Wang Bao stomped fiercely on the ground with both feet, launching himself into the air with a sharp tearing-whistle. He pounced straight at Lin Wanqiu.
A faint golden light shone over his fists, and the vague roar of a tiger could even be heard. He was like a ferocious tiger that had starved for dozens of days leaving its den, ready to devour Lin Wanqiu alive!
Had the old man in yellow still been alive, he would have been utterly shocked by this sight.
Wang Bao was only at the Qi Refining Seventh Layer Realm, yet he had cultivated the Divine Tiger Fist Technique to minor accomplishment. With such comprehension, even among the Three Great Sects, he would have ranked near the top.
Faced with such a terrifying punch, Lin Wanqiu neither dodged nor retreated. She raised her longsword high, and a dim blue chill gleamed along its three-foot blade, radiating an abyssal, ice-cold aura.
That chill expanded in an instant. A blade shadow more than a zhang long condensed above her head, then cleaved downward through the air in the blink of an eye!
The instant the blade shadow collided with the tiger fist, a cold, damp aura spread outward. It seeped rapidly into Wang Bao's body through his fists, filling every part of him in the blink of an eye.
"What is going on?!"
Wang Bao's expression changed drastically. He wanted to retreat, but it was already too late.
Then—
White frost covered his fists, rapidly congealing at a rate visible to the naked eye. In the briefest instant, his powerful fists were completely frozen into ice and shattered on the spot. Countless shards of ice crashed onto the ground and turned to powder!
The moment his fists shattered, an enormous impact erupted. Wang Bao spat blood and flew backward like a kite with its string cut, smashing through dozens of towering trees before finally coming to a stop.
At the sight of this—
Lin Wanqiu did not dare let down her guard in the slightest. She darted forward, dispersing the smoke and dust, and saw the scene clearly.
Wang Bao lay within a deep pit, covered from head to toe in frost. A trace of blood seeped from the corner of his mouth, and his breath was so weak that it hung by a thread.
"I told you. Someone like you isn't worthy of making Her Highness act."
After leaving behind those words, Lin Wanqiu did not hesitate. She swung the longsword in her hand and drove it straight down, piercing Wang Bao's heart.
In an instant, Wang Bao's breath vanished, his spiritual power returned to heaven and earth, and bright red blood gushed forth, dyeing the ground crimson.
Still not reassured, Lin Wanqiu stabbed several more times into Wang Bao's Dantian and chest. Only after confirming that he was dead beyond doubt did she remove his storage pouch and leave.
Just as Lin Wanqiu slew Wang Bao—
The battle outside the spirit vein was also nearing its end.
Xiao Minghuang had not taken part in that chaotic slaughter.
Behind an ancient tree, Xiao Minghuang leaned lightly against Ye Ruoshui. She looked somewhat frail, utterly unlike the Goddess of War who had cut such a majestic figure on the battlefield moments ago.
"That battle just now drained too much from me. Without a period of recuperation, I fear I won't be able to fight again."
A trace of bitterness appeared on Xiao Minghuang's breathtaking face.
Though she possessed the Five Elements Spiritual Root, rare even across the ages, her cultivation was still shallow. To forcibly wield a Top-grade Yellow Tier Magic Treasure with the power of a divine ability was a feat that perhaps only she alone in this world could accomplish.
Had it been anyone else, their spiritual power would likely have scattered by now, their body collapsing as they died and vanished from the Dao.
Even so, she had paid an enormous price.
First, her spiritual power had been completely exhausted. Had the Heavenly-grade Five Elements Spiritual Root not endlessly sustained itself and protected her Dantian, she might still have met with disaster.
Second, she would be unable to use the divine ability Daytime Star Manifestation again for quite some time.
Lastly, the magic treasure longsword had lost its spirituality and would need several months to slowly recover.
Of these three injuries, only the spiritual power within her could be restored through pills and spirit stones. The latter two could only slowly recover through the grinding of time.
Moreover, her victory in that battle had come because the old man in yellow had underestimated her. He had not unleashed his strongest ultimate art from the start, giving her an opening to exploit.
On top of that, the old man in yellow was merely a fringe figure in the Dragon Tiger Sect, with mediocre aptitude. He possessed neither magic treasures nor divine abilities. If he had faced a true disciple of the Three Great Sects, even one at the Spring Gushing First Layer could likely have defeated him.
