Volume 1 Volume 7 Chapter 61

Volume 7 Chapter 61: Azure Crystal Treasure House (Part 1)

While talking, seven small islands shaped like the Big Dipper appeared in front of Niu Wenxing and Xu Hui.

However, when Xu Qingfan flew the two inside, and they thought this was the so-called Rainbow Spirit Seven Islands, Xu Qingfan made a hand sign, and suddenly the scene in front of them rippled like water, vanishing into thin air; it was just an illusion.

After the illusion faded, the real Rainbow Spirit Seven Islands finally appeared before them, still seven small islands shaped like the Big Dipper, but compared to the ordinary ones before, these seven islands were stunning, like a fairyland, with jade trees and silver grass, beautiful hills, and clear lakes. The Spirit Qi was thick, and the light of seven colors surrounded them. Even though Niu Wenxing was just an ordinary person, he could sense the Spirit Qi coming towards him.

Those who appreciate beautiful scenery are happy, not to mention someone like Niu Wenxing, who used to be a prime minister in a mortal kingdom. At this moment, he shook his head and seemed ready to compose a poem about the beauty.

However, Xu Hui frowned because he noticed a slight difference in the positions of the real Rainbow Spirit Seven Islands and the ones in the illusion. Where the illusion showed the Rainbow Spirit Seven Islands, there were faint waves of Spirit Qi, likely indicating some powerful traps. If someone rushed in without realizing these illusions, they would not end well.

Xu Qingfan, however, did not pay attention to the two. He changed his hand sign again, and the colorful light surrounding the Rainbow Spirit Seven Islands split to the sides, creating a wide pathway. Xu Qingfan gestured with his right hand and led the two inside.

Once they entered the Rainbow Spirit Seven Islands, the beauty became even more striking. Niu Wenxing shook his head even more vigorously, but his apparently enchanted eyes were squinted, hiding his clarity and scrutiny as he secretly observed the various scenes of the Rainbow Spirit Seven Islands.

When Xu Qingfan opened the maze outside the island earlier, everyone inside the Rainbow Spirit Seven Islands already knew of Xu Qingfan’s return and were now floating in mid-air, waiting for him.

When Xu Qingfan returned, he surprisingly had two people beside him. One of them had eyes that were half-open, and within them lay a deep and powerful aura, clearly a rare expert. The other person was just an unhealthy-looking middle-aged man.

However, the crowd did not ask many questions. They flew in front of Xu Qingfan, bowing in respect. Hundreds of cultivators gathered together, creating quite a grand scene.

After Xu Qingfan returned the gesture, Liu Ziqing smiled and said, "Isn’t the Island Master in closed-door meditation on Yuheng Island? Why did you suddenly come back from outside?"

Xu Qingfan smiled slightly and replied, "I suddenly remembered something and took a trip to Shenzhou Continent. Since the ‘Azure Crystal Treasure House’ is about to open, I hurried back."

"I see."

"But when did Taoist Friend Liu and Chou return? Were they able to kill the Azure Dragon?"

Xu Qingfan casually asked.

"We did kill it, but it was not easy. We took action while it was evolving, and at that time, it should have been powerless to resist. Still, it took a lot of effort from us. We waited for its moment of weakness and lay in wait for three whole months, only coming back a few days ago."

Liu Ziqing explained with a smile.

"That’s fine."

A hint of relaxation flashed in Xu Qingfan’s eyes, but he truly could not feel at ease leaving Liu Ziqing and Chou on the island while he was away; who knows what they might do?

At the same time, Liu Ziqing was also hiding a trace of shock in his eyes. In just half a year, Xu Qingfan’s strength had grown even more mysterious. Before, he could slightly sense the difference in Xu Qingfan’s power when he focused all his efforts; but now, Xu Qingfan seemed like an endless ocean, impossible to measure, making it not only hard to find out how deep it went but also frightening to explore.

Xu Qingfan had already reached the peak of the Out-of-Body stage; so what level had he reached now?

