Chapter 53

  This is a good start.

  Xu Ziqing's smile remained unchanged on his face, but in his heart he was truly relieved, yet also felt a hint of discontent.

  He has always been gentle and courteous to others, humble and polite in his words and deeds. But there is a big difference between showing respect by bowing voluntarily and being forced to do so.

  Xu Ziqing was a person of two lifetimes. In his previous life, he was spoiled by his family and had a gentle disposition, so no one dared to disrespect him. In this life, he was born into a noble family as the eldest son and grandson, even if the family business was taken over by others, the servants did not dare to be lazy towards him. He used to do odd jobs, but he truly loved and cherished the spiritual woods and grasses with all his heart, never bowing down.

  Although he appears gentle and never makes things difficult for others, deep down he has a noble and proud temperament that is nurtured in his blood, which is not revealed to others but is applied to himself, being strict with himself.

  This time he was under pressure from these high-ranking cultivators who were far superior to him, and as a junior, Xu Ziqing could have borrowed the momentum to bow his head and salute, avoiding a scene. But in his heart, he suddenly felt unwilling, not wanting to be forced into doing something against his will.

  It was also because of his stubbornness this time that some high-ranking cultivators felt their faces being slapped, making them even more determined to subdue Xu Ziqing, almost causing both sides to become embarrassed.

  Xu Ziqing turned around, slightly bowed and said warmly: "Nice to meet all of you seniors."

  He withstood those pressures and successfully maintained his introverted pride. Now he is bowing down, which is to show respect for the other party.

  Seeing this gentle and elegant young man, even the few elders who had just shown dissatisfaction, now also relaxed their expressions. At the same time, the atmosphere in the hall was no longer stiff.

  The middle-aged man sitting on the cushion in the center stroked his beard and smiled, nodding his head: "Xu Xiaoyou is indeed a young talent, and it's an honor for me to befriend you, which means I've made some progress."

  As soon as he finished speaking, two futons suddenly appeared behind Xu Ziqing and Su Xun.

  Xu Ziqing smiled and sat down, saying: "The Alliance Master has mispraised me. Ah Xin is a truly genuine person, and it's an honor for me to be friends with him."

  Su Xian saw that Xu Zi Qing's face was slightly pale, but his spirit was still good, and he felt a bit relieved. He sat on his left side and said somewhat unpleasantly: "Master asked me to invite Brother Zi Qing here, but how could you bully him first? A few days ago, during the battle with the Blood Demon, Brother Zi Qing saved my life several times. I was happy to be friends with him, but Master, you didn't give me this brother's face, it's not quite right!"

  The middle-aged man laughed and said, "It's just a greeting, after all. Xu Xiaoyou is determined, we old guys are excited to see him, it's inevitable that we got a bit carried away, we should be the ones apologizing instead."

  He didn't take Su Xun's words as a provocation, which shows that he was very spoiled. On both sides sat seven or eight cultivators, all with calm faces, also without any objection to the middle-aged man's words. It can be seen that Su Xun holds a high position in this loose cultivator alliance and is loved and respected by many elders.

  But everyone's attitude towards him was also related to Xu Ziqing's own strength.

  They had heard Su Xun mention earlier that Xu Zi Qing was only two years older than Su Xun, yet he had achieved such profound cultivation. His innate talent was indeed extraordinary. The elder crowd originally thought that Su Xun was exaggerating, but they also harbored some intentions to test him out. That's why they let Xu Zi Qing come in, and everyone released their aura comparable to the ninth layer of Qi Refining, joining forces to pressure him together.

  I thought it would be good if Xu Ziqing could persist in his breathwork, but unexpectedly, in this test, Xu Ziqing had such an outstanding performance that it was enough to make everyone look up to him a few more notches.

  Xu Ziqing sat down and also looked at the crowd in the hall.

