What a Waste

The two shook their heads, looking somewhat dazed.

Within the Immortal Gate, every woman carried herself gracefully. Even when eating, they took only a few delicate bites.

They maintained the image of fairies in the eyes of outsiders, lofty beings untouched by the smoke and fire of mortal life.

Yet the girl before them, just as beautiful, paid no heed to any of that.

She was vastly different from those so-called fairies.

Open and straightforward, she concealed nothing.

She gave them an utterly different impression, one that felt extraordinarily real.

As though they could reach out and touch her.

Seeing them shake their heads, Li Qingyue smiled and unceremoniously pulled over the last deer leg.

Her dagger kept slicing, and her little mouth never stopped.

Even her fair, jade-like cheeks were smeared with grease.

Yet she cared nothing for it. Food was all she saw.

To her, only eating could make her continually grow stronger.

Seeing the smile on Li Qingyue's face, Yang Wuzheng felt a slight tremor in his heart. He had expended divine power and drawn upon the talents of his innate Dao body to play the Wuzheng Melody.

All that had only made the girl before him a little happier.

Yet this deer leg had somehow worked even greater wonders than his Wuzheng Melody.

Had she... been hungry for a long time?

Yang Wuzheng sighed inwardly, feeling an inexplicable sadness.

For some reason, he found himself paying unusual attention to the girl before him.

Yan Wushuang, on the other hand, simply smiled along when he saw Li Qingyue smile.

Li Qingyue's smile was beautiful, like a hundred flowers swaying gracefully in the wind.

It held an indescribable purity, as though it flowed naturally from her heart.

It made joy rise unbidden in the hearts of those who saw it.

Especially with those grease-smeared cheeks, her smile was unexpectedly lovely.

In mere moments, the last deer leg had also vanished into Li Qingyue's stomach.

She could feel that her true qi had increased by more than a tenth.

She had already absorbed a source stone, after all. This tenth alone equaled several months of her former arduous training in the mountains.

The vortex within her dantian had also grown a size larger, and her Kunpeng Devouring technique became increasingly powerful.

If she could eat deer meat imbued with divine essence like this every day, she felt her strength would rise at an incredible rate.

"Miss Qingyue, where do you intend to go next?"

Seeing that Li Qingyue had finished eating, Yang Wuzheng spoke calmly.

They were about to leave for the Primordial Ancient Mine, not merely to gain experience, but also to see just what era the unearthed ancient tomb belonged to.

More than that, they hoped to seek opportunities for cultivation.

This was the Age of Declining Dharma. Though the essence of heaven and earth still existed, it was exceedingly thin, enough only for those who had just begun cultivating.

Once one reached the life spring realm or above, that meager essence of heaven and earth was utterly useless.

Even the Holy Lands, with all their formations gathering spiritual energy, could not provide enough for people to cultivate by relying on the essence of heaven and earth.

Hearing Yang Wuzheng's question, Yan Wushuang's expression dimmed slightly.

Only then did he remember that they would have to part with Li Qingyue after all.

Li Qingyue was merely a mortal. There was not the slightest fluctuation of life spring divine power coming from her.

That could not be concealed, unless one possessed a sacred body or tyrant body, with blood and vitality comparable to dragons and elephants, masking the fluctuations of life spring divine power.

Otherwise, anyone who had begun cultivating could easily sense them.

He had only just found the girl before him interesting. She ate even more than he did and suited his tastes perfectly, yet now they had to part.

A trace of reluctance stirred in his heart.

"I don't know!"

Li Qingyue shook her head.

This world was too vast, and she knew little of what lay beyond. She truly did not know where to go.

But she knew that she had to grow stronger.

It was not only to avenge her brother. Deep in her heart, she also felt an urge to visit this world's Earth.

Perhaps... her home was here!

If it was not, she also harbored the thought of returning to her previous life.

Yang Wuzheng's zither melody, in particular, had made her longing for her family on Earth grow wildly.

She wanted to see her elderly grandparents, to see her father and mother.

There were things whose weight and pain one understood only after losing them.

Even though she suspected deep down that this world was not the world of her previous life, and that she might not be able to attain the Dao and become an emperor.

She still could not suppress those thoughts.

Hearing Li Qingyue's answer, Yang Wuzheng fell briefly silent, his gaze turning toward the mountain village before them.

It was deathly silent, like a realm of ghosts.

Where could a girl with no family left in the world go?

Inexplicably, even he felt the impulse to take Li Qingyue with them.

He wanted to look after this girl a little.

The thought came without reason. Perhaps it was because he liked nature and beautiful things.

Or perhaps the girl before him had somehow stirred his compassion with her every gesture.

Whatever the reason, such a thought had indeed arisen in his heart, something he had never felt before.

"Miss Qingyue, why don't you come with us?"

Yan Wushuang had no reservations. Whatever came to mind, he said outright.

The girl was beautiful, and he did feel a little fondness for her.

He knew it was a fondness for beauty, but there was nothing shameful about that.

No man disliked a beautiful girl.

And to him, liking was liking, and disliking was disliking.

There was no need to consider too much.

Life was the same. If you liked something, do it. Why keep looking ahead and behind?

"Go with you?"