Could it be the Soul Splitting Stage?! Xu Qingfan had actually reached the Soul Splitting Stage?!

When Liu Ziqing thought of this, his body shuddered slightly. In that moment, he finally realized that taking Xu Qingfan’s place was becoming more and more impossible.

A plan must rely on strength; strength is the main factor, while wisdom is the support. This is a rule that has never changed, and in terms of strength, he had fallen far behind Xu Qingfan.

Meanwhile, Chou, hidden beneath his hood, also had a very complex expression. Looking at Xu Qingfan now was like when he first gained his power and saw Xu Qingfan—there was no chance of victory. After battling Azure Dragon, Chou’s strength had reached the mid-level of the Out-of-Body stage, and he thought that with his devouring ability, he could compete with Xu Qingfan for a moment. But to his surprise, the gap between them had grown even wider compared to before his breakthrough.

No wonder Xu Qingfan let him deal with Azure Dragon without fearing that he would become stronger after devouring it. It turned out that Xu Qingfan was already confident that he could still control Chou after his breakthrough.

"The various materials from the Azure Dragon have already been given to Tianxin Camp and Old Beggar. In order to find more rare treasures for Rainbow Spirit Seven Islands, Chou didn’t completely devour the Azure Dragon."

Liu Ziqing leaned closer to Xu Qingfan’s ear and whispered to him softly.

"Well done."

Xu Qingfan turned to look at Chou and nodded in appreciation.

However, at that moment when Xu Qingfan looked at Chou, he lowered his head, seeming to show respect to Xu Qingfan, or perhaps he was unwilling to meet Xu Qingfan’s gaze.

Xu Qingfan smiled slightly and began to introduce Niu Wenxing and Xu Hui to the people of Rainbow Spirit Seven Islands, as if he and Niu Wenxing and Xu Hui were long-time friends, rather than him forcing them to come to Rainbow Spirit Seven Islands.

"This is my friend Taoist Friend Xu Hui, who possesses remarkable skills in controlling spirits. His close combat and defense techniques are rare in the world. Under certain conditions, even a great master can be controlled by him in an instant. He is truly a top practitioner. We had some connections in the past, and it is with my earnest invitation that he has finally agreed to stay with us at Rainbow Spirit Seven Islands for a while."

Xu Qingfan said with a cheerful smile, completely ignoring the odd expression on Xu Hui’s face.

Among experts, there is a natural sense. After seeing Xu Hui, the elders and protectors of Rainbow Spirit Seven Islands could roughly gauge his strength. Especially when Xu Hui met their gaze, they all experienced a moment of dizziness, and strange illusions appeared before their eyes. But as soon as they looked away, everything returned to normal. They realized they were likely not Xu Hui’s equals. Except for Liu Ziqing and Chou, the others flashed a glimmer in their eyes. Although they were unhappy with Xu Hui’s probing, they still cupped their hands and greeted him politely.

At this moment, Xu Hui could not say that he was captured by Xu Qingfan. His proud nature made it hard for him to express this, so he just snorted coldly at Xu Qingfan, awkwardly returning a bow to everyone while his eyes were fixed solely on Liu Ziqing and Chou.

After a slight test earlier, Xu Hui already knew that among the so-called elder protectors, only Zhang Yi could compete with him for a moment; the others were far from his match. Only Liu Ziqing and Chou were elusive. Xu Hui was surprised to find that Liu Ziqing’s body was entirely made up of Original Soul and energy. When he tried to sense it, it felt like a drop of water entering the ocean, disappearing without a trace. But when Xu Hui probed towards Chou, two points of blood light suddenly shone in the darkness under Chou’s cloak. The moment they made contact, Xu Hui felt as if he had entered the eighteenth level of hell, with the chilling sound of ghostly wails in his ears and a cold wind swirling around him. It was terrifying, and although Xu Hui still looked calm, his clothes were already damp with cold sweat.

Xu Qingfan seemed unaware of Xu Hui’s actions and called Zhang Ningmei over, saying, "Ningmei, this Senior Xu Hui has a rare ability to use Original Soul through his spiritual sense. You should ask him for guidance often in the future."

