Feeding Horses?

"Three hundred points to Entry!" Dongfang Yueming was slightly surprised when he saw the Entry requirements for the [Nine-Turn Qi Refining Method]! This was one hundred more points than the [Crimson Whirlwind Qi Entry Crimson Swirl Qi Refining Method]! Clearly, the quality of this technique was probably even higher than the [Crimson Swirl Qi Refining Method] given to him by the Jiao Clan!

"This girl Hong Ling... is indeed not simple!" Dongfang Yueming thought to himself, feeling a growing wariness and curiosity towards this seemingly innocent little girl.

With a greedy expression on his face, he said to Hong Ling, whose pretty face was flushed after reciting the incantation, "Miss Hong Ling, you're so generous, you must have quite a few good things on you, right? Why don't you... take them all out and let this young brother broaden my horizons?"

"Hey! You... you big bad guy!" Hong Ling blushed with embarrassment at Dongfang Yueming's bold and straightforward words. She stomped her little feet, glared at him reproachfully, and then ran away like a frightened little rabbit.

Just then, Hong Bai walked over, watched his granddaughter run off, shook his head helplessly, and smiled apologetically at Dongfang Yueming: "Dongfang, Ling'er is young and speaks without thinking. Please forgive her if she has offended you in any way."

Dongfang Yueming smiled and waved his hand, "Mr. Hong, you're too kind. Miss Hong Ling is innocent and naive; I can see that."

"Hehe, young friend, you have a generous spirit." Hong Bai smiled as well, then cupped his hands and said, "This old man has some matters to attend to, so I'll take my leave now."

"Take care, Mr. Hong." Dongfang Yueming nodded in acknowledgment.

After Hong Bai left, he quickly caught up with the sulking Hong Ling.

"Hmph! That Dongfang is definitely going to leave me behind and go find some other pretty older sister!" Hong Ling pouted and said unhappily.

Upon hearing this, Hong Bai couldn't help but chuckle, stroking his beard as he said, "Oh? Then why did you deliberately run away just now? Wasn't it to give that young friend some space to be alone, so he could focus on cultivating the techniques you taught him?"

"No... no way!" Hong Ling blushed and stubbornly retorted, but her shifty eyes betrayed her true thoughts.

On the other side, watching Hong Ling's retreating figure, Dongfang Yueming couldn't help but sigh, "Alas, the debts of gratitude I owe just keep piling up."

Just as he was preparing to find a place to seclude himself and improve his newly acquired cultivation technique, he suddenly caught a glimpse of a familiar figure out of the corner of his eye, lurking nearby and watching him furtively! It was Xi Zhenyue!

"This guy is like a persistent ghost." Dongfang Yueming sneered inwardly, but remained outwardly calm, pretending not to notice, and turned to walk out of the city.

Upon seeing this, Xi Zhenyue's eyes flashed with doubt. "This kid... did he discover me? Impossible! I'm at the Qi Refining Realm! How could he, a Blood Replacement Realm, sense my presence?"

He scoffed inwardly, "So what if they find out? The difference in strength is obvious! They can't possibly cause any trouble!"

Xi Zhenyue followed silently.

Meanwhile, in a hidden stronghold of the Cloud Water Dynasty.

The middle-aged man who had greeted Gao Long at the port earlier, Qi Refining Greater Success at the peak of his cultivation, was respectfully reporting to Gao Long, "Young Master Gao, all the Blood Replacement Realm martial artists 'invited' from the Great Xia Dynasty have been arranged, and are only waiting for..."

Gao Long waved his hand, interrupting him, and said in a flat tone, "Understood."

The middle-aged man hesitated for a moment, then added, "But... Xi Zhenyue, we don't know where he went, he didn't come with the others."

"Hmm." Gao Long remained calm and composed.

After the middle-aged man left, Gao Long's lips curled into a cold smile, a hint of mockery flashing in his eyes. "Xi Zhenyue... what a self-righteous fool! Did he think his little tricks could fool me?"

Meanwhile, Shi Tao led Gao Feng, Ye Yingying, and six others to a certain outer stronghold of the Cloud-Overturning Gate.

A haughty-looking deacon dressed in the robes of the Cloud-Overturning Gate greeted them.

"Sir, I have brought the person." Shi Tao's face was full of humble smiles.

