Zhu Xuanji: "The specific content is, the cancelled warrants for Sun Lingtong and Yang Chanyu, and giving Sun Lingtong one opportunity to select an item from the Royal Treasury as a reward."
Ning Zhuo couldn't help but open his mouth slightly, his face filled with disappointment: "This, this, this..."
He had indeed been full of expectation before, but had not anticipated that the Royal Family of Southern Bean Country would be so shrewd. Whether it was the official explanation or the secret reward, everything was just perfect, except they had overlooked him, Ning Zhuo.
After delivering the message, Zhu Xuanji immediately stood up: "Last thing I'll tell you, that scripture which can extract spiritual nature, do not leak it carelessly. Although it is a Buddhist Scripture, it is still too eye-catching, obviously from the practices of the Burial Spirit Sect."
Ning Zhuo hurriedly "intercepted" halfway: "Lord Zhu, are you leaving just like that? Don't go, please. I've specially prepared a little feast for you…"
Zhu Xuanji ignored him and walked away directly.
Ning Zhuo chased after him, stuffing a magic treasure into Zhu Xuanji's hand: "Just a small token of appreciation, no respect intended. Hehe."
Zhu Xuanji looked down and saw it was the Jade Dragon Mirror, which together with the Golden Phoenix Mirror he brought back, formed a set.
A part of the content of the agreement between the three families was to divide several magic treasures floating in the main hall. The Jade Dragon Mirror was Ning Zhuo's share.
Zhu Xuanji quickly withdrew his arm, furious: "You actually think of bribing me? I am a Divine Hunter, I am Zhu Xuanji; do you really think I would accept your bribe? Young whelp, how dare you insult me?!"
"Hmph, just the same as Sun Lingtong, birds of a feather."
Ning Zhuo wasn't intimidated and continued with a playful smile: "Lord Zhu, don't be nervous, this will be our little secret, known only to the heavens and the earth…"
Zhu Xuanji directly soared into the sky, turning into a rainbow and leaving decisively.
Watching his departing light, Ning Zhuo clutched his wrist and sighed: "Why did he leave so quickly? I still wanted to negotiate the Mechanical Demon General with him."
After the event, Ning Zhuo, Zhu Xuanji, and Meng Kui divided up three Golden Core Level mechanical artifacts, namely the Buddhist Physician, Demon General, and Daoist Master.
Ning Zhuo blinked in confusion, thinking: "Why do I feel Zhu Xuanji didn't dare to face me? There was a sense of panic about him?"
He shook his head, feeling that it was just his imagination.
"I can't defeat Zhu Xuanji in a real fight after all."
"My trump cards have been revealed, and although my mother's spiritual nature has significantly recovered, every time I use my divine skills or the Big Snake Scythe, it consumes a lot of spiritual nature."
The strongest mechanism in Ning Zhuo's possession was undoubtedly the Buddhist Physician, but he would never use it lightly!
The more abundant the spiritual nature, the longer my mother can hold on. As long as there is a trace of spiritual nature left, there is hope.
Zhu Xuanji, flying in the sky, had a pensive look.
Ning Zhuo's feeling was not wrong; Zhu Xuanji did not want to have any more contact with Ning Zhuo.
It wasn't that he feared Ning Zhuo or feared the Big Snake Scythe, but he feared the Buddha Heart Demon Seal!
The Emperor's dying words had made it clear that the Buddha Heart Demon Seal was related to the conflict between the Buddhist Realm and the Demon World, and the karma was immense.
Of course, Zhu Xuanji did not want to be involved and could only choose to keep his distance.
Not offering Ning Zhuo any rewards or official position was also based on this consideration. If he did become an official of Southern Bean, the Royal Family would probably perish for being unable to bear the Buddhist and demonic karma!
In short, to keep a distance from Ning Zhuo and to observe from afar was the most prudent thing to do.
It was good for Zhu Xuanji himself as well as for the entire Southern Bean Kingdom!
Shortly after Zhu Xuanji's departure, Ning Jiufan also arrived quietly.
"Great Ancestor, I've waited day and night, and finally, I've seen you," Ning Zhuo said with a sincere expression.
He greatly thanked Ning Jiufan for opening his eyes to the situation, revoking Ning Qingqiao's Family Elder position, and clearing the family's internal obstacles for this successful separation.
Ning Jiufan snorted: "What else could I do? Keep allowing the main line to target you, suppress you, give you justifiable reasons to destroy the entire main line?"
