Heaven and Earth Treasure

"It's fine. I see he's quite bright-eyed. Perhaps he just doesn't want to talk."

Li Qingqiu looked at Yuan Li and chuckled softly. He beckoned to Yuan Li, who immediately walked around the table and came to his side, resting on his lap.

He wasn't worried about Yuan Li's growth. After all, Yuan Li possessed the Master's Heart Destiny, which indicated his intelligence.

He chatted casually with Zhang Yuchun and Li Dongyue while waiting for the disciples to serve the dishes, his mind already focused on his fortune.

Night fell, and just as the food was served, Yang Jueding and the others finally returned.

Yang Jueding walked at the front, his expression peculiar. Xu Ning and Qin Ye followed behind him, while the other disciples were gathered in the new courtyard below the mountain gate, enthusiastically discussing the afternoon's battle.

Zhang Yuchun stood up and asked, "Elder Yang, how did it go?"

Everyone else also looked at Yang Jueding, their expressions somewhat tense. This was the Qingxiao Sect's first time being provoked like this. If they had lost, there would undoubtedly be endless trouble in the future.

Yang Jueding replied, "We drove them off. It was thanks to Xu Ning's intervention."

Upon hearing this, everyone in the courtyard breathed a sigh of relief.

"Xu Ning intervened? Then what about you? Couldn't you defeat those people from the Juesheng Sect?" Li Sifeng seized on the key point and immediately asked.

Yang Jueding's face turned a little awkward. He coughed lightly and said, "This Juesheng Sect is not simple. Not only do they have the support of the Linchuan Tang Clan, but their Sect Master is also a supreme expert. He even defeated Zhu Wuliang, the number one martial artist in Cangzhou. I am indeed no match for him."

"Zhu Wuliang? Zhu Wuliang of the Blazing Flame Divine Palm?" Cheng Canghai's eyes widened, and he pressed further, his voice trembling. He looked at Xu Ning with an expression as if he had seen a ghost.

Seeing his reaction, Yang Jueding's expression softened. "That's right, it's Zhu Wuliang of the Blazing Flame Divine Palm. The Sect Master of the Juesheng Sect is named Yan Wujin. He didn't have much fame before, but I imagine it won't be long before he becomes renowned throughout the martial world."

Hearing this, Li Qingqiu no longer cared. He said, "Sit down, let's eat and talk."

Yang Jueding and the other two immediately took their seats, while the others began to press Xu Ning and Yan Wujin about the details of their battle.

"Yan Wujin's cultivation was indeed formidable. I've never seen anyone with such profound inner energy. He could even make a lake boil. However, Xu Ning's sword was stronger. Her sword energy actually carried lightning, which could penetrate Yan Wujin's inner energy. You should have seen Yan Wujin's expression, his eyes were wide open..."

Yang Jueding spoke with increasing excitement, and everyone gained a deeper understanding of Xu Ning's strength.

How come it sounds like Xu Ning is even more powerful than Jiang Zhaoxia?

They looked at Xu Ning again and saw her sitting beside Li Dongyue, eating obediently. It was hard to connect her with the formidable expert who had defeated Yan Wujin.

The meal was lively. Xu Ning's repelling of the Juesheng Sect greatly boosted the morale of the Qingxiao Sect.

In a guest room, Su Xiling was also recounting the battle to Zhu Yan. Her shock far surpassed Yang Jueding's, as she knew better how strong Yan Wujin was.

"An expert in the Entry Realm was defeated by a mere girl? It's unbelievable. Is the Qingxiao Sect truly favored by immortals? I didn't expect someone in the sect to be even more powerful and younger than Jiang Zhaoxia. How did she cultivate such power?"

As Su Xiling spoke, her hand holding the teacup trembled.

Zhu Yan, however, remained calm. She said softly, "There are always people better than you, and heavens beyond the heavens. There are countless wonders in the world that you and I cannot access. If Xu Ning is so powerful, it means her master, Li Qingqiu, is even more so."

