## Beyond the Seventh Tier: A Crimson Overture

Beyond the celestial sphere of the Seventh Tier cultivation star, Tian Yuan, lay a realm awash in scarlet hues: the Blood Star.

Across the vast tapestry of the cosmos, a woman clad in violet silk, her name lost to the winds, cleaved through the star-strewn abyss atop a greatsword of shimmering steel, its length thrice the height of a man. In her wake, three figures pursued, their robes ablaze with vibrant colors, their faces etched with grim determination.

“Wretch!” one of the pursuers, her voice laced with venom, cried out. “You dared betray the Celestial Water Palace and pilfer the Young Master’s sacred relic! Do you truly believe you can escape our grasp? Though this region falls under the dominion of the Star of Heavenly Fortune, the Five Elements Stars are of equal rank. Your flight is in vain!”

The Violet-Clad woman, her silver teeth gritted in defiance, felt the strength ebb from her limbs. The gossamer veil that once graced her face was long lost to the void.

“The Young Master’s Gu-poison festers within your veins,” another pursuer sneered. “I wager you cannot flee much further!”

Despair gnawed at the Violet-Clad woman’s heart. The vile Gu-poison churned within her, a torment she had suppressed with every ounce of her will. She had believed escape possible, but treachery within her own sisterhood had delivered her pursuers to her very heels.

Her strength waned, her life force flickering like a dying ember. The insidious Gu-poison, no longer restrained, surged through her veins. A crimson torrent spewed forth, staining the void, and her greatsword trembled beneath her feet.

A bitter laugh escaped her lips. With a final surge of will, she steered her sword towards a crimson orb in the distance – the Blood Star.

The three pursuers, their eyes gleaming with cruel triumph, redoubled their efforts, closing the distance with terrifying speed.

As the Blood Star drew near, the Violet-Clad woman plunged through the turbulent astral winds that guarded its surface, descending towards a landscape painted in shades of red. Upon that desolate expanse, a crimson pagoda arose, its architecture hinting at forgotten power.

From within the pagoda’s shadowed depths, a figure emerged. A man wreathed in crimson – his hair a fiery mane, his eyebrows twin flames – stepped into the light. He wore a robe of deepest red, and though no visible aura of cultivation emanated from him, a suffocating aura of authority blanketed the land.

His gaze, cold as the void itself, swept over the Violet-Clad woman and her pursuers. A frown creased his brow as he uttered a single, resonant word: “Begone!”

A flicker of unease crossed the faces of the three pursuers. One of them stepped forward, her voice tinged with apprehension. “We are of the Celestial Water Palace of the Five Elements Stars, seeking to apprehend a traitor. We beseech you, esteemed elder, do not interfere!”

A glacial glint sparked in the man’s eyes. With a flick of his crimson sleeve, a gale of unimaginable force erupted, seizing the three women and hurling them back into the inky abyss, beyond the boundaries of the Blood Star.

Turning his gaze to the Violet-Clad woman, he spoke, his voice a low rumble: “What is your name?”

“Zi Xin,” she whispered, her eyes wide with awe. “This humble one is Zi Xin, a cultivator from the Sixth Tier nation of the Vermillion Bird Star.”

“The Vermillion Bird Star…” he echoed, a flicker of something akin to recognition in his eyes.

***

Upon the Vermillion Bird Star, within the borders of the Chu Kingdom… within the hallowed grounds of the Yun Tian Sect…

The Yun Tian Sect stood transformed. Through the patronage of Vermillion Bird Child Zhou Wu Tai, the Chu Kingdom had risen to the rank of a Fourth Tier cultivation nation. Though merely Fourth Tier, its influence extended further than any of its peers.

Even powerful nations of the Fifth Tier approached the Chu Kingdom with deference, particularly when in the presence of the Yun Tian Sect.

For those who had weathered the storms of the past centuries remembered the name of one man, Wang Lin, a cultivator who, single-handedly, had ignited a tempest upon the Vermillion Bird Star unlike any seen before!

