“Let’s take a look in the city then.” Li Qiye smiled after finding out the situation from the servants.

Ning Zhu followed Li Qiye while the servants felt unrest about their future. They didn’t dare to say a thing when the two were still around.

Cultivators were immortals in their eyes. They were nothing more than insects that could be crushed at any moment. Just a whim of these beings could change all of their fate.

They heaved a sigh of relief when the two finally left and quietly talked among themselves.

***

As Li Qiye and Ning Zhu stood not far from the gate, the ground suddenly quaked violently with no end in sight.

“Hmm?” Ning Zhu was surprised.

Li Qiye immediately gazed at the core peak of Armament Mountain. It was trembling hard enough to affect the entire sect and more.

“Rumble!” There seemed to be something in there wanting to break out.

Its peak exuded waves of light, not overly blinding but enough to cause spatial ripples. The light waves harmonized perfectly with each quake, as seamless as a master calligrapher writing a dao chapter.

The quaking was tolerable but still alerted all the members of ARmament Mountain. The disciples, elders, and ancestors paid full attention.

The tiny peak had enough pull to affect everything about it, perhaps even all of Sword Continent. People got the illusion that it was the foundation of the continent.

“What’s happening with the ancestral peak?” Even an elderly ancestor became startled.

“Nothing like this had ever happened before.” A friend of his felt the same way.

The slumbering ancestor buried deep underground also woke up and took a deep breath.

This peak has always been calm and peaceful. This was completely unprecedented.

“How ominous.” One of them let their imagination run wild.

For the regular disciples, they were panic-stricken, unaware of what was going on.

“Boom!” The light waves came together above. The pressure alone nearly crushed the sky vault, resulting in a portal materialization.

However, the radiant scene didn’t last long. The light eventually dispersed and disappeared from sight. The quaking stopped as well.

Everything returned to normal while people exchanged glances of confusion. One thing was for certain - this was no illusion or dream.

“It’s over?” One disciple didn’t expect the abrupt ending.

The majority thought that something monumental was about to happen, not a return to normalcy. Alas, the ancestors and elders didn’t think so. 

They initiated a conference to talk about the possibilities and potential countermeasures.

“Could this be a reaction from the recent problem?” One ancestor worriedly said.

The kidnapping of disciples recently has been plaguing these ancestors even though no one had died yet. The material losses weren’t substantial either.

Thus, they connected the two recent events together.

“Maybe the ancestors are warning us about the future?” One of them boldly guessed.

The group thought that this was also possible. After all, the peak was brought here by their dao lord for the sake of protection. It could be warning them about an incoming disaster.

“Maybe it has nothing to do with our sect and is coming from the forbidden zone.” An erudite elder said.

“What do you mean?” A different ancestor asked.

“Don’t forget that our ancestral peak originated from the Sword Burial Zone, so in a sense, they’re from the same vein. Sword Burial has been missing for a long time now, its reappearance might be soon.” The elder analyzed.

They didn’t know how their progenitor obtained this peak nor the exact location, only that it came from Sword Burial.

“But nothing happened during its last appearance, there was no harmonization.” An elder said.

This went on for a while and no one drew a definite conclusion.

“We need to talk to the sect master.” An elder suggested.

Some of them looked around. One ancestor eventually replied: “It’s not the right time. Wait until the sect master’s matter is done first before bringing this up.”

No one answered. A few thought that it wouldn’t be easy for the sect master to deal with her problems.

***

“What’s going on?” Ning Zhu saw the disturbance at the ancestral peak and became startled. She knew that this was historically unprecedented despite not being a member of Armament Mountain.

“As I’ve said, it’s only a matter of time.” Li Qiye smilingly stared at the peak.

“This doesn’t look good for Armament.” She replied after considering the recent troubling events here: “Young Noble, do you think this is connected to the kidnapping?”

“You’re mixing the crux of the issue.” He said.

“You’re saying that the true problem lies in the ancestral peak, Young Noble?” She said.

“Yes, but be patient because the fun is just beginning. Just wait and see.” He said.

She was certain that this so-called “fun” wasn’t going to be fun for anyone.

“Do you wish to help the sect master?” She brought up a different matter.

“We’ll see if she can deal with her own problems first.” He responded indifferently before turning towards the plain of the Tang: “Plus, there’s something more interesting here anyway. Armament Mountain can wait.”

She also gazed in the same direction. Though the tiny fortresses were strange and old, she didn’t understand why Li Qiye was so interested in this area.

“Let’s go to the city, we have to buy it.” He smiled and moved on.