Chapter 163: Visit and Response

After cultivating the Demon Ape Transformation, Qin Ming's physical recovery ability was once again enhanced.

The internal and external injuries from the previous great battle had mostly healed, and he was once again full of vigor.

From this, it was evident that achieving the second transformation of the Qi and Blood True Gang brought many benefits, making him increasingly anticipate what the third transformation would be like.

Perhaps even a Jin Dan old ancestor could no longer stop him? Next, Qin Ming cast a spell to clean up the traces on the back mountain of Wangyue Island.

He remembered that the Wu family members were still hiding on the island.

Qin Ming immediately sent a message to Wu Jiang, asking him to come over, as there were still some matters he needed to explain to him.

A moment later.

Wu Jiang approached Qin Ming with trepidation, cautiously looking him up and down several times; seeing that he appeared perfectly normal, he let out a long sigh of relief and said, "Fellow Daoist Qin, it is wonderful that you are unharmed!"

"The commotion just now was truly terrifying!"

To be honest, when Wu Jiang had just heard the mountain collapses and tsunamis, the beast roars and dragon chants coming from the direction of Wangyue Island's back mountain, feeling the earth-shaking battle, his heart had truly suffered greatly.

He had almost thought Wangyue Island was going to sink. At the same time, seeing Qin Ming now, Wu Jiang felt an inexplicable, unnamed palpitation, yet he could not say exactly what was different.

"Mm, just a minor incident occurred; I have already settled it," Qin Ming said in a flat tone.

Then, with eyes sharp as torches fixed on Wu Jiang, he instructed seriously, "Fellow Daoist Wu, regarding what happened today, I hope you keep it buried deep in your stomach; otherwise, it will easily bring disaster upon you and your clan. Do you understand?"

Hearing this, Wu Jiang was instantly drenched in cold sweat; he hurriedly nodded like a chick pecking at rice, replying, "Fellow Daoist Qin, rest assured, I swear by my heart demon! I will absolutely not speak recklessly, and upon returning, I will make my clansmen forget today's events."

"Cough! Mm, that is very good." Qin Ming patted Wu Jiang's shoulder with profound meaning, startling the other man into a shiver.

"Actually, it is not as serious as you imagine; it is just that people may come to investigate near the Lingdao recently, so it is better to avoid unnecessary trouble."

Qin Ming had actually roughly guessed that this Heavy-Eyed Demon Ape would not have come to this Far North region for no reason and fled blindly into Wangyue Island.

Clearly, it had been chased here.

And within the entire Spirit Perch Archipelago, the only ones capable of threatening a heavily injured Demon Ape were, without needing much thought, the Lei Yuanzong.

Seeing that Qin Ming had no intention of revealing more details, Wu Jiang wisely took his leave.

After admonishing Wu Jiang, Qin Ming gazed deeply at the ten thousand acres of blue waves of Wangyue Lake.

'Although I no longer fear outstanding figures of the Immortal Realm like Wei Wuya, it is still best to avoid making enemies of them.'

'Otherwise, like Zhao Wuji, constantly plotting against me every few days and disturbing my farming would not be acceptable.'

Three days later, just as Qin Ming had expected.

People from the Lei Yuanzong indeed came knocking.

The huge Dharma Ship that Qin Ming had encountered before, with a hull hundreds of zhang long that blocked out the sun and sky, appeared above Wangyue Lake.

On the top deck of the Dharma Ship, Wei Wuya, wearing a high crown and possessing a jade-like face, gazed deeply at the pink misty illusion realm ahead and could not help but furrow his brows.

"Reporting to Eldest Senior Brother, the Spirit-Chasing Disk also shows traces of that Demon Ape's activity in this nearby area," a disciple of the Lei Yuanzong beside Wei Wuya reported respectfully.

"However..."

"After the Demon Ape arrived here, its aura disappeared completely."

"Could it have turned around and run to some other place?" that disciple asked cautiously, glancing at the misty illusion realm that even a Jin Dan old ancestor could not enter.

Wei Wuya pondered for a long time before speaking concisely, "Since we are already here, let us pay a visit to the famous Island Lord of Wangyue while we are at it."

"Uh, yes!" The Lei Yuanzong disciple was momentarily stunned, then hurriedly nodded in agreement.

Subsequently, he took out a message talisman and threw it into the mist.

Inside Wangyue Island.

"They have come after all!" Qin Ming's powerful divine sense had long detected the Lei Yuanzong's Dharma Ship.

Below the Lingdao, Wu Jiang rushed hurriedly to Qin Ming, handed him a message talisman, and said in an urgent tone, "F-Fellow Daoist Qin, Wei Wuya of the Lei Yuanzong has come to visit."

For the past few days, Wu Jiang had not slept a single peaceful night, his mind always uneasy.

Now, even Wei Wuya, known as the 'First Sword of the Wei State,' had come. Qin Ming took the message talisman, opened it, and nodded.

"Mm, I am already aware; there is no major issue. I will handle this matter myself; you need not worry."

"Go attend to your own affairs."

Hearing this, Wu Jiang felt somewhat doubtful and disbelieving, thinking, 'Even such a prominent figure of the Wei State has come, yet he claims nothing is wrong; that is too fake!'

However, he only complained silently in his heart, never daring to show it before Qin Ming.

Subsequently, Wu Jiang bid farewell to Qin Ming and returned below the island to tend to the spirit fields.

Qin Ming immediately cast a spell, manipulating the misty illusion realm to open a passage.

The two injured spirit pets were also stored by him into the spirit beast bag.

On board the Lei Yuanzong's Dharma Ship.

Watching this strange scene before his eyes, Wei Wuya could not help but praise, "Truly an excellent method."

Then, he casually gave an order to the Lei Yuanzong disciples behind him before flying into the passage. During his flight, he attempted to release his divine sense to penetrate the mist, but was surprised to find his divine sense vanished as if a drop of ox urine had entered a sea of clouds, frightening him into immediately withdrawing it.

In just a few breaths, Wei Wuya passed through the misty illusion realm, transforming into a streak of white light as he appeared on Wangyue Island.

He was slightly shaken by the island's scenery, which resembled a paradise secluded from the world.

On Wangyue Island, houses were neatly arranged, towers stood in rows, tea gardens and bamboo forests were lush and green, spirit springs and waterfalls shimmered among the mountains, and a hazy thin mist permeated the air, dreamlike and illusory, just like an immortal realm standing alone apart from the world.

"Senior Wei has come, yet I failed to welcome you from afar!"

At this moment, the figure of a young cultivator appeared in Wei Wuya's line of sight; it was Qin Ming.

Qin Ming had now concealed his cultivation aura to the early Foundation Establishment stage; since Wei Wuya was at the perfect Foundation Establishment stage, three small realms higher than him, according to the strict hierarchical rules of the Immortal Realm, he still had to address him as 'Senior.'

Wei Wuya's gaze fell upon Qin Ming; after glancing him over, a smile appeared on his face, and with a kind attitude, he cupped his fists to greet Qin Ming, saying, "You must be the famous Island Lord Qin?"

"Fellow Daoist Qin need not be restrained; I merely passed by Wangyue Lake. Having long admired Fellow Daoist Qin's great name but never having had the chance to meet, I took the opportunity to visit. If there is any abruptness, I hope Fellow Daoist Qin will not take offense."

"Given Fellow Daoist Qin's current status, simply calling me 'Fellow Daoist' is sufficient."

"Very well, Fellow Daoist Wei." Qin Ming smiled slightly, then warmly welcomed him into the guest reception tower.

Though both were at the early stage of Foundation Establishment, the attitude Wei Wuya had shown toward the bearded burly man Qin Ming had once transformed into was worlds apart from his current attitude toward Qin Ming himself.

The reason lay in Qin Ming's status as a second-tier upper-grade spiritual plant master, a reputation that had already spread far and wide, granting him immense prestige in Yunze Xiancheng and the Immortal Realm of the spiritual energy Archipelago.

Even though he now revealed only the cultivation level of early Foundation Establishment, no one dared to underestimate him.

After inviting Wei Wuya to take a seat, Qin Ming brought out a jar of Spirit Fire Wine, poured a bowl directly for him, and said with a smile, "Fellow Daoist Wei, this is Spirit Fire Wine brewed exclusively by me; it has a unique flavor. Do taste it."

Without needing any introduction from Qin Ming, the moment the seal was opened, Wei Wuya was already completely captivated by the intoxicating, mellow fragrance of the Spirit Fire Wine.

"Oh! Is that so? I never expected to have the fortune of tasting Fellow Daoist Qin's exclusive spiritual wine. In that case, I shall not stand on ceremony." Wei Wuya possessed an arrogance and carefree demeanor unique to sword cultivators; he immediately lifted the large sea-bowl, tilted his head back, and drained the entire bowl of spiritual wine in one gulp.

