Xu Qing was very anxious.
Four days had passed since the inspection by the spirit.
In these four days, the total number of Dao fruits they obtained had already reached more than a thousand and the captain had spread the news of his blessings to the outside world which attracted many Holy Wave Race members to earnestly request for their registry to be raised.
Under the captain's operation, they obtained a lot of rare treasures.
However, their true target, the True Immortal Ten Guts Trees, hadn't completely matured.
As time passed, Xu Qing slowly felt uneasy. This feeling of uneasiness was the same as when he was in the county capital. It all came from his heavenly dao mosasaur. In addition, Muye had also disappeared for a long time.
He could faintly sense that Muye was in a place very far away from here.
"He should have been sent to the Holy Wave Race's dynasty…" Xu Qing fell silent and checked the Dao fruits he had obtained. After calculating the military contributions, the thought of leaving grew increasingly intense.
However, the captain was unwilling.
"Little Qing, let's stay for another day!"
"There's a big client asking for a blessing tomorrow. Besides, I heard someone saying that when they were cultivating recently, they sensed the fluctuations of the True Immortal Ten Guts. This means that they are about to mature."
"Let's wait a little longer. After all, this opportunity is rare. If we can enter the interior of the True Immortal Ten Guts, our trip this time will have a perfect ending. I've been waiting for this day for a long time." The captain's eyes were filled with desire and madness. He licked his lips and quickly transmitted his voice.
"We can't eat the Dao fruits outside, but I've researched and learned that the Dao fruits growing in the true Ten Guts Trees should be edible and extraordinary. Every bite must be an explosion of spiritual energy."
"You also want to speed up your cultivation, right? I guarantee that we can do it this time."
"The most important thing is… Little Qing, this time, Eldest Senior Brother is going to give you an earth-shattering and peerless great fortune! I can't talk about it now. This matter is profound; it can only be done and not be said. Believe me!"
"As for the method to leave, I have prepared a very powerful treasure that can instantly teleport us back to Fenghai County. However, the expenditure of using this item is astonishing, so I still need the True Immortal Ten Guts' main body."
Xu Qing fell silent for a while and glanced at the captain. After recalling everything in the past, he gritted his teeth and agreed to wait for another day.
Just like that, the night of the fourth day arrived.
In the middle of the night, when Xu Qing was studying the Black Heaven Statue, his mind suddenly stirred and waves surged in his sea of consciousness.
In his blurry perception, a huge ball of fire erupted in the direction of the True Immortal Ten Guts. The flames burned with intense ferocity, sending shockwaves across the area.
However, when he opened his eyes, everything disappeared.
A strange glint appeared in Xu Qing's eyes.
"Is this the fluctuation phenomenon that Muye and the captain mentioned about the True Immortal Ten Guts?"
Xu Qing mumbled and looked at the darkness in the distance before closing his eyes again.
A long time later, he sensed that the ball of flames was slowly reforming. As it continued to burn, Xu Qing seemed to see a white-robed figure dancing in the sky where the True Immortal Ten Guts was.
The white-robed figure wasn't alone. Countless figures gradually appeared around him and danced together.
These figures danced in a bizarre way that carried certain mysteries. It was like a ritual dance to please the heavens.
As they danced, the flames intensified, increasing in momentum.
There were also waves of drumbeats echoing from there, crashing on Xu Qing's mind, attempting to replace his heartbeat.
There were also ancient chantings that Xu Qing had never heard before.
Gradually, he sensed that a huge gap seemed to have opened in the sky in the illusion. In that gap, there seemed to be an unimaginable existence staring at the ground as though it was waiting.
After an unknown period of time, an excited voice rang out from the dancing figure in the center. He lifted his right hand and slashed, tearing open his abdomen. Lines of meandering intestines floated out of his stomach and twisted into the air like snakes.
As they danced and the drum beats continued, these intestines kept twisting.
After that, all the figures in the surroundings lifted their hands and slit open their stomachs, causing their intestines to float. From afar, countless intestines rose into the air.
This scene even possessed a strange power that affected Xu Qing's perception, causing him to have an uncontrollable urge to cut open his stomach with them.
However, as Xu Qing's third and fourth Heavenly Palaces shook, and the power of the Poison Pill and the Purple Moon surged through his body, his mind began to stir. The compulsion to open his stomach gradually weakened.
In the direction of the True Immortal Ten Guts Tree, Xu Qing sensed the sea of fire surging and emitting a shocking blood light that filled the entire world. His body suddenly trembled, and he opened his eyes, awakening from the illusion.
The sky outside lit up.
The light source was the human-shaped lanterns floating under the canopy. As the sky outside the canopy changed, they lit up again, illuminating the surroundings.
The instant dawn broke, a burning smell spread in all directions with the True Immortal Ten Guts as the center. It enveloped every area under the canopy and also assailed Xu Qing's nose.
Upon first whiff, the scent appeared to be that of burning flesh, carrying a sharp and unpleasant odor. However, after inhaling it more deeply, it transformed into an unusual fragrance that invaded the senses and permeated the mind.
Xu Qing's sixth Heavenly Palace was already halfway formed because of the massacre in Area C. Now, under this fragrance, it actually shook slightly. It was as though it had been stimulated, and its materialization sped up.
Xu Qing's eyes lit up.
At that moment, the captain also sensed something strange and rushed out of the side hall. His eyes revealed madness and desire. His breathing was hurried as he looked in the direction of the True Immortal Ten Guts.
"The True Immortal Ten Guts have bloomed!"
