Ye Qin materialized from the teleportation array in a hidden outpost near Linhai City. Then, harnessing the Cloud Cover, he transformed into a streak of dark light, a thousand zhang long, vanishing into the firmament with a whoosh.

Half a day later, spotting a vast island spanning hundreds of miles ahead, a flicker of joy crossed his face, and he decelerated.

On Wuyu Island, a magnificent Immortal City was rising from the earth.

The Purple Sword Palace, leading the entire Northern Sect Lineage of the Heavenly Dao Alliance, was constructing this Immortal City upon this very island. Unlike the stone city built solely by the Purple Sword Palace in the past to lure the enemy, this new city, consolidated with the vast majority of resources from the Northern Immortal Palaces of the Heavenly Dao Alliance, possessed genuine protective arrays, ensuring absolute defensive strength. Although it was a nascent Immortal City, a considerable populace had already gathered.

Unless the Demon Race cultivators launched an overwhelming assault, posing a significant threat to it would be exceedingly difficult now.

This Immortal City had been completed for several years, establishing itself as the most vital stronghold in the surrounding sea regions for cultivators, especially those of the Northern Sect Lineage of the Heavenly Dao Alliance, within the Sea of Blood. Inside and out, a scene of prosperity unfolded daily, with thousands of Golden Core stage and above cultivators coming and going.

As Ye Qin descended onto the island and entered the city.

Immediately, a Golden Core Captain guarding the gate stepped forward, cupping his hands respectfully. “Reporting to this venerable ancestor, this island is currently under the jurisdiction of the Purple Sword Palace, which manages the Northern Sect affairs. Wartime control is in effect. All entering cultivators must report their names and register, obeying the Sect Master’s deployment orders. We humbly request the ancestor state his origin and name so this junior can record it!”

Ye Qin glanced at the guard, noting the unfamiliar face. He deduced the guard wasn't from the Purple Sword Palace but likely a Golden Core cultivator conscripted from other Northern Sect Lineage Immortal Palaces for duty.

Since the Immortal City had rules, Ye Qin didn't press the matter. He retrieved his Elder Token of the Purple Sword Palace and flashed it, stating lightly, “Fifth Elder of the Purple Sword Palace, Ye Clan! Is Sect Master Zhou within the city?”

“Your Excellency is Elder Ye!?” The guard, startled by the Elder Token Ye Qin presented, immediately recalled a rather legendary figure.

Any cultivator in the Sea of Blood could not ignore the Golden Core Demon Slaying Rankings and the Nascent Soul Demon Slaying Rankings. And cultivators of the Northern Sect Lineage of the Heavenly Dao Alliance could not ignore the rankings of their Northern cultivators.

In the last decade or so, two top-tier Golden Core cultivators had emerged from the Purple Sword Palace: one was Ye Qin, the Fifth Elder, who, in just one year, soared to the eleventh position on the Golden Core List—his ascent speed was terrifying. Just as everyone speculated whether he would break into the top three, he completely vanished from the Sea of Blood.

The other was Zhou Yi, the Young Palace Master of the Purple Sword Palace, who eventually reached the tenth spot on the Golden Core List. However, Zhou Yi took several years to climb there. In the same duration, Zhou Yi’s ranking progression was significantly slower than Ye Qin’s.

Thus, within the entire Northern Sect Lineage of the Heavenly Dao Alliance, the most eye-catching figure was undoubtedly the Fifth Elder of the Purple Sword Palace, Ye Qin, who had become nearly a legend in the eyes of lower-tiered cultivators.

He first attained the rank of Elder of the Purple Sword Palace by mastering the Great Five Elements Sword Array while only being in the early Golden Core stage. Initially, this news circulated only within a small scope of the Purple Sword Palace and didn't attract widespread attention. What truly made Ye Qin famous was his creation of the fastest rise record on the Golden Core Demon Slaying Ranking—achieving the astonishing feat of reaching eleventh place in an incredibly short time from being unlisted.