As the Spirit Fire Wine went down his throat, a warm current flowed through his entire body; Wei Wuya's sword-like eyebrows danced with spirit, and he immediately exclaimed in praise, "Excellent wine!"

"This wine can actually increase the cultivation of a Foundation Establishment practitioner; the ingredients must not have been cheap, I imagine? In terms of both taste and efficacy, it truly qualifies as a superior grade among wines. It seems I came to the right place today, hehe!"

Wei Wuya was also a connoisseur who understood the precious nature of the Spirit Fire Wine.

"To gain the approval of Fellow Daoist Wei, it seems I did not brew this wine in vain," Qin Ming laughed, then proceeded to pour him another cup.

Afterwards, the two sat in the elegant room, chatting casually about this and that until they became more familiar with each other.

After three rounds of drinks, Wei Wuya had nearly exhausted all trivial topics.

Suddenly shifting the subject, he turned the conversation to the matter of the Double-Pupiled Demon Ape: "Hehe, Fellow Daoist Qin, to be honest with you, my coincidental arrival here today is due to a certain matter."

"I wish to presumptuously ask Fellow Daoist Qin a few questions."

"Fellow Daoist Wei, please feel free to ask; Qin Mou will certainly share everything he knows without reservation," Qin Ming replied, his expression unchanged and his tone extremely calm upon hearing this.

Qin Ming naturally knew Wei Wuya's purpose for coming; he understood that unless he dispelled the other party's doubts, Wei Wuya would never give up.

Therefore, he had long since erased all traces related to the Double-Pupiled Demon Ape and used the mist from the Fog Illusion Mushrooms to completely cover the tracks in the rear mountain.

Let alone Wei Wuya; even if a Jin Dan old ancestor came, they would absolutely detect nothing unusual.

"It is like this: I have been tracking that demon ape that stirred up bloodshed across the spiritual energy Archipelago, and some time ago, I finally managed to discover its tracks with great difficulty."

"After a period of pursuit, I found that the spiritual mark left on its body disappeared near Moon Gazing Lake."

"Therefore... I wished to ask Fellow Daoist Qin."

Wei Wuya asked bluntly.

Feigning an expression of lingering fear, Qin Ming immediately replied, "So it was for this vicious creature that Fellow Daoist Wei came?"

"Alas! Speaking of this demon ape, it is truly terrifying. It did indeed come near Moon Gazing Lake, but fortunately, there was this fog illusion realm; otherwise, Fellow Daoist Wei would likely not be seeing Qin Mou today."

"It must have fled in another direction; as for the specifics... Qin Mou did not dare to go out and investigate."

In any case, the fact that only he knew about the Double-Pupiled Demon Ape's ability to break illusions meant that Qin Ming could tell this lie extremely smoothly, without his face flushing or his heart skipping a beat.

While Qin Ming was speaking, Wei Wuya's gaze was fixed tightly on his expression, yet he discovered nothing abnormal.

Furthermore, upon entering the island, he had already released his divine sense to carefully search the entire island, and indeed, he could not sense even a trace of the demon ape's aura.

Even the Spirit-Chasing Disk on his person showed no reaction whatsoever.

Then he thought about it and realized it made sense; if that demon ape had entered this place, given its violent and fierce nature, he estimated no one on the island would have survived.

Even if Wei Wuya himself were to face the Double-Pupiled Demon Ape at its peak, the situation would likely reverse, with the demon ape hunting him down instead.

Thinking of this, a smile immediately appeared on Wei Wuya's face; he cupped his fists and said, "Thank you, Fellow Daoist Qin, for the information. Wei Mou still has matters to attend to, so I shall not disturb Fellow Daoist Qin any longer."

"Hehe, by the way, Fellow Daoist Qin, the taste of this Spirit Fire Wine is truly endless in its aftertaste; besides the Dao of the Sword, this is the only thing Wei Mou is interested in throughout his life."

"If Fellow Daoist Qin has any extra Spirit Fire Wine, I wonder if you could part with a jar and sell it to me?"

"Wei Mou can exchange spiritual stones or other items for it."

Upon hearing this, Qin Ming was momentarily stunned, not expecting Wei Wuya to be such a lover of wine.

Moreover, upon hearing the request made by the other party, the corner of his mouth could not help but reveal a hint of a smile.

(End of Chapter)