Thus, Xiao Minghuang's current strength was actually only slightly greater than that of a young prodigy at the Spring Gushing First Layer Realm.
With the magic treasure longsword added in, she might be able to fight someone at the Spring Gushing Third Layer, but only fight them.
If she failed to defeat her opponent with one slash, she would no longer have the strength to strike again and could only turn and flee.
As Xiao Minghuang pondered—
Ye Ruoshui, who was supporting her, had a little face full of heartache.
"Your Highness, are you all right?"
Xiao Minghuang came back to herself and shook her head slightly. She spoke weakly:
"There's a healing pill in my clothes. I'm giving it to you. Take it yourself."
Upon hearing this, Ye Ruoshui froze, unable to understand her mistress's intention. Her Highness was already exhausted to this extent, yet she still wanted to give her a healing pill?
Seeing Ye Ruoshui hesitate, Xiao Minghuang had no choice but to urge her:
"Hurry up. Stop dawdling!"
Though Ye Ruoshui did not understand the deeper meaning behind her mistress's words, she no longer hesitated.
With one arm wrapped around Xiao Minghuang's slender waist, she extended her fair, delicate little hand and slipped it into her mistress's robes.
The moment Ye Ruoshui reached inside, she felt something warm and soft. That wonderful sensation made her mind sway, and her little face flushed as she stopped moving.
Held in Ye Ruoshui's arms, Xiao Minghuang looked at that little hand, frozen there neither up nor down, neither advancing nor retreating. A strange expression also surfaced on her breathtaking face.
"Ruoshui, what are you doing?"
A clear voice rang by her ear. Ye Ruoshui's cheeks instantly flushed like sunset clouds, her little face turning crimson as her heart leaped like a startled deer. She hurriedly explained:
"N-No... I'm looking for the pill!"
As she spoke, Ye Ruoshui's movements suddenly became much quicker.
After searching for a long time, Ye Ruoshui finally pinched hold of something round. It was only the size of a mung bean, soft and hot. She tried to pull it out, but that pill seemed to have grown onto the body and would not come off no matter what she did.
Ye Ruoshui could not help increasing her strength. The pill became hard and even hotter...
A crisp slap rang out.
"Why did you hit me, Sister?"
Ye Ruoshui took half a step back, covering her cheek, feeling terribly wronged. Xiao Minghuang had clearly told her to retrieve the pill. Not only had she failed to get it, but Xiao Minghuang had pushed her away and even slapped her.
After all, she had followed Her Highness for so long, and this was the first time she had ever been scolded.
Xiao Minghuang fell to the ground with her back against the tree, gasping without end. Her breathtaking face was covered in a deep flush, and even her snow-white jade neck was tinged with an unnatural redness.
After she regained her composure, she saw Ye Ruoshui's hurt and sorrowful expression and found it difficult to explain the truth.
That would only embarrass them both.
It was better to continue muddling through like this.
"Ruoshui, you're still young. You'll understand once you grow up."
Xiao Minghuang let out a long breath. After calming her emotions again, she reached into her clothes herself, took out a pill, and handed it over.
"Oh..."
Ye Ruoshui accepted the pill, completely at a loss.
Yet she still did not understand what Xiao Minghuang meant.
At this moment, Xiao Minghuang spoke again:
"Ruoshui, clean up the battlefield first. Don't kill that old man in yellow yet. I still have questions for him later."
"Mm-hmm!"
Ye Ruoshui agreed repeatedly and turned away, clutching the pill she had just received as confusion filled her heart.
The pill in her hand was as large as a broad bean, much bigger than the pill she had grabbed earlier, and far smoother as well.
Ye Ruoshui's little brows curled, her heart filled with doubt.
"Could it be that Her Highness has another pill in her clothes?"
<I Am Breathtakingly Beautiful After Taking Off My Glasses>
Her Highness's Pill Is So Big!
[Ding!] [Detected that the host has successfully bestowed an opportunity!] [Congratulations, Host! You have triggered a two-hundredfold critical-hit compensation and obtained 1 Mysterious Tier Top-grade Pill, Spirit Returning Yuan Transforming Pill!]
Hearing the voice ring out in her mind, the flush on Xiao Minghuang's face gradually faded.
"This time, my luck isn't bad."
