Chapter 128 - 125: Mo Qianqian’s Whereabouts

SWISH!

At this moment, everyone watched as Zhongli Xuan charged at Ling Jue. Dodging his sword strike, she landed a palm strike directly on his body.

BANG!

A heavy impact echoed through the air. Ling Jue coughed up a mouthful of blood as his body was sent flying backward into the distance.

Simultaneously, Zhongli Xuan fully unleashed her cultivation aura. Astonishingly, the intensity of her aura revealed that she had reached the First Level of Tongyou Realm!

"The First Level of Tongyou Realm!" The crowd gasped in shock upon sensing her power.

Lingyun Shan and the rest of the Ling family turned grim.

Reaching the Tongyou Realm at such a young age meant she was a prodigy who could rank among the very best in the entire Great Xia Dynasty! No one expected this unknown woman to be a genius at the First Level of Tongyou Realm.

"At the First Level of Tongyou Realm and under twenty years old... aside from Ling Qingxue, I’m afraid no one from the major families could match her."

"No wonder she dared to come to the Imperial City to challenge the major families. She actually has the strength to back it up!"

"Just what is Zhongli Xuan’s background? How could such a monster not be on the Hidden Dragon List?"

"Asura isn’t on the Hidden Dragon List either. The list can’t measure everyone. Some rise to power in a short time, while others never show their faces in public. It’s very difficult for the evaluators of the Hidden Dragon List to track them down."

"I wonder if Ling Qingxue will step up? How strong is her combat prowess now?"

"We’re in for a good show now!"

Murmurs of discussion rippled through the crowd incessantly.

"A high-level Spirit Profound Realm cultivator has been defeated. The Combat Tax is ten Second-Grade Superior Elixirs. I’ll put it on the Ling family’s tab for now," Xiajin Shi’s voice rang out.

Many faces twitched at the remark. The City Guard certainly didn’t mess around when it came to collecting the Combat Tax!

"Does the Ling family only have trash like this?" Zhongli Xuan sneered, her voice full of provocation.

"I will fight you!"

Ling Qingxue stepped forward, drawing a gleaming longsword from her waist.

All eyes immediately shifted to Ling Qingxue. Everyone was eager to see exactly how strong the new number one on the Hidden Dragon List had become.

Mo Qianqian’s eyes were also glued to Ling Qingxue. He, too, wanted to know her current cultivation level.

"Ling Qingxue, you finally dared to step up!" Zhongli Xuan scoffed coldly, pointing her sword straight at her.

"A duel to the death. Do you dare?" Ling Qingxue asked in a chilling tone.

"Hmph, do you think I’m an idiot? You call it a deathmatch, but if you’re about to die, do you honestly think your Ling family would allow it? Would they stand by and watch the number one on the Hidden Dragon List be killed right in front of them?" Zhongli Xuan countered. "Don’t just take my word for it—no one here believes they would. Why should I agree to a deathmatch where only I can die, but you can’t?"

Her words struck a chord with the crowd. Indeed, while it sounded like a fight to the death, Ling Qingxue would inevitably be saved if her life were in danger. Ultimately, only one side was truly at risk of dying. Such a challenge was fundamentally unfair, and Zhongli Xuan was right to refuse it, even if she had absolute confidence in her skills.

Besides, Ling Qingxue was a monstrous talent. No young cultivator would have absolute certainty of killing her anyway.

"Since you don’t dare, then kneel!"

With that, a terrifyingly powerful aura erupted from Ling Qingxue. She moved like lightning, lunging straight at Zhongli Xuan.

"Second Level of Tongyou Realm!" Mo Qianqian’s expression tightened.

Ling Qingxue hadn’t just broken into the Tongyou Realm; she had already reached the Second Level of Tongyou Realm. Furthermore, her aura was incredibly imposing.

At that moment, the entire crowd was stunned, especially top-ranking figures on the Hidden Dragon List like Lie Yao who had come to watch.

"Second Level of Tongyou Realm!" Zhongli Xuan’s face fell as she delivered a powerful sword strike at Ling Qingxue.