Su Xiling came back to her senses and asked, "Is it true, as the disciples of the Qingxiao Sect say, that Li Qingqiu received instructions from an immortal in a dream?"

Zhu Yan did not answer, as she could not determine whether this was true or false.

Tonight, many people were destined to have trouble sleeping.

After dinner, Xu Ning returned to her room with Li Qingqiu and detailed Yan Wujin's strength.

"Master, although I could defeat him, I couldn't kill him. This person's martial arts are truly formidable. If Elder Yang had intervened, he would likely have been severely injured within three moves."

Xu Ning said with some frustration. After reaching the fifth level of the Yangyuan Realm, her confidence had soared. After all, this was a realm that even Jiang Zhaoxia had not yet reached, and she had already opened up a significant gap with the other disciples. She hadn't expected her first battle after breaking through to be a failure.

Li Qingqiu sat on a stool. He looked at Xu Ning's unconvinced expression and couldn't help but pinch her cheek. He chuckled, "What more do you want? As you said, Yan Wujin is very powerful. Perhaps without you, Yan Wujin and his Juesheng Sect would have become the overlords of the Guzhou martial arts world. He must be feeling very frustrated."

"Master, I feel like my comprehension of sword techniques isn't very good. However, my inner energy attributes have given me many ideas. I want to focus on researching my inner energy attributes next. Is that okay?" Xu Ning did not dodge her master's hand. She looked at him and asked earnestly.

Li Qingqiu said with satisfaction, "Of course. If you can find your own path, then you can truly be considered to have graduated."

"I'm not graduating! Master, I want to follow you forever and stay in the Qingxiao Sect forever."

"Haha, if that's the case, then Master will naturally be happy. But if you fall in love in the future and want to go down the mountain, Master won't stop you."

"Hmph, I'm not that vulgar."

The candlelight cast the shadows of the master and disciple diagonally on the wall. Looking at Xu Ning, Li Qingqiu thought of her when she first arrived at the mountain. She was dirty and scrawny back then. Now, she had undergone a complete transformation and possessed the aura of a cultivator. This made him sigh inwardly at how quickly time had passed.

The master and disciple chatted for a while longer, and then Li Qingqiu sent Xu Ning away.

After Xu Ning closed the door, he waited for another dozen seconds before bringing up the Legacy System and activating his fortune.

[Claim Fortune Reward]

[Activate Fortune]

[Begin Detecting Fortune]

[Fortune Detected. Found a Heavenly Treasure. Do you accept the fortune's guidance?]

A Heavenly Treasure?

Li Qingqiu became interested and immediately chose to accept. Immediately after, his consciousness was pulled into a dream.

In the dream, he could not control his body and could only watch himself trek through the mountains and forests towards an unknown destination.

The Tai Kun Mountain Range was vast, located in the southeastern part of the Great Li Dynasty. To the east lay hundreds of miles of deep mountains shrouded in miasma, where no one ventured. It was said that crossing those mountains led to the boundless ocean, but no one had ever managed to cross that deep mountain range. Lin Xunfeng had previously warned them not to go east and to retreat if they encountered thick fog.

The mountain where the Qingxiao Sect was located was still dozens of miles away from that deep mountain range. To ordinary people, the Qingxiao Sect was already considered deep in the mountains, and finding it was no easy feat. As for the boundless mountains and rivers behind the Qingxiao Sect, they were awe-inspiring.

In his dream, Li Qingqiu passed through layers of miasma, traveling an unknown distance. He saw a large tree, a hundred zhang tall, with numerous branches and countless vines hanging down. The surrounding forest seemed like its subjects bowing before it. However, the image was somewhat blurry, and he could not see the true appearance of this giant tree.

When Li Qingqiu woke up, he recalled the figure of the great tree and was awestruck.

It was the first time he had ever seen such a tall tree.

However, since it was a stroke of luck, this tree would surely bring him unimaginable benefits.

