Chapter 249

Zhou Qing saw this, and his expression instantly became a mix of laughter and tears.

He hurriedly lowered his voice, pleading with a hint of desperation: "Grandmother, I beg you, can you stop trying to get me killed?"

"I'm not trying to get you killed. Look at how dull this journey is; there's nothing wrong with relaxing a little!" Lu Yaoyao blinked, looking completely innocent.

Zhou Qing hurriedly asked: "Then why don't you go tell her yourself?"

"It wouldn't be interesting if I told her. It needs to be told with feeling and emotion; it's only fun if you're the one saying it."

Lu Yaoyao tilted her head, her face beaming with a sly smile.

Zhou Qing really couldn't win against her, so he stood up, ran to the back of the flying boat as if fleeing from a plague, sat down cross-legged, and closed his eyes to cultivate.

Don't think I don't know what kind of scheme you're cooking up. Even if you want to play matchmaker, you have to see if the families are well-matched first.

Who is she? A heaven-favored genius at the late or Great Perfection stage of Soul Severance, a fourth-level array master, and a citizen of a fifth-level cultivation nation.

In her eyes, we might not even count as ants.

Besides, someone like her must have countless suitors. Your Shixiong here still wants to live a few more years.

Seeing Zhou Qing flee as if escaping, Lu Yaoyao couldn't help but pout, a trace of disappointment appearing on her face.

Soon, she put away the book, put on a smile again, and ran over with a giggle.

Looking at the other woman's near-perfect waist and back, Lu Yaoyao looked envious and compared it to her own.

They simply weren't on the same level.

"Big Sister, are you exceptionally beautiful? Is that why you wear a veil, to keep others from coveting you?"

"Big Sister, may I ask, if it's not too rude, what is your surname?"

"You and my Shixiong really are fated. You've met several times in a row now, and every time it's been good luck, right?"

"My Zhou Shixiong is a really good person, kind, and he doesn't look bad either. Many girls in the sect like him, but he doesn't even spare them a glance."

"He also has a hen that's really funny."

Listening to Lu Yaoyao chirping away like a little sparrow, Six slowly turned around, her face showing not a hint of emotion.

"Since we have time now, I will instruct you on how to correctly cultivate the 'Ice Lotus'." Six said coldly.

Lu Yaoyao's expression stiffened slightly, her previous excitement instantly freezing.

She had no choice but to nod and obediently sit cross-legged to receive Six's guidance.

Two days later!

Lu Yaoyao ran over excitedly, but after looking around, her expression changed quickly.

Just as she was about to open her mouth anxiously, she remembered something, hurriedly checked the surroundings carefully, and after confirming that Zhou Qing was indeed nowhere to be seen, she shouted loudly.

"Zhou Shixiong, are you..."

"Ahem—"

Zhou Qing, sitting cross-legged in the corner, had to cough to remind her.

After this 【Reduced Presence】 reached level six, even Soul Formation cultivators had a 90% chance of ignoring him.

Lu Yaoyao, only at the mid-stage of Soul Formation, was completely within his grasp.

Hearing Zhou Qing's voice, Lu Yaoyao looked over with an embarrassed expression.

It seems the side effects of the "Ice Lotus" really take a long time to fade; this wasn't the first time she'd made a fool of herself.

"Zhou Shixiong, give me some money!"

Lu Yaoyao hurriedly ran up with a grin, grabbing Zhou Qing's arm like a little cat, her face full of smiles as if acting spoiled.

Zhou Qing was stunned, subconsciously reaching out to touch Lu Yaoyao's forehead.

"You don't have a fever. You're asking me for money?" Zhou Qing asked, looking astonished.

Lu Yaoyao nodded, looking very serious: "Then who else should I ask for money?"

Zhou Qing: "..."

How impressive, asking for money so righteously and naturally, and she didn't even use the word "borrow"—she was just demanding it.

He sighed helplessly and asked: "How much?"

Lu Yaoyao giggled and held up two fingers, shaking them in the air.

Zhou Qing immediately started rummaging through his storage bag: "Mid-grade or superior-grade?"

"Supreme-grade!" Lu Yaoyao said crisply.

Zhou Qing's hand froze, and he looked at Lu Yaoyao in disbelief.

"What do you need supreme-grade spirit stones for? Didn't the Elder give you cultivation resources before we left?" Zhou Qing asked, shocked.