  The middle-aged man sitting in the center of the mat is undoubtedly the leader of the loose cultivators' alliance. He has a clear and elegant appearance, with a hint of sharpness in his eyes. The elderly men and women seated on either side are all unique and seem to be kind, regardless of their sincerity or not.

  These cultivators each had a strong sense of oppression on their bodies, but no longer felt compelled. Xu Ziqing knew that this was the natural aura emitted by high-level cultivators, and since his cultivation was weaker than others, he wouldn't be targeted, yet would still have some perception, which was a normal thing.

  However, these scattered pressures could not make Xu Ziqing feel intimidated, and he guessed that it was probably because those with higher cultivation had not appeared.

  Xu Ziqing's guess is also correct.

  In the Loose Cultivation Alliance, there are rules and regulations. Once a cultivator reaches the Hua Yuan stage, they become an Elder of the Supreme and focus on hiding in the spiritual mountains and blessed lands to cultivate, striving for further progress. Unless it's a matter of life and death related to the Loose Cultivation Alliance, they won't easily leave their seclusion.

  Therefore, at present, the monks in the temple have the highest cultivation of only the later period of foundation building. If one has not built a foundation, they cannot become an elder who can discuss matters within the inner temple.

  Many elders and the alliance leader also sized up the young man in front of them, and they all felt that he had a clear and upright expression, bright and piercing eyes, and when facing others, he was not evasive at all, showing his openness and integrity, never having done anything wrong.

  They spoiled Su Xin, and they all knew that Su Xin was a kind-hearted person. Usually, they heard Su Xin praise Xu Zi Qing a lot, so they couldn't help but worry that he would be deceived by others, which is why they arranged this meeting.

  But after seeing each other and probing, I finally put my mind at ease.

  Since he had put his mind at ease, when speaking with Xu Ziqing again, he naturally didn't have any guard or apprehension.

  Both sides had uncovered the awkwardness at the beginning, and the atmosphere gradually became harmonious.

  The alliance leader spoke up, "I heard from Xing Er that you and he fought against the Blood Demon together. It was indeed a perilous battle. You took good care of Xing Er, as his elder, I should also show some appreciation."

  He finished speaking, his hand drew out several mysterious trajectories.

  Suddenly, a crane on the wall painting of the temple's dome came to life, its eyes twinkling as it flapped its wings and flew down.

  It tapped its long legs lightly, with a wooden box in its long beak, and came to Xu Ziqing's face like a solo dance, put down the box, and then flapped its wings again, returning to the mural.

  This kind of magic is indeed wonderful.

  Xu Ziqing knew that Yuemo was just a distracting technique, but he was still drawn to the finger movements and became somewhat entranced.

  The box fell to the ground with a faint "click".

  Xu Ziqing came back to his senses and smiled, declining: "As a junior, I have already become good friends with Ah Xian, and everything we do is done willingly. How could I accept this gift? Please take it back, senior."

  The leader of the alliance smiled and said: "The elder gave it, I dare not decline. This is just a humble gift, little friend don't worry about it."

  Su Xian saw the atmosphere was quite good, and also pulled Xu Zi Qing's sleeve: "Brother Zi Qing, the things Master gave us are not to be taken lightly, hurry up and put them away!" Seeing Xu Zi Qing still hesitating, he said straightforwardly, "Could it be that our camaraderie in fighting side by side is inferior to this small box?"

  Xu Ziqing listened to him and stopped pretending, directly putting the box into his sleeve: "In that case, I'm honored to accept."

  "This is what good brothers should be like!"

  The leader of the alliance also found it amusing: "Xin'er has never been so protective of anyone before, it's clear that she and Xu Xiao are truly close friends."

  Su Xun's face turned red with anger: "What if I acknowledge this brother of mine?"

  As soon as these words came out, not only did Xu Zi Qing lightly laugh and respond with "yes", but all the elder generation also started laughing.

