"We had an agreement long ago — I helped you once, and after that, all ties between us would be severed. Now you bring this up out of the blue. Are you trying to blackmail me?" the blue-robed woman asked in a dark tone.
"Blackmail is rather harsh language. Would I ever resort to such base tactics against Sister Lan? I came here mainly to give you a warning. Bao has returned to the Holy Realm, and she fought a fierce battle against Tianqi and Heyan — both of those old fogies," Liu Ji said mildly.
"Bao has returned? Is this true? She fought Tianqi and Heyan? Does that mean she's recovered her former cultivation?" The woman manifested by the Blue Falls Holy Ancestor was clearly terrified of Bao. Upon hearing this, her face went pale in an instant.
"Whether she has truly recovered her cultivation, I cannot say for certain. But upon her return to the Holy Realm, she not only openly met with Yuan Yan in the Demonic Origin Sea, but she also gravely wounded both Tianqi and Heyan's physical bodies during their battle, after which she vanished without a trace. However, I subsequently sent someone to personally question Tianqi and Heyan, and it appears that Bao used the Provenance Tree to successfully cultivate what legend calls the Provenance True Spirit Domain," the young woman replied after a brief pause, her expression grave.
"The Provenance True Spirit Domain! Isn't that a supreme divine ability that only true immortals from the Upper Realm could possess? How could Bao possibly have cultivated it!" the blue-robed woman blurted out.
"As for that… when Bao and I were on good terms, I did hear her discuss it once. According to what she told me, she had obtained an incomplete manual on cultivating the Provenance True Spirit Domain — likely something that had occasionally trickled down from the Upper Realm in ancient times. She mentioned at the time that she had some insights into the technique, and that with the power of the Provenance Tree, she might achieve something. But I never imagined that what she meant by 'something' was actually completing the Provenance True Spirit Domain in its entirety. Though according to Tianqi and Heyan's descriptions, it was only at the lowest tier, it was still a genuine Spirit Domain — no mistake about it." Liu Ji sighed, her tone growing extraordinarily solemn.
"Something isn't right. If she had truly recovered her Magical Power and cultivated the Provenance True Spirit Domain, why would she hide? Given her temperament and her current abilities, she should have marched straight to your cultivation abode in broad daylight and reclaimed the position of Holy Ancestor — that would be the natural course of action. She must have only recovered a portion of her cultivation, and she was also gravely wounded in her battle against Tianqi and Heyan. Otherwise, things wouldn't be this way!" The Blue Falls Holy Ancestor appeared to know Bao quite well as well. Her expression shifted between dark and light for a moment before she spoke with certainty.
"Heh heh, Sister, you think the same as I do — our thoughts coincide precisely. Which is exactly why we should seize this opportunity to find her quickly and eliminate her for good. Otherwise, once Bao truly recovers her cultivation, you won't be able to stay out of it either. As for the 'good fortune' I mentioned, it's no idle talk. If we can kill Bao, more than half of her treasures will belong to me. I only want the Provenance Tree and that manual on cultivating the Provenance True Spirit Domain. From what I know, Bao carries quite a few treasures that are tremendously helpful for weathering tribulation. If you were to obtain them, you would have absolutely no problem surviving the next several great heavenly tribulations." Liu Ji finally, slowly revealed the true purpose of her visit.
"Hmph. You'd be so generous? If Bao hasn't recovered her cultivation, why bother dragging me into this? With your several avatars striking simultaneously, wouldn't it be easy enough to surround and kill Bao on your own?" the blue-robed woman snorted coldly, apparently unmoved.
"If I could really handle this matter myself, I wouldn't have come to seek your help. You should know that our three True Ancestors' main bodies are currently tied up dealing with the Devil Tribulation and have no way to spare any attention. Although I have six avatars, one of them was recently destroyed by Bao's own hand. A new avatar is currently in seclusion and won't be usable for at least another hundred years or so. Two others are commanding the armies in the Human Realm and cannot be dispatched either. Of the remaining three, one is my hidden reserve — it will never appear before anyone under any circumstances. I also need one to guard my cultivation abode, which leaves the last one to come here and ask for your help. Moreover, the intelligence I've gathered suggests that Bao's last known trail points to somewhere near Blue Falls Lake. And among the major powers in the surrounding regions, whose influence can compare to yours? As long as you're willing to mobilize your subordinates, finding Bao should only be a matter of time." Liu Ji explained.
"Since you truly can't divide your attention because of the tribulation, I really can't very well stand by and do nothing, considering that point alone. As long as Bao is truly hiding somewhere in the nearby region, I naturally have ways to root her out. However, besides the conditions we already discussed, I must also be allowed to make a copy of that secret technique for refining a Provenance True Spirit Domain." The blue-robed woman's thoughts raced back and forth for a moment before she finally gritted her teeth, unable to resist Liu Ji's promise of permanently eliminating the threat along with the numerous other benefits.
"Deal, no problem. I agree to everything as you've proposed." Liu Ji was overjoyed at this and agreed without the slightest hesitation.
