Long Chen and the others rode the flying boat for a full two hours, when a dazzling orb of light like the sun appeared ahead.
"Third Brother, that's the inner courtyard ahead."
Seeing that orb, the disciples of the Xiaoyao Alliance were overwhelmed with excitement—it was their lifelong dream.
Long Chen looked at the orb and knew it was a grand formation. He had learned from books that the inner courtyard was the core area of the academy.
Its area is almost as large as four Tianwu Continents, protected by massive spiritual arrays, and the spiritual energy of heaven and earth is nearly ten times that of the outside world.
Moreover, inner sect disciples enjoy many special privileges, with benefits thousands or hundreds of times better than those of outer disciples. This is also why Mu Qingyun is determined to enter the inner sect and become an elite disciple.
Because only by becoming an elite disciple is the right to be trained by the academy to invest more resources. Once they become inner disciples, the academy's resources will be tilted toward them.
It can be said that the benefits provided by the academy for cultivation are only enough to cover the disciples' basic expenses.
If they want to cultivate quickly, those benefits are far from enough. So, whether it's Mu Qingyun, Luo Bing, Luo Ning, or the others, their families need to provide them with large amounts of immortal crystals every year to supply them. Otherwise, relying solely on the academy's monthly benefits will soon be left behind.
But becoming an inner sect disciple is different. The resources provided by the academy are sometimes unavailable for money, which is why they desperately want to enter the inner sect.
"Buzz"—
The flying boat slowly passed through the light screen, and runes lit up on its surface. Without that rune, the boat could not have entered this area.
Since Long Chen and the others had not yet advanced to the Divine Fire Realm and couldn't use the teleportation array, they could only come by flying boat.
Passing through the light screen, the scenery before everyone's eyes shifted. Here, ancient trees stood tall, steep peaks reached into the clouds, and mist drifted in the air, resembling a natural ink painting.
"So beautiful, it's practically a paradise on earth." Zhong Ling exclaimed in amazement.
A fairyland on earth? A bitter smile appeared at the corner of Long Chen's mouth. Back in the next realm, they had imagined the Immortal Realm as a paradise on earth, thinking that everyone here could live forever, that everyone here was immortals, carefree and carefree.
But after ascending, he realized this place was even more cruel than the mortal realm—it was no human paradise.
Suddenly, a flock of cranes flew through the mist, breaking through and creating a rainbow.
"It's the academy's auspicious beast, the Seven-Colored Immortal Crane. We actually saw the auspicious beast—does that mean we're in good luck?" When she saw the flock of cranes, Zhong Ling jumped up excitedly.
The Seven-colored Crane is a type of auspicious beast. Unlike other cranes, it is noble and pure, does not eat living beings, never kills, and feeds on the spiritual energy of heaven and earth, enjoying the finest qualities.
It's said that the rainbow cranes love to live freely, and their habitats aren't fixed. Legend has it that wherever a rainbow crane has an aura, it means that place is a land of good fortune.
However, the rainbow cranes dislike living with humans. Rumors of human slaughter and violence make them extremely uneasy.
So if someone chooses to live next to the rainbow crane, they will migrate and seek another place to rest.
Moreover, it is said that driving away the rainbow-colored cranes will turn the auspicious land into an ominous place. Whether this is true or not, many people firmly believe it.
Legend has it that after Lingxiao Academy was built, the Seven-Colored Immortal Crane finally arrived. The academy strictly forbids anyone from disturbing the cranes. Anyone who disobeys will be immediately expelled from the academy. No matter how powerful the background is, it doesn't matter.
It was said that the daughter of a former head of the academy, out of curiosity, chased after the Seven-Colored Immortal Crane, but was also expelled from the academy and never allowed to set foot in the academy.
Since then, people have been curious about the rainbow-colored crane, but can only watch from afar.
The rainbow crane is also rarely seen, as it only appears once every few years or even decades. Being encountered by someone is a stroke of great luck.
Seeing the rainbow-colored cranes, Mu Qingyun hurriedly stopped the flying boat in midair. This was the academy's rule to avoid disturbing them.
The Seven-Colored Immortal Crane is pure white all over, with only the edges of its wings and some feathers on its tail being black. Yet, for some reason, when they flap their wings, colorful patterns appear in the void. This remains an unsolved mystery, and no one has been able to explain it.
The seven-colored crane flew past the front of the flying boat, and a look of intoxication appeared in Mu Qingyun and the others' eyes. They were a group of beautiful elves, breathtakingly beautiful.
Just as Mu Qingyun was about to wait for the seven-colored cranes to leave before continuing his flight, the group suddenly turned and flew toward the flying boat.
"Oh my god, they're coming! We can actually see the rainbow-colored cranes up close." Li Cai and the others exclaimed in shock.
Normally, the Seven-Colored Crane dislikes human scents and will keep its distance when it sees people. But now, it was flying straight at them—it was simply unbelievable.
The crane's wings trembled, its posture graceful, like a young maiden dancing gracefully. The colorful halo was like their rainbow garments, their beautiful silhouettes making people forget all worries. That dance was the most magnificent in the world.
Long Chen quietly watched these beautiful elves, a smile curling at the corner of his mouth. It was the first time in his life he had seen such a magnificent creature.
That group of seven-colored cranes numbered about seventy or eighty. They weren't large, about the height of a person, and didn't exude any overwhelming aura. But they had no natural enemies. It was said that all beasts would rather starve than catch them.
This group of seven-colored cranes flew to the front of the flying vessel and actually surrounded it. Mu Qingyun and the others were stunned. What was going on?
"No one inside the flying boat should move recklessly, or the Seven-Colored Immortal Crane might be injured." Suddenly, a voice came from outside the flying boat.
Someone was actually calling out to them from midair. Clearly, everything here was being monitored—perhaps not to monitor them, but to protect the Seven-Colored Immortal Cranes.
The seven-colored crane circled the flying vessel without stopping. The powerful figures responsible for surveillance were also startled, not knowing what was happening, and quickly ordered Long Chen and the others not to act rashly to avoid harming them.
If the Seven-Colored Immortal Crane was injured and flew away, neither Long Chen nor they would be finished.
But the group of seven-colored cranes circled the flying boat nonstop, and for some reason, they refused to leave. Mu Qingyun and the others were stunned.
"Open the hatch," Long Chen said.
"Third Master," Li Cai was stunned.
"Bastard, didn't you hear what I said? Don't open the door, or ..." The voice from before rang out inside the flying vessel, filled with anger.
"Crack, crack, crack..."
But Long Chen completely ignored the man and directly opened the door of the flying boat himself, stepping onto it.
"You're looking for death!"
The voice suddenly became furious. From the sound of it, it seemed like it wanted to crush Long Chen to death.
Long Chen ignored the man and boarded the flying boat. The seven-colored cranes immediately surrounded him, and one crane slowly landed in front of him.
Suddenly, colorful runes floated all over her body, transforming into a seven- or eight-year-old little girl, looking delicate and delicate.
"Brother, you're a good person. Will you take me out to play?" The little girl spoke, her large, distinct black-and-white eyes crystal clear, without a trace of dirt.