On the other side, the young girl holding Xu Taiping's hand just smiled at him without a word.
Xu Taiping looked at the young man in front of him, then at the girl in red beside him, and finally at his second uncle and aunt who were still struggling with the Bai family steward. The last bit of hesitation in his eyes disappeared.
Xu Taiping nodded firmly to the young disciples.
Hearing this, the young man laughed heartily, then waved his sleeve, using the clear wind inside to lift Xu Taiping and the girl in red, and then they rose into the air, landing on the back of the immortal crane.
"Taiping, my name is Dugu Qingxiao, the second disciple of the seventh peak of Qingxuan Sect."
"My name is Zhao Linglong, the sixth disciple of the seventh peak of Qingxuan Sect. From now on, I will be your senior sister."
"Taiping greets Senior Brother and Senior Sister."
Amidst the laughter, the villagers only saw the immortal crane gradually disappear into the clouds, vanishing in the blink of an eye.
Xu Taiping's second uncle and aunt, unable to defeat the Bai family steward and his servants, ended up losing both their wealth and dignity, and could only sit under the old elm tree at the village entrance, pointing at the sky and cursing loudly.
In just one day, Xu Taiping, riding the immortal crane, arrived at the legendary Yunlu Immortal Mountain.
To be precise, the Yunlu Mountain in the secular world is merely the entrance to Qingxuan Sect.
Just like the iceberg in the freezing sea, the part visible above the water is often just a corner of the entire iceberg.
"The Yunlu Mountain you speak of in the secular world is just a barrier for the seven peaks of Yunlu. The true seven peaks of Yunlu are always shrouded in a boundary mist and can only be entered and exited with the guidance of a spiritual bird."
As they were about to enter the cloud sea at the mountain peak, Linglong, sitting on the immortal crane, excitedly introduced it to Xu Taiping.
"How big is the true Yunlu Mountain?"
After hearing Senior Sister Linglong's introduction, Xu Taiping became curious about Yunlu Mountain.
"The Yunlu Mountain range stretches for thousands of miles, with seven main peaks each over ten thousand feet high. The area is probably not smaller than your Great Liang Kingdom. However, because the entire Yunlu Mountain forms its own world, it appears as a small mountain peak in the secular world."
Dugu Qingxiao, who had been meditating nearby, answered Xu Taiping's question.
"Not smaller than the Great Liang Kingdom?"
Xu Taiping's understanding was once again shaken.
"Yes, in the cultivation world, there are many such heavenly realms like Yunlu Mountain. Our Yunlu Mountain Qingxuan Sect is only considered a third-rate cultivation sect."
Linglong nodded with a smile.
"Then above the third-rate..."
Just as Xu Taiping was about to ask more about the cultivation world, a sudden gust of wind hit them, and the immortal crane they were riding let out a sharp cry.
"Junior Brother, this is the boundary wind triggered by the mountain protection array. Hold Senior Sister's hand tightly, or you might fall off."
Linglong shouted, pulling Xu Taiping's hand.
Xu Taiping nodded and then tightly gripped the soft, boneless hand.
In the blink of an eye, the chaotic boundary wind in front of Xu Taiping completely dissipated, leaving only a clear blue sky, the undulating mountains, the towering peaks, and the floating mountains hidden in the cloud sea.
"This is the true Yunlu Immortal Mountain."
Zhao Linglong stood up proudly and looked into the distance.
"Senior Brother Qingxiao, Senior Sister Linglong."
At this moment, a sweet and gentle voice came from the side.
Xu Taiping turned his head and saw a green light flying out from the cloud sea.
Upon closer inspection, it was a tall, sweet-looking woman, leading a little girl and flying through the air on a jade gourd.
"Senior Sister Ziyang? Why did you come down the mountain?"
Zhao Linglong waved to Ziyang with a smile.
"Not long after you went down the mountain, the Spirit Bone Stele had another感应. This time, the sixth peak has a disciple chosen by the Spirit Bone Stele."