Ning Zhuo's expression changed immediately, and he swore on the spot that he would never be so heartless and cold. Although the main line had treated him indifferently, he had grown successfully thanks to the main line's care. He wouldn't resort to such extreme measures against the main line because, after all, they shared the same blood.
"No matter what, they are my family," Ning Zhuo sighed.
Ning Jiufan snorted: "Ning Xiaohui, Ning Xiaoren... aren't they your family as well? I may be old, but I'm not senile. I've heard that you have a pair of mechanical arms?"
Ning Zhuo coughed quickly: "Great Ancestor, I also want to congratulate you. With the support of the Royal Family able to withstand the Demon Ape, we are already a major power with Nascent Soul Level fighting capabilities!"
"Ah, just now after a private discussion with Lord Zhu, I learned that the Royal Family did not grant me any rewards, not even the slightest official position."
Ning Zhuo spread his hands, exuding a strong emotion of grievance and disappointment all over his body.
Ning Jiufan coughed a few times, knowing that Ning Zhuo was using this as a bargaining chip to negotiate with him.
Ning Jiufan sighed deeply and looked at Ning Zhuo: "Past matters are a messy account. Dwelling on them, benefits us not in the present."
Ning Zhuo wholeheartedly agreed.
Thus, his crime of plotting against Ning Xiaohui and others was lightly glossed over by Ning Jiufan.
Ning Jiufan: "According to your previous message, you wish to leave Fire Persimmon Immortal City?"
Ning Zhuo bowed: "Great Ancestor, for over a decade I have stayed in Fire Persimmon Immortal City, wishing to traverse the world. As the saying goes, it's through reading thousands of books and traveling thousands of miles that one gains wisdom. The world is so vast, and my heart longs to explore it desperately."
Ning Jiufan stroked his beard and pondered: "You do indeed stand out too much; having conceded the Palace Master position earlier, Meng Kui must surely remember you. It would be good to lay low for a while."
Ning Jiufan wasn't worried about Ning Zhuo's personal safety.
On one hand, Ning Zhuo was even stronger than him in combat, which was preposterous! If Golden Core Level strength couldn't allow one to travel the world, then the world was way too perilous.
On the other hand, Ning Jiufan had even more confidence in Ning Zhuo's abilities and schemes. If he, the Great Ancestor, was fooled thoroughly by him, then what issues could there be with this demon-like young man?
"When will you leave?" Ning Jiufan asked.
Ning Zhuo replied, "There's no rush, at least half a month."
He explained that he needed to stabilize his cultivation and the new division of the family required maintaining stability.
"Before you go, remember to leave behind a mechanism to take care of the family," Ning Jiufan instructed, "I think that Mechanical Monkey is quite suitable."
Ning Zhuo revealed a lot to Ning Jiufan in exchange for his support.
In fact, for the tripartite cooperation, it was necessary to let Ning Jiufan be in the know. Even if Ning Zhuo had not spoken, Zhu Xuanji would have done so.
Ning Zhuo began to live a life of seclusion.
The Flying Trading Company left, but Song Fuli, along with two Golden Core Cultivators, secretly doubled back and lay in wait in the nearby mountains.
Luo Shang dispersed Ghost Soldiers and Ghost Generals in all directions, and together with Han Ming, they waited as well.
Yang Chanyu kept her eye on Sun Lingtong, constantly urging her to bid farewell to Ning Zhuo and return to the Bukong Sect as soon as possible.
She had made a huge profit this time.
Ning Zhuo struck a deal with Meng Kui and Zhu Xuanji, securing many treasures of the Immortal Palace and also reaped a rich harvest from the Zheng Family's legacy, receiving many congratulatory gifts for establishing his own branch.
Among these gifts, Ning Zhuo added a Golden Core Level Seven-Colored Auspicious Clouds, which he gave to Yang Chanyu.
Yang Chanyu was very satisfied with this, but she was worried about the journey back.
Even if she couldn't detect Song Fuli and Luo Shang, she knew that the Bukong Sect had made mortal enemies with both parties. The road back would surely be fraught with life-threatening perils and would not be peaceful!
Ning Zhuo had a secret meeting with Sun Lingtong in the underground base.
Glancing around, Sun Lingtong giggled and said with emotion, "In a few years, these secret bases will cease to exist."
The City Protecting Great Array of Fire Persimmon Immortal City had many loopholes. This was because it had to be considerate of the Lava Fairy Palace and did not want to affect the Immortal Palace's Guardianship of Fire Persimmon Mountain, thus the array was conservatively laid out.
Now that Meng Kui had become the Palace Master, he could integrate the entire Immortal Palace into the Immortal City's Great Array, serving as its core.