Lu Yaoyao said: "He gave me some, but no supreme-grade spirit stones. Hurry up and give them to me."

"No, what exactly do you need this stuff for?" Zhou Qing pressed.

Lu Yaoyao said: "It's for wood carving. Anyway, it's useful."

Seeing that she didn't seem to be lying, Zhou Qing had no choice but to take out two supreme-grade spirit stones and give them to her.

Life has gotten better now; in the past, I would have felt a pang of pain just giving you two superior-grade spirit stones.

Fortunately, he had obtained a batch of cultivation resources from Xuan Xuan Ji Zi's storage bag.

Having received the spirit stones, Lu Yaoyao hopped away, looking delighted.

This made Zhou Qing shake his head helplessly. Truth be told, this girl's wood carving skills were indeed quite good.

Back when his Golden Core shattered, she had carved many strange spirit beasts he had never seen before to help him pass the time.

She even grandly claimed they were Demon Emperors she had seen in her dreams, and that he had even slain them.

It's just that he didn't know what she had carved this time that actually required supreme-grade spirit stones to decorate.

Too extravagant!

Just as Zhou Qing had expected, three months later, they finally arrived at the border region.

Looking from afar, the Great Wall, like a giant black dragon, stretched between heaven and earth, magnificent and spectacular.

Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh!

At this moment, patrol personnel saw the strange flying boat coming from the interior and immediately flew up.

It was a coincidence that the person who came was the Commandant who had been defeated by Zhou Qing—Jiang Pojun.

However, before he could get close enough to question them, Six's flying boat instantly crossed the border line.

"Lord Jiang, this—" The members of the Longxiang Army stared blankly at this scene, at a loss for what to do.

Jiang Pojun shook his head slightly and said calmly: "You can't persuade a ghost who wants to die with kind words. If they want to cross, let them. As long as it's not a large-scale crossing by the demon race, it's fine."

The Shengwu Dynasty's territory was vast and boundless, and even with countless legions deployed, it was difficult to cover every area.

These patrol personnel only gave a few words of warning when they occasionally encountered strange flying boats.

Moreover, the material of that flying boat looked extremely extraordinary; the people inside were likely not people they could afford to offend.

At this time, Zhou Qing was lying on the deck, leaning forward, looking down curiously.

After crossing the border, he had only gone to the Taiyao Mountain where the Peng Emperor resided with Xuan Yuan Shuo and Er Daye; he had never set foot in other places.

"Senior, how much further?" Zhou Qing couldn't help but ask.

Six said coldly: "Almost there!"

Afterwards, she couldn't help but look at Zhou Qing, a hint of hesitation flashing in her beautiful eyes, and she whispered: "Has she always been this talkative?"

Zhou Qing subconsciously turned to look. Not far away, a human-shaped ice sculpture stood there, and Lu Yaoyao's pitch-black eyeballs were spinning non-stop inside.

Her mouth was opening and closing, seemingly muttering something, but unfortunately, it was blocked by the ice layer, and no sound could come out.

Zhou Qing was also a bit helpless. Fortunately, this girl also cultivated ice-type divine abilities, so this wouldn't harm her; on the contrary, it gave their ears some peace.

Heaven knows how they survived these three months. If he had known, he would have used a teleportation array directly; it would have saved them some torture.

Zhou Qing's expression was a bit sheepish, so he had to explain: "She's also an 'iceberg' little Shijie in the sect, very quiet. She's just been a little over-excited lately."

After Zhou Qing finished speaking, he looked at Six again, muttering to himself.

In this regard, you're actually a bit like her.

You currently have an 'iceberg' vibe that keeps people at a distance, but in the Shenxu Tiangong, you were also quite talkative.

The contrast really isn't small.

Thus, another ten days passed, and the landscape below began to change from the previous lush green mountains to dark red mountains and rivers.

All the mountains presented a strange dark red color, and rolling blood mist permeated between them, slowly churning and surging, emitting a pungent, fishy smell.

Demon Qi soared to the sky, and from time to time, demon beasts were seen slaughtering each other.

"Blood Prison Mountain, the territory of the Dragon Emperor!" Soon, Zhou Qing seemed to think of something.

After all, at Taiyao Mountain, he had swindled the Dragon Emperor and the Spider Emperor out of dozens of supreme-grade spirit stones each.

At this time, Lu Yaoyao had long since broken free from the ice seal and was now looking down curiously.

