Chapter 170: No, are you cultivating Cha Baidao? (6k)

"You come!" The silver-haired woman suddenly looked at Zhou Qing.

Zhou Qing's face was bitter. My twenty spiritual seals probably already overlapped with the ones you mastered.

"Come on!" Lu Yaoyao was very excited, looking like she must strive to make her look at him with admiration.

What else could Zhou Qing say? He came to the stone platform, let out a long sigh of relief, and following the hand seals, twenty spiritual seals floated out, and then he manipulated one to fall down carefully.

Just for a moment, the spiritual seal disappeared into it.

"Eh, such good luck?" Zhou Qing's eyes lit up.

Even the silver-haired woman couldn't help but look at Zhou Qing more at this moment, and Lu Yaoyao chuckled.

Immediately after, it was the second one, which rebounded, followed by the third one, which successfully entered.

In this way, of the twenty spiritual seals he had comprehended from the inheritance of the senior Xuan Qingzi, a full fifteen actually matched, and the success rate was not generally high.

But even so, the two worked together, and it was estimated that they had only cracked less than 20% of the stone platform. With the current situation, wanting to open the stone platform completely was simply impossible.

The silver-haired woman seemed a bit unwilling, trying to move the entire stone platform away, but found that the remaining barrier turned red instantly, as if it would destroy itself in the next moment.

The powerful spiritual power fluctuations made the surrounding air become hot and scorching.

This made her give up helplessly.

"What are you doing? Since you left good things for future generations, why make things so difficult? I think it's purely intentional!"

Seeing this, Lu Yaoyao muttered indignantly.

Zhou Qing hurriedly pulled her quietly, signaling her to speak less. Didn't she see that the other party was in a very bad mood now? Don't add fuel to the fire.

"You guys hurry up and leave!"

The silver-haired woman frowned tightly, her eyes revealing a trace of determination, and she had an ice-type hairpin in her hand out of thin air, emitting a bone-chilling coldness.

Even the surrounding temperature was instantly pulled to below freezing, making one unable to help but shiver.

It seemed to be sealed with some unknown power. Zhou Qing and Lu Yaoyao just subconsciously glanced at the hairpin, and felt their souls almost frozen, a piercing pain in their minds, hurriedly shifting their gaze. 【170

It was very obvious that she intended to stake everything on a single throw, wanting to rely on brute force to try and break the barrier of this stone platform.

Zhou Qing's gaze was tightly fixed on the three jade bottles on the platform at this moment; because he was relatively close to the stone platform, he could clearly sense that one of the jade bottles definitely contained the essence blood of a Golden-Winged Peng.

But if she broke it with brute force, judging by the current strength of this barrier, there was a high probability that everything inside would be completely destroyed in that instant.

"The chance of success is a bit slim!" Zhou Qing couldn't help but remind her.

The silver-haired woman gave Zhou Qing a faint look and said in a calm tone, "If it is truly destroyed, then it simply means I have no affinity with it."

"Things that have no affinity, even if they reached my hands, would eventually leave through other means; one should not force it."

Zhou Qing was stunned.

What kind of Dao are you cultivating?

Tea Dao?

To actually believe so much in the word "affinity"?

But if you destroy the things inside, where am I supposed to go to find Peng essence blood later?

Am I still going to cultivate the "Imperial Brilliance Scripture" or not?

"Wait a moment!" Zhou Qing stared intently at the stone platform, trying to find some clues that might have been overlooked.

Lu Yaoyao was quite happy; it was obvious that using brute force to destroy the array was definitely dangerous, but since she had let the two of them leave first, it showed she had no intention to kill.

At this moment, she couldn't help but speak up, saying, "Big Sister, your strength is so formidable, you must know a lot of people. You could completely seal this place first, and then wait until you find a Level 5 Array Master to come over and help break it; wouldn't that be better?"

The silver-haired woman slowly lowered her ice hairpin, looked at Lu Yaoyao, and said in a cold tone, "I don't know any Level 5 Array Masters!"

Upon hearing this, Lu Yaoyao hurriedly reached out and pointed at Zhou Qing, her face full of excitement.

