Chapter 115

(AN: Big thanks for the donation Jose, hope you enjoy the chapter 😊).

A few days later...

After Xue'er finished her training for the day, she immediately went towards Issei's direction. Xiaotao once again positioned herself at Issei's side but since Bai'er is currently asleep at his lap, she doesn't massage his legs.

"Ehehehe, when she's awake, Little sis Bai'er is already so cute. But when she's asleep, her cuteness just got doubled!" Feng Xue'er said while poking the asleep Bai'er cheek: "Geez~, how can her cheek be so squishy like this! It should be a crime!" She let out a girly squeal when she touched Bai'er cheeks since it's so soft and tender.

Bai'er who felt Xue'er touch started squirming around in her sleep. Her brows are furrowed and before long, she turned her head and buried her head on Issei's side.

Feng Xue'er who saw this giggled for the umpteenth time while Issei smiled wryly and started to stroke Bai'er head to comfort her...

"Xue'er..." Xiaotao who's at the side admonished Xue'er gently.

"Grandmaster, the snow you made, is a type of water attribute profound art, right?" After being admonished by Xiaotao, Feng Xue'er stuck out her tongue a little bit and said "Sorry." before she finally stopped taking advantage of Bai'er and changed her attention to Issei.

She cupped her charming cheeks with her hands, looking at him with a glimmering gaze. This pure and untainted sprite, all of her feelings were displayed on her snow-like face without any hesitation. At the same time she spoke these words, she also expressed her curiosity and yearning for this kind of profound art.

But she won't force her Grandmaster to teach her this art even though she really wanted to learn it since he already said that it's someone else's secret art.

Even though her profound energy is leaning towards <Fire> and that art from before obviously of <Water/Ice> element, she believes that her Grandmaster is capable of teaching her that art if he had the original owner's permission.

Her Grandmaster somehow possesses a Phoenix bloodline as well and his bloodline is stronger than hers at that... Because of his bloodline, she felt extremely close to him even though they just recently met.

It feels so soothing and comfortable being near him that sometimes Xue'er felt reluctant to separate from his side...

And her Master has already told her that the fundamental common sense she knows about profound energies doesn't apply to her Grandmaster. Other people might deem it as impossible but not for him...

Her Master doesn't tell her about her Grandmaster's real identity but considering that a Phoenix God like her Master is serving as his servant, his status must be even greater than the former... But what's greater than the God realm? She doesn't really know...

"Um, it's called the <Frozen Cloud Arts>. To be precise, it's a type of ice attribute profound art." Issei responded to her question calmly while his hand is still stroking Bai'er's head.

"Oh..." Xue'er nodded understandingly: "What's it like over there, Grandmaster? Is it pretty?"

Xue'er asked Issei about the <Frozen Cloud Immortal Palace> and the area surrounding it. She doesn't ask for the sect name or the nation name, but she just asked how is it like over there since she doesn't want pry too much.

How couldn't Issei tell what she's thinking? He flashed a soft smile at Xue'er because of how innocent she is... Someone at her age and a beloved princess of a big empire at that but she doesn't act like a spoilt rotten princess at all.

How can someone who has been caged in her home for her entire life still behave this innocently and doesn't act spoiled? He couldn't help but extend his right hand and rubbed Xue'er head gently...

Xue'er who felt Issei's hand become dazed... How can a simple head pat make her heart feel disordered like this? She can feel her heart started beating faster and faster by the second...

This feeling is very foreign to her... Well, maybe she felt a similar feeling before with her father but it's quite different. When she's with her father she would feel happy but when she's with her Grandmaster, her heart would start fluttering on its own.

This is the first time that another man other than her father has touched her directly like this... and she must admit that she doesn't hate this feeling at all...

Now that she felt his warm touch she wishes that this moment will never stop... Is it because she sees him as her elder brother? Or was it because of something else altogether? She doesn't really know...

Xue'er once asked her Master how old is Grandmaster out of curiosity. She knows that the Phoenix God's age must be in the billions, but what about her Grandmaster who's supposed to be stronger than the former? Trillions? But her answer left her taken by surprise...

Her Master then told her that the age of her Grandmaster is only at twenty-one years old and he should be turning twenty-two in the next few months, hence why she mostly sees him as her elder brother rather than an actual Grandmaster... To her, a Grandmaster should be someone very very old.

It surprises her that someone so young could become a being that surpasses a great God like Xiaotao but soon she came to accept it... Her worldly view and experience are very limited after all.

For all she knows, there might be a big secret that involves her Grandmaster's raise in strength but she won't ask since it would be rude if she were to do so... It's his secret so she won't ask him.

Her royal brothers never made her feel like this and the way they gaze at her is making her feel uncomfortable for some reason...

"Hmm, that place is called the <Snow Region of Extreme Ice>. The entire five hundred kilometers over there, are all white snow." Issei said after a bit of thinking.

He withdraws his hand from Xue'er head much to the latter disappointment... But when she heard his words, she immediately lifted her head upwards.

"Five hundred kilometers… White snow?" Feng Xue'er's cherry lips opened up in surprise. She couldn't imagine just what kind of marvelous scenery that would be.

"Yes." Issei nodded at her muttering: "Because that place is very cold, the ice and snow over there wouldn't even melt in tens of millenniums… Look, all these surrounding mountains are all soil and stone, but at the Snow Region of Extreme Ice, even the ridges and peaks are covered by layers of snow and ice. The sky at where we are is blue, but over there, even the sky is projected to a pure white by the reflections of the endless snow. In that entire world, there is only a stretch of white without bounds. The sky and earth can't be distinguished, it's so pure and quiet that one could hear the sound of their own heartbeat."

Issei narrated for Feng Xue'er slowly... He believed that the Snow Region of Extreme Ice must be a heaven-like place for Feng Xue'er who likes the color white and snow.

