After crossing the sea of fire, Ling Feng saw a vast, magnificent stone hall.
"Rumble..."
Pushing open the two immensely heavy doors of the Bronze Gate, Ling Feng strode inside. The crimson glow of the sea of fire faded away completely, and a quiet stone hall came into view.
The ancient stone hall had no lavish decorations. On the contrary, it was exceptionally plain and empty, with few furnishings. Its interior was unusually spacious and silent.
Only a stone coffin stood at the center of the enormous stone hall. It had no lid, and a mass of light brimming with vitality hovered above it.
Ling Feng stepped forward to look, focusing on that mass of light. Then he heard a heartbeat.
"Thump! Thump! Thump!"
An emerald heart, seemingly condensed from radiant energy, beat gently. With each beat, the Yuan Power within the hall seemed to tremble along with it.
"Could this be... a Nirvana Heart?!"
Ling Feng fixed his gaze on the ball of light, a trace of wonder in his eyes, and slowly stepped forward.
Just then, a streak of green light flew swiftly in from the distance. When its glow faded, it revealed Ling Qingzhu riding her Green Lotus.
"Young Master Ling Feng..."
Ling Qingzhu's red lips shifted slightly beneath her thin veil, but Ling Feng cut her off. "Just call me Ling Feng. As for this Nirvana Heart, if you want it, you'll have to offer something of equal value. Otherwise, there's nothing to discuss."
Ling Feng shut down whatever Ling Qingzhu had been about to say. His refusal to budge, without the slightest trace of gentlemanly courtesy, made her secretly bite her lip.
With men like Lin Langtian or Wang Yan, she only had to ask. Even if they did not hand it over willingly, they would never be as demanding as Ling Feng.
"I have an eighth-tier spirit herb."
Although Ling Qingzhu had reached the half-step creation realm and possessed a trump card that let her stand against someone at creation realm minor completion, Ling Feng was far too mysterious. After some thought, she finally compromised.
"Sorry, I already have eighth-tier spirit herbs. Besides, do you think one eighth-tier spirit herb is worth a Nirvana Heart? If there's such a wonderful bargain out there, please introduce me."
Ling Feng shook his head and refused outright.
He possessed the Creation God Pen and could copy as many eighth-tier spirit herbs as he wanted. Besides, the value of a Nirvana Heart was beyond anything a single eighth-tier spirit herb could match.
"I'll add a creation martial arts manual."
Ling Feng's words brought a blush to her face, and Ling Qingzhu raised her offer again. Yet he still shook his head. "I'm not short of martial arts."
"Then I'll add a high-grade spirit treasure. That's my limit!"
A hint of unsteadiness crept into Ling Qingzhu's ethereal voice. Clearly, this was her first time bargaining with someone like this.
Unfortunately, Ling Feng needed none of the things she offered. Cultivation methods and combat skills, spirit treasures, and the like-he could have them all simply by using spirit imbuement on creation characters.
What he lacked were high-grade spirit herbs and treasures that could rapidly increase his cultivation.
"It seems you can't offer anything that tempts me."
Ling Feng's voice was calm, but his meaning was unmistakable. Ling Qingzhu's expression darkened, and a trace of anger entered her cool voice. "What exactly do you want? You refuse this and reject that. Just what are you after?"
"I only need treasures that can increase my cultivation."
At that, Ling Qingzhu fell silent. Like Ling Feng, she too only needed treasures that could increase her cultivation.
"Young Master Ling Feng, is there truly no room for negotiation?"
After a moment of silence, Ling Qingzhu asked again, but Ling Feng still shook his head. "I told you, if you offer something that tempts me, I can give you the Nirvana Heart. Of course, I'd advise you not to take this particular Nirvana Heart. I'm saying this for your own good."
At the last moment, Ling Feng offered her another warning. He did not want her to fall victim to its effects and end up giving him her body.
That was not Ling Feng's style. He still wanted to warn Ling Qingzhu, but she assumed he was deliberately saying this because he did not want to give it to her.
Her expression immediately darkened, and a surge of cool Yuan Power burst forth.
"In that case, I'll have to experience your prowess for myself, Young Master Ling. I will have that Nirvana Heart!"
"Wait..."
As soon as she finished speaking, Ling Qingzhu attacked first, giving Ling Feng no chance to say anything.
Ling Feng was forced to defend. Within a few breaths, they had exchanged dozens of blows. Although he had used spirit imbuement on Kakashi Hatake and gained strength comparable to qi creation realm minor completion, Ling Qingzhu was at the half-step creation realm, a notch above even qi creation realm major completion. He was no match for her. Before long, she had him suppressed.
Being beaten back by a woman left Ling Feng frustrated and furious. "Fuck! If you weren't so pretty that I couldn't bear to hit you, I'd have already had a whole gang beat you to death! You believe me or not?"
However, Ling Qingzhu took his words as an empty bluff. Seeing that he was no match for her, she intensified her attacks.
"Fuck, you're still coming at me!"
Driven into a frenzy by the fight, Ling Feng began cursing. "Don't force me to get rough! My Dongfeng Missiles aren't vegetarians! I've got heaps of those things. Watch out, or I'll blast you apart..."
"Stop bluffing. All you have right now is that so-called Dongfeng Missile, isn't it? And it's still outside, so it can't threaten me. Just give me the Nirvana Heart. The payment I promised you still stands."
Ling Qingzhu remained convinced she was right. She had no idea what truly made Ling Feng terrifying.
His Dongfeng Missiles could be voice-controlled, and he could mass-produce them. Most importantly, he could conjure up as many experts in the three realms of creation as he wanted with effortless ease.
Ling Qingzhu knew none of this. She thought that suppressing Ling Feng meant victory was assured. Still, she did not want to make an enemy of him. After all, anyone at their level was bound to have trump cards. She did not want to push him too far, and doing so was not her style either.
Precisely because of this, Ling Feng kept yielding to her as they fought. He even said, "I already told you, that Nirvana Heart isn't suitable for you..."
"Bam!"
Taking advantage of the opening Ling Feng exposed while speaking, Ling Qingzhu struck his chest with her palm. She flipped through the air, deftly twisted her hand, and seized the Nirvana Heart he had tucked at his waist.
"Sorry. This Nirvana Heart is very important to me. I'll give you an explanation afterward."
Looking at Ling Feng, whom her palm strike had knocked to the floor, Ling Qingzhu slowly drifted down from midair and offered an apology.
Then she took a green bead from within her robes and channeled Yuan Power into it. Immediately, the bead blazed with brilliant green light.
Next, the Green Lotus beneath Ling Qingzhu's feet rapidly expanded and bloomed, becoming an enormous lotus two or three meters tall that enveloped her completely.
Outside the Green Lotus stood a wall of green light as well. Clearly, this was a defensive treasure.
To stop Ling Feng from continuing to fight her for it, Ling Qingzhu chose to use the Nirvana Heart on the spot.
"Ah, hiss... damn woman, you made my chest hurt..."
Ling Feng clutched and rubbed his aching chest where her palm had struck him. But when he looked at the enormous Green Lotus hovering in midair and sensed Ling Qingzhu refining the Nirvana Heart, he gritted his teeth and said resentfully, "Fuck! Since you're so eager to give me your first time, I won't stand on ceremony."
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