novelraw Chapter 547 - 191: Mu Qingge, You Finally Showed Up!
Chapter 547 - 191: Mu Qingge, You Finally Showed Up!
"Who goes there!"
Suddenly, someone screamed.
Mu Qingge and the others simultaneously turned around, only to surprisingly find that beside their team, there was abruptly another group of people.
The two sides suddenly collided with each other, both full of vigilance.
However, when they clearly saw each other’s appearance, they were all stunned.
"Little Lord!"
Someone suddenly exclaimed from the team that appeared unexpectedly.
And here, Mu Qingge also recognized who the visitors were.
It turned out that these sudden visitors were none other than her remaining Dragon Tooth Guards, as well as the scattered remnants from Li Country and Yu Country.
"Fourth Prince!"
"Crown Princess!"
Seeing their pillars of support, the people from Li Country and Yu Country were suddenly overwhelmed with tears.
No one could have expected that the lost people would eventually regroup in the Divine Abandoned Land, not one more nor less!
Mu Qingge’s clear eyes swept through a circle, and seeing her Dragon Tooth Guards unharmed, she nodded slightly and said in a deep voice, "Dragon Tooth Guards, reassemble!"
At her command, the remaining hundred or so Dragon Tooth Guards quickly left their original team and gathered behind Mu Qingge.
Zhao Nanxing and Feng Yufei also each gave orders, and the two teams quickly integrated.
Jiang Li looked at Mu Qingge’s Dragon Tooth Guards with envy, her eager eyes like a bachelor seeing hundreds of gorgeous beauties after years of solitude.
This Jiang Empress, who never cared about others’ opinions, made the iron-blooded Dragon Tooth Guards’ faces flush with embarrassment, looking rather awkward.
"Tsk tsk, I really envy you. How did you train these Dragon Tooth Guards? When we go back, you really must tell me in detail. When I return to the Ancient Witch Country, I’ll also have such an impressive personal guard!" Jiang Li gazed at Mu Qingge with undisguised admiration.
Zhao Nanxing and Feng Yufei also perked up their ears, listening intently.
Mu Qingge replied calmly, "My Dragon Tooth Guards cannot be replicated. Each one is unique!"
Although the word ’replicated’ was unfamiliar to the people, it wasn’t difficult to understand. Especially the last sentence, as soon as she finished, made the three hundred Dragon Tooth Guards involuntarily straighten their postures even more.
Their cold, resolute faces all displayed identical small pride.
Indeed, they were unique in their master’s heart!
Jiang Li, filled with envy, jealousy, and hatred, mumbled, "This Empress doesn’t believe she can’t train an impressive personal guard!"
Her expression made Mu Qingge smile.
For Jiang Li to learn her training methods was not difficult. After the Linchuan Conference ended, she could simply give her the training outline.
"Let’s go, let’s explore this Divine Abandoned Land," Mu Qingge looked at the city ruins ahead and said to the group.
"Little Lord, we’ve collected ten Tokens previously!" Before heading out, the Dragon Tooth Guards handed the Tokens to Mu Qingge.
Clutching the Token’s string, Mu Qingge said to Zhao Nanxing and Feng Yufei, "Now we have twenty-six Tokens. As long as our total number exceeds a hundred, we’ll surely win."
After stowing away the Tokens, hundreds of people stepped into the Divine Abandoned Land.
Walking among the ruins, their footsteps occasionally made sounds from the crushed stones.
This Divine Abandoned Land was vast; it wasn’t long before hundreds began to scatter, each searching, submerged in the city ruins.
Jiang Li followed behind Mu Qingge, her primary purpose not to find Tokens but to protect Mu Qingge.
Even if Mu Qingge didn’t need it.
She bent down to pick up a stone, weighing it in her hand.
The heavy sensation made her frown. She looked up at Mu Qingge and said, "These stones seem much heavier than ordinary ones."
Mu Qingge was eyeing a broken wall. The wall had battle marks, with deep claw marks left on its surface. These claw marks, unknown for how many years they remained, still exuded the violent aura and sharpness from when the claws struck.
Mu Qingge reached out, gently brushing her fingertips over the claw marks.
