"A gift?"
A look of surprise flashed across Qi Ping's face. His first instinct was that Ji Qingyue was trying to set him up, but it turned out to be an actual gift?
"She left the foundations and the spirit vein itself?" Qi Ping still found it hard to believe. Wasn't she the key person the Heavenly Dragon Continent relied on to kill him?
According to Xiao Xianhu, the woman had a decent level of skill in heavenly secrets. Fleeing because of a bad omen was understandable, but why leave these things behind? Was it a plot?
Qi Ping felt it was better to be cautious. "Xianhu, since she's gone, scrying her former residence and the surrounding area should be easy for you. See if there's a trap."
"Be careful. Never underestimate these enemies. A single oversight could be fatal," he added seriously.
He wasn't worried about his other companions, but Xiao Xianhu had been born with great luck. Its journey had been smooth, always finding treasures whenever it went out. Qi Ping worried this would create a habit of complacency. Luck was just luck; it didn't always work. Many legendary beasts of fortune had died because of a single careless mistake. He could resurrect the tiger, but that would still cause damage—some of it irreversible.
"Awoo! (I understand, Boss! I'll be careful!)" Seeing Qi Ping's serious expression, the tiger nodded solemnly. It was very obedient. After some self-reflection, it realized it indeed tended to be a bit careless at times. It resolved to stay vigilant; luck should be a pleasant surprise, but one's own strength and caution were the real foundations.
As Xiao Xianhu performed another divination, the results were quick.
"Awoo! (Boss, she really left everything behind. There are no ambushes.)"
"No ambushes? How strange!" It was a good thing for Qi Ping, but it felt incredibly odd. "Can you divine the reason why she did this?"
"Awoo! (Boss, some things cannot be divined through heavenly secrets, but looking at her history and current situation, I can guess!)"
"Oh? Tell me." Qi Ping was curious. Among his animal companions, Xiao Xianhu was the most intelligent. If it said it had a guess, it was likely close to the mark.
"Awoo! (There are several reasons. First, her history. Her path was incredibly smooth, reaching the Soul Transformation stage without a hitch. Only the Void Refinement stage slowed her down a bit, but even then, it wasn't much of a struggle.)"
"Awoo! (Consequently, her life has been very one-dimensional. She has never had peers who were her equals, or masters she truly revered. Her relationship with her family was also very distant. Thus, she has no deep connections or emotions for anything around her.)"
"Awoo! (Fortunately, she is intelligent and has a 'Wisdom Heart.' By traveling the continent and seeing the world, she found her own Dao; otherwise, she would have been consumed by the backlash of her own power long ago.)"
"Awoo! (However, once she reached the Void Refinement stage, she scoured the continent and found nothing that could help her break the limit. After exploring every corner, she effectively gave up on the Star-Sea Continent. She kept her Grade 6 spirit vein and her title in the Alliance, but she spent the last ten thousand years exploring the Realm-Sea. She nearly died several times without ever finding a chance for breakthrough.)"
"Awoo! (So, when the Heavenly Dragon cultivator invited her, she agreed as soon as she confirmed your identity. Slaying a stranger for a chance at the Unity stage was an easy choice.)"
"Awoo! (But once she realized your strength was far beyond her expectations, her choice changed. Risking her life for a cultivator she didn't trust was foolish. Since she had a contract, fleeing was her only option.)"
"Awoo! (Leaving these resources—which look like a lot but aren't vital to her—is just her way of forging a positive karmic tie. Perhaps she also has a trace of sentiment for her home. Either way, it leaves her a way back. If you win, she hasn't burned the bridge entirely. She's leaving herself a fallback.)"
"I see!" Qi Ping finally understood her logic.
Objectively speaking, she wasn't a "villain." She hadn't preyed on her own continent when her progress stalled, choosing to venture into other worlds instead. But she wasn't "good" either; she had no deep love for her home. Leaving these things was just a way of disposing of items she didn't need while hedging her bets.
Qi Ping had to admit that according to the tiger's scrying, the resources she left behind would be of immense use to him right now.
"Her talent and Wisdom Heart must be the best in the continent. She was just held back by a lack of resources and life experience."
Even a talent like Meng Tianqi had endured countless trials to reach his current level. Both Qi Ping and the tiger had a feeling that this woman might play a significant role in the future—likely a positive one, as a "stroke of luck." But the karmic threads involved were too deep for the tiger to divine at its current level; trying would only cause a fatal backlash.
