Chapter 1155: Mutual Gifts

Hearing Jiang Jiang Qinge's sudden question, Li Luo glanced at the figures ahead, then said in a low voice, "You mean Cousin Li Lingjing?"

"Another cousin?"

Jiang Jiang Qinge shot Li Luo a look. She really wanted to interrogate him properly — after not seeing him for a while, just how many good sisters has he picked up now?

Li Luo laughed and said, "Do you remember Aunt Li Ruyun, who came to Daxia to bring me back to the Dragon Fang Lineage? Cousin Li Lingjing is her biological niece."

Jiang Jiang Qinge gave a slight nod, hesitating for a moment.

Li Luo understood at once: "You ran into Cousin Li Lingjing earlier? No conflict, I hope? If she hadn't helped me draw out the 'True Demon Embryo' from my left arm earlier, I probably wouldn't have been able to recover normally."

He raised his left arm. By now, the grotesque 'Ghost Arm' had completely returned to normal, and the malevolent energy that had been constantly eroding his body had been sucked clean — all thanks to Li Li Lingjing's efforts.

Jiang Jiang Qinge said calmly, "I'm not that unreasonable. Although she's brimming with overwhelming malevolent power, since she helped you, naturally I wouldn't make things difficult for her."

Li Luo gave a bitter smile and sighed, saying, "Cousin Li Lingjing is also a person of bitter fate. Reaching this point, she had no choice either."

Jiang Jiang Qinge reminded him, "She's now one of the Return Society. If she keeps going like this, sooner or later she'll end up on the opposite side from you."

Li Luo was silent for a moment, then said, "We can only deal with it when the time comes."

The topic was a bit heavy, so Li Luo could only skip over it. Then he looked at Jiang Jiang Qinge with concern and asked, "Has the problem with your Light Heart Sacrifice been resolved?"

Jiang Jiang Qinge said softly, "Don't worry, it's mostly healed."

"Really? If you're hiding something from me, I'll be angry." Li Luo frowned.

Seeing Li Luo's serious expression, Jiang Jiang Qinge could only say, "There's still a lingering aftereffect. It might affect my attempt to break through to the Marquis Realm. I'll need some extremely special and rare heavenly treasures — resources that aren't easy to come by."

Li Luo nodded at that. With a sweep of his hand over his spatial orb, the next instant a crystal bead about the size of a thumb appeared in his palm. A layer of seal covered the crystal bead, and within it, a sacred lotus slowly bloomed.

Li Luo pressed it into Jiang Jiang Qinge's hand, saying casually, "This is called the 'Nine-Stripe Sacred Heart Lotus.' It's a top-tier heavenly treasure that can repair all aftereffects and mend the foundation."

"Nine-Stripe Sacred Heart Lotus? You actually got it."

Jiang Jiang Qinge was slightly moved. When they had parted before, Li Luo had said he was going to seek this item from the Li Li Tianwang Lineage. At the time, she hadn't felt much about it, but as she gathered more information at the Holy Light Ancient Academy, she came to understand just how precious it truly was. Even for Some High Ranks and Marquis-level strong, the Nine-Stripe Sacred Heart Lotus held tremendous allure.

Precisely because she knew how rare it was, Jiang Jiang Qinge felt shaken at this moment. She hadn't expected Li Luo to actually obtain it.

"This is too precious. You — you must have gone through a lot of trouble, right?" Warmth welled up in Jiang Jiang Qinge's heart, and her gaze at Li Luo carried a touch of tenderness.

"Back then, to protect me, you were even willing to sacrifice your Light Heart. Naturally, I have to spare no effort to find the best medicine for you." Li Luo met Jiang Jiang Qinge's gaze, his eyes full of heartache. The moment Jiang Jiang Qinge had sacrificed her Light Heart, his heart had been filled with pain and fury at his own helplessness.

The corners of Jiang Jiang Qinge's lips lifted slightly. After seeing Li Luo, she could feel her usually calm heart lake rippling again and again. This emotion slightly affected her sword-drawing, but she didn't reject it in the slightest.

"There's also this."

Li Luo hurriedly took out the 'Sacred Thorn' he had obtained earlier, showing off: "This is most suited to the light aspect. Later I'll forge a 'Sacred Thorn Crown' — I think it'll suit you best."

Jiang Jiang Qinge's eyes shimmered. She directly took the 'Sacred Thorn,' placed it into her spatial orb, and nodded with a smile: "I like it very much."

In the Holy Light Ancient Academy, countless people had wanted to give her all manner of rare treasures, but she refused them all. Yet when it came to what Li Luo gave her, no matter how precious or rare, she could accept it with complete peace of mind, without the slightest hesitation or inner conflict.

Because the relationship between them had long since transcended what any worldly possession could affect.

"Reciprocity — this is a meeting gift for you."

Jiang Jiang Qinge laughed lightly and took out an item, with golden light flowing across its surface — it was precisely the 'Coiling Dragon Golden Bone Pill' she had contested with Wu Changkong earlier.

