Since those disciples had almost arrived at their location, Ling Yun immediately prepared a campfire, and he opened the quest reward.
[You obtained Heaven Grade - Demon Taming Chain x1]
"This chain is really weird, and I feel an unusual aura from it." Ling Yun muttered as he observed the black chain in his hand.
[Demon Taming Chain - The user can use it to tame demons and demon beasts, but the success is determined by the difference in cultivation between the user and the target. If the difference is too great, the chances of success will be smaller.]
Ling Yun sighed softly. "I can't possibly use it to tame powerful demons in the Earth Sky Realm."
"Are you disappointed with it?"
"Everything requires a process, so I don't feel disappointed in the slightest." Suddenly, Zhao Yu moved to sit beside Ling Yun and hugged his arm, surprising him. "Why-"
*Drap... Drap...*
Before Ling Yun could ask her, the four people had arrived at their location, and he checked their status directly. Even so, he focused more on the two women because their expressions were so painful, especially Nangong Nichang, who was carried by Guan Peng. 'They were injured quite badly, especially the woman in a man's dress, and most of her bones were cracked.'
Even though they already knew that there were other people in the heart of the forest, they were still surprised to see the two of them, especially since Zhou Yu hugged Ling Yun's arm intimately.
The two men swallowed hard because they could sense that Ling Yun was stronger than them, and Zhou Yu was even stronger than him, but they also knew that he was still the same age as them.
Both women, especially Qiao Lingzhi, were enamored with Ling Yun's good looks and stared at him in awe. Even so, his charm only had a slight effect on them, for their mental strength was strong enough to resist it.
"I'm sorry if we disturb you two, but we are really tired, and my sisters are seriously injured, so we want to rest here for the night." Guan Peng respectfully said.
"Don't worry, this place is still spacious, so you guys can rest here." Ling Yun casually answered him.
They let out a sigh of relief after hearing that. Guan Peng then took Nangong Nichang near the campfire and put him down slowly, and he immediately sat beside her.
Dongfang Xu and Qiao Lingzhi also followed them because they were too tired after facing the giant snake before, and they also continued to run towards the place.
"You guys are disciples of the Heaven Secrets Sect, right? Why don't you guys use your returning jades to return to the sect?" Ling Yun asked them as he continued to observe Nangong Nichang.
They sighed heavily before Guan Peng explained everything. "Honestly, we don't have any returning jades because our master took them all, and he also gave us a task to look for something in this forest, but he didn't give us any clues."
"Hmm?" Ling Yun frowned after hearing that. "Isn't that ridiculous? How could you guys possibly look for that thing if he didn't give you any clues about it?"
They smiled bitterly at his words, but they also didn't dare go against their master's orders, so they still came to the greencloud forest.
"You're wrong about that." Ling Yun turned to Zhou Yu. "I know more or less about the Heaven Secrets Sect, so I know their master's purpose. In fact, the thing they are looking for is really in this forest, but they still haven't realized the clue, and the clue lies in their master's teachings."
Not only was Ling Yun surprised to hear that, but the four disciples also looked at Zhou Yu in surprise, and she said to them. "Your master wants to test whether you all pay attention and understand each of his teachings or not. You guys might think that his teachings are only basic, but if you can't understand them, then you won't be able to understand the more advanced ones."
"But why did he take our returning jades? Moreover, our cultivation is still in the Soul Realm, and this forest is also very dangerous." Qiao Lingzhi sulked with an irritated look.
"Survival." They raised their eyebrows at that, and Zhou Yu told them again. "You guys are cultivators, and the world of cultivation is a cruel world. It is possible that you will encounter strong and cruel cultivators, and many of them will not be merciful to you, so your master wants all of you to learn how to survive in this forest is based on everything he has taught you; only then can you be ready to face the harsh life of cultivators."
They were also aware that the cultivation world was very harsh and cruel, but they still felt that their master was truly cruel.
"Anyway, my name is Guan Peng." He then pointed to his three friends. "They are Dongfang Xu, Nangong Nichang, and Qiao Lingzhi."
