Chapter 961: The Empress

For the Ancient Spirit Emperor, although he still felt hungry often these years, his appetite had unknowingly become somewhat picky.

In the past, whenever he saw any divinity, his eyes would bulge; the hunger of his mind was enough to drown out everything, and he would swallow it in one gulp without hesitation or pickiness.

Regardless of whether others thought it tasted good or not, he felt it was supreme deliciousness.

Thus, his manner of eating was very unsightly.

But now... he actually looked down on this puppet from the bottom of his heart.

After all, his last meal had been the flesh and blood of the Red Mother.

Compared to the flesh and blood of the Red Mother, this puppet was no different from a mosquito's morsel.

Therefore, regarding Xu Qing, the Ancient Spirit Emperor’s inner feelings were very complex; while his mouth cursed for him not to come again, his heart was also inwardly roaring for him to get out, get out, get out.

Yet, if Xu Qing really stopped coming, he would actually be somewhat reluctant.

These complex thoughts made the Ancient Spirit Emperor even more annoyed; as he spoke, the entire Ancient Spirit Realm rumbled, and under his control, a massive vortex appeared out of thin air above the three of them, emitting a tremendous suction force that stirred the world.

Regarding this guest-treatment that felt like being driven away, Old Nine did not take it to heart; holding the thirteen strands of Imperial Qi, he walked toward the vortex without a word.

Erniu was likewise indifferent to this situation of being repelled; he was already used to it... at this moment, he licked his lips, a ghostly gleam flashing in his eyes, and flew into the vortex.

As for Xu Qing, he was naturally polite, so before leaving, he first bowed to the Ancient Spirit Emperor.

"Then, this junior will not disturb Your Majesty’s seclusion. I wish Your Majesty a smooth path and an early exit from seclusion."

Regardless of how much sincerity this statement contained, hearing Xu Qing say it now, the Ancient Spirit Emperor, though annoyed, had to admit that Xu Qing had been very courteous to him from beginning to end.

Compared to that reckless brute Old Nine who drew his sword the moment they met, and that idiot with a sneaky face who made one worry about their wallet the moment they looked at him.

This respect from Xu Qing was very apparent.

"Your Majesty, the previous token has lost its effect, and this junior may encounter better offerings later; if, because of the token, I am unable to send them back in time..."

Xu Qing looked at the Ancient Spirit Emperor; he did not want to give up this useful combat power so easily.

The Ancient Spirit Emperor was silent, and after a long while, he let out a cold snort; instantly, the suction of the vortex above Xu Qing surged, and the repulsive force from this realm intensified.

Seeing this, though Xu Qing felt regretful in his heart, he did not force the issue and his body flickered, heading straight for the vortex.

And just as his figure submerged into the vortex and was about to vanish, a token came from the void and flew into the vortex; in the next instant, the vortex rumbled and disappeared from the Ancient Spirit Realm.

The entire Ancient Spirit Realm suddenly became peaceful.

The Ancient Spirit Emperor had ultimately sent out the token.

The giant eye slowly closed.

However, he did not notice that within this Ancient Spirit Realm, in the mud of the earth, among countless skeletons, there was a small skeleton whose eyes revealed a fleeting blue gleam.

Inside the bones of this skeleton, a blue worm was hidden.

The worm radiated a wordless power of concealment, masking all of its aura.

This was naturally something left behind by Erniu.

In the days to come, this small skeleton would search bit by bit within this world of death, probing little by little, to find the treasure that the main body had smelled...

Time passed, and half a day later, outside the Wood Spirit tribe’s territory, above the firmament.

Old Nine had departed, taking Linger with him.

After fully integrating the thirteen strands of Imperial Qi into Linger’s body, the curse in Linger’s bloodline was finally completely suppressed, and it would not cause any problems in the short term.

Her cultivation base also improved smoothly, beginning the transition toward the Spirit Treasury realm.

Due to the unique constitution of the Ancient Spirit tribe, there was no bottleneck in cultivation improvement at this stage, but it required deep sleep.

The current Wanggu was filled with the smoke of war; by comparison, the Sacrifice Moon Great Domain was safer.

After all, most of the powerful clans in Wanggu knew that Li Zihua was about to return, and even the Holy Lands had not descended upon the Sacrifice Moon Great Domain.

Therefore, letting Linger return to the Sacrifice Moon Great Domain for seclusion was naturally the best choice.

Originally, Xu Qing was also considering whether to return to the Sacrifice Moon Great Domain.

But an Imperial Edict from the Human Race Imperial Capital changed Xu Qing’s thoughts.

"Summon Crown Prince’s Tutor Xu Qing to return to the Human Race Imperial Capital; mobilize the Fenghai County army to come in three batches, one after another."

Whether out of his past in the human race, or the Empress’s actions after he went missing, in the face of the current descent of the Holy Lands and the frequent small-scale battles erupting in the eastern Yuanyue and the Human Race Imperial Capital domain.

Xu Qing had no reason to refuse the summons.

Thus, after watching Old Nine’s figure gradually fade into the distance, Xu Qing looked at his Senior Brother beside him.

Erniu did not care about Old Nine’s departure, nor did he care about the Empress’s edict; at this moment, his entire attention was on the worm he had left in the Ancient Spirit Realm.

A moment later, Erniu’s eyes lit up.

"I can sense it, haha."

Erniu was excited.

With just one glance, Xu Qing knew that his Senior Brother must have made arrangements in the Ancient Spirit Emperor’s world, so he offered a reminder.

"Senior Brother, I have been to the Ancient Spirit Emperor’s world of death many times."