CLANG!

Their swords clashed, producing a deafening metallic ring. In the next instant, the force of the collision deflected Zhongli Xuan’s sword, sending the blade rebounding back toward her own body.

She hastily twisted her hilt, causing the flat of her blade to slam heavily into her own shoulder.

"Pfft!"

Blood spurted from her shoulder, and she coughed up a large mouthful of blood. The sheer impact forced Zhongli Xuan to her knees. Ling Qingxue’s sword now rested on her shoulder, the cold edge pressed right against her neck.

The onlookers watched in disbelief. One strike! Ling Qingxue had defeated Zhongli Xuan with a single strike? Was Zhongli Xuan not strong enough, or was Ling Qingxue simply too powerful?

Mo Qianqian’s expression grew solemn. This was likely far from Ling Qingxue’s true strength! If she could truly utilize his Holy Dragon Bloodline, fighting opponents two or three levels above her own would be a breeze. That meant she currently possessed the combat power of someone at the Fourth or Fifth Level of Tongyou Realm, at the very least. Her actual limits could be even higher!

"Tell me where Mo Qianqian is, or I will kill you right now," Ling Qingxue threatened coldly, her body radiating killing intent.

"Ten Third-Grade Junior Elixirs for the Combat Tax, to be paid by the loser, Ms. Zhongli Xuan." Xiajin Shi’s voice interrupted again. "Furthermore, if you kill someone within the Imperial City after a scheduled duel, the Murder Tax will be one hundred Third-Grade Junior Elixirs."

Ling Qingxue frowned.

The crowd gasped in shock. One hundred Third-Grade Junior Elixirs! At eight hundred thousand silver taels per elixir, one hundred would amount to eighty million. If converted, that was equivalent to ten Third-Grade Superior Elixirs!

The Ling family could afford it if they scraped together all their resources, but doing so would completely bankrupt them.

"Heh," Zhongli Xuan chuckled coldly. "If I dared to come here, it means I’m not afraid to die. At the very least, I’ve exposed your true cultivation level for my husband. Not to mention, your Ling family would have to pay a massive price if you kill me. If you have the guts, then kill me!" she challenged with resolute defiance.

Ling Qingxue’s face darkened. After a moment of thought, she replied, "Killing you would indeed be too costly. However, I can still kill the child in your womb! According to the rules of the Imperial City, that merely counts as injuring you."

Zhongli Xuan’s face instantly paled.

"An unborn child is also a human life," Xiajin Shi chimed in again. "However, since pregnancy takes ten months and she is only two months along, we will charge you one-fifth of the Murder Tax. That will be twenty Third-Grade Junior Elixirs."

As soon as Xiajin Shi spoke, the members of the Ling family cursed him inwardly. Were the members of the royal family crazy for money? They even calculated a ten-month pregnancy and demanded a one-fifth fraction for a two-month fetus! The crowd was also rendered speechless. Could it really be calculated like that?

"Twenty elixirs. Our Ling family can still afford that!" Ling Qingxue glared at Zhongli Xuan, threatening coldly, "Are you going to talk or not?"

"I’ll talk! I’ll talk!" Zhongli Xuan finally bowed her head. "Qianqian... he is at Black Demon Ridge on Buzhou Mountain!"

"Huh?" Mo Qianqian was taken aback.

Black Demon Ridge on Buzhou Mountain? Wasn’t that the exact place Ling Qingxue had just mentioned as the location of the Flame Demon Flower? Could it really be such a coincidence?

He wondered if this was a trap set by the Ling family. Yet, that seemed impossible. If the Ling family had orchestrated this, then what was this woman’s background? Where would the Ling family find such a monstrous genius, let alone convince her to get pregnant for a setup?

If it wasn’t a setup, then what was Zhongli Xuan’s true goal in coming to the Imperial City? She couldn’t have been oblivious to the fact that Ling Qingxue, the number one on the Hidden Dragon List, had advanced to the Tongyou Realm. Nor could she be ignorant of the fact that the moment she stepped out of the Imperial City, she would be targeted by the Ling family and other major factions.