Junior sister, keep forbear for a while, I almost become invincible as soon!

A sphere of light, crystal clear, emanated a divine energy that fluctuated like kindling or perhaps some kind of medium...

Lu Ming's mouth hung slightly open, unable to believe his eyes. The girl had actually agreed.

Subconsciously, he reached out to touch the Yuan World, but it dodged away.

This Divine Weapon... The prodigies were shaken to their core. It doesn't seem like a Divine Weapon, more like a living creature possessing its own will. It had just avoided Lu Ming's hand.

WHOOSH!

With a thought from Zi Ji, the Yuan World rapidly changed form, turning into an exquisite longsword.

"Damn!"

They were stupefied. The ability to freely change its form was something that even Sacred Soldiers probably couldn't achieve, right?

"Try again," Zi Ji said with a smile.

Lu Ming nodded and made another attempt.

This time, the Yuan World didn't dodge, but when his hand came into contact with it, a torrential Power Path swept out, knocking Lu Ming away.

"Ouch!" Zi Ji was frustrated and said to the Yuan World, "Don't hit back, okay?"

She looked towards Lu Ming, who had been sent flying, and said, "Okay, this time it should be fine."

Lu Ming climbed out of the mud pit, covered in mud, his clothes ragged and his hair in disarray. Hearing Zi Ji's words, he grimaced and quickly shook his head. "Forget it, forget it!"

The Yuan World wasn't a normal Divine Weapon. It had accepted Zi Ji and wouldn't allow others to touch it.

Truly incredible.

However, not being able to touch it didn't mean he couldn't observe it.

He cautiously approached the Yuan World, observing it carefully, trying to determine what material it was made of, but ended up seeing nothing.

From the form of a sword, it had transformed back into a sphere of light. The interior was crystalline and utterly inscrutable.

Lu Ming sighed, "Put it away!"

After this scene, the prodigies who had been itching to move felt their eagerness dissipate instantly. They felt that even if they managed to take the Yuan World, they wouldn't be accepted by it. And there was also the possibility of backlash.

"Regarding your cultivation..." Lu Ming started to ask out of habit.

BANG!

Zi Ji, holding a royal Divine Weapon, struck out unconsciously.

She was unable to control herself, not knowing why. Perhaps because she was too happy, having just made a friend, or maybe because she didn't gauge her own strength properly.

Mmm!

She just wanted to demonstrate.

Lu Ming was thrown sideways once again, this time colliding with a large earthen wall, stirring up dust.

The others looked at him, then at Princess Zi Ji, falling silent. The force she had been wielding was formidable. Although they could not discern her realm, they imagined it wouldn't be too low.

What terrified them was that Zi Ji had only practiced cultivation for two years!

"Are you okay?" Zi Ji ran over, full of concern.

"No, don't come over!" Lu Ming was nearly in tears.

He had thought that after getting to know Princess Zi Ji, he could understand the Yuan World and, by extension, learn about the existence of the Heavenly Road. Yet he had been sent flying twice.

He began to seriously wonder, was Zi Ji doing this on purpose?

"I... I didn't mean to do that. I just didn't control it well. Let's try again!" Zi Ji said quickly.

SOB SOB!

Sister, please spare me!

Lu Ming climbed out again, dusting off the mud from his body, and said dejectedly, "Mm-hmm, I believe you, but I have some things to deal with right now. We'll talk another day!"

With that, he turned tail and fled.

Zi Ji's mouth was slightly agape, feeling a sense of loss.

In the Netherworld, she hadn't had a single friend. Nor did she have friends in her nine reincarnations. In the seclusion of the Great Zhou Dynasty's deep palace, she felt like an even greater misfit.

Now that she had finally regained her freedom and wanted to make some friends, the result was like this.

Returning to Guang Xiaoyu's side, she said with a downcast look, "Senior Sister, am I really that bad?"

"Nonsense! You are excellent." Guang Xiaoyu consoled her. "You have to believe in yourself, understand?"

"But Lu Ming..."

"Oh, it's not a big deal, he's not the only young man," Guang Xiaoyu said with a smile. "But you do have a problem; you need to control yourself a bit more."

"I was really trying to control myself just now," she said.