Li Qingyue raised her eyes toward them, genuinely tempted.

Both were disciples of the Nine Saints Gate, one of the two great Holy Lands of Central Province.

Their knowledge should be considerable, and, more importantly, she could eat Fierce Beasts imbued with divine essence.

That would be a tremendous help to her strength.

This was an opportunity to grow stronger.

But she understood very well that she was only a mortal, and they were going to the Primordial Ancient Mine. There would be great danger, and she would be a burden.

"Miss Qingyue, there is no need to worry. We are only going to gain experience."

"If there is danger, we will naturally avoid it."

Yang Wuzheng spoke.

Beside him, Yan Wushuang turned his head in surprise. This was the first time he had heard Yang Wuzheng say something like that.

Inviting a woman to join them.

"Won't I hold you back?"

Li Qingyue's voice still held some hesitation.

But she knew the two before her bore no ill intent. Following them was more dependable than venturing into the outside world she knew nothing about.

"No! I possess the Human Sacred Body!"

Yan Wushuang spoke with some pride. "The Human Race's fully accomplished Sacred Body shook the universe with his might. Thirty thousand years ago, he stood alone against the Dark Turmoil, battled across the world, and resisted the Supremes without a single defeat!"

"Even the Feathered Great Emperor received his guidance before attaining the Dao."

"Moreover, my senior brother possesses an innate Dao body. Legend has it that the Dao Venerable of the Mythological Era had this very constitution. He held an entire age beneath his might and left behind the unparalleled Dao Scripture."

"If even the two of us cannot protect you, then who in this world can?"

Yan Wushuang's voice brimmed with an overbearing confidence.

The confidence of one who believed no one but himself could rise to the task.

That great accomplishment sacred body from thirty thousand years ago had left behind many deeds and legends.

Revered by the Human Race, he had reached the pinnacle of glory, suppressing those of other constitutions until they could not lift their heads.

As someone with a sacred body himself, Yan Wushuang naturally felt proud and took that man as his goal.

Yang Wuzheng also nodded slightly at his words. Though few legends of the innate Dao body remained, it was a constitution close to the Dao.

The Dao Venerable of the Mythological Era alone was enough to make countless people look up in awe.

An innate Dao body? The Human Sacred Body?

Hearing their words, Li Qingyue felt a slight jolt in her heart.

She suddenly remembered the innate Dao body sacred embryo.

Great Emperor Wushi, who lived at the end of Desolate Antiquity, had possessed the majesty proclaimed by the words, "Who stands at the peak at the end of the road to immortality? One glimpse of Wushi renders all paths empty."

Wait... could these two be Wushi's ancestors?

If her memory was correct, after the Ruthless Great Emperor, the Queen Mother of the West had reigned supreme alone.

After Dao-Proving, she had even established her domain beside the Primordial Ancient Mine to suppress Primordial Beginning.

Such might was unprecedented, and it directly demonstrated the power of the innate Dao body.

At that thought, Li Qingyue instinctively looked at the two before her.

The eras of the Ruthless Great Emperor and the Queen Mother of the West were only forty or fifty thousand years apart.

The possibility was very real.

I actually know Wushi's ancestors!

Li Qingyue marveled inwardly. As for becoming the Ruthless Great Emperor, she had not the slightest confidence.

She could not even see the road ahead.

Cultivating with a waste body was far too difficult.

Throughout all history, there had never been a legend of anyone with a waste body rising against the odds.

"Then thank you both, young masters!"

Li Qingyue no longer hesitated. Traveling with someone who possessed a sacred body and someone who possessed a Dao body would surely be of great help to her.

She had to seize every chance to grow stronger.

"Good! Then let's roam the world together!"

Yan Wushuang was overjoyed. He hurriedly rose and said to Yang Wuzheng, "It's still early. Let's set off."

"Very well!"

Yang Wuzheng answered, divine light blooming around him as though he had become one with heaven and earth.

"Wait, this deer meat... you don't want it anymore?"

Li Qingyue suddenly asked. Seeing them nod, she stepped forward without the slightest hesitation.

She took out her dagger, cut off a chunk of meat, and stuffed it into her mouth.

Blood instantly stained her little mouth red.

At the sight, both Yan Wushuang and Yang Wuzheng were deeply shocked. That was raw meat.

"Don't!"

Yang Wuzheng and Yan Wushuang instinctively grabbed Li Qingyue's arms.

Li Qingyue raised her eyes, her pupils filled with determination and stubbornness.

Her bright red lips trembled softly, her voice a little faint. "This is food. It's such a waste."

Of an entire deer, they had eaten only its four legs, leaving half behind.

That half was enough to increase her strength by another tenth.

She looked at the two with utter seriousness and said, "Eat a little more, and you gain a little more strength. That gives you one more chance to stay alive."

At those words, both men froze.

They felt as though something indescribable had pressed down hard upon their hearts.

For a moment, they did not know what to say.

But Li Qingyue broke free of their hands and cut off another chunk of meat without hesitation.

Bite after bite, she stuffed it into her mouth.

Her movements were swift, without the slightest hesitation.

As though she had long since grown accustomed to it.

There was a stubbornness that came from deep within her bones.

It made their hearts ache for her, inexplicably.

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