"Maybe you will know one in the future. This is my most admired Zhou Shixiong. Don't look at him as only a Level 1 Array Master now; he has infinite potential. As long as he is given time, he will definitely be able to become a Level 5 Array Master in the future."

Zhou Qing, who was concentrating on examining the stone platform, stumbled at these words. Looking at the silver-haired woman now, he could only offer an awkward, sheepish smile.

It was true that he had the Level 5 array inheritance left by Master Xuanqing, but heaven knows when he would be able to cultivate to that level.

This girl has such mysterious confidence in me.

And look at the person in front of us; as a Soul Severance expert, she is only a Level 4 Array Master, and that was only after just condensing ten thousand spiritual seals.

You want her to seal this place? Isn't that digging a hole for herself?

Now that we all know the secret of this place, do you think she will easily let us leave and then wait to find a Level 5 Array Master to come and break it later?

That is too naive!

Facing the idea proposed by Lu Yaoyao, the silver-haired woman looked at Zhou Qing, shook her head slightly, and said, "The time is too long, I cannot wait, and there are too many variables; it is not feasible."

Lu Yaoyao wanted to say something more, but the silver-haired woman did not give her another chance, continuing, "You two go. If it is truly destroyed, it can only mean that I have no affinity with them."

Zhou Qing was not reconciled. Gritting his teeth, he held onto the mentality of giving it a try and directly performed an appraisal.

【Stone platform holding treasures: This is a strange stone platform holding several treasures, and its surroundings are laid with an extremely powerful five-colored barrier, which cannot be solved by anyone other than a Level 5 Array Master.】

【But what no one knows is that there is another image array set up inside the stone platform; as long as you insert three sticks of incense on the ground and bow respectfully, the array will solve itself.】

【After all, the owner who set up the stone platform had already let go before dying; all they wanted was a sincere act of worship from a descendant.】

Seeing the feedback, Zhou Qing was stunned at first, but it quickly turned into wild joy.

He didn't expect that this appraisal would be so lucky, directly providing the method to unlock the barrier of this stone platform.

But soon he was on the verge of tears again.

If this woman weren't here, once the barrier was unlocked according to this method, all the things inside would be his.

Now, this person who is stuck in a rut and only recognizes "affinity" is hell-bent on using brute force to destroy the platform, not giving him any time at all.

Forget it; if not for her, even with the vague perception from the "Imperial Brilliance Scripture," he probably wouldn't have been able to enter this stone cave.

When the time comes, I'll just hope that in light of our three encounters, she gives me a drop of Peng essence blood and then lets Lu Shimei and me return safely; I won't hope for anything else.

"Let's go!" The silver-haired woman picked up the ice-style hairpin again and spoke coldly.

Zhou Qing suddenly said, "Wait a moment, did you smell a scent?"

The silver-haired woman was puzzled. Seeing Zhou Qing's serious expression, Lu Yaoyao's eyes lit up, and she hurriedly said, "Big Sister, my Zhou Shixiong's nose is very sharp, even those dog-type spirit beasts can't compare to it. Don't be in a hurry."

Zhou Qing, who was pretending to sniff with his nose, felt helpless toward Lu Yaoyao.

If you don't know how to play along, talk less; no one will take you for a mute.

Soon, Zhou Qing seemed to have thought of something, looking suddenly enlightened: "It's the smell of burning incense. I was wondering why this scent was so familiar."

The silver-haired woman's nose beneath her veil moved slightly, but she smelled nothing.

Zhou Qing took the opportunity to take three sticks of incense from his storage bag, sniffed them at his nose, and became even more certain of the scent.

"That's right, it's this smell. Could it be that this stone platform is like the offering tables in those ancestral halls and requires worship?"

Zhou Qing muttered to himself. Without waiting for the silver-haired woman to stop him, he immediately lit the three sticks of incense in his hand and then said solemnly, "Senior, since we accidentally broke into this place, it means we have an affinity. Since we are people with affinity, we shouldn't return empty-handed."

"Junior Zhou Qing of the Taiqingmen is willing to sacrifice the lifespans of everyone in the Chiyan Dao Palace and the Tianji Sect. I hope you will open the barrier and let us inherit the mantle and legacy you left behind, to carry it forward and see the light of day again."

