# Chapter 200: Tian Jian Mountain Range
Yun Che's mouth was slightly open, his face frozen in a daze.
He was not surprised by Chu Yuechan's reputation as the "Number One Beauty"—with her peerless countenance, she fully deserved that title. Nor was he surprised that she was one of the "Ice Cloud Seven Immortals," ranked first at that—after all, with her strength at the Half-step King Xuan realm, he had vaguely guessed as much.
But what he had never expected was that she had so many admirers, and such illustrious ones at that. Setting everything else aside, the current Sect Master of the Xiao Sect, the current Villa Master of Tian Jian Villa, and even Cang Feng Emperor Cang Wanhe himself—which of these three wasn't renowned across the world?
For even such men to be so deeply enamored with Chu Yuechan, the total number of men infatuated with her would be a staggering astronomical figure.
And if these people were to find out that their "Ice Chan" immortal maiden had been taken by him... wouldn't that mean...
Thinking this, Yun Che nearly broke out in cold sweat.
"Junior Brother Yun, what's wrong?" Suddenly sensing Yun Che's body seemed to tremble, Cang Yue lifted her head and looked at him with concern.
"Nothing, it's nothing. The wind is strong, I'm a bit cold," Yun Che said vaguely, then tentatively asked, "So... since so many people admire her, has she taken a liking to any of them? After all, the quality of men who admire her is..." Yun Che swallowed his saliva. "Very high."
"No," Cang Yue gently shook her head. "I've heard that Chu Yuechan and her younger sister were orphaned and helpless from childhood. They were discovered by the Palace Master of Bing Yun Fairy Palace when they were very young. The women of Bing Yun Fairy Palace all have hearts of ice, never giving rise to romantic feelings. Chu Yuechan is naturally the same. It seems she even rather dislikes men. She ruthlessly rejects those men who admire her, even going so far as to kill them. Coupled with her own strength and the deterrence of Bing Yun Fairy Palace, no one has ever been able to force her. So over all these years, not a single person has ever gained her favor, and no man has even had the chance to be alone with her."
"Oh." Yun Che nodded, secretly breathing a sigh of relief, almost accidentally saying the words "that's good." "You mentioned she has a younger sister?"
"Mm. Her younger sister is named Chu Yueli, also one of the Ice Cloud Seven Immortals, ranked fifth. She is also an icy beauty. Together they are called the 'Chu Sisters Dual Marvels.' But like Chu Yuechan, no one has ever won her favor either... Junior Brother Yun, why do you suddenly ask about Chu Yuechan? Could it be... you've seen her?" Just after asking, Cang Yue denied it herself. "No, that's not right either. Chu Yuechan usually stays deep inside Bing Yun Fairy Palace. It's said that even when she appears, she wears a veil, never letting anyone see her face again. Did you hear some rumor about her somewhere?"
"Mm, something like that," Yun Che replied, his mind churning with waves of emotion. To be with Lan Xueluo, he had to face Fen Juechen. And to fully possess Chu Yuechan...
Oh heavens! Not to mention getting past Chu Yuechan herself, there were men of immense power and influence who had been infatuated with her for half their lives without even getting a kind look from the number one beauty of Cang Feng. And here he was, a junior, having devoured her completely. If these people found out, they wouldn't just want to kill him—tearing him apart and feeding him to the dogs would be a mercy.
The wind howled past his ears. Looking down, the vast earth was a blur, stretching endlessly to where heaven and earth met. The giant snow condor stopped flapping its wings, gliding silently, speeding forward like the wind.
---
The Tian Jian Mountain Range was located within the borders of the Cang Feng Empire, but it did not fall under the jurisdiction of the Cangfeng Imperial Clan—it belonged exclusively to Tian Jian Villa. This land was originally part of the Cang Feng Empire, known as the Tian Yun Mountain Range. But after Tian Jian Villa became the number one power of the empire, the imperial family, seeking to curry favor, gifted this land entirely to them, and Tian Jian Villa renamed the mountain range the Tian Jian Mountain Range.
The Tian Jian Mountain Range stretched eight hundred li from north to south and nine hundred li from east to west. Its main peak, several thousand zhang tall, was called "One Sword Piercing Cloud Peak." Excluding the smaller hills, there were six secondary peaks over a thousand zhang in height.
Ever since Tian Jian Villa was established here, over the centuries, the entire mountain range had undergone significant changes. From afar, one could feel a chilling aura rushing toward them, as if the entire mountain range was enveloped in streams of cold, sharp sword energy, making people dare only to observe from a distance, not approach.
"...Tian Jian Villa is located in the area surrounded by the main peak and the six secondary peaks. The entire villa stretches for over fifty li."
High above, the giant snow goose had begun to glide downward. Cang Yue pointed at the towering peaks ahead and explained to Yun Che.
"Over fifty li? This is still called a villa? It's practically a small city," Yun Che said in surprise.
Cang Yue continued, "This entire mountain range belongs to Tian Jian Villa. Without permission, no one can set foot on even an inch of this thousand-li mountain range. This vast mountain range contains endless mineral deposits, crystals, medicinal herbs, deliberately preserved beast territories, and many naturally existing or artificially constructed training grounds and trial grounds. And of course, there must also be secret realms unknown to others."
Yun Che was astonished. The depth of Tian Jian Villa's foundation was truly unimaginable.
