Chapter 1076: Chapter 330: Fellow Daoist Lan, Have You Seen My Eldest Senior Brother, the Ghost Mastiff?

The sea of clouds surged, radiating brilliant rays.

A nimble flying ship traversed the vast sea of clouds, Zhou Qing stood at the bow with hands clasped behind, his green robe fluttering in the wind.

On the deck, Luo Lingling spread her arms wide, letting the breeze scatter her long hair.

At this moment, she had already taken off her bullhead mask, her delicate face glowing with a radiant luster under the sunlight.

After taking a deep breath, she suddenly shouted, "How—free—it—is!"

Zhou Qing’s lips curved slightly, with a gentle tap of his fingertip, the flying ship continued to accelerate, weaving through the sea of clouds.

Soon, Luo Lingling lightly stepped beside Zhou Qing.

She tilted her head to appraise this junior, a mischievous smile in her eyes: "How come you left without saying goodbye, aren’t you afraid Jin Mantang and others will be jumping in urgency?" 𝗳𝚛𝗲𝕖𝚠𝚎𝚋𝗻𝗼𝕧𝗲𝐥.𝚌𝚘𝐦

Zhou Qing gave a faint smile, "I’ve said all that needed to be said, why delay any further? Moreover—"

He paused, a deep gleam in his eyes, "We should avoid getting too entangled in the relationship between Duobao Trading House and the Royal Family."

Luo Lingling nodded thoughtfully.

During the past six months, while Zhou Qing was in closed-door cultivation, she had gleaned considerable information from Jin Mantang.

As a lifesaver, that shopkeeper from Jin Mantang was almost entirely candid—except for the core secrets of the trading house, of course.

According to Jin Mantang, the mysterious chairman of the trading house is a legendary Spirit Severing Realm master.

This person was renowned for their brilliance in commerce, adept and well-connected.

To break through the Spirit Severing Realm, they had once presented a young Nine Nether Demon Lotus to the Old Emperor as a gesture of sincerity.

They ultimately passed the royal test, were granted the Breaking Realm Elixirs, and the cost was that twenty percent of the trading house’s profits would be handed over to the Imperial Family annually, with the other party having priority choice.

Therefore, the Nine Nether Demon Lotus obtained by the trading house this time will inevitably fall into the hands of the Xuanyuan Family.

In the end, new secret medicines will be developed, attracting more Divinity Transformation Realm Perfection masters to showcase their worth and thus facilitating transactions.

Moreover, according to Zhou Qing’s deduction, the Royal Family’s tactics could be considered open schemes.

They intentionally released the Nine Nether Demon Lotus as the key Spirit Medicine to break through the Spirit Severing Realm, prompting cultivators from everywhere to search.

Once it emerges, they might either purchase it with a heavy sum or seize it by force, ultimately leaving others with nothing but a wedding dress.

Precisely because of this, upon brief mention by his senior sister, Zhou Qing immediately decided to depart, minimizing contact with the people of the Royal Family.

At present, he cast his gaze toward the distance.

Four months’ journey remains to the imperial city, he can leisurely proceed while appreciating the scenery along the way.

Strictly speaking, he’s already much faster than Sikong Yan.

Luo Lingling was about to say something but then remembered something, cautiously transmitting a message.

"Xiao Qing, you are a Four Flowers Gathering at the Crown prodigy, the Spirit Severing Realm is just the beginning for you, don’t emulate those mediocrities relying on elixirs to break shackles, senior sister believes in you."

Upon hearing this, Zhou Qing smiled, the golden patterns swirling in his eyes.

How could he ever reach a deal with the Xuanyuan Family to exchange for a breakthrough opportunity?

After all, the Lu Family sisters and Second Uncle are guiding lights on his cultivation path.

Even without considering these, with his current talent, coupled with the Enlightenment Ancient Tea Tree, Four Flowers Gathering at the Crown, and "Demon-Suppressing Golden Bone", these foundations have long paved the way for the Spirit Severing Realm.

His breakthrough in Spirit Severing is simply a matter of time!

Luo Lingling, hearing this, showed a flash of appreciation in her eyes, but as she was about to speak further, her gaze suddenly fixed, pointing downwards: "Eh? There seems to be a city over there!"

Zhou Qing followed her line of sight, sure enough, saw an ancient city nestled among mountains.

The city walls appeared mottled, yet exuded a sense of aged profundity.

"Shall we go down and take a look?" Luo Lingling was eager.

Zhou Qing pondered briefly and nodded, "Alright."

With that said, the flying ship adjusted its direction, slowly descending toward the ancient city...

Just as they descended halfway, they saw two figures fiercely battling in the wilderness outside the city.

One chased, one fled, spiritual power surged, shaking the surrounding vegetation to the ground.

"Ha, no matter where you go, you can’t escape the law of the weak are prey to the strong." Luo Lingling sighed lightly and shook her head with a trace of helplessness in her tone.

Zhou Qing merely gave a faint smile and ignored it.

The cultivation world indeed is like this, the strong prey on the weak, life and death are self-borne, he didn’t intend to intervene.

However, just as he was about to withdraw his gaze, the person being chased stumbled suddenly, their long hair fluttering, revealing a face both unfamiliar yet somewhat familiar.

"Hmm?" Zhou Qing’s eyes focused, "It’s actually her!"

Luo Lingling noticed his reaction, turned her head to inquire, "Do you know her?"

Zhou Qing nodded, without further explanation, directly urged the flying ship to dive down as a stream of light!

...

Lan Caiwei carried an intricately carved longbow, its body shimmering with a faint chill.

Her whole being was like a frost flower in the cold night, cold and aloof.

Yet at this moment, a trickle of blood escaped the corner of her mouth, her complexion slightly pale, evidently injured.

"Heh, little miss, don’t run so fast!"

Behind her, a burly bald man sneered as he pursued, his head tattooed with strange black runes, muscles knotted all over, each step causing the ground to tremble slightly.

Lan Caiwei gritted her teeth, eyes flashing with anger, "Despicable! Attacking while I’m injured, what kind of skill is that!"

"Hahaha! In the cultivation world, who cares about despicable or not? The victor becomes the king!"

The blood monk laughed heartily, suddenly throwing a punch, the punch wind transformed into a ferocious blood wolf, roaring and lunging forward!

Lan Caiwei quickly turned, her jade hand flipped, the longbow in hand, fingers gathering spiritual power, an arrow shot forth!

The arrow light was like frost, freezing the air, colliding with the blood wolf, erupting in dazzling spiritual light!