68

Waking up the next day, the first thing Yang Ze did was to take a look at the panel in front of him.

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{Name: Yang Ze}

{Realm: Innate}

{XP: 5250}

{Fishing: Locked (101/500 spirit stones needed to unlock)}

{Personal Space : 3 cubic meters}

{Efficiency: 300 XP/day}

{Level: 3} (101/1000 spirit stones needed to upgrade)

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Other than the increase in experience, the entire panel remained the same. Without any techniques, there was nothing he could do for now. Glancing at his pitiful personal space, which only contained a few spirit stones, he let out a helpless sigh. He had no idea how useful they would be, but for now, all he could do was hope for the best.

"Are you ready?" Just as he was lost in thought, a soft voice pulled him back to reality. Turning to Ye Wan—now dressed in a milky white robe with an exquisite jade pendant hanging from her waist—he nodded silently. Compared to the past few days, when she carried an air of playfulness and naivety, she now seemed completely transformed. Her face was calm and serious, radiating the quiet majesty of someone used to a position of authority. For a moment, Yang Ze even found himself wondering if this was truly the same girl he had been spending time with.

Nodding to her in response, the two of them stepped out of the room, where the old man was already waiting. He glanced at them but said nothing. Instead, he simply raised his hand, and in that instant, Yang Ze felt the aura of heaven and earth around them begin to converge at an astonishing speed.

For those below the Innate Realm, this scene would look no different from an old man waving as a gust of wind blew by. But for those in Innate, they could see a massive vortex forming around the old man that seemed to be capable of destroying everything in its path. 

After a few seconds, the vortex slowly changed shape to a small boat. Yang Ze held his breath as the boat slowly turned translucent before changing into a boat. The boat looked like any ordinary wooden fishing boat, except it seemed to be made out of water. 

Without uttering a word, the old man leapt aboard, settling into his seat with practiced ease. Yang Ze hesitated for a brief moment before reaching out to touch the strange craft. To his surprise, he didn't get wet. Instead, he felt like he was touching a soft, cold, rubbery cushion. Wasting no more time, he stepped inside and took his seat, followed by Ye Wan, who sat beside him.

After everyone had taken their seats, the old man raised a single finger. At his gesture, the boat gently lifted off the ground, floating upward with silent grace.

For him and Ye Wan, this was nothing out of the ordinary. But for Yang Ze, it was as if an entirely new world had just been unveiled.

He, too, was capable of flight now that he had stepped into the Innate Realm, but conjuring an entire flying boat? That was something else entirely. Though he could argue that he'd never actually tried such a thing before… the fact remained—he couldn't do it. Not yet.

Within seconds, they were already soaring a hundred meters above the ground. From this height, the scenery unfolded before him in breathtaking detail. Below were the three crude wooden houses they had lived in these past few days, right at the very edge of an enormous forest that stretched far beyond the horizon.

As far as his eyes could reach, the only thing that greeted him was endless trees. The thick fog that he saw earlier seemed to have swallowed the entire forest. Even the sky seemed dimmed by its presence. The only thing piercing the fog was the river that flowed past the houses, though even that soon vanished into the mist.

Just as he was about to ask the old man about it, the latter casually raised his hand and flicked his finger. In that instant, the wooden huts below shattered like brittle clay, turning into fine dust. Before Yang Ze could even process the scene, the old man waved his hand once more, and a gentle gust swept the dust away, erasing all traces of their stay, as though they had never been there at all.

Soon, the boat began to pick up speed, flying quickly in the opposite direction, leaving the endless foggy forest far behind. In just a few seconds, the boat's speed had reached an unbelievable level. If Yang Ze had to make a comparison, then the speed they were going now was no less than that of a bullet train. But what amazed him the most was that, even while moving this fast, he couldn't feel any wind at all. The entire boat was surrounded by the aura of heaven and earth, which completely blocked everything from the outside, making it feel calm and still.

"Before we reach the sect, there are a few things that I would like to tell you." It was Ye Wan who broke the silence. The girl who usually had a smile on her face now had an expression of apathy. 

"We never had a chance to properly introduce ourselves." Her voice was serene as she spoke further. 

"I am Ye Wan, the current elder of the fourth peak, and he is the lord of the fourth peak, Elder Lu." 

As soon as she finished speaking, Yang Ze's eyes narrowed into slits. He doesn't know what any of those position means, but judging by the tone of Ye Wan, it seemed like they were someone extremely influential in their sect. He still had no idea about how the power structure of the sect was divided. But if the old man in front of him was a lord of the fourth peak, then it would only mean that there were three more besides him who have reached Innate. And that is considering there are only four peaks in the Moonlit Sect.