Upon hearing Jiang Li’s words, she added, "Not only heavy but also extremely hard. Ordinary Spiritual Artifacts can’t leave marks here. Yet, a Spirit Beast could leave such deep marks."
Suddenly, she withdrew her hand and looked at the fine powder on her fingertips, her eyes filled with contemplation.
Jiang Li dropped the stone in her hand and approached her.
Her gaze first fell upon the broken wall before Mu Qingge; after a brief glance, she turned her attention to Mu Qingge. Seeing her deep in thought, she frowned and asked, "What’s wrong?"
Mu Qingge raised her eyes, her gaze tranquil. She extended her fingertip towards Jiang Li.
Jiang Li looked down in confusion, and her golden eyes slightly contracted. She saw the powder on Mu Qingge’s fingertip, glowing brightly under the sunshine.
"What is this!" Jiang Li asked in surprise.
Mu Qingge slowly retracted her hand, "Some substance contained in these stones. I can feel it holds strong power, but due to too much time having passed, it’s not easily detectable."
Mu Qingge had the bloodline of an Artifact Refiner, with innate abilities in various materials. As soon as she touched the wall, she felt the spiritual power contained within.
"Stones with spiritual power?" Jiang Li asked in astonishment.
She looked again at the wall before Mu Qingge, this time curiously. "I indeed saw in Ancient Witch Country’s ancient scrolls about stones carrying spiritual energy, called Spirit Stone, which can be absorbed for their spiritual power. Could it be the ones we see here?"
"Spirit Stone?" Mu Qingge murmured softly.
She twisted the powder between her fingertips, suddenly sensing the remaining spiritual power being absorbed into her skin, transforming into pure spiritual energy, merging into her Dantian.
Her eyes flashed, her heart confirming Jiang Li’s statement.
"What was this place once? To use Spirit Stones as building materials so lavishly," Mu Qingge looked around. Now, her focus was not on finding Tokens but on the curiosity this place evoked.
She was curious about where Si Mo obtained this Trial Space.
Suddenly, Mu Qingge heard a rumble.
The sound wasn’t loud, yet traveled far, making many people look in their direction. Seeing them unharmed, others returned to their search.
Mu Qingge looked at Jiang Li, raising an eyebrow.
The sound had been made by Jiang Li.
Jiang Li instantly transformed into a beast, slapped a broken wall with her palm, and then nonchalantly returned to her normal form.
After the smoky haze cleared from the broken wall, Jiang Li’s eyes were filled with shock.
She pointed to the area she attacked and said to Mu Qingge, "I used almost ninety percent of my strength and concentrated the power to attack. Yet, I left no trace?"
Mu Qingge seemed to understand Jiang Li’s point.
She looked at the area Jiang Li attacked, where old marks remained but no new ones were visible. Her eyes narrowed slightly, meeting Jiang Li’s gaze, and they simultaneously said—
"This can only mean that the Spirit Beast leaving this mark was extremely powerful!"
"The beast attacking this wall was very strong!"
This discovery made Mu Qingge and Jiang Li both secretly vigilant.
To leave such deep marks on such a wall, the Spirit Beast’s power seemed beyond everyone’s comprehension. The main concern was that no one knew when these marks were made, nor if the beast was still pacing nearby.
Mu Qingge suppressed her suspicions and said to Jiang Li in a low voice, "Let’s continue searching."
Jiang Li nodded and slightly dispersed from Mu Qingge to start searching.
They were not searching for Tokens but traces similar to the claw marks before.
Soon, they found that almost every broken wall retained some claw marks. The crucial part was that these claw marks seemed to originate from various species of Spirit Beasts.
Judging from this ruin alone, there were six or seven different species, all leaving similarly strong Spirit Beast claw marks.
These clues seemed to be unraveling a fact to them.
"Could this city have been destroyed by a beast tide?" Jiang Li voiced her speculation.
Mu Qingge nodded almost imperceptibly, "The possibility is very high. The battle scars left here are mostly from beasts. Either they were attacked by spirit beasts or someone was controlling them from behind."
