Qi Ping continued to maintain the High-Speed Ring-Cutting Bee form, ready to escape at any moment...
However, after nearly two days of this, Qi Ping couldn't hold on any longer.
"Is this woman out of her mind?"
"She can't find him, so she's just going to linger here?"
Qi Ping estimated that a new wave of Demon Insects would arrive in about a day.
If the Demon Insects were dealt with by the Green-robed Woman, that would be fine, but if they flew to the Blood Ginseng Growing Area, it was uncertain whether it would cause an anomaly, and the secret there might not be kept.
This was even more annoying than wasting his time.
"What should I do?"
Qi Ping couldn't help but feel a little troubled.
Through two days of observation, he had confirmed that this Green-robed Woman was looking for the Black-Robed Cultivator.
Fortunately, he had already moved the Black-Robed Cultivator's body!
Perhaps because the Black-Robed Cultivator's aura had died or completely disappeared here, this Green-robed Woman had been lingering around Peak Seven, from the foot to the summit, unwilling to leave.
Just as Qi Ping was hesitating, Steward Zhu suddenly rushed to Peak Seven, and under the Green-robed Woman's questioning, he pointed at the peak, only leaving after a while.
At this point, Qi Ping completely couldn't hold back and knew that hiding any longer was not an option.
"What must be faced will always be faced."
"First, I'll conceal my aura and follow Steward Zhu to see if I can hear anything."
"If that doesn't work, I'll have to meet this Green-robed Woman; she doesn't seem to have any ill intent."
"But it's still best to be prepared. Mo Jia Bee + Level 3 Tree Skin Art is enough to resist the attacks of High-Speed Ring-Cutting Bees. As long as I'm ready to transform at any time, the Green-robed Woman shouldn't be able to seriously harm me in a short period. The remaining 500-plus High-Speed Ring-Cutting Bees just need to be ready for battle."
The principle of Tree Skin Art is to use energy to form a bark-like high-defense armor on the body surface, which, combined with the Mo Jia Bee's defense, can even resist the damage from High-Speed Ring-Cutting Bees.
Moreover, over the past few days, 150 High-Speed Ring-Cutting Bees had matured, so Qi Ping had enough confidence to deal with the Green-robed Woman.
The reason he hadn't shown himself before was simply that it was better to avoid trouble.
Now that even Steward Zhu had arrived, if Qi Ping still didn't show himself, things might become even more troublesome later.
However, what disappointed Qi Ping was that after concealing his aura and following Steward Zhu for a while, the latter didn't have any strange habit of talking to himself.
But Qi Ping wasn't without gain, because apart from doubt in his eyes, the other party showed no fear or other negative emotions, which basically corroborated that the problem wasn't serious; otherwise, Steward Zhu's expression would never have been so relaxed.
This greatly alleviated Qi Ping's worries.
So, after about an hour, Qi Ping finalized his plan and preparations, adjusted his mood, and then rushed back from a place far from Peak Seven.
As soon as he returned to Peak Seven, Qi Ping pretended to be in a hurry to check on the Black Little Bees.
His facial expressions ranged from anxiety to relief, and then to happiness upon seeing the good honey production, without a single flaw.
Because Qi Ping had experienced such emotions many times before, it wasn't an act, but his consistent true emotions.
Just as Qi Ping was tending to the Black Little Bees, the beautiful but unreadable Green-robed Woman suddenly appeared not far away, holding the dark compass.
However, to her disappointment, the compass also showed no reaction to Qi Ping.
When Qi Ping turned and saw her for the first time, he was first a little fearful, and then, upon seeing the special pattern of the Qingyuan Sect uniform on her attire, he became somewhat flustered.
"Sir... This junior, Qi Ping, greets the Qingyuan Sect Sir!" Qi Ping hastily cupped his fists and said respectfully.
This woman was probably not even as old as Qi Ping, but she was destined to be a Foundation Establishment Cultivator in the future, and even a Golden Core Cultivator was possible, so calling her "Sir" was not an overstatement.
"Are you the tenant of this mountain? How many years have you been here?" The Green-robed Woman's voice was very calm, not as arrogant or aggressive as imagined.
"Replying to Sir, I have been raising Bees here with my master for over five years. Due to the robber cultivators and the appearance of Demon Insects, my master returned to the mortal world half a month ago."
Qi Ping still held his fists tightly, nervously.
Seeing Qi Ping's appearance, the Green-robed Woman spoke, telling Qi Ping to relax.