"I see." Ling Yun himself knew their names from the start. "My name is Mo Chen, but I am not a member of the Mo Clan in Earth Cloud Realm, and she is-"
"His wife, Zhou Yu." Ling Yun turned to her in surprise, but Zhou Yu winked at him instead, and he immediately hugged her waist with a strange smile on his face. 'Crap! I shouldn't have said that!'
Even so, Zhou Yu didn't try to push away Ling Yun's hand and laid her head on his shoulder instead, making the two young ladies look jealous of her.
Nangong Nichang asked him. "Were you the one who used the vermilion bird manifestation technique before, Brother Chen?"
"Yes." Ling Yun admitted it openly, for he was sure that they would not believe that Zhou Yu used such a technique to defeat the beasts that were much weaker than her. "I'm sorry, my technique has caused the beasts to panic, and many of them fled to the outer periphery."
"It's okay." Nangong Nichang shook her head. "In fact, we had artifacts to protect ourselves, but I was too careless before, and that giant snake beast attacked me unexpectedly."
"Brother Chen, your technique is truly beautiful, and it really resembles the vermilion bird described in legends." Qiao Lingzhi said it with a look of amazement.
Ling Yun nodded in agreement with her. "Even so, I'm sure that the real vermilion bird must be even more beautiful, and I want to meet it someday."
"Huh? Do you think vermilion bird really exist in this universe?" Qiao Lingzhi curiously asked.
"Yes." Ling Yun replied with a nod. "Not only the vermilion bird, but I believe that mythical beasts like the white tiger and others also exist, but they probably don't want to show themselves to us, especially since they have high pride."
"That's true." Qiao Lingzhi then spoke again. "Based on the legends I read before, mythical beasts do have high pride, especially dragons. Unfortunately, dragons are lustful creatures, and I wouldn't want to meet them if they were real."
"Pft! Hahaha!" Instantly, Zhou Yu burst into laughter and inwardly spoke. 'Hey, little girl! The man beside me is a dragon. and he's also very lustful!'
Not only Zhou Yu, but Ling Yun also smiled in amusement, and Qiao Lingzhi asked them with a pout. "Why are you two laughing at me? If I met a dragon, he would definitely kidnap me, and he would definitely do indecent things to me."
"Hahaha!" Zhou Yu laughed even louder, and her hands patted Ling Yun's shoulders repeatedly, causing him to sigh helplessly. "Hahaha! You are too innocent, Lingzhi. Dragons are indeed lustful creatures, but not all of them will do such things because of their high pride. However, some of them do like to kidnap innocent girls like you, and they will do that to those women."
"Ugh!" Qiao Lingzhi trembled after hearing that. "In my entire life, I would never be interested in meeting a dragon! I would be more interested in meeting the vermilion bird or the phoenix because they are so beautiful."
"You are right; the phoenix is indeed very beautiful." Ling Yun said with a smile as he recalled Feng Ruxue's phoenix form.
Noting his smile, Dongfang Xu asked Ling Yun. "Have you ever met a phoenix before, Brother Chen?"
'Tch! Not only have I met a phoenix, but I've slept with her many times.' Ling Yun inwardly muttered and nodded at him. "I accidentally met a phoenix once in the past, but it was a long time ago, and I don't know where she is now."
"Wow!" Qiao Lingzhi exclaimed and asked him again. "Is she very beautiful? Did you talk to her?"
"I didn't dare approach her, and I only admired her from a distance, especially since she was powerful." Ling Yun lied to them with a straight face, causing Zhou Yu to laugh in her heart. "However, I can tell you that she is the most beautiful living creature I have ever met, and no other living creature can beat her beauty."
"En." Qiao Lingzhi nodded repeatedly. "You are truly lucky to meet a phoenix, Brother Chen! I also want to meet one someday."
Ling Yun only smiled at that, and he took out the books on blacksmithing that Tian Huang had given him. "All right, the four of you are tired, so you guys can rest first, and I will stand guard here."
"I'll accompany you on guard, Brother Chen." Guan Peng said.
- To Be Continued -