Li Qingqiu decided to set off before dawn and head there early.

Under the cover of night, Tang Ziqi supported the disheveled Yan Wujin as they moved forward.

"Let's stop here for now. I need to circulate my energy to heal."

Yan Wujin gritted his teeth. Tang Ziqi quickly placed him under a nearby tree. Seeing him begin to meditate and circulate his energy, Tang Ziqi's expression remained somewhat dazed.

Tang Ziqi still shivered involuntarily when he thought of Xu Ning, unsure if it was from fear or the cold night.

He walked to the side, sat down, and took the water flask from his waist. While quenching his thirst, he calmly thought.

All the disciples recruited by Zhu Wuliang had fled. If they wanted to rebuild their sect, they would need to choose another sect as a stepping stone.

Next time, they must stay far away from the Tai Kun Mountain Range!

The forest was silent, with only the occasional gust of cold wind.

Tang Ziqi had traveled one to two hundred li and was already exhausted. He actually fell asleep leaning against the tree trunk.

He didn't know how long he slept when he heard someone calling him. He couldn't help but open his eyes and saw Yan Wujin sitting opposite him, staring warily at their surroundings.

"What's wrong?"

Tang Ziqi rubbed his eyes and asked weakly. His gaze unconsciously swept around, and he quickly became alert.

He didn't need Yan Wujin to answer; he had already noticed something was wrong.

How could there be dense fog in all directions?

There hadn't been this much fog before he fell asleep.

"Something is wrong here. I suspect we fled in the wrong direction," Yan Wujin said gravely. After resting for three hours, his condition had recovered somewhat, and his voice was full of vigor.

Tang Ziqi frowned deeply, his face changed drastically. "It's rumored that deep within the Tai Kun Mountain Range lies a no-man's-land, filled with miasma. Those who enter do not return. This no-man's-land hides Yao and Mo, and even fierce beasts dare not tread there."

Yan Wujin slowly stood up and said, "It seems the rumors are true. We must leave. I feel something is wrong."

Tang Ziqi quickly got up. After looking around, the two decided to flee in the direction they came from.

A night had passed, and the people from the Qingxiao Sect should have given up chasing them.

However, after fleeing for several li, they were still unable to escape the dense fog, which made them increasingly uneasy. They always felt as if something in the fog was watching them.

"Wait!"

Yan Wujin suddenly called out to Tang Ziqi. Tang Ziqi stopped and looked at him nervously.

"This is where we rested before," Yan Wujin said with a grim expression. He raised his hand and pointed to a large tree. Tang Ziqi looked closely and saw a character carved into the trunk.

Tang Ziqi completely panicked. Although he had read many books, he had never encountered such a dangerous situation.

Crack!

The sound of a branch breaking underfoot startled them, and they both turned to look. They saw a figure walking out of the dense fog. This made them brace for battle as if facing a great enemy.

Li Qingqiu emerged from the dense fog, his left hand resting on the scabbard of the Heavenly Rainbow Sword, his posture relaxed. He walked up to Yan Wujin and Tang Ziqi and sized them up.

Yan Wujin and Tang Ziqi recognized the Qingxiao Sect robes he was wearing. They exchanged a glance, not daring to act rashly.

"Who are you, and how did you get lost here?" Li Qingqiu asked.

Tang Ziqi quickly cupped his fists and said, "We were pursued by enemies and fled here, and we've been lost for several days. Little brother, do you know how to get out?"

Before Li Qingqiu could answer, Yan Wujin turned his head to look in another direction and said, "I didn't expect it to be so lively here. Stop hiding and come out."

Hearing this, Li Qingqiu and Tang Ziqi turned to look.

In the dense fog, a patch of grass began to rustle, and soon, a scruffy old man staggered out. His hair was white and messy, his robes were dirty and old, and he carried a gourd in his hand, looking as if he were drunk.

Li Qingqiu looked at the scruffy old man, lost in thought.

Seeking monthly votes at the end of the month~