"That beating on Ink Bamboo Island..."
At those words, Mei Zhuang's relaxed expression froze. He even forgot about the Wine Cup still in his hand.
Those words were all he could think about.
"Ink Bamboo Island... a beating."
What was Ink Bamboo Island?
It was an island between the Cangluo Continent and the Desolate Ancient Continent.
How had Ink Bamboo Island gotten its name?
Mei Zhuang had planted every stalk of bamboo there with his own hands. The island was the fruit of all his labor, and he had named it himself.
But what was that about a beating?
Mei Zhuang remembered it clearly. It had been a sunny morning with a gentle breeze. He had revealed his true form, becoming a Heavenly Net Purple Lightning Eagle, and was soaring between the endless clouds and the sea.
Then that woman appeared, and all that peace shattered like a dream.
He had seen a streak of light flying from south to north. It looked like a Core Formation Cultivator trying to cross the continent.
Mei Zhuang hadn't seen a living person in decades, so this was something new. He thought he might keep her around for a while to amuse himself.
He went to meet her, stopped her, and invited her to Ink Bamboo Island... All right, the invitation hadn't gone entirely smoothly.
So Mei Zhuang had resorted to just the tiniest bit of force.
Up to that point, he still hadn't thought anything was wrong. But once the woman in the black robe with wide sleeves set foot on Ink Bamboo Island, everything changed.
Everything.
The black-robed woman, who had appeared to be at the Golden Core Middle Stage, took one step to the island's highest point. Her cultivation rose from Golden Core Formation to Nascent Soul—the very same Nascent