  For a moment, they were harmonious and joyful. Later, when the alliance leader and other elders asked in detail about their battle with the Blood Demon, it was as if they were chatting with each other, laughing and talking freely, without any tension at all.

  As they spoke, they were getting into a wonderful state, when suddenly there was a surge of spiritual energy outside, and before long, clouds gave birth to wind, and a beautiful female cultivator in red skirt and dress rushed in hastily, like a fierce fire rushing over, and at first glance, it was bright red.

  It turned out that Huo Tong had arrived.

  Huò Tóng entered the palace and saw Sù Xīn and Xú Zǐ Qīng. She smiled and greeted them: "Xu, my young friend, has been in the alliance for several days, has anyone been neglecting you?"

  Xu Ziqing stood up and said: "Thank you for your concern, elder. I have not been neglected by anyone."

  Huò Tóng smiled again and walked over to her husband's left side, whispering something in his ear.

  The leader of the alliance had a faint glimmer in his eyes, but his expression remained unchanged.

  Xu Ziqing saw the situation, so he didn't sit down, but bowed his body to bid farewell: "Alliance Master, Huo senior, and all the elders, I suddenly remembered that there is still something important on my body, so I won't stay long, I'm afraid I have to take a step first."

  Everyone doesn't know that he is good at understanding people's intentions? I had some appreciation for this green-shirted young man before, and now I have a few more good feelings.

  The leader said: "Since that's the case, we won't keep you either. Let Su Xin send you down the mountain then. If you have time in the future, feel free to come here and play around."

  Xu Ziqing smiled slightly and didn't take it seriously, saying: "Thank you for your kindness, senior. I'll take my leave."

  Su Xuan also saw that Shifu had something to discuss with the elders and got up, leaving with Xu Ziqing.

  Because he was busy with his cultivation, Su Xun this time only sent Xu Zi Qing back to Gao Ke Ju and then left.

  It turned out that Qingfeng and Miaoyue were delighted to see their master return so early. Especially Miaoyue, who quickly got busy preparing food for Xu Ziqing.

  Xu Ziqing finished his meal and went back into the quiet room.

  Before entering concentration, he first took out the box given by the alliance master and opened it.

  Just as he was about to open the lid, Xuzi Qing hesitated for a moment.

  There were ten porcelain bottles in the box. However, when he picked up one of the bottles and took a look, he was slightly surprised.

  "Beast Spirit Pill".

  This Beast Spirit Pill is named as it implies, a medicinal pill for beasts to eat. It can strengthen the beast's physique and prevent them from getting sick or hungry. Moreover, this pill is made by refining beast dan and spiritual grass, containing the five elements of energy that are suitable for beasts to absorb, which is much faster than absorbing the aura in the world, and can be utilized more.

  It's rare to get Beast Spirit Pills, and there are few beast tamers among cultivators, so they're also rarely seen in trading halls. Xuzi Qing hadn't seen them before, but now he had been given many bottles of them.

  But it has to be said that these beast spirit pills have indeed reached Xu Zi Qing's heart.

  Chonghua had been following Xuziqing for many years, but Xuziqing's cultivation was never sufficient, and there were often right and wrong disputes. He couldn't take good care of it, so Chonghua would often fly high in the sky, hunting on his own, not adding any trouble to him, making Xuziqing feel both guilty and pitiful towards it.

  Originally, I thought of building a foundation as soon as possible and then finding ways to search for some spiritual elixirs for Chonghua. Now that we have the Beast Spirit Pill, along with Yun Liao's gift of the demonic beast body refinement method, Chonghua should be able to make further progress and refine the demon pill sooner.

  It's also a pity to say goodbye.

  The demonic beast, the spirit beast, is born with an inner elixir. Ordinary birds and beasts need to cultivate for a hundred years before they can transform into an inner elixir. Chong Hua's father has a hint of ancient giant peng bloodline, which is a natural-born demon; his mother was an ordinary black eagle who cultivated into a demon, becoming a postnatal demon. The two eagles laid an eagle egg, and when Chong Hua broke out of the shell, although he was a natural anomaly, there was no inner elixir in his body.