"Whatever happens, let's leave it for the future. I only need to focus on developing every step of my foundation now!" As long as his base was solid, there was nothing to fear.
After the divination, Qi Ping didn't rush to the residence to collect the treasure. Who knew if there might be a sudden accident? Besides, since the result wouldn't change, he wanted to let Meng Tianqi and the others practice the formations a bit more.
It didn't take long. Everything was soon ready. Because he was afraid of alerting the enemy, Qi Ping had waited until all the preliminary work was finished before having the tiger scry Ji Qingyue.
About three days later, Qi Ping gathered Meng Tianqi and the other seventeen leaders before the spatial teleportation array. Aside from the leaders, only Qi Ping's Soul Transformation swarm and his Treant clone would participate in this battle.
It was worth noting that after years of refinement and integrating concepts of external incarnations, his Treant clone was now strong enough to unleash most of his combat power. Except for a few specialized abilities, it was indistinguishable from his main body. In a battle outside the Qingtian Domain, there was little difference between the two.
The eighteen leaders stood with heavy, solemn expressions. They were nervous but resolute. Their combined aura was so powerful it made the world pale. If not for Qi Ping's arrays concealing the phenomena, the news would have spread long ago.
The war was beginning!
The leaders were rightfully tense; they were about to launch a visceral struggle, potentially facing the woman who had been the "Number One" of the continent for an eternity.
"Venerable Bee, how is the scrying of Ji Qingyue? How should we fight this battle?" Meng Tianqi looked at Qi Ping. He didn't ask about the odds of victory; he didn't want to dampen their morale. He believed that all probabilities were meaningless before a war began. He had won countless "impossible" battles; he only needed to know if the fight was necessary and how to win.
The rest was just doing it!
The others saw the relaxed expression on Qi Ping's face and realized the victory might be easier than they thought.
"Friends," Qi Ping smiled faintly. "We need not worry about this fight. We only need to treat it with due diligence. Our truly difficult struggle will be when the Heavenly Dragon faction returns with reinforcements."
This didn't make them relax; it made them even more solemn. But Qi Ping's next words made their eyes widen.
"I have good news. Ji Qingyue has fled. Our remaining opponents are just the others. With our current configuration and strength, as long as we are careful, they won't be able to cause any waves."
"Now, the most important thing is speed! We must kill as many as possible before they can react and regroup!"
What? Ji Qingyue ran?
The leaders, including Meng Tianqi, were stunned. The "unshakeable" number one had just... fled? If anyone else had said it, they would have called it nonsense. But this was Qi Ping.
"Venerable Bee, what happened? Why would she flee?"
"It's unbelievable. She has never feared anyone. Did you strike her, Venerable?"
This was the only reason they could think of. Qi Ping didn't deny it. "Yes. She was heavily wounded during a battle of heavenly secrets a few days ago, so she chose to run."
A collective gasp echoed through the room. They had all felt the providence Qi Ping manipulated, but they hadn't realized he had wounded the legendary Ji Qingyue in a mental duel. At this moment, Qi Ping's image grew even more mysterious and powerful in their hearts, filling them with absolute confidence.
"Venerable Bee is mighty!" they cheered. "Victory is certain!"
Their morale reached its peak! Without the shadow of Ji Qingyue, they knew the others well. With Qi Ping and his custom-designed formations, the battle was practically a foregone conclusion.
"Everyone, follow me into battle!"
Qi Ping scanned the group and then stepped into the spatial teleportation array.
"Victory!"
As the battle cries rang out, the nineteen figures vanished. When they reappeared, they were in a remote area near Ji Qingyue's former residence.
As predicted, she was not there. After Qi Ping took some effort to dismantle her defenses, the mountain of spirit herbs and treasures inside left everyone speechless. Even for peak leaders, this level of wealth was shocking.
'I knew she was rich, but I didn't think she was this rich,' they thought.
But despite the shock, they didn't lose their composure. They followed Qi Ping, waiting for his command.
In a different Grade 5 spiritual land, within a cave-dwelling made of Azure Enlightenment Stones, two mysterious figures sat opposite each other. Both radiated the aura of the Void Refinement stage.
"Do you think Meng Tianqi and his group have really defected to the Bee Daoist?"
"Who knows? It doesn't matter anymore. Senior Long wouldn't tolerate such people. The meeting next month will be their funeral!"
"What are they even trying to achieve? The Bee Daoist is strong, but the destruction of the Star-Sea Continent is inevitable. This is just a path to certain death..."