The door of the hotpot restaurant was tightly shut.
"The martial arts you employ seem to originate from the Heavenly Mountain Sword Manor?" Qian Bufan, with his broad knowledge, inquired.
He picked up a slice of beef.
Honestly, where did Li Mo get this hotpot recipe? It was surprisingly fragrant.
"Indeed." Mei Yun did not deny it.
Though she didn’t explicitly state it, her identity was now clear to everyone present.
Mei Yun, the "Plum Sword" of the Four Noble Ones (Plum, Orchid, Bamboo, Chrysanthemum), had once ranked 41st on the Human List of the Nine Heavens and Ten Earths Wind and Cloud Rankings before voluntarily leaving the Heavenly Mountain Sword Manor.
"I am Qian Bufan, the External Affairs Elder of the Qingyuan Sect."
Qian Bufan introduced everyone in turn, including Shang Wu.
Upon hearing Shang Wu’s name, Mei Yun’s gaze flickered slightly as she observed the palace-robed woman currently dipping mutton into the broth.
After a brief silence, she spoke:
"All of you are pivotal figures in the Eastern Wasteland Domain."
"What I know—what I can disclose—should rightfully be shared with you."
Qian Bufan picked up another piece of tofu skin, glanced at the expressions of the others, then nodded.
"We’re all ears."
"I don’t know why the Misty Rain Tower established a branch here, but it likely has no connection to the Demon Summoning Sect."
"That Prefecture Lord Cui was collaborating with the Demon Summoning Sect in secret."
The Demon Summoning Sect.
Hearing these three words, the atmosphere in the room grew heavy.
"What does the Demon Summoning Sect intend to do?" asked the scholarly-robed middle-aged man from the Blazing Jade Forest.
"They’ve discovered a Blood Phoenix Secret Realm."
The words fell like a boulder crashing into still waters.
Qian Bufan sucked in a sharp breath—along with a piece of rice tofu.
Blood Phoenix Secret Realm.
Legends spoke of the Blood Phoenix as one of the nine souls of the Primordial Nine-Colored Phoenix, indestructible and immortal, capable of rebirth through nirvana each time it perished.
Every time it died and was reborn, its remains would fall, forming a Blood Phoenix Secret Realm at the site of its descent.
Thus, there was more than one such realm.
Of course, some of this might be exaggerated—after all, the true Blood Phoenix had vanished without a trace for countless years.
Yet countless powerhouses still pursued it relentlessly.
Indestructible and immortal.
What a mesmerizing phrase.
Could the barren Eastern Wasteland Domain truly be the site where a Blood Phoenix once fell?
"The location is in Qinghe County. That’s all I know."
"Unfortunately, the Endless Trial ended prematurely, so I’m unaware of further details."
Mei Yun shook her head slightly.
Qinghe County?
The scholarly-robed man from the Blazing Jade Forest suddenly brightened.
Qinghe County was close to their Blazing Jade Forest.
But...
Well, proximity didn’t matter. Judging by the expressions around him, none of these people would care about a little extra travel.
"A pity. The Demon Summoning Sect disciples and the Misty Rain Tower members are all dead..."
"Not necessarily."
Mei Yun shook her head.
"The top three of the Endless Trial are still alive."
"Who are they? I’ll capture them and make them talk!"
"Allow me. Our Blazing Jade Forest excels in ‘persuasion with reason.’ I’ll ensure they reveal everything."
"Li Mo, Ying Bing, Xiao Qin."
"......"
The gathered Inner Breath Realm experts all turned suspicious gazes toward Elder Qian.
Seriously?
Does your Qingyuan Sect have some kind of strategic partnership with the Misty Rain Tower?
How else could all three top spots belong to your disciples?!
"What exactly did they do?"
Elder Qian’s expression was odd.
He had sent them to the prefecture city to maintain order and prevent the Misty Rain Tower from causing trouble—not to join them outright!
He wasn’t entirely sure what had happened in the city either, so he turned to Shang Wu:
"Weren’t they just running a hotpot restaurant?"
"Indeed. Look how well business is downstairs. This was their method of gathering intelligence."
Shang Wu replied nonchalantly.
The Inner Breath Realm experts: "......"
Now they understood why the Endless Trial had ended prematurely.
"To be fair, if they hadn’t alerted Elder Shang Wu in time, it might have been too late by the time we arrived."
Qian Bufan solemnly chewed a piece of duck intestine, emphasizing the Qingyuan Sect’s impeccable stance.
"Our Qingyuan Sect will even reward them for their contributions."
