Lingxi's Imagination

Ling Xi felt her back tighten under Lao Huang's "friendly" gaze, and she subconsciously clenched the hem of her skirt.

This cow looked delightfully naive, but the glance it just cast over made her feel a faint, almost imperceptible pressure.

She quietly circulated her soul perception, her gaze falling on the dark gold hair of the old yellow cow.

Ordinary demonic beasts had chaotic and mixed auras, but this cow's aura was as deep as a profound pool, even though on the surface it just looked like an ordinary demonic beast.

However, upon careful perception, one would discover that within its seemingly slow breathing, there hid a rhythm that resonated at the same frequency as the spiritual energy of heaven and earth.

"Something is not right..."

Ling Xi muttered in her heart, quietly furrowing her brows!

She subconsciously circulated a trace of her remaining Emperor Soul power, carefully probing toward the seemingly lazy Lao Huang.

It was actually an Azure Heaven Bull!

Saint Realm! At least a great demon of the Saint Realm!

Or perhaps... even higher!

Ling Xi's pupils abruptly shrank, the color instantly draining from her devastatingly beautiful face, and her heart almost skipped a beat.

A Saint Realm great demon capable of sweeping across Xuan Province and making the entire Southern Region tremble was actually lying on the Purple Bamboo Peak in a corner of the Azure Profound Sect, leisurely chewing on spiritual grass like a domestic animal raised by an old farmer!

Absurd! Bizarre! Unimaginable!

Just what kind of dragon's pool and tiger's den was this Azure Profound Sect?

A master who seemingly only had a Cave Heaven Realm cultivation, disciples under him who were all full of eccentricities, spiritual energy within the peak comparable to an Imperial Court secret realm, and now a Saint Realm great demon disguised as a spiritual beast had popped up!

Why was it lurking here? To seize the spiritual vein of the Purple Bamboo Peak?

Or was it... an even bigger conspiracy?

When she looked at Lao Huang again, the curiosity in her eyes completely turned into vigilance.

Traces of a chill seeped from Ling Xi's back. She stared sharply at Lao Huang, the muscles all over her body tensing up unconsciously.

She almost blurted out to warn Gu Changge beside her, who seemed completely oblivious.

But when the words reached her mouth, she forcefully swallowed them back.

Tell Gu Changge? Would it be of any use?

Beneath the Saint Realm, all are ants.

Once this Azure Heaven Bull revealed its true cultivation, the entire Azure Profound Sect combined probably wouldn't be enough for it to stomp on with one hoof.

Pointing it out right now would not only be unhelpful, but it might even bring a devastating disaster to the Azure Profound Sect.

Although she could contend with it by erupting the final foundation of her Great Emperor remnant soul, she would also inevitably fall into extreme weakness, perhaps even dying and having her dao vanish, which would not be worth the loss.

Since this old cow chose to disguise itself and lurk, it definitely had a purpose; tearing away all pretenses would be the most foolish choice.

In a flash of lightning, countless thoughts had already crossed Ling Xi's mind.

She forcefully suppressed her churning emotions and restored calm to her face, but deep within those beautiful eyes, her vigilance toward Lao Huang had been raised to the absolute peak.

She slightly lowered her eyelids, avoiding Lao Huang's seemingly honest but actually terrifying gaze, having already made up her mind in her heart: This matter must absolutely not be made public.

I must keep an eye on this Saint Realm great demon and figure out its purpose for lurking here. Before I have enough strength to protect myself or deal with it, I can only pretend to be polite and act as if I know nothing.

When she raised her eyes again, her gaze was completely clear, as if the shock from just now had never happened.

It was just that beneath her wide sleeves, her slender jade fingers had quietly clenched tight.

Lao Huang's huge cow eyes blinked, and a very light, doubtful grunting sound came from its throat: "Moo?"

What was wrong with this little girl?

Just now she was sneakily using her divine sense to probe me, that little commotion was like a mosquito scratching an itch...

Why did her gaze become so weird after she finished probing?

One moment she was terrified to death, and the next she was forcing herself to pretend nothing was wrong... Why was she looking at me like she was guarding against a thief? And even holding a bit of... fear?

Lao Huang flicked its tail, feeling somewhat puzzled.

Gu Changge stood with his hands behind his back, his gaze seemingly sweeping over Ling Xi inadvertently.

The fleeting terror on her face, the forcibly suppressed waves in her eyes, and that appearance of feigning calmness yet failing to conceal her vigilance all fell into his eyes.

The corners of his lips curled up in an imperceptible arc.

