The Crystal Palace possessed the power to obstruct others' prying, but those inside could perceive everything beyond it.
With Qing Luan present, Kun Ao presumably wouldn't do anything to him. Yang Kai stepped out with confidence and asked with a frown, "Is something the matter?"
Kun Ao said, "Kid, let me ask you—how is the refinement of this Crystal Palace going?"
Yang Kai thought to himself that this guy was really nosy. The Crystal Palace was the Dragon Clan's Sacred Treasure—why was he asking about this? Could it be that he had designs on it?
He glanced at Qing Luan inquiringly. Qing Luan spoke up: "The sixteen Sacred Treasures have long since fused into one after countless ages. If even one cannot be removed, the others cannot be moved either. Now that every clan has refined their own Sacred Treasure, only the Dragon Clan's Crystal Palace remains."
Hearing this, Yang Kai immediately understood.
He answered honestly: "I can refine this Crystal Palace, but it will take a considerable amount of time."
"How long?" Kun Ao raised an eyebrow.
"Decades—possibly a century or more!" Yang Kai replied.
"That long!" Kun Ao frowned slightly. "But it doesn't really matter. Take your time refining it—we'll wait for you!"
Several decades or even a century were not short periods, but for Sacred Spirits with their vast lifespans, they were nothing. Let alone decades or centuries—even hundreds or thousands of years, Kun Ao could wait, as long as the Sacred Treasure could be reclaimed. What was such a span of time compared to that?
"I don't intend to spend that long on the refinement," Yang Kai shook his head.
Kun Ao narrowed his eyes. "What do you mean?"
Yang Kai said, "Coming to the Ancestral Land was an accident. I have urgent matters to attend to outside. I can't afford to stay here too long."
This trip had been far too long already. He wasn't too worried about Void Land—with the old patriarch Bixi and Zhu Jiuyin, two Sacred Spirits, holding the fort, as long as the great Grotto-heavens and Blessed Lands didn't make a move, no one in the Three Thousand Worlds could touch Void Land.
But the Star Realm's World Tree and the New Great Domain still needed his attention. Besides, his two disciples were still inside his Minor World and needed to be brought back to the Star Realm as soon as possible for their growth.
All these years, Yang Kai had been suppressing Zhao Ya's cultivation level, afraid she would advance too quickly.
The Star Realm was the best cradle for Heaven Opening Realm cultivators. Growing there rather than in his Minor World would naturally grant far greater future potential and allow one to walk further on the path.
The time flow in his Minor World was twice that of the outside. If he were delayed in the Ancestral Land for several decades or a century, Zhao Ya might have already advanced to the Emperor Sovereign realm by then. Even if he returned to the Star Realm, she wouldn't receive much nourishment from the World Tree.
Yang Kai had originally planned to rush back to the Star Realm as soon as matters in the Ancestral Land were settled.
"That is not up to you." Kun Ao laughed coldly. "Don't think that with the Phoenix Clan's protection, you can do as you please in the Ancestral Land. This matter concerns the Sacred Treasures of every clan—the Phoenix Clan cannot afford to show you favoritism."
Qing Luan frowned slightly, but what Kun Ao said was the truth. This did concern the interests of every clan. If the Phoenix Clan insisted on acting alone, it would only provoke collective outrage.
"Can the speed be increased?" Qing Luan asked.
Yang Kai said, "Refining the Crystal Palace has some relation to one's bloodline. My bloodline is still low, which is why while all you elders have fully refined your respective clan's Sacred Treasures, I remain unable to do so. The only way to speed things up is to first elevate my bloodline. If I can advance my bloodline to the Great Dragon sequence, I'm confident I can refine the Crystal Palace within half a year—but that is not something that can be achieved in a short time either."
Kun Ao said, "The Ancestral Spirit Power here is so rich that you could simply cultivate within the Crystal Palace and raise your bloodline! Know that this is something the younger generation of the Ancestral Land has always dreamed of but could never obtain."
Yang Kai rolled his eyes, too lazy to bother with him.
Qing Luan looked thoughtful. "There might be a way to rapidly advance your bloodline."
Yang Kai looked at her. "Senior means..."
Qing Luan suddenly turned to Kun Ao. "Your Kun Clan must have obtained quite a few Ancestral Spirit Fruits this time, didn't you?"
Kun Ao was stunned for a moment, then realized what she was implying and shook his head vigorously. "I don't know what you're talking about."
Qing Luan smiled. "Ancestral Spirit Fruits contain large amounts of pure Ancestral Spirit Power. If he consumed them, his bloodline could naturally be raised rapidly. In the past, we had only heard that the Ancestral Land once produced Ancestral Spirit Fruits but never seen them. This time, when the Demon Sealing Grounds opened, every clan should have obtained some to varying degrees. If each family contributed a few, it would be more than enough to meet his needs for advancing to the Great Dragon."
Kun Ao said angrily, "Qing Luan! Although the Dragon and Phoenix Clans have always walked the same path since ancient times, you're really going too far with this bias! This little dragon is a Sacred Spirit, but aren't the Sacred Spirits of our Ancestral Land also Sacred Spirits? Everyone worked hard to obtain some Ancestral Spirit Fruits—every clan's younger generation needs them! Why should we give them up for him?"
Yang Kai stroked his chin. "If there are enough Ancestral Spirit Fruits, I can give it a try!"
Kun Ao narrowed his eyes and stared at him. "Kid, don't push your luck. My desire to kill you is very strong!"
Yang Kai spread his hands. "Without Ancestral Spirit Fruits, I can't advance to the Great Dragon quickly. There's nothing I can do!"
"You really think I wouldn't dare kill you?" Kun Ao said coldly.
Yang Kai tilted his head up to the sky, his nostrils pointed at Kun Ao, and declared defiantly, "Kill me, and forget about ever obtaining the Sacred Treasures of every clan! Go ask the Sacred Spirits of each clan if they'd agree to that!"