At that thought, the Jade-Eyed Golden-Pupiled Beast began to consider retreating. He dared not continue fighting Yun Ying, for he had a premonition that he would be the one to die.
The only question now was whether she would agree to let the matter rest. If she was determined to kill him, he would be in trouble.
"I concede!"
After weighing his options, the Jade-Eyed Golden-Pupiled Beast saw Yun Ying drawing ever closer and hurriedly lowered his head.
At his words, Yun Ying stopped in her tracks. A crystalline sword blossom spun beneath her feet, refracting the light.
"Not enough!"
Yun Ying merely parted her red lips, her clear voice ringing out. Holy radiance emanated from her, lending her beauty an otherworldly air.
"I know I was at fault for offending you. As an apology, I am willing to offer you a piece of azure water divine gold. Will you let the matter rest at that?"
The Jade-Eyed Golden-Pupiled Beast was not surprised by Yun Ying's answer. He gritted his teeth, a flicker of pained reluctance crossing his eyes.
Then a speck of emerald divine radiance floated out of his body. It was a blue-green piece of metal the size of a human head, shining with a captivating brilliance like rippling jade-green waters.
This piece of azure water divine gold was the greatest treasure he had amassed over several hundred years. Even if one searched the entire Hundred Broken Mountains, it would be difficult to find another piece this large.
Now, to save his life, the Jade-Eyed Golden-Pupiled Beast had no choice but to offer it up, though his heart bled.
At the sight of the head-sized piece of azure water divine gold, a faint gleam rose in Yun Ying's eyes. It was indeed a good match for her Purple Bamboo Sword.
The Purple Bamboo Sword was wood-aligned, while azure water divine gold was water-aligned. If they were fused together, they could complement and strengthen each other.
"Very well."
For the sake of the azure water divine gold, Yun Ying finally nodded.
Seeing her nod, the Jade-Eyed Golden-Pupiled Beast at last breathed a sigh of relief. He had feared she would say, "Once I kill you, the azure water divine gold will be mine anyway." If that happened, he would have regretted his decision to death.
"Please accept it. I have other matters to attend to, so I shall take my leave."
Still uneasy about Yun Ying, the Jade-Eyed Golden-Pupiled Beast tossed the azure water divine gold toward her, then turned and fled. Even missing a leg did nothing to hamper his speed.
As the azure water divine gold fell, Yun Ying drew it into her palm.
She could clearly sense the aura of water contained within it.
"Now that the Hundred Broken Mountains have become one, that Sacred Medicine should reveal itself."
Yun Ying put away the azure water divine gold and looked toward the center of the Hundred Broken Mountains. According to those who had come before, a Sacred Medicine grew there, guarded by powerful vicious beasts.
Then Yun Ying left and headed toward the center of the Hundred Broken Mountains.
By now, countless vicious beasts within the Hundred Broken Mountains had gathered into a beast tide, surging in every direction and attacking all the outsiders. Many had already perished.
These vicious beasts obeyed powerful beast kings-not Inscription Realm beast kings like the Jade-Eyed Golden-Pupiled Beast, but those at the Array Formation Realm.
Once the seals were lifted, these supreme beast kings hidden within the Forbidden Land had all emerged. They were terrifying beyond measure.
Before long, Yun Ying concealed her aura, avoided the beast tide, and arrived in the Central Region of the Hundred Broken Mountains.
"Ying, I'm over here!"
The moment Yun Ying arrived, she sensed Yun Xi's aura, and the two met up.
"Hmm? Yun Xi, why are you missing an earring?"
Yun Ying noticed it as soon as they met.
"I don't know either. It might have fallen off during a battle without me noticing. Anyway, never mind that. Those monkeys really are guarding several stalks of quasi-sacred medicine."
Yun Xi answered somewhat awkwardly, then pointed toward the dense forest ahead, where spiritual energy curled through the air.
Naturally, Yun Ying noticed her discomfort. Besides, that was no ordinary earring, but a Heart-Link Pendant, a powerful treasure artifact. How could it possibly fall off so easily?
Still, since Yun Xi did not want to talk about it, she did not ask. She had a pair of Heart-Link Pendants herself, but she did not wear them. She was not particularly fond of earrings, so she had put them away.
Seeing that Yun Ying did not press her, Yun Xi breathed a quiet sigh of relief. She had truly feared Yun Ying would keep asking; then she would have found it impossible to explain.
That damned little thief!
Yun Xi cursed inwardly. She had never met anyone so utterly shameless. She must have suffered eight lifetimes of rotten luck to have run into him.
Soon, she steadied her emotions and explained the situation here to Yun Ying.
"So forcing our way in to seize the quasi-sacred medicine is out of the question."
Yun Ying looked toward the dense forest. A sharp light appeared in her jewel-like eyes, piercing the void and penetrating the trees to reveal what lay within.
There was a small, limpid lake, crystalline and clear, with spiritual energy rising from it like mist. Its waters consisted entirely of spiritual liquid condensed from spiritual energy.
Many spirit herbs also grew along the shore. That was hardly surprising; the spiritual energy was so dense that it had turned to liquid, making it easy to nourish spirit herbs, to say nothing of the quasi-sacred medicine growing there.
As for those stalks of quasi-sacred medicine, there were four, to be precise. They stood half a person tall and shone silver all over, with silver peaches hanging from their branches as though carved from fine jade.
Thousands of golden monkeys surrounded the lake, all exceptionally powerful. Besides the Divine Monkey King at the Array Formation Realm, there were also quite a few Inscription Realm leaders under his command.
Such a powerful troop of monkeys occupied this treasure ground with virtually no rivals.
"Yes, but besides us, quite a few beast kings have their eyes on this place too. If they can keep the Divine Monkey King occupied, we'll have a chance."
Yun Xi began to analyze the situation.
"Indeed. The biggest problem is the Divine Monkey King."
Yun Ying nodded. The light in her eyes grew ever more brilliant, and faint, illusory runes began to appear, so pale they were barely visible.
Suddenly, Yun Ying withdrew her gaze and looked to the left, fixing her eyes on a patch of empty space nearby. Though she could see nothing, she sensed that something was there.
"What is it? Is there something over there?"
Yun Xi saw Yun Ying staring in that direction, but when she looked over, she saw nothing.
"Nothing. It must be my imagination. I felt as though someone was watching us."
Yun Ying looked away and shook her head.
"It must be your imagination. If anyone were there, they shouldn't be able to hide from us."
Yun Xi spoke as well.
After that, they paid the matter no further attention.
A Divine Carpet floated in the void, carrying many figures. Humans and primordial remnants were gathered together, making for a very strange sight.
"That was close! We were almost discovered!"
A large red bird patted his chest, utterly astonished.
Everyone reacted the same way. They were standing on Void Beast Hide, concealed within the void without giving off the slightest fluctuation. In theory, there should have been no way to detect them from so far away.
Yet Yun Ying had sensed that someone was watching her. It was terrifying-her spiritual perception was far too keen.
Before you continue