Chapter 769 - 443: Delicate Situation

Standing at the bow of the ship, Zou Feng visually estimated the general range, quickly gaining a clear idea of what to do. The next moment, he formed hand seals, his fingers shifting constantly in a Technique resembling the Shaking Flower Hand.

It wasn’t long before a massive Golden Lotus manifested in the sky. Under the astonished gazes of the Cheyue Country’s citizens, the Golden Lotus rapidly bloomed before exploding like fireworks. Dense golden light instantly rained down. However, upon closer inspection, the flickering golden lights were actually exquisite, miniature golden lotuses. The entire main urban area of Cheyue Country looked as though it were experiencing a heavy snow of Golden Lotuses.

As the heavy snow of Golden Lotuses landed on the Medicine Men, they instantly let out continuous, agonizing howls while wisps of black smoke rose from their bodies. Once the black smoke scattered, however, the originally fierce and malicious gazes of the Medicine Men quickly became peaceful. Other citizens polluted by the Tribulation Cultivators’ Evil Skill had similar reactions. Obviously, Zou Feng had cast an ultra-large-scale Purification, granting liberation to the citizens of Cheyue Country who were deeply tormented by the Evil Skill. With this snow of Purification, even if there were still stragglers, they would pose no threat.

Seeing her compatriots saved once again, Yue Ya fell to her knees before Zou Feng with tears welling in her eyes. "Thank you, Master!" she sobbed.

Casting such an ultra-large-scale Skill took a toll on Zou Feng that was no joking matter, not to mention he had just fought against three Great Demon Immortals. But as the saying went, if you were going to help someone, you might as well see it through to the end. There was no need to fuss over the details.

"It was merely lifting a finger. There is no need for this," he said. With a supporting gesture of his hand, an invisible force lifted Yue Ya to her feet.

The Holy Lotus restarted, and Zhu Caiwei, who had been hunting down the Tribulation Cultivators, finally arrived belatedly. She was still radiating murderous intent, the fanatical and twisted expression on her face yet to fade. It was clear that after entering her slaughtering mode, her alter ego had taken dominance. However, the moment she returned to the Holy Lotus, Zhu Caiwei hurriedly adjusted her state, allowing her fragile and gentle persona to regain control.

Yet, during the transition of her personalities, she noticed Yue Ya’s presence. As if seeing through to something else entirely, Zhu Caiwei’s twisted persona uncontrollably revealed a look of greed toward Yue Ya. This was fleeting; even Zou Feng failed to notice it due to his viewing angle. Only Su Qingyu, who was standing closest, sharply caught this detail.

She merely furrowed her brows slightly, holding her tongue for the time being. After all, a Poison Demon like Zhu Caiwei would naturally possess an instinctual craving for someone like Yue Ya, who possessed an innately special Poison Body. Not to mention, Yue Ya also cultivated Zou Feng’s Five Poison Skill. That was no different from sprinkling salt on a perfectly seared, mouthwatering steak. Regardless, with Zou Feng holding the fort, this demon wouldn’t lose her reasoning completely.

Through her recent slaughter, Zhu Caiwei had reaped no small amount of benefits. Spider Demons were inherently a Demon Race with voracious appetites; having been locked in the Demon Suppression Tower, Zhu Caiwei had essentially been starved for over a century. Now that she had been brought out by Zou Feng, describing her restlessness as an unbridled beast wouldn’t even suffice. It was likely her alter ego would soon inflate to the point where she wouldn’t even bother keeping up appearances.

In short, let alone Su Qingyu, the other Dao Companions and the Poisonous Demon Maidens all felt that the situation aboard the Holy Lotus was rather delicate. After all, both Zou Feng and Zhu Caiwei were at the Golden Core Realm Late Stage. Although Zou Feng had risen rapidly with unfathomable strength, Zhu Caiwei was an Elder Demon who had stepped into the Golden Core Realm Late Stage many years ago.

Now, placed in a suitable environment where she could eat and drink her fill while following Zou Feng, it was truly hard to say who would break through to the Nascent Soul Realm first—Zou Feng, or Zhu Caiwei overtaking her master to become a Nascent Soul Old Monster. If it really came to a situation where the Maid possessed a higher Realm than her master, what happened next would be unpredictable. After all, Zhu Caiwei had followed Zou Feng for the shortest amount of time; there was no solid guarantee regarding her loyalty. Furthermore, other than branding the character "Zheng" on her body, Zou Feng hadn’t placed any powerful Restrictions on her. Especially during the recent battle where Zou Feng was absent, Zhu Caiwei displayed such terrifying might that it even made Su Qingyu’s heart palpitate with fear.