After finishing, he inserted the incense and bowed respectfully.

Such an absurd scene made Lu Yaoyao's face twitch, and she looked at the "Third Mama" beside her with some embarrassment.

The silver-haired woman also shook her head slightly at this moment; this was truly disregarding all logic.

But in the next moment, her eyes suddenly narrowed.

She saw the array on the stone platform suddenly start to circulate rapidly. In an instant, the rune light flared brilliantly.

Immediately after, an aged phantom slowly appeared above the array.

He was dressed in an ancient robe, with golden hair and a face full of wrinkles; every gesture carried an innate domineering aura.

He spoke with a chuckle, "To be able to bow to this old man, you must be a polite and kind-hearted person. I can close my eyes in peace now that these things are handed to you."

Zhou Qing looked at the back of the figure on the array and couldn't help but be speechless.

It was obvious that this was just a projection left behind by the other party, not even counting as an obsession. More importantly, he had bowed in the wrong direction.

But he still pretended to be shocked, looked at the two dumbfounded people, and hurriedly went to the other side of the stone platform, saying gratefully, "Thank you, Senior. Junior will definitely not fail the trust."

As Zhou Qing finished bowing again, the five-colored array in front of him slowly dissipated, revealing several items on the platform.

Zhou Qing unhurriedly patted the dirt off his knees, stood up, and then looked at the silver-haired woman with an embarrassed expression, scratching his head as he said, "Senior, I... I seem to have unlocked it by accident!"

The two women just stared blankly, seemingly not having come back to their senses yet.

No way, this actually worked?

【Heart Appraisal Points +9】

The 【Very Compassionate】 note above Lu Yaoyao's head turned into 【Very Outrageous】 in an instant.

"You..." The silver-haired woman finally came to her senses. She wanted to say something, but for a moment, she didn't know how to describe the scene before her.

Recalling the various treasure sites she had encountered in the past that she had to give up on due to various factors, she felt as if she had missed out on so many treasures.

"Senior, please!" Zhou Qing tactfully stepped aside.

The silver-haired woman said nothing more and stepped forward, but just as she raised her hand, she hesitated. She then looked at Zhou Qing and said, "You choose first!"

Zhou Qing did not expect the other party to be so principled, but he waved his hands repeatedly, saying, "You should choose first."

The silver-haired woman said nothing more, just quietly staring at Zhou Qing.

For a moment, Zhou Qing felt uncomfortable all over, and even a bit awkward.

What kind of person is this, both cold and domineering!

Helpless, he could only nod slightly and cast his gaze toward the stone platform.

Five items were placed in an orderly fashion on the stone platform: three jade bottles of different colors, a scroll of animal skin exuding an ancient aura, and an exquisite storage bag.

The jade bottle definitely contained the Golden-Winged Peng essence blood. As Zhou Qing secretly activated the ancient characters of the "Imperial Brilliance Scripture" in his sea of consciousness, his eyes soon lit up.

Almost without the slightest hesitation, he raised his hand and gently picked up the crimson jade bottle in the middle.

As soon as the jade bottle was in his hand, a warm and domineering aura surged into his palm, faintly resonating with the "Imperial Brilliance Scripture."

This caused his heart to surge with excitement.

As for the remaining items, Zhou Qing still had his reason and decisively chose to give them up.

After all, the person accompanying him was a Soul Severance powerhouse; being able to escape safely under her nose was already a stroke of luck. If he were to be greedy, his life would likely be in jeopardy.

"I have chosen!" Zhou Qing said.

The silver-haired woman did not say much either, taking the animal skin scroll first and slowly unfolding it.

In an instant, her pupils contracted sharply, filled with astonishment, followed immediately by wild joy surging into her eyes.

Then, she picked up the storage bag, opened it to take a look, and was equally excited.

Finally, her gaze fell on the other two jade bottles, which seemed to contain some kind of elixir. After some investigation, a look of surprise appeared on her face again, though it was unclear if the medicinal efficacy remained after the passage of time.

"These items are of great use to me. If you keep them, they will only bring you fatal disaster, but this stone platform was opened by you after all, and I cannot take advantage of you for nothing!"

