory he really wanted to keep, yet he knew it was false, just a momentary temptation he had to let go.

“Someday,” he told himself, though he wasn’t sure what he was pursuing. Was it the palace and riches? Power? Women? Or adventure?

Maybe it was all of it together.

He had learned more about himself in less than a day than in his entire life, which was, of course, disconcerting.

“We're here,” Xu Yinxing’s words pulled him out of his thoughts.

When he looked up, he saw a majestic hall with silver walls. Enormous pillars with ancient engravings supported a blue crystal ceiling that was more than a hundred meters above them.

In the center of it all was a silver throne with red cushions and golden ornaments. A crescent moon emitting profound starlight Qi hung behind the throne on a wall as dark as space.

This was the main hall of the Silver Moon Peak, where the principal master of the peak handled all matters related to the peak.

If it were any other mountain peak, there would be dozens of high-status members present, along with other seats arranged beside the throne.

But in this place, there was only one seat.

Xu Yinxing walked with a serious, expressionless face. She reached the throne, turned around, and sat on it, the crescent moon behind her shining momentarily as if recognizing the arrival of its master.

Tian Lang opened his eyes, sensing a different atmosphere. What was this?

He couldn’t say for sure, but it was as if something had changed in Xu Yinxing when she sat on the throne, whether it was her attitude or the presence she exuded.

“Tian Lang, mortal without a clan, new student of the Eternal Star Academy.”

It was her voice, yet at the same time, there was something different, like a hidden echo. Her eyes now shone with a silver hue, looking at him as if judging something within him.

“You have successfully passed the trials imposed on you and have been deemed worthy of entering Silver Moon Peak. Now, kneel and accept this lady as your master.”

It felt like a celestial command, an unknown force pressing against his body, making him stagger forward. Tian Lang felt his knees creak but remained firm and did not fall, despite his shoulders sinking.

Xu Yinxing, on the throne, slightly raised an eyebrow, the shine in her eyes glimmered a bit more, and the corner of her lips lifted upon seeing this.

The pressure on him diminished, and Tian Lang sighed to himself. He looked at the woman who now seemed entirely different from the woman he had known earlier and couldn’t help but doubt for a moment. Was it all a trick? Which part of the Xu Yinxing he had come to know that day was real? Or was there something he didn’t know?

But he had come this far, and turning back now wasn’t how he did things. Without further hesitation, he let his knees touch the floor and brought both palms together, bowing forward respectfully.

He wasn’t a proud child who would shout to the heavens that he would never kneel before anyone. No, that right belonged only to those with the strength to back up such a declaration, and in this world, only those who were Eternal had the qualifications to say such words.

“This young man thanks the principal master of Silver Moon Peak, Xu Yinxing, for accepting him as her disciple.” Tian Lang had never been in a ceremony like this, so he simply copied the words a character in the original novel said when he was accepted as a disciple of one of the main peaks.

He hoped they were the right words.

“And I, Xu Yinxing, as the principal master of Silver Moon Peak, accept you as my first official disciple.” Then there was a roar.

Suddenly, the entire Silver Moon Peak trembled slightly, an ethereal glow of energy illuminated its surface, causing the sky, which was beginning to darken, to light up with a silver light.

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In a different part of the peak, Xu Mingyue's eyes suddenly opened with astonishment, her gaze lifted towards the top of the peak with incredulity written on her face.

Not just her, throughout the entire Eternal Star Academy, eyes opened, stellar Qi erupting along with dozens of divine senses, all focused on the Silver Moon Peak.

"What is this?!"

"How?!"

"Did that woman succeed?!"

Director Hao blinked, his curious gaze seeming to penetrate through everything, reaching the main hall of the Silver Moon Peak, where he saw Tian Lang bowing towards the throne where Xu Yinxing was seated.

As if sensing his gaze, the woman on the throne smiled with a clear hint of mockery on her lips, then the Qi fluctuated and Director Hao blinked as he felt his divine sense expelled the next instant.

Then he snorted and returned to what he was doing. It seemed that this time he had underestimated Xu Yinxing. Oh well, another martial artist for the Eternal Star Academy was fine.

The other principal masters around him remained incredulous, as no one had believed this would happen in the first place.

