LAVW – Chapter 80 Long Ye Ascends

Long Ye couldn’t help but chuckle and walked into the spacious cave.

After examining the area, he captured a trace of aura. Then, using divination, he attempted to locate Mouse Mama’s whereabouts.

Hei Mao tilted his head up, still clueless as to how Long Ye was doing it.

So he turned to his younger brother and squeaked, “Squeak Squeak?”

Bro, do you know how?

Shi Qian: …If I did, would I still be called Long Ye?

Shi Qian replied, “Squeak Squeak.”

We don’t need to know how.

There’s no point forcing ourselves to learn something we can’t grasp anyway. Plus, Shi Qian wasn’t particularly interested. If he really liked it, that’d be another matter.

Hei Mao thought this made a lot of sense and nodded repeatedly.

As long as the younger siblings can do it, that’s enough.

As for why he didn’t say this out loud—well, even Mouse Bro had his pride. Knowing nothing felt a bit… embarrassing.

“We’re heading east,” Long Ye said, drawing the attention of the two mice. Then he took the two who couldn’t find their mother and led them in search of her.

After flying east for a while, the group landed.

Hei Mao immediately took the lead: “Squeak!”

It’s Mama’s scent!

Shi Qian and Long Ye leisurely followed behind, watching Hei Mao sprint toward a strange mountain peak.

This was probably the life Shi Qian had imagined at the very beginning—a laid-back cultivation world, bodyguards everywhere he went, and no need to worry about safety anymore.

Climbing up a steep slope followed by a flat one, they soon spotted the entrance to a cave.

Hei Mao smelled something odd and was about to charge in when Shi Qian jumped on his head and forcibly held him back.

Shi Qian gently reminded, “Squeak Squeak.”

Bro, don’t barge in. This is someone else’s territory.

Hei Mao was confused: “Squeak Squeak?”

Isn’t this Mama’s new place?

Then he remembered that both he and his brother had been kicked out of their old home. According to custom, even if this was Mama’s territory now, they were still guests.

Hei Mao felt a little upset and shouted loudly, “Squeak Squeak!”

Mama! Mama!

Immediately, some strange noises echoed from inside the cave.

Shi Qian silently mourned for the big guy inside for a full minute. Hopefully, this wouldn’t have any serious consequences.

Long Ye politely stepped aside and retracted his aura.

A moment later, the Giant Rat Queen poked her head out of the cave, sniffing the two familiar yet unfamiliar scents outside.

“Squeak!”

Mama!

Hei Mao eagerly rushed forward.

Shi Qian, who had already jumped to the ground, was a step slower.

Sure enough, Hei Mao, who had rushed up to nuzzle her, got smacked on the head by Mouse Mama’s paw and let out a confused yelp.

Poor Mouse Bro was now three times bigger than Mouse Mama. The whole scene looked ridiculous. Even Shi Qian, the younger brother, couldn’t muster any sympathy.

Because he was behind, Shi Qian also spotted a demon beast stepping out of the cave.

Important detail: it was a yellow tiger, roughly resembling a chubby domestic tabby, but with fewer black stripes on its fluffy face. Overall, it was a rather fair and clean-looking little tiger.

Sensing Hei Mao’s overflowing aura, the tiger shrank back behind Mouse Mama.

Can’t blame him. This “Big Orange” was only slightly larger than Mouse Mama and could be considered quite “petite.” When he saw Mouse Bro, he could only feel fear.

When the tiger heard Hei Mao call out “Mama,” relief showed on his face.

Shi Qian gave the big orange cat a quick glance before running up to Mouse Mama, who had just smacked her eldest: “Squeak!”

Mama!

“Squeak—?”

My little baby?

The Giant Rat Queen sniffed the scents of her eldest and youngest, hardly able to believe it.

She gave her eldest’s big head another swat before leaning in to sniff her youngest.

No doubt about it—this was her baby.

How had they changed so much in such a short time that even their own mother barely recognized them?

Even with Shi Qian suppressing his aura, Mouse Mama could still tell how powerful he had become. Almost ready to undergo tribulation—she never even dreamed of reaching such cultivation.

