In truth, when Nalan Caihuan arrived at Rain Dragon Sect’s inaugural Ancestral Hall Council, upon hearing her name, almost everyone simply acquiesced.

Of course, it wasn’t that there were truly *no* objections, but rather that no one dared to voice them, or even let so much as a flicker of dissent cross their faces. Who knew if that Nalan Caihuan, a Sword Immortal bottlenecked at the Nascent Soul realm, might not just chop them down on the spot and toss their corpses out to feed the fish?

Reason with her? Nalan Caihuan’s flying sword, her cultivation, and her consistent modus operandi were all the silent reasoning one needed.

You must understand, on the battlefield of this newly-appointed Sect Master’s homeland, Nalan Caihuan, Qi Shou, and that Nascent Soul cultivator nicknamed “Waist-Slicer” Mi Yu, all possessed identical methods for dealing with demons: extremely bloodthirsty, tyrannical, and cruel. No demon cultivator who fell into their clutches ever met a pleasant end.

Thus, Nalan Caihuan and the gentle, soft-spoken Yun Qian, the two successive Sect Masters, were as different as heaven and earth.

Nalan Caihuan quickly scanned the scant records of the Ancestral Hall, finding only a few odds and ends. She was forced to reread them, casting a sidelong glance at Yun Qian, and asked with a smile, “I hear you’ve searched for Water Crystal Palace several times?”

Yun Qian, with a hint of guilt, replied sheepishly, “All to no avail.”

Nalan Caihuan bristled with annoyance. “Do you think the savage demons of the desolate lands are all fools who leave treasures lying on the ground for others to pick up? Yun Qian, having a Law-Enforcing Ancestor like you is truly my thrice-blessed fortune.”

Yun Qian blushed slightly, offering no retort.

She had long grown accustomed to such biting remarks. From her former Sect Master Senior Sister, to members of the Rain Dragon Sect’s Ancestral Hall, even some of the more gifted juniors, and even from within Water Crystal Palace itself…

Water Crystal Palace, constructed within Upside-Down Mountain by the Rain Dragon Sect in its early days, was directly capsized into the sea by Jiang Yunsheng, a gatekeeper disciple of Upside-Down Mountain. Knowing full well that the chances of finding Water Crystal Palace were exceedingly slim, Yun Qian still clung to a sliver of hope. She had repeatedly used Water-Cleaving spells to dive into the seabed, but to no avail.

The entire sect, aside from Yun Qian, who was only there to maintain appearances as a Jade Purity realm cultivator, possessed a mere five Earth Immortal cultivators, four Golden Core cultivators, and only one Nascent Soul cultivator.

Currently, the Ancestral Hall’s recorded roster of cultivators numbered only ninety-some. This was only after Yun Qian had consolidated some of the old sect’s tributary islands, otherwise the situation would have been even more dire.

That old Nascent Soul cultivator, when Yun Qian went to woo him some years ago, actually capitalized on her misfortune and shamelessly proposed a suggestion: that as long as he and Yun Qian became Daoist partners, he would be willing to serve as the Law-Enforcing Protector of the new Rain Dragon Sect, and offer all his family wealth to the sect. If she found this too embarrassing, then he would take a step back, and a few nights of Spring revelry, a union of clouds and rain, would also suffice.

In the Rain Dragon Sect of the early days, which had always revered female cultivators, if a Nascent Soul cultivator from a tributary force dared to spout such brazen nonsense, it would have been akin to courting death.

Yun Qian knew that she was indeed too meek and mild-mannered, possessing only cultivation. Otherwise, her decisive and ruthless Senior Sister wouldn’t have dispatched her to Upside-Down Mountain in the first place, and only nominally in charge of Water Crystal Palace.

Yun Qian never interfered with the specific business dealings; the cultivators in charge were all from her Senior Sister’s lineage. So-called every