"Then it's settled. I'll return immediately and summon my major avatars while mobilizing all my forces. By the way, there's something strange about what happened here — could it possibly be connected to Bao somehow?" The Blue Falls Holy Ancestor nodded, then suddenly swept her gaze across the chaotic ground below, asking in a seemingly casual tone.
"I don't think so. Although you and I arrived after the fighting here had already ended, judging from the residual aura and the mine shaft below, it seems some sort of demonic beast emerged from underground and fought someone. What's strange, though, is that based on the fluctuations I sensed earlier, both combatants should have been at the Body Integration stage at most, and their cultivation levels shouldn't have been far apart. So how was this beast killed so quickly? You arrived before I did — did you notice anything?" The young woman's eyes flashed as she spoke, her slender hand casually reaching out and grasping at empty air.
With a sharp whoosh!
A fragment of a Magnetic Light Beast crystal shard shot out of the earth below, drawn into the woman's palm, and she swept her spiritual sense over it in a cursory, indifferent manner.
"When I arrived, that person was already gone. Perhaps some powerful late-stage Body Integration cultivator happened to pass through here and dispatched the beast on a whim. It just so happens that this is Blood Tooth Rice harvest season, and it wouldn't be unusual for some formidable Demon Sovereigns to visit Blue Falls City." After a brief moment of thought, the woman offered this reply.
"That may well be. Speaking of Blood Tooth Rice — while you officially place strict limits on its supply to ordinary demons, you secretly instruct your people to sell large quantities to other factions in exchange for astronomical amounts of other resources. That strategy of yours is truly brilliant." The young woman giggled.
"What choice do I have? On one hand, the production of Blood Tooth Rice is genuinely limited, and it's impossible to satisfy everyone's needs. On the other, I don't want to offend the major powers too heavily, so this is the only way to barely maintain stability around Blue Falls Lake." The blue-robed woman listened with an expression of complete indifference.
"Your approach truly is the wisest course of action, Sister. Otherwise, if you only released the meager amount of Blood Tooth Rice that's openly available, the other Sovereigns might not say anything outright, but their resentment toward you would only deepen with each passing day. Now that you have a way to quietly acquire a certain quantity through back channels, there naturally won't be too much ill will. By the way, I happen to have two disciples under my command who also need some Blood Tooth Rice to strengthen their physical bodies. Why not sell me a batch as well, Sister?" The young woman's eyes flickered slightly as she spoke with a light laugh.
"Since you've asked, I'll simply gift you some." The blue-robed woman waved her hand and spoke with extraordinary generosity.
"Then this little sister thanks you, Sister. Let's split up and act now. This time, I also brought along a capable group of subordinates — they're waiting in the nearby area for my orders." Upon hearing this, Liu Ji's avatar lit up with delight and hastily spoke.
"Very well. Then I'll return to Blue Falls City first." The blue-robed woman showed no objection and remarked lightly.
With that, a flash of light enveloped her body as she transformed into a sphere of blue light and soared off through the sky.
In but a few moments, the young woman was left standing alone.
This avatar of Liu Ji watched the blue sphere of light finally flash and disappear completely beyond the horizon. The smile that had been on her face moments ago vanished, replaced by a completely blank expression. Her gaze coldly swept over the crystal chip in her hand, and her brow furrowed slightly — she seemed to have discerned something, yet appeared unable to make a firm decision.
However, after only a few breaths' time, this avatar of Liu Ji suddenly let out a cold laugh. With a rub of her hands together, she reduced the crystal chip in her palm to fine powder, and murmured to herself: "The Yin-Yang Great Five Elements True Light has actually appeared in the world. If I didn't have more important matters to attend to, the person who obtained this True Light would absolutely not be allowed to leave so easily. As things stand, the fewer complications, the better."
The moment her words fell, the woman stamped her foot, and a roll of golden radiance surged beneath her. With a flash, she was back aboard the golden ship.
But after only a moment, countless runes surged out from the surface of the treasure. After a slight tremble, the golden ship transformed into a golden rainbow and shot off in a different direction.
At the same time, Han Li was already well on his way back to Blue Waterfall City, idly turning the first green stone he had obtained over in one hand, a faint smile gracing his features.
As a precaution, however, he had not taken the original route back. Instead, he had deliberately taken a wide detour, planning to return to the city from a different direction entirely.
After toying with the stone for a short while, Han Li flicked his wrist, and a flash of spiritual light flickered through his hand. The green stone vanished.
In its place, a black-and-white mottled ore appeared in his palm — Exotic Demon Gold.
Upon seeing this item, the smile on his face grew a shade wider.
This Exotic Demon Gold had been mined by the green ape puppet at the subsidiary mine. Not only was the quantity no less than what he had taken from Wu You's group, but the special variant of Exotic Demon Gold containing crystalline beads accounted for nearly half of the total.
After Han Li carefully inspected every last piece of Exotic Demon Gold with his spiritual sense, the excitement in his heart could easily be imagined.
With such a large quantity of special Exotic Demon Gold, as long as the Earth Fiend Yin energy contained within could be refined away, it would be more than enough to push his cultivation abruptly to the threshold of the peak late-stage Integration realm, saving him over a thousand years — or even more — of bitter cultivation!
(End of Chapter)