At this point, she could only guess boldly that her eldest and youngest had both become Nascent Soul demon beasts. She’d encountered beasts approaching that level before and knew how overwhelming that aura was.

Thinking of their cheap father, the Rat Queen reluctantly accepted this.

She tilted her head and asked, “Squeak Squeak?”

Little one, why do you smell stronger than your brother?

Shi Qian puffed out his chest: “Squeak Squeak.”

Of course. I’ve always been stronger than him.

Shi Qian always spoke carefully, but next to him, Hei Mao immediately jumped in with his own version: “Squeak Squeak!”

But little bro still can’t beat me! I’m the stronger one!

The Giant Rat Queen gave this big silly son another smack: “Squeak Squeak?”

You’re still fighting with your little brother?

“Squeak Squeak.” Hei Mao shook his head wildly.

No, no!

Shi Qian added, “Squeak Squeak.”

Of course not, Mama. My brother’s great.

Little Tiger poked his head over and spoke to the Giant Rat Queen: “Awo awo—”

How come I’ve never heard you had two kids this big?

“Squeak Squeak.”

Then look again.

The Giant Rat Queen picked up her younger cub in her mouth and left the elder for the tiger to gawk at.

She had only walked a few steps before suddenly sensing a particularly dangerous human cultivator. The Rat Queen froze in place.

Shi Qian could tell Mouse Mama had clenched her teeth and quickly said, “Squeak Squeak.”

Mama, don’t be scared. He’s one of us.

Only then did the Giant Rat Queen relax and gently set down her youngest.

“Squeak Squeak.”

So this is the human cultivator you mentioned? Not bad. He raised you well.

At first glance, she was quite satisfied with the tall human cultivator and gave him a good, long look to memorize his face and aura.

Long Ye thought: I really didn’t do that much.

From a tiny ball to a big one, it was all thanks to Brother Qian’s own hard work—eating and drinking constantly.

All he had done was help a bit with cultivation.

But how was he supposed to greet his spirit beast’s mom? Long Ye found this to be a real dilemma.

“Greetings, Senior,” Long Ye squeezed out a dry but respectful line. “I don’t dare take credit for raising him well—it’s all thanks to your teaching. Brother Qian has helped me a lot, and I rely on him more often than he does on me.”

The Giant Rat Queen was a bit caught off guard by this string of polite words: “Squeak Squeak!”

You can understand what I’m saying?

Long Ye replied, “Senior, your whole family speaks the same way.”

After hearing it enough, and not being stupid, Long Ye naturally understood. He thought, If it came down to it, I could probably manage a few lines myself.

Shi Qian, having not heard Long Ye praise him, turned his head curiously—Hei Mao was staring intently at Little Tiger. Who knew what he was up to now?

In truth, Hei Mao was just asking, “Squeak squeak?”

Why aren’t you keeping up?

Little brother and little sister should follow just like that human cultivator who’s like a younger brother.

The tiger demon looked confused. “Roar roar?”

Why should I follow?

“Squeak squeak!”

Aren’t you Mom’s new little brother?!

“Roar roar—”

No, I’m not. This mountain is mine.

Little Tiger bro expressed his refusal—he didn’t want to go follow the Giant Rat King to another mountain.

Hei Mao still didn’t quite get it, but thinking the tiger demon looked kind of weak, didn’t press further and turned to catch up with the rest of the group.

If Mom wanted a new little brother, then she would help catch some stronger ones for her!

Seeing Brother Rat return again, Shi Qian thought maybe he should give him a little lesson.

But how the beasts in this world operated… Shi Qian didn’t really know.

He thought it over and eventually gave up.

From what he’d seen of Mama Rat, he had only managed to understand—size doesn’t matter, species doesn’t matter, age doesn’t matter… she’s very casual.

But Mama Rat really did seem to have a thing for tigers.

Shi Qian pondered this, and when he came back to his senses, Hei Mao was already talking about Long Hu, their discount-dad.

The Giant Rat King was surprised upon hearing the name—what were the chances of bumping into someone in a world as big as the cultivation realm?