Therefore, the City Protecting Great Array would definitely be thoroughly reorganized and refined; finding loopholes afterward would be as difficult as scaling heaven.
Ning Zhuo, however, was indifferent to the underground base and urged Sun Lingtong, "Let's go, boss."
The two concealed their presence and moved through the base's passageways, eventually delving deep into Fire Persimmon Mountain.
In a tunnel, Ning Zhuo halted.
"This is the place." He manipulated a Mechanical Fireworks Monkey, which furiously dug into the ground.
Soon, the monkey unearthed a small and exquisite Mechanical Little Dragon.
The Mechanical Little Dragon, no longer than Ning Zhuo's palm, was entirely dull and unremarkable.
But Ning Zhuo knew that this was a high-grade Nascent Soul Level artifact—the Ten-Thousand-Li Travelling Dragon!
After scouring it with his Divine Sense, Ning Zhuo's face lit up with joy, "Excellent, just as I expected, the Dragon Turtle Fire Spirit is inside as well!"
At these words, Sun Lingtong rejoiced, "The Palace Spirit sought its own death, which was extremely odd. Did it really think we were fools? Ha ha, but Little Zhuo, you found it!"
"But how did it manage to escape right under our noses and slip into this Mechanical Little Dragon?"
Ning Zhuo said, "The Spiritual Nature has no fatal weakness. It's quite possible, it used the Immortal Palace's punitive measures to split itself into two parts. The main body remained in the main hall, deceiving us by seeking death willingly. Once the main body perished, the separate entity became the only one left, gradually regaining consciousness from its apparent death."
Ning Zhuo found the Dragon Turtle Fire Spirit within the Mechanical Little Dragon, but the latter was grievously injured, motionless, and slowly recuperating.
After attempting for a while, Sun Ning successfully activated the Mechanical Dragon.
The size of the Ten-Thousand-Li Travelling Dragon remained unchanged, but two beams of light burst from its dragon eyes, hitting both Sun Ning and teleporting them instantly inside the artifact.
"What brilliance!" Sun Lingtong, after some exploring, gradually mastered the manipulation of the Ten-Thousand-Li Travelling Dragon, dancing with delight.
"This way, we can extract ourselves directly from Fire Persimmon Immortal City."
"Let's let Meng Kui temporarily take the post of Palace Master and repair the Immortal Palace for us, ha ha ha!"
Ning Zhuo nodded with a smile.
The reason he could find the Dragon Turtle Fire Spirit was because the moment he saw it in the main hall, he had attached a Life Hanging Thread to it.
Ultimately, the main body of the Dragon Turtle Fire Spirit was consumed by fire, but Ning Zhuo immediately felt the Life Hanging Thread move outside the hall and rapidly change locations.
At that time, Zhu Zhen was still chasing after the Ten-Thousand-Li Travelling Dragon.
"The Immortal Palace wields three authorities, and now I control the Buddha Heart Demon Seal and the Dragon Turtle Fire Spirit,"
The Zhu Family betting on Ning Jiufan was actually within Ning Zhuo's expectations.
"The Zhu Family seeks to leverage my Ning Family, and isn't my Ning Family also using them in turn, to help me in the future reclaim the position of the Immortal Palace Master?"
Ning Zhuo smiled and turned to Sun Lingtong, "But, boss, are you sure that leaving with me won't cause you any trouble in the future?"
Sun Lingtong laughed heartily, "How astute am I? Originally, I promised that silly woman Yang Chanyu to return to the Bukong Sect with her once the Lava Fairy Palace matter was settled. But has this matter concluded?"
He spread his hands, "No!"
"Good." Ning Zhuo nodded and relaxed. He subconsciously looked up in the direction of the Fire Persimmon Immortal City.
For Ning Zhuo, this was where he was born and raised—it was his hometown!
"Farewell for now, my hometown," he whispered in his heart and immediately manipulated the Ten-Thousand-Li Travelling Dragon.
The mechanism activated at full strength, the Nascent Soul Level energy no longer concealed, surging violently, and immediately attracting several gazes.
The next moment.
With a dragon's roar, the Ten-Thousand-Li Travelling Dragon twisted its body, left a residual image in its place, and vanished without a trace.
"That clever young man, even deceiving his own ancestors!" Ning Jiufan cursed with a smile creeping on his lips.
Ning Zhuo told him to wait at least half a month.
Yet within a few days, he had slipped away.
The next moment, Ning Jiufan's smile abruptly froze, as a thought struck him, "Wait! My Ice Heart Jade Pot is still with him, and he hasn't returned it to me yet!"