"Silence, the boy has chosen, let's return to our matters," the director's words silenced the discussion, with bitter but resigned faces the principal masters nodded.

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What happened was not a mere spectacle of lights.

When Xu Yinxing finished her words, Tian Lang felt something strange happening, an invisible bond formed between the two of them, like a tie that united them spiritually.

Seeing his doubt, Xu Yinxing began to explain, although this was also somewhat new to her since Tian Lang was her first official disciple with whom she performed this type of ceremony. Her sister didn’t count because, although she was a member of the Silver Moon Peak, she didn't actually join as her disciple.

"The acceptance ceremony is complete. You can feel it, can't you? The connection that has formed between us," she said, and Tian Lang nodded, looking at her with curiosity.

"This is thanks to this throne," Xu Yinxing patted the armrest of her throne.

"Each peak's principal master has one. They are special celestial treasures with many functions, but their primary one is to help recognize the members of the peak to which they belong."

"This treasure forms what is known as celestial connections. Do you know what that is?" She asked, and Tian Lang almost shook his head but then remembered, he had read about this in the novel.

"I heard they are like oaths? Something made to the heavens that you are obliged to fulfill or be punished?" He lacked some information.

"Yes and no. Oaths made to the heavens are somewhat different. When a cultivator swears or promises something, they are only doing it with themselves and the heavens as the judge. That means it only affects them and nothing more."

In this universe, when a cultivator makes a true promise or oath, whether spoken aloud or not, and regardless of the type, it is engraved deep in their spirit, binding them to the celestial laws.

Of course, this type of oath seemed dangerous at first glance, but there was something that prevented the wrong people from using it to force others to do things against their will. As Xu Yinxing mentioned, when a cultivator swears or promises something, they are only doing it with themselves and the heavens as the judge.

And the heavens were a very harsh but impartial judge. First, the promise or oath had to be made willingly. If there was the slightest hint that it was an empty or false promise, the heavens would reject it and punish you accordingly.

At the same time, if someone tried to force you to promise or swear something against your will, it would also be rejected, and that person would be punished instead.

Xu Yinxing explained this to Tian Lang so he could better understand what she would say next.

"Under normal circumstances, the heavens do not accept mutual oaths or promises, that is, where someone other than oneself participates." No one really knew why, but that was how it worked, which is why something like the throne existed.

"Wait, Master. If that's the case, then how can people swear to kill or take revenge on someone else?" Tian Lang asked, as he remembered that such promises had been made during the novel and were indeed effective.

"Those are not mutual promises, Kid, They are oaths to oneself. And although in a certain sense they involve someone else, the reality is that they only affect the one who made the promise or oath. The other party wouldn't even know about it unless you told them directly or made the oath in their face," Xu Yinxing explained.

Eh, that made sense now that he thought about it.

"Continuing with my explanation, under normal circumstances, that's what happens. But there are ways to make the rules change a little—not break or bend them, but add some extra terms," she said. After all, cultivators had always made "defying the heavens" their way of life.

And although 99% of them never actually succeeded in doing so, that didn't mean there hadn't been those who did.

"What you just felt was something an ancient artifact master achieved a long, long time ago. To summarize, by using a type of special spiritual matrices inserted into a high-grade celestial treasure, you can make the heavens allow the so-called mutual promises or oaths, more commonly known as celestial connections."

Of course, there was a much more complex explanation, but neither Xu Yinxing nor Tian Lang were matrix or artifact masters, so they didn't need to know the exact "science" behind how this was achieved.

"On this day and in this place, I have sworn to myself to be your master and thereby fulfill all the responsibilities that entails. At the same time, you have accepted being my disciple, thus allowing a celestial connection to form between us with the help of this throne," Xu Yinxing concluded.

Tian Lang couldn't help but raise his hand at that moment.

"Uh, if that's the case, what responsibilities do I have?" Had he accepted a deal without reading the contract?

Seeing his worried expression, Xu Yinxing almost rolled her eyes.

"Look at you, so worried. Do you think I need something from you?" Well, she did, but it wasn't the right time to say so.

Tian Lang almost said "yes" out loud but held back. Although he didn't know what this woman wanted from him, it was obvious there was something.

"No, you are a renowned cultivator, A principal master not only of the Eternal Star Academy but also of the Silver Moon Peak. I don't think there's anything this humble disciple could offer to an incredible woman like you, Master."

If she weren't still sitting on the throne, Xu Yinxing might have felt a bit embarrassed by receiving such praise from her new student. It was undoubtedly flattering.

But instead, she almost snorted, looking at Tian Lang with amusement and waving her hand to make him stand up.

Tian Lang felt his body struck by an invisible force, and suddenly he was standing upright again.

"As I said, this doesn't break or bend the laws of the heavens, so I can't force you to swear to do something if you don't want to do it. That's not how a celestial connection works, at least not entirely."

Tian Lang didn't understand. If that was the case, what was mutual about it?

"You're smart, boy, just think about it."

Tian Lang began to ponder, and then he understood why he could feel the connection between the two of them.

As Xu Yinxing mentioned, Tian Lang hadn't done anything other than accept her as his master. This, of course, involved the basic requirements and respect one should have as a student, meaning basic loyalty to his master, not harming or seeking harm against his master, and so on. Consequently, and indirectly, any action that could harm either the Silver Moon Peak or the Eternal Star Academy also fell within those parameters, albeit somewhat vaguely.

At the same time, Xu Yinxing now had all the responsibilities of a master toward Tian Lang, which included looking out for his well-being and safety, teaching him properly, providing the necessary resources to carry out what was taught, etc.

Once he understood this, Tian Lang couldn't help but look at Xu Yinxing with more caution than before.

She didn't mention it, but it was clear that if Tian Lang truly had no intention of being her disciple or providing her with basic respect as a master, then the ceremony would have failed.

After all, Tian Lang couldn't be forced to do things he wasn't willing to do in the first place.

No, he didn’t understand. What did she gain from this? If one looked closely at the arrangement, it was clear that the only one benefiting here was him. She had to protect him, look after his well-being, provide resources, and teach him, while he only had to be her student and not seek to harm or betray her.

Which was extremely easy, as Tian Lang never intended to do that in the first place.

He wanted to ask aloud, but decided not to. Whatever her intentions were, they would reveal themselves sooner or later.

But perhaps he had been thinking too much about it? Maybe she really just wanted a student? He felt he had been overly paranoid. After all, this was a world of cultivation where the strong devoured the weak.

And at that moment, he was the weak one.

Of course, unbeknownst to him, Tian Lang was actually right in both respects. It was true that Xu Yinxing was seeking something from him, and it was also true that she just wanted a student. After all, she had spent decades as the principal master without really being able to be a true master.

In the mind of the beautiful principal master of the Silver Moon Peak, none of these things were contradictory, allowing her to make the oath without incurring the wrath of the heavens.

"Alright, I think you understand now. If not, you can think about it more later. For now, we need to focus on something more important," Xu Yinxing said, snapping Tian Lang out of his thoughts.

"Something more important?" Seeing his curiosity, she nodded, got up from the throne, and walked toward him. Her presence reverted to what it had been before, the strange change that had affected her disappearing and her expression relaxing.

"It’s time to start your cultivation," she said, patting his back and nearly causing Tian Lang to fall to the ground.

Seeing him stumble, Xu Yinxing smiled. As a master with a celestial connection, while she couldn’t endanger Tian Lang’s life maliciously, she was perfectly capable of making him suffer in various ways.

Her mind was still fresh with the images she had forced herself to watch earlier, already planning different ways to make Tian Lang pay for it. Of course, she wouldn’t exaggerate; after all, this was her first and only student, and in her heart, he was already one of the most valuable things she had achieved.

"Come on, let’s go! Your training needs to start as soon as possible," she said with enthusiasm, making Tian Lang grimace.

Still, he straightened up and followed her. No matter how difficult or torturous it was, as long as he could start cultivating, it was fine.

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Note:

Yes… it’s been a while. There’s no excuse, I’m sorry haha. This chapter should have come earlier, but I was foolish and made a mistake that led to me deleting the original file without being able to recover it. Well, that sounds like an excuse, but I wanted to explain what happened.

Originally, this was longer, but I was exhausted from rewriting the explanation of the celestial connection again, and having to explain cultivation again would be another pain, so I decided to split it.

I hope to bring the next part soon.