Zhang Ningmei bowed in response and then saluted Xu Hui.

"Hmph! Huh…?"

Xu Hui realized that this woman was likely the reason Xu Qingfan had brought him here. Annoyed, he let out a cold snort, preparing to ignore Xu Qingfan and Zhang Ningmei to make them uncomfortable. But in the next moment, he sensed something unusual. Although Zhang Ningmei’s cultivation was only at the Real Golden Core Stage, the strength of her spiritual sense was not significantly less than his. He was greatly surprised and finally understood what Xu Qingfan meant by mentioning Zhang Ningmei as a once-in-a-millennium genius in cultivating spiritual sense. He began to examine her closely, which made it seem to others that Xu Hui had developed a fondness for Zhang Ningmei.

Xu Qingfan smiled slightly, fully aware that Xu Hui would not easily teach his "Sun Moon Control Technique" to Zhang Ningmei. If he taught it now, Xu Qingfan would worry that Zhang Ningmei might not learn it.

However, for a cultivator, finding a suitable disciple is far more difficult than finding a magical treasure or top-tier spirit pill. With Zhang Ningmei’s character, comprehension, and her innate powerful spiritual sense, she was indeed the most precious disciple a cultivator focused on spiritual sense could hope for. Over the years, many Qingxu cultivators had approached Zhang Ningmei, but since they proposed that Zhang Ningmei completely leave Xu Qingfan to join Qingxu, she rejected them. Although Xu Hui claimed that the "Sun Moon Control Technique" could only be passed onto the Xu family’s descendants, Xu Qingfan did not believe that Xu Hui could truly hold back after spending so much time together.

On the other hand, Niu Wenxing, being a mortal, did not know how high the cultivation levels of the so-called Rainbow Spirit Seven Islands’ protectors and elders were, but by secretly observing Xu Hui’s expression, he could guess a rough idea, and his face changed slightly.

At this moment, Xu Qingfan had already started introducing Niu Wenxing to everyone.

"This is Mr. Niu. Although he is an ordinary person, his skills in schemes are rare in the world. He originally worked under Junior Martial Brother Feng Qingtian, helping Junior Brother Feng with planning. During my trip to the Southern Wasteland, I had the chance to see Mr. Niu’s abilities. Under his strategy, the power that Junior Martial Brother Feng Qingtian now holds is already not less than that of my Rainbow Spirit Seven Islands. However, the Southern Wasteland demon beasts faced another disaster because of this. The strength that the Shura Clan has built over the years and the descendants they raised have lost more than half. In the end, if I hadn’t arrived just in time, those two kylin in the Southern Wasteland would have almost been killed by Mr. Niu."

Xu Qingfan was recounting Niu Wenxing’s deeds, and the expressions of the crowd looking at Niu Wenxing became more and more astonished. As for Niu Wenxing, although there was a slight smile on his lips, he felt extremely bitter because he knew that from now on, these masters of Rainbow Spirit Seven Islands would carry a sense of caution around him. If he came to Rainbow Spirit Seven Islands and did nothing, hoping to work as before without putting in effort, he would face complaints and even resentment from everyone. Not to mention helping Feng Qingtian gain benefits, it would be difficult for him to escape.

However, Niu Wenxing was also a person of great cunning. In a moment, he regained his composure and smiled at everyone with a cupped fist gesture.

Meanwhile, while listening to Xu Qingfan’s introduction, Liu Ziqing’s eyes grew brighter as he observed Niu Wenxing, lost in thought. Noticing Liu Ziqing’s gaze, Niu Wenxing turned to him, smiled, and nodded.

Seeing this scene, Xu Qingfan shook his head silently in his heart. Liu Ziqing and Niu Wenxing, these two clever foxes, would not know whether they would be scheming against each other or colluding in the future.

"Let’s go to the Clear Heart Hall to talk."

Xu Qingfan smiled as he led the way.