However, despite this delicate situation being obvious to anyone, Zou Feng maintained a completely indifferent attitude, making the women truly unable to feel at ease. Su Qingyu immediately decided that it was time to have a serious talk with Zou Feng about this matter. She wasn’t asserting that Zhu Caiwei would definitely betray him, but scenarios like this had to be guarded against in advance.

After making her decision, Su Qingyu looked back at Zou Feng, who was currently praising Zhu Caiwei for her excellent performance and saying she deserved a reward. And reward her he did—he actually whipped up a Poison Pill for her, an item considered a potent tonic for the five Poison Demons. It was as if he was afraid Zhu Caiwei wouldn’t break through to the Nascent Soul Realm fast enough.

After the Holy Lotus set sail, Zou Feng walked into the meditation room with a trace of fatigue on his face.

He had just devoured the External Pill refined from the Golden-winged Roc. Having only achieved initial Refinement, it would definitely take quite some time to thoroughly digest and absorb it. Zou Feng deduced that before they truly delved deep into the Northern Domain, Ink Ash Abyss likely wouldn’t act rashly. After all, the man was afraid of being caught by the Nascent Soul Realm experts of the Pinnacle Celestial Immortal Sect, so he wouldn’t strike on a whim. But once they entered the depths of the Northern Domain, things would be different; that was the territory of the Tribulation Cultivators, after all.

Zou Feng stayed in the meditation room for the next seven days. During this time, the Holy Lotus traveled at a remarkably slow pace, just as Zou Feng had instructed in advance. He had to reach his peak condition before he could confidently venture deep into the Northern Domain. Over the course of these seven days, he finally managed to more or less digest the External Pill refined from the Golden-winged Roc.

"Nine Immortal Ascension Skills (Limit-Breaking), Progress: 35%"

By now, Zou Feng knew that after a Skill achieved Limit-Breaking, it would similarly reach the Realm of Transcendence. It was obvious that any Skill or Cultivation Skill, once cultivated to a certain degree, would lead to the same peak despite taking different paths. However, the sudden surge in his Cultivation of the Nine Immortal Ascension Skills left Zou Feng feeling inexplicably unsettled.

But since the External Pill was mostly digested, there was no need for him to remain in the meditation room. To his surprise, just as he was about to leave, his head suddenly spun violently, and unable to steady himself, he fell back into a seated position. A moment later, an irresistibly powerful force connected directly to his sea of consciousness.

At that moment, Zou Feng felt as if a massive amount of information was being forcibly crammed into his sea of consciousness, threatening to burst it open entirely. Fortunately, the List of Gods still hung deep within his sea of consciousness, acting as a stabilizing anchor that helped him withstand the impact. Zou Feng’s awareness automatically retreated into his sea of consciousness.

Looking around, the Turquoise Pool he had seen once before had actually crashed into his mind. Compared to the last time, the Queen Mother within the Turquoise Pool was much clearer. Furthermore, she was no longer facing away from him; instead, she was looking directly at him.

Zou Feng originally had no intention of looking directly at the Queen Mother, knowing it could easily lead to trouble. But he had completely lost control of his body—he couldn’t even close his eyes.

He panicked, thinking, "Did I go too far!?"

Zou Feng was finally starting to panic. Did cultivating the Nine Immortal Ascension Skills so well draw even more of the Queen Mother’s attention?

However, despite making eye contact with her, Zou Feng found it impossible to describe the Queen Mother’s appearance. From a distance, her face seemed blurry, but upon closer inspection, it appeared to be constantly shifting into thousands of different visages. Even the faces of several acquaintances flashed across the Queen Mother’s face.

"Who... exactly... are you?"

After staring at each other for a moment, the Queen Mother spoke first. It was no longer the vague, indistinct murmurs from before; this time, Zou Feng heard her voice with absolute clarity.

But Zou Feng still couldn’t understand. Why would the Queen Mother of the Western Heaven ask who he was? She had clearly harbored murderous intent toward him long ago, placing him on the list. What was the point of asking this?

Naturally, Zou Feng wouldn’t be foolish enough to state his real name. Adopting an arrogant, untamable posture, he declared loudly, "I don’t change my name whether standing or sitting! I am Gongyang Wuji!"

The Queen Mother fell silent for a moment before speaking again. "A lie..."

Before Zou Feng could argue, the Queen Mother sighed. "Never mind. Since you... have comprehended the true essence of the Nine Immortal Ascension Skills... you can be considered my successor...

"Therefore... save me!"

As soon as those words were spoken, Zou Feng felt his brain short-circuit.

What the hell? The root of all evil in the Ninefold Celestial Court, the Queen Mother of the Western Heaven, was actually asking him to save her!?