The spiritual light around Qing Jun completely withdrew as she scampered over to the serpent’s corpse, poking its limp head with her finger, and nodded with satisfaction:
"Hmm! This ’hitting the bull through the mountain’ move is really effective! The bones and meat inside must have been shaken loose; it will taste even better when stewed later!"
Zhiwei: "..."
Even though Zhiwei held a high opinion of Qing Jun, she hadn’t expected Qing Jun to be able to slay a demon beast at the Early Stage of Foundation Establishment in just a few moments.
You should know, Qing Jun is still at Foundation Establishment First Layer!
Zhiwei thought to herself.
"No, Master said, Qing Jun’s realm cannot be judged by common sense. In a certain sense, Qing Jun’s main cultivation is not her cultivation level, but her True Dragon body."
"It’s said that among the True Dragon Race, those with the purest bloodline need no cultivation, merely reaching maturity gives them the cultivation of a Divinity Transformation Celestial Monarch in the Human Race."
"Even dragon species with mixed bloodlines normally achieve Golden Core cultivation... At present, there are indeed mixed bloodline dragon species in the world, but based on Qing Jun’s performance, she is definitely not a dragon species, but a True Dragon."
Of course.
The Xu Family’s bloodline can barely be considered a dragon species, but without the True Dragon blood flowing through them, they are only influenced unconsciously by Dandan Qingjun over a long time, leading to a mutated constitution, thus their cultivation is limited to the Foundation Establishment Stage.
"Senior Sister, Senior Sister! Look quickly!"
Qing Jun dashed back, holding the dead snake like a treasure, her face smeared with a bit of soil splattered earlier, smiling brightly,
"Qing Jun got lucky! This one’s so big, it’ll last us and Little White a long time! And look, its skin is still intact, we can make a belt for Master!"
Looking at her little junior sister’s face written all over with "praise me," the urge Zhiwei had to lecture her disappeared.
She reached out and gently wiped the dirt off Qing Jun’s face, speaking softly:
"Well done. But remember to be careful next time, don’t be reckless. If it were a demon snake from the Late Period of Foundation Establishment, you wouldn’t stand a chance."
Qing Jun proudly shook the snake’s head in her hand:
"Senior Sister, you’re underestimating Qing Jun! I already said it’s a fruit with a meaty scent! Qing Jun knew there might be demon beasts, but wasn’t I able to defeat it? So why be scared?"
"Alright, let’s quickly tidy up."
Zhiwei swiftly commanded,
"Extract the gall, collect the corpse, pick the fruit. The smell of blood here is too strong, and there was quite a commotion earlier, it’s not safe to linger. Also, remember to leave a Chiyan fruit for Little White; it seems to really like them."
"Chirp!" (Zhiwei is the best!)
Peeking out from the backpack, the little white fox nodded in satisfaction.
...
Hunyuan City, Central Square.
The vast flow of light screen stretching across the sky kept changing scenes within the Grotto Heaven like a carousel.
Due to the chaotic laws of the Grotto Heaven, the screen could not lock onto specific individuals, only randomly capturing areas of spiritual power fluctuations.
Initially, most scenes were of blurry dense forests or the miserable fates of unlucky individuals teleported into demon beast nests.
The cultivators in the square watched with rapt attention, occasionally gasping or sighing.
Suddenly, the scene quivered and transformed into a dense forest.
"Look quickly! Where is that? Such intense golden light!"
Someone exclaimed, drawing everyone’s gaze.
On the screen, the dim forest was illuminated by dazzling golden radiance.
Next, a delicate and charming little girl formed seals with her hands, and with overwhelming momentum, shattered the head of a second-tier demon snake!
The scene was fleeting, and she merely killed a Foundation Establishment early-stage demon beast, but it was enough to draw the attention of many cultivators.
After all.
This girl’s age was too young, and she killed it too effortlessly!
"This..."
"Whose disciple is that?!"
"Isn’t that the white-haired girl from the Lingyin Sect? Who would have thought the Lingyin Sect would actually let such a young cultivator enter the Grotto Heaven."
Soon, the screen shifted to another scene of two Loose Cultivators fighting fiercely over spirit grass, more bloody and thrilling, and the crowd’s attention shifted accordingly.
But within the Spirit Treasure Sect’s team,
Gu Tangyin gently placed her wine cup back on the table.
"Blessed by the Sky... Ingenious seal techniques."
Gu Tangyin’s red lips slightly parted, her voice so low that only she could hear,
"Is that the Xu Family’s legacy? Tsk... How did that girl end up associated with the Xu Family? This complicates things."
