Application of Demonic Qi

Li Qi was still deep in thought.

He used to think that true dragons might not be that powerful. After all, being born at the ninth rank didn't sound like much, and many other beast races could easily reach the seventh rank as adults.

But now it seems that things are not like that.

Why are the Golden Crow and the Jade Rabbit born with the rank of seventh grade?

That's because they possess unique Daoist auras. The two sisters are manifestations of the Daoist auras of the Sun Moon True Lead Cauldron and Lady Luofu, respectively, and are essentially a part of the authority of these two powerful beings.

They were born at the seventh rank, but they were unique. There would never be another Daoist essence born from the union of the Sun Moon True Lead Cauldron and Lady Luofu in the entire universe. Even if the couple had another pair, the offspring would never be the Essence of Taiyin and the essence of the Yang, but rather other parts of their Dao.

When powerful beings have children, it is not true 'childbirth', but rather the separation of a part of their Great Dao and its transformation into life. This is different from 'reproduction' in a biological sense.

But a true dragon might be different...

The reproduction of a true dragon is true reproduction.

They replicated themselves; this is a true testament to the power achieved purely through genetics.

This is the most terrifying thing—

Genes can be replicated at will.

Although he didn't know what restrictions made the true dragons seem to be few in number, according to Li Qi's understanding... if it was simply a matter of reproduction, then the number of true dragons should be as many as that of Human Race...

All people are at the seventh rank, and their numbers are as numerous as the Human Race, which is in the trillions.

Am I overthinking things?

But judging from the Way of Evolution Li Qi has seen so far, things do seem to be developing in this direction.

Therefore, there must be other reasons behind the rarity of the dragon race that Li Qi is unaware of, which may become the next target for exploration.

Just then, Li Qi suddenly felt someone pushing him.

"Sir! Are you still listening?!" Lei Fang called from outside.

The mermaid girl was getting anxious. Li Qi suddenly froze, standing still. If this continued, he would offend other important people!

So, in a moment of desperation, she actually reached out and touched Xia Li Qi.

She was in danger of having her hand chopped off, but in her panic, she didn't care about that anymore.

After being nudged, Li Qi snapped out of his thoughts and asked in confusion, "What happened... Wait, you just said you offended a distinguished person?"

When Li Qi was immersed in thought, he was not completely out of alertness, and he could still hear people talking. It was just that his mind subconsciously blocked out these things, just as he had become accustomed to blocking out the countless noises coming from True Knowledge Dao Charm.

He was quite adept at feigning deafness and dumbness, a skill he actually learned from the rabbit. When the rabbit was immersed in its own world, it was exactly the same as Li Qi was now.

It can only be said that couples do influence each other.

However, he would still be alert when truly valuable information or a threatening presence appeared, but now there was clearly no threat; he had simply been woken up by Lei Fang.

"Sir, let's make way quickly, an important person has arrived!" Lei Fang pulled Li Qi, wanting to leave.

This piqued Li Qi's interest. He gently pushed Lei Fang away. The little girl felt an irresistible force and was pushed away, but she was not injured.

Then, to her horror, she saw Li Qi swim towards the direction of the 'noble person'!

I'm very curious about the 'benefactor' that the mermaids talk about.

Normally, Li Qi would definitely take his time to plan and find out the details of the important person before slowly making contact.

But now it's different; Li Qi doesn't feel any threat at all.

It should be noted that Shaman have a very accurate sixth sense; no one understands the meaning of 'the Unseen' better than Shaman.

So he went straight for it.

They approached the nobleman's mount not far away.

The first thing that catches the eye is several... walruses? They must be walruses.

Its fat body was about twenty or thirty feet long, with two extremely thick teeth, full of power, and looked very ferocious. Although it was tied with a rope, it swayed restlessly and let out a gurgling roar when Li Qi approached.

Roaring underwater is a very unwise choice, as it would expel a large amount of gas. Therefore, the roars of aquatic creatures are all internal vibrations, which are mostly gurgling sounds, or, like whales, rather high-pitched and sharp sounds.

Then, above this enormous mount, is the 'noble person'.

Li Qi noticed that this was an ordinary merman, whose cultivation level had only reached the eighth rank, nothing more.

The so-called benefactors... are they actually just a division of class or cultivation level?

This disappointed Li Qi somewhat.

