Chapter 374: Chapter 374: Refining the Twin Blood Lotus
The disciples’ attitude toward Song Wanning had long since changed. These days, all they wanted was to come and watch her meteoric rise, more excited than if they were stepping onto the battle stage themselves.
Now that Song Wanning hadn’t shown up, everyone was deeply disappointed. Still, they were reluctant to leave. ’Maybe she’s just running late?’
It wasn’t until someone mentioned seeing Leng Qingzhu return that the crowd finally had a realization.
"It seems Master Leng is back, so Senior Sister Song must be busy catching up!"
"Looks like she won’t be coming today. Let’s go!"
"Right. I’ll come back tomorrow. Senior Sister Song will definitely be here tomorrow!"
The disciples scattered in twos and threes. The thirtieth-ranked disciple also left, feeling gloomy.
She had been looking forward to this for several days. She’d thought she would get to have a good, hearty fight, but who knew Song Wanning wouldn’t even show up?
The battle stage quickly fell silent again. Only after everyone had dispersed did Jiang Cen slowly emerge, her eyes shadowed and grim.
Ever since Song Wanning had rejected her, Jiang Cen had mentally placed her in Zhang Shuning’s camp. After all, Zhang Shuning had taken Song Wanning to the treasury before; there was no telling if the two had already formed an alliance.
So, upon hearing that Song Wanning was exceptionally strong, she decided to come and probe the truth for herself, to prevent Song Wanning from ruining her plans in the Secret Realm.
But who would have thought Song Wanning wouldn’t even show up today!!!!
Jiang Cen’s expression was foul. Lately, Liu Xingzhi had gone straight into seclusion, giving her absolutely no opportunity to get close.
This made the trip to the Secret Realm extremely important. Talented and beautiful women like Song Wanning and Zhang Shuning were her greatest rivals.
’One Zhang Shuning is bad enough, and now there’s a Song Wanning to deal with. It’s so infuriating!!’
Fuming, Jiang Cen kicked a pebble on the ground, her heart filled with frustration.
The more Liu Xingzhi ignored her, the more she wanted to conquer him...
But she often felt defeated...
’If I hadn’t transmigrated into this book, if I weren’t a Prophet, I probably would have given up long ago.’
Jiang Cen gave herself another pep talk. She decided she still had to come to the battle stage to sound out Song Wanning’s true strength...
...
「Chasing Cloud Peak.」
Song Wanning remained in seclusion. She carefully retrieved the Twin Blood Lotus from her inner world, a hint of delight flashing in her eyes.
Influenced by the Chaos Qi within her inner world, the lotus’s color had dimmed slightly, but the aura it emanated had grown far richer and more profound.
’This is definitely a top-tier Spiritual Object!’
She placed the lotus in her palm, feeling the vibrant life force thrumming within. Even the blood in her veins began to tremble in response.
She let out a long, slow breath, then held it, focusing her mind. Only after emptying her thoughts of all distractions did she begin to refine the Twin Blood Lotus.
She set aside the lotus root from beneath the blossom. It was a peerless material for Artifact Refining, perfect for reforging and enhancing her Lifebound Longsword!
Song Wanning pricked her finger, letting a few drops of blood fall onto the lotus. Then, she forced out a drop of her Heart Blood, adding it to the pistils of the two blossoms.
The moment the Heart Blood touched it, the lotus erupted with a majestic power. It transformed into a streak of blood-red light and, with a SWOOSH, shot into her Dantian.
The instant it entered her Dantian, the lotus exploded, turning into a torrent of crimson liquid that flooded her entire Dantian.
RUMBLE—
A violent roar erupted from her Dantian. Immediately, the Spiritual Energy and Demonic Qi began to ’bicker’ once more. Even with the Chaos Qi weighing them down, neither would submit to the other.
They always seemed to be fighting for dominance.
But soon, the crimson aura directly suppressed them both...
...
