A desolate and silent land at the extreme south.
Here, seldom do humans tread, and even ascetics choose not to cultivate their practices in such a place.
Compared to the alternation of day and night in the extreme north, the extreme south is enveloped in perpetual night; even the starlight above the sky is extremely rare.
The extreme south has always been a forbidden area for the humans of the Qingtian Realm.
The landing of this stele caused such a huge commotion, yet it still failed to attract anyone's attention.
The ancient and vicissitudinous characters on the stele spewed dazzling light, sending out circular shockwaves that dissipated in all directions, the affected area spreading wider and wider.
In the blink of an eye, nearly the entire extreme south was enveloped within it.
The shockwaves folded back.
Wave after wave returned to the stele, continually shrinking the scope of the shockwave until it retracted entirely back into the stele. At the same time, the primitive and ancient characters on the stele finally revealed themselves—Immortality!
These two characters breathed a bewitching red light, giving off an extremely eerie feeling.
In this vast and boundless extreme south, who knows how long it would be before someone discovers it!
The Daqian Dynasty, the Imperial Capital.
In recent days, the entire Daqian Dynasty has been plunged into a frenzy, from the royal nobles down to the common people busy in the streets.
Especially Emperor Qian and Yang Ling, even Yang Zun personally entered the arena.
They were reorganizing the neighboring states, incorporating their forces into their own territory.
Fortunately, this time the Nantian Dynasty had summoned all nations to attack Great Qian, drawing out all the elites and powerhouses from these countries, leaving their interiors extremely vulnerable.
Bai Fa Sword Emperor was appointed Grand Marshal Tianbao.
With his strength as the unrivaled number one powerhouse of the chaotic seas, he easily swept through those nations, unmatched by any.
Ji Luanyue and Huang Feihu were similarly rewarded.
Ji Luanyue became the supreme commander of the Daqian Dynasty's navy, integrating the forces of Luan Yue Valley, the Huang Family and the Bai Fa Pirate Group to establish the navy of the Daqian Dynasty.
As for Huang Feihu, he was granted the title of King Zhenhai!
The Beast Emperor Sea and the chaotic maritime regions all fell under his jurisdiction.
It was a cause for celebration for all.
A group of pirates accustomed to a nomadic life of bloodshed in the chaotic maritime regions, now settled down with an officially recognized status, could be described as bringing honor to their ancestors. Moreover, Xiao Yi had thoroughly subdued them, so naturally they would not dare have any other thoughts. As a result, although the Daqian Dynasty had not yet been officially established,
the strength of the entire nation had increased by tens or even hundreds of times!
it might become possible to confront the Nantian Dynasty on true equal terms, rather than continuing as now, solely relying on the relationship with Baiyu and Fang Qingzhu to tread cautiously around the Nantian Dynasty.
Imperial Dragon Mountain, Xiaoshanhe Institute.
Within a separate courtyard.
Xiao Yi and Fang Qingzhu were enjoying tea, the two of them having been inseparable in recent days. However, they had still not crossed the final threshold.
Xiao Xue, the blindingly bright and fiery lightbulb, was always by Fang Qingzhu's side.
Xiao Yi had considered separating Xiao Xue, but even Fang Qingzhu could not order Xiao Xue to leave her side. According to Xiao Xue, "The Saint Lord instructed that I must absolutely, absolutely not leave the miss's side, especially when the miss is with you!"
Under Xiao Xue's vigilant gaze, akin to that of a thief-guarding watchman, Xiao Yi and Fang Qingzhu could only entertain a craving without satisfaction.
This sort of thing isn't great to describe in too much detail. Let's just say that what had to be done was done, only the last step remained.
That's all I'll say on the matter!
I'd better stop before I summon the harmonious beast...
"Boss, I heard Qingzhu is back? Where is she? Where is she?" An excited voice suddenly came from outside as Little Lin flew in hastily.
Just as Xiao Yi was enjoying the gentle touch of Fang Qingzhu's delicate jade-like hands, his eyes rolled back in annoyance. By then, Little Lin had already landed in the courtyard. As soon as he saw Fang Qingzhu, he let out a 'wow' and pounced on her, climbing onto her shoulder and standing upright as he said, "Qingzhu, I've missed you so much!"