But then the nobleman pulled on the reins and, from the walrus's back, gently asked, "Who goes there and why are you blocking my way?"

This 'distinguished person' did not do anything impolite.

After all, he wasn't a fool. People from East Isle come and go, and there must be a reason why a 'guest' who was clearly from the mainland and seemed to have a high level of cultivation would just block his way.

Making wild pronouncements and arbitrarily creating enemies is something only an idiot would do.

However, Mo Min, who was standing next to her, was momentarily stunned by her Lei Fang.

This was the first time she had ever seen such a kind and gentle person.

So, it turns out that you can speak politely to a 'benefactor'?

Li Qi ignored all that. He floated a few meters up so he could look directly at the 'distinguished person' on his mount, and then said, "May I ask, are you the administrator of this area?"

The merman said, "Oh? Human Race Yayan? Human Race friends? Indeed, the Baizhu Family manages all the pearl fields on this East Isle, and I am Baizhu Zhaoyue."

"Bai Zhu... was this surname given to you by Human Path?" Li Qi asked immediately upon hearing this name.

"No, this surname was given by the Great Shaman Ju Yu Clan to the ancestors of the Bai Zhu clan, and has nothing to do with Human Path." Baizhu Zhaoyue immediately puffed out her chest and said proudly!

Ju Yu Clan?

Li Qi immediately understood.

Ju Yu Clan was one of the High Antiquity Shaman sects, which existed before the Human and Shaman separation.

Ju Yu means Jade Bead. In High Antiquity times, before the separation of humans and shamans, the Ju Yu Clan was responsible for collecting jewels from various places for decoration and various other uses.

Later, Human and Shaman separation. Ju Yu Clan followed the lineage of the Human Emperor and became the Human Emperor's official in charge of rites, no longer a Shaman.

The white pearl was one of the Ritual Vessel of the Ju Yu Clan. For example, members of the royal family had to wear jadeite feathers with white pearls below and gold tweezers hanging down. A horizontal hairpin was placed on the left and right to secure the country. All hairpins and earrings were the same, used to distinguish ranks.

Therefore, when Li Qi heard the term "white pearl," he immediately thought of the Emperor's official in charge of rites.

However, it seems that the Baizhu clan has a history that is even longer than Li Qi had imagined.

It turns out that the surname was bestowed by the Ju Yu Clan before the Human and Shaman separation, and it was said to be a great shaman, which is the third rank.

No, the great shamans of High Antiquity times certainly didn't have a third rank; they should have only had a sixth or seventh rank, but that was still enough to be proud of, as a sixth or seventh rank was quite high back then.

"The surname bestowed by the Ju Yu Clan? What did your ancestors do to receive the surname from the Ju Yu Clan?" Li Qi asked again.

During the conversation, he voluntarily opened up his personal space, radiating a gentle pressure while also exuding the unique aura of Shaman.

This is making things clear.

Feeling this pressure, although he didn't know if Baizhu Zhaoyue understood Li Qi's meaning, he clearly sensed that Li Qi was much stronger than him.

So he immediately bowed and paid his respects to Li Qi, as a sign of his status.

Then, he raised his head, straightened his chest, and said, " In High Antiquity times, the Baizhu family often offered white and blue pearls as tribute, which earned them the special appreciation of the great shaman. This is how the family established its lineage and was bestowed with this surname!"

Holding your head high and chest out is a sign of pride in your surname.

The tribute of white pearls and blue pearls means that... this branch of merfolk was once specifically responsible for producing white pearls and blue pearls for the Human Race at that time.

"So you are a clan with a connection from High Antiquity times. It is truly an encounter with an old friend. I am Li Qi, a disciple of Wushen Mountain." Li Qi bowed slightly and said this.

He did not refer to himself as "this humble one" because he was not "this humble one," so he used another humble form of address.

"So you are distinguished guests from Wushen Mountain. Why are you blocking my way?" The Bai Zhu family member also stood up from his mount and returned Li Qi's greeting.

"It's not that I'm blocking your way, but rather that I'm curious about the surroundings. To be honest, I came from Wushen Mountain with the intention of traveling and learning, and I'm curious about the area around East Isle. I'm currently observing it," Li Qi replied.

