As Tie Ming spoke, he tossed over a black ring, its face engraved with a tiny, ferocious Iron Household Beast-Head Totem.
Qing Chen reacted with extraordinary speed, catching it precisely without so much as looking and slipping it straight into his robes;
at the same time, he dropped to one knee, his armor plates clanging. "Thank you for your generous gift, Young Master!"
Tie Ming seemed to raise an eyebrow. A faintly teasing voice emerged from beneath his faceplate. "Oh? You won't see what's inside? Aren't you afraid I've casually fobbed you off with a few spirit stones?"
Qing Chen lowered his head slightly, his voice calm yet carrying just the right measure of deference:
"Anything bestowed by you must be extraordinary, Young Master. Once I return, I will naturally sort it carefully and store it properly. At this moment, seeing you off takes precedence over all else."
"Ha ha ha!"
In a rare display, Tie Ming actually laughed aloud, though his laughter sounded somewhat muffled and distorted through his faceplate:
"Qing Chen, oh, Qing Chen, you certainly have a way with words. That mouth of yours is even more formidable than your Blood Path demonic cultivation art.
All right, get up. Enough idle talk. Put down roots in Qiongzhou and turn the place upside down! Come back to see me alive!"
"Farewell, Young Master! May your Nascent Soul formation go smoothly!" Qing Chen cupped his fists once more, his voice decisive enough to cleave nails and sever iron.
Tie Ming said nothing more and turned to stride away;
surrounded by a squad of personal guards, he boarded a high-grade Giant Whale Treasure Ship, far larger than the one Qing Chen had received and radiating astonishing spiritual pressure.
Runes lit up along its hull as it slowly rose into the