Chapter 126 - 123: An Urgent Matter

"The Flame Demon Flower," Ling Qingxue answered.

Mo Qianqian was puzzled. He had never heard of such a thing.

"It’s a Heavenly Material and Earthly Treasure that gives those in the Early-stage Realm of Communication with Ghosts the highest chance of breaking through a minor level, and allows those in the Spirit Profound Realm to advance by at least two," Ling Qingxue explained further.

Mo Qianqian was slightly surprised. Was the Flame Demon Flower really that effective? Truth be told, a rapid breakthrough in his cultivation was exactly what he needed right now. If such a treasure existed, he naturally wanted it.

However, upon recovering his wits, Mo Qianqian immediately asked, "This shouldn’t be of much use to me, right?"

Could Ling Qingxue still be testing him? His true body was a Body Cultivator, but his current disguise was a Spirit Master. If he showed any interest in the Flame Demon Flower, she might guess his true identity again.

"I wish to cooperate with you, Master Asura. If you accompany me to retrieve the Flame Demon Flower, the Ling family will compensate you handsomely. You may state any condition you desire, and as long as the Ling family can achieve it, we will certainly fulfill it," Ling Qingxue said.

Mo Qianqian frowned. She wanted him to go with her to get the Flame Demon Flower? What was Ling Qingxue scheming? Did she want to kill him, use him, or was this a genuine cooperation? To be fair, he also wanted to take this opportunity to eliminate her. But if she intended to harm him, the fact that she dared to go meant she definitely had a backup plan.

Mo Qianqian didn’t refuse outright. Instead, he asked, "Where is it?"

"Black Demon Ridge, in Buzhou Mountain," Ling Qingxue answered.

Mo Qianqian’s brow furrowed. "Miss Ling, you should know that place is not only covered in black miasma but is also the territory of the Black Demon Spiders. There’s even a Black Demon Spider King, the Black Widow, inside. Even high-level experts of the Tongyou Realm wouldn’t dare set foot there."

Back when he was in the Ling family, he had visited Buzhou Mountain quite often. He was naturally aware of a perilous place like Black Demon Ridge. It contained highly toxic black miasma and swarms of spirit beasts known as Black Demon Spiders. It even housed the terrifying Black Demon Spider King. Countless experts had entered Black Demon Ridge, never to return. Rumor had it that over a decade ago, a reclusive expert at the Ninth Level of Tongyou Realm from the Great Xia Dynasty had gone in, only to be devoured until not even scraps remained. Since then, no high-level Tongyou Realm experts dared to enter. Moreover, Black Demon Spiders, especially the females, were not only bloodthirsty but also preferred the flesh and blood of males—particularly human males. Therefore, the Black Demon Spider King was also known as the Black Widow. All in all, going to Black Demon Ridge was exceedingly dangerous.

"I am naturally aware. Therefore, the Ling family doesn’t dare send mid or high-level Tongyou Realm experts, lest we draw out the Black Widow. That is why I came to find you, Master Asura." Ling Qingxue smiled faintly and continued, "Master Asura, as a Spirit Master, you will find it much easier to deal with the Black Demon Spiders. Furthermore, the Bone-Eroding Spiritual Source you possess can corrode bone and shells. A Black Demon Spider’s hardest feature is its exoskeleton. If you can melt away their outer shells, killing them will be a breeze."

Mo Qianqian understood. It turned out she was after the power of his Bone-Eroding Spiritual Source! Based on her reasoning, entering Black Demon Ridge with the Bone-Eroding Spiritual Source would make him much safer than anyone else.

"And if I refuse to go?" Mo Qianqian asked.

"If you are unwilling, Master Asura, I naturally won’t force you," Ling Qingxue said.

"Aren’t you afraid I might leak the information?" Mo Qianqian pressed.

"Black Dragon Ridge is vast. Without a specific location, I’m afraid that even if others knew about it, they wouldn’t be able to find it." Ling Qingxue laughed. "Besides, ordinary people wouldn’t dare go to such a place. The Flame Demon Flower is only useful to those in the Early-stage Realm of Communication with Ghosts and the Spirit Profound Realm. It’s useless to high-level Tongyou Realm experts, so no one would be willing to take the risk."

"Perhaps you could seek out Xie Shiming," Mo Qianqian suggested.

