The West Empress did not hide her admiration for her daughter, but then her expression dimmed, and she couldn't help but let out a soft sigh.
If it were possible, she would have been willing to leave the opportunity to prove her Dao to her daughter. However, at that time, there was truly no other way; if she hadn't proven her Dao, the Forbidden Zone Supremes would have come knocking, and the lives of their family of three would have been in peril.
A certain Old Father wore a bitter smile on his face, thinking that he might now become the weakest member of the family in terms of combat power, yet the slight upward curve of his lips betrayed his true thoughts.
"As expected of my daughter!"
Seeing that her husband's smile was harder to suppress than an extreme dao emperor weapon, the West Empress knew exactly what he was thinking and said:
"This happened so suddenly that I didn't have time to help her conceal it. If the Forbidden Zone Supremes find out, it likely won't be a good thing. We need to make some preparations in advance."
"Some of those old fellows are nearing their end. Moreover, there are still some old grudges that haven't been settled. Wait a little longer; we still have time."
"This is a matter for the two of us as husband and wife," the West Empress emphasized.
"Indeed."
The husband and wife shared a silent understanding, unwilling to involve their child any further.
In their view, Shaohua was too deeply influenced by them. While the Dao Laws of a Great Emperor and the bloodline of a Holy Body might be sought after by others, for her, they were a form of limitation; this child should have been able to go much further.
Furthermore, because they had no choice but to leave when she was young, they hadn't fulfilled their responsibilities as parents and felt deeply indebted to her.
Shaohua, naturally, did not know what her Holy Body Old Father and her young Great Emperor mother were thinking.
She slowly woke up, her eyes snapping open and dispersing the chaotic Qi. Her body flowed with divine radiance, and she couldn't help but let out a long cry, feeling refreshed as never before.
After sitting in meditation in the Immortal Land for eight hundred years, she had truly taken an extremely important step.
She had created her own unique Dao and Laws, confident that they would not be inferior to any Ancient Emperor's Scripture; in certain unique aspects, they might even surpass them.
She hadn't yet realized how much of a stir she had caused, remaining immersed in the lingering charm of her Dao creation. She wanted to use this foundation to figure out a few unparalleled Great Arts.
The Dao is the foundation, the Law is the essence, and the Art is the manifestation of the Dao and Law—the external means of expression. The Immortal Path is long and distant; without a few secret protective arts, how could one go further?
The most widely circulated and famous secret arts in the world were undoubtedly the 'Nine Secrets' created by the Nine Da Tian Zuns of the Mythical Era: Lin, Bing, Dou, Zhe, Jie, Shu, Zu, Qian, Xing. She had already obtained most of them, with only the Lin, Shu, and Qian secrets left to complete the set.
Among them, the Dou and Zhe secrets were seized from the Tyrant Body lineage, the Jie Secret was comprehended from the Ancient Scriptures of the Emperor Venerable deep within the Emperor Gate, and the Zu Secret was naturally understood from the Celestial Treasure Heavenly Lord's Killing Formation Diagram.
The others were either found by herself or exchanged with others; she had already obtained six of the Nine Secrets.
Furthermore, there was the brilliant example of the Ruthless Great Emperor, who had independently created nine great immortal arts to single-handedly rival the Nine Secrets of the Heavenly Lords.
Shaohua felt she didn't necessarily have to compete with the Nine Secrets. She had her own ideas and already had several prototypes in mind.
"Splash."
Water splashed, immortal mist rose, and colorful vapors swirled as Shaohua rose from the Immortal Pool, stepping out slowly like a beauty emerging from a bath.
She had a tall figure, and her snow-white, delicate, beautiful face glowed in the morning light. Every inch of her skin was translucent and emitted a rosy glow, and every strand of hair flowed with divine brilliance. She was a masterpiece favored by the heavens, truly peerless and stunning.
Unfortunately, no one was there to appreciate this beauty.
According to the exact words of a certain Old Father: "There is no man in this world worthy of her."