"Wah…" Fen Xue'er's hands had unwittingly covered her lips, her gaze as misty as fog: "Is there… really such a place… Snow Region of Extreme Ice… Snow Region of Extreme Ice…"

"Not only that, even though it's all snow, there are also many flowers and plants. And the flowers there, are all ice flowers similar to crystals, and even the grass and trees are sparkling with the glimmer of ice. There are also very beautiful ice corals and natural ice sculptures of various shapes. These, are all unable to be seen at other places, at least I've never seen any place like that in this continent. Because once these things leave the Snow Region of Extreme Ice, they would all very quickly melt." Issei said softly.

"And Zin is also from there." Issei looked at Zin who's seated nearby them.

Zin who heard Issei's words let out a purring sound from her mouth... She can still remember it as clear as a day during her first meeting with her King...

On that endless snow-white world, she sensed an overwhelming presence that made her bloodline trembled in submission... She was afraid of this presence once thinking that it wanted to devour her.

But when she saw him, she instantly becomes captivated... Her entire body and soul has been stolen away by his sight. That unadulterated strength which could pierce the heaven itself... His whole being is exuding boundless power and beauty that shouldn't exist in this mortal realm...

And at that moment she knows... That she just met her kind true King... True Dragon King. Ever since then, she vowed to him that she would be his loyal servant...

Feng Xue'er's entire person became stupefied there. She felt as if she had fallen into an illusory world that hadn't ever appeared even in her dreams. The beauty of that place surpassed the most beautiful heaven she had fantasized about… Even with all of her knowledge, she couldn't draw how just how beautiful of a picture scroll that would be… Endless spanning snow, snow-white mountains, snow-white skies, sparkling and translucent trees, and flowers, as herds of beautiful profound beasts roam about in the vicinity...

"Snow Region of Extreme Ice… Snow Region of Extreme Ice…" She muttered this name as if deliriously raving, feeling as though her heart and spirit had already melted.

"Does Xue'er want to go there?" Issei smiled thinly and asked a question that he could completely be sure of the answer just by the look of her expression.

"Mhm!" Feng Xue'er very strongly nodded, her white and glossy cheeks were adorned with a bit of an excited blush: "So in this world, there's actually such a beautiful place. I really want to go, if I can arrive at that kind of world, and live over there… Wah~~ How blissful would that be."

"But…" The light in Feng Xue'er's eyes grew somewhat dim again: "Royal father has said that before I turn twenty, I can't leave Divine Phoenix City. Royal father is always so busy too, and also hasn't left Divine Phoenix Sect in many many years. Even after I'm twenty, Royal father probably wouldn't have the time to take me there…"

"If your royal father doesn't know, then it would be fine right?" Issei asked her with a smirk.

"Eh?" She let out a confused voice. Issei then lifted Bai'er body in a princess carry as not to disturb her sleep, he also let out a soothing and calming aura around her.

When Xue'er is still processing what Issei's words meant. Her body floated slightly from the ground and before she could utter a cry, she saw that the whole scenery around her has completely changed...

She has arrived in a literal snow-white world...

Immediately, the air around her turned chilly as an icy-cold aura assaulted her from all sides. The coldness of the Snow Region of Extreme Ice far surpassed the limit of what a normal person could endure, but for Feng Xue'er, who was at the first level of the Sovereign Profound Realm, it did not cause even a hint of discomfort.

But this was also the first time that Feng Xue'er, who had never left the bounds of Divine Phoenix City before, had ever come into contact with cold climates in her life.

The cold air that wreathed her body had been purified by ice and snow for ten thousand years, and it was so pure that there was not a single trace of impurity.

Snow would continue to fall in the Snow Region of Extreme Ice for most of the year, and at this time, the Snow Region of Extreme Ice happened to be covered by a thick layer of powdered snow. The earth was white, the mountain caps were white, the glaciers were white and even the sky was covered with white snow.

One would not even be able to make out the horizon in this place. Feng Xue'er gently extended both her hands and within this pure white world, her jade hands seemed to glow with a luster that was even purer than the snow itself.

"Ah..." She let out a dazed voice: "I feel like I'm dreaming… To think that such a wonderful place truly existed on this earth." Feng Xue'er softly mumbled. The year she turned thirteen was also the year that Divine Phoenix City experienced its first-ever snowfall, and that was also the most beautiful scene she had ever seen in her life, and it was something that she could never forget.

And the world of boundless snow that lay before her eyes right now was her very definition of heaven.

"Wah!"

Feng Xue'er could not contain her elation any longer and she let out a cry of pure delight. She floated amidst the falling snow as her body was immersed in the endless motes of snow that filled the sky, and her pure and joyous laughter was carried along by the cold winds that surrounded her.

It's been only a week during his stay with her Grandmaster... and yet... the amount of surprise and joy he brought her is bigger than the happiness her whole family brought her...

She soared into the sky while letting out a peal of laughter full of joy...

Issei who sees the current Xue'er let out a thin smile... He started to wonder if his children would like the sight of this place as well and then they would let out happy laughter like Xue'er currently did...

He and his wives will be nearby taking in the view of their laughing children with a camera on his hand ready to capture their happy moments together... Ah... That would be bliss...

He doesn't realize that the current face he's making is extremely fatal to the female onlookers... Xiaotao and Zin who saw his current face become stupefied and their heart started to madly pound threatening to break free from their chest.

This is the first time they ever saw him having this kind of expression... He sometimes had a smile on his face before but it can't be compared with the current one...

They become lost at his current smiling face... Inside their heart, they know that he must be thinking about his wives back home.

Xiaotao and Zin couldn't help feel a twinge of jealousy inside their heart when they realize this...

Xun'er, Jasmine, and Lieyan is no exception to this... Even though they're inside the pearl and <Gob>, they can still see the outside view. And they just happen to saw Issei blissful face...

