Chapter 1005: Dispute

When Li Luo led his group over, the taut, drawn-bow atmosphere in the field was instantly broken, and both sides cast their gazes his way.

"Li Luo, you're back? Are you alright?"

Li Li Fuling, standing behind Li Li Lingjing, was the first to ask, and at the same time said with some dissatisfaction: "How could you just leave without waiting for us? This place is fraught with danger, with all sorts of factions and loose cultivators around. Do you think that just because you've broken through to the three-star Tian Zhu Jing you can roam about as you please?"

At the same time she glanced at Li Li Lingjing, who hadn't spoken, and muttered: "If you hadn't come back soon, I felt like your Cousin Li Lingjing might have started a killing spree."

As she said this, a trace of lingering fear also surfaced in Li Li Fuling's eyes, because earlier, when Li Li Lingjing had heard that Li Li Wuyuan had actually allowed Li Luo to leave alone, she had immediately fought him fiercely, and those vicious moves had made everyone break out in a cold sweat.

They had no doubt that if Li Li Lingjing had really found an opening, she might have killed Li Li Wuyuan regardless of the consequences.

Li Li Lingjing's fair and beautiful cheeks were quite calm. She looked at Li Luo and said: "You're back."

The faint cold murderous intent that had been radiating from her eyes quietly dissipated at this moment.

Li Luo said apologetically: "Sorry for making you worry. I received a distress call from an old friend earlier, and time was pressing. I couldn't wait for you to come out, so I went on ahead."

Li Li Lingjing nodded slightly: "It's fine as long as you're alright."

But while she was saying it was fine, Li Li Wuyuan on the opposite side had an extremely gloomy expression. He raged: "Li Li Lingjing, are you insane?! You want to kill me?!"

Li Li Wuyuan raised his palm, only to see that it was pitch-black. The flesh and blood there seemed to have been corroded by poisonous Qi, and he was currently circulating his phase force to wear down the poison trying to invade his body.

He was both shocked and furious at this moment. In his brief clash with Li Li Lingjing earlier, he had actually been at a disadvantage the entire time. Li Li Lingjing's strength at the nine-star Tian Zhu Jing was terrifyingly formidable.

Li Li Lingjing glanced at him and said flatly: "Well, you're not dead, are you?"

Li Li Wuyuan raged: "Li Luo left on his own, why are you going crazy at me? I stayed behind to guard this place—wasn't that also to prevent other factions and loose cultivators from breaking into the treasure vault?"

"I think you were afraid I'd pocket the harvest from the treasure vault alone, which is why you stayed to keep an eye on me, right?" Li Li Lingjing said in a light tone.

"And even if you didn't follow Li Luo yourself, wouldn't it have been difficult to arrange for some high-star Tian Zhu Jing strong cultivators to follow him? But you did nothing, sat by and watched them leave alone. What schemes are you plotting in your heart? You think no one knows?"

Li Li Wuyuan faltered. He had indeed sat by and watched Li Luo leave without sending anyone to help, harboring some selfish motives. But there was no proof of such a thing, so he naturally could not admit it.

"That's just your one-sided story." Li Li Wuyuan said coldly.

"Alright, alright."

Li Luo waved his hand, stopping the argument between the two sides, and smiled: "Let's just let this matter drop for now."

"You say drop it and we drop it? She attacked a companion. Once we get back, I will definitely report this and have her punished." Li Li Wuyuan said coldly.

"If you don't want to let it go, then let's part ways here and each rely on our own abilities from now on." Li Luo didn't indulge him either, and said casually.

"Besides, Cousin Li Lingjing is a member of our Dragon Fang Lineage. It's not up to your Dragon Blood Lineage to punish her."

"You!" Li Li Wuyuan's face darkened with clear annoyance; by past convention, their Dragon Blood Lineage had always dominated the team, yet this time Li Luo and Li Li Lingjing had shattered his authority.

"Li Luo, if you really split the team, do you think you'll gain any advantage? You have a deep grudge with that Qin Yi. Do you think they'll let you off?" Li Li Hongli said coldly.

Li Luo smiled at her, then pointed at Lv Qing'er and the others beside him, and said: "Come, let me introduce everyone. This fairy whose looks are a level above yours is called Lv Qing'er, from the Golden Dragon Treasure House. She's also an old friend of mine. I went to help her earlier, so from now on, they'll be moving together with us."

Lv Qing'er shot Li Luo a look. This guy really didn't hold back when he was roasting people.

And although Li Li Hongli was so angered by Li Luo's words that her chest heaved, her eyes were fixed on Lv Qing'er with some uncertainty and suspicion. She's from the Golden Dragon Treasure House?

