Eternal Life by Dual Cultivation

Chapter 252 - 177: The Fall of a Golden Core (2)

’Who on earth did this?!’

After a long moment, Fu Yin Xue swallowed hard. She realized the danger here hadn’t passed and that she needed to leave immediately.

Wiping the vast Hanyue Continent off the map was not something an ordinary major power could accomplish. She couldn’t imagine what kind of terrifying enemy Hanyue Gate had provoked.

Besides, given the circumstances, it didn’t seem right to return to headquarters. Who knew what unforeseen consequences might occur?

After weighing her options, Fu Yin Xue finally made a decision.

She summoned her Flying Ship, boarded it, and sped away.

...

Just a day later, a pitch-black Flying Ship, over a hundred feet long and unadorned in appearance, appeared on the horizon, silently speeding in.

Inside the cabin, the Dragon Race’s Sixth Princess, Luo Qingxuan, furrowed her elegant brows, staring silently at the apocalyptic scene displayed on the Magical Projection Light Mirror.

Queen Bai Qingyi, Eldest Princess Luo Qingyi, Third Princess Luo Qingyu, and Eleventh Princess Luo Qingning were also stunned into silence, their faces filled with disbelief.

"...W-what happened here?"

After a long silence, Luo Qingyu finally murmured, a faint tremor in her voice.

It had only been a few years, but the once-thriving and vibrant Hanyue Continent and its surrounding islands now showed no signs of life.

Bai Qingyi, her dark hair coiled high and dressed in a complex and magnificent vermilion gown that gave her an air of noble grace, frowned in thought for a moment before speaking.

"This catastrophe seems to have occurred not long ago. Could it be... that some other power beat us to it?"

"Perhaps... that’s it!"

Luo Qingxuan’s face grew pale. She felt as though something precious and important was slipping away from her.

Back then, the upper echelons of the Dragon Race and the Nine Great Families of Yuzhou had decided to join forces, combining their intelligence networks to track down the Child of Destiny.

But Luo Qingxuan had held back. For example, she never breathed a word about how Ling Changqing had first appeared on Hanyue Continent, or the circumstances under which she met him.

The maids and guards who had been with her at the time were long since isolated and detained by her. With Queen Bai Qingyi’s help, she had even used a Forbidden Secret Technique to erase parts of their memories.

Thus, to this day, the leaders of the Nine Great Families had no idea where the Child of Destiny first appeared.

Luo Qingxuan’s story to them was that she had met Ling Changqing on some deserted, uninhabited island and then brought him back with her.

Now, feeling that the heat had died down, Luo Qingxuan had decided to sneak out with Bai Qingyi and her other sisters to Hanyue Continent to search for Ling Changqing’s whereabouts.

Unfortunately, with things as they were now, there were no leads to follow.

The destruction of Hanyue Continent meant all leads had gone cold. Even if the Dragon Race and the Nine Great Families poured all their resources into the search, it would be impossible to find any more valuable information.

"Mother Queen, perhaps we could check the surrounding sea regions?"

Eldest Princess Luo Qingyi suggested in a low voice.

Bai Qingyi shook her head. "I’m afraid it’s too late. If I’m not mistaken, the surrounding landmasses and islands near Hanyue Continent have likely all been reduced to rubble as well."

"..."

The Dragon Princesses looked at each other, at a loss for words.

"Let’s go back. This place is still very dangerous. We can’t stay long."

Bai Qingyi said.

Now that the mysterious mastermind had made their move, Ling Changqing’s future was likely even more uncertain. However, this was no longer something the Dragon Race and the Nine Great Families could interfere with.

...

「Changqing Continent.」

Lightning flashed and thunder roared in the sky amidst a torrential downpour. Bursts of light from powerful Divine Techniques erupted from time to time as the life-and-death battle entered its most intense phase.

The Magical Treasure-Level Battle Saber in Lu Armor’s hand vibrated intensely, unleashing waves of saber light that swirled like a gathering storm, nearly illuminating the Celestial Vault above the family headquarters.

Ling Qiyue had already summoned the Fenghuo Panyun Bell. A thick, crimson radiance pulsed from it, and the faint chime of a bell echoed on the level of the Divine Soul.

Streams of brilliant, crimson light descended, forming a thick, resilient barrier. Combined with two other Defensive Magical Treasures, she easily withstood the storm of attacks from Lu Armor.

But she wasn’t one to just take a beating. The Magical Treasure Flying Sword in her hand, shimmering with a hazy moonlight, conjured layers upon layers of sharp Sword Qi. The crisscrossing flashes of her sword put immense pressure on Lu Armor.

"...I never would have thought. So, Fairy Ling, you’re already a Late stage Golden Core expert!"

Lu Armor said as he counterattacked, a helpless smile on his face. "If we’d known, my wife and I would have never taken this job!"

This young Patriarch of the Ling Family not only surpassed him in Cultivation but also possessed more Magical Treasures. Her combat experience was clearly not lacking either. ’How am I supposed to fight this?’

"Regretting it now? A little too late for that!"

Ling Qiyue said coldly, her attacks not slowing in the slightest.

Lu Armor hesitated for a moment before cautiously saying, "Can we talk?"

For a short time, he could manage to hold his ground. But if this dragged on, he was certain to be defeated and injured.

In the Golden Core Realm, the differences in combat power, Magical Power purity, and the total amount of Magical Power between the Middle Stage and the Late stage were quite significant.

That was why Lu Armor was now thinking of retreating. He had always avoided fights like this—ones that purely drained his resources with no reward.

Hundreds of years as a Loose Cultivator, where every step had been a struggle, had taught him to be meticulous with every bit of his resources. He would never fight a battle with nothing to gain.

"What do you have in mind?"

Ling Qiyue asked with a cold smile, one elegant eyebrow raised.

"My wife and I will withdraw from this battle immediately. Once your Ling Family unifies the Feiyu Sea Region, I want Yu Long Island as my exclusive daoist sanctum!"