After the silver-haired woman finished speaking, she opened her palm, and a jade tablet exuding a faint, ghostly fragrance appeared.

"Once this jade tablet is activated, it can erupt with the power equivalent to my full-strength strike. I give it to you as a life-saving item."

Looking at the jade tablet handed to him, Zhou Qing felt a surge of wild joy. For such a rare treasure, if he were to feign refusal now, it would seem ungrateful.

"Thank you, Senior!" Zhou Qing was so excited that he hurriedly reached out to take it.

Subsequently, she turned her gaze to the jade bottle in Zhou Qing's hand and warned, "If you want to refine this essence blood, you must have an elder by your side to protect you. With your current cultivation base, I fear it will be difficult to suppress the violent power it contains."

Zhou Qing's mouth curled into a smile; it seemed she had discovered it. However, since he possessed the ability of the Four Flowers Gathering at the Crown, he didn't need to worry.

But he still replied respectfully, "Junior understands."

Immediately after, the silver-haired woman turned to face Lu Yaoyao, a snowflake appearing out of thin air in her palm, and said softly, "Place your hand on it."

Lu Yaoyao was slightly startled, then beamed, following the instruction with full joy.

In the blink of an eye, the snowflake actually changed color, slowly turning blue-green.

Seeing this, the silver-haired woman couldn't help but show surprise, though she quickly regained her composure.

"I didn't expect your constitution to be so similar to mine!" she whispered.

Lu Yaoyao was even more excited upon hearing this, her eyes reddening as she asked eagerly, "R-really?"

The silver-haired woman put away the snowflake, took out two jade slips, and handed them to Lu Yaoyao, saying, "This cultivation technique is called 'Ice Lotus' and should be compatible with your constitution. However, the accompanying technique is the 'Ice-Clear Art.' If you want to cultivate it, you must abandon the mental cultivation method you learned before..."

"I am willing!" Lu Yaoyao didn't wait for the other party to finish, eagerly snatching the words, her gaze locked tightly on the silver-haired woman from beginning to end.

For her, if the person in front of her was truly her biological mother, then this was the first gift she had received from her mother in many years.

Zhou Qing, standing by, also felt deeply happy for Lu Yaoyao.

One must know that the main mental cultivation method of the Taiqingmen is the "Taiqing Profound Qi Art," which even he had abandoned to switch to the more suitable "Yin-Yang Art."

Now, this cultivation technique from the hands of a Soul Severance powerhouse was far superior to the Taiqingmen's mental method.

The silver-haired woman stared at Lu Yaoyao for a moment, then said softly, "Good, be sure to keep it safe and don't let others take it away."

"I definitely won't!" Lu Yaoyao promised solemnly.

The silver-haired woman nodded slightly, and then her vast spiritual sense spread out like a tide, thoroughly investigating every corner of the entire cave.

After confirming there were no other valuable items, she took Zhou Qing and Lu Yaoyao toward the outside of the cave.

"If we have affinity, we shall meet again!"

Outside the cave, after saying this, she raised her hand and made a light slash toward the void in front of her. In an instant, a spatial rift exuding wisps of cold air appeared.

Seeing this, Lu Yaoyao hurriedly asked eagerly, "Big Sister, your great kindness is hard to repay; may I ask your name?"

However, the silver-haired woman did not respond. With a light wave of her hand, the two of them drifted involuntarily toward the spatial rift and vanished into it instantly.

It felt like only an instant had passed before Zhou Qing and Lu Yaoyao felt solid ground beneath their feet. When they looked again, they were already back at the Taiqingmen, and it happened to be right outside the courtyard where Zhou Qing lived.

The large tree that had been frozen stood right before their eyes.

Looking at this scene, Zhou Qing felt his scalp tingle, his heart filled with shock.

Is this the terrifying strength of the Soul Severance realm?

The seven-day journey they had exhausted themselves to complete was covered by her with just a casual wave of her hand, in the span of a single breath.

While deeply shocked, Zhou Qing suddenly felt a longing for this realm in his heart.

"Zhou Shixiong, will we see her again?"

Lu Yaoyao, having come to her senses, could not hide the disappointment on her face; after all, she still didn't know her name.

