[Vol. 6] Chapter 245: The Legend of the Sky Island
Keeping her doubts about the little fox-eared girl’s unbelievable strength to herself, Violet glanced around the open sky before finally looking at Miss Ming Lianxin, who, for some reason, seemed a bit nervous.
"Alright, can you tell me what's going on now? What exactly happened while I was inside the valley? And where did Xiao Kong go?"
"Uh..."
Ming Lianxin hesitated for a long time, stealing a glance at the fox-shaped jade pendant hanging from Violet’s waist the entire time. It wasn’t until the priestess started frowning that she finally spoke cautiously.
"Miss Violet... You’re the so-called 'Chosen One' from the legends, aren’t you?"
"I think I was the one asking the questions just now…"
Violet shook her head with a helpless smile. She wasn’t particularly annoyed, but she also didn’t confirm or deny it.
"People have called me that before. More than just a couple of times, actually. But to be honest, I still don’t really understand what 'Chosen One' is even supposed to mean."
"It’s really you? Then… have you ever met the young lady…?"
"Huh?"
"N-no, it's nothing. Sorry, I misspoke."
For some reason, the girl suddenly lowered her head, looking downcast. Even her fluffy fox ears drooped lifelessly. But before long, she lifted her head again, forcing a smile at the priestess. Unnoticed, her way of addressing Violet had also changed.
"Sorry for making you laugh, Miss Violet. Please follow me. I’ll take you to see… Them."
"Hm?"
Seeing Ming Lianxin suddenly flying off in the opposite direction, Violet glanced back at the battlefield where the fierce fighting was still going on. Curiously, she asked,
"Aren’t we going to help with the battle?"
But the fox-eared girl didn’t even look back as she replied,
“There’s no need. The monsters here are just scavengers born from the destruction-corrupted [Ancient Spirit Realm]. As long as the domain and its connection to that source aren’t severed, these creatures will never truly disappear. Our mission isn’t to wipe out every last one of them.”
Only then did she glance back, gesturing for Violet to follow.
“Come with me. Your time and strength shouldn’t be wasted here.”
“Oh…”
Although the girl had yet to directly answer her earlier questions, Violet had already begun forming her own guesses. Without further argument, she followed the celestial envoy, walking side by side beneath the massive flying vessel, what was known as the Spirit Veil Immortal Island.
Just like she had done when operating the crystal barrier inside [Mirror Valley], Ming Lianxin took out a fox-shaped token and sent a beam of light toward the floating island. In response, a much larger and more powerful beam, several meters in diameter, shot down from above, enveloping them both.
“Ah, please don’t worry. This is the island’s guiding light. It’s completely harmless,” the fox-eared girl hurriedly explained, as if suddenly remembering something.
Violet simply nodded, offering no resistance.
A familiar weightless sensation washed over her as the warm light surrounded her body.
“So… I’m finally ascending… to the Immortal Island.”
Though the process felt less grand or ceremonial than she had expected, there was no doubt about it now.
Everything had fallen into place. The Spirit Veil Immortal Island had arrived in the [Ancient Spirit Realm] as foretold, and having defeated [Taotie] in the valley, she had unquestionably earned her promised qualification.
The light swallowed everything from view.
When it faded, the priestess found herself standing in an ancient, elegant chamber.
“……”
As Violet looked around at the ancient yet elegant decor, she couldn’t help but feel a moment of confusion. The place looked nothing like the futuristic, high-tech interior she had expected. For a brief moment, she even had the illusion that this was a secluded paradise for immortals rather than the inside of a massive flying ship.
However, with Ming Lianxin still standing beside her, the energy fluctuations in the air. So different from those on the ground of the [Ancient Spirit Realm] and the subtle pressure in the environment, similar to what she had felt in the [Nameless Demon Sovereign]’s tomb and the [Endless Wasteland Sea], all served as proof that this place was indeed the Immortal Island.
Back on the island, the fox-eared girl seemed noticeably more relaxed. After checking their surroundings, she gave Violet another polite bow, repeating the gesture three times.
"Please follow me."
She pushed open the door, an ordinary wooden one, not some high-tech automated entrance, and the two stepped out, one after the other. They walked along a garden path that was just as refined and elegant as the interior.
The sky above was a brilliant blue, and a warm sun hung quietly overhead, casting light and heat across the land. It looked so natural that Violet once again found herself doubting whether they were really inside a spaceship.
Still, given that her spiritual power was somewhat suppressed here and out of respect for her hosts, she didn’t attempt to scan the area with her SP. Instead, as they walked, she casually asked the girl beside her,
"By the way, that room back there wasn’t very big. If you bring a hundred people up here after every [Four Saints' Immortal Selection Ceremony], wouldn’t it be too small to fit them all?"
Even though past ceremonies had only brought a limited number of people to the island, anyone who looked into it could find out how it worked. Ming Lianxin didn’t seem surprised by Violet’s curiosity and simply responded with a smile,
"That room is actually a private passageway that a few members of our Spirit Veil Tribe use to travel between realms. It’s always available, but it has very limited space. The winners of the [Four Saints' Immortal Selection Ceremony], on the other hand, take a temporary passage, which is located quite far from here."
"Oh, and by the way, the sky and sun you’re seeing right now are just part of an environmental simulation. Miss Violet, you’ve seen what the Immortal Island really looks like before, haven’t you?"
"A simulation, huh…"
Just as Violet thought. Nodding thoughtfully, Violet kept the conversation going.
"I remember your sister, Ming Lianyun, mentioning that the Spirit Veil Immortal Island is restricted in some way, preventing most of your people from freely traveling to the outside world. But… this is a flying ship, isn't it? How could something like that still be an issue?"
"A flying ship…?"
Ming Lianxin smiled at the term, as if finding it both novel and fitting.
"Hmm, while this isn’t something we’re supposed to casually share with outsiders, there’s no need to hide it from someone personally chosen by the young lady. Since we still have some distance to go, I can give you a simple explanation."
She continued walking while pausing for a moment to think, then asked in return,
"Miss Violet, I heard that you came to this world from another place. Now that you've seen all this with your own eyes, what do you think the true nature of Spirit Veil Immortal Island is?"
"Uh… well…"
Violet hesitated before giving her best guess.
"A massive interstellar battleship that somehow traveled from a higher-dimensional world and ended up here? And its crew, your people, couldn’t return to where they came from, so they were forced to stay?"
"Pfft—!"
The fox-eared girl immediately covered her mouth, stifling a laugh.
"A high-dimensional interstellar battleship? That’s a funny way to put it! But no, the Spirit Veil Tribe is native to the [Ancient Spirit Realm]. We were born here, just in the sky instead of on the ground."
"That said… because of the young lady’s personal choices, the Immortal Island has, in fact, traveled to other worlds before. Before the great war broke out, it even ventured to the [Origin Realm], back when it wasn’t sealed off. Apparently, some of the locals saw it and recorded it in their history. Though they mistook it for some kind of giant creature."
She tapped her chin playfully.
"If I remember correctly, they called it [Abyss Star] or something like that. Pretty strange, don’t you think? Those people sure had a wild imagination~"