Xiao Minghuang swallowed the pill. The instant it entered her stomach, pure medicinal power dissolved within her body and flowed throughout her limbs and bones in the blink of an eye. The spiritual power in her Dantian rapidly recovered at a rate visible to the naked eye.
In only a few breaths, nearly twenty percent of her spiritual power had recovered. Color gradually returned to her face, and her aura swiftly rose.
Xiao Minghuang opened her eyes and exhaled a mouthful of turbid air. Her pupils gleamed like stars. She rose to her feet and headed toward the entrance of the spirit vein.
At the cave entrance, the old man in yellow was bound in iron chains, his mouth sealed. His hair was disheveled, his body was covered in blood, his breath was weak, and he cut a miserable figure.
The moment he saw Xiao Minghuang appear, the old man in yellow shuddered. Trembling with fear, he looked as though he had seen some immense terror.
Ye Ruoshui stepped forward and handed over a storage pouch.
"Your Highness, this is the storage pouch searched from the old man in yellow."
Xiao Minghuang took the storage pouch and nodded. She sent her spiritual sense inside and gave it a rough scan. There were only several thousand spirit stones and several dozen bottles of pills. She saw neither magic treasures nor cultivation methods or martial arts.
"How shabby..."
Her delicate brows furrowed slightly. A dignified expert at the Spring Gushing Peak Realm actually possessed such meager wealth. It seemed that even in great sects, not everyone could live in luxury.
A character like the old man in yellow was likely a fringe figure in the Dragon Tiger Sect. Otherwise, he would not have fallen so low as to become a mere city lord in the Thirty-Six Kingdoms.
This also gave her an even clearer understanding of how weak the old man in yellow truly was. Within a great sect, he likely could not even defeat true disciples at the Spring Gushing First or Second Layer.
Leaving aside anyone else, Wang Bao alone could probably have easily defeated the old man in yellow if he stepped into the Spring Gushing First Layer.
Just as she was about to withdraw from the storage pouch, she suddenly spotted a gorgeously crafted jade bottle among the scattered medicine bottles. It was entirely golden and clearly extraordinary.
With a thought from Xiao Minghuang, the golden jade bottle appeared in her palm.
When she removed the stopper, a dense medicinal fragrance wafted out. It was exceptionally rich, and the faint roar of a tiger could be heard within it.
"What kind of pill is this?"
Xiao Minghuang handed the medicine bottle to Ye Ruoshui and asked.
Ye Ruoshui was a natural prodigy of alchemy and knew a great deal about pill refinement. In her spare time, she spent nearly all her time reading books about alchemy. Her knowledge of all kinds of pills in the world even surpassed that of many high-realm martial artists.
She accepted the medicine bottle, sniffed the medicinal fragrance drifting from its mouth with her little nose, then stared at the pill inside for a while. After pondering for a moment, she answered:
"Golden throughout, with a rich medicinal fragrance that lingers without dispersing, and with faint tiger roars within—it should be the Dragon Tiger Sect's secret Mysterious Tier middle-grade pill, the Tiger Bone Body Strengthening Pill."
"Taking this pill can strengthen one's physique and also helps with cultivating the Dragon Tiger Sect's Earth-tier Cultivation Method, the Dragon Tiger Body Tempering Method. To condense the Dragon Tiger Vajra Body, one must also rely on this pill."
"Therefore, even within the Dragon Tiger Sect, only true disciples and major elders are qualified to obtain this pill. How did the old man in yellow, a mere fringe figure at the Spring Gushing Realm, acquire such a precious pill?"
Xiao Minghuang smiled slightly and said:
"Fortuitous opportunities and fate cannot be fathomed. Ruoshui, there is no need to think too much. Tomorrow, I will give this pill to you. If you can unravel the mysteries within it, that would be even better."
Ye Ruoshui froze upon hearing this, then revealed a delighted expression. She gave a slight curtsy.
"Thank you, Sister. I will definitely research the Tiger Bone Body Strengthening Pill's formula!"
Xiao Minghuang stroked Ye Ruoshui's soft hair, then took the little girl's smooth, delicate hand, bonelessly soft, and walked toward the spirit vein.
Outside the spirit vein cave, Lin Zhengquan was interrogating the old man in yellow. Seeing Xiao Minghuang approach, he immediately went forward and respectfully said:
"Your Highness!"
Xiao Minghuang waved her hand and said gently:
Before you continue