Chapter 980: Don't Even Think About Hogging the Spoils!

The voice of the young man in the ornate robe, laced with anxiety, reached the blood mist the moment he disregarded his own safety and charged straight inside.

At the same time, the cultivator guards under his command also unleashed their respective combat powers.

These guards were personal bodyguards arranged for the young man by his family; their cultivation bases were impressive, and their numbers were many. As they struck with full force, the blood mist, though extraordinary, could not withstand it.

Thus, in the next instant, accompanied by a heaven-shaking roar, this patch of blood mist was struck as if by an invisible giant hand and shattered directly.

It split apart, and amidst the rumbling, it seemed to be swept away by a gale.

This revealed the three figures inside!

One was Yue Dong; at this moment, her expression was cold and contained a murderous aura, and she was currently forming seals to unleash the fluctuations of an immortal technique.

The other was a black-faced corpse puppet about seven or eight years old, positioned opposite Yue Dong in a pincer formation, coordinating the spellcasting to bind the Blood Dust Child in the middle.

A large number of seven-colored threads, formed from the immortal techniques of Yue Dong and the corpse puppet, had already shrouded the Blood Dust Child, with parts of them already connected to his fate.

Clearly, if things continued this way, it would not be long before the Blood Dust Child was refined by the immortal techniques.

The Blood Dust Child was struggling, but it had little effect.

However... the sudden, drastic change in the outside world and the roars coming from all directions caused the blood mist to collapse, which also affected the refinement taking place here.

The gale that rolled in was originally intended to disperse those fighting here; this was the young man in the ornate robe’s act of saving someone.

Yet now... through a twist of fate, it became a life-saving wind for the Blood Dust Child.

Consequently, in the blink of an eye, the Blood Dust Child’s struggles surged violently; he unleashed his entire cultivation base without regard for the cost, even going so far as to collapse two of his own great worlds to form a destructive force that swept toward his surroundings.

And the young man in the ornate robe, who was rushing over at high speed, let out an anxious cry that caused Erniu’s eyes to widen and his mind to shake; he seemed to lose his composure because of it, causing the immortal technique threads to ripple!

Thus, in the next instant, the corpse puppet coordinating with her was also affected by her, its corpse body shuddering, and the threads snapped.

This caused the struggle force formed by the collapse of the Blood Dust Child’s world to shift, instantly surging; he himself erupted with blood light all over his body, deploying a secret technique that caused significant damage to his own foundation, and transformed into a streak of blood light...

With a flash, he finally broke free.

He disappeared between Yue Dong and the corpse puppet, and when he reappeared, he was already in the distance.

The moment he manifested, he did not hesitate at all; the blood light flashed again, and he vanished abruptly toward the horizon, giving his all.

He had escaped with his life!

As for the seven-or-eight-year-old child corpse puppet that Xu Qing had transformed into in mid-air, it was expressionless, its body permeated with death energy, and its lifeless eyes stared at the direction in which the Blood Dust Child had fled, remaining motionless.

It did not pursue.

Because the puppet he had transformed into now only had a Return to Ruins cultivation base and possessed no intelligence of its own, so any out-of-character action would become a flaw.

Although the arrival of the young man in the ornate robe had unintentionally allowed his prey to escape, the trail had already been left.

So Xu Qing was not in a hurry; the prey could not escape.

But ultimately, the appearance of this incident had added some twists. Xu Qing could be indifferent, but Yue Dong, who was played by Erniu, could not afford to show no reaction.

So she turned her head abruptly and stared fixedly at the young man in the ornate robe.

"What is the meaning of this!"

This scene was indeed beyond the expectations of the young man in the ornate robe, who was eager to save someone. He gave a wry smile, knowing he had done a bad thing with good intentions, and hurriedly explained.

"Miss Dong'er, I heard on the way that you had returned, and I was worried about your safety, so I rushed over at the first opportunity. I didn't expect it to be like this... I..."

"Shut up!"

Yue Dong barked, her eyes unkind. The other party’s interference had already made Erniu unhappy, and that constant "Miss Dong'er" also made Erniu feel uncomfortable inside.

Especially since... in Yue Dong’s memories, although he knew there were suitors, they were very vague; clearly, Yue Dong had not cared about her suitors in the slightest.

So, regarding the person before him, Erniu could not recognize his identity for the moment.

And under the influence of these two emotions—annoyance and discomfort—his killing intent also rose. However... Erniu’s gaze swept over the guards around the man, and he ultimately withdrew his killing intent.

But thinking of Yue Dong’s usual coldness, Erniu snorted coldly.

"Don't let me see you again!"