Esdeath, Altair, and Sirius who sensed his presence were about to greet him but they stopped dead in their track sharing the same fate of Xiaotao and Zin... All of their faces become flushed deeply becoming completely entranced by their Master's sight...

Not a single one of them could escape from Xiaotao and Zin's fate...

Thankfully Xue'er is too occupied by the new scenery before her, or she would've shared their fate as well...

Issei doesn't teleport Xue'er near the Frozen palace but it's not that far either so Esdeath's group can sense his arrival. Through his aura and their ice spirit sentries...

"Grandmaster!", Xue'er who was flying in the sky stopped short and shouted jovially at Issei before she comes swooping down towards Issei's direction.

Issei who heard her shout snapped out of his daydream and the onlookers who were enjoying his smiling face before felt very disappointed... They wish they could observe it a little longer...

Xun'er is the first to snap out of her entranced state and her face blushed for another reason this time... She then looks at her daughter who's in the same condition but unlike Xun'er, Jasmine is still in her entranced state.

Xun'er who saw this secretly heaved a sigh of relief... How embarrassing would it be if her daughter saw her mother being entranced by the sight of a man that is young enough that he can be her grandson?

She then decided to tease her daughter once again trying to forget her embarrassment from before...

After a few seconds, one can hear Jasmine grumbling under her blanket once again saying her mother is being a meany or whatnot...

Feng Xue'er flew down from above before landing in front of Issei. Her cheeks glowed a warm red as the purest and most flawless smile lit up on her face, "This place is even better than I had imagined it to be. It is practically like the heaven that my royal father spoke of!"

She excitedly shared her happiness with Issei without realizing that their distance is only separated by a few centimeters. Perhaps if it was not for Bai'er still inside Issei's embrace, they could've been even closer...

Issei doesn't find anything weird and only smiles thinly at the excited Xue'er.

"Um, I'm glad that you like it. Go ahead and play to your heart content... Oh, looks like Bai'er is waking up..." Issei said and then he felt Bai'er body started to stir within his embrace...

When Bai'er woke up, she started playing with Xue'er all around the place.

Only half a day later that the two had their fill... But Feng Xue'er begged Issei that she wanted to return here again later which earned a nod from him much to her joy.

Then Issei sent Xue'er back to the valley along with Xiaotao while he stays behind since it seems that Esdeath's group wanted to report something to him. He also sends Zin away with Xue'er just in case.

Bai'er returned to the <GoB> and Issei decided to return to the Frozen Palace for now...

...

When Xue'er returned to the valley, she becomes dazed in place looking at the disappearing spatial opening Issei created for her...

Xiaotao took notice of this and asked Xue'er gently: "Xue'er? What's wrong?"

"Xue'er... Xue'er felt weird..." She muttered in a low voice feeling uncertain.

"Weird?" Xiaotao asked confusedly.

"It's kind of… an indescribable feeling, but it's not loathsome, nor is it sad… Uuu… I never had felt this kind of weird feeling… Also, my heart is suddenly beating so fast whenever I think of Grandmaster… Master, what's wrong with Xue'er? Am I sick?" Feng Xue'er's eyelashes faintly trembled, as she asked softly while resting her hands on top of her chest.

When Xiaotao heard her words, she doesn't feel surprised at all as if the whole thing is to be expected...

She only let out a faint smile before she asked Xue'er once again: "Master can't really give you the answer to that question since you need to solve it on your own, but I can assure you that what you experiencing right now is not a sickness... It's a natural reaction which every living being experienced at least once in their lives."

"...Natural reaction?" Xue'er let out a confused voice.

"Um... You said that your heart beat faster whenever you think of him, right?"

"Yes..."

"Then try to imagine how you feel if your Grandmaster came to hate you, how do you feel?"

"Ah!? Grandmaster hates Xue'er?" Xue'er eyes snapped open and her body shivered lightly. She felt a stinging pain inside her heart... She doesn't like this feeling at all... She really hates it!

"Of course not. It's just an example... Now how do you feel when you imagine what Master just said?" Xiaotao let out another smile seeing how pure Xue'er is.

"Xue'er... Xue'er heart hurts a lot... like... like it's being stabbed with a knife..." Her voice is trembling when she tried to imagine it...

"Do you like your Grandmaster, Xue'er?"

"Ah? Of course Xue'er likes Grandmaster... Xiaotao also likes Master as well." Xue'er answered Xiaotao's question like it's a matter of fact.

"How about your royal father?"

"Mhm, Xue'er like royal father as well." She nodded once again.

"When you think of your royal father, does your heart beat faster just like when you think of your Grandmaster?"

"..." Xue'er becomes at loss for words when she heard Xiaotao's question.

The answer to that question is no... Her heart doesn't beat this fast when she thought of her royal father... She felt happy but not to the extent of having her heart beat this fast.

"You can think about it slowly... No need to rush. When the time comes, Master is sure that you will be able to solve the answer to your own question." Xiaotao gently patted Xue'er head.

Zin who's observing from the side only let out a light chuckle seeing the clueless Xue'er... For her, there's no greater joy being able to serve her King and if she's asked whether she likes her King or not, it's obvious that she likes him.

She doesn't dare to court her King since she thinks that she's unworthy... Just staying by his side able to serve him, she's already content with that alone.

"Now let's put that problem aside for now... Let's continue our training. Master can't be with you all the time... And that includes your Grandmaster as well." Xiaotao added at the end to raise Xue'er spirit and determination.

"Ah? Master and Grandmaster will go somewhere?" Xue'er let out a dumbfounded voice since she never thought this far yet.

"Yes." Xiaotao nodded simply.

"Where are you going, Master? Can you let Xue'er come with you?" Xue'er asked in a hopeful tone.

"Master can't tell you right now... You need to get stronger first and foremost. Because if you're weak, then you will only be a burden." Xiaotao's words may sound harsh but it's the truth...