"Big Sister, can you help me see if I have demon race bloodline in my body..."

Lu Yaoyao had just said this when she met Six's slightly furrowed brows, and she immediately covered her mouth subconsciously.

Zhou Qing also shook his head helplessly.

You really don't learn your lesson, do you? Can't you talk a little less?

Lu Yaoyao also felt a bit aggrieved.

Imperial Consort Chen was of the fox race, but Xuan Yuan Muqian didn't have any demon race characteristics.

She just wanted to confirm whether she had inherited any demon race bloodline from her grandmother, so she could rule it out.

Roar!

At the next moment, a deafening dragon roar suddenly sounded from below.

Immediately following, a huge black dragon spiraled up from below.

This dragon was hundreds of feet long, its whole body covered in cyan-black scales, flashing with a cold luster.

Demon Qi overflowed from its body, intertwining with the pervasive blood mist, forming an aura full of tyranny, directly blocking the flying boat's path.

Feeling the other's aura, Lu Yaoyao's face turned pale, and she retreated behind Zhou Qing.

A Demon Emperor, this is a true Demon Emperor!

Zhou Qing, on the other hand, was looking at this Black Water Mysterious Dragon with great interest.

After all, they had already met once at the Black Feather Peak of Taiyao Mountain, but at that time, he had transformed into the Peng Emperor to bully others.

"Xianyou Xianyou Xianzi, long time no see. This counts as our second meeting, which is fate. Why not come down and have a drink!"

The Dragon Emperor made a muffled, burly man's voice, making people's ears buzz.

Zhou Qing and Lu Yaoyao subconsciously looked at Six.

It seems she had previously found the place recorded on the old Old Peng Wang's beast skin scroll, which is why she had some interaction with this Dragon Emperor.

"Get lost—"

Six said coldly at this moment. Although her voice was not loud, it seemed to carry a freezing power, instantly freezing the surrounding air.

The Dragon Emperor's figure flickered, transforming into the appearance of a burly man with chest hair, the smile on his face carrying a hint of roguishness.

"Don't be like that. To tell you the truth, although we only fought briefly once, I fell in love with you at first sight, Xianyou Xianyou Xianzi. We could actually get to know each other." The Dragon Emperor said seriously.

Six stared at him coldly and snorted: "I have no fate with you!"

"In less than a year, this is the second time you've passed by my front door. This is simply too much fate." The Dragon Emperor was persistent and continued.

Six looked at him, her tone cold: "True fate is what brings me good luck. You... are not it!"

Hearing this, Zhou Qing blinked.

In that case, does it mean he, the person with fate, brought her good luck?

Thinking about it carefully, it really seems to be the case.

The first time, she appeared at the courtyard gate in the middle of the night, asking about the red token, and he told her about Ke Shu.

And he told her that the other party should have gone to the Cangyan Dao Palace by then.

After all, during the ghost city incident, besides them, people from the Cangyan Dao Palace had also gone, but they were killed by his Master, who was disguised as Niu Guangmo.

The second time was the abyss of Canglan Mountain, the five-colored barrier, and the many treasures on the stone platform.

Truth be told, in reality, this counts as the third time. If he brought her bad luck, would that mean he's no longer her person of fate?

At this moment, the Dragon Emperor was a bit puzzled.

"How did I not bring you good luck?"

Six couldn't be bothered to talk nonsense with him, and with a thought, she directly controlled the flying boat to go around, but the Dragon Emperor blocked them again.

"Xianyou Xianyou Xianzi, since I started cultivating, I have never seen..."

"If you don't move, you die!" Six directly interrupted his words, her voice full of killing intent.

Lu Yaoyao looked at the indifferent Zhou Qing, hurriedly came over, poked Zhou Qing with her elbow, her face full of anxiety.

"What are you still standing there for? This is a great opportunity for you to show off!" Lu Yaoyao transmitted her voice.

Zhou Qing rolled his eyes at her directly.

"Show off what? Do you believe that the other party could slap your Shixiong to death with one claw?" Zhou Qing replied.

Lu Yaoyao said: "I know, but aren't you her person of fate now? She came to find you for help, so how could she watch you die miserably under the other party's claws?"

Zhou Qing was stunned.

Lu Yaoyao continued: "So, this is a matter of attitude. This is the critical moment for you as a man to stand up. If you're a coward when you know there's no danger, how can you make her like you in the future?"