The steward merely glanced at the group, nodded, and then pointed to a nearby animal pen that reeked of a strong, foul odor, saying indifferently, "From today onwards, you will be responsible for feeding these ' Crimson Flame Steed.' Clean the pens daily, remove their droppings, and feed them on time without fail!"

"What?! Hey... hey the horse?!"

"We are..."

Upon hearing this, everyone was shocked and their faces were filled with disbelief! They had traveled thousands of miles to the Central Continent to join the Cloud-Overturning Gate, only to become stable boys?!

Gao Feng was so angry that his face turned ashen. He had thought that joining the Cloud-Overturning Gate would allow him to rise to the top in one step, but he never expected to be treated like this! A strong sense of resentment welled up in his heart!

Ye Yingying's eyebrows were also furrowed, her beautiful eyes filled with disappointment and grievance.

Upon seeing this, the steward's face darkened, and a cold One Flash in his eyes. "What? You have a problem with this?" A pressure belonging to the Qi Refining Realm suddenly emanated from him!

The oppressive aura was so overwhelming that no one dared to voice their dissatisfaction. They all lowered their heads and remained silent.

Shi Tao quickly stepped forward to smooth things over. "Sir, please calm down! They are new here and don't know the rules. Please forgive them!"

The deacon snorted coldly before withdrawing his oppressive aura.

Just then, the sound of rapid hoofbeats rang out! A Bufan young man, riding a magnificent Crimson Flame Steed steed, arrived with lightning speed! It was none other than Xie Ning, the genius of the Cloud-Overturning Gate whom they had met on the street earlier!

"Hiss--! It's Crimson Flame Steed!"

"What a magnificent steed!"

Everyone Central Capital with envy when they saw the spirited Crimson Flame Steed.

Gao Feng stared wide-eyed, his resentment gradually replaced by a longing. If he could gain the attention of this genius senior, even if it was just feeding horses, perhaps he could have a chance to rise in the world!

"You lot, haven't you greeted Senior Brother Xie Ning yet?!" the steward shouted at the crowd.

"Greetings, Senior Brother Xie!" Everyone quickly bowed in greeting.

Xie Ning glanced at them casually, ignoring them, dismounted, tossed the reins to the steward, and said indifferently, "The horse feed must be the freshest alfalfa, and the water must have three drops of morning dew grass juice added. Don't get it wrong."

"Yes! Yes! Don't worry, Senior Brother!" The steward hurriedly nodded and bowed in agreement.

Xie Ning said no more and turned to walk deeper into the stronghold.

Only after Xie Ning had walked away did the crowd dare to raise their heads, their faces filled with shock and awe.

The steward looked at the crowd and sneered, "That's right, the mounts you're going to feed are those of a genius like Senior Brother Xie Ning! If anything goes wrong, hmph, you'll just have to wait and see!"

Upon hearing this, everyone was terrified and filled with regret! If only they had known...

But Gao Feng and Ye Yingying clenched their fists secretly, their resentment having already transformed into a morbid longing.

Regret? No! This is an opportunity!

Shi Tao then took the opportunity to invite the steward into the house.

"Hehe, Shi Tao, we owe you a lot this time." The steward patted Shi Tao on the shoulder, a smile on his face. "Feeding the horses is a tough and dangerous job, and those Crimson Flame Steed have quite a temper. Giving this task to these outsiders has saved us a lot of trouble."

"It is my honor to be able to share your burdens, Your Excellency," Shi Tao said humbly.

"Yes, I trust you to handle things." The steward nodded in satisfaction, took out a jade bottle from his robes, and handed it to Shi Tao. "This is ' Qi Refining Powder,' it should be of some help in breaking through your bottleneck and advancing to the Qi Refining Qi Refining."

Upon Shi Tao's eyes instantly blazed with intense fervor! He suppressed his excitement and, his hands trembling, accepted the bottle. "Thank you for your guidance, Steward!" he exclaimed, overjoyed. "Excellent! Wasn't this what I risked everything to win over these people for?!"

The deacon waved his hand and turned to leave.

After the steward left, Shi Tao carefully put the jade bottle away, a smug smile on his face.

Then, as if remembering something, a hint of regret flashed in his eyes. "What a pity... I couldn't bring that guy named Dongfang Ri along. That kid doesn't seem simple either. If only I could..."