Chapter 6 – Journey to the Heart of the Clan

As he made his way to the main hall, Qin Yun reviewed what he had learned about his upcoming wedding, weighing whether or not to accept this offer.

On the one hand, it could mean a lasting alliance with the Cloud Imperial Palace, raising the Qin Clan’s prestige and influence overnight.

Of course, the higher-ups of the clan were banking on this. It would fortify the clan’s influence within Jin City and enable it to spread throughout the Cloud Empire.

This was, no doubt, the clan elders’ first step into regaining the glory they lost the moment the clan ancestor left.

To this day, there has been no news from him. Some elders believed he was still alive, even though more than a thousand years had elapsed.

They still held on to hope.

They believed that if they made the clan’s name ring far and wide, the old ancestor might hear of his distant relative and return someday.

A foolish hope, Qin Yun believed.

The old man was most likely dead. Ground away by the sands of time. It had been a thousand years, after all. Nobody, not even an immortal, could survive such a length of time with a human mind. Not unless he had already transcended his flesh and achieved a higher realm of being. But even if he wasn’t, this clan most likely meant nothing to him, or he wouldn’t have left in the first place.

Unlike what their names might imply, Immortals weren’t undying. As long as they remained living beings, their minds would decay, and their souls would erode with time, even as their body retained their youthful vigour.

Nothing was truly eternal. Not even the land that gave birth to them. At the end of days, even the universe itself would succumb to decay.

Qin Yun had witnessed it first-hand.

It wasn’t a memory he liked to remember. No mind could bear it. The very thought of it weighed heavily on his mind.

On the other hand, Qin Yun had neither reason to approve nor reject this union. His decision would ultimately depend on the elders’ sincerity.

If they could make it worth his while, he wouldn’t mind going along with their scheme. In fact, he was looking forward to meeting this fiancée of his.

After a while, Qin Yun stood before a massive stone staircase carved directly into what seemed to be a stone formation that dwarfed everything else around it. It spun and weaved along the mountain’s stone surface, all the way up to the heavens, piercing the clouds.

Even gazing upwards, Qin Yun couldn’t see the end, only more stairs for him to climb.

This was the heart of the clan, where every direct descendant, as well as elders, resided. The staircase led upwards, with many magnificent palaces carved into the stone.

Many were empty, for not everyone, despite being related, could claim their place here. A certain level of strength was required, its lower threshold being the peak of the Golden Core Realm, of which only a handful within the clan had achieved until this day. They numbered in a few dozen, but the stone residences were in the hundreds.

Of all his close relatives, only his father was allowed, but, at his wife’s demand, who couldn’t even take a single step upon the mountain path, his father chose to live in a mansion on the ground instead.

Halfway up, Qin Yun arrived at a checkpoint. Golden-armoured guards wielding ferocious halberds blocked his way, their gaze menacing, almost inhuman. They wouldn’t hesitate to cut him down given the slightest provocation.

Qin Yun stopped and reached for his emblem, only to be stopped by one of the guards. He didn’t even need to speak. His oppressive aura was enough to deter Qin Yun from moving further.

He couldn’t even estimate what realm this mere guard had reached. It was undoubtedly much higher than his cousin, Qin Meihui’s Foundation Building realm. Maybe even further than the Void Core Realm. They must have, at least, formed their golden cores, being in the lower bounds of that realm.

They were elites, not just by the Qin Clan’s standards, but throughout all of Jin City. There may be fewer than three hundred Golden Core Practitioners among the more than a hundred thousand souls that live in this city. Even such elites were bound by this gate, restrained from going any higher, for they were not found worthy. They could only guard the inner sanctum of the clan.

Using his halberd, the guard touched Qin Yun’s emblem. A blue light sprang forth, landing onto the golden gate, disappearing within. Mere moments later, runes appeared midair under its arch, a very old dialect that Qin Yun could barely read. He even doubted the guards knew a single word.

Despite it all, the two guards nodded upon seeing the words and retracted their weapons, allowing him passage. However, their grim expression didn’t fade in the slightest. It wasn’t exactly disdain, but more a haughty arrogance, and despite their obvious expression, they made no further attempt to impede him, remaining professional.

Qin Yun took no note of it as he passed them by, heading further up, as he knew the exact reason for it. He doubted these guards, who had spent most of their lives guarding the heart of the Qin Clan, had recognized his identity. At most, they saw his blue robe, devoid of gold, and inferred he wasn’t worth their reverence, and, unlike the guards at the bottom of the mountain, they had been born and bred to serve the clan’s patriarch and his direct line.

A little further up, Qin Yun stopped to admire the view.

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In his twenty years on this realm, this was the first time he had been allowed to climb this high. Usually, only the reception hall near the main gate would be used to receive guests or to confer directives to the clan members. Only when a guest of some renown entered the clan would the main hall be opened to entertain him. Qin Yun was obviously unworthy of this honour.

Something was afoot.

However, with his experience, how could Qin Yun not know the elders’ aim?

With this gesture, they reminded him that, despite his complex origins, he remained a core member of the Qin Clan and should shoulder the duties that came with this recognition.

They were trying to coerce him into acquiescing to their demands!

Saying, “Look how well the clan is treating you! It is only right for you to repay the clan in any way possible. Otherwise, the authority and comfort you enjoy might be stripped away.”

However, such methods wouldn’t work on him. There was only one captain behind this ship. Only Qin Yun himself could decide his destiny. Neither threats nor cajolery would be enough to make him change his mind on something he had already decided.

Thankfully for them, Qin Yun had yet to make up his mind on this matter.

From his vantage point, Qin Yun looked down onto Jin City.

It was beautiful.

A city of a hundred thousand souls nestled amidst the wilderness, surrounded by verdant greenery, bifurcated by a single strong river with many bridges that spanned its length, each wide and durable.

Qin Yun could see thousands of souls cross their length each day. Some were littered with shops, makeshift markets born of mercantile interests, seeing how many people would use these man-made crossings.

It made for a picturesque scene: a bubbling gathering over a raging river. Qin Yun only hoped the bridges wouldn’t cave under all that weight, owing to how old those structures were. But not to fear, they weren’t just mortal creations, but were reinforced by practitioners using various techniques and formations.

The bridges were the very backbone of the city; even losing a single one would have enormous ramifications.