Zhou Qing's mouth twitched.

What she said seemed correct, but he always felt something was wrong.

Besides, he didn't need her to like him.

Just as the two were whispering to each other, a charming, light laugh suddenly echoed between heaven and earth.

Immediately following, dark clouds surged in the distance, and a huge eight-legged spider was in the middle of them.

But in an instant, it transformed into a charming woman wearing a red long dress.

Her figure was graceful, every step she took was full of charm, and every gesture revealed an innate laziness and allure.

"Yo, Brother Qiu, is this the human female cultivator you mentioned who fought with you briefly? Do you need your little sister to lend a hand?"

The one speaking was the overlord from the neighboring Thousand Illusion Maze—the Ghost-Faced Demon Spider, Ye Luo.

At this moment, she asked with a smile.

The Dragon Emperor, Brother Xuanqiu, looked stern and said in a deep voice: "Ye Luo, today is not the time to discuss matters. I still have things to do. If there's nothing else, you should go back first."

Hearing this, the Spider Emperor, Ye Luo, couldn't help but cover her mouth and giggle, looking charming in an instant.

"Brother Qiu, you were the one who invited me to discuss the Taiyao Mountain matter today. Now that I've come as invited, you want to chase me away. That's not very polite!"

The Spider Emperor said, looking pitiful.

Seeing this situation, Six furrowed her brows and turned the flying boat again without hesitation, wanting to leave.

However, the Spider Emperor, Ye Luo, flashed and appeared directly in front of the flying boat, blocking their path.

"Yo, what a cold little sister. Even from such a distance, I can feel the chill radiating from you. You really are pitiful to behold!"

Ye Luo's gaze shifted, looking Six up and down.

"Forgot to introduce myself. Little sister is from another mountain, and we can be considered neighbors with Brother Qiu."

"In this territory of the Shengwu Dynasty, we know everyone at the Soul Severance stage like the back of our hands, but we have never heard of little sister's name."

"I suppose little sister is from another cultivation nation? In that case, we have no conflict of interest."

"Little sister, we are preparing for a major event. If little sister doesn't mind, we would like to invite you to participate together. After it's done, there will definitely be a great reward."

Six was cold as ice and refused directly: "Not interested!"

The Dragon Emperor, Brother Xuanqiu, seemed to guess the Spider Emperor's thoughts, his eyes suddenly lit up, and he hurriedly said: "Xianyou Xianyou Xianzi, the situation is like this: there is a Taiyao Mountain here, and a Demon Peng lives on the mountain."

"He has been in seclusion recently, but some strange things happened before. We pondered repeatedly and always felt something was wrong, so we plan to go and investigate."

Zhou Qing, who heard this, had his expression change slightly.

Is this... the secret being revealed?

The Dragon Emperor, Brother Xuanqiu, didn't notice Zhou Qing's abnormality and continued: "Unfortunately, Taiyao Mountain faces the human border, and the Shengwu Dynasty's Prince, Xuan Yuan Shuo, is stationed there, monitoring the movements of Taiyao Mountain at all times."

Hearing this, Six furrowed her brows slightly.

Peng Emperor?

Xuan Yuan Shuo?

A bit of an impression; they should be the two people who fought over the old Old Peng Wang's corpse at Canglan Mountain that time.

The Dragon Emperor continued: "The Peng Emperor's residence on Taiyao Mountain is located on a mountain peak called Black Feather Peak. There is a five-colored barrier on the peak, which is extremely difficult to break in a short time. If we rush to attack, we will definitely alert Xuan Yuan Shuo."

Upon hearing the words "five-colored barrier," a strange light flashed in Six's eyes instantly.

Zhou Qing's heart skipped a beat, and he secretly complained: The Peng Emperor you speak of who is in seclusion is right in front of you now.

However, these two Demon Emperors obviously didn't take the two of them seriously, probably thinking they were Six's attendants.

Zhou Qing immediately looked at Six.

She herself was a fourth-level array master and had studied the way of barriers quite a bit.

And that five-colored barrier was brought out from a ruin by her acquaintance, Situ Jiuyao.

It's just that he didn't know where Xuan Yuan Shuo had buried this master's corpse now.

Seeing Six on the deck seem a bit moved, the Dragon Emperor, Brother Xuanqiu, hurriedly struck while the iron was hot: "We suspect the Peng Emperor has already died, but we have no solid evidence. After all, we saw him appear a few years ago."