Ziyang smiled and looked at the little girl behind her.
The little girl was dressed in a white dress, with skin as smooth as jade. From a distance, she looked like a flawless porcelain doll, very beautiful.
"What a pretty little girl."
Zhao Linglong sincerely praised.
"Congratulations, congratulations. The sixth peak has gained another excellent disciple. At the next seven-peak competition, the sixth peak might take the lead."
Qingxiao smiled and bowed to Ziyang.
Ziyang covered her mouth and laughed, a hint of coquettishness inadvertently showing in her eyes.
"Buyu, quickly greet Senior Brother Qingxiao and Senior Sister Linglong."
Ziyang patted the shoulder of the little girl behind her.
"Buyu greets Senior Brother Qingxiao and Senior Sister Linglong."
The little girl awkwardly bowed to Qingxiao and Linglong.
"No need to be so formal."
Linglong looked at Xu Taiping beside her and patted his head.
"Taiping, quickly greet Senior Sister Ziyang of the sixth peak and your future junior sister. Among the seven peaks, the sixth peak is the most affluent. You should try to get on her good side."
"Taiping greets Senior Sister Ziyang and Junior Sister Buyu."
Although Xu Taiping was a bit confused, he still respectfully bowed to Ziyang.
"No need to be so formal, no need to be so formal. When you become a formal disciple of the seven peaks, I will give you a Peiyuan Pill."
"Thank you, Senior Sister Ziyang!"
Seeing that Taiping was still dazed, Zhao Linglong quickly pressed his head to make him thank Ziyang.
"Thank you, Senior Sister Ziyang."
Xu Taiping still dazedly thanked her.
"Senior Brother Qingxiao, are you going to the Dragon Gate Hall next?"
Ziyang changed the subject.
"That's right. Before taking Taiping to the seventh peak, we need to go to the Dragon Gate Hall to test his spirit bones."
"Then I will go with Senior Brother Qingxiao."
Ziyang rode her flying sword to the side of the immortal crane where Qingxiao and the others were.
"Then let's go together."
"Tsk tsk tsk, Senior Sister Ziyang, why don't you ride the immortal crane with my senior brother, and I will fly with Buyu?"
Zhao Linglong said with a mischievous smile.
"Zhao Linglong, are you asking for a beating?"
Ziyang blushed and scolded her.
"If you keep talking nonsense, I'll kick you off."
Qingxiao glared at the mischievously smiling Zhao Linglong.
Zhao Linglong hugged Xu Taiping's shoulder and begged for mercy.
At this moment, Xu Taiping's face was also a bit hot. It was the first time in his life that he had been held by a strange woman.
However, what he was more concerned about at the moment was what Qingxiao had said earlier— "First, we need to go to the Dragon Gate Hall to test the spirit bones."
"Senior Brother Qingxiao, why do we need to test the spirit bones?"
Xu Taiping couldn't help but ask.
"Although you were personally chosen by the Spirit Bone Stele and can become a disciple of the seventh peak without an exam, we still need to test the type and grade of your spirit bones. This will be beneficial for your future cultivation."
Qingxiao explained to Xu Taiping.
"Little Taiping, you probably don't know, but in the cultivation world, even though having spirit bones allows you to cultivate, there are still different types and grades of spirit bones."
Zhao Linglong hooked her arm around Xu Taiping's shoulder and then explained to him, counting on her fingers:
"In terms of types, the most common are the five elements of metal, wood, water, fire, and earth spirit bones. In addition, there are rare variant bones such as ice, lightning, and wind."
"As for grades, there are four: Purple Spirit Bone, Golden Spirit Bone, Black Spirit Bone, and White Spirit Bone. Among them, the Purple Spirit Bone is the rarest and is also called the Heavenly Spirit Bone, while the White Spirit Bone is the least useful."
Hearing this, Xu Taiping immediately understood.
"Why is the White Spirit Bone the least useful?"