Cao Yu, who had swept away the young talents in the arena with his profound feng shui techniques, glanced at the sky and said with a smile, "My esteemed guests, today's gathering will conclude here. I have some matters to attend to and cannot see you off."
"My apologies! My apologies!"
...
"Haha, since the master has matters to attend to and is seeing us out, what am I still doing here? Esteemed friends, I shall take my leave first."
"Heh heh, Brother Yuan, let's go too. Let's find a place and have a good drink together, brother."
Most of the attendees were young talents, and they were all intelligent individuals.
Since the host had asked them to leave, why would they embarrass themselves by lingering?
After leaving the venue and exiting the Tianji Immortal Pavilion, they all parted ways.
...
Night fell.
Bai Shata City was brightly lit, bustling with activity.
In the bedroom of his guest room, Wu Tao sat cross-legged on a cushion, his eyes closed, diligently cultivating his spiritual energy. The noise outside had little effect on him.
The power displayed by numerous prodigies such as Zhang Wan'er, Cao Yu, Li Liguo, and Yuan Jing at today's gathering had put him under immense pressure.
Among them, some cultivated extremely potent techniques, some possessed powerful secret arts, and others followed very unique paths. The sword cultivator's path, which had previously allowed him to fight opponents of higher cultivation levels, was no longer his sole advantage.
Moreover, these individuals were not even the most exceptional geniuses in the immortal cultivation world.
He had truly been like a toad looking at the sky from a well.
Wu Tao thought this because in the vast and boundless immortal cultivation world outside, he could only be considered to stand at a certain height among the younger generation, far from having reached the peak.
...
As time passed, the surrounding spiritual energy was gradually absorbed by Wu Tao.
Helpless, Wu Tao slowly opened his eyes.
"Alas, pressure is good, but one must eat one bite at a time. You can't become fat in one gulp."
"After all, improving one's strength cannot be rushed. For now, I will focus on cultivating my own realm to the late stage of Foundation Establishment and reach the Great Perfection."
...
In the deep night, atop a hundred-zhang, nine-story tower, two figures, a man and a woman, stood at the very pinnacle.
Under the moonlight, it could be seen that they were a man and a woman. The woman was graceful and breathtakingly beautiful, none other than Zhang Wan'er, who had displayed immense power during the day. The man was Cao Yu, the young master of the Tianji Divination Sect.
A gentle breeze caressed Zhang Wan'er's long skirt, revealing her legs, which were as fair and smooth as white jade.
Zhang Wan'er coughed lightly and said, "Senior Brother Cao, you invited me from tens of thousands of miles away to Liangzhou, surely not just for this small gathering today!"
Cao Yu heard this and smiled, "Naturally not. If it were merely for such a trivial matter, I would certainly not have troubled Miss Wan'er."
"Oh! Is that so? Zhang Wan'er is willing to listen attentively."
Cao Yu glanced at Zhang Wan'er's shapely figure, skillfully concealing the sinister intent deep within his eyes.
He said in a gentle tone, "Several months ago, I received accurate information that in the JiZhan Mountains of the Wuyi Kingdom, someone had obtained a drop of blood from a Yin Ghost Flood Dragon."
"What! The blood of a Yin Ghost Flood Dragon? Senior Brother Cao, is this true?"
A sharp glint flashed in her eyes, and Zhang Wan'er's expression changed drastically. She stared intently at Cao Yu and pressed him for an answer.
Cao Yu, feeling Zhang Wan'er's intense gaze, shifted his eyes uncomfortably and stated with certainty, "I am ten parts sure it is not fake. I purchased this drop of Yin Ghost Flood Dragon blood for three hundred spirit stones, and it is currently with me. You can verify its authenticity."
With a flash of spiritual light from his storage spiritual bag, a drop of blood, deep green like a gemstone, floated in the air above Cao Yu's hand.
Without any hesitation, Cao Yu handed the deep green blood to Zhang Wan'er, who had been watching him intently.
Carefully taking the deep green blood, Zhang Wan'er, who had been tense, finally relaxed slightly.
The next second, Zhang Wan'er injected her spiritual energy into the drop of blood.
"Buzz!"
The deep green blood immediately emitted an extremely dark radiance, and numerous vengeful spirits and ghosts materialized in the air around them.
"It is indeed the blood of a Yin Ghost Flood Dragon, and it is well-preserved."
Zhang Wan'er's face lit up with joy, which then turned into a wry smile.
She shook her head and said to Cao Yu, "However, judging by the power contained within the blood, this Yin Ghost Flood Dragon should have been in its prime, with a cultivation level no lower than the Core Formation stage."
"Even if the two of us join forces, it would be very difficult to deal with this Yin Ghost Flood Dragon. The risk is too great, and the reward is not worth it."
Zhang Wan'er cared so much about the Yin Ghost Flood Dragon because she wanted to use its blood and soul to aid her cultivation of the Extreme Yin Ghost Spirit Art and break through to the Core Formation stage as soon as possible.
The Yin Ghost Flood Dragon was the only type of flood dragon that fed on ghosts, and its blood contained extremely potent ghost energy.
Moreover, its soul was a supreme treasure for cultivators of the ghost path.