"I know, you've been trying hard." Guang Xiaoyu looked at her. "Hmm, what were you saying about your cultivation just now?"

"Qi Refinement," she said.

...

The spirit is willing, but the flesh is weak.

The Demon Emperor had lived through the ages. She had seen almost every kind of genius, Divine Body, sacred body, and powerful race. Yet, she had never come into contact with the path of a Qi Refiner.

She wanted to guide her junior sister, but alas, she was powerless!

Guang Xiaoyu mused, "Did Senior Brother mention anything?"

Zi Ji pondered and replied, "He told me not to think too much."

"Then stop thinking about it." Guang Xiaoyu's eyes darted around. I'll just leave this problem for Senior Brother.

Time passed. In the blink of an eye, it was already midday.

At that moment, a shocking piece of news arrived—Chen Pingping had made his move.

"Wow?"

Guang Xiaoyu's eyes widened as she asked the messenger, "Against whom?"

The young man said, "Who else but Chong Tower! Damn… with so many great powers in Central Continent, including Martial God Academy and Tianxuan Holy Land, none have found Chong Tower's location, yet Chen Pingping actually managed to uncover it."

"Where?" another person inquired.

"Right here in Chaoge City," he said excitedly. "Hurry up, let's go watch the battle." With that, he hurried off.

Guang Xiaoyu narrowed her eyes. I knew it was in Chaoge City! Hmph, Chong Tower is as good as dead this time.

Many geniuses swiftly left, heading deep into Chaoge City.

Guang Xiaoyu and Zi Ji also hurriedly stood up, fearing they would miss the spectacular sight of Chen Pingping's battle against Chong Tower. Guang Xiaoyu wondered, Does Senior Brother still have any tricks up his sleeve?

Since I've known Senior Brother, I've never seen Chen Pingping truly go all out. This means he has always held something back!

The more she thought about it, the more excited she became.

Lao Huang, the ox, let out a long MOO!

"Stop mooing!" Guang Xiaoyu slapped its back. "Run faster."

Lao Huang: "..."

Hei chimed in with a WOOF WOOF WOOF!

This time, Zi Ji reacted quickly, slapping Hei and saying, "Hei, you need to be quiet!"

After the news spread, all of Chaoge City was in an uproar, especially the great powers, Martial God Academy, Tianxuan Holy Land, and others.

All were stunned.

They had been searching for so many years and found nothing, yet Chen Pingping had found it?

Incredibly unbelievable!

「In the depths!」

Nobody would have thought that the mysterious and terrifying Chong Tower was actually just a small village.

Tucked between mountains, it was a small village with not many houses. All were made of piled earth, just over thirty in total. The entire village had only about seventy to eighty people.

It housed the elderly and the frail—oh, no, rather, both the young and the old coexisted here. At first glance, it looked like an ordinary small village.

But this was indeed the headquarters of Chong Tower.

The girl in red looked at him as if she'd seen a ghost, exclaiming, "Have you gone mad?"

Though shocked by Chen Pingping's ability to find Chong Tower, she thought he must be insane to dare to enter Chong Tower alone. Even Martial God Academy and the other Sacred Lands wouldn't dare to do so.

Chen Pingping smiled without saying a word.

At that moment, he stood on a path several hundred meters from the village. It wasn't far, but to him, these few hundred meters felt like an insurmountable chasm, separating him from Chong Tower.

So very distant.

"Mad, completely mad. Do you understand what Chong Tower signifies?" The girl in red turned pale, trembling all over.

Chen Pingping looked at her, waiting for her to continue.

She gritted her teeth, feeling that Chen Pingping already knew. His silence meant any further words from her would be superfluous.

SWISH!

Several figures approached from all directions, landing near Chen Pingping. They were the killers from Chong Tower. Yet, they did not move rashly, instead waiting for an order.

The girl in red trembled, her eyes betraying fear. Indeed, she was panicking. It wasn't just because she thought Chen Pingping had lost his mind, but also because he had found this place, and she was with him.

This means I'll very likely be branded as a traitor to Chong Tower!

To be more precise, the higher-ups in Chong Tower will assume I've defected, regardless of how it happened or what the truth is. I have to die…