He was thinking ahead.
If the Misty Rain Tower ever targeted Purple Sun Prefecture again, having Li Mo and the others in place would allow them to monitor the situation closely.
"Ying Bing slew an Observation Divine Realm assassin. That’s no small feat," remarked the scholarly-robed man from the Blazing Jade Forest.
The gap between Inner Breath Realm and Observation Divine Realm was far greater than that between Qi-Blood Realm and Inner Breath Realm.
Many prodigies who excelled in the Qi-Blood Realm struggled to hold their own against opponents even one minor realm above them in the Inner Breath Realm.
After discussing further details and agreeing to maintain communication, the group finally picked up their chopsticks again.
"All this talking has made me hungry."
"Let’s eat."
"After this, I still need to report back to the sect... Hm?"
"Where’s the food?"
"Now that you mention it, it’s strange. There was plenty just a moment ago." Qian Bufan chewed the last piece of tripe with a grave expression.
......
"Golden Crow Transforming into the Sun Visualization Art."
"Was the sun of the Nine Heavens and Ten Earths once formed by a Golden Crow?"
Li Mo pondered, raising his gaze to the sky.
Even now, as an Inner Breath Realm cultivator, he found the three suns unbearably bright to look at directly.
For ordinary people, it was merely dazzling.
But Li Mo, having trained under Shang Wu, had begun to develop a rudimentary "intent." As a result, he felt a scorching dryness deep in his soul.
He couldn’t stare for long.
Li Mo quickly averted his eyes.
He didn’t know which visualization arts were considered rare or valuable.
But there was no doubt that the Golden Crow Transforming into the Sun Visualization Art in his possession was among the most exceptional.
After all, it had been looted from Princess Little Jiang.
It was far superior to that Night Ghost Visualization Art.
Unfortunately, he couldn’t use it yet.
"I’ll have to wait until the Observation Divine Realm."
Li Mo didn’t think that would take too long.
From his system space, he retrieved a stone flask containing a pool of azure liquid.
Greenwood Vitality Elixir.
The vitality within would greatly ease the process of condensing Qi into liquid, sparing him much effort.
......
Time passed like a fleeting steed.
Over the next ten days:
During the day, Li Mo taught Jiang Chulong and Mei Yun how to run the hotpot restaurant.
To his surprise, he discovered that among the deeds he had obtained back in Qingyuan, this shop was included.
In other words, Young Li had been the owner of this establishment for quite some time.
Ah, fate, you fickle thing...
Since the shop was just sitting there anyway, Li Mo handed the hotpot recipe to Jiang Chulong and let Mei Yun settle here with the little ones.
In the afternoons, he trained.
At night, he dual-cultivated.
With the ice block’s (Ying Bing’s) help, his progress in the Inner Breath Realm was remarkable.
On the tenth night, he finally refined the thirty-six lotus seeds down to a single one, which took root and sprouted.
Young Li had officially become an Inner Breath Realm martial artist.
The dual cultivation sessions also came to a temporary halt.
The presence of foreign Qi during the process of condensing Qi into a core could lead to impurities in the Mystic Core.
......
June arrived, and summer crept in unnoticed.
One morning:
When Ying Bing opened her eyes, she instinctively reached to remove the arm draped over her neck—only to grasp at empty air.
Then she remembered.
Starting yesterday, the two of them were no longer sharing a bed.
A whole month had passed.
[Congratulations, Host. You have successfully completed the first punishment of the defeated.]
[Third-tier reward issued: True Phoenix Feather.]
[Evaluating completion level...]
[Completion: 100%.]
[Rating: D. Only eligible for D-tier additional rewards.]
Ying Bing had long known that completing the punishment for defeat would grant additional rewards.
But what did "Grade D" mean?
She recognized the True Phoenix Feather—she had obtained it in her past life.
Because of this, Ying Bing was actually more curious about the extra reward.
"I clearly followed the system's requirements and completed the punishment, yet the rating is so low."
"Grade D... better than nothing, I suppose. I wonder if I can even use this..."
Ying Bing checked the rewards section.
[Randomly selecting Grade D reward.]
[Congratulations, Host. You have obtained one piece of lingerie.]
Ying Bing: "?"
Lingerie? What is that?