Let alone ordinary Golden Core cultivators, even Li Qingyu, the Young Palace Master of the Taihao Sword Palace who topped the rankings at the time, and the other Golden Core cultivators in the top ten, felt a sense of apprehension, viewing him as an extremely threatening competitor. Yet, he abruptly withdrew from the Sea of Blood at the height of his fame, leaving behind countless speculations.

Jiang Ran, the Young Palace Master of the Treasure Cloud Palace, who emerged like a dark horse, suddenly leaped to the top of the Golden Core Demon Slaying Ranking by slaying a Transformation Stage demon cultivator. Rumors from within the Treasure Cloud Palace faction suggested that during a beast hunt, Jiang Ran had a conflict with Ye Qin over the distribution of treasures; Ye Qin had allowed the others to divide the spoils, yet Jiang Ran dared not openly fall out with Ye Qin at the moment.

Li Qingyu, relegated to second place, chose not to continue striving for the top spot but rapidly returned to the Eastern Sea to enter seclusion and break through to the Nascent Soul stage. For Li Qingyu, who had already gained immense renown, this ranking seemed to have lost its appeal.

The guard captain, confirming Ye Qin’s identity and seeing this near-legendary Fifth Elder of the Purple Sword Palace had actually reached the Nascent Soul stage, was overcome with suppressed fear and excitement. “This junior welcomes Elder Ye, and congratulates Your Excellency on breaking through to the Nascent Soul cultivation! If this junior was in any way disrespectful just now, I beg Elder Ye’s forgiveness. Sect Master Zhou is not out of the city today; Your Excellency should be able to find him at the City Lord's Mansion. Since Your Excellency is newly arrived, you might not be familiar with the area; allow this junior to guide you.”

Ye Qin was not entirely clear about the extent of his own influence, and seeing the guard captain’s visibly agitated state, he felt slightly perplexed.

However, he didn't dwell on it, nodding lightly and proceeding into the city.

As the Fifth Elder of the Purple Sword Palace, Ye Qin was absolutely among the core leadership of the sect, possessing immense authority. He held the right to govern this colossal island and Immortal City. More importantly, he was now a Nascent Soul cultivator, placing him on par with other Nascent Soul Ancestors. Regardless of other factors, his personal strength had reached an extremely high echelon, meaning he no longer needed to defer to any other cultivator in the Eastern Sea cultivation world.

His position as an Elder while still at the Golden Core stage had been largely titular. A Nascent Soul Elder, however, wielded substantial real power.

“Elder Ye, the restricted area of the City Lord’s Mansion is just ahead. I must stop here; please proceed inside yourself.”

While Ye Qin was lost in thought, the leading guard captain halted about a hundred zhang away from a grand, imposing palace hall within the city, stating respectfully.

“Thank you!”

Ye Qin nodded slightly and smiled. The City Lord’s Mansion before him was magnificent, reflecting the stature of the Purple Sword Palace.

Subtle spiritual pressure fluctuations, indicative of hidden and overt guards, emanated from within and outside the mansion.

However, the guards at the City Lord’s Mansion were all disciples of the Purple Sword Palace. Most recognized Ye Qin; many had even served under him before. Seeing Ye Qin appear, they were naturally overjoyed and rushed to salute and offer congratulations.

Ye Qin merely offered a faint smile and nod in acknowledgment, passing through the guarded portals unimpeded, and entering the City Lord’s Mansion.

At that moment, Sect Master Zhou, clad in a long purple robe, was laughing heartily while escorting a richly dressed elder out of the main hall.

“Sect Master Zhou, regarding the batch of construction materials you commissioned me to procure, rest assured, Tang will handle it entirely. I shall take my leave now. In the future, I hope Sect Master Zhou will continue to patronize and support the Blood Sea Merchant Alliance!” The richly dressed elder bowed to Sect Master Zhou, then looked up, noticing Ye Qin’s appearance with a look of surprise. He then offered a slight bow to Ye Qin before departing the mansion.

