Upon hearing this, Chen Qingyu took a deep breath.
Ling Shuangxue, who was standing to the side, turned her head, glanced at him, and whispered:
take it easy.
She's our maternal grandmother; she won't do anything to you.
The Blood Exchange Ritual was something that had been planned long ago; this was just a formality.
Chen Qingyu nodded silently:
I see.
Ling Shuangxue had actually misunderstood.
Given Chen Qingyu's status and position, why would he be nervous about about to meet a lord of a holy land?
He was slightly apprehensive because he was about to meet his grandmother, whom he had never met before, and did not know her true attitude towards his family.
Your Cold Mountain Hall, Young Master Chen.
On the steps in front of the palace gate, a female official of the Spirit Race in green robes waved to the two of them.
Please.
Ling Shuangxue and Chen Qingyu immediately stepped forward side by side, following the female official of the Spirit Race, climbing the steps, crossing the palace gate, and entering the main hall.
Looking around:
The front hall of the Azure God Hall is magnificent and grand, with pillars on both sides carved with all kinds of plants and spirits, and the floor is paved with blue-gold tiles.
Deep within the main hall, atop ninety-nine steps...
A graceful and beautiful young woman, wearing a green vine crown and an elegant yet magnificent palace dress, sat regally on a blue-gold throne.
Behind her was a wondrous sight of thousands of branches extending and hundreds of flowers blooming, as if she were surrounded by a sea of grass and flowers.
The supreme ruler of the Spirit Race and the master of nature is called the Spirit King!
King Ling, my grandmother
Chen Qingyu's mind stirred slightly.
Beside the Spirit King, on a slightly lower level of the palace steps, sat an old woman wearing a blue robe, with long blue-white hair, her expression dignified and imposing.
This old woman must be the Great Elder of the Spirit Race.
A hint of disgust flashed in Chen Qingyu's eyes.
These past few days, he has been chatting with his mother and has learned a lot of details about what happened back then.
Simply put:
Within the Spirit Clan Royal Court, there have always been two factions: one relatively moderate, and the other relatively radical.
The moderate faction believes that the Human Race is too powerful, and that the Spirit Race is already doing well enough to thrive in the Forest of Eternal Night and maintain the Ancestral Tree's legacy. They argue that the spirit race should not rashly advance, but instead should befriend the Human Race.
The radicals, on the other hand, believed that if the Spirit Race continued to remain stagnant, it would eventually be wiped out or driven out of the Desolate Continent by the increasingly powerful Human Race.
They believed that the Spirit Race should leave the Forest of Eternal Night, strengthen ties with other alien races, seek alliances, and strive for greater territory and more resources in order to grow stronger and establish themselves on the Desolate Continent.
Behind that incident back then, the main force was the radical faction within the Spirit Clan Royal Court. The moderate faction, pressured by the combined efforts of other alien holy lands, had no choice but to cooperate with their actions, which led to the tragedy in the Divine Capital.
At this moment, the Spirit Race's Grand Elder before him was the leader of the radical faction;
As for his maternal grandmother, the nominal leader of the Spirit Race, she has always maintained neutrality and has never expressed any preference for any faction.
Ling Shuangxue greets His Majesty and the Grand Elder.
Ling Shuangxue knelt on the ground, her expression respectful, her head bowed deeply in deep reverence.
Chen Qingyu frowned slightly, bowed slightly, and spoke in a manner that was neither humble nor arrogant:
Chen Qingyu has met His Majesty King Ling.
Ling Shuangxue, who was standing to the side, was suddenly startled, and a trace of panic and unease appeared on her face.
Chen Qingyu's performance clearly caught her somewhat off guard.
She quietly tugged at the hem of Chen Qingyu's white robe, signaling him to kneel down and respectfully kowtow.
Chen Qingyu, however, remained expressionless, standing upright with his back straight.
snort!
Upon seeing this, the Grand Elder of the Spirit Race on the palace steps snorted coldly:
Young man of the Chen Family, did your elders not teach you manners?
Chen Qingyu glanced at her, expressionless and silent.
you!
Upon seeing this, the Grand Elder of the Spirit Race couldn't help but feel a surge of anger in his eyes.
Chen Qingyu stared intently at her, his mind focused on the jade thumb ring on his right thumb.
If that old hag were to make a move against him:
Needless to say, that old hag is definitely not going to make it today.
alright.
At this moment, the Spirit King on the throne finally spoke slowly, his voice as Qinggu as a nightingale's song:
It's normal that Chen Qingyu, being of Human Race origin, is unfamiliar with the etiquette of my Spirit Race.
Elder, you are a highly respected senior, so there's no need for you to argue with a junior.
The First Elder snorted, but due to the presence of the Spirit King, he couldn't retaliate. He merely glanced coldly at Chen Qingyu, his eyes filled with disgust.
Shuangxue, Chen Qingyu.
The Spirit King raised his hand in a gesture:
Bring out your Bloodline Covenant.
Upon hearing this, Chen Qingyu reached out and flipped through the paper, taking out a pale gold letter.
Ling Shuangxue, who was standing to the side, also stood up from the ground, reached into her sleeve, and took out the same pale gold letter.
The Spirit King reached out and summoned two Bloodline Covenant, which immediately flew out, merged in mid-air, and burst forth with brilliant golden light, illuminating the entire hall.
Amidst the golden light:
Faintly visible are a cluster of lights resembling twinkling stars, and another cluster of emerald green light brimming with boundless vitality.
That golden light, enveloping two beams of light, fell into the Spirit King's hand.
After the brilliance faded:
A golden jade disc appeared in her palm, shimmering with faint starlight and blue light.
This is the array plate used to initiate the Blood Exchange Ritual.
The Spirit King spoke slowly, his voice clear and melodious:
The ritual formations for the Blood Exchange Ritual have been prepared by our Spirit Race for decades, and we have been waiting for the right opportunity to arrive.
Now, the time has finally come.
As she spoke, she looked down at Chen Qingyu and Ling Shuangxue, and said calmly:
Preparations for the Blood Exchange Ritual will begin immediately and can be completed in just seven days.
At noon seven days from now, the two of you will officially undergo the Blood Exchange Ritual!
Chen Qingyu nodded slightly.
The Blood Exchange Ritual, though it sounds simple, is actually a very complex and intricate large-scale ritual formation.
The fact that preparations could be completed in just seven days is already the result of decades of preparation by the Spirit Race, so the speed is quite fast.
Ling Shuangxue bowed respectfully and said in a low voice:
Many thanks to His Majesty the King for his grace.
The Spirit King waved his sleeve and said calmly:
Go down.
Ling Shuangxue respectfully responded:
Your Majesty, we shall take our leave.
After saying that, she took Chen Qingyu's hand and turned to leave the front hall of the Azure God Hall.
After they left:
As the Spirit King watched their figures disappear, a complex expression finally appeared in his eyes, and he sighed softly in his heart.
Is Your Majesty the King reluctant to part with it?
The elder standing to the side suddenly said with a half-smile:
After all, they are your grandchildren, connected to you by blood, yet soon they will become strangers.
The Spirit King, without glancing to the side, said calmly:
This was decided by all the major holy sites sixty years ago, so why would I, the king, be reluctant to part with it?
The elder gave a dry laugh:
That was just me being nosy.
You provided the starting sign-in rewards for the legendary Zhuang Shisan, featuring Chen Qingyu from the Thirty-Six Heavenly Gang Transformations Zhuang Shisan.