Yan Ziji twitched the corner of her mouth, feeling that Jiang Linglong's assertion was reasonable.
As one of the top three peerless beauties in Ji Continent, she prided herself on her exceptional looks and figure, but even she felt inferior standing beside Jiang Linglong.
Shaking her head, Yan Ziji changed the topic and asked seriously, "What's your plan for Qingyang Sect?"
"No rush for now."
"Although Old Ancestor Xu is severely injured, the Radiant Heaven Mirror is still in their possession. Coupled with the protection of their mountain-guarding formation, launching a reckless attack would likely lead to heavy losses."
Jiang Linglong's expression turned serious as she continued, "Qingyang Sect has a thousand-year heritage with immense reserves of resources. It's better to wait until I refine my natal magic treasure to mid-fourth rank and make thorough preparations. That way, our chances of success will be much greater."
"That's a good idea."
Yan Ziji nodded with a smile.
"You'll need an enormous amount of five-element essence for that, which could take twenty to thirty years to accumulate. I might use this time to acquire a Returning Origin Tribulation Pill and see if I can break through the bottleneck to mid-Golden Core."
Jiang Linglong's gaze flickered slightly at this. The Returning Origin Tribulation Pill is a valuable elixir for aiding in breaking through to mid-Golden Core.
Its primary ingredient, the Five-Element Primordial Pearl, was rare and precious. Though Jiang Linglong had a Water Pearl, she intended to use it for crafting her fifth natal treasure.
While most cultivators struggle to manage two or three natal treasures due to the strain on cultivation, Jiang Linglong's Lunar Immortal Body allowed her cultivation speed to surpass ordinary cultivators. Even with five natal treasures, she wouldn't face the issue of exhausting her lifespan without advancing.
High-rank natal treasures could polish a cultivator's energy, enhance their foundation, bolster combat strength, and increase the likelihood of surviving tribulations. Such advantages were coveted even by Nascent Soul cultivators.
Legend had it that the Purple Cloud Divine Tree bore a divine fruit every 3,000 years. Many Dao Lords who obtained these fruits still fell under the Immortal Tribulation.
Surprisingly, more than half of those who ascended successfully were Nascent Soul cultivators with three or more spiritual roots, while Heavenly Spiritual Roots ascended rarely.
This demonstrated that while multiple natal treasures might slow cultivation, their advantages outweighed the drawbacks. With her Lunar Immortal Body, Jiang Linglong's situation was exceptional. Unlike cultivators with five spiritual roots who stagnated, she could sustain her cultivation pace.
…
Elian spent three days at Tianxu Mountain while Jiang Linglong bid farewell to Yan Ziji. Once her friend left, Jiang Linglong and Elian resumed their work, this time forging magic treasures.
Together, they crafted a third-rank high-grade Violet Blood Boat from the skeleton of the Violet Blood Python.
The Violet Blood Boat, about ten feet long, could carry three passengers and travel 80,000 miles daily. It retained two innate abilities of the python: Sky Python Devours Heaven and Scarlet Eye Demon Vision.
Additionally, Jiang Linglong inscribed two arrays: the Glazed Diamond Array for defense and the Chasing Moon Array for speed. Activating the latter tripled the boat's speed for short bursts.
With this treasure, Elian's ability to escape or pursue enemies greatly improved.
As for the corpse of the Sky Python King, Jiang Linglong preserved it for crafting a larger treasure ship later.
After completing the Violet Blood Boat and other third-rank artifacts, Elian gained two more third-rank treasures: the Green Blood Demon Sword and the Green Scale Shield, both refined from the remains of the Azureblood Demon Python.
Finally, the two found time to relax. Strolling together atop Tianxu Mountain, they paused to gaze out over the vast wilderness. After a long silence, Jiang Linglong spoke.
"Take me to Linghu Isle."
"Alright." Elian nodded.
The Violet Blood Boat, with its speed-enhancing array, carried them to Linghu Isle in less than two days.
Standing by the lakeshore, Jiang Linglong surveyed the serene beauty of Linghu Isle, her eyes reflecting a rare sense of surprise.
"Your residence is beautiful—much better than Tianxu Mountain."
Elian smiled as they landed on the island.
"You're welcome to visit anytime you wish."
As they talked, Chen Xianyan and Yaya approached.
"Uncle…" They stopped mid-sentence upon seeing Jiang Linglong and quickly bowed.
"Greetings, Ancestor Jiang."
"Hmm." Jiang Linglong regarded them with a thoughtful expression before giving them each a treasure.
"Call me Auntie."
Their eyes dimmed momentarily before they responded softly, "Thank you, Auntie."
Elian and Jiang Linglong left the two girls and walked to the Ten-Mile Peach Grove. As Jiang Linglong admired the grove's beauty and inhaled the floral fragrance, she smiled gently.
"This place is perfect for secluded cultivation, but with the demon kings nearby, Tianxu Mountain cannot do without me. Besides, the spiritual energy here is somewhat lacking."
Elian took her hand and led her to a towering peach tree.
Seeing the tree, Jiang Linglong's eyes flashed with amazement.
"A Natural Spiritual Root?"
"Indeed," Elian replied with a smile.
"In a little over a century, this tree will likely advance to fourth rank, and Lin Qianshu might be able to defend Tianxu Mountain for you by then."
"You seem eager to have me here."
Jiang Linglong met his gaze, her lips curling into a playful smile.
Elian held her hand firmly, as if holding the entire world.
"I never want to be apart from you."
She laughed, her voice like the melody of a mountain stream.
"Then come visit me often at Tianxu Mountain."
With the Violet Blood Boat, even the vast distance of 100,000 miles could be traversed in a little over a day, making frequent visits feasible.
Jiang Linglong stayed at Linghu Isle for three days before reluctantly returning to Tianxu Mountain.
Shortly after her departure, the family's old patriarch visited Elian, his face beaming with joy. Handing over a jade slip, he asked, "Guess what I've brought?"
"What's made you so happy?" Elian took the slip and infused it with his divine sense. A surprised expression crossed his face as he realized what it contained.
The jade slip was an inheritance scroll, recording the Fire Element Divine Thunder technique.
...
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I need POWAAA! Gimme Power Stones :D