Upon realizing the little brat had cleverly not revealed their current location, the Giant Rat King was so pleased it nuzzled its child in delight.

Shi Qian no longer got rolled over by such nudging. Curious, he asked, “Squeak Squeak?”

Mom, how did you fall for Long Hu back then?

“Squeak squeak.”

There used to be a white tiger demon on the mountain next door—so good-looking.

The rest of the story wasn’t far off from what Shi Qian had guessed.

It was just that Mama Rat hadn’t really thought much—she just disliked Long Hu being too big, too clingy, and annoyingly persistent when she got pregnant. So she kicked the cub’s father away and ran off on her own.

She’d been so ruthless because Long Hu was not only powerful but also not too bright, so she had to guard against his entanglement. At the time, Mama Rat had acted out of anger and went to extremes.

Hei Mao, upon hearing this, shouted, “Squeak squeak!”

Mom, don’t be scared—I can beat him now!

The Giant Rat King nodded, pretending to believe it. In truth, it didn’t dare to fight its eldest son anymore.

Abandoning the little tiger, the Giant Rat King brought the two brats and the guest Long Ye back to Wuye Mountain.

That mountain, after all, still felt most comfortable and familiar.

So when the two kids invited her to places like Sword Sect or Divine Flower Valley, the Giant Rat King just shook her head and refused.

“Squeak squeak.”

It’s enough if you two live well out there. Don’t worry about me.

After just a couple of days, the Giant Rat King kicked the two wild cubs off the mountain again, only keeping all the fine gifts they’d brought.

Shi Qian felt a bit reluctant—he knew this might be the last time he returned to Wuye Mountain.

But just like last time, when he ran back, he was thrown off the mountain again.

The Giant Rat King bumped her head against the little one. “Squeak squeak!”

Little cub, go with your human cultivator.

“Squeak Squeak.”

Mom, I’ll miss you.

The Giant Rat King smiled. “Squeak squeak…”

Beasts are born wild and grow wild—you can’t be the type that can’t live without Mom.

At that time, Long Ye was a bit confused. Wasn’t he the one ascending? Why did it feel like Brother Qian was also leaving for good?

But Brother Qian never got things wrong—he was so clever.

Maybe it was just a little cub reluctant to leave its mom.

But even thinking that made Long Ye sigh in his heart.

Leaving Wuye Mountain, their next destination was the royal Wang family in Fucheng.

Wang Xingzhi had left something with Long Ye, asking him to deliver it to his father, Wang Chunping.

When they arrived and knocked on the Wang household’s door, the gatekeeper had changed and didn’t recognize Long Ye.

Sensing the powerful aura and learning he was from the Sword Sect, the doorman quickly sent someone to notify Wang Chunping and courteously invited Long Ye inside.

To prevent Brother Rat from causing trouble, Shi Qian squatted on Hei Mao’s head and chatted nonsense with him.

When Wang Chunping arrived and saw Long Ye, he immediately recalled the boy from over a decade ago.

With surprise in his eyes, Wang Chunping cupped his hands and said, “Wang Chunping greets the Immortal. Truly, a hero arises from youth!”

“Uncle Wang, you’re too kind,” Long Ye helped raise his hands, “I’m just here to deliver something on behalf of Brother Wang.”

Wang Chunping, always even-tempered, smiled and readily accepted the “Uncle,” then asked after Wang Xingzhi and Wang Lianzhi.

The downside of a vast cultivation realm was the lack of smooth communication—transmission talismans didn’t work well over long distances. But news of Long Ye’s ascension was a big deal—widely known.

Long Ye didn’t know much about Wang Lianzhi’s situation and needed Shi Qian to “squeak-squeak squeak” some extra details beside him.

Without his little brother to talk to, Hei Mao got bored. With no beasts to spar with either, he simply curled up and went to sleep.

In the Wang household, the people Shi Qian and Long Ye were most familiar with were the Wang siblings—but both were absent. After delivering the items and learning that people had come bearing gifts, Long Ye casually picked up both Hei Mao and Shi Qian—one under each arm—and took off, leaving the idle chatter to Wang Chunping.