Almost at the instant the captain's voice rang out, rumbling sounds rang out from the location of the True Immortal Ten Guts. There were a total of 12 sounds, and each one was more intense than the last. In the end, it was as though the world was about to be split open.
Immediately after, amidst the intense sounds, Xu Qing witnessed the huge canopy above the area slowly shrinking, causing the sunlight from the external world to pour into the area that hadn't seen sunlight for a hundred years.
Upon closer inspection, the canopy wasn't shrinking. Instead, the tree trunks that were entangled inside were separating from each other.
This process lasted for an hour. As the outside world completely lit up and sunlight streamed in, the canopy… disappeared.
The ten huge tree trunks that didn't touch each other and snaked in different directions appeared in the eyes of all the spectators.
The ten tree trunks were like ten intestines, swaying between heaven and earth!
Countless fruits rapidly formed on it, transforming into countless eyes that were looking at the ground.
Xu Qing rose to his feet, his eyes fixed on the True Immortal Ten Guts tree which had finally bloomed. He exchanged a glance with the captain, and they both saw the excitement in each other's eyes. Without a moment's hesitation, they made their way out of the main hall.
Qing Qiu and Ning Yan were also taken aback by the sudden changes in the True Immortal Ten Guts. However, before they could investigate further, Xu Qing gestured for them to follow him and they had no choice but to comply and trail behind him.
The group wasted no time and left the main hall, ready to head towards the True Immortal Ten Guts. However, as they were about to fly out of the Zenith Nation, the teleportation array suddenly shone and made a loud rumbling noise. In the next instant, several black-clothed figures materialized from the array.
A middle-aged man, leading the group of black-clothed guards, emerged from the teleportation array. He appeared to be at the Spirit Repository Realm, just like the king of the Zenith Nation. As he arrived, he immediately spotted Xu Qing and the captain and rushed towards them.
The black-robed figures behind him moved in unison. Their expressions were murderous as they rushed forward.
There were a total of 300 of them, and the weakest among them was at four Heavenly Palaces. Among them, there were more than 40 with seven-eight Heavenly Palaces and 10 Nascent Soul cultivators.
The sudden appearance of the black-clothed guards made Xu Qing and the captain feel uneasy. Qing Qiu and Ning Yan gasped at this unexpected arrival of the black-clothed guards.
The Sword Holders weren't unfamiliar with this kind of clothes and this murderous aura, as well as the silver leaves embroidered on the robes. They were their sworn enemy in the Holy Wave Race… the black-clothed guards.
Moreover, looking at this formation, it was clearly a complete squadron.
The captain might have never seen the Spirit Repository middle-aged man in the lead, but Xu Qing had seen him more than once.
The first time he saw this person was when Kong Xianglong killed a quasi-Nascent Soul cultivator at the border. The other party had appeared near the border and was furious.
The second time they met was at the Sword Holding Palace. This person was brought there by the Yao family to question Xu Qing and the others.
Now, it was the third time!
'It's him!' Killing intent flashed in Xu Qing's mind. This middle-aged man had already arrived rapidly with his black-clothed guards.
As they got closer, not only did this person's figure become clear in Xu Qing's eyes, but the black-clothed guards behind him were also reflected in Xu Qing's eyes.
Xu Qing swept his gaze over and suddenly locked onto someone.
This person was a youth. He was handsome and had an extraordinary aura. His cultivation base was even more astonishing. Although he wasn't a Nascent Soul cultivator, he had the combat strength of nine palaces. The black-clothed guard's Daoist robe had two silver leaves on it, one more than the other Golden Cores and comparable to the ten Nascent Soul cultivators.
Xu Qing noticed that the youth had a life lantern in his body.
As it had transformed into a life palace, outsiders couldn't sense it very clearly, but Xu Qing saw it clearly. It was a blue stone lantern.
Almost at the instant Xu Qing's gaze swept past the youth, the middle-aged black-clothed guard at the front bowed to Xu Qing, cupping his fists and speaking in a deep voice.
"I'm Zhou Xingwu, the head of the black-clothed guards of the Heavenly Wind Country. I'm here to escort you!"
After Zhou Xingwu bowed, the black-clothed guards in the surroundings instantly spread out and surrounded Xu Qing and the captain in an arc.
When Qing Qiu and Ning Yan saw this scene, their breathing hastened slightly.
Xu Qing's expression was calm and he didn't speak. The captain at the side lifted his chin and frowned slightly as he spoke.
"All of you can leave. It's not up to you to decide if we want to go to the Heavenly Wind Country or not."
Zhou Xingwu was expressionless and didn't even glance at the captain. Instead, he looked at Xu Qing and spoke.
"I have the monarch's order. I hope you won't make things difficult for us."
He knew that this was the divine son who was suspected to have a supreme bloodline. Although the monarch's decree required him not to be negligent, as a black-clothed guard, he naturally had his own way of dealing with things.
As he spoke, he lifted his right hand. Immediately, the black-clothed guards in the surroundings spread out again, changing from a semi-encirclement to a complete encirclement. However, none of them emitted the slightest baleful aura. All of them lowered their heads respectfully and didn't circulate their cultivation bases. However, their attitudes were very determined.
When the captain saw this scene, his eyes narrowed. Just as he was about to speak, Xu Qing suddenly spoke softly.
"What's your name?"
As soon as he finished speaking, Zhou Xingwu's gaze darkened slightly. He noticed that the other party was looking at the son of the governor-general behind him.
"Lord, I'm Lin Yuandong." Being stared at by Xu Qing, this son of the governor-general immediately took a step forward. His expression was cold as he cupped his fists.
Xu Qing nodded and calmly spoke.
"Zhou Xingwu, take out his life lantern. I want it."