The Mysterious Sound

Bai Lan’s tense body and mind finally relaxed at this moment.

It was human nature that after long periods of exhaustion, sudden relaxation could quickly lead one into a state of unconscious sleep.

Gradually, she leaned back in the bath and drifted into slumber.

She was truly exhausted.

For years, she had never experienced genuine rest.

The constant unease and the inability to relax for such a long period of time were burdens that few people could endure.

The reason she had been unable to rest peacefully was largely because Xue Yue’s memories continued to haunt her.

Deep within her subconscious, she constantly feared that the Xue Clan might one day find her.

Although Yun Yao had told her that the Xue Clan could not locate her through divine divination and that she did not need to worry, Bai Lan honestly did not fully trust Yun Yao.

How could she easily trust some mysterious consciousness claiming to be the Heavenly Dao?

It was an unknown existence.

She had never seen the Heavenly Dao before, nor had she ever encountered a strange entity that suddenly appeared beside her like this.

The moment Bai Lan fell into a deep sleep, something unusual happened.

Inside her body, the Chaos Divine Bone suddenly released a brilliant purple starlight.

This light pulled her consciousness into a mysterious space.

At the same time, a vague voice—one whose gender could not be determined—echoed in Bai Lan’s ears.

The voice seemed to be calling out to her, perhaps guiding her toward a specific place.

Following the sound, Bai Lan stepped onto a pitch-black path and continued walking forward.

Her consciousness was in a dreamlike state.

She had no rational thoughts and simply moved according to instinct.

After a short while, she passed through the dark corridor and arrived before a tightly sealed ancient silver gate.

Standing before it, Bai Lan looked incredibly small.

The gate was bound by numerous golden chains, as though sealed by some immense power.

The voice calling to her came from within the gate.

Although the voice was faint, Bai Lan could still hear it.

However, she could not clearly understand the words.

The indistinct voice seemed to carry an inexplicable power that compelled Bai Lan to approach the gate.

She pressed her ear against it and listened carefully.

Finally, she managed to hear a single sentence.

“Help me… let me out. This Heavenly Dao is false. Do not trust him.”

Hearing this sentence, Bai Lan slightly frowned.

Instinctively, she wanted to hear more of what the person behind the gate had to say.

But in the very next moment, another voice suddenly echoed beside her ear.

“Hurry back. You are about to be discovered.”

As soon as these words were spoken, Bai Lan felt a powerful force pulling at her consciousness.

In an instant, her entire being was dragged away from that strange space and returned to her physical body.

“Eh?”

The moment her consciousness returned to her body, Bai Lan abruptly opened her eyes, feeling as though she had just awakened from a deep dream.

Only then did she realize that she was still lying in the bathing pool.

She quickly looked around.

After confirming that she was alone in the room, she slowly calmed down.

She began thinking about what had just happened.

What exactly had that dream been?

What did the chained gate represent?

Although it had only been a dream, it still made Bai Lan feel somewhat uneasy.

‘This Heavenly Dao is false… do not trust him.’

“What does that mean?” Bai Lan murmured to herself as she recalled the mysterious voice from her dream.

Unfortunately, she could not remember anything else.

Since it was only a dream, Bai Lan did not think too deeply about it.

If she had to analyze the meaning of every dream she had, she would never have time for anything else.

“Ah… it seems I slept very comfortably. It feels like I slept for a long time,” Bai Lan sighed.

She then looked at Baiyu, who was currently sleeping while curled around her wrist.

Whenever the little creature had nothing to do, it would usually fall asleep.

It looked almost like a decorative bracelet.

Bai Lan glanced out the window.

The sky outside had turned slightly yellow, indicating that it was already afternoon.

This meant that she had slept for nearly five hours.

After all, she had officially joined the Immortal’s Abode around noon.

“I slept for so long? It’s already afternoon,” Bai Lan muttered.

She stood up and used her spiritual power to evaporate the water from her body before putting her clothes back on.