Leaving the Wang family, they headed to the next town—Luofeng Town.

Long Ye traveled the same path from Northern Mang Demon Mountain—a road he had taken before.

Even though it had been ten years, Long Ye still remembered the route clearly.

Shi Qian remembered a squirrel’s peanuts that were especially tasty, but they couldn’t find it—and the black cat demon beast wasn’t around either.

Still, after roaming a bit, Hei Mao ran off into the deep mountains and spent two days fighting other beasts, coming back completely refreshed.

Hei Mao even caught a bird with an equally beautiful tail—seemed like he’d taken Shi Qian’s praise of the bird’s looks to heart… or maybe not.

Shi Qian could only have Long Ye roast it, then hugged the fragrant grilled bird leg and munched happily.

“Squeak Squeak.”

Bro, this smells amazing!

Hei Mao made a new discovery too. “Squeak squeak!”

Bro! Way better than chicken.

It really was delicious. So while the two brothers were chatting, Long Ye quietly ate all four big wings.

Shi Qian, who hadn’t gotten to eat the wings, wanted to ride the dragon—and so did Hei Mao.

Long Ye shifted into his dragon form and tucked the white and black furballs into the clouds beneath him. Compared to the black dragon, Hei Mao was also rather adorably large.

Shi Qian rolled around in the clouds, thoroughly enjoying himself.

Hei Mao, too afraid to move, said, “Squeak Squeak.”

Bro, I won’t fall, right?

“Squeak Squeak,” Shi Qian replied.

You won’t.

Hei Mao didn’t believe him and only started walking again once they had landed in the town below.

The people of Luofeng Town, who had long been whispering whether the “Long Ye of Sword Sect” was the same Long Ye who once lived in their town, finally had solid confirmation when they saw the black dragon transform into a human before their very eyes.

It really was true!

The immortal from the Sword Sect, Long Ye—the one who had just saved the world—was actually the runaway from the Long family in their very own town!

In the world of cultivation, where even Foundation Establishment cultivators could live two hundred years, a decade or two meant very little.

But who would’ve thought that in just a little over ten years, that Qi Refining stage kid who’d run away from home would become a legendary immortal?

Those who knew more were already aware that Long Ye had reached the Golden Core stage long ago, and had even returned to the Long family for revenge.

No one spoke. Even the unintentional pressure released by Hei Mao kept them silent.

“Squeak Squeak?”

Which way do we go?

Hei Mao’s only curiosity about this small town was that his little brother had once lived here.

Shi Qian pointed toward the Long residence. “Squeak Squeak.”

That way.

In just a few moments, they vanished from everyone’s sight.

“Are they going to the Long family?”

“I heard that poor immortal had a miserable time back when he was still living at home…”

“Well, the Long family’s getting their karma.”

Meanwhile, Shi Qian and the others had arrived at the Long residence—but found no Long residence to be seen.

What met their eyes were only broken walls and deep chasms. The once-bustling compound had been swallowed up by massive fissures in the earth.

Only a small ring of courtyard homes off to the side remained intact, from which the sound of children crying could be heard.

Shi Qian was dumbfounded. “Squeak Squeak?”

The whole town shifted during the quake, and only their house sank?!

Long Ye patted the fuzzball’s head. “In a way, we helped the Heavenly Dao carry out justice. Naturally, we’ve earned some reward.” Even if it hadn’t been something he had personally asked for.

Long Ye no longer cared much for the Long family. The hatred he’d harbored had already faded with the passing of his enemies.

Why drown in resentment and let it reshape you? When his father was still alive, he had been just a carefree boy whose only worry was the hardship of cultivating.

Thinking of this, Long Ye hugged the fuzzball tighter.

Just then, Shi Qian spotted Long Ming—that strange boy from the past, now worn and haggard, eyes filled with defeat.

So Shi Qian pretended not to recognize him and asked Long Ye, “Squeak Squeak?”

Brother Ye, who’s that?

Long Ye looked over, staring at the unfamiliar face of Long Ming.