Upon its elevation to a Fourth Tier nation, the Yun Tian Sect had dismantled its ancient gates. In their stead, the nation’s combined resources had been poured into the creation of a colossal statue, forged from the purest spirit stones.

The statue depicted a man, cloaked in black, his brow furrowed in contemplative thought. His features were not conventionally handsome, yet an aura of otherworldly grace emanated from him. His right hand was raised in a mystical gesture, as if lost in profound contemplation.

A palpable weight of authority radiated from the statue, enveloping the heavens and earth.

This was the gate of the Yun Tian Sect! The object of adoration for countless disciples, the silent sovereign of the Chu Kingdom, and throughout the Vermillion Bird Star, a legend etched in the very fabric of reality!

At the foot of the Yun Tian Sect, an old man and a young boy ascended the steps, their eyes drawn to the towering statue above.

“Grandfather,” the boy asked, his voice bubbling with curiosity, “is this the statue you told me about?”

The old man gazed upon the statue, a wistful smile playing upon his lips. After a moment of contemplation, he gently tousled the boy’s hair. “Do you know why the Yun Tian Sect’s Master, Tie Yan, attained Divinity so easily? Do you know why the cultivators of the Chu Kingdom hold the Yun Tian Sect in such reverence?

“Why even the dignitaries of Fifth Tier nations approach this place with such respect? All of this,” he declared, his voice filled with reverence, “stems from the man this statue depicts!”

The boy blinked, his brow furrowed in confusion. “How can a mere statue inspire such awe?”

The old man sighed softly. “Though his time in cultivation was brief, he stirred a storm upon the Vermillion Bird Star the likes of which has never been seen. Tales of his exploits only began to circulate after his departure. It is said that within two centuries, he attained incredible power, wreaked havoc upon the Sea of Cultivation, rescued a damsel in distress at the Yun Tian Sect, and vanquished all challengers. Within the Zhao Kingdom, he unleashed carnage, turning the land into a crimson graveyard, obliterating the entire Teng family. The kingdom became a desolate realm of corpses!

“They whisper of his entry into the Immortal Realm, where he felled Hong Die, humbled Liu Mei, battled Qian Feng, and even became a disciple of Duntian, Master of the Crucible Realm. He tamed the Snow Domain, annihilated the Ancient Fiend ancestor, and achieved renown during the war with the Immortal Relic Clan. He seized the Vermillion Bird Crystal within the Vermillion Bird’s tomb, outmaneuvering his rivals and becoming the first to claim the sacred artifact! He could have ascended to the throne of the Vermillion Bird, but he refused, ceding the honor to Zhou Wu Tai, the current Vermillion Bird Child!”

The boy gasped, his eyes wide with wonder. “He refused to become the Vermillion Bird Child!”

“Indeed. Is it not clear why Zhou Wu Tai, when faced with momentous decisions, invariably comes to this place, silently gazing upon this statue? Before the arrival of this man, the sacred ground of our star was Vermillion Bird Mountain. But since his departure, this very Yun Tian Sect has become our sanctuary!”

The boy’s jaw dropped. He had heard whispers of these tales before, but never with such detail. A surge of inspiration coursed through him. His face lit up. “Grandfather, I want to be like him! What was his name? Where is he now?”

“His name was Wang Lin,” the old man replied, a hint of melancholy in his voice. “I know not where he may be. But such a being, I believe, will never settle for a humble existence.” He sighed, a wistful smile touching his lips. “I crossed paths with him once, long ago. I doubt he would even remember my name…”

The boy was about to speak when a thunderous roar echoed from the foot of the mountain. A roar filled with such untamed power that the surrounding trees shuddered and rustled in its wake.
As twilight painted the sky, a colossal tiger of ebony stripes bounded from the foothills, its ascent as swift as a falling star, bearing upon its back a maiden clad in flowing white. Scarcely past her twentieth year, her garments danced in the ethereal breeze, giving her the guise of a celestial being descended from the heavens.

