Chapter 336: Favoritism

After waiting for Jingliao and Yan Zhenzhen, Hua Changxi set up an isolation array in the guest room of the Artifact Saint Palace and fused the Seven-Colored Strange Fire into the Great Sun Divine Flame.

During this fusion of the Seven-Colored Strange Fire, whether due to the experience from the previous two attempts or because she had gained insights into the fusion and transformation of different strange fires after acquiring the Vermilion Bird bloodline divine ability, Ten Thousand Fires Return to the Ancestor, she found herself with new understandings.

Thus, in her experimentation, she succeeded in decomposing the newly fused Great Sun Divine Flame back into the Seven-Colored Strange Fire.

Gazing at the Seven-Colored Strange Fire suspended above her palm, Hua Changxi's eyes sparkled.

Given her current cultivation and physical strength, she was still unable to withstand the might of the Great Sun Divine Flame. Therefore, the fused Great Sun Divine Flame had to be suppressed using a branch of the Fusang Divine Tree.

This method of relying on external objects to control and suppress always left her a little uneasy.

But now, she could repeatedly fuse and convert the Seven-Colored Strange Fire and the Great Sun Divine Flame, meaning both fires were entirely under her control.

"Changxi!"

"Jingliao and Zhenzhen have arrived."

Hearing Tong Yao's voice outside the guest room, Hua Changxi hurriedly stored the Great Sun Divine Flame into her dantian and opened the door.

Seeing her come out, Tong Yao said, "Jingliao and Zhenzhen didn't come in; they're waiting for us outside."

Hua Changxi nodded. "Let's go."

The two stepped out of the spirit barrier and saw Yan Zhenzhen and Jingliao, with Hua Liulang standing beside them.

"Sixth Brother."

"Ninth Sister."

Hua Changxi walked toward Hua Liulang with pleasant surprise. "Why are you here?"

Hua Liulang glanced at Tong Yao. "The Great Elder called me here. He said I should go out and gain some experience with you all."

After a moment's thought, Hua Changxi understood the Great Elder Yiming's reasoning.

The four of them were going to seek opportunities. It wasn't appropriate to bring others, but Hua Liulang was her elder brother. She would never object to taking him along.

Hua Changxi hadn't called Hua Liulang earlier mainly because she was worried about the danger in the Xuanwu City Lord's Mansion—he was too weak to protect himself inside.

But now, she was delighted to discover that Hua Liulang had become a Nascent Soul cultivator.

"Sixth Brother, when did you advance to the Nascent Soul stage?"

Tong Yao smiled and answered before her, "The day after you entered the hot spring pool."

Hua Changxi was genuinely happy for Hua Liulang. "Sixth Brother, I knew you were the best."

Hua Liulang chuckled modestly. "I was able to advance to Nascent Soul so quickly only thanks to the elders allowing me to cultivate in the depths of the Earth Fire. Otherwise, I don't know when I would have broken through from Core Formation to Nascent Soul."

Hearing this, Yan Zhenzhen laughed immediately. "Tong Yao, I imagine quite a few Artifact Saint Palace disciples have recently advanced to Nascent Soul, haven't they?"

Tong Yao smiled but did not deny it.

Although the destruction of the Artifact Saint Palace's mountain-protecting grand formation had negative effects, it also had a positive side for the sect's development.

After all, the vast majority of the Artifact Saint Palace's secret realms and spirit veins were now usable.

Deep within the Earth Fire, the concentration of fire spirit energy was dozens of times that of the outside world, making it ideal for cultivation. Artifact Saint Palace disciples training there had seen their cultivation levels greatly increase, with Hua Liulang being a standout among them.

"Let's go. We can talk on the way."

Tong Yao produced a small flying boat and looked at Hua Changxi, Jingliao, and Yan Zhenzhen. "One of you navigate for me."

Yan Zhenzhen walked over.

On the flying boat, Hua Changxi stood next to Hua Liulang. "It's a good thing you're a Nascent Soul cultivator now; otherwise, I wouldn't have dared to let you come along."

Hua Liulang: "Where are we going?" Originally, the Second Elder had wanted to send other disciples as well, but the Great Elder stopped him.