"...Then Xue'er will surely get stronger so that she won't be a burden for Master and Grandmaster." Xue'er said in a determined voice.

Now, this is what Xiaotao is aiming for... Don't get her wrong, the previous Xue'er is diligent enough but she lacks the spirit. She trains only just for the sake of getting stronger without any real purpose and that will hinder her future growth...

Now that she has a purpose in mind, her progress will surely soar even further... Feng Xue'er is not destined to stay in this lower realm, not when she has the full inheritance of the Phoenix God and also guidance from a higher being such as her Grandmaster.

...

"Master, the two "visitors" have left not long ago and as far as we can tell, it seems that they have no intention of bringing any harm to the Palace. And we also managed to eavesdrop on their conversation..." Esdeath reported to Issei when they arrived in his room.

Then Esdeath informed Issei the content of the two visitors' conversation...

"Hmm... So this visitor should be the founder of the <Frozen Cloud Immortal Palace> then." Issei muttered while he started to regulate the profound energies in the surrounding area so the girls from the palace could cultivate faster and easier...

Esdeath, Altair, and Sirius's still had a tinge of red on their beautiful face. They're still affected by Issei's surprise "attack" from before and it's really hard for them to forget about it when the one who caused this "injury" to them is right before them...

They're squirming around by a little bit on their kneeling position but thankfully it seems that their Master doesn't take notice of this...

"Yes, Master." Esdeath confirmed.

They can come close to the two visitors with the help of their Master's illusion barrier. They can tell that these two visitors are extremely powerful and if Esdeath's group were to fight them then they would surely lose...

Just the fact that one of them is the founder of the palace is already more than enough to serve as proof that her cultivation realm must be very high. If not, she shouldn't still be alive until now...

Esdeath doesn't take one of them being poisoned into account since that will cloud their judgment. Their Master already told them not to underestimate your enemies no matter what... Since they're not sure that they could win then they better not take their chances...

Of course, if the visitor wanted to bring harm to the palace then it's a different story altogether... If that really happens then they will fight with all they have since their Master has entrusted them with this duty.

"Mm, I see... Jasmine." Issei called out Jasmine's name.

"...What?" She pops out soon after but just like Esdeath's group, her face is also still a bit red.

"Did you know anything of this founder? Since she should be from the upper realm just like you and Xun'er." Issei asked her.

"Well... The only Ice user realm in the upper realm who can fit the criteria should be the <Snow Song Realm>. Especially since this art which called the <Frozen End Divine Arts> to seem to share the same similarity with the <Snow Song Realm> special arts. Only, in there, it's not called the <Frozen End Divine Arts> rather it's called the <Ice Phoenix God Investiture Canon>." Jasmine said after a little bit of thinking.

"Oh, Ice Phoenix God?" Issei raised his eyebrows when he remembered the first time he saw the inscribing on the <Frozen End Divine Hall>. That art indeed gives off faint divine energy of a God now that he thought about it...

So this <Snow Song Realm> should be the source of the <Frozen End Divine Arts> or where the founder of the Frozen Cloud Immortal Palace from.

"That's right. Just like how the <Divine Phoenix Empre> worships the Phoenix God, the <Snow Song Realm> worships the Ice Phoenix God instead..." Jasmine nodded to Issei's words. Then she proceeded to inform him of the Snow Song Realm...

The <Snow Song Realm> is a humongous star realm enveloped in ice and snow throughout the ancient times. Because it's a place enveloped in extreme amounts of yin energy, ninety percent of the residents are women. The Snow Song Realm has a population of more than two hundred billion.

Snow Song Realm is ruled only by the <Divine Ice Phoenix Sect>. There is also no one else who can compete so the entire strength of Snow Song Realm is related to the strength of the Divine Ice Phoenix Sect. If the Divine Ice Phoenix Sect decays, then Snow Song Realm would become a lower-rank star realm.

"And the current Realm King of the <Snow Song Realm> is someone named Mu Xuanyin. She has a little sister named Mu Bingyun who supposedly disappears in the past and she's also currently poisoned. From what your subordinate has reported, then it should be her since her story match perfectly with the rumors I've heard before." Jasmine deducted.

"Hmm..." Issei who heard Jasmine's explanation nodded understandingly...

"Well, it shouldn't concern you that much anyway, Ise. With your strength, no one from the upper realm able to do anything to you anyway." Jasmine said nonchalantly trying to ignore her mother's voice inside her head, 'Go get him, dear! Go on full advance! You can do it!'

Somehow, her mother is being very childish and mean nowadays... What happens to the gentle mother which is the epitome of motherhood she once had? Where did that "mother" disappear to?

Jasmine has seen his strength with her own eyes and she couldn't come up with a single strategy which enables her to come out as the victor no matter what...

Jasmine might only be sixteen years old but her combat experience is not lesser than those old fogies who are in their hundredth already. She has been in a constant fight in the upper realm after all...

Even Xun'er lose against her in terms of combat experience... But it won't stay that way for long since she has been training with Issei during all this time as well.

She wanted to be the one who carries the burden of revenge and not her daughter. Her daughter won't rest easy until she has her revenge, and she felt the same but if possible, she wishes that her daughter could just live a normal life... Although by now it should be too late already...

But with Issei's help then it might be possible hence why she kept telling her daughter to pursue him from time to time again... Sadly her daughter is too shy to make any advances. If possible, she wanted Jasmine to take the position of the head wife before anyone else take that spot...

And with how many women surrounding him already, it's not her being paranoid and it wouldn't be weird if one of them would suddenly launch their advance towards him. By that time, everything will be too late!

Aiii... Xun'er sometime wonders if she should put on a demonstration for her daughter first... Just a demonstration... Right, a demonstration, nothing more... After all, as her mother, she should show her the ropes in that "field"... Right?

There's a saying that if you want to aim for a man's heart then aim for their stomach but since it's the other way around now, they should aim for another part of him instead...

