Jiang Lu let out a sigh of relief when she saw that the girl's gaze only lingered for a brief moment before shifting away.
Sensing the other girl's strength, Jiang Lu's lips twitched. Just as everyone had suspected, despite her incredible talent, she only had a cultivation at the third layer of Qi Condensation. It was truly...
Hopefully, the disciples in their team wouldn't end up having to protect her instead.
The other cultivators shared the same thought. A direct disciple of the Liuyun Sect possessed an extremely noble status. If she were injured under their watch, they would undoubtedly be held responsible.
They sighed inwardly, and much of their admiration for Liu Qingqing vanished.
Liu Qingqing let out a soft huff. These cultivators actually looked down on her. Did they think she was a drag?
Hmph!
She had plenty of magical treasures on her. She would show them what was what in a moment.
Seeing her tsundere expression, Jiang Lu laughed inwardly. From the looks of it, she wasn't actually that bad, just a bit proud.
However, Jiang Lu couldn't help but feel that Liu Qingqing's expressions were somewhat strange, as if she were separated from this world by a thin veil of mist.
Shifting her gaze, Jiang Lu looked ahead.
The roaring grew closer and closer. The demon beasts were likely already rushing toward them.
Sniffing the turbid air, Jiang Lu sensed an unusual, pungent scent that felt incredibly oppressive.
“Demonic energy!”
A voice suddenly rang out, causing everyone to freeze in their tracks. They all turned to look at the speaker, who was none other than Liu Qingqing.
Her brow was furrowed, her face filled with panic.
Everyone stood frozen in shock, then turned to stare ahead in disbelief. Demonic energy!
Did that mean these demon beasts had been demonized? No wonder they were so frenzied.
Jiang Lu tightly gripped her sword, her expression unreadable.
Suddenly, the sounds of battle echoed from not far away. The group immediately formed up to establish a defensive line.
Roar—
A massive figure accompanied by a deafening roar materialized before them.
“Form a formation!”
At the urgent command, everyone immediately sprang into action.
Though they were fast, the demon beasts were even faster.
What was worse, the beasts charging at them in a frenzy weren't just one or two, but a whole pack.
Seeing this, cold sweat began to bead on everyone's foreheads.
Countless spells were launched toward the beasts, but their hides were incredibly thick. Coupled with their current state of frenzy, the attacks felt like mere scratches to them.
Jiang Lu's hand trembled slightly as she held her sword. She looked down and saw the blade vibrating continuously.
It couldn't inflict even a single scratch on the demon beasts.
With no time to overthink, she sheathed her sword and continuously threw fireballs and wind blades toward the beasts.
“Over here!”
“Cut its legs!”
“Watch your back!”
“Fall back, quickly!”
“I can't do it, my spiritual energy is depleted!”
“Quick! Cut off its head!”
“...”
As battle cries and shouting echoed through the forest, the decent strength of the team, coupled with the assistance of the Liuyun Sect cultivators, allowed them to quickly subdue the demon beasts despite the grueling struggle.
They were all Tier One demon beasts; although they were in a frenzy, they weren't impossible to defeat.
Once the last demon beast collapsed, Liu Qingqing stepped forward. A watery light appeared in her hand, enveloping the beast's corpse.
“They are indeed tainted with demonic energy!”
Her voice still sounded somewhat delicate, but her hands did not stop moving.
“These demon beasts must be completely destroyed! Demonic energy will erode the energy within the beasts' bodies and convert it into its own power. If the corpses are left here, it will easily form a demonic nest.”
With that, a golden steel ring appeared in her hand. With a flick of her wrist, raging flames erupted from the ring.
Jiang Lu stared in wide-eyed shock at this display.
Was this the prestige of a direct disciple from the Three Great Sects? During the fight just now, she hadn't contributed a single bit of effort, doing nothing but hiding behind the other cultivators.
If nothing else, Jiang Lu had noticed that a few of the cultivators were already looking at Liu Qingqing with strange expressions.
Yet this move she displayed instantly stunned everyone. After all, if she hadn't warned them, they really wouldn't have known that these demon beasts were tainted with demonic energy. If they had taken the corpses away, it would have caused endless trouble down the line.
No matter how much dissatisfaction they had felt moments ago, only admiration remained now.
Jiang Lu stared at the magical treasure in her hand, shedding tears of envy. When would she be able to casually pull out all kinds of treasures like that?
With a wave of Liu Qingqing's hand, the blazing fire swept toward the demon beast carcasses. As the smell of burning flesh filled the air, Liu Qingqing explained to the crowd:
“This fire of mine is the natal fire of the Liuyun Sect's Supreme Elder, carrying the aura of a Mahayana Ancestor. This tiny bit of demonic energy naturally stands no chance against it.”
After speaking, she put away the steel ring and raised her chin proudly.
The crowd immediately swarmed forward, showering her with endless praise:
“As expected of the Liuyun Sect Master's direct disciple! Fairy Liu is truly incredible!”
“Indeed! If not for you, we might have already lost our lives to those demon beasts.”
“You truly live up to your reputation. With such a magical treasure, no danger would dare approach you.”
“...”
Hearing the satisfying compliments, she swept a smug gaze over the crowd. She knew she didn't need to do much; as long as she showed a fraction of her power at the final moment, everyone would look up to her.
This was the prestige of a beloved female lead in web novels.
As the roars of the demon beasts in the surroundings gradually subsided, everyone let out a sigh of relief. It seemed that with the assistance of the Liuyun Sect disciples, the demon beasts tainted with demonic energy had all been dealt with.
As for the things deep within the forest, those weren't matters they could meddle in. Naturally, some disciples would report back to the sect to handle them.
After consulting with Liu Qingqing, the group began to sit cross-legged to rest and recover.
Feeling the spiritual energy within her body constantly replenishing, Jiang Lu felt a surge of joy. It was just as she had expected: cultivating after completely depleting her spiritual energy yielded twice the results with half the effort.
This way, unless absolutely necessary, she wouldn't need to take pills like the Qi-Restoring Elixir or Qi-Solidifying Pill.
Suddenly, Liu Qingqing felt a powerful summons. She stood up from the ground, and the several disciples accompanying her immediately followed suit.
“Senior Sister Liu, is there something wrong?”
They immediately asked, their hands hovering over their spiritual slips, ready to send a message at any moment.
Hopefully, Senior Sister Liu wouldn't suddenly decide to wander off somewhere on a whim. The matter wasn't fully resolved yet, and the surroundings were still fraught with danger. They couldn't guarantee her safety.
“I feel like there's something I want inside.”
Liu Qingqing didn't care about the expressions on their faces. Her gaze was locked onto a specific direction.
Her heart was beating rapidly. It felt as if there was something in there she absolutely had to obtain. If she didn't get it, she would regret it for the rest of her life.
Her sixth sense had never been this strong before. She had to go now, or she would never find peace of mind.
“There's something over there. Follow me!”
Without waiting for their response, she dashed forward.
Hearing this, Jiang Lu's ears twitched. Seeing the group leave, she quickly followed.
Rate on N.U.