Hua Changxi: "A place suspected to be the Xuanwu City Lord's Mansion."

As soon as these words were spoken, the flying boat lurched violently, obviously because Tong Yao had lost control of it.

Tong Yao stared at Hua Changxi in shock. "What did you say? Where are we going?"

Hua Changxi smiled at him. "A place suspected to be the Xuanwu City Lord's Mansion. What do you think? Aren't we good to you?"

Tong Yao turned to Jingliao and Yan Zhenzhen for confirmation. Seeing both of them nod at him, he was momentarily at a loss for words.

Since entering the Artifact Saint Palace, Hua Liulang had spent no small amount of time in the library. Now that he was no longer a cultivation newbie, he naturally knew what kind of existence the city lord's manor of Xuanhuang City was in the Central Continent, and his mouth fell open in shock as well.

Hua Changxi paid no mind to Tong Yao's shock, and seeing Hua? she said.

Hua Liulang snapped back to attention: "Father and Mother are both hoping you'll return. If they don't see you, they're sure to be disappointed. As for the rest of the family... they all miss you very much too."

Hua Changxi: "...Once I'm done with my work, I'll go home and see Father and Mother." As she spoke, she smiled and looked at Hua?.

Hua Liulang smiled and nodded: "Father, Mother, and Grandfather and Grandmother were all very happy, it's just that..."

Hua Changxi: "What is it?"

Hua Liulang's smile faded, and he said somewhat gloomily: "It's just that Big Brother and Third Brother don't talk to me much anymore."

Hua Changxi was taken aback.

Hua Liulang looked at Hua Changxi: "Jiuniang, Big Brother and Third Brother think you're partial to me. The other siblings in the family also say you only look after me and ignore them."

Hua Changxi: "I'm not their father or mother, why should I take care of them? As for being partial to you, who told you to be my favorite brother?"

Hua Liulang was momentarily stunned by these words, then broke into a grin, his smile tinged with satisfaction and a hint of embarrassment.

Hua Changxi looked at Hua Liulang: "Liuge, everything you've gained today came from your own efforts. At most, I just provided you with some opportunities."

"But opportunities are common, yet those who can seize them are few."

"It's not like I never gave opportunities to the family—they just couldn't grasp them."

"Sometimes, I really don't want to say much about them. They never look for faults in themselves; they only know how to wallow in self-pity."

Seeing that he had stirred up Hua Changxi's resentment toward the Hua family, Hua Liulang didn't know how to respond.

Fortunately, Yan Zhenzhen's voice rang out at that moment.

"We're almost there."

Hua Changxi stopped talking about the Hua family's affairs with Hua Liulang and simply instructed: "When we get down later, make sure to stay close to me."

A quarter of an hour later, the five appeared at a place where Xuanhuang Qi was seeping out.

Tong Yao carefully inspected the surroundings but found nothing unusual: "Are you sure this is the domain of the Xuanhuang City Lord?"

Hua Changxi didn't answer: "You all stay on guard for me."

After hearing this, Tong Yao and the other three vigilantly kept watch over the surroundings.

"Hoo~"

A branch of the Fusang Divine Tree appeared in Hua Changxi's hand, a ball of flame burning at its tip—the Great Sun Divine Flame.

As soon as the Great Sun Divine Flame appeared, the temperature around them shot up immediately.

None of the four—Tong Yao, Yan Zhenzhen, Hua Liulang, and Jing Liao—could look directly at the Great Sun Divine Flame. Only Jing Liao squinted, enduring the burning pain in his eyes, and 'saw' the chains of the 'Rend' law缠绕 around the halo of the Great Sun Divine Flame.

Jing Liao watched as Hua Changxi, holding the Great Sun Divine Flame, walked straight toward the area where Xuanhuang Qi was dispersing, then summoned a white longsword.

"Riiip~"

The sound of tearing rang out.

Jing Liao saw Hua Changxi, white longsword in hand, struggling to pry something open. Soon, ripples spread through the air, and then a fine black crack appeared in his line of sight.

"It's a spatial rift!"