"No need to be nervous, just answer my questions truthfully!"
"Yes, Sir!"
However, though Qi Ping said so, his body remained tense, making it seem like he wanted to relax but couldn't.
Seeing this, the Green-robed Woman said no more, but continued to ask:
"Why haven't you been on the mountain these past few days? Where did you go?"
"Replying to Sir, I went to..."
The Green-robed Woman asked several questions in a row, and Qi Ping answered them all tremblingly.
Qi Ping had repeatedly scrutinized these questions, so there were basically no flaws.
The Green-robed Woman repeatedly activated the dark compass several times, and after confirming that Qi Ping was indeed not a problem, she finally said to Qi Ping:
"I am tracking a Qi Refining Late Stage robber Cultivator here, but he disappeared when he reached this place. He controls Demon Insects and is very dangerous."
"He might still be here, so you can leave early, otherwise your life might be in danger... But,"
The Green-robed Woman's tone suddenly shifted:
"If you help me find that person, I can give you two thousand Spirit Stones! Here is a Sensing Jade Talisman; if you crush it, I can quickly come..."
"Two thousand Spirit Stones?" Qi Ping's eyes suddenly widened.
Goodness, as expected of a Qingyuan Sect Disciple, truly rich!
But what did that robber Cultivator have that was worth the Green-robed Woman's attention?
The Spirit Stones were less than a thousand. The Wood Flame Art and the Fire Spirit Body Tempering Pill Formula were very precious to Qi Ping, but to this Qingyuan Sect Inner Sect Disciple who had such cultivation at a young age, they probably didn't count for much.
The only thing Qi Ping could think of was that evil token.
In the Green-robed Woman's eyes, after much hesitation, Qi Ping finally took the Sensing Jade Talisman from her hand.
"Sir, I am willing!"
"Good, I swear by my identity as a Qingyuan Sect Disciple that I will absolutely not deceive you in this matter!"
After the Green-robed Woman swore an oath with one hand raised to the sky, she turned and left.
This final oath surprised Qi Ping.
Cultivators should not lightly swear oaths, because even violating the simplest oath carries the risk of giving rise to a Heart Demon.
"It seems the Black-Robed Cultivator has something very important to the Green-robed Woman."
However, Qi Ping had no intention of earning these two thousand Spirit Stones. The Karma and trouble involved would surely be immense, and he didn't want to get involved.
For the next nearly a day, Qi Ping lived according to the trajectory of a normal Bee keeper. This was all too familiar to him; he had lived like this for over five years.
The Green-robed Woman also observed Qi Ping from the shadows, leaving only after observing for almost a full day.
"Fortunately, the Green-robed Woman left before the Demon Insects appeared."
After instructing the High-Speed Ring-Cutting Bees to kill the Demon Insects and quickly cleaning up the Demon Insect corpses, Qi Ping finally breathed a sigh of relief. If the Green-robed Woman had left any later, he might have been exposed.
After wasting several days, Qi Ping's farming and Bee keeping life finally returned to normal...
"This kind of life is still the most comfortable!"
It was enough to just quietly farm and keep Bees.
...
Over a week later, with a surge of spiritual energy, Qi Ping's cultivation broke through to Qi Refining Fourth Layer.
"My cultivation has finally broken through to Qi Refining Middle Stage!"
After the Breakthrough in cultivation, Qi Ping felt that his overall physical condition had improved significantly, and his Lifespan had also increased, which made him quite happy.
This feeling of gradually moving towards longevity was quite good...
"Now that my cultivation has broken through to Qi Refining Middle Stage, and the High-Speed Ring-Cutting Bees have reached eight hundred, it's time to head to Qing Shi Market!"
Qi Ping had been longing for a new Animal Companion for a long time. Now he had ample Spirit Stones and enough strength for self-preservation, so this time, no matter what, he had to find a suitable Animal Companion.
"I hope Boss Gao is reliable; after investigating for so long, he should have a thorough understanding of the Spirit Beast information for sale in Qing Shi Market..."
Qi Ping had a certain degree of confidence in Boss Gao's intelligence capabilities. He probably could even find out the color of any female Cultivator's underwear; anyway, as long as the Spirit Stones were in place, everything was negotiable.
"I hope I can find a surprising Animal Companion this time!"
After making all preparations, Qi Ping, filled with this strong anticipation, embarked on his journey to Qing Shi Market...
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