He stamped hard against the ground and leaped onto Little Green's back.
Seeing Shi Qingyun return, she immediately went to meet him, much of the worry hanging over her heart finally easing.
As soon as Little White saw Shi Qingyun return, he happily jumped onto him, scrambled up to his shoulder in a few steps, and lifted his hair to inspect him from every angle.
Shi Qingyun stroked Little White's head.
"I'm fine. Nothing happened."
He then turned his gaze to the War Goddess. After all their efforts, what mattered in the end was whether she had successfully obtained the treasure medicine.
The War Goddess noticed his gaze as well. With a casual wave, she raised a barrier around them.
Then, under Shi Qingyun's watchful eyes, she extended a hand, and a golden lotus with five petals appeared in her palm.
The moment the Golden Lotus appeared, its fragrance caught Little White's attention, making his eyes shine.
He wanted to reach for the Golden Lotus, and even Little Green beneath their feet radiated a sense of longing.
"It seems this treasure medicine benefits exotic beasts even more."
The War Goddess nodded at his words, gathered divine power in her hand, and swept it over the Golden Lotus.
Three petals fell from the Golden Lotus, and she carried them before Shi Qingyun with her divine power.
"What a shame. With six petals, it would have been half-saint medicine."
"You contributed the most this time. You take the larger share."
Shi Qingyun accepted them without any fuss and casually said to the War Goddess:
"If it were half-saint medicine, we wouldn't have had any part in this."
The War Goddess nodded in agreement, and they landed in a cave.
Little White had been pestering him ever since earlier. Now was the perfect time to let him absorb the Golden Lotus, and the War Goddess had the same idea.
Each took their spirit beast to a quiet spot and began helping them refine the medicinal power.
The moment Shi Qingyun brought it out, Little White eagerly swallowed it in one gulp. Shi Qingyun was not worried. As a descendant of a Qilin, Little White would have no trouble refining this little bit of medicinal power.
After swallowing the Golden Lotus, Little White immediately fell into a deep sleep, specks of colorful light spilling from his body.
The bumps on his head slowly grew a little larger, and his body grew as well.
Aside from that, the fur on his body became an ever deeper, richer black.
The damaged runes within his body slowly repaired themselves, harboring a powerful force.
The warm sun rose in the east, streaks of golden light piercing the clouds and spilling over the earth.
They stood atop the azure bird as it swept through the heavens. Blades of icy wind struck the barrier raised by the War Goddess, stirring tiny ripples.
Little White excitedly bounced about atop the azure bird, while Little Green's speed and imposing presence had both increased. The Golden Lotus had clearly worked well.
Watching the valiant War Goddess standing ahead of him, Shi Qingyun asked curiously:
"Why did you come here? Were you out training too?"
She had nothing to hide regarding Shi Qingyun's question.
"That was part of the reason."
As though something had come to mind, her tone suddenly grew rather odd.
"The other reason was Shi Yi of the Stone Kingdom's Martial King Manor."
Hearing Shi Yi's name surprised him, and he could not help asking:
"Shi Yi? What does he have to do with it?"
At his question, the War Goddess turned and gave him a puzzled look.
Her gaze left him a little embarrassed. He scratched his head and gave a sheepish smile.
"I spent all my time cultivating before, so I don't know much about what's happening outside."
Whether the War Goddess believed him or not was unclear. Looking up at the dense forests constantly sliding backward on either side, she said quietly:
"Shi Yi, the Double-Pupiled One, has been breaking records like mad in the Void God Realm."
"His exploits have spread the name of the Double-Pupiled One throughout the Great Wilderness. Every major power has its eyes on him now."
"And as one of the Great Wilderness's foremost powers, our Deer-Chasing Academy naturally wants to recruit Shi Yi too."
Yet as she said this, Shi Qingyun could not detect the slightest enthusiasm for recruiting Shi Yi in her voice.
Instead, she sounded like someone watching a spectacle who would not mind if the trouble grew even bigger.
That left Shi Qingyun unsure of what the War Goddess was thinking.
She seemed to sense the questioning, probing gaze behind her.
"Ahem. I'm not very confident about visiting the Stone Kingdom to recruit Shi Yi this time."
"I'm just going through the motions."
Recalling her time in the Void God Realm, she thought indignantly, I went to recruit him personally, and he actually chose to ignore me. What a rude little brat.
The mere thought of that four-eyed brat's aloof expression irritated her. She could also tell that he had no interest whatsoever in the Deer-Chasing Academy.
Shi Qingyun finally picked up on a few clues.