Such an unfamiliar term.
young master of the Shen family—a figure of immense power and wealth beyond measure—and awakened the "Destined Ultimate Villain System"! His starting scenario? Running into his icy fiancée who shows up with a mountain-descending divine doctor to break off their engagement. The divine doctor arrogantly taunts: "What does your Shen family have besides a bit of stinking money? You're not even worthy of tying Qingxue's shoelaces!" Shen Fei just smiled. He completely defied the usual script: "Fine, I agree to break off the engagement. Also, notify the finance department to withdraw all investments from the Su family." Minutes later, with its capital chain severed, the Su Group teetered on the brink of bankruptcy! The once aloof and proud ice queen CEO was thrown into utter panic. That very night, she went to Shen Fei's villa, casting aside all dignity to beg and plead desperately... From then on, in this world teeming with Sons of Destiny, Shen Fei embarked on a path of extreme dimensional suppression! A mountain-descending divine doctor? Peerless medical skills? Shen Fei: "Reporting you for practicing medicine without a license! I'll gladly take your ancient medicinal cauldron and twin sister assassins." The Crooked-Smiling Dragon King? Commanding a hundred thousand soldiers with a single order? Shen Fei: "Illegal assembly and suspected treason! Let a fleet of attack helicopters sanitize the area and teach you what the state apparatus really means!" A reborn tycoon? Knows all the golden opportunities of the next decade? Shen Fei: "A trillion in capital to reverse and pump the stock market, making you blow your margin and jump on the very first day of your rebirth!" What Chosen Ones? What bearers of Heavenly Fortune? In Shen Fei's eyes, they're all just chives (i.e., suckers/marks) waiting to be harvested! Shen Fei: "Sorry, but as the Destined Ultimate Villain, I don't play by the rules of honor. I only play the game of dimensional suppression."
saw a female celebrity tied up and stuffed in the trunk! Little did he know, countless cameras were aimed at him at this moment - this was a new type of reality show. The first randomly selected passerby was caught in less than an hour. But when Xu Moru was selected, things started to take an unexpected turn. "Damn, this isn't how the script goes. This Xu Moru is too bold, he's not following the rules at all." "Crap, is this guy taking it seriously?" "The female celebrity has been scared to tears!"
ive and Ruthless] Before his transmigration, Ye Xuan was playing a game called "Severing Emotions to Attain the Dao." The game's core wasn't about leveling up by fighting monsters, but about conquering various "bad women" with wicked personalities and cold, fickle natures. There was only one method to conquer them: stay unwaveringly by their side, then die at a critical moment, driving them to madness after losing the protagonist. The higher their level of regret, the higher the player's score. To dominate the server, Ye Xuan conquered all the bad women. In the early stages, he showered them with boundless tenderness, only to choose to sacrifice himself for them later, making them weep bitterly and drown in regret. Among them were: Xia Lengyue, the unfaithful immortal wife who chased after powerful men and discarded her husband like trash. Ye Qingcheng, the Demonic Venerable of the Joyous Union Sect, who appeared pure and innocent but was, in reality, promiscuous. Wu Lingxiao, the Empress of the Great Xia Dynasty, who lusted after men and loved maintaining a harem. Bai Qiangu of the Endless Demonic Sect: a bloodthirsty mass murderer. However, when the protagonist transmigrated into the game world, he made a horrifying discovery. Eight hundred years had already passed. The bad women he had conquered had now each become deities and revered ancestors. Faced with the endless stream of toxic women coming for him, Ye Xuan could only rely on his god-tier acting skills to carve a path of survival through this world of treacherous women.
rowess are unmatched, commanding a million-strong army! Yet, the Emperor wants to depose him for the sake of a false prince? Hold on, are you throwing me into some female-oriented romance plot? How can I tolerate this? With a grand wave of his hand—the Nine Clan Extraction Technique! Slander the Emperor? Very well, all of you shall die! ... The False Prince: "Although I am not the biological son, Father and Mother love me more. The throne should be mine!" The Female Lead: "Qin Xiao, you are the Emperor, and I am a commoner. If you wish to marry me, you must abdicate. Otherwise, you will never have me!" The Empress: "After we divorce, you must give me half the empire!" The Transmigrator Consort: "You worthless Emperor, why should I kneel to you? All men are equal—I advise you to be kind!" The Great General: "The enemy general is my childhood sweetheart. For her sake, I willingly abandon the frontier defenses!" The Retired Emperor: "Although Yu'er was adopted, I prefer him. Qin Xiao, you should abdicate and let him become Emperor!" ... Very well! So this is how you want to play? Facing this twisted world of female-oriented tropes, Qin Xiao grins and raises his hand to unleash—the Nine Clan Extraction Technique! I am the Emperor. Why would I bother reasoning with you? Seal the gates! Leave none alive!