The destruction of the city is not the most important issue. What the two are really worried about is whether the spirit beasts that attacked the city still exist. If they still exist in the Trial Space or suddenly appear in the Divine Abandoned Land, it would be a devastating blow for people like them.
"We won’t be that unlucky, will we?" Jiang Li grinned awkwardly at Mu Qingge.
Mu Qingge responded with a ’hmm’, reassuringly, "My luck should still be pretty good."
Jiang Li took a deep breath and said to her, "Anyway, notify everyone to pay attention to the surrounding conditions, quickly find the tokens, and then get out of here to be safe. I don’t want to be at the mercy of those powerful spirit beasts."
"Neither do I." Mu Qingge said, then passed on the discovered clues.
Knowing that there was once a fierce battle between humans and beasts here, and uncertain whether the demon beasts that destroyed the city still exist, everyone felt a sense of urgency and silently quickened their search pace.
"Isn’t this supposed to be a safe zone?" Zhao Nanxing approached Mu Qingge and handed her the token he had just found in the ruins.
Mu Qingge took the token, saying indifferently, "Safe, but only relatively. Blood Demon Valley and Phoenix Tree Forest are also within safe zones, but if one’s strength falls short or if one is unlucky, the risk of death still exists."
Zhao Nanxing recalled his previous encounters and realized it was indeed so.
He nodded, turned, and continued his search efforts.
Mu Qingge stood on the fallen stones of the ruins, gazing at the high tower in the city’s center. Suddenly, she said, "Let’s go check out that central tower."
Jiang Li had no objections and followed Mu Qingge toward the towering structure.
As they gradually approached, they discovered that the tower was much taller and larger than they had imagined.
The straight, slender structure soared into the sky, standing hundreds of yards tall.
Moreover, around the spire, there were several observation platforms, though only traces remained due to weathering damage. At the base, the tower spanned an area of a thousand acres.
Mu Qingge stood beneath the tower, looking up at its structure.
From her vantage point, she couldn’t even see the top. She murmured, "I originally thought this tower was a symbol, an emblematic structure of the city. But upon closer inspection, it’s likely it served as the residence of the ruling authority at the time. Standing atop the tower, they could oversee the city they governed."
"For this tower to survive through the wars and not collapse, its sturdiness is undoubtedly far superior to other structures outside." Jiang Li added.
Mu Qingge nodded. She said to Jiang Li, "Let’s go in and take a look."
The two approached the entrance of the tower.
The once majestic gate now only had its frame remaining.
They entered, finding themselves in a spacious hall, ascending in a spiral capable of accommodating numerous people. At its peak, it seemed to connect with the sky, allowing them to see the color of the sky above.
Suddenly, both of them shuddered and instinctively glanced at each other, seeing the shock in each other’s eyes.
"The spiritual energy here is so abundant!" Jiang Li exclaimed in shock.
Mu Qingge’s gaze fell on the walls, saying, "It’s likely because of these stones. The building materials here contain spiritual energy, many times stronger than those outside."
Mu Qingge pursed her lips and said to Jiang Li, "I feel this should be a priceless treasure."
Jiang Li rolled her eyes and asked, "What mischievous idea are you thinking now?"
Mu Qingge curved her lips into a smile, "These stones, rich in spiritual energy, can be absorbed when spiritual power is depleted, much more effective than elixirs for restoring spiritual power. Moreover, cultivating in such a place can yield twice the result with half the effort. My intent is simple, rather than leaving them here to waste, why not take them away..."
Boom, boom, boom——!
Before Mu Qingge could finish her words, the ground trembled constantly, as if a thousand troops were charging towards their direction.
Mu Qingge stopped her unfinished words, looking at the continuously shaking ground with Jiang Li.
They immediately rushed out of the high tower, standing on the platform outside, only to discover the entire Divine Abandoned Land was quaking. Zhao Nanxing and the others stood in astonishment, watching the sudden turn of events.
"Is it an earthquake? Or something else?" Jiang Li asked urgently.
Mu Qingge, however, narrowed her eyes, shouting loudly to everyone, "Everyone quickly gather towards the high tower!"
Her voice was like a guiding lighthouse on a stormy sea.