Baizhu Zhaoyue nodded. "I see. Then I won't disturb you any longer. If you are interested, you are welcome to visit. The Bai family residence is nearby. You can ask around and find out. I have urgent business to attend to and cannot delay you any longer. Please forgive me."

"It's alright, please go ahead," Li Qi said, gesturing for the other party to leave.

Baizhu Zhaoyue seemed to have something to attend to, so she immediately spurred the reins and drove the Sea Ox away in a hurry.

Li Qi listened intently, watching his retreating figure, lost in thought.

High Antiquity times... how long ago was that?

Several thousand eras?

I'm afraid that's not all. This Bai Zhu family... although it has survived, it hasn't made any progress at all?

Not necessarily. This could just be a split, and we need more information.

Li Qi had already begun to deduce the possibilities in his mind.

Perhaps with a few more clues, he could construct more aspects of the Way of Evolution and deduce the part he needed.

He hadn't seen all of the East China Sea, but it didn't matter.

A glimpse of the leopard through a tube reveals its spots; a small detail tells the whole story; a single leaf foretells the coming of autumn.

Knowing even a little bit allows one to deduce a lot of things; for Li Qi, this is a skill he absolutely must master.

So he quickly came to his senses.

But when he came to his senses, he saw Lei Fang lying prostrate at his feet, trembling and afraid to move.

Oh, I guess he was scared by himself. She touched him just now, and then he pushed her away. He was probably afraid of dying.

Hmm... that's weird.

"You weren't afraid of me just now, so why are you afraid of me now?" Li Qi grabbed the mermaid girl and asked.

Lei Fang, never expecting to face this question, and for a moment she stammered...

Li Qi was indeed somewhat puzzled by this.

When Li Qi first met this mermaid girl, she appeared poised and elegant, and answered questions quite appropriately, which is why Li Qi wanted her to be his tour guide.

But how long has it been? Two Chen? The awe she shows towards the 'noble person' and the fear she displays towards herself are not the same as before.

Therefore, Li Qi immediately became suspicious.

When the merman first addressed himself as 'noble person' in front of his family, Li Qi didn't think much of it.

However, when Li Qi learned that the high-ranking merfolk in this region were called 'nobles', he had already begun to pay attention to them in secret.

They wouldn't call themselves that for no reason.

Her strange behavior now clearly indicates that she has become completely panicked after meeting a true 'benefactor' and receiving respectful treatment from the Bai Zhu family's 'benefactor'.

All these suspicious points made it impossible for Li Qi not to doubt the mermaid girl.

"Sir... I... I was just afraid of being disrespectful to you..." The mermaid girl quickly bowed.

Mermaids don't have the concept of kneeling, but she still prostrated herself at Li Qi's feet.

"Get up, straighten up and talk." Li Qi helped her up, then grabbed her shoulders, pulling them up like radishes, forcing her to look him in the eye.

In the water, this is easy to do.

Then, without explaining to her, Li Qi's pupils suddenly dilated until the whites of his eyes were completely covered by his black pupils.

Demonic energy surged from his body.

Lei Fang streamed down her face as she trembled with fear, a feeling as if a pair of hands had reached into the flesh of her chest and gripped her heart tightly.

But soon, she stopped feeling nervous.

She felt so relaxed, her mood lifted, and she felt like she was floating on air, which made her feel refreshed and her breathing slow down.

The gentleman in front of me also became kind and approachable.

"Who sent you to find me?" Li Qi's voice was full of allure, as if it could make people open their hearts willingly.

The mermaid girl offered almost no resistance; she only felt trust and, driven by instinct, replied, "My lord... my lord, it was my lords who sent me here."

"Oh? Distinguished guests? That distinguished guest from just now?" Li Qi asked.

"Not the one from before, but... also from the great White Pearl Clan," Lei Fang said somewhat shyly.

For some reason, she felt a secret sense of smug satisfaction.

"I see. Then you should escape far away, to a place at least 500 li away from East Isle, and then slowly follow East Isle. Come back to find me in three days, okay?" Li Qi asked.

"Okay... I'll do whatever you say." Lei Fang nodded quickly.

"Then it's settled. I'll be waiting for you here in three days." After Li Qi finished speaking, he gently pushed the Lei Fang away.

The Old Ma stamped its hoof and let out a low neigh.

"Don't worry, there's no one around. Let's go see who's behind us."

With that, Li Qi turned and left.