However, just as she finished dressing, Luo Yuyan’s voice suddenly came from outside the door.

“Junior Sister, are you inside? If you are, come out quickly!”

“You joined today and still haven’t met the other sisters yet. The assessment has already ended, so I’ll take you to meet them.”

“We can treat it as a celebration for your joining the Immortal’s Abode!” Luo Yuyan called out cheerfully.

Hearing this, Bai Lan raised her eyebrow slightly.

To be honest, she was not very interested.

Her personality was rather solitary.

Unless she truly trusted someone, she was reluctant to interact with others.

She rarely took the initiative to form close relationships.

Moreover, when she became a Direct Disciple earlier that day, many inner sect disciples had openly objected.

Even though Bai Lan understood that their objections were reasonable, she still felt somewhat uncomfortable.

To be precise, anyone would feel uneasy in such a situation.

The cultivation world respected strength above all.

She had not even reached the Foundation Establishment realm yet.

Could she really expect those senior disciples to sincerely respect her?

Even if they appeared respectful on the surface, who knew what they might say behind her back?

After finishing dressing, Bai Lan walked to the door and opened it.

She saw Luo Yuyan standing outside with a bright smile.

“Second Senior Sister, I don’t want to go,” Bai Lan said bluntly.

Luo Yuyan froze for a moment.

“Huh? You don’t want to go? Why not?”

“Senior Sister and I specifically asked them to stay here,” Luo Yuyan said in confusion.

“Sigh, Second Senior Sister,” Bai Lan replied.

“I’m only at the ninth level of Qi Refining. I haven’t even reached Foundation Establishment.”

“They are all stronger than me.”

“Besides, Master accepted me directly as a Direct Disciple, so they clearly feel dissatisfied.”

“If they are unhappy, do you really think they would sincerely welcome me?” Bai Lan asked calmly.

Luo Yuyan paused.

Although her mentality was still somewhat youthful, she was not naive enough to misunderstand Bai Lan’s meaning.

When she and Ximen Xue had become Direct Disciples, they had first served as ordinary inner sect disciples for some time.

They had proven their strength and talent within the inner sect before eventually becoming Direct Disciples.

Because of this, very few people had objected.

Bai Lan, however, was different.

She had been promoted directly from the outer sect to Direct Disciple.

The inner sect disciples did not know her at all.

Therefore, it was completely natural for them to feel unconvinced.

At the same time, it was also understandable that Bai Lan herself would feel uncomfortable.

“Alright then. I’ll tell Senior Sister to let them go back,” Luo Yuyan said quickly.

She immediately took out her identity jade token and sent a message to Ximen Xue at the Sword Pavilion.

Soon afterward, Ximen Xue received Luo Yuyan’s message.

She raised an eyebrow slightly as she read it.

After thinking for a moment, she turned to the inner sect disciples gathered before her.

“Junior Sisters, your Third Senior Sister is feeling somewhat tired and will not attend today’s gathering.”

“You may all disperse and return to your residences,” Ximen Xue announced.

After saying this, she immediately left the Sword Pavilion.

Hundreds of inner sect disciples were left standing there, somewhat confused.

“What? She’s not coming?”

“What does that mean?”

“Did this Third Senior Sister become arrogant immediately after becoming a Direct Disciple? Does she look down on us?” some hot-tempered inner sect disciples complained angrily.

However, several more experienced disciples exchanged glances with one another.

Their expressions revealed a sense of relief.

They clearly understood their own positions.

After all, earlier that day they had openly opposed someone becoming a Direct Disciple.

That situation was bound to cause discomfort.

If they had been in Bai Lan’s position, they would not have wanted to attend either.

Moreover, if Bai Lan had actually come, it would have made the entire situation extremely awkward.

In that sense, this outcome was actually better for everyone.

After all, there was no rule in a cultivation sect that required disciples to flatter a Direct Disciple.