  Even after several years of cultivating the Refining Body Technique, Chonghua's only improvements were his speed and five senses being slightly better than a normal eagle, aside from having sharper talons and beak. He still couldn't be considered a demonic beast.

  All eagles have a short lifespan, and Xu Ziqing naturally couldn't bear to part with it. However, as he cultivated for many years, he would likely venture into many perilous lands, and if Ronghua couldn't progress further, how could she follow him? But if Ronghua were to stay behind - Ronghua was so dependent on Xu Ziqing, how could she be willing...

  For now, the best plan is for Xu Ziqing to quickly cultivate and gather more beast pet cultivation resources, so that Chonghua can advance in rank and they can be together forever.

  Xu Ziqing took out a porcelain bottle and was overjoyed, snapping his fingers in excitement.

  Chonghua perched on the branches of a tree outside the house, hearing the sound and swooping in to fly in. Xu Ziqing opened the restraint, stretched out his right arm, and let it grasp with its steel claws, landing on top of him.

  Xu Ziqing and Chonghua were intimate, seeing it rubbing against his arm, a hint of shyness flashed in his eyes. He swung the porcelain bottle in front of Chonghua and asked: "Chonghua, guess what this is?"

  Chonghua tilted his head and hooted, the eagle's beak probed once, and the bottle plug was pried open. Suddenly a faint bitter smell spread out, Chonghua lowered his head to peck at food, but unexpectedly the bottle moved, and he ended up flapping empty.

  Xu Ziqing smiled and said: "You can't just go eat whatever you want."

  The heavy fog is low and dense, with a faint sound of sobbing, as if it were whimpering.

  Xu Ziqing chuckled and poured out a pellet, stuffing it into the eagle's mouth: "Greedy Ronghua, hurry up and eat it to cultivate your skills."

  The eagle's beak is moving rapidly, its eyes are half-closed, as if it is extremely enjoying itself.

  Xu Ziqing handed the beast spirit pill back to Chonghua, feeling a bit tense in his heart. Seeing it swallow the dan pill, he stared at it with some tension, not blinking for an instant, focusing intently.

  The Beast Spirit Pill was indeed extraordinary, and as soon as Zonghui took it, he felt a change.

  Its entire body of black feathers suddenly trembled slightly, and every single feather had a fine, subtle aura that spread out in all directions.

  The golden feathers on the black crown suddenly flashed a hint of light, making the color dazzling and radiant. In an instant, it was as if the sunlight was shining on gold and jade, making it particularly eye-catching and particularly beautiful.

  Xu Ziqing channeled his spiritual energy into his eyes, and two faint cyan glows burst forth from them.

  Then he saw a circle of extremely faint ripples surrounding Chonghua, from the tail feathers to the all-over fluff, all stroking past in order. Making all of Chonghua's feathers become even smoother.

  The quiet room gradually filled with a strange and eerie aura that was floating and uncertain, and the center of this aura was Rong Hua.

  Xu Ziqing could even hear the sound of Chonghua's heartbeat at this time, strong and powerful. The circle of demonic energy also fluctuated with each beat, growing larger and smaller, until it was all absorbed into his feathers.

  At this time, Chong Hua opened his eyes, raised his head and let out a clear and long howl.

  Its former brilliance was restored, but it felt somewhat different from just now.

  Xu Ziqing's heart slightly relaxed, and a smile also appeared on his face: "Chonghua, how does it feel?"

  Chong Hua opened his eyes and nodded. He looked at the bottle in Xu Ziqing's hand again, and a hint of greed appeared in his eyes.