Erniu looked at Xu Qing.

"I didn't have much of a feeling before, but this time... perhaps it is the difference in cultivation, or perhaps it is the difference in this physical body of mine, but I felt something strange."

Xu Qing pondered for a moment and spoke in a low voice.

"It seems that the Ancient Spirit Realm I went to this time... was not the same place as the ones I went to before!"

"Even recalling the previous few times, it seems that every time, it was like this."

"I suspect that there might not be only one Ancient Spirit Realm!"

"That giant snake might not be the only one either."

"Also, within the thick fog of the Spirit Abyss, my spiritual sense detected a trace of an ancient aura and a gaze, carrying deep malice."

Xu Qing rarely spoke so much; he was truly worried that his Senior Brother’s madness would lead to errors without clear intelligence.

In that case, it wouldn't be madness, but courting death.

Hearing this, Erniu became thoughtful.

"That does make logical sense; if I were the Ancient Spirit Emperor, I wouldn't have just one world either, but would definitely prepare many, mixing truth and falsehood within them."

"Good, the worm I left there will be even more careful and cautious."

"However, little Ah Qing, there is definitely treasure there; although I don't know exactly what it is, I feel... that treasure will definitely be of great use to you and me!"

"I must explore it properly..."

Erniu instinctively licked his lips.

Xu Qing nodded; he knew that although his Senior Brother was crazy, he was not stupid, so he said no more and turned his gaze toward the direction of Fenghai County.

Traveling to the Human Race Imperial Capital, relying on the speed of the pagoda was naturally not as fast as teleportation; after all, the journey spanned multiple great domains.

Additionally, before heading to the Human Race Imperial Capital, Xu Qing still had one matter to handle in Fenghai County.

Thus, he did not linger at the Wood Spirit tribe, and after bidding them farewell, he boarded the Holy Heaven Pagoda and headed straight for Fenghai County.

Xu Qing’s return was a top-tier event for Fenghai County, so the meetings and greetings among old acquaintances were naturally numerous.

Such as Marquis Yao, such as Qing Qin, such as the old acquaintances of the Sword-Holding Palace, and Yao Yunhui...

Furthermore, opening the cross-domain teleportation array required time for preparation and checking details; after all, for Fenghai County, no accidents could be allowed during Xu Qing’s teleportation.

Therefore, he and Erniu needed to stay in Fenghai County for one night.

That night, during the first half, representatives from various factions in Fenghai County reported to Xu Qing; in the second half, as the others left, Xu Qing also departed from the County Governor’s Mansion.

He appeared at the former Criminal Prison Department.

Walking here, Xu Qing felt as if he were walking through time; scenes of his past as a jailer here surfaced before his eyes, and the figure that appeared most often within them was the old Palace Master Kong Liangxiu.

Finally, as he walked along, Xu Qing reached the lowest level of the Criminal Prison Department, which was the site of the former palace of the Ancient Emperor Xuanyou, and also the place where that Fish-Bone God had resided before its fall.

This place was now completely under the control of Fenghai County, and some areas had been renovated, such as the palaces on the periphery.

Some areas had been explored, such as the hall containing immortal arts; the immortal arts within were now an important foundation for Fenghai County.

And some areas had been designated as forbidden, such as the Phoenix Bird Hall.

Xu Qing’s destination was precisely this hall.

He walked step by step to the front of the Phoenix Bird Hall, looking up at this once-mysterious place.

Years ago, he had lost a portion of his memory here.

Later, he finally learned that this hall was where the daughter of the Ancient Emperor Xuanyou had fallen, and it was also where the Purple Profound Upper Green Lamp was stored.

It was even... the place where Zixuan was currently receiving her inheritance.

Standing outside the hall, the first thing Xu Qing sensed was the aura of the Vajra Sect Ancestor.

Almost instantly, the iron spike where the Vajra Sect Ancestor resided flew out from the bricks and tiles of the hall, transformed into the figure of You Lingzi, and knelt directly before Xu Qing.

"Greetings, Master!"

The Vajra Sect Ancestor looked excited.

The shadow beneath Xu Qing also rippled, manifesting eyes to scrutinize this current nemesis of his own.

"How is Zixuan?"

Xu Qing asked calmly.

"Replying to Master, after the Mistress entered the hall, she has not come out; during this time, this servant has guarded this place and has not allowed anyone to approach."

"Additionally, the Mistress said before entering the hall that if you, Master, were to come here, do not force your way into this hall; give her some time, and no matter what difficulties arise, she can resolve them herself. Once successful, she will come to find you."

The Vajra Sect Ancestor spoke hurriedly.

Hearing this, Xu Qing’s gaze fell upon the hall; his spiritual sense could not penetrate inside, and he could only slightly sense that the fluctuations within were in a stable state.

Thus, he withdrew his spiritual sense, sat silently outside the hall, closed his eyes, and meditated in a cross-legged position.

The night passed.

Throughout this night, the Vajra Sect Ancestor was solemn and the little shadow was vigilant; both of them were deep in thought, contemplating various future methods to target one another.

However, their occasional gazes at each other revealed different expressions; Little Shadow was full of hostility, while the Jin Gang Sect ancestor smiled.

Until the sky over Fenghai County saw the night dissolve and the first rays of the sun rise, Xu Qing opened his eyes; after looking at the Phoenix Bird Main Hall one last time, he turned and left this place.

Half an hour later, under the respectful send-off of representatives from all sides of Fenghai County, the Fenghai County formation roared into operation, and the figures of Xu Qing and Chen Erniu blurred within the formation.

Until they vanished.