As he spoke, Erniu raised his hand and grabbed toward Xu Qing, as if grasping invisible threads, and prepared to leave this place with the corpse puppet Xu Qing had transformed into.

The young man looked at Yue Dong cautiously, filled with anxiety and apprehension.

Seeing that Yue Dong was about to leave, he became anxious and hurriedly shouted.

"Miss Dong'er, I really didn't mean it. I... I was worried about your safety. In the five hundred-plus days you were gone, I thought of you every single moment."

Erniu felt even more disgusted and nauseated, and he increased his speed.

Xu Qing remained expressionless, but he kept a close eye on the young man in the ornate robe; truly... this kind of drama happening to his Senior Brother was very entertaining.

The young man in the ornate robe, now pale-faced and filled with endless regret, watched Yue Dong’s figure moving further and further away; he wore a bitter expression and muttered to himself.

"Dong'er, I really didn't mean it. For this meeting, I even carefully prepared gifts for you over these five hundred-plus days..."

Erniu, who was speeding away in the distance, suddenly paused.

And the young man in the ornate robe’s voice was still bitterly muttering.

"I know you wouldn't want them; the gifts I gave you in the past were all rejected by you. I..."

Before he could finish his words, Erniu suddenly turned around.

"What gifts?"

The young man in the ornate robe was stunned at first, then filled with ecstasy, and hurriedly spoke.

"It is Star Dragon Marrow. I heard from the Lan family earlier that your cultivation of immortal techniques caused damage to yourself, so I specifically begged the ancestor for this marrow for you..."

As he spoke, the young man in the ornate robe immediately took out a jade bottle from his storage bag.

In the next instant, Erniu’s figure disappeared from the distance and reappeared right in front of the young man in the ornate robe. He snatched the jade bottle, opened it to sniff, tucked it into his robes, and said indifferently.

"I accept your gift, but your previous behavior is still something that makes it impossible to..."

The young man in the ornate robe was excited. He had pursued Yue Dong for many years, and this was the first time she had accepted his gift, so his heart was boiling; he felt this was a signal.

A signal that Dong'er had been moved by him!

"Must strike while the iron is hot!"

So, while Erniu was still speaking, he quickly took out a bracelet.

"Dong'er, this is also a gift I prepared for you, crafted from Star Crystals."

Erniu’s unfinished words stopped instantly.

Looking at the shining bracelet, he blinked, snatched it, tucked it into his robes, and then coughed.

"Fine, fine, your sincerity..."

"Miss Dong'er, I have more gifts. This hairpin is naturally formed from top-grade immortal jade..."

The young man in the ornate robe became increasingly excited, continuously taking out one gift after another. As Erniu collected them, his eyes grew brighter and brighter. In the end... amidst the young man’s adoring gaze, he proposed the idea of providing an escort.

Erniu hesitated for a moment, and the young man in the ornate robe took out another gift.

Looking at the gift, Erniu took a deep breath; he could no longer say the words of refusal and could only nod with a smile.

This smile made the young man in the ornate robe’s heart soar.

Xu Qing, standing to the side, saw it all, and on the journey that followed, he paid full attention, continuing to watch the show.

Along the way, the young man in the ornate robe talked about the things that had happened in the Holy Land during the five hundred-plus days since Yue Dong left; one could say every word was incredibly gentle, every form of address contained deep affection, accompanied by one gift after another...

Erniu clearly had never had such an experience in this life, nor in his many past lives, to the point that by the end, his expression even showed some bewilderment.

And through this young man in the ornate robe, Xu Qing also gained a deeper understanding of the latest developments in the Demon Feather Holy Land.

Especially... when the other party mentioned the disciple of the Underworld Flame Great Emperor, Lu Lingzi, as well as the Lan family.

Upon hearing these things, Erniu also took note and asked about them.

Faced with Erniu’s inquiry, the young man in the ornate robe spoke in even greater detail.

Lu Lingzi had returned a month ago!

"Regarding the matter between Lu Lingzi and the Lan family, what I saw before was only the surface, so Miss Dong'er, please don't blame me for not telling you before."

"It was only recently, after my status in the family improved, that I heard the ancestor discussing it and realized... the conflict between the Lan family and Lu Lingzi was something the high-level figures of all parties in the Holy Land knew the reason for."

"But they did not intervene. Whether the Lan family ultimately won or Lu Lingzi did, it didn't matter to any of the parties; they only needed to support the final victor."

"A month ago, Lu Lingzi returned with a Sovereign cultivation base and informed all parties that the Lan family intended to act against him, and that he had played along to borrow their power to break through to Sovereign, subsequently killing the Lan family ancestor in return."