Li Luo took it happily, not because of how precious it was, but simply because it was a gift from Jiang Jiang Qinge.

"This thing is far less valuable than what you gave me. Don't feel like you got the short end of the stick." Jiang Jiang Qinge teased.

Li Luo licked his lips and said, "Sister Jiang Qinge, you're being far too modest. Your 'meeting gift' — I've already eaten it just now. That's a gift no precious heavenly treasure could ever match."

Jiang Jiang Qinge, seeing Li Luo's gaze fixed on her lips, understood exactly what he meant. Her complexion immediately flushed an almost imperceptible shade of red, then quickly returned to normal.

After more than a year apart, Li Luo had matured quite a bit, and his boldness seemed to have grown as well.

The two of them lingered at the very back of the main group. Though they spoke in low voices, the intimate atmosphere between them couldn't be concealed at all, causing the people ahead to glance back repeatedly.

Feng Lingyuan, Li Hongyou, and the others were all secretly astonished. The bond between that dual nine-grade Holy Light Goddess and Li Luo was truly profound.

Yin Yue Zhiyu, on the other hand, kept muttering something.

Wei Chonglou's face was ashen, his eyes full of jealous fire, his fists creaking as he clenched them.

Wu Changkong stared straight ahead, his figure darting forward, but the occasional twitch at the corner of his eye made it clear his heart was anything but calm.

Meanwhile, somewhere in this Palace of All Beings.

The great hall was filled with a gray-black mist, and within the mist were figures bearing coffins on their backs.

At that moment, faint footsteps came from deep within the mist. The next instant, the figure of Li Li Lingjing emerged — her figure graceful, a Green Snake Staff in hand.

At this point, the bluish-black horn on her forehead remained, lending her whole being an eerie, demonic aura. Meanwhile, the cold energy radiating from within her had grown even more vast and powerful.

A faint, oppressive pressure enveloped the great hall, causing those Black Coffin People to lower their heads slightly, reverence gleaming in their eyes.

Li Li Lingjing's cold, ghostly gaze swept across these Black Coffin People as she stepped forward, walking out one step at a time.

The faint sound of footsteps echoed in the silent great hall. To these Black Coffin People, the footsteps felt as though they were being stamped directly onto their hearts, creating an overwhelming sense of pressure.

Finally, Li Li Lingjing's footsteps stopped in front of one of the Black Coffin People.

That Black Coffin Person's body trembled slightly, his head bowing even lower.

Li Li Lingjing tilted her head slightly, her gaze indifferent as she stared at him — no, to be precise, at the coffin strapped to the Black Coffin Person's back. Then a voice laced with faint mockery rang out in the great hall: "You think this little trick can save you?"

"Lord Green Snake?" That Black Coffin Person, faced with Li Li Lingjing's words, felt both terror and confusion.

Li Li Lingjing, however, couldn't be bothered to explain. The Green Snake Staff in her hand suddenly surged with surging energy and whistled out, slamming directly into that black coffin. Instantly, the black coffin was sent flying.

The black coffin tumbled through the air and crashed heavily to the ground.

The coffin lid shattered at this moment. The next instant, a puddle of scarlet flesh and blood actually came crawling out from within. The flesh tried to coalesce into a human form, but could never quite take shape.

However, on the flesh, a grotesque face was clearly visible.

It was actually that Blood Coffin Person from before!

He hadn't been completely slain by Jiang Jiang Qinge. Instead, relying on a contingency he had left behind earlier, he had stubbornly survived.

"Green Snake! What are you doing!" At this moment, the Blood Coffin Person let out a furious roar.

But within that roar, there was a trace of fear.

A cold smile curled at the corner of Li Li Lingjing's lips. She said softly, "Doing what? Of course, taking back that half of the 'True Demon Embryo' of yours."

"How dare you! Aren't you afraid of Lord Bai Lingyan's wrath!" the Blood Coffin man roared.

Li Li Lingjing smiled faintly and said, "Perhaps he would be only too glad to witness this scene. A failed product like you has no reason to keep on living."

The Blood Coffin man flew into a rage and bellowed, "Men, seize her!"

He tried to issue orders to those Black Coffin men.

But the many Black Coffin men all answered with silence. Although the Blood Coffin man had been their leader before, within the Sha Ghost Cult, loyalty was not practiced. Here, the winner takes all, and the loser loses everything.

And now, Green Serpent had defeated the Blood Coffin man, so the latter naturally had no reason to exist any longer.

Seeing his former subordinates unmoved, despair welled up in the Blood Coffin man. With a sharp shriek, his flesh and blood writhed, and he transformed into a streak of blood-light, fleeing toward the outside of the great hall.

Whoosh!

But a streak of emerald-green light pierced through the air, transforming into a Green Serpent staff, pinning him dead to the ground.

The grotesque face atop the writhing flesh turned its head, only to see, filled with terror, black mist flowing forth and shaping into a giant serpent. It opened its massive jaws and swallowed him whole in a single gulp.

The black mist spread, utterly cutting off every path of survival he had left.