Actually, there was a second half to that boastful sentence: there was still one incomparably great man in this world—referring, of course, to himself.
Shaohua, naturally, wouldn't take an interest in anyone either; men would only slow down the speed at which she drew her sword!
Of course, there was no shortage of people in the world who had designs on her. After all, she was beautiful, powerful, and the highest-tier'second generation' under heaven; it would be strange if she didn't have pursuers.
In the end, they were all flattened by the Old Father's fist, which was as big as a clay pot.
What right did a man who couldn't even withstand the Six Paths Reincarnation Fist have to try and take his precious daughter?!
"It's time to go back."
Shaohua pulled the Ginseng Fruit Tree out from the pool, and the White Tiger Divine Medicine proactively scurried into her arms, being exceptionally well-behaved and sensible.
She did not take the damaged Immortal Cauldron, leaving it in its original place to remain as it was.
The most important Immortal Dao patterns inside had already been inscribed. Taking it would merely mean having one more weapon to rival an extreme dao emperor weapon, which wasn't of great significance.
If the time truly came when she needed it, she would come to retrieve it.
Besides, how could she keep this Immortal Land all to herself?
She conveniently collected some Medicine Kings. Although the Divine Fluid of the Immortal Pool was good, in a sense, it was now her bathwater, so she didn't collect any more and turned to drift away.
Returning to Beidou, Shaohua planted the Ginseng Fruit Tree and the White Tiger Divine Medicine beside an Immortal Pool, where they complemented the Life Ancient Tree on the other side, looking as brilliant as a fairyland.
The immortal tear green gold used to cast the western emperor pagoda was obtained from the deepest part of this Immortal Pool, which was also the site of the original Jade Lake in later generations, not far from the Primordial Ancient Mine.
After the West Empress proved her Dao, she built a traveling palace right here, presiding over the location to deter the Forbidden Zones.
"Where did you get two more Undying Divine Medicines?"
It was the first time Shaohua had seen her mother so surprised. One must know that her mother was a Great Emperor of the current age; there were few things in the world that could surprise her.
"I'll tell you if you give me a hug." She saw her Holy Body Old Father passing by and, with a shift in her eyes, a plan came to mind as she sent a voice transmission to her mother.
Wasn't this another form of 'challenging a Great Emperor'?
"You child." A trace of helplessness appeared on the West Empress's stunning face, but she still dotingly reached out and pulled her daughter into her arms.
With their two somewhat similar beautiful faces pressed together, Shaohua shot a slightly triumphant glance at her Old Father nearby.
It was essentially a case of 'flaunting in front of the husband'.
"..."
The Old Father's mouth twitched. Dammit, she was clearly his wife, but now she was in someone else's arms, and she seemed to love that person even more than him.
Fine, he was indeed jealous.
Although the couple's relationship was still very good, as the current Female Emperor, his wife had been full of majesty since proving her Dao, rarely showing such a charming expression. How could this not make him feel distressed?
Just now, he really wanted to shout: Let her go, let me!
However, due to his status in the family and the gap in their strength, he timely dismissed that dangerous thought.
"Father, when did you arrive?" Shaohua feigned surprise.
"I've been here... for a while."
The West Empress stroked her daughter's soft, dark, and shiny hair with a bit of a reproachful look, then turned her head to glare at the wooden figure standing nearby and said crossly, "Wu Ning, you're really something, getting jealous of your own daughter."
Indeed, Shaohua's Great Completion Holy Body father was named Wu Ning, while her mother, the West Empress, was actually named Yao Chi. The two of them had certainly taken an unconventional path when naming their child.
Shaohua, Shaohua—beautiful times, dream-like years.
Wu Ning couldn't help but give a sheepish smile. The world said that a Great Completion Holy Body could challenge a Great Emperor, but he felt that was pure nonsense. If he dared to raise his voice, his status in the family would likely be in critical danger.
After that little interlude, Shaohua didn't hide anything and told her parents about the Immortal Land and the Immortal Cauldron, hoping they could also gain some fortune from it.