To become a successful wife, one needs to be able to conquer their man on that "field" as well... And that's where her demonstration comes in, it sounded like a perfect plan, don't you think so?

Unknown to her... Even if there's another thousand of her at the same time, she still won't be able to defeat him on that "field"...

"Perhaps... But I would like to have more information about the upper realm just in case. It will be better if I have prior knowledge about the upper realm before I go there... One must not be too overconfident of themselves." Issei said calmly which earned a nod from Jasmine since she completely agrees with what he just said.

Never be too overconfident since that could lead to your downfall... That is something she learned from interacting with Issei after all this time.

She was being too overconfident and arrogant when they first met thinking that this is just a lower realm but when she found out Issei's real identity, her entire body shook greatly...

She underestimated him before but thankfully he's not the type of person who bore a grudge over something like that or she could've doomed her and her mother's life if Issei was someone petty-minded...

Ever since then, Jasmine's attitude started to change... Well, it's mostly only her attitude towards Issei though... She still has her arrogance a little bit whenever she's dealing with someone else but she won't overly underestimate them either.

"Then..." Jasmine started to narrate some general things about the upper realm to Issei...

The <Realm of the Gods> is also known as the Divine Realm in the Southern half of the universe.

In the Primordial Era, the Gods dwelled there. That is an incomparably enormous plane, ten thousand times greater than the Profound Sky Continent. Afterward, the Gods fell, but the Divine Realm didn't grow empty because of this. It became filled with countless humans, who took over this world that was formerly of the Gods and who searched for and fought over all the things which the Gods left behind… Relics, weapons, spiritual medicines, lineages, profound arts, and more.

Afterward, by relying on the divine relics that they found, they erected increasingly large and powerful clans, forces, lands, and even miniature worlds.

The air in the Realm of the Gods is unbelievably pure and the elemental aura in the air is very strong, even a dozen times stronger than the Blue Pole Star they are currently residing in.

There are around 40,017 Star Realms in the Southern half of the universe. The realms are divided into four ranks:

- Low-Rank Star Realm

- Middle-Rank Star Realm

- High-Rank Star Realm

- Royal-Rank Star Realm

Coincidentally, the <Snow Song Realm> is a Middle-Rank Star Realm while Jasmine's original realm, the <Star God Realm> is a High-Rank Star Realm.

"I see... Is the highest cultivation realm up there at the <Divine Master Realm>? Like you, Jasmine?"

"Yes, as far as I know, other than the remnants of the True Gods such as the Phoenix and the like. The highest cultivator realm up there is at the <Divine Master Realm>."

Divine Master means a master of the divine way. One would be at the pinnacle of the God Realm. In the current era, it is the highest level and it is the realm closest to the True God that a human can get to. At the Divine Master Realm, there is nearly nothing impossible to do and each Divine Master is an existence that cannot be offended.

The Realm King of High-Rank Star Realms is called Divine Masters.

Within the Divine Master Realm, every step forward required world-shaking amounts of talent and incredible fate. It requires eons of hard work that no ordinary person could imagine.

Issei nodded calmly to Jasmine's explanation.

Looks like this world is indeed very huge... By far, this is the biggest world Issei has ever visited.

Although their overall strength is quite lacking, it can still be considered powerful compared to most world he visited before.

"Any news from Naru?" Issei then changed the topic of their conversation.

"Yes, Master. She sent a voice transmission when you're away and found out the reason why the <Mighty Heavenly Sword Region> is sending someone to investigate about you is because of a woman named Xuanyuan Yufeng." Esdeath respectfully reported.

"Xuanyuan Yufeng?" Issei muttered with furrowed eyebrows thinking where did he hear this name before... It sounded familiar...

"Un, it seems that... she took fancy of you, Master and wanted to claim you for herself." Esdeath muttered with faint bloodlust leaking out.

Xuanyuan Yufeng pleaded to her father, Xuanyuan Jue who's an elder of the sect saying that she would do anything and will stay at home if she could be together with Issei... At first, her father refuses outright but after a bit of begging from her, he finally relented...

Then he sends someone to investigate about Issei and if possible just fetch him right away so he can just get this whole farce done with... He doesn't know what kind of sin he does in his past life to have a daughter like this... First, it was that Ling Yuefeng, now it's this new man.

Xuanyuan Jue felt angry that Ling Yuefeng doesn't treat his daughter better and was about to go and kill him but since he's also the father of his grandsons, he held it in... For now that is...

Esdeath's blood boils at the thought of some random insect wanted to claim her Master as their own? Over her dead body! She would skin her alive if she's right in front of her right now!

Even Altair and Sirius is letting out a faint bloodlust when they heard about this before...

"Hmph! What a joke! Some ant who don't know the immensity of heaven and earth!" Jasmine scoffed when she heard Esdeath's words. Her voice is laced with scorn and jealousy...

Issei frowned a little trying to remember the owner of the name... And after a little bit of thinking, he remembered.

It's that woman from the Heavenly sword villa from before. But, isn't she married already? Why would she took fancy of him all of the sudden?

"Please give us the command to kill her, Master!" Esdeath shouted lightly waiting for Issei's permission. Altair and Sirius also followed suit...

"Just let her be for now... What about the <Sun Moon Divine Hall>?" Issei said dismissively.

Issei won't go on his way to kill some woman just because they have feelings for him. But he wouldn't mind killing them either if they cross the line... Since so far they're only aiming at him alone then he would just wave it away uninterestedly.

"Well, she still hasn't found out the specific reason why they're investigating the palace as of yet but she indeed found out about something else... Their sect young master who's named Ye Xinghan is a perverted womanizer who loves beautiful women. He is cultivating a type of dual cultivation heretic art and he constantly kidnaps women to be training incubators... Every year he would secretly kidnap a large number of women to be his training incubators." Esdeath said with disgust.

