The Saintess, Meng Wanshu!!

Li Guanqi smiled. "If Wujiu wants to learn it, let him learn it. But I must trouble Elder Lin to keep it safe for a while." Li Guanqi had done this partly to repay his debt of gratitude to the Lin family. Regardless of how this matter ended, he had accepted their kindness. "As for Qisha, who is still unconscious, I must also trouble Elder Lin to look after him." At these words, Lin Changlu laughed despite himself and pointed a finger at Li Guanqi. "You, oh you—you truly are a shrewd sly fox. At this point, do you really think I could abandon that boy?" Li Guanqi only smiled without speaking. He was worried the people from Xutian Palace might target Qisha! He had no choice but to guard against it. Having arranged all this, Lin Ruhu and Lin Changlu took their leave. Lin Ruhu went to prepare for their departure to Xutian Palace, while Lin Changlu went to relocate Qisha. Han Feng and Lin Wujiu were the only ones left in the room. "Old Li, what good will it do for you to go?" Lin Wujiu asked, looking at Li Guanqi in utter bewilderment. "Wouldn't it be better if you just stayed in the estate with the Xutian Stone?" Han Feng, standing off to the side, spoke in a deep voice. "Are you afraid that... Xutian Palace might tie down Senior Lin and the others while striking directly at the Lin family?" Li Guanqi glanced at Han Feng with a hint of surprise. As expected of someone who had survived in the Immortal Realm for a long time. Straight to the heart of the matter! Hearing that, Lin Wujiu's pupils contracted slightly, and his heart skipped a beat! He had not even considered that possibