After entering Yanzhuang, Ming Qi brought Mo Changli to his home.
"It's a simple place, don't be disgusted."
Ming Qi said, looking at the humble and shabby home.
While he didn't know what Mo Changli's home looked like, he didn't think the mysterious Celestial Clan would be as shabby as his.
Mo Changli, however, didn't seem to mind the humbleness of Ming Qi's home at all. He casually sat down on a small stool and looked around curiously.
Mo Changli's arrival sent the entire small Yanzhuang into a frenzy. The Third Young Master of the Miao Family had brought a daughter of a noble family with him!
In the eyes of the Yanzhuang villagers, Mo Changli was simply a pampered aristocratic daughter. They were extremely surprised and puzzled that she could appear in a small place like Yanzhuang.
In the afternoon, the two left Yanzhuang.
Ming Qi left quietly, not even saying goodbye to his parents. Having decided to let go of worldly ties, he didn't linger any longer.
"What are your plans next?"
Mo Changli asked after leaving Yan Manor.
Ming Qi pondered for a moment, then said, "I'm going to find a place to meditate for a while. I have some things I need to take care of."
"Meditate?"
"Yes, and I'll also study the Calming Stone to see if I can find anything from it."
Ming Qi answered truthfully.
Indeed, he hadn't found the time to study it since purchasing the Calming Stone, and Meng Ling's condition had always worried him. Now that the ties of home were gone, he still couldn't completely let go, but at least he had let go of it. Next, he would spare no effort to help Meng Ling recover.
"Okay."
Mo Changli nodded. If he could find something from the Calming Stone, it would surely be a significant gain.
Neither of them used the Golden Bridge of All Heavens, instead strolling through the land of Jinchuan, seemingly unhurried.
Ming Qi's suspicions were indeed correct. The Jinchuan Bai Mansion seemed genuinely preoccupied with a major event, unable to spare a moment to pay attention to Ming Qi. As time passed, Ming Qi's disappearance led many to believe that both man and demon were no longer mortal.
On the fifteenth day of the first lunar month, the moon was bright and full in the sky, like a crystal disk.
On a mountaintop, surrounded by an open expanse, Ming Qi carefully placed the Calming Stone before him.
Meng Ling needed blood energy to replenish and recover, and the Calming Stone possessed the magical ability to transform power attributes.
Mo Changli sat quietly by her side. Ming Qi had never told her what the Calming Stone was for. Her curiosity had grown over the past few days, and although Ming Qi hadn't told her, today, Ming Qi was about to activate the Calming Stone to help Meng Ling recover, but he hadn't avoided Mo Changli, which naturally meant he had revealed the secret to her.
A stream of Yuanli precisely struck the magical heart at the center of the Calming Stone, sending ripples of energy emanating from the massive, ten-thousand-year-old jade stone.
Ming Qi paused in thought, then quickly poured handfuls of Yuan Crystals into the heart. He watched as the miraculous heart began to beat rapidly, radiating waves of power and rapidly melting the piles of Yuan Crystals.
Chi!
Ming Qi raised his right hand, and a streak of blood flew from the tip of his index finger, also touching the heart.
Then, Ming Qi activated his ring, and the next moment, Meng Ling's original form, the Human Blood Demonic Harp, lay quietly across the Calming Stone.
"A harp?"
Mo Changli was a little confused.
However, before she could fully grasp the mystery, she sensed a strong and dense demonic energy emanating from the harp. This demonic energy instantly surged, surging towards the nearby Calming Stone.
Fortunately, beneath this calming stone lay a jade stone that was tens of thousands of years old. As the demonic energy surged, the jade stone simultaneously shone with a glow, completely enveloping the Human Blood Demon Harp with a calming effect.
As expected, the demonic energy was quickly suppressed.
Ming Qi raised his finger, and the blood energy, transformed through his magical power, transformed into a red beam that merged with the harp itself.
Although Mo Changli was puzzled, she also had a number of assumptions. Her eyes were filled with complexities as she gazed at Ming Qi, who was deeply focused.
This was a long process. The Yuan Crystals were rapidly being fused and transformed, and Meng Ling's strength was gradually recovering.
Although he didn't know when Meng Ling would recover, Ming Qi had already made up his mind: as long as Meng Ling didn't regain consciousness, he would persist, or until his Yuan Crystals were exhausted.
Since Ming Qi had used his own blood as the catalyst for the transformation process, and Meng Ling and Ming Qi had a close relationship, having consumed much of Ming Qi's blood after the battle with the Nine-Nine God-Slaying Flag, the transformed blood energy was now merging with her quite rapidly.
In less than a night, a bright red glow emanated from the mysterious, weathered Human-Blooded Demonic Harp, and the image of Meng Ling gradually began to condense above it.
"It's indeed a woman..."
Mo Changli sighed softly as he saw the image of a girl condense above the harp.
However, Ming Qi was completely absorbed in his work and naturally couldn't hear Mo Changli's sigh.
Since Meng Ling's original condensed body had been completely destroyed in the battle with the Destroyer, only her pure soul power remained.
After a while, Meng Ling's spirit finally opened its eyes.
As if she had just awakened from a long slumber, she carefully surveyed her surroundings before finally resting her gaze on Ming Qi.
As she gazed upon Ming Qi, an unprecedented pain crossed her nearly empty face.
Even Ming Qi could sense the agonizing struggle she was experiencing.
After a long moment, Meng Ling finally spoke weakly, "I remember. It's you."
Ming Qi nodded without saying anything.
Meng Ling had suffered a devastating blow this time. Upon waking from her slumber, her memories would likely be lost, just like before. However, the fact that Meng Ling recognized Ming Qi was likely due to Ming Qi feeding her with his own blood in the stone forest.
"Meng Ling, it's me. I'm glad you're awake."
Ming Qi said nothing, simply methodically inserting the Yuan Crystal, then drawing and fusing it, transforming it into blood energy before being absorbed by Meng Ling.
Mo Changli remained silent, simply watching from the side.
The sky gradually brightened, until it was fully daylight. By mid-morning, Meng Ling's spirit had finally stabilized completely. The reawakened demonic energy within her was suppressed by the jade stone of the Calming Spirit Stone, which had endured for hundreds of thousands of years. While it couldn't be eliminated, it was unlikely to gain the upper hand and control Meng Ling's will.
As long as this side of Meng Ling continues to grow stronger, she'll be able to firmly suppress the demonic energy deep within her soul until she has the strength to completely dissolve and eliminate it.
"My body is gone..."
Ming Qi pondered for a moment, then nodded. "But it doesn't matter. I'll help you condense a perfect body."
With Meng Ling's soul now stable, Ming Qi felt relieved. The next step was to continuously gather information and feed it into Meng Ling's consciousness, then choose the right opportunity to rebuild her body.
"Okay, for the time being, you'll stay attached to this Calming Stone. I'll help you gather information and rebuild your body as quickly as possible."
Ming Ling nodded, hesitated for a moment, then attached herself to the Calming Stone.
Ming Qi then put away the Human Blood Demon Harp and the Calming Stone, and breathed a sigh of relief.
Finally, one more thing had been solved. For Meng Ling, the only remaining step was rebuilding her body. Compared to stabilizing her soul and suppressing her demonic nature, rebuilding her body wasn't as pressing.
Ming Qi turned around and saw Mo Changli staring at him in a daze.
"Changli, what's wrong?"
Seeing Mo Changli's daze, Ming Qi asked with a smile.
"Oh? Oh, nothing. Who is she?"
Mo Changli immediately snapped out of his thoughts and asked.
"She saved my life. And the reason I was able to reach the Xiantian realm was because she risked her life to help me obtain rare spiritual herbs to help me advance. But it was during that battle that she suffered severe injuries, her body completely destroyed."
Ming Qi briefly explained Meng Ling's past, but he didn't mention that she was the ancient demon, the Human-Blood Demonic Harp.
After all, even today, the name of the Human-Blood Demonic Harp is truly terrifying.
The two chatted for a while before going to bed.
The next day, Ming Qi had just emerged from his meditation when Mo Changli approached him and asked, "Will you accompany me to Kill Star City?"
"Kill Star City?"
Ming Qi paused briefly, then said, "Are we going to look for your fellow tribesmen?"
Mo Changli nodded. Since Ming Qi had mentioned that the Celestial Clan members she had met had said she was from Kill Star City, then naturally, once they reached Kill Star City, there was a good chance they would find her.
"Okay, I don't have much else to do anyway."
Ming Qi agreed. The journey was quite peaceful, and he didn't rush. During his rest breaks, Ming Qi diligently cultivated. After a few days, he felt he was on the verge of breaking through to the second level of the Xiantian Realm.
The second level of the Xiantian Yuan Gang Realm is the realm where one can condense their innate Yuan Force into a protective Qi, similar to a protective aura shield. Upon reaching the Yuan Gang Realm, a cultivator's self-defense is elevated to a new level, without the need for external defense. This is crucial for casual cultivators on a tight budget. Ming Qi currently possessed only a lesser-known Great Destruction Battle Suit and no defensive magical weapons, so reaching the Yuan Gang Realm was undoubtedly a significant breakthrough.
The location of Killing Star City was inconspicuous in the entire Xilan Province, but its reputation could not be ignored.
In the crevice between the seven prefectures lay a great river called the Canglan River. The Canglan River flowed from Xixian City in the west, through the vast mountains and rivers, diagonally spanning the entire Xilan Province before flowing southeast.
Xixian City was another major power in the central land of the Tianhuang Continent, almost on par with Xilan Province's Chief Governor, Xiongfeng City, though its territory was smaller.
Xixian City's position and responsibilities were similar to those of the Northern Pole City, shouldering the responsibility of deterring the Western alien races.
The Canglan River was already close to the border of Xilan Province, not far from Xixian City, renowned in the cultivation world for its swordsmanship.