"Hoo..." Issei also let out a disgusted and slightly angered voice when he heard her words.

"But Naru did found out that it seems that he will be attending as a guest in the upcoming <Seven Nation Ranking Tournament> and it appears that he's aiming for Princess Feng Xue'er as well."

Issei's eyes turned into a slit for a moment when he heard that this Ye Xinghan is aiming for Feng Xue'er.

"Is that so... Good timing. When the tournament starts, I might as well pay him a visit later." Issei narrowed his eyes while letting out a faint murderous aura.

Since this Ye Xinghan is this type of scum then most like the reason why he's investigating the palace is also for the same reason, to collect women for his sinister cultivation arts... Then there's no need to investigate further. He might as well tell Naru to return from her investigation...

Then he might should just go pay him a 'visit' when the tournament start. He wanted to go inside the Primordial Profound Ark first and calculating the time of the tournament, then it should be enough.

But... The distance from there to this place should be quite far... So why would Ye Xinghan go on his way to investigate the palace now out of all times?

Theoretically speaking, Ye Xinghan's profound strength should be quite high considering his background and compared to the most sect in this nation, he's like a giant.

So, to have someone who has lower profound cultivation as his "incubator" is really not worth the effort.

He could gain more if he collects women that have cultivation realm closer to his... The world should have not found out about the real strength of the palace just yet. At most, they only know that they have some throne cultivator here and there... But that information shouldn't be enough to attract those giants from the sacred grounds.

And if Ye Xinghan only aiming for their beauty, considering his personality that loves beautiful women, the moment he heard of this place then he should've raided this place to the ground already... So why wait until now?

But since he only sent someone to investigate, then that means he doesn't know about this place until recently... He might be a pervert but it seems that he knows how to be cautious or perhaps he's just underestimating them thinking that sending a mid-level Tyrant profound cultivator is more than enough to do the job for him.

Well, no matter what the real reason is, it will all become clear soon enough...

Jasmine who sensed his killing intent knows that the life of this Ye Xinghan scum is over... Someone who had their lives aimed by a Death God himself is surely doomed without a doubt.

Good riddance, she thought inwardly... This type of scum who's the enemy of all women shouldn't be allowed to live.

"Should we head to his sect and do some 'cleaning', Master?" Esdeath asked with narrowed eyes with a small grin adorning her glossy lips.

"No need... When I'm done with this Ye Xinghan then I would assume that his sect would come running to avenge him. We only need to wait for them to deliver themselves to our doorstep." Issei said offhandedly.

With their arrogance of being one of the Sacred Grounds, there's no way that they will take this blatant slap to the face without retaliating especially when it involves their sect young master. When that time comes, all they need to do is wait.

His father must've known about this Ye Xinghan crimes and since he doesn't do anything about it, then Issei will...

Their "prey" is delivering themselves like a sheep to the slaughterhouse. There's nothing easier than this... Hopefully, they bring all their forces in one go as well to save some time.

"Master is wise." Esdeath said with adoration.

"Then if there's nothing else, I will take my leave." Issei was about to stand up and head towards the Primordial Profound Ark when he heard multiple footsteps heading to his location.

Esdeath's group also took notice of this and they immediately disappeared from their spot.

It's not the time to show themselves just yet...

Jasmine also heads back inside the pearl but after she snorted lightly while looking at the direction of the footsteps.

And as expected, before long there's a knock on Issei's door...

*Knock* *Knock* *Knock*

"Elder Ise, are you there?" Only this time it wasn't Cang Yue's voice but rather Feng Qianhui's instead.

"Yes." Issei responded before he proceeds to open the door.

When the door is opened, there's not only Feng Qianhui standing outside of his room but the other girls such as Xia Qingyue, Chu Yueli, Chu Yuechan, Murong Qianxue, Gong Yuxian, and the others are also here.

All of the most talented fairies from the palace is standing in front of him. Most of them are already in the middle-level throne while Xia Qingyue is already nearing the peak.

Chu Yuechan has already reached the 4th level Tyrant Profound Realm. Her Draconic aura is getting more prominent than before... There's a kingly aura radiating from her being but in front of Issei, it turned mellow and submissive.

The twins Feng Hanyue and Feng Hanxue are also there and they're the only ones who dare to blatantly stare at him without any reservation.

There are joy and a slight red glow on the twins' cheeks that were finer than snow lotus, and their beautiful eyes were looking at him without blinking...

"What's wrong?" Issei asked them softly.

"We want to inform you that everyone here has already completed the training course you gave us. We mastered the basic <Haki> art you taught us and we're also starting to comprehend this unique energy which you called <Mana> as well." Feng Qianhui answered in a clear and melodious voice and her beautiful eyes keep fluttering as if it tries to attract his attention.

Before they came here, they've already put on light makeup on their already gorgeous face and also changed their hairstyle to accentuate their beauty even further. That's also one of the reasons why Feng Hanyue and Feng Hanxue keep staring at him unblinkingly since they wanted their sect elder to take notice of this...

Overall, they look like a true fairy descending into a mortal plane with how they look right now.

If they were to hook their finger to any normal men right now then they would immediately come scurrying to their direction without a single delay just to get these beauties attention...

But too bad that thing won't happen since they only dress up like this in front of their sect elder alone... If it was any other men then they won't even bother to spare them a glance.

"Oh, good work." Issei nodded slightly at Feng Qianhui's words.

He sweated a little seeing how intense the twins gaze on him right now though...

"Elder Ise! What do you think of our new hair and makeup? Does it look good?" Feng Hanxue is getting impatient seeing that they don't get any reaction out of their sect elder even when they waited until now(It's only been like fifteen seconds though...), so annoying!

The other girls who heard Feng Hanxue sudden outburst had their body twitch a little but soon they raise their face and also tilted their head to the side slightly trying to emphasize something to him.

Some even bold enough to use their arm to lift a certain 'assets' of theirs inconspicuously, making it look a little bigger hoping that it will attract Issei's attention... It's none other than Feng Qianhui and Gong Yuxian themselves.

But it looks like Gong Yuxian is not as daring as Feng Qianhui since she looks a tad embarrassed while Feng Qianhui keeps fluttering her eyelashes at Issei.

Looks like being an old vir- old maiden for so long has enhanced their assertiveness by quite a lot...

"Shameless! This whole sect is filled with shameless women! How can a woman be so shameless!" Jasmine shouted indignantly when she saw how the girls from the palace are acting.

[What shameless? That's called being brave, you brat! Don't think that only a man can be a pervert. A woman can become one as well!] Lieyan said with a sneer.

This wet behind the ears snotty brat is too naive and gullible! But that's a good thing for her and the Little Demon Empress as well... Less strong competitor means more chances.

"You shut up!" Jasmine growled.

Xun'er who's at her side berated her lightly by saying: "See dear... That's what happens when you're too late into the game. Now come let mother dress you up a little as well."

Xun'er started to pull out some revealing clothes out of their wardrobe...

"Oops! That was too revealing... Or was it? What do you think dear? You think this will be enough to entice him?" Xun'er tilted her head to the side while slightly muttering to herself in the end before he shows the outfit to Jasmine. Her rabbit ears started to twitch a lot which clearly serves as proof that she's enjoying this a lot right now...

The outfit she just took out is a short kimono dress that reveals half of the wearer's upper body starting from the middle of their chests. Although it doesn't show the whole chests area and just half of it, it's still quite enticing so say nonetheless...

"Mom!" Jasmine's whole face turned red immediately when she heard her mother's words and sees the revealing outfit her mother just took out.

"I won't speak to you anymore!" Then she ran away heading towards her trusted "fort" while grumbling angrily once again...

Aiii... This daughter of hers... Xun'er sighed wryly seeing how shy her daughter is. At this rate, it will be years before she could capture his heart.

"Err, yes, it looks really good, junior sister Feng Hanxue. You look really pretty... You all do." Issei said while sweating a little.

It looks like no matter the world or race, women like being praised...

"Really!?" Feng Hanxue shouted in glee but then she realizes something: "Eh? Elder Ise, how did you know that I am Hanxue? I am the same as my Big Sister from top to bottom. Even our disciples and senior sisters that are most familiar with us… even the previous Palace Mistress couldn't tell us apart, but you called out my name immediately. You also seem to be very sure..." She asked while her beautiful eyes showed surprise.

Feng Hanyue who's next to her also seems quite surprised at this revelation and the other girls also wanted to know the answer to that.

"Umm, even though you and your big sister are twins, there's still a difference between the two of you." Issei said after a little bit of thinking.

"And what is that?" Feng Hanxue asked curiously.

"For one, you look a little bit more cheerful while your big sister looks a little bit more mature and while you are a little... impatient. Even though your big sister also seems cheerful just like you, she tends to be more reserved at times even though she herself might not realize it, and there's also a slight difference in your voice tone albeit it's almost impossible to notice." Issei answered while comparing the two of them.

Feng Qianhui and the others who heard his words turned their head and started to observe Feng Hanxue and Hanyue more closely... But, they still couldn't tell no matter how hard they try to differentiate them...

"Uhh... I think you're the only one who's able to tell them apart, Ise..." Feng Qianhui said while smiling wryly.

Of course, Issei can tell them apart since he got his own twins as his wives. So he tends to be more observant because of that...

But there are another two reasons why Issei could tell them apart... One of them is because he can see their soul. Since no matter how identical a person is with one another, their soul is completely different from each other. Unless one of them is a copy of the other then there's no way they could have the same soul essence.

As for the second reason... It's their scent... As a Dragon, Issei's sense of smell obviously differs greatly from a normal human. But if he were to tell them that then it would be rude of him...

Feng Hanxue and Feng Hanyue who heard Issei's words instantly had their eyes shone brightly... Their previously blushing cheeks turned another shade deeper.

This is the first time someone could tell them apart with a single glance like this... Because of it, their adoration towards him just increased by a large margin. The other girls also had their favorability increased...

""Elder Ise, you're amazing!"" The two twins ignored everyone's presence and both of them immediately skip forward and glomped on Issei's left and right arm respectively.

"Ah!" The other girls gasped lightly when they saw this.

"Hanxue, Hanyue! Don't be impolite!" Feng Qianhui lightly berated the twins.

They only stuck out their tongue mischievously. But they do listen to their Master's words and let go of his arm soon after...

"It's fine..." Issei smiled wryly at them.

"Then, is there anything else you need from me?" Issei asked Feng Qianhui and the others.

"Ah, yes. Do we need to do some changes to our training schedule, Ise? Maybe there's something we need to be wary of?" Feng Qianhui inquired.

"There's really nothing to be wary of..." Issei said after a little bit of thinking.

But then he thought of something...

"Actually... I have something in mind to increase your progress in a 'short' amount of time."

"Eh? You can still increase our cultivation speed?" Feng Qianhui said with astonishment.

Their current speed is already fast enough and he's telling them that he can make it even faster? Just where is the limit of his mysticalness...

"Um. But it's a one-time thing since I don't want you to be over-reliant on it." Issei nodded at her words.

"Can you tell us what it is first? If it put a burden on yourself then we rather not use it..." Chu Yuechan asked worriedly.

"I agree with elder sister." Chu Yueli said agreeing with her elder sister's words.

The other girls also followed suit...

Issei smiled softly seeing them being considerate of him.

"No need to worry. It won't put any burden on me... But before that, is there any disciple that is currently away from the sect right now?" Issei asked Feng Qianhui.

"As of right now... Yuxian?" Feng Qianhui asked Gong Yuxian since she's the one who usually took notice of this information.