This disciple was quite interesting, having such keen spiritual perception to see through Lao Huang's disguise.

However, making things up in one's own mind was the most deadly.

Gu Changge did not point it out either, wanting to see what kind of tricks she could figure out in the future, and also to slowly wear down her arrogance.

...

Deep in the back mountain, a cold pool was shrouded in dense mist, its waters dark and profound.

A thick and long black shadow could be faintly seen slowly swimming at the bottom of the water. Its scales rubbed against the rocks at the bottom of the pool, making a muffled rustling sound. A faint, ferocious aura permeated the air, causing the surrounding insect chirps to disappear.

Gu Changge walked to the edge of the pool, leaned over to look at the blurry, giant black shadow beneath the clear water surface, and then... raised his foot and stomped on the ground by the pool, neither lightly nor heavily.

"Hey, stop sleeping. Get up and go to work."

His tone was normal, as if he was calling a buddy who was sleeping in.

The pool water suddenly surged violently!

"Roar!"

A dragon's roar suppressing fury and grievance boomed from the bottom of the pool, shaking the entire cold pool so that its waters agitated and leaves from the surrounding mountain forest rustled down!

The next moment, a hideous and massive flood dragon's head broke through the surface of the water. Its scarlet vertical pupils stared fixedly at the figure by the pool who made it grind its teeth in hatred yet left it feeling helpless. It spoke in human language, its voice muffled like thunder and carrying monstrous resentment:

"Gu Changge! You're here again! Do you really think this seat is that stupid cow?! You just cut off some meat ten days ago! Even the Dragon Race needs time to recover! This is bullying a dragon too far!"

This flood dragon was entirely covered in dark cyan hard scales, and the bulge on top of its head already faintly showed the posture of a single horn breaking through. Its aura was formidable; it was astonishingly a fierce Demon King that had mostly transformed into a dragon, only one step away from becoming a true dragon!

At this moment, this Demon King, who usually had enough power to summon the wind and rain and dominate a region, was like a coolie whose wages had been deducted, issuing a sorrowful and indignant accusation against Gu Changge.

Gu Changge turned a blind eye to its anger. He stroked his chin, sizing up the tender meat beneath the newly grown scales on its body that glimmered with a precious light, and nodded, seemingly very satisfied.

"Hmm, it looks like you've recovered quite well. The meat should be firmer this time. Don't worry, I won't take too much, just a hundred pounds of marbled oyster blade. That part moves a lot and is chewy."

The flood dragon was so angry it almost spat out a mouthful of old blood, its dragon whiskers trembling: "A hundred pounds?! And marbled oyster blade?! Do you think you're picking out spiritual beef! This seat is a noble flood dragon! A flood dragon!"

"I know, I know, a flood dragon. The texture is indeed a bit chewier than ordinary spiritual beasts."

Gu Changge nodded perfunctorily. Putting his fingers together like a sword, a wisp of formless, sharp sword qi was already flickering at his fingertips.

"Don't move around. I guarantee my cut will be fast, accurate, and ruthless this time, reducing the pain by half. Are you going to do it yourself, or should I?"

Looking at that wisp of sword qi that made its scales turn cold, the flood dragon's massive body froze.

Struggle? Resist?

It had tried countless times!

The result was just getting beaten up even worse and having even more meat cut away!

The giant flood dragon's head heaved violently a few times. Finally, that heart full of sorrow and anger turned into a long, humiliating dragon roar with a trembling tone. It slowly turned around as if accepting its fate, exposing the back of its neck covered with the freshest scales to Gu Changge, its voice choking with sobs:

"You... be gentle... otherwise... otherwise this seat will... will..."

It stammered for a long time, but couldn't come up with a conclusion.

A faint streak of light flashed by. A translucent slice of flood dragon meat, thin as a cicada's wing yet brimming with boundless vital essence, floated gently into the air and landed in the jade box Gu Changge had prepared in advance.

The cut was perfectly smooth; not a single drop of blood seeped out.

The flood dragon's massive body shuddered violently as it let out a stifled groan, a mixture of pain and relief.

Gu Changge snapped the jade box shut and casually tossed the beast a few drops of Innate Spirit Marrow.

Clapping his hands together, he seemed to be in excellent spirits. "Thanks. I'll come looking for you again next time I need some. Rest up well, and try to grow even better meat for next time."

With that, he picked up the jade box and strolled away at a leisurely pace, humming an off-key tune.

Left behind in the freezing depths of the pool, the mugged flood dragon buried its enormous head into the icy water. It let out aggrieved whimpers, too afraid to cry out loud, churning the water and making it splash around loudly.