The gazes of Li Li Wuyuan, Li Li Qingfeng, and the other men suddenly shifted to the girl in the indigo-blue dress, who faintly exuded an air of nobility; the moment their eyes met hers, a flash of astonishment sparked within them.

For this girl perfectly embodied what it meant to possess skin like ice and bones like jade.

Her raven-black long hair cascaded like a waterfall to her slender waist. Outside her pair of long, straight legs, she wore spotless white silk stockings, yet even that eye-catching whiteness seemed one shade dimmer against her snow-white, crystalline skin.

The girl before them not only possessed exquisite features, but most importantly, her temperament was very unique—aloof like a snow lotus, giving one a sense that must not be profaned.

This woman's temperament was in no way inferior to that of the Water Fairy Qin Yi, whose beauty was renowned throughout Outer Shenzhou.

Such thoughts flashed through everyone's minds.

"This Miss is from the Golden Dragon Treasure House? The Outer Shenzhou headquarters?" Li Li Wuyuan was silent for a few breaths, then asked.

His gaze swept over Lv Qing'er and the others before pausing on Sister Jin beside her; the energy fluctuations radiating from the latter's body were in no way weaker than his own.

This Li Luo, was actually so familiar with people from the Golden Dragon Treasure House?

Meeting those gazes, Lv Qing'er smiled slightly and said: "I'm not from the Outer Shenzhou headquarters of the Golden Dragon Treasure House."

Li Li Hongli, who had long been feeling unhappy, immediately snorted upon hearing this and said with some disdain: "Then could it be that you're from some branch? Someone from a branch dares to represent the Golden Dragon Treasure House?"

Hearing this, Sister Jin beside her immediately said flatly: "Our Young Lady is indeed not from the Outer Shenzhou headquarters of the Golden Dragon Treasure House. She came from Golden Dragon Mountain. Surely that can represent the Golden Dragon Treasure House?"

"Golden Dragon Mountain?!"

At these words, everyone present—whether Li Li Wuyuan, Li Li Hongli, or Li Li Fuling—all changed expressions and cried out in surprise.

Clearly, they all knew what Golden Dragon Mountain represented: it was the central hub of the Golden Dragon Treasure House.

However, Golden Dragon Mountain was not in Outer Shenzhou, so even they rarely encountered people from Golden Dragon Mountain in the past.

This Lv Qing'er before them was actually a person from Golden Dragon Mountain?

"Your surname is Lv?" Li Li Wuyuan suddenly thought of something and asked in surprise.

He remembered that within Golden Dragon Mountain, the Lv Lineage was an upper lineage, possessing extremely high status.

Lv Qing'er extended her hand, which was wearing an ice-silkworm silk glove, and a golden token flashed out from her palm. A golden dragon coiled around the token, and at its center was a "Lv" character that emanated an inexplicable sense of pressure.

At this point, Li Li Wuyuan also fell somewhat silent. The girl before them had actually really come from Golden Dragon Mountain. That was indeed rare.

A faint smile surfaced on Lv Qing'er's exquisite, fair, pretty face, making her look bright and charming: "Li Luo is an old friend of mine. Our bond is deep enough to entrust our lives to each other. When I was in trouble, he would come to my rescue even if he was all alone. Now that he needs help, I will naturally also assist him without reservation."

Hearing her speak so bluntly, the gazes of everyone present became somewhat complicated. What exactly was the relationship between these two? And hadn't this Li Luo been in a remote corner like the Outer Shenzhou before? How could he possibly have gotten to know someone from Golden Dragon Mountain?

Moreover, with the support of Lv Qing'er and the others, the lineup on Li Luo's side had become somewhat formidable.

Even if the Qin Li Tianwang lineage and the Zhao Li Tianwang lineage really joined forces in the end, they now had the capital to contend with them.

If they found traces of the "Origin Mysterious Heart Fruit" in the "Spirit Phase Treasure Garden," then they would be quite competitive.

Thinking this, Li Li Wuyuan cleared his throat lightly, put on a smile, and said: "What Cousin Li Luo said earlier does have some merit. We did have some areas where we didn't handle things properly, so letting this drop is the wise move."

"The Spirit Phase Treasure Garden is the final leg of this expedition. Only by working together in unity can we be the ultimate winners."

The teams from the other lineages who heard this understood that Li Li Wuyuan had once again conceded defeat.

However, the authority and voice he had once undeniably possessed as the team's leader were, under these repeated concessions, beginning to vanish into thin air.