"Little Lin, I missed you too!"
Fang Qingzhu smiled and let Little Lin perch on her palm, saying with a smile, "Little Lin, let me introduce a new friend to you! This is my good sister Xiao Xue, and Xiao Xue, this is the Little Lin I often mention to you..."
Little Lin blinked in surprise, then turned to look at Xiao Xue.
The moment he saw her, Little Lin's eyes nearly popped out. He felt a strong attraction in their blood, as if there was something on Xiao Xue's person that he found utterly captivating.
Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!
Little Lin, wriggling his body, landed on Xiao Xue's shoulder, standing upright, his golden-red scales shimmering. His eyes glowing, he stared at Xiao Xue and hissed, "Sister Xiao Xue, has anyone ever told you that you're a bit weird?"
Xiao Xue was taken aback.
Fiddling for snacks in her pocket with her slender hands, she asked in confusion, "Weird? What's weird?"
Little Lin grinned and said, "Weirdly likable!"
Proud of himself, Little Lin raised an eyebrow at them and then turned his head back to the befuddled Xiao Xue and continued, "Sister Xiao Xue, do you know which year I like the most?"
Xiao Xue, already pulling a chicken leg out of her pocket, shook her head involuntarily.
Little Lin chuckled and said, "The Year I Love You Ten Thousand!"
Xiao Yi's face twitched.
Fang Qingzhu covered her mouth and giggled, nearly crying with laughter, whispering, "Xiao Yi, where did Little Lin learn all this from?"
Xiao Yi touched his nose: "Certainly not from me!"
Seeing everyone's reaction, Little Lin became even more smug inside. These were all tricks Lei Long, that iron fool, had taught him; he didn't expect it to actually work. With an air of self-satisfaction, he looked at Xiao Xue, ready to speak again, but was met with a chicken leg Xiao Xue was shoving at his face, stuffing it straight into his mouth, followed by a cold chill emanating from her.
A bone-chilling cold instantly froze Little Lin stiff, and with a thud, he fell to the ground.
Little Lin, rigid as an ice pop, bounced 'duangduang' twice on the ground, only his eyes rolling around helplessly.
Xiao Xue glared fiercely at Little Lin, stamped her foot, and turned to Fang Qingzhu to say, "Miss, this jerk is harassing me! And you said he was a good person? I'm not talking to you anymore..."
Fang Qingzhu rolled her eyes and looked helplessly at Xiao Yi before placating, "Alright, I'll take you for some tasty food to make it up to you, okay?"
At the mention of tasty food, Xiao Xue's eyes lit up, and she nodded vigorously, "Tasty food, I want to go now!"
Xiao Yi said with a smile, "Let Fei Yan take you! She's more familiar with the imperial city!"
Fang Qingzhu nodded and led Xiao Xue away.
Xiao Yi watched Little Lin with resignation and, flicking his fingers, sent a burst of energy to melt the ice on his body, saying helplessly, "Where did you learn all this nonsense from?"
Little Lin hung his head: "Lei Long taught me. He also said that with this trick, he's found seventeen or eighteen wives in the Chaotic Sea!"
Xiao Yi rolled his eyes: "You believe that iron fool? Bai Fa already said, Lei Long's wives... all of them were 'acquired' by force..."
Xiao Yi smiled and was about to speak again when his expression subtly tightened, and he said without a trace, "Why don't you follow Qingzhu and the others around for a bit and buy Xiao Xue some nice treats? That works much better than any sweet nothings you could say!"
Little Lin's eyes widened, and seeing Xiao Yi nod, he chuckled and dashed off eagerly.
"Remember to pay, okay?"
After reminding him, when Little Lin was gone, Xiao Yi turned to the corner of the courtyard and spoke lightly, "Since you're here, why not come out and meet me?"
PS: Uploading one chapter first! Today, as usual, there'll be no less than ten updates! But this afternoon, Xiao Tian has something urgent to attend to, so I'll only be able to continue writing when I get back later. Please forgive me, everyone!