After watching the richly dressed elder depart, Sect Master Zhou turned to Ye Qin with a smile. “Elder Ye, it has been a long time since we last met. I congratulate Elder Ye on successfully breaking through to the Nascent Soul cultivation! This is truly cause for celebration!”

“I must also congratulate Sect Master Zhou on ascending to the leadership of the Northern Sect of the Heavenly Dao Alliance! May I ask the reason for the urgent summons to the Sea of Blood? Are there any pressing matters requiring my attention?” Ye Qin returned the salute with a smile and asked directly.

Sect Master Zhou nodded. “Indeed, we are critically short of capable personnel! The Immortal City’s supervision, and various aspects require capable individuals for management and coordination.”

“The Demon Race could launch an invasion at any moment; we must be prepared for that. We need a group of top-tier cultivators to guard the city! What we lack most are trustworthy people. Although the Nascent Soul cultivators from the Immortal Palaces of the Northern Sect Lineage of the Heavenly Dao Alliance are numerous, few can be entirely relied upon by this sect! It is excellent that you arrived in time.”

He paused here. “Elder Ye, let us go inside to discuss the details!” The two then entered the main hall of the City Lord’s Mansion and took their respective seats.

“Whatever tasks the Sect Master has planned, please speak plainly!” Ye Qin said.

“Setting other matters aside, there are currently two urgent tasks for which we have yet to find personnel, and they must be handled within the next half month. One is transporting a batch of important wealth and supplies to an Immortal City several tens of thousands of li away on the Sea of Blood. The other is that in the last month, a demon cultivator scout highly skilled in concealment has appeared near the Purple Sword Immortal City, attempting to probe our defenses. The Immortal City has only recently been completed and cannot have its secrets exposed to the Demon Race. Several teams of Nascent Soul cultivators have already taken missions to hunt this scout, but all attempts to capture or kill it have returned in failure, causing this sect considerable worry. You may choose one of these two tasks; I wonder which Elder Ye would prefer?” Sect Master Zhou stated.

“I will go hunt the demon scout,” Ye Qin replied after a moment of contemplation.

In fact, even if Sect Master Zhou hadn't assigned him the mission, he would have sought out the demon cultivators to hunt anyway. His Eight Outer Yang Sword Array needed to be reforged into a Minor Divine Ability-grade artifact, which entirely depended on seizing demon spirits to serve as the artifact’s spirits.

“Very well, Elder Ye may select several Nascent Soul cultivators from within the city to hunt the demon scout. I will assign other personnel to the supply escort mission.” After receiving the assignment from Sect Master Zhou, Ye Qin proceeded directly to the plaza of the Purple Sword Immortal City. There, he posted a notice, recruiting a team to hunt the demon scout, requiring all members to be at least early Nascent Soul cultivation, for a total of four recruits.

In the busiest plaza of the Purple Sword Immortal City, similar notices for recruiting cultivator teams were numerous.

All missions within Purple Sword City were publicly issued by the Northern Sect Master of the Heavenly Dao Alliance, and every task offered a considerable reward. If a cultivator felt their strength was sufficient for the assignment, they could accept the corresponding mission and receive a generous reward.

Of course, the vast majority of tasks could not be completed by a single cultivator alone; they often required the concerted effort of an entire team.

The mission to hunt the demon scout was not easy. Ye Qin did not believe he could easily hunt down the elusive demon scout by himself, which was why he came here to recruit team members, seeking several Nascent Soul cultivators to assist in jointly hunting the demon scout.

Many Golden Core cultivators were gathered in the plaza at that time, but Nascent Soul cultivators were almost non-existent, most being busy completing their own assignments.

Many Golden Core cultivators saw Ye Qin’s recruitment notice and shook their heads helplessly. The requirements for hunting the demon scout were too high, placing it just out of their reach.