Though her beauty was not of the earth-shattering kind, it possessed a captivating purity. Her skin was like the bloom on a peach, and her eyes, twin pools of starlight, sparkled with an untamed spirit.

“Onward, Bai!” she called, her voice like the chime of distant bells, sweet and clear.

The tiger roared in response, its mighty paws carrying them toward the Cloud Reaching Sect. Reaching the statue perched at the peak, the beast halted, its massive head cocked in disdain toward the stone effigy. *This little fool,* it thought, *why seek him out? Life on Vermillion Bird is grand! I, Tiger Lord, have a multitude of willing she-tigers! Yet she speaks of even finer ones beyond the stars… a vexing conundrum!*

The maiden gazed wistfully at the statue, whispering, “Uncle… Little Ru has achieved Core Formation. Soon, I will reach the Nascent Soul stage. I strive with all my might. Ironrock Grandfather says when I do, he will bestow upon me the treasures you left behind. I will reach it, Uncle, I promise!”

A sigh, faint as a feather, echoed through the void. From within the Cloud Reaching Sect emerged a figure of imposing stature, an elder garbed in the raiment of a Daoist, exuding an aura of quiet authority.

With measured steps, he arrived before the statue, bowing deeply in reverence before turning his kind, indulgent gaze upon the tiger and the maiden. “Ru’er,” he said, “cultivation is born of the heart. To blindly chase Nascent Soul is to tread a treacherous path, like rowing against a relentless current.”

The maiden kept her eyes on the statue. “Ironrock Grandfather, did not Uncle leave Zhao and brave the Sea of Demons, driven by his own ambition to reach Nascent Soul? Surely, the path of the heart is not always the wisest.”

This elder was none other than Ironrock, who, touched by Wang Lin’s guidance long ago, had surpassed Core Formation and attained the Transformation Spirit stage. He held Wang Lin in awe and gratitude. The storage pouch Wang Lin had left him remained untouched, a treasure he dared not even glimpse.

The memory of Wang Lin’s calm, penetrating gaze upon his departure was etched forever in Ironrock’s heart.

Zhou Ru turned, bestowing upon Ironrock a smile as radiant as a field of blooming lilies. “Ironrock Grandfather, I encountered Uncle Zhou, the Vermillion Bird, upon my journey. He bade me to train upon Vermillion Bird Mountain, claiming my progress would be swifter there. I have come to bid you farewell.”

Ironrock knew Zhou Ru held a unique position on Vermillion Bird Star. Almost everyone who had known Wang Lin, out of respect or fear, treated her with utmost care. She was almost like the little princess of the Star. Even the Ancient God Clan treated her with great courtesy. Even their forbidden grounds that were never allowed to outsiders were open to her.

She would never encounter danger on this star, she had many powerful people supporting and protecting her, sending her many life-saving treasures to the point where the little Nascent Soul was safer than most.

There were even more powerful protectors from the Vermillion Bird Mountain, the Giant Demon Clan and from the Cloud Reaching Sect who were hidden nearby to protect her at all times.

After a moment of contemplation, Ironrock nodded, his face etched with affection. “Very well. Cultivate diligently on Vermillion Bird Mountain. If you truly reach the Nascent Soul stage, I will retrieve the treasures your uncle left behind without hesitation.”

Zhou Ru smiled, casting one final, lingering glance at the statue. She then patted the black-striped tiger upon its massive head. “Bai, to Vermillion Bird Mountain!”

With a thunderous roar, Bai leaped into the heavens, vanishing into the boundless expanse.

*Speaking of which,* the tiger mused as it soared, *I have profited greatly from Wang Lin’s legacy these past years. Cultivators who once sought my hide now bow low in my presence. Ah, well… considering that, if this little one ever leaves Vermillion Bird Star, Tiger Lord shall follow.* Saliva dripped from Bai’s maw, and it was never known if his loyalty lay with the maiden or the rumored extraterrestrial she-tigers.