"Not long ago, while in a state of sudden enlightenment, Ye Luo accidentally experienced atavism and awakened the ancestor Void Spider's bloodline divine ability 【Heavy Pupils】, which can see through falsehood."

"Even if she isn't a human array master, she can discern the operating trajectory of that five-colored array in a short time, and then open an entrance."

Hearing this, Six, Zhou Qing, and the others all showed surprise, their gazes cast toward the Spider Emperor, Ye Luo.

The Spider Emperor, Ye Luo, raised her lips, her smile charming, and she hurriedly said: "Brother Qiu, ever since I awakened that divine ability, I haven't come into contact with any arrays, let alone this five-colored barrier. Don't exaggerate."

The Dragon Emperor, Brother Xuanqiu, was stunned, a hint of embarrassment flashing on his face, and he defended: "Didn't you say it yourself? A small five-colored array is nothing to you."

The Spider Emperor, Ye Luo, just smiled lightly, then looked at Six and said charmingly: "Big Sister, I really haven't tried it. After all, if the Demon Peng is still in the cave, it would be so awkward to break someone else's barrier."

"Last time I just touched it lightly, and I had to pay the other party thirty supreme-grade spirit stones."

Hearing this, Zhou Qing couldn't help but look sheepish.

The Dragon Emperor, Brother Xuanqiu, saw this and hurriedly said: "Xianyou Xianyou Xianzi, you don't necessarily have to do it then; it's just in case."

"If the Peng Emperor has really fallen, we will split the treasures in his cave among the three of us."

"If he is still there, he will definitely be enraged, and it might even attract Xuan Yuan Shuo. At that time, as long as you, Xianyou Xianyou Xianzi, intervene slightly to block him, that's all."

The Dragon Emperor didn't reveal to the veiled woman that Xuan Yuan Shuo was already at the mid-stage of Soul Severance, lest she back out.

He had fought her once, and she should be at the early stage, just like them.

He didn't know what happened to Xuan Yuan Shuo, but he had actually broken through to the mid-stage of Soul Severance.

Relying solely on him and the Spider Emperor, plus their respective innate divine abilities, they could only barely fight to a draw with the other party.

If the Peng Emperor were added, it would be dangerous.

Therefore, they needed another Soul Severance stage cultivator to join their plan.

Looking at the veiled woman on the deck showing hesitation, the Spider Emperor, Ye Luo, and the Dragon Emperor, Brother Xuanqiu, had smiles on their faces, but they were very nervous inside.

Actually, they didn't really suspect that the Peng Emperor had fallen; after all, they had seen the Peng Emperor with their own eyes last time.

What the two were really worried about was that after the Peng Emperor entered the human territory, he seemed to have obtained some of the old Old Peng Wang's inheritance.

When they met last time, the Peng Emperor's aura was extremely strong, and after transforming into his true form, his whole body was shining with gold, as if he were truly about to transform into that legendary Golden-Winged Peng.

After angrily driving them away, the Peng Emperor announced his seclusion.

What if he broke through to the mid-stage of Soul Severance this time?

Their demon race had always respected strength. By then, Blood Prison Mountain and the Thousand Illusion Maze might both become the Peng Emperor's territory.

Even the two of them might have to become the Peng Emperor's subordinates.

This was a situation the two were unwilling to see no matter what.

Fortunately, the Peng Emperor's face was pale at the time, looking like he was injured. According to common sense, he should still be in the healing stage now.

That's why they wanted to take a risk and try. Even if they couldn't kill him, at least they had to make the Peng Emperor's injuries worse.

For this, the two of them had prepared poison sacs and blood fire, expecting these things to be enough for him to handle.

As for why they wanted to invite a human to help, the reason was also very simple.

The Demon Emperors in the back, Wei Lun Yao and Qing Luo Beast, refused to cooperate after learning that the Peng Emperor was still alive.

Moreover, these two guys had always been fence-sitters and were extremely greedy; turning against them might happen in an instant.

Therefore, to ensure the plan could be implemented smoothly, they had no choice but to find other Soul Severance stage experts.

This human woman was undoubtedly the most suitable candidate.

If she was from the Shengwu Dynasty, she would surely be happy to eliminate a Demon Emperor who was harming the border.

Even if she wasn't, it didn't matter; at least she wouldn't cooperate with Xuan Yuan Shuo to deal with them.

(End of chapter)