The time was close to evening. The ranking battles would start tomorrow morning, so arriving at this time was still timely.
"The current Villa Master of Tian Jian Villa is named Ling Yuefeng. He is fifty-one years old this year. He is the youngest King Xuan realm supreme expert in the Cang Feng Empire in the last three hundred years. At the age of forty-seven, he broke through the peak of Heavenly Xuan realm and formally stepped into the King Xuan realm, causing a huge uproar across the entire Cang Feng Empire. At that time, my imperial father even prepared gifts and personally visited to offer congratulations." Cang Yue stuck out her pink tongue and said with great longing, "Wow! The King Xuan realm! I've heard that those who reach that realm are called 'Thrones.' I will never reach that realm in my lifetime. They say that above that are the Overlord Xuan realm's 'Overlord Emperors,' the Sovereign Xuan realm's 'Emperor Sovereigns'—I really can't imagine what it would feel like to reach such levels."
"Fifty-one?" Yun Che showed a puzzled expression. "I recall that the young villa master of Tian Jian Villa, Ling Yun, is only twenty this year, and the second son, Ling Chen, is fifteen... oh, he should be sixteen now. Did Ling Yuefeng have his first child at thirty-one? Or does Ling Yun have an older brother?"
"Ling Yuefeng indeed had his first son, Ling Yun, at thirty-one. He married his current villa master's wife at thirty. It's not because he was obsessed with the sword and refused to marry. Rather, it's because... guess why." Cang Yue's tone shifted, her beautiful eyes lifting as she smiled at him.
Yun Che thought for a moment, then said, "Could it be... because of Chu Yuechan?"
"Hehe, very clever!" Cang Yue curled her lips and said playfully, "I heard from my imperial father that Ling Yuefeng was not only astonishingly talented—being designated as the young villa master of Tian Jian Villa at eighteen—but also handsome and elegant, with a refined yet imposing temperament, without the usual arrogance of heirs from top-tier noble families. He was practically flawless, attracting countless infatuated girls. Some even swore that if they couldn't marry him, they would never marry anyone else. But Ling Yuefeng happened to see Chu Yuechan, who was only fifteen at the time, when he was twenty. From then on, he was completely obsessed. To see her just once, over ten years he made more than seventy solo trips to Bing Yun Fairy Palace. For Chu Yuechan, he was willing to lower himself to the dust, even begging the lowliest maids of Bing Yun Fairy Palace..."
"'Once you've seen the vast ocean, no pond is worth looking at; once you've walked through Wushan, no other cloud is worth seeing.' Seeing a woman so beautiful is often not a blessing, but a disaster. This Ling Yuefeng can be considered a devoted man," Yun Che said with great emotion. But inside he was cursing... Ling Yuefeng, you're already a little old man over fifty now. My little fairy didn't fancy you back then, and she certainly won't fancy you now!
"Chu Yuechan not only never gave him any chance, she didn't even meet him again. After persisting for another ten years, whether out of utter despair or because he had to return to succeed the villa master position, he married and had children at Tian Jian Villa, took over as villa master, and never went to Bing Yun Fairy Palace again."
As they spoke, the giant snow condor flew lower and lower, and the largest mountain gate of the Tian Jian Mountain Range gradually came into view.
"Look, we're almost there. Mansion Master Qin and Yuanba are still behind us. Let's wait a little while, then go down together."
---
At the main mountain gate of Tian Jian Mountain Range.
A group of seven people—three elders and four youths—walked up the stone steps to the mountain gate. The oldest of the four youths looked about twenty-three or twenty-four, the youngest only eighteen or nineteen. Though young, the profound force aura emanating from these people was astonishingly dense. Between their brows was an imposing presence that would make most of their peers feel ashamed. The three accompanying elders included two who looked about fifty, and one whose hair and beard were white, seemingly seventy or eighty years old, but his face was completely wrinkle-free, and his eyes were as calm as ice, showing no signs of age.
"Seven distinguished guests, please halt," a Tian Jian disciple guarding the mountain gate stepped forward and said politely, "May I ask if the seven distinguished guests have come for the ranking battles? Please present your invitation letter and the list of participants."
"Here you are," the middle person handed over the invitation letter and list, speaking blandly.
The Tian Jian disciple took the invitation letter and list, quickly scanned them, and his demeanor became slightly more respectful: "So it's the seven distinguished guests of the Xiao Sect. My apologies. Please, come inside. Ten li ahead is the villa..."
Finished speaking, he returned the invitation letter and list to the seven, then stepped aside. The leading person nodded slightly and led the other six into the mountain gate.
After the seven left, that Tian Jian disciple quickly said to the person beside him, "Zimo, quickly report to the Villa Master that the Xiao Sect has arrived. The Sect Master Xiao Juetian is leading the team personally. Accompanying him are the chief elder of the Sword Sect, Xiao Boyun, and the chief elder of the Medicine Sect, Xiao Wuji. The third-place winner of the last individual competition, Xiao Kuangyu, is also here, but he should be accompanying them. The three participants are Xiao Juetian's third son, Xiao Kuanglei, Xiao Boyun's younger son, Xiao Zhen, and Xiao Wuji's eldest grandson, Xiao Nan. Go quickly!"
"Yes!" The Tian Jian disciple called "Zimo" quickly acknowledged, retreated to a quiet corner, and transmitted this information via sound transmission into Tian Jian Villa.
...
...