Outside the room, Leng Qingzhu stood watch in the courtyard, acting as a protector for her disciple. She idly flipped through an ancient tome on Arrays.
Suddenly, several familiar auras drew near. She lifted her head, her gaze fixed on a few black dots rapidly approaching through the sky.
Even as they landed, she showed no intention of rising.
They, on the other hand, were a whirlwind of activity, calling out loudly before they even stepped through the gate. "Little Junior Sister, we heard your disciple ascended?"
"Quick, quick, let us see!!!"
In an instant, they had surrounded Leng Qingzhu, craning their necks to look around.
"Huh? Where’s your disciple? Why can’t we see her?"
"Little Junior Sister, you didn’t send her away, did you? She’s our one and only martial niece!!!"
Leng Qingzhu: "..."
’These unreliable senior brothers and sisters...’
"Wan Ning is cultivating inside. I’m acting as her protector."
She had no choice but to explain, otherwise, these people might actually charge right in.
"Ah... so eager? Looks like our martial niece is a diligent one. Just like me!!"
Qin Ming placed his hands on his hips with a smug look, already expressing his satisfaction with this martial niece he had yet to meet.
"Second Senior Brother, stop patting yourself on the back. You’re usually the laziest one. Otherwise, how could you still be at the Out-of-Body Stage like the rest of us?"
The third sister, Feng Xue, scoffed, mercilessly shutting Qin Ming down.
"What nonsense are you spouting? I only delayed my cultivation to take care of you all, you ungrateful wretch..."
The two quickly started bickering again.
The fourth brother, Cang Yang, hurried over to mediate, but he wasn’t one for words. His clumsy attempts only fanned the flames...
The three of them devolved into a noisy squabble, enough to give anyone a splitting headache.
Leng Qingzhu watched them with a deadpan expression, her eyes filled with resignation.
’Of her four senior brothers and sisters, only the eldest was remotely reliable. None of the others were normal...’
’But even the eldest senior sister was... a complicated case.’
The corner of Leng Qingzhu’s mouth twitched. ’Was letting Wan Ning stay on Chasing Cloud Peak the right decision?’
Although they were a handful, her senior brothers and sisters were fiercely protective of their own. They were also straightforward, without any hidden agendas.
Now, she could only hope her disciple would get along with them. After all, her own apprentice wasn’t one to let herself be taken advantage of.
...
Once they’d had their fill of bickering, they plopped down beside Leng Qingzhu.
"Little Junior Sister, we heard you’d run off the moment we got out of the Secret Realm. If the elders hadn’t held us back, we would’ve been back ages ago!"
Feng Xue glanced back at the room from time to time, her curiosity about Song Wanning growing.
’Her martial niece went into seclusion the moment she returned. It’s obvious she had a great stroke of fortune and was just waiting for Leng Qingzhu to return to provide protection!’
"Don’t you worry. Your disciple is my disciple. If anything happens, we’ll protect her!"
She slapped Leng Qingzhu’s shoulder magnanimously, radiating an air of someone ready for a brawl.
Qin Ming nodded as well. "Third Junior Sister finally said something that makes sense. Little Junior Sister, rest assured, we’re here. Our martial niece can cultivate without a worry!"
It wasn’t every day they got a pretty and gentle little junior sister; of course, they had to protect her.
And what’s more, their martial niece had just ascended; this was precisely when she needed them.
The more Qin Ming thought about it, the more important he felt, and his expression grew watchful.
Leng Qingzhu’s brow twitched. She said with a resigned sigh, "It’s not like Wan Ning has done anything illicit. She’s just a newcomer, and I’m worried that being too high-profile will attract unwanted attention."
"If everyone knew Wan Ning possessed a supreme treasure, there’s no guarantee some people wouldn’t get ill intentions during the trip to the Secret Realm."
"I see..."
Hearing this, the three of them immediately fell silent. Joking around and bickering was one thing, but when it came to inter-sect conflict, they knew they had to be serious.
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