Without hesitation, her Dragon Tooth Guards were the first to move, followed closely by Zhao Nanxing and Feng Yufei with their teams.
Gazing at the constantly approaching figures, a hint of solemnity flickered in Mu Qingge’s clear eyes as she explained to Jiang Li, "Whatever it is, the fact that this high tower remains standing indicates it’s safe. We’re much safer here than outside."
Jiang Li immediately realized and simultaneously looked at Mu Qingge with shock, deeply impressed by her.
In such situations, wouldn’t most people be contemplating what was happening? However, Mu Qingge could swiftly devise a coping strategy in such emergencies.
Her reactive ability made Jiang Li feel inadequate.
Soon, everyone gathered on the platform.
Mu Qingge led them into the tower, where they were all taken aback by the abundance of spiritual energy inside.
The sound of galloping troops outside the tower grew even closer.
Mu Qingge walked to the window, looking out. The others followed her lead.
As everyone gazed out from their windows, a terrifying scene unfolded...
A horde of spirit beasts, emerging from nowhere, was menacingly approaching the Divine Abandoned Land. The strangest part was, these spirit beasts were not physical entities but rather phantoms.
The rubble of broken walls and the city buried in ruins quickly restored to ’original’ form. Numerous figures emerged from the buildings, fighting the demon beasts.
In front of Mu Qingge and her companions, it was as if they witnessed a brutal war from long ago.
The attire of those battling the spirit beasts was so ancient they couldn’t recognize it. The spirit beasts were terrifyingly large, making the current ones seem like tame kittens in comparison.
Breaking the barrier of time and space, Mu Qingge and the others witnessed the war of that day firsthand.
At this moment, nobody questioned why only the tower where they stood remained outside the illusion but instead were captivated by the brutal war.
"Was it something that recorded a past battle?" Jiang Li wondered aloud.
Mu Qingge pressed her lips in silence, suspecting it was not just a simple playback of a record, otherwise, they shouldn’t have felt the stampeding sensation of the beasts.
The illusion appeared quickly and disappeared just as fast.
Within moments, the phantoms of the spirit beasts and humans vanished, returning the city to its ruined state. The people inside the tower were left with pounding hearts, many drenched in sweat.
The realism made it feel like they were there, crushed into pulp by a spirit beast’s swipe.
"Is it over?" Feng Yufei wiped the cold sweat from his forehead, murmuring.
Mu Qingge retracted her gaze and turned to the group, saying, "Take a rest here now."
No one disagreed, the illusion they just witnessed indeed required some rest to ease their minds.
The lower level of the tower was enormous, and everyone scattered about without feeling crowded.
After resting, Mu Qingge instructed the Dragon Tooth Guards to pry the stones off the walls and pile them up.
Jiang Li looked at the pile of stones, forming a small white jade mountain on the ground, voicing speechlessly, "Do you have to exaggerate so much?"
Mu Qingge replied calmly, "I’m very poor, how can I miss such good things? Besides, there are so many here, taking a few won’t matter, right?"
Jiang Li shook her head helplessly.
After their previous experience, they treated the high tower as a stronghold. After resting, they would go out to search for tokens, and when tired, they would return and help Mu Qingge extract spirit stones. Gradually, their spiritual power even recovered.
Realizing the benefits of the spirit stones, everyone began prying some off for themselves.
Mu Qingge did not mind. After all, what was here didn’t belong to her, and it was impossible to take so much away, if others wanted them, so be it.
Soon, the lower level walls turned rugged, while the pried stones piled in front of Mu Qingge amounted to over ten thousand blocks.
The Dragon Tooth Guards then started prying into the second layer. After experiencing another illusion of beast tides, Mu Qingge’s collection of spirit stones reached over twenty-five thousand blocks.
Meanwhile, the number of tokens they collected rose to forty-two.
This meant they had found sixteen tokens in the Divine Abandoned Land!
Which also meant that twenty-four tokens were yet to be found in the Divine Abandoned Land.
"It seems someone is coming this way." Jiang Li, who was stationed at the higher level of the tower for lookout, suddenly alerted the others below.
A flash flickered in Mu Qingge’s eyes, with a wave of her hand, the twenty-five thousand spirit stones in front of her were absorbed into her space.
The spirit stones pried off moments ago and not yet handed to Mu Qingge were also kept by the Dragon Tooth Guards.
After dealing with a series of traces, they left the high tower, dispersed around, and began their primary task. Yes, finding tokens!
Mu Qingge also walked out of the high tower and stood on the platform outside.
Before long, Jiang Li descended from the top and walked to Mu Qingge’s side, saying, "It’s Shen Bicheng and his group. It seems one of them is injured."
Mu Qingge nodded almost imperceptibly.
Soon, they indeed saw Shen Bicheng walking at the front of a group. Behind him were likely the elites of the younger generation of the Shen Family. However, Mu Qingge was somewhat surprised to see that Hua Qinxin and others from the Hua Family were walking alongside Shen Bicheng.
The group looked a bit disheveled, supporting each other as they approached the high tower.
Among them, three or four individuals had suffered varying degrees of injuries, though these were mostly skin-deep wounds and not too serious.
However, Mu Qingge also noticed something different.
The number of people from the Shen and Hua Families was fewer than when they entered the Trial Space earlier. Either these individuals got separated, or they used a teleportation talisman to leave the space during a critical moment.
Seeing Mu Qingge and the others, the Shen and Hua Family members were also taken aback, their eyes filled with wariness.
Shen Bicheng stared at Mu Qingge, silent for a moment before saying, "We need to rest."
Mu Qingge squinted her eyes slightly, her body shifting sideways as if agreeing to let them approach.
Shen Bicheng nodded and led the Shen Family into the high tower. As Hua Qinxin of the Hua Family passed by Mu Qingge, she cast a resentful glance over Mu Qingge and Jiang Li before biting her lip and following her family into the tower.
Jiang Li said with schadenfreude, "Looks like this little girl hasn’t given up on you yet!"
Mu Qingge replied with a tight face, "I’ve refused her very clearly."
Jiang Li just smiled without saying a word.
She really doubted whether Mu Qingge understood a girl’s thoughts.
Sometimes, the more you resist, the more it provokes a girl’s competitiveness. Of course, in Mu Qingge’s situation, there seemed to be no other strategy besides refusal.
After settling the family, Shen Bicheng came out of the high tower and stood in front of Mu Qingge and Jiang Li.
As they got closer, Mu Qingge and Jiang Li noticed the bandage marks on Shen Bicheng’s collar.
Moving their gaze away from Shen Bicheng’s tight spot, Mu Qingge raised her eyebrows and asked, "Injured?"
Shen Bicheng didn’t answer this question but instead asked, "How long have you been here?"
Mu Qingge raised her eyebrow higher but still cooperated by replying, "Not long, but not short either."
"Have you seen those illusions?" Shen Bicheng asked with a frown.
The answer was affirmative and not just once.
Mu Qingge answered truthfully.
Shen Bicheng paused for a moment before saying, "Looks like my deduction was correct. This high tower is very safe."
Mu Qingge and Jiang Li exchanged a puzzled glance and then looked at Shen Bicheng.
Only then did Shen Bicheng explain, "We came in not too long ago and just experienced an illusion. My injuries and those of the others were caused by that illusion."
What!
Jiang Li and Mu Qingge were both startled.
Those illusions can actually hurt people?
Mu Qingge seemed to finally find the feeling of something being wrong she had before.
During the first illusion, she felt that it shouldn’t be just a simple illusion. Since it was a trial place, was it just for them to watch those past illusions?
And then write a reflection on them?
The appearance of Shen Bicheng provided her the answer.
Those illusions probably had some level of offensive power. It’s just that by entering the high tower, they weren’t disturbed by the illusions.
Mu Qingge pondered for a moment and asked Shen Bicheng, "How strong is the attack power of those illusions?"
Shen Bicheng didn’t know why she suddenly asked this, but he answered truthfully, "About the same as a human Blue Realm."
His answer caused both Mu Qingge and Jiang Li to have a strange look in their eyes at the same time.
Shen Bicheng, feeling embarrassed under their gaze, had to explain further, "My injury is because..."
"It’s because of me," Shen Bicheng’s voice was interrupted by a sudden female voice.
Hua Qinxin came out, stood next to Shen Bicheng, glared at Mu Qingge, and then said, "Third Young Master Shen got injured by accident while saving me."
As she said this, she looked at Shen Bicheng again and said, "Rest assured, Third Young Master, after returning, my mother will certainly thank you properly for saving my life."
After saying that, she turned and walked back into the high tower.
Her sudden appearance and departure seemed like an act to reinforce her presence.
Mu Qingge and Jiang Li both found it very puzzling.
Shen Bicheng moved his lips and suddenly said, "She rushed over, and I had no choice but to act." It seemed he was explaining that his action of saving Hua Qinxin was not voluntary and was full of grievance.
Jiang Li almost burst out laughing.
Mu Qingge also held back her laughter, saying to Shen Bicheng, "Hmm, no need to explain."
With that, she and Jiang Li left together.
Shen Bicheng stood in place, carefully recalling what he said, frowning as if he found nothing wrong with his words.
Walking further away, Jiang Li sighed, "The women of the Hua Family are really..."
After entering the Trial Space, they all felt that the women of the Hua Family were like pampered flowers, only suited for living in a comfortable environment and shouldn’t appear in such a perilous place.
...
In the high tower, the addition of the Shen and Hua Families didn’t make the space feel crowded, but instead added a touch of spring.
The laughter of the girls from the Hua Family also added a bit of life to the long-quiet high tower.
Many elites from Li Country and Yu Country couldn’t help but glance over at the Hua Family’s location. Mu Qingge didn’t comment on this. They were all young and vigorous, naturally drawn to such attractions.
However, the performance of the Dragon Tooth Guards made her feel proud. All three hundred of them remained indifferent towards the women of the Hua Family.
Actually, she had no idea that with her as the benchmark, the Dragon Tooth Guards collectively looked down on other women. Their standard of aesthetics had risen to the point of ’At least, she has to be like our little Lord to be considered a woman!’
After experiencing another illusion, Shen Bicheng, Hua Qinxin, and others came to understand the function of the high tower.
Why this was so, no one could say for sure.
However, after being in the Divine Abandoned Land for so long, the tokens hidden here seemed almost all discovered.
"Including the ones we just found, there are a total of forty-nine," Zhao Nanxing counted the tokens in his hand before handing them to Mu Qingge.
The closer it got to the end, the more likely it was that there would be a scramble for tokens.
After discussing, everyone agreed that it was safest for Mu Qingge to hold them.
Mu Qingge weighed the tokens in her hand and whispered, "Forty-nine, which means there are fifty-one more not in our possession."
Zhao Nanxing nodded, looking up at the sky outside. "The time in this Trial Space is chaotic, making it impossible to determine how many days we’ve been here. But I estimate it’s been at least five days in the outside world by now."
"That means there’s about two days left before the competition ends," Mu Qingge pondered aloud.
Now, the third-class countries hold about half of the tokens, which is almost equal to the second-class countries. The tokens found by the four families can be given or not counted.
It’s uncertain how many more can be found with the remaining time.
But it’s certain that to ensure ultimate victory, once the second and third-class countries meet, there will be a fierce battle.
"For the remaining time, we’ll stay in the Divine Abandoned Land. There’s no need to go elsewhere. Wait for the tokens to come to us!" Mu Qingge said with a cold gleam in her eyes.
Suddenly, a pile of things was thrown onto Mu Qingge’s robe.
’Tokens!’
Upon noticing the extra objects, Mu Qingge looked up to see Shen Bicheng approaching.
Shen Bicheng still wore a cold expression, saying aloofly, "These things are useless to me." After that, she turned coolly and left.
Jiang Li stared blankly at Shen Bicheng’s departing figure and turned her slightly stiff neck toward Mu Qingge. "What’s going on?"
Mu Qingge, however, kept her head down, counting the tokens Shen Bicheng had given.
"Thirteen pieces." Mu Qingge held the counted tokens in her hand and looked at Zhao Nanxing and Feng Yufei, "With this, we now have sixty-two pieces."
Zhao Nanxing and Feng Yufei both felt relieved.
With these tokens, they could almost secure a position in the top three. This brought them one step closer to securing a place in the Ancient Ruins.
"Hey, part of these tokens from Shen Bicheng seem to come from the Hua Family," Jiang Li, who was observing the movements of the Shen and Hua Families, lightly touched Mu Qingge’s arm and whispered.
Following the voice, Mu Qingge saw Hua Qinxin speaking to Shen Bicheng, who nodded in response. Then Hua Qinxin left with a smile, not forgetting to toss over a wistful glance.
Mu Qingge retracted her gaze and fell silent.
Zhao Nanxing couldn’t help but say, "Hey, you’re not thinking of returning the Hua Family’s tokens, are you?"
How could the cooked duck just fly away like that?
Just as Zhao Nanxing was about to persuade Mu Qingge to sacrifice her looks, Mu Qingge suddenly shook her head, "Since they were sent via Shen Bicheng, if I were to return them, I’d only return them to Shen Bicheng."
"What’s that mean?" Zhao Nanxing asked nervously.
Mu Qingge silently put away the tokens.
This action answered Zhao Nanxing’s concern well.
Seeing this, Zhao Nanxing finally breathed a sigh of relief and said, "Let’s ensure victory in the competition first, then find a chance to explain to the little girl later."
Mu Qingge twitched her mouth, choosing not to continue the topic.
After a moment of silence, Feng Yufei looked at everyone and said, "If the competition time is almost over, has anyone withdrawn from the competition?"
This...
Everyone dispersed, so who knew where each other was? Or what encounters were had? No one knew how many people left using the teleportation talisman.
No one answered, and Feng Yufei furrowed her brows slightly, "If the Trial Space is like this, who knows how strange and dangerous the Ancient Ruins will be."
This was more of a sigh.
However, it was indeed the truth!
But, no matter how strange or dangerous, they must brave it. Because this opportunity represents not just the individual, but also the opportunity for the country behind them.
Should they gain anything, the country they represent might break through its current limitations.
For Zhao Nanxing and Feng Yufei, members of the Imperial Family, these gains and losses outweighed personal interests.
But for Mu Qingge, the affairs of the Qin Country had nothing to do with her. She agreed to join the Linchuan Conference more because she didn’t want to miss such an adventure and treasure-hunting opportunity.
The Emperor of Qin Country wasn’t her, she had no obligation to strengthen Qin Country.
...
Holy Yuan Empire, Tiandu.
The Lan Family’s area was already surrounded by the Forbidden Guard.
The people of the Lan Family had begun to confront members of the Imperial Family.
No one wanted to tear their faces off until the last moment. Now, surrounding the Lan Family’s door were not only people from the Huangfu Imperial Family but also other three major families.
Huangfu Haotian and the Lan Family Head faced each other, with a cold face, "Lan Family Head, are you truly stubborn and unwilling to return to the Imperial Palace with me?"
Originally, he summoned the Lan Family Head to the palace according to Huangfu Huan’s words. But unexpectedly, this old fox claimed illness and was unwilling to come, making both soft and hard measures ineffective, forcing him to take a hardline approach.
From his heart, he was utterly reluctant to start a battle in Tiandu.
However, if the Lan Family continued like this, for Holy King Your Majesty, he could only order a battle.
"Hmph, Emperor Yuan, you and I know well, is there any good in following you into the Imperial Palace? At that point, my Lan Family might just become a fish in a barrel," the Lan Family Head said disdainfully.
"Lan Family Head! From what you say, it seems you have truly been involved! How exactly do you plan to deal with Lord Mu? Confess now!" Huangfu Haotian shouted sharply.
The Lan Family Head sneered dismissively, "Emperor Yuan, look at your bootlicking self now, do you still look like an emperor? Being led by the nose by a minor noble from a mere third-class country—when did the Holy Yuan Empire start valuing citizens from a third-class country so highly? I had no idea."
"You! You are simply foolish! Lord Mu is someone wanted by Holy King Your Majesty, and you dared harm him!" Huangfu Haotian’s voice suddenly raised several notches.
At his words, the heads of the other three families gasped.
Someone wanted by Holy King Your Majesty? What does that mean?
As the hearts of the three family heads were racing with thoughts, the Lan Family Head’s face changed slightly, forcefully saying, "What Holy King Your Majesty wants, is merely a rumor. Being summoned once by Holy King Your Majesty, does that represent anything? He beat my daughter, and even if I wanted to do something, it would only be an eye for an eye."
His last few words were uttered through gritted teeth, filled with obvious hatred.
"You know nothing!" Huangfu Haotian was so furious that he lost his decorum. At this point, he no longer wanted to continue hiding things and said directly, "Before Lord Mu even entered Tiandu, Huan’er was summoned by Holy King Your Majesty to the Li Palace, instructed not to let Lord Mu be bullied in Tiandu. Do you understand what that means?"
Boom—!
Huangfu Haotian’s words were like a thunderclap on a clear day. Not only did it shock the Lan Family Head, but also the other three family heads. Furthermore, everyone inside and outside the Lan Family, regardless of their stance, was stunned by this statement.
What did it mean? It meant that Mu Qingge being valued by Holy King Your Majesty was not merely a rumor.
At this moment, Huangfu Huan hurried over, his face revealing no emotions.
He walked to Emperor Yuan’s side and said directly, "Father, some people have already used teleportation talismans to exit the competition. I have carefully asked them, and they haven’t encountered Lord Mu or the Lan Family inside the Trial Space." After speaking, he glanced at the Lan Family Head, whose face was ashen.
The teleportation talisman was still functional, and this answer brought Emperor Yuan some relief. The heads of the other families also secretly felt relieved.
Returning to his senses, Huangfu Haotian said to the Lan Family Head, "What plans do you have? Confess quickly!"
The Lan Family Head, however, seemed to collapse like a lost bone, collapsing to the ground with a look of terror, "Too late... too late..."
Others had yet to detect the anomaly, but Huangfu Huan keenly captured it. He immediately said, "You indeed tampered with Lord Mu’s teleportation talisman!"
The Lan Family Head looked as if he had been struck by lightning, and all color drained from his face.
"You!" Huangfu Haotian’s eyes were wide with rage, wishing he could personally tear the Lan Family Head apart.
The other three families all looked skyward simultaneously, feeling as if a significant change was in the air. Perhaps from now on, the four major families would be reduced to only three.
At this moment, they did not fully grasp Mu Qingge’s importance to Si Mo, merely thinking that only the Lan Family was in trouble.
"Guards, arrest everyone from the Lan Family!" As soon as Huangfu Haotian gave the command, the Forbidden Guard was about to act.
"Let’s see who dares touch my Lan Family!" Suddenly, a loud shout came from deep within the Lan Family.
In the sky, an ethereal figure appeared, suppressing the surrounding people with an aura that left most powerless.
Among those able to withstand it were only a few imperial tributor brought by Huangfu Haotian.
The tributors pushed back against the pressure, shouting in unison, "Lan Family Ancestor, do not cause trouble!"
"Hmph, you all want to annihilate my Lan Family, yet you won’t allow this old man to move?" The domineering and arrogant voice of the Lan Family Ancestor came through.
Huangfu Haotian raised a hand to stop the tributors, gave a chilling laugh, and gazed upon the Lan Family Head now limp like mud. "Your Lan Family should prepare for the wrath of Holy King Your Majesty!"
"Huangfu boy, stop with the scare tactics. I refuse to believe Holy King Your Majesty would make things difficult for my Lan Family over a mere child! Scram—!"
The spiritual power formed into waves, pushing the Forbidden Guard back continuously.
Huangfu Haotian barely managed to hold his footing, his expression shifting unpredictably.
Standing beside him, Huangfu Huan said anxiously, "Father, the urgent matter is to ascertain a way to rescue."
...
Inside the Trial Space, Mu Qingge did not expect her luck to be so good, running into people from the four major families in succession. The Jing, Hua, and Shen Families, and now, members of the Lan Family, stood before her.
However, they didn’t seem to be looking for tokens, but rather looking for her.
She wasn’t mistaken, the excitement in Lan Feiyue’s eyes upon seeing her was... unmistakable.