Images flashed in his mind—Long Ming’s gleeful face when he stabbed him in the back, the two of them practicing martial arts as kids, shouting in pain…

And then, a different memory—Brother Qian covering his eyes to hide his tears, pointing to the sky outside the ancestral hall and telling him how vast the world was beyond…

Though Long Ye had no desire to mock Long Ming in his fallen state, he still wanted to match Brother Qian’s act.

So Long Ye replied, “He should be Long Ming. The one I beat up in the ancestral hall. Remember?”

The fuzzball nodded obediently.

Long Ye lifted him higher and took a deep sniff of the fuzzball’s head.

Shi Qian, feeling the sudden chill on his head: ?

Whatever thoughts he had about the Long family instantly flew out of his mind.

Shi Qian pulled out Long Ye’s hat and tried to put it on himself to protect his exposed head.

So that’s what Long Ye had in mind when he got that custom hat—he’s afraid of going bald!

Did I absorb too much of the dragon protagonist aura and get found out?!

Shi Qian hugged the oversized hat and kept playing with it until he ended up stuffing himself entirely inside.

The multi-layered spatial hat was quite formidable—it swallowed Shi Qian whole without even changing shape.

Long Ye, holding the hat and carrying a gloomy Hei Mao, headed to his father’s grave.

No one had dared touch Father Long’s grave. It remained intact, though wild grass had grown tall from years of neglect.

Long Ye looked at it, then took the handful of soil he had brought from his mother’s grave and buried it inside his father’s, merging them together and sinking both deep underground.

Let that untamed life force grow wild and free.

Shi Qian thought that Long Ye’s father must have been someone unrestrained and open-minded.

Feeling moved, Mouse-ge suddenly brought over a handful of fragrant peanuts. “Squeak?”

Bro, are these the ones?

Shi Qian sniffed and instantly recognized the familiar scent.

“Squeak Squeak?”

Where’d you get them, bro?

Hei Mao took Shi Qian to a nest of fat squirrels.

The biggest one stood in front of its mate and children, baring its teeth in a trembling show of defense.

Shi Qian: “Squeak Squeak.”

It’s me, Fat Bro!

The fat squirrel thought hard for a while. Only when Shi Qian offered it some spiritual melon seeds did it recognize him as that kind-hearted little friend who had grown up, which was why it hadn’t recognized him earlier.

The fat squirrel turned back and said, “Jigu jigu.”

Don’t be scared, this white one is my brother.

Shi Qian saw the mother squirrel peeking out and felt a bit awkward, so he gifted them a whole tree hole full of spiritual melon seeds and even used spiritual energy to help a few of the baby squirrels realign their bones.

The fat squirrel, knowing just what kind of place it lived near, thumped its chest and promised to watch over the grave of his old friend.

It wasn’t really necessary, but Shi Qian still expressed his thanks.

Then, carrying the sun-dried peanuts gifted by the squirrel sister, they left with full hearts.

This time, eating those peanuts, both Shi Qian and Long Ye could tell they were different.

They didn’t know what method the squirrel sister had used, but these peanuts had absorbed a trace of Chiyang energy—the power of the blazing sun. It was minuscule, but truly remarkable.

Hei Mao ate a ton, burying his face in them—he especially liked that sliver of Chiyang energy inside the peanuts. After all, he was a fiercely masculine mouse.

Next, they arrived at the Taiyi Dao Sect.

According to Shi Qian, the sights at Taiyi Dao Sect weren’t particularly interesting—just a grove of ancient evergreens and some white cranes.

And besides, neither Shi Qian nor Long Ye liked white cranes.

So why did they come? —Of course, it was to get Hei Mao and Long Hu to bond, then leave Hei Mao with Long Hu, his “discount dad.”

Hei Mao still wasn’t used to traveling with Shi Qian and Long Ye. Deep down, it was a creature that loved to fight. It didn’t care for novelty and sightseeing, which felt meaningless to it.

Maybe it would learn to like such things in the future, but for now, fighting was its greatest love.

Calling Hei Mao over also meant they’d have an excuse to send him back later—and that meant they could see the Saintess again.

Because of this, Shi Hao gave Hei Mao a warm welcome, even offering his father’s prized pine tea to entertain Long Ye and Shi Qian.