'Four Innate... Hiss.' The moment this thought came to his mind, Yang Ze took a sharp breath. 

In Yuyang City and the city of Ignis, the strongest person was only at the peak of Qi Guiding. Not just those two cities, but even in the area stretching thousands of miles around them, there wasn't a single Innate powerhouse to be found. They were so rare that most cultivators believed they were just myths and stories.

And yet, in the Moonlit Sect, there were already more than four Innate powerhouses. And who knows—there might even be people there who were stronger than those in the Innate realm.

The moment this thought came to his mind, Yang Ze even began to rethink his decision to visit the Moonlit Sect. But the hesitation didn't last long. He reminded himself that he needed more techniques, a place to gather information, and a way to learn more about the world. As for whether they would figure out his true identity as an Innate powerhouse... he glanced at the old man sitting in front of him. Since even someone as strong as him couldn't see through him, the chances were that he would be safe for now.

Though the old man never said a word, his eyes stayed on Yang Ze the entire time. There were only a handful of mortals who could stay calm after meeting someone like him. Maybe the boy had an Innate ancestor, or maybe he was used to being around powerful people. Whatever the reason was, the old man had to admit that he was impressed with how well the boy kept his calm.

"When we reach there, I will make some arrangements for you, but because you are not a member, the places and areas you can go are limited." Ye Wan's voice echoed in his ears again.

"Other than that, I will take care of your daily necessities. Later, if you wish, you could join the fourth peak officially." 

Yang Ze simply nodded in response. Even though he was thankful to her for everything, he had no plans of joining their sect. To him, sects and alliances felt like chains that took away his freedom. What he truly wanted was to live by his own rules, without anyone controlling him. But just because he didn't want to join them didn't mean he wouldn't check them out. This new world was full of mysteries and beautiful places. If he ever got the chance, he would definitely travel to different places and expand his view of the world.

As Ye Wan saw him nod in response, a gentle smile appeared on her lips. All her life, she had lived under the protection of the sect. There were only a few times when she had gone to the nearby cities. Even then, she was always surrounded by other sect members. She never got a chance to explore on her own or do things she truly wanted to do. As someone who grew up reading countless stories about brave heroes, it had always been her dream to become a heroine like the ones in those tales.

Now that she had saved someone for the first time in her life, Ye Wan felt a mix of excitement and pride. The feeling of rescuing someone, especially a weak-looking boy from a strong enemy, made her feel like she was living inside one of the stories she used to read. This feeling only made her more determined to keep the boy close so she could protect him.

The three of them, each lost in their own thoughts, sat quietly as their journey continued through the sky.

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"We are here."

It was Ye Wan's voice that woke Yang Ze up.

"Umm!" He quickly wiped the corner of his mouth and looked around in confusion. Even though he had healed quite a bit, his body still needed rest. His injuries, along with how comfortable the boat was, had caused him to fall asleep without realizing it. If Ye Wan hadn't called out, he might have kept sleeping.

It took him a few seconds to fully wake up. But when he looked ahead and saw what was in front of him, his eyes opened wide in shock. Any trace of sleep that he still had disappeared in an instant.

In front of him were eight massive mountains, each standing far apart from the others. From above, their positions formed the shape of a half-moon. It was easy to tell with just one look that this wasn't a natural formation. Someone had clearly planned it. But more than the strange formation, what surprised him the most was the size of the mountains themselves.

If he had to compare, then each of the mountains in front of him was almost four times the size of Mount Everest. They were so huge that even from this height, he couldn't see their peaks clearly. Aside from their size, what stood out were the many planting grounds spread across the slopes. These fields were arranged in a diagonal pattern, making the mountains look like giant staircases. Surrounding the eight mountains were massive rocky structures, like clusters of smaller mountains pressed together to form huge walls. And in the center of these walls was a grand gate, hundreds of meters tall, crafted with great care and beauty.

Just by looking at the scene in front of him, Yang Ze was stunned. He had been to cities before, but none of them could compare to this. It was like comparing a firefly to the sun—there simply was no comparison.

As if she noticed the change in his expression, Ye Wan smiled with a trace of pride on her face. Being a member of the Moonlit Sect, she naturally felt a sense of superiority. Without even realizing it, she lifted her chin slightly, like a child showing off their favorite toy.

"Ahem." She cleared her throat and gently raised her hand, as if welcoming him.

"Welcome to the Moonlit Sect."