If she could extract and utilize the entire blood and soul of a Yin Ghost Flood Dragon, bone by bone, she had a great chance of advancing to the Core Formation stage within a short period.
She would become the fastest cultivator to reach the Core Formation stage in the history of the Heavenly Demon Sect.
...
Breaking through to the Core Formation stage had a success rate; out of a hundred Foundation Establishment cultivators, sometimes only one could successfully enter the Core Formation stage.
Foundation Establishment cultivators under the age of a hundred had the highest success rate for breaking through to the Core Formation stage.
Opportunities sometimes did not wait.
By the time you think you are ready, the opportunity has already slipped away.
...
Therefore, whether it was Wu Tao, Zhang Wan'er, or any other prodigy, when faced with treasures that could help them improve their cultivation, they would not give up, even if there was only a slim chance of obtaining them.
This was because they knew very well that once an opportunity was lost, it would never return.
Cao Yu continued, "I invited you here, and naturally, I would not have you come for nothing. And how could the Yin Ghost Flood Dragon have bled for no reason?"
Hearing this, Zhang Wan'er thought carefully and realized he was right. If the Yin Ghost Flood Dragon had not been seriously injured, it would not have been so careless as to leave its blood outside.
Because this matter was related to her future path, her emotions had fluctuated too greatly, and her mind was unstable, causing her to miss the anomaly.
"So, this Yin Ghost Flood Dragon is injured, and not just slightly!"
Zhang Wan'er knew very well that Yin Ghost Flood Dragons were extremely powerful, with almost no rivals among demon beasts of the same level. They rarely got injured, and unlike ordinary flood dragon-type demon beasts,
The blood within a Yin Ghost Flood Dragon's body was very important to it. Once injured, it would re-ingest its own flowing blood.
Unless the Yin Ghost Flood Dragon was exceptionally severely injured, lacking even the strength to re-ingest its own blood, and could only find a place to hide and heal.
"Even a severely injured adult Yin Ghost Flood Dragon would not be easy to deal with. We must first prepare some corresponding magic artifacts and talismans, and make thorough preparations before we act."
Zhang Wan'er, having calmed down, began to discuss with Cao Yu how to deal with the Yin Ghost Flood Dragon.
She was entirely unaware of the increasingly intense greed and desire flickering beneath Cao Yu's eyes.
"Rest assured, Junior Sister Wan'er, Yin Ghost Flood Dragons fear lightning-attribute attacks the most. I have already prepared two or three top-tier lightning-attribute magic artifacts and over a hundred lightning-attribute talismans. This venture should be mostly successful."
Cao Yu's meticulous planning to help Zhang Wan'er was not for any other reason.
His ultimate goal was to win Zhang Wan'er's heart and obtain her pure Yin body.
From the moment he first saw Zhang Wan'er, Cao Yu had fallen for her. Upon learning that she possessed a pure Yin body, his desire for her intensified.
The pure Yin body was an excellent dual cultivation physique for male cultivators and also served as the best cauldron.
"I acknowledge this favor, Senior Brother Cao."
Although Zhang Wan'er vaguely knew Cao Yu's intentions and did not wish to be indebted to him, she was unwilling to give up on the injured Yin Ghost Flood Dragon.
"When do you plan to set off? I will definitely do my best to help you then," Cao Yu asked.
"In a month's time. I need to make some preparations and cannot be careless."
"Alright, see you in a month."
...
Cao Yu transformed into a streak of light and disappeared.
After Cao Yu left, Zhang Wan'er turned around and sighed softly.
She had a good impression of him, but it was only a good impression. There would be no emotional connection between them.
This was because Zhang Wan'er had resolved to dedicate her heart to the elusive Great Dao.
Barring any unforeseen circumstances, she would not fall in love with any man again in this lifetime.
Shadows flickered, and Zhang Wan'er's figure vanished.
...
On the other side.
Half a month later, in the morning, Bai Shata City was exceptionally lively due to the market day.
The cacophony of sounds from outside drifted into the guest room of the inn.
After washing up, Wu Tao opened his room and stepped out.
The street was thronged with people, carriages and horses like a dragon, a sea of humanity, surging like a tide.
At this moment, Lan Yingxiang was standing outside the inn's entrance.
Judging by her posture, she had been waiting for Wu Tao for quite some time.
Previously, Lan Yingxiang always wore elegant, luxurious dresses, projecting the image of a young lady from a prominent family.
However, today, she had changed into a white battle armor, with her once flowing hair tied up.
Her entire demeanor had changed significantly. Now, Lan Yingxiang resembled an invincible female general on the battlefield.
...
"How is it? Quite impressive, isn't it!"
Looking at Wu Tao, Lan Yingxiang smiled, seemingly pleased with his astonishment.
Wu Tao gazed at her deeply but remained silent.
While ordinary people would marvel at her outward beauty, Wu Tao was astounded by her wealth.
Whether it was the white armor carved with mysterious patterns or her other equipment, they were all exquisitely crafted magic artifacts, emanating powerful spiritual energy fluctuations.
Clearly, these were magic artifacts that had been painstakingly forged, each one a masterpiece.
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