Shi Qian gulped down three cups in one go, then climbed the tallest pine tree in the Taiyi Dao Sect.

This ancient tree, which had stood tall for ten thousand years, soared straight into the clouds.

From the top, looking down on the sea of trees and distant mountains, everything under the pine canopy seemed small.

Shi Qian: “Squeak!”

So tall! Brother Ye, turn into a dragon and pick me up!

Getting up was easy—getting down was the hard part. But more importantly, a black dragon coiling around such an ancient tree while flying would look very cool.

The moment Long Ye heard the words “turn into a dragon,” he knew—the little guy just wanted to show off again.

What else could he do? He went to pick him up.

The black dragon flew to the top, then carried the fluffy ball on his head through the pine forest and clouds. Since Shi Qian was in high spirits, they just skipped straight to the next destination.

After visiting a few more places, they arrived at the Tianji Pavilion.

What does one do at Tianji Pavilion?

Of course—look at the stars.

Shi Qian got access to the star-watching equipment of the cultivation world and had a blast.

Due to differences in the world’s laws, the stars appeared as “shining star patterns” rather than what he was used to, but he could still see the gorgeous nebulae beyond the realm—unusually beautiful.

After stargazing, they dropped by the Tool Sect.

Long Ye extracted some immortal energy from his body, and under the stimulation of spiritual herbs, helped Wang Lianzhi’s severed arm regrow.

Then, Shi Qian got a supersized rabbit cloak and even managed to force Long Ye into accepting a dragon horn cape.

It wasn’t particularly useful—but it looked cool.

Wandering around, they eventually arrived at the Zen Sect.

Snow was falling on the high mountains of the Zen Sect, fluttering down to cover the green mountains, forests, and the solemn temple halls.

Yet the mountain path was crowded with people, warm breath rising into the cold air as they climbed the steps into the temple, causing the snowflakes to melt.

Shi Qian found it fascinating and crouched to watch for a while.

“Squeak Squeak?”

Brother Ye, why is the snow melting so fast? Did they use an array? Or is it just the crowd?

“No, it’s purely because of faith.”

Long Ye had only read about this in books—he’d never seen it with his own eyes.

Two bumpkins stared in awe together as the Zen master Chan Hua descended from the mountain: “Amitabha. You two benefactors have traveled far. Why not come into the temple for a bowl of simple porridge?”

It was free—so why not?

Long Ye and Shi Qian shook the snow off themselves and went up the mountain for porridge.

Master Chan Hua felt that both the person and the spirit beast had great Buddhist potential—they didn’t even try to avoid the snow.

But since Long Ye was about to ascend, it was really the little spirit beast he was concerned about. Maybe Sword Sect wasn’t a good match after all…

Chan Hua personally welcomed them with enthusiasm.

Shi Qian had some vegetarian dishes and played with the temple’s golden offering bowls. The master insisted on giving some away.

So Shi Qian asked for ten.

This time, the golden bowls were just ordinary gold, but judging by Shi Qian’s instincts, he probably wouldn’t be able to take back the more spiritual items. On the other hand, these ordinary gold bowls stood a better chance.

Shi Qian, who hadn’t seen normal gold bowls in a long time, was very grateful—Zen Sect really was such a down-to-earth and nice place!

Afterward, Long Ye noticed that Master Chan Hua was being too hospitable. Once they were done playing and sightseeing, he stuffed the fluffy ball under one arm, carried the gold bowls, and left.

On the way out, Long Ye warned: “Brother Qian, don’t ever let yourself get tricked into joining Zen Sect. Look at Master Chan Hua—trying to lure you in with a few lousy bowls? As if we’ve never seen a Supreme Bliss Alms Bowl before!”

Shi Qian: I really don’t want to switch sects.

But the problem clearly lay with the master. Shi Qian: “Squeak Squeak.”

I know—he’s got too many schemes in that bald head.

After leaving the Zen Sect, Long Ye and Shi Qian suddenly realized—it had already been almost half a year. It was about time to head back.

In this half year, they’d traveled through most of the cultivation world, though there were still some places they hadn’t visited.