"No, all of the disciples are currently inside the palace." Gong Yuxian shook her head answering Issei's question.

"Um, that's good then." Issei then channeled a bit of his magic into his palm before he shoots it outside hitting the illusion barrier that's currently enshrouding them.

There's a bright red glow when his magic came into contact with the barrier.

The girls are a little bit confused seeing him sending something towards the ceiling.

But since they don't feel any trace of profound energy from it, then it must be the <Mana> he taught them before.

Their comprehension in <Mana> is still too weak to be able to tell just how powerful was the magic that Issei just used.

"What did you just do, Ise?" Feng Qianhui asked feeling curious since she doesn't really feel any changes surrounding them.

"The whole vicinity around the palace is currently covered with a <Time Barrier>. Three days outside the barrier is one year inside it." Issei told them which made all of them become flabbergasted.

This way, if they're cultivating inside this <Time Barrier>, their progress will truly soar through the roof! They don't doubt his words even for a moment... The miracles that he brought before all this are numerous after all.

Now you might ask why Issei doesn't use this barrier to hasten his recovery. The answer to that is that because he couldn't... The amount of energy that he needed to prepare this barrier is the same as the amount that he used for it.

One year <Time Barrier> means that he need a year's worth of his energy to maintain it. But as long as he took down the barrier then that energy he used to maintain it will return to him.

So when he said there's really no burden on him to use this technique is true. He basically just "borrowed" the energy for a certain period of time.

In his current state, he couldn't make a perfect time barrier as he used to. It can be said that his current <Time Barrier> is a weakened version of the original. He also wouldn't be able to gather energy to himself as long as the barrier is still in effect either.

Messing with time is not an easy thing to do... Especially when he's still not in his perfect condition.

There's an artifact that could utilize time as well but that artifact is made for who knows how long and the amount of energy it contains must be very huge hence why it could slow down the time inside the barrier they made for thousands of years...

If Issei is in his top condition then he could do the same as that said artifact but he rather not to mess with time so often... Hence why he said it's a one-time thing.

Slowing down time by one or three days is nothing much but it's better if they don't be too over-reliant on it.

So, Issei told them to take their time inside the barrier while he goes towards the <Primordial Profound Ark>... The girls need to be prepared for the things he had in mind.

"Elder Ise, you are leaving now?" Chu Yuechan stepped forward unconsciously: "But you just returned..." She muttered feeling a little upset.

If he leaves them here, that means that they can only see him a year later... They felt reluctant about it but since this is the chance for them to get stronger, so they feel conflicted about this whole idea...

"Um, don't worry. Even when I'm not inside the barrier, it can maintain itself as long as I don't take it down." Issei nodded in reassurance.

"...That's not what I'm worried about though..." Chu Yuechan muttered wistfully.

Under the longing gaze of the girls, Issei bade farewell to the Frozen Cloud disciples, opened a spatial opening and returned to the Divine Phoenix Empire...

Three days later, the girls' cultivation progress will truly advance by leaps and bounds...

Jasmine and Xun'er felt speechless as well when they know about this... But they won't ask him to use this art for them.

Especially when they know the cost of using this art. Even though it's basically a non-existent price to pay, it still used a little bit of his time.

...

Issei arrived above the valley just to see Xue'er is still training diligently. He smiled softly before he flew towards the Primordial Profound Ark direction...

Xiaotao and Zin realized his arrival beforehand but he stopped them from greeting him with a wave of his hand. They then realize that he must be here not to visit Xue'er but rather for something else... So they nodded understandingly.

It only took Issei a few minutes before he sees the Primordial Profound Ark that's situated sixty thousand meters above the ground.

Although both the Sky Profound Realm and Emperor Profound Realm were capable of utilizing the Profound Floating Technique, an altitude of sixty thousand meters was something they absolutely could not reach. In order to reach this altitude, one must at least be at Overlord-level profound strength.

The distance between him and the enormous Primordial Profound Ark was less than three hundred meters. As far as the eye could see, the Profound Ark was so enormous one simply couldn't even see its borders. Its color also wasn't the dull gray color which could be seen from below, but clearly a kind of deep red color.

Issei then flies closer to the Ark and stopped in front of a closed "door".

This door was fifteen meters wide, and a profound light imprint flashed on the surface of the door, flickering on and off. The flickering of this profound energy seal seemed to indicate that it was about to disappear.

Issei put his hand on top of the door and channeled a little bit of his divine energy into it... There was a slight resistance at the beginning but in the same next moment, it disappeared as if it's never there in the first place.

The profound seal on the ark's door suddenly stopped flickering, and then slowly disappeared. The Profound Ark's door which had always been shut slowly opened at this time with an extremely ear-piercing creaking noise.

*GRRKKK!*

"It opened!" Jasmine called out.

The door to the Primordial Profound Ark opened extremely slowly, and several dozen breaths' worth of time passed before the door opened completely. An incomparably pitch-black vortex lay behind the door, revolving rapidly like an ocean whirlpool.

"Just as I suspected..." Issei who saw this vortex nodded to himself.

"This Ark is indeed very similar to the Heavenly basin secret realm... Even the energy signature it giving off is almost identical... But there's a tiny difference in the energy signature. Perhaps it's because this Ark is created long before the Heretic God created the Heavenly basin secret realm..." He muttered.

[You're right, Master. This Ark most likely created by the Heretic God himself... Although I'm not 100% sure, it shouldn't be that far off either] Lieyan voiced out her thoughts.

"Hmm, let's just go in for now. We won't solve anything just by standing outside like this." Jasmine said excitedly.

"I suppose." Issei nodded slightly at Jasmine's words.

Then Issei walks forward the spatial vortex and his body disappeared right after... Even when he already went inside, the door of the Ark is still open.

Not a single person of the Divine Phoenix Empire realizes that someone has just entered the Primordial Profound Ark. By the time they realize it... It will be too late.