  Xu Ziqing knew that he was being misled by the power of the Beast Spirit Pill, and sternly warned: "Chonghua, as for cultivation, it still has to rely on one's own understanding to be considered the right path. This Beast Spirit Pill is good, but it can't be relied upon, it can only serve as a supplement. Otherwise, abandoning one's own cultivation would be putting things upside down."

  Chonghua was reluctant to part with it, although it understood human nature, but after all, its beastly nature couldn't be changed. Taking a Beast Spirit Pill would only make it fear that it would counteract the effects of several months' work. Its beastly instincts were driven by a strong desire for power, so how could it be easily persuaded?

  Xu Ziqing also understood in his heart, but after all, this matter was not trivial. He couldn't let Chonghua slack off because of the Beast Spirit Pill, so he had to instruct it repeatedly.

  Bian said, "Don't worry, Chonghua. I only have this one beast pet, and naturally I won't give it to anyone else. These ten bottles of Beast Spirit Pills are all yours, but you can only take one pill per day. At other times, you must focus on cultivating the Body Refining Technique that Yun brother taught you. Don't be greedy. Otherwise, not only will the medicinal effects of the Beast Spirit Pills go to waste, but it will also be useless for you."

  At this point, Chong Hua turned his head with a hum of discontent, and responded with a clear "yes", but still had an unyielding tone.

  Xu Ziqing couldn't help but laugh and said: "If you don't listen to me, I'll have to ask Brother Yun to come and teach you a lesson."

  Chonghua understood and immediately opened her eyes wide, leaning in to fawn and nuzzle.

  Xu Ziqing chuckled and stroked its eagle head, saying: "I'll give you a bottle with ten Beast Spirit Pills inside. Take it and use it for your ten-day cultivation." After a pause, he added, "This time I'm trusting you, don't disappoint me."

  Chonghua nodded and agreed, grabbed the bottle, flapped his wings and flew out of the quiet room.

  The room was quiet again, and Xu Ziqing sat upright on the couch, lightly exhaling.

  At this moment, a scene of Huo Tong and the leader of the Sanxiu Alliance suddenly emerged in his mind.

  Xu Ziqing couldn't figure it out, he knew that Huo Tong had something to discuss with the alliance leader, and as a junior and an outsider, he naturally should retreat. But why can't he forget about it now?

  This is indeed very unusual.

  Xu Ziqing thought that he and Huo Tong were just acquaintances, and although there was some slight discord with the Alliance Master and others at first, they soon let it go and there shouldn't be any awkwardness left.

  But Master's intuition cannot be ignored. At this time, he should have calmed down and focused on his practice, but instead, he was distracted by this, perhaps there is some omen.

  And if a master is to have forebodings, they are mostly related to his own life, and thus give rise to such vigilance.

  What does it have to do with him in the matter of dispersing the Cultivation Alliance?

  Xu Ziqing thought for a long time and couldn't think of anything either.

  Unconsciously, he sank his consciousness into the storage ring and touched the white-clothed friend sitting at the end of the stone platform.

  "What's going on." It wasn't until this cold voice sounded that Xu Ziqing was shocked out of his contemplation.

  Xu Ziqing sighed lightly, not wanting to trouble Yun Liao, but unexpectedly it was a habitual matter, after all, startling him. However, since it had come to this, he would tell Yun Liao all the doubts in his heart and said: "This omen is quite sudden, I can't trace its origin, so I'm a bit uneasy."

  Yun Liao said: "Your mind is in disarray."

  Xu Ziqing sighed and said: "I am indeed worried and distracted."

  "The clouds were cold and quiet, and then he said: 'Eliminate distractions, enter meditation and cultivate. You strongly resisted the pressure of many cultivators today, you must have gained something, and if you use your skills in time, you may be able to make further progress.'"

  If it were in the past, Xu Ziqing would have listened to Yun Liao's teachings with great obedience. But at this moment, he didn't know why, but a sudden surge of emotion arose in his heart, and he couldn't help but ask: "Brother Yun, who are you?"

  ,。