Zhou Qing sighed, not knowing what was wrong with this girl.

He could only comfort her, "We will, we will. You cultivate the 'Ice-Clear Art' she gave you well. Perhaps with this mental method, you can break through to the Soul Formation realm in one go, and then you might be able to see her again."

Upon hearing this, Lu Yaoyao's eyes lit up immediately, and she hurriedly took out the two jade slips, looking expectant.

"By the way, try not to mention anything about Canglan Mountain to anyone; after all, there are no airtight walls in this world!" Zhou Qing warned seriously.

This girl's strength was still weak; if those old monsters in the Divine Transformation realm knew she possessed a divine ability gifted by a Soul Severance powerhouse, it would likely bring about many unnecessary troubles.

After all, Soul Severance powerhouses were too rare. In the entire Level 4 cultivation nation, with its eight commanderies and seventy-two prefectures, there had only been those dozen or so in all these years.

Yet, there were countless people stuck at the Great Perfection of the Divine Transformation realm, longing to take a step further and become existences above the hundreds of millions.

Lu Yaoyao naturally understood that if this technique were to spread, she would become a person who broke her promise, and she might never have the chance to see "Third Mama" again in the future.

"Having been away for so long, I guess the Sect Master Uncle doesn't know how worried he is!" Zhou Qing looked at the sky.

Lu Yaoyao nodded obediently, and soon beamed, "Zhou Shixiong, I will definitely break through to the Soul Formation realm as soon as possible. When that time comes, I definitely won't hold you back!"

Zhou Qing smiled gently, "Good, next time I go out, I will definitely take you with me."

Watching Lu Yaoyao's figure leaving on her sword, Zhou Qing couldn't help but feel emotional again.

It must be said that from Lingku Mountain to Canglan Mountain, having her by his side really yielded a bountiful harvest.

Subsequently, he looked around.

His Master and Shijie had both gone into seclusion, and he had been missing for more than two months. The Third Shixiong was even better; he hadn't even come to look for him, and who knows what he was doing with Lei Luo.

Returning to his room, Zhou Qing immediately took out the jade bottle containing the Golden-Winged Peng essence blood, unable to put it down.

With such a treasure, he would be able to successfully cultivate the "Imperial Brilliance Scripture."

The True Body of the Jin Peng and the Might of the Emperor—just thinking about it was exciting.

However, for the sake of safety, Zhou Qing decided to wait until after midnight to appraise this essence blood first.

Next was the jade tablet gifted by Number Six; being able to erupt with a Soul Severance strike, it was definitely a trump card.

Even if Sikong Yan came in person in the future, he wouldn't be afraid, but he couldn't be too arrogant because of it.

For those with thick skin or many methods, a Soul Severance strike might not necessarily be a one-hit kill.

Even the Second Shijie, as a Soul Formation expert, carried a Life-Substitution Talisman.

Moreover, it was already suspected that the Chiyan Dao Palace and the Tianji Sect had the backing of the Imperial Capital. If they were to produce something similar, it would be easy for them.

An old Emperor and the Prince Xuan Yuan Shuo stationed at the border were both Soul Severance experts; heaven knows how many such super powerhouses they had secretly cultivated over the years.

"If I enter the Divine Ruins Heavenly Palace next time, I'd better try not to carry it on me!" Zhou Qing muttered to himself while looking at the jade tablet.

What if Number Six happens to notice it?

"How about next time I go in, I go to her forbidden area to take a look?" Soon, Zhou Qing seemed to have thought of something, his eyes lighting up.

At that time, the worst that could happen is that he wouldn't make a move. If she displayed even a trace of ice-style divine ability, he could confirm it completely.

However, having obtained so many good things this time, he probably wouldn't be going in again for a short while.

Just like that, after finally waiting until the early hours of the next day, Zhou Qing could no longer hold back and began the appraisal impatiently.

(End of chapter) ===== CHAPTER 170 =====

"Three drops?"

Seeing the feedback, Zhou Qing was briefly stunned, and then his face was filled with wild joy.

Originally, he thought there was only one drop of Golden-Winged Peng essence blood in this jade bottle; he didn't expect there to be three. This was truly an unexpected joy!

(End of chapter)