"There are suspicious points to this matter, but the focus of all parties is no longer there, because after returning, Lu Lingzi did two things. The first was to publicly announce that he had obtained the pure bloodline of the Lan family and had integrated that bloodline into his Demon Eye."

"It can be said that the current Lu Lingzi can already be regarded as the true successor of the Underworld Flame Great Emperor!"

"And because he has ascended to Sovereign, he is now at the height of his power!"

"The second thing Lu Lingzi did was to inform all parties that in three months, he would go to the place where the Underworld Flame Great Emperor went into seclusion to undergo the final inheritance."

"At the same time, Lu Lingzi proposed that he would take all fellow Sovereign disciples, as well as five geniuses from the clans, to go together, regardless of faction, to share in this good fortune!"

"This approach won the praise of all parties in the Holy Land, and even the Demon Feather Great Emperor permitted it."

"After all, the place where the Underworld Flame Great Emperor went into seclusion is sealed, and opening it requires a specific method. Currently, the only one who can open the Underworld Flame Great Emperor’s seclusion place is Lu Lingzi, who has integrated the Lan family bloodline and is nearly a true successor, and he also needs the assistance of the Great Emperor’s other disciples."

"Thus, one can imagine that in the next three months, there will surely be undercurrents in the Holy Land, with all parties vying for these five spots."

"But Dong'er, you are still the smart one. I suppose that although you have a good relationship with the Lan family, you did not participate in the matters between the Lan family and Lu Lingzi, so after Lu Lingzi returned, he did not mention you at all."

The young man in the ornate robe spoke gently.

Upon hearing this, Erniu’s mind was shaken, and his gaze swept imperceptibly toward Xu Qing beside him.

Xu Qing’s expression remained as usual, but there were ripples in his heart.

They knew the truth.

So listening to this matter now... no matter how they heard it, it seemed suspicious.

But with an outsider present, Xu Qing and Erniu did not communicate.

Just like that, under the young man in the ornate robe’s continuous syrupy words, time passed, and three days went by.

Xu Qing and Erniu, under the escort of the other party, finally arrived at a city; this was the destination they had previously decided upon.

Upon arriving here, the young man in the ornate robe appeared reluctant to leave, but as his jade slip vibrated continuously, he finally bid farewell helplessly, needing to head to the battlefield.

Before leaving, he affectionately gifted Chen Erniu some more presents.

As Chen Erniu kept taking them, his expression also grew complex.

Until the young man in the ornate robe had departed, looking back every three steps, Xu Qing glanced at the Senior Brother beside him and spoke indifferently.

"Senior Brother has quite the romantic luck."

Chen Erniu’s expression was strange; after a long while, he sighed.

"Damn it, in my next life, I’m going to be reincarnated as a woman! The gifts I’ve been given along the way make me feel like we wouldn't even be at a loss if we left the Holy Land right now..."

Seeing his Senior Brother so wistful, Xu Qing did not continue to tease him, but instead brought up the matter regarding Lu Ling.

Upon hearing this, Chen Erniu narrowed his eyes.

"I feel there is something wrong with that Lu Ling’s identity; could it be that I guessed right back then!"

Saying this, Chen Erniu looked toward Xu Qing.

Xu Qing was silent, also pondering this matter.

After a while, Chen Erniu coughed.

"Regardless, don't even think about hogging the benefits! Three months from now, we must find a way to sneak in."

"As for now, I plan to head to the Immortal Art Hall of East Demon Feather to help Yue Dong fulfill her dream. Little Ah Qing, do you want to come with me?"

Xu Qing shook his head and looked into the distance.

"I won't go to the Immortal Art Hall; I am going to retrieve my identity."

At the same time, within East Demon Feather, not far from the Dao Platform of the Great Emperor Mingyan, stood a massive peak that shook the heavens and the earth.

This peak had not existed a month ago.

It had only risen up recently.

It was precisely the tenth Sovereign Mountain, constructed by Lu Ling after his return, owing to his Sovereign cultivation base.

At this moment, inside the grand hall at the summit, Lu Ling, dressed in a golden robe, was sitting in meditation with his eyes closed.

His breathing echoed like heavenly thunder, shaking the grand hall and reverberating through the mountain, forming a terrifying pressure.

Then, in the next instant, his eyes suddenly opened, as if stars were blooming with brilliant light within them.

His brows furrowed slightly as he raised his hand to take out a jade slip.

Sensing the news transmitted within the jade slip regarding Yue Dong’s appearance, Lu Ling’s brows furrowed even tighter.

"I already sent her so far away, yet she still managed to run here!"