But if they tried to visit them all now, Long Ye might not make it to his Ascension Ceremony in time.

Long Ye still wanted to travel more, since the remaining places all had stunning natural sights that Shi Qian would love.

But Shi Qian gently persuaded him: “Squeak Squeak.”

Brother Ye, let’s go back.

Long Ye still wanted to continue, but Shi Qian rubbed his dragon horns against the back of Long Ye’s head and said: “Squeak Squeak.”

Traveling has been fun, but it’s exhausting too. Let’s go rest at Cuilong Mountain.

And besides, Long Ye also needed some time to restore his condition.

As for the sights they didn’t get to see—it didn’t matter much. They’d seen enough, and 1958 had already used up all one hundred of its photo slots. Shi Qian had also used up all of the memory stones.

With the little furball acting so spoiled, Long Ye obediently turned around and flew back.

But he didn’t say anything for a while.

Shi Qian was the first to speak: “Squeak Squeak.”

Brother Ye, how about I give you most of the memory stones?

“Roar roar—”

You don’t want more?

“Squeak Squeak.”

This time, they’re all for you.

Long Ye was silent again for a bit, before finally saying: “Roar… roar roar—”

Brother Qian, actually, it’s fine if you never ascend.

“Roar roar.”

The tribulation lightning that strikes during ascension… it hurts too much.

Long Ye had gone through it. He knew—it was unbelievably hard to survive.

When Shi Qian heard that, he couldn’t hold it in anymore.

He rubbed his fuzzy little forearm against his eyes and waited a moment before saying, “Squeak Squeak.”

I’ll definitely come find you, don’t worry.

“Squeak Squeak——”

And—and I’m so afraid of dying, of course I’ll be careful too.

The journey back felt so short—it was over in a flash. Most people in Sword Sect were beaming with joy, busily preparing for Long Ye’s ascension ceremony.

When the divine light descended, Sword Sect’s fortune would grow even more prosperous, blessing generation after generation of disciples, as well as every living creature on this land.

Shi Qian tried hard to keep a good mood, and had even prepared a little surprise for their friends in the sect.

The Day of the Ascension Ceremony.

Long Ye carried a big pouch of memory stones, along with items Sword Sect had prepared for use after his ascension. He accepted the divine immortal light, and the spiritual energy in his body was fully transformed into celestial qi.

Ethereal immortal aura swirled around him, making his already handsome features seem even more transcendent and aloof.

The divine light streamed down from the heavens, and the crowd gathered to witness the ceremony seemed to fill the entire sect—it was the most bustling scene in centuries.

Before leaving, Long Ye waved his hand, and Shi Qian was forcibly pulled into his embrace.

“Squeak Squeak.”

Brother Ye, you’re even more amazing now!

Long Ye placed the furry ball back on top of his head. “Take a few more sniffs of me now. Once I leave, you won’t get the chance for a long while.”

Shi Qian: ?

You know something?

But he didn’t dare ask, so he just wildly inhaled a few more mouthfuls of Dragon AoTian to calm his nerves.

After finishing, Shi Qian sneakily sent him a sound transmission to ask.

Long Ye said, “I’ll tell you when you come find me.”

But don’t rush. Us dragons can live for a very, very long time—at least tens of thousands of years.

With those final words, Long Ye was rejected by the laws of this world and left it.

He turned back for one last glance, his gaze landing on Shi Qian, who was crouched on the meditation cushion Long Ye had ascended from—but it was as if he also saw the decade they had spent together, saw that once-weak version of himself who had met the best big bro, Brother Qian…

Immortal Realm.

The immortal overseeing the lower realm’s ascension passage received an alert from the formation and stepped forward to welcome the newcomer.

Only to see a newly ascended immortal wearing a plain magical cap.

Huh? Have the new immortals these days really become this poor?

Long Ye noticed the immortal’s gaze land on his hat and said calmly, “I have a head condition.”

“When I was ascending, it felt like something was missing on my head. It was a little cold.”

_{Well Well guys, first arc of this novel is complete now. Our very cute chinchilla is on break now. Let’s see what next animal he will change himself into.}