The Ruins Country is vast, covering nearly half of the Southern Territory, and its internal powers are equally diverse.
Besides the royal family, there’s one mansion, three kings, and seven sects.
The seven sects are easily managed, mostly on par with the Yan Kingdom’s Refining God Sect, perhaps lacking a figure equivalent to True Man Ye from the Refining God Sect.
But that’s to be expected, as the Ruins Country only occupies half of the Southern Territory, and it’s not uncommon for someone of True Man Ye’s caliber to emerge in the other half.
However, the three kings are not to be underestimated, wielding significant influence whether in court or in the cultivation realm.
The Xu Family is the Dingxiang King, one of the three kings.
For generations, they have defended the northern region of the Ruins Country’s royal family, battling against the Ling Kingdom, with Nascent Soul True Monarchs within the family!
Even Huayue Mansion is quite wary of the Xu Family.
"Senior Sister, this Xu Family is not the same Xu Family... I investigated beforehand; three hundred years ago, a branch of the Xu Family left Xiangling and settled in the Yan Kingdom."
The junior sister who came with her whispered.
"No, it’s not that simple. Even if they split, the Xiangling Xu Family still maintains close ties with the Yan Kingdom Xu Family. Otherwise, why would King Dingxiang sit by and watch the heritage of the Xu Family flow out?"
Gu Tangyin shook her head.
Heritage has always been of utmost importance.
And the Xu Family True Seal is a closely guarded secret of the Xu Family.
Yet the Xiangling Xu Family sits idly by as the Yan Kingdom Xu Family carries away the heritage and settles in the Yan Kingdom, without hindrance.
Even if only some limited parts of the heritage...
"Go."
Gu Tangyin gave a light command to the junior sister beside her,
"Invite Instructor Chen to the observation tower for a chat."
...
Corner of the square.
Chen Ye was sitting cross-legged, appearing to be resting with his eyes closed, but in fact, he was internally replaying the recent battle with Qing Jun and complaining about this impulsive girl.
Damn little girl!
She clearly promised to be more careful!
When we return, I’ll definitely spank her good as her master!
Chen Ye could already imagine the little girl crying pitifully under his loving iron palm!
"Instructor Chen." Suddenly, someone called out to him.
Chen Ye opened his eyes.
He saw a female cultivator from Huayue Mansion clad in red standing before him, her expression composed:
"My family’s Senior Sister Gu invites you to the observation tower for a chat."
The surrounding loose cultivators and disciples from various sects looked on with schadenfreude.
Gu Tangyin?
Since arriving in the Yan Kingdom, she has dealt a severe blow to the three major sects of the Yan Kingdom.
Only the Refining God Sect and Lingyin Sect were spared.
The Refining God Sect was absent, but what made the Lingyin Sect immune?
It seems that retribution may not come immediately... but its time has come.
Chen Ye’s gaze shifted slightly.
He looked up at the towering observation tower at the edge of the square that offered an excellent view, then glanced at the screen’s switched images, understanding in his heart.
It seems Qing Jun’s identity indeed caught the attention of some interested parties.
After all, the Xu Family True Seal is too conspicuous.
"Lead the way."
Chen Ye did not refuse, calmly stood up, and patted the dust off his clothes.
Since he couldn’t avoid it, he would meet with them.
He also wanted to see what tricks this latent dragon from the Ruins Country was up to!
...
Top floor of the observation tower.
Fragrance wafts, the tea smells refreshing. Through the huge floor-to-ceiling windows, the entire Luoxiao Grotto Heaven is visible.
The view here is excellent, and the environment is peaceful.
For some reason, Gu Tangyin wasn’t watching the battle from here but from outside.
"Sit."
Gu Tangyin reclined lazily on a soft couch covered with snow fox fur, playing with a delicate jade cup. Her red clothes were like flames, highlighting her snow-white skin and exquisite features.
On the table opposite her, a cup of spirit tea was steaming.
"Thank you, Fairy Gu. What did Fairy Gu specifically seek me for?"
Chen Ye didn’t stand on ceremony and sat down directly, looking composed.
Gu Tangyin ignored him and simply asked:
"What is that girl’s name? How old is she? What is her cultivation level?"
Chen Ye raised an eyebrow.
Quite an arrogant latent dragon.
His previous words were treated as air, and this feeling of being completely ignored was long overdue.
However, Chen Ye was not annoyed.
He’d rather have the enemy underestimate him than take him seriously.