"Do as you please."
He Lingxiu did not particularly care, but when Wang Li followed her onto the azure bird's back, he felt that the bird's gaze toward him carried more than a little disdain.
He did hold a certain reverence for this azure bird.
The Cultivation World's classification of exotic beasts was absolutely simple and crude.
Exotic beasts that could be tamed and used by cultivators were called spirit beasts; those that could not be used by cultivators were called demon beasts.
This azure bird before them, which merely seemed somewhat disdainful in its gaze, was unquestionably categorized as a demon beast in the records of many sects.
First of all, it was an exotic beast of Jizhi Continent.
Jizhi Continent was a standard Chaos Domain, and more than half its territory was standard Desperate Lands.
Since it was not a continent ruled by cultivators, the exotic beasts within naturally could not have been born to serve cultivators.
Furthermore, while this sort of azure bird was not like certain demon beasts that were born hostile to cultivators and even regarded cultivators' flesh and blood as spirit pills, they were innately averse to contact with other races and extremely vengeful.
So long as cultivators carelessly did something that displeased them, these exotic beasts would think of every possible way to retaliate.
Their strength was not low, either.
They could cultivate by drawing in starlight. Before their lifespans ran out, the overwhelming majority could rival cultivators at the Golden Core Peak.
Thus, the Demon Codex of the Central Divine Continent classified them as Level 4 Grade 9 demon beasts.
Like many Qi Concealment Talismans, they could imitate a cultivator's aura and mislead cultivators' senses. The Essence Devouring True Flame they breathed possessed a certain degree of law-erasing effect. Many cultivators were unwilling to fight this kind of demon beast because, after a single battle, they might lose quite a few of their own magical treasures as well.
Wang Li and Lü Shenliang had never entered Jizhi Continent before, nor had they dealt with such azure birds face-to-face. Wang Li could not accurately judge which stage this Jizhi Azure Bird's cultivation had reached, but one thing was certain: it was definitely not a fledgling. At the very least, it possessed the strength of a Level 3 demon beast or above.
He figured that if he fought this bird, the outcome might be rather miserable.
He knew that, as He Lingxiu had said, one could indeed buy such exotic beasts at Jiaomu Market so long as one had enough spirit sand. He understood clearly that, in a sense, Jiaomu Market was also a trading hub for cultivators from the Chaos Domains. Among the merchants who came and went, there was no shortage of cultivators from the Chaos Domains.
Many products of the Chaos Domains were sold at markets such as Jiaomu Market, then exchanged for cultivation resources unavailable within the Chaos Domains.
But the key was that every transaction required genuine spirit sand.
The amount of spirit sand needed to purchase such a demon beast was also astonishing.
"You're not the Huayang Sect Master's illegitimate daughter, are you?" When the Jizhi Azure Bird swept into the clouds, Wang Li could not help looking at He Lingxiu beside him. "Otherwise, how could someone your age possess such ability?"
"This counts as prying into **." He Lingxiu was not angry either. She gave a hehe laugh and turned slightly toward the lone peak. Although Lü Shenliang's sword light had already vanished completely, she felt that Lü Shenliang was likely lingering somewhere at this moment, quietly watching her junior brother.
Although everything she had seen before made her feel that Wang Li's life had been difficult, it was obvious that this pair of senior sister and junior brother truly depended on each other for survival.
Furthermore, knowing why Lü Shenliang and Wang Li had been abandoned on the lone peak by the Profound Heaven Sect, she actually envied Wang Li for having such a senior sister and was at the same time jealous that Lü Shenliang had such a junior brother.
It was a very complicated feeling.
Thus, even though Old Ancestor Tong Hui's Yin Thunder Umbrella had been seized by the two of them that day, she had not borne them a grudge because of it.
"Since we are going to the Seven Treasures Ancient Domain together, we indeed need greater understanding and trust between us." After giving another hehe laugh, she looked at Wang Li with a faint smile. "But if you want to know some of my secrets, shouldn't you also pay an equivalent price?"
Wang Li's eyes immediately lit up. "Fellow Daoist Hehe, are you really the Huayang Sect Master's illegitimate daughter?"
"Your train of thought truly is unlike anyone else's." He Lingxiu looked at Wang Li speechlessly, then became serious again. "Your senior sister refused to accept it back then, and later, problems arose when she was undergoing Foundation Establishment and Core Formation. You don't actually think her failure at Core Formation happened naturally, that it was truly due to her own problem, do you?"
Wang Li furrowed his brows deeply.
The smile on his face vanished completely as well.
He glanced at He Lingxiu. "At least it was not the handiwork of those people from the Profound Heaven Sect."
He Lingxiu said faintly, "What makes you say that?"
Wang Li said, "Their courage is too small. They would not dare. Besides, Senior Sister is no fool. If they had truly done it, Senior Sister would have stopped showing them any mercy long ago."
He Lingxiu gave a faintly mocking smile. "So you actually know it well enough in your heart. I'm afraid many under the Three Saints feared the growth of a cultivator with an immortal spirit root."
Wang Li tilted his head back slightly and said indifferently, "Who can say for certain? The Central Divine Continent is too far away for us. Figures like the Three Saints, who rule over the various continents—who could possibly know what they truly think?"
"As a disciple of the Profound Heaven Sect, having been excluded on the lone peak all these years, have you never considered giving those people of the Thirty-One Peaks a vicious lesson?" He Lingxiu narrowed her eyes slightly. "Going by what your senior sister said just now, I'm afraid even the Profound Heaven Sect Master and the others might not be your senior sister's match."
"So what?"
Wang Li sneered as well. "Kill our fill, then flee into the Chaos Lands?"
He Lingxiu nodded. "That does not seem impossible."
"Then the Profound Heaven Sect would be gone."
Wang Li calmed down again and shook his head. "The Profound Heaven Sect should not be destroyed like that. The final outcome should not be this. Even if the Thirty-One Peaks are like turtles, so long as they remain there, people will remember what happened, remember those Profound Heaven Sect cultivators who died in the Chaos Domains."
He Lingxiu also calmed down. She was silent for a moment, then nodded. "That makes some sense."
Wang Li turned to look at her. "So are you the Huayang Sect Master's illegitimate daughter or not?"
He Lingxiu nearly could not resist kicking Wang Li straight away.
This was simply a divine turn.
The change of topic was utterly without reason.
"Dogs that bite do not bark; dogs that may not bite always love to bark first." She took a deep breath, looked at Wang Li, and slowly said, "Have you heard that some young cultivators in our Lesser Jade Continent formed an alliance called the Scripture-Abandoning Dao-Departing Alliance?"
Wang Li said in surprise, "Could it be that you are a member of the Scripture-Abandoning Dao-Departing Alliance?"
He Lingxiu knew Wang Li's way of thinking was rather peculiar. If she did not answer him directly, he might occasionally blurt out something that made communication feel completely impossible. So this time, she decisively shook her head. "Of course I am not a member of the Scripture-Abandoning Dao-Departing Alliance. Have you even heard of this Scripture-Abandoning Dao-Departing Alliance or not?"
Watching her expression, Wang Li felt that if he continued talking nonsense, this azure bird might very well throw him out of the sky. So he honestly nodded. "I have."
"Since I said we truly need greater understanding and trust, then I might as well tell you that the three cultivators we are going to rescue this time are members of the Scripture-Abandoning Dao-Departing Alliance," He Lingxiu said.
Before you continue