"So you don't want to invite Shi Yi, and you've been dawdling along the way to stall for time?"
The War Goddess rolled her eyes at him, the contrast lending her a captivating charm.
"What do you mean, dawdling? I'm training while looking for more outstanding talents to join our Deer-Chasing Academy."
She gave Shi Qingyun a look, reminding him not to forget how she had picked him up.
She continued on her own, "A Double-Pupiled One. Even if he's a genius who hasn't matured yet, no one dares take him lightly."
"Our Deer-Chasing Academy certainly doesn't want to shoulder the blame for belittling the world's outstanding talents. Anyone who didn't know better might think we looked down on these so-called geniuses."
Hearing the War Goddess's rather sarcastic words, Shi Qingyun hastily indicated that he understood and made a gesture of sealing his mouth shut.
Seeing Shi Qingyun act that way, assuring her he would not say anything out of turn, the War Goddess immediately burst into laughter.
Her cheerful laughter echoed across the heavens.
"With strength like yours at your age, I think you should come to our Deer-Chasing Academy!"
"I believe that with your talent and our academy's guidance, even if you can't match Shi Yi, you won't fall far behind him."
Receiving the War Goddess's invitation once again, he agreed this time without further hesitation.
He did not know where to go now anyway. His original plan had been to travel around and increase his strength before heading to the Heaven Mending Pavilion.
But on reflection, going to the Deer-Chasing Academy seemed quite good too. He could both strengthen his foundations and broaden his knowledge.
His decisive agreement caught the War Goddess somewhat off guard. She had thought Shi Qingyun would refuse.
Chapter 78: Stone Kingdom Imperial Capital
Night fell, and countless stars hung in the sky, twinkling in the starry expanse.
Vital energy surged around Shi Qingyun as he sat cross-legged on the azure bird's back, cultivating. Flecks of silver light poured over him and were steadily absorbed by his body.
A silver halo surrounded him, growing brighter as he cultivated, seemingly pulsing faintly in time with his breathing.
It flickered like a shining star that had fallen into the mortal world. Though it was not as dazzling as the stars above, the aura it gave off was deeply soothing.
Little White lay beside him, bathing in the moonlight essence with him. His fur looked especially sleek beneath the silver moonlight.
Beside Shi Qingyun, the War Goddess opened her lovely eyes and saw this sight, though she had long since ceased to find it strange.
At first, the spectacle of his cultivation had startled her, but after these past few days, she had already grown accustomed to it.
She would only silently call him a freak of nature.
From the beginning, she had known that Shi Qingyun's talent must be considerable for him to possess such strength at his age.
But spending these past few days with him had given her a new appreciation of his talent.
Little White, who had been lying beside Shi Qingyun and idly swishing his tail, suddenly stood up.
His eyes lit up at the sight of the towering city walls ahead, gradually growing brighter and clearer.
He circled Shi Qingyun, then tugged at his sleeve with his mouth.
Roused by Little White's movements, Shi Qingyun slowly opened his eyes. Countless stars seemed to rise and fall within his pitch-black pupils.
They were deep and mysterious, filled with an alluring charm.
The silver halo gathered behind him slowly dispersed, and he gradually rose from Little Green's back.
He stood facing the wind, his robes fluttering, a lingering trace of moonlight still clinging to him, like an immortal banished to the mortal world.
With one hand behind his back, he gazed into the distance, and the War Goddess's voice reached his ears.
"Junior Brother Yun, we've reached the Stone Kingdom Imperial Capital!"
At the War Goddess's form of address, his face darkened, and the atmosphere he had painstakingly created shattered in an instant.
A protest rose to his lips, but he swallowed it back down, choosing not to argue.
Ever since he had decided to join the Deer-Chasing Academy, the War Goddess had addressed him this way. He had objected several times, but she never listened, merely saying, "All right."
The moment she turned around, she went right back to calling him the same thing, so he had simply let her have her way.
He walked over to the War Goddess and followed her gaze. Far away, an enormous city gradually came into clearer view.
Shi Qingyun grew excited as he watched the city draw closer, and the War Goddess turned to look at him.
"What, have you never seen such a large capital before?"
He nodded. After all, he had stayed in Martial King Manor before and never ventured outside. How could he have seen such a magnificent city?
The War Goddess nodded in understanding, then turned again to look at Shi Qingyun beside her.
"We'll rest there for the night and visit Martial King Manor tomorrow."
"Would you like to come with me? To see this so-called Double-Pupiled One?"
Shi Qingyun hurriedly shook his head in refusal. After all, he had only left that place a short while ago. Why would he walk right back in himself?
Before you continue