"Xie Shiming is from the Great Shang Dynasty. I’m afraid he harbors considerable hostility toward me," Ling Qingxue said, shaking her head.

Hearing this, Mo Qianqian thought, "My hostility is even greater!" If he entered that place with Ling Qingxue, he feared only one of them would walk out alive.

"Of course, if possible, I still hope to travel with you, Master Asura. It would also allow the two of us to get to know each other better," Ling Qingxue said with a coquettish smile.

Just as Mo Qianqian was about to speak, Ling Qingxue added, "By the way, there is one matter I won’t hide from you, Master Asura. Senior Sister Nangong and my brother are actually in love. It’s just that, due to the circumstances between the Ling family and Tai Xuan Academy, they cannot marry openly. My brother might voluntarily leave the Ling family for Senior Sister Nangong’s sake. Regarding Senior Sister Nangong, I’m afraid this might disappoint you, Master Asura."

What Ling Qingxue said was naturally a lie. Her brother would not only never leave the Ling family, but he was also planning to marry Nangong Ling openly and announce it to the world. It was simply that the preparations weren’t complete yet. As for her brother’s relationship with Nangong Ling, many factions were already aware of it.

Hearing Ling Qingxue’s words, Mo Qianqian was momentarily stunned. Ling Qingxue’s brother, Ling Lang, was a couple with Nangong Ling? Of course, he had no romantic interest in Nangong Ling whatsoever. It was just that because the mysterious woman wanted to save Nangong Ling, everyone had misunderstood his intentions. He didn’t care who Nangong Ling ended up with. However, the mysterious woman had imparted teachings to Nangong Ling, which could be considered a great favor. He had even hoped he could pull Nangong Ling over to his side. But since the person with Nangong Ling was Ling Lang, Ling Qingxue’s biological brother, he feared that he and Nangong Ling were now destined to be enemies.

A faint sense of regret welled up in Mo Qianqian’s heart. Saving an enemy and teaching them a powerful Secret Technique—wasn’t that just inviting them to attack him? But since it was already done, there was nothing he could do about it. In truth, Ling Qingxue and Ling Lang weren’t exactly terrible people; they were fairly standard. However, Ling Lang was a fiercely protective brother and would support her in whatever she wanted to do—including stealing Mo Qianqian’s Holy Dragon Bloodline. Ling Lang was undoubtedly involved in Ling Qingxue’s theft of his Holy Dragon Bloodline. He also had to kill Ling Lang! Otherwise, after he killed Ling Qingxue, that fiercely protective brother would definitely try everything to seek revenge.

"Master Asura, do you find me lacking?" Seeing Mo Qianqian freeze for a moment, Ling Qingxue suddenly asked, "Is it because of my relationship with Mo Qianqian?"

Mo Qianqian’s heart skipped a beat.

Ling Qingxue continued, "Nothing ever happened between Mo Qianqian and me. I only took his Holy Dragon Bloodline for the sake of my future and for the Ling family.

"Think about it. If you offended someone, Master Asura, would you leave a future threat alive? Furthermore, if Mo Qianqian had kept the Holy Dragon Bloodline back then, he wouldn’t have survived anyway. In reality, I was helping him. Once he was crippled, he at least had a chance to live. As you can see, the Ling family had him marry into one of the South Wilderness Small Clans instead of outright killing him."

At this point, Ling Qingxue shook her head and sighed. "It’s just a pity that he couldn’t stay out of trouble. We had no choice. The Ling family can only do everything in our power to eliminate him."

Beneath his mask, Mo Qianqian’s expression hardened, and killing intent surged in his heart once again. Stealing his Holy Dragon Bloodline was for his own good? She only did it for her future and the Ling family? She spoke so self-righteously, but wasn’t she just trying to gain sympathy from ’Asura’ and paint herself as a good person? Unfortunately for her, he was Mo Qianqian! Ling Qingxue’s little trick was completely useless against him!

"KNOCK! KNOCK! KNOCK!"

Suddenly, the sound of knocking echoed from outside the door. Pei Hong’s urgent voice drifted in. "Elder Asura, there’s an emergency."

Without waiting for Mo Qianqian to respond, Pei Hong continued, "A woman claiming to be Mo Qianqian’s lover has entered the Imperial City and is challenging the geniuses of all the major families! The various major factions within the Imperial City are all heading there!"