Hui stepped out into a storm. Lightning cracked overhead, thunder rumbling after it. Fierce rain thrashed him from every direction. Underfoot, soft mud and stone mixed together, while thick moss and lichens crawled over trees and boulders alike. A mountain loomed nearby, blocking out the sky and towering over them. Despite the peak’s closeness, it did nothing to protect Hui and the reaper from the rain.

He raised a hand to shield his eyes, only for the rain to pass directly through his body. Hui scowled. That’s inconvenient. I can’t even shield my eyes?

The reaper looked at him, then raised her eyebrows. “Use your qi,” she said, as if it was obvious.

“Eh…? How?” Hui asked.

“Exude an aura of qi around your body to ward off wind and rain. The same as when you’re on a flying sword,” she said.

Ah! That’s right. Wait, that works even when the rain is passing through me? Hui furrowed his brows. He circulated his qi, and an aura formed around him. The aura pushed the rain away from him, opening a narrow space around his body. Hui looked around. Now I’m not being rained on, but… He raised his hand. “Won’t people notice that there’s a gap in the rain?”

The reaper shrugged. “As long as you and they don’t occupy the same space, and you don’t grow too close, it shouldn’t matter that much.”

Hui nodded. He squinted through the rain. “We picked an excellent time to visit.”

“The Eastern Alliance is also known as the Land of Storms. It’s constantly storming here. Only rarely does it stop raining,” the reaper droned in a flat voice.

Ah. So the North is a frozen wasteland, the East constantly storms, and the West is a boundless desert… I really lucked out, starting in the most normal land! Hui nodded to himself. A moment later, he frowned. “Wait. If the Southern Sect Conference has the best climate, why was it never invaded, if it was the weakest region?”

“The Southern region is the smallest, making it easier to defend, and the mountain range at its border prevents a casual invasion. That, and… in the past, a number of unparalleled experts ranged the South, defending it from all comers,” the reaper said.

“Fen Long and the Four Evils?” Hui guessed.

“At one time, there were Four Heroes to match the Four Evils. However… with the sole exception of Fen Long, the Heroes have either ascended or perished,” the reaper stated flatly.

Hui nodded. “And Fen Long only remained in the mortal realm to keep the Evils sealed.”

“Oh,” the reaper said.

“…or because of his great friendship with Chen Wuya,” Hui continued conversationally, watching the reaper’s expression.

“Hmph,” she scoffed.

Hui smiled. As I suspected, then. There was a rumor that he was injured, but given the state I found him in, it’s more likely he simply lost himself in cultivation after he was forced to seal his best friend away. …Or something like that. After all, I can only guess at other people’s affairs.

“Enough talk. We’re almost there,” the reaper said.

“Who are we reaping today?” Hui asked, tilting his head.

She tossed her hair and turned around the edge of the enormous mountain beside them.

Hui jogged after her, his feathered fan fluffing after him. “Elder Sister!”

He turned the corner. Instantly, Hui staggered back. He stared. Whoa.

A huge sect sprawled over the land before them. Ten enormous peaks, each one as large as All-Heavens sect, stood in a ring around a massive valley. Across the floor of the valley, seven large palaces sat, each one surrounded by smaller palaces and entire palatial complexes. In the valley’s center, the eighth palace, the largest of all, dominated the valley.

The central eighth palace reached as high as any of the enormous encircling peaks. Eight tiers of red walls and gold-edged round windows stacked on top of one another. At the very peak, a gold-tiled roof reflected the faint sun, dispersing pale light on the rest of the valley.

“There?” Hui asked.

The reaper said nothing. She leaped into the air and glided elegantly toward the largest palace.

Hui followed after her, smiling to himself. Elder Sister can be a bit quiet, but I don’t mind. Sometimes you can’t think of what to say, and that’s fine. Or maybe she’s shy? Either way, I’ll accept it. Reaper-jiejie, it’s okay to be a little awkward! After all, you’ve spent so many years alone… this small Hui understands.

The reaper glanced over her shoulder, frowning at Hui. Why do I feel like he’s thinking something absurd?

Given the distance they had to cover, Hui expected it to take some time to reach the central palace, but in the blinking of an eye, they arrived.

“That was fast,” he murmured.

“It’s thanks to—”

“To Zhu Diyu’s authority, no? This small cultivator isn’t so lacking in comprehension to fail to understand that,” Hui murmured half to himself.

The reaper narrowed her eyes at him.

Hui quickly bowed. “Zhu Diyu’s omnipotent authority is impressive indeed! Ah! This small cultivator is overwhelmed to be allowed to assume even a small slice of—”

“Enough,” the reaper said, raising her hand.

Hui nodded and straightened, turning his attention back to the palace beside them. He pivoted, taking it all in.

Now that he was closer, the wall of the palace clearly had tiers built into it, so that each of its enormous eight tiers had tiers inside of them. Smaller windows peeked out here and there, small enough to get lost in the enormity of the wall. The huge golden windows served as portholes into the huge palace, revealing a dozen floors at a time. Inside, cultivators moved around, going about their various duties. One of the floors occupied half an entire window, and the cultivators inside practiced martial arts, mouths opened as they shouted in concert. On another level, the window pane hung open as dense multicolored fog streamed out from the hundreds of pill furnaces inside.

“Each of the surrounding palaces holds a sect. The central eighth palace holds the largest sect, the dominant cardinal sect—Eight Tiers Palace. The Eight Tiers Palace Sect is highly stratified, and each tier of the palace is considered as higher in status than the tier below it. As one progresses, one moves through the tiers. At the lowest tier, the equivalent of the first step into the inner sect, one takes on cleaning, cooking, and other menial tasks. The second tier is for honing one’s martial skills, and so on. Although you can find cultivators of every type on every tier, each tier has a specialty, and there are Tier Masters equivalent to most sect’s Peak Lords who rule each tier. Even the lowest Tier Master is a cultivator who has ascended to the top of the Eight Tiers Palace, so one should not take them lightly,” the reaper explained.

Hui nodded. “Is there no outer sect, then?”

The reaper gestured at the valley, and the various sects that dotted the land. “The Eight Tiers Palace considers the entirety of this valley its territory. The sects that live here can be considered true tributary sects to the Eight Tiers Palace, and can be considered its outer sect. Although there are certainly experts and eccentrics among the Valley Sects who could rival cultivators in the Eighth Tier, or even Tier Masters, the majority of those in the Valley Sects are below fifth realm.”

Hui blinked. “Eh, below fifth realm? Wait, then—”

The reaper nodded. “Every cultivator who is accepted into the Eight Tiers Palace is at least fifth realm.”

Hui looked over the enormous palace again. He swallowed, his throat suddenly dry. Wait, but then… that many fifth-realm plus cultivators… shit! Even if Chen Wuya and Fen Long are on the verge of ascension and return to their full strength… no, the smart money’s on the Eight Tiers Palace! After all, how many experts on the verge of ascension must they have? I’m betting more than two!

Hell, even if Master and Ying Lin stuck around… I’d still bet on the Eight Tiers Palace!

“How on earth has the Southern Sect Alliance survived?” Hui murmured to himself, shaking his head.

“It’s harder to enter the Southern Sect Alliance than you realize, as someone who never attempted to leave it while alive. That, and because it’s so small, it isn’t much of a prize… generally,” the reaper said.

“Generally?” Hui asked, startled. What does that mean?

The reaper flew on once more.

“Hey, wait! Elder Sister, please! What does that mean? Come on!” Hui called, flying after her.

Swooping up, the reaper slid in through an open window on the fourth tier. Hui followed her in, lying flat out to scoot through the open window. On the far side, a blade hurtled toward him, burning with blue flame.

Hui’s eyes widened. Instinctively, he laid out flat, playing dead. His body floated in the air, and the blade passed through him harmlessly.

Hui straightened up. Oh, right. Well. No harm, no foul! He glanced around, then bobbed after the reaper again, clasping his hands behind him as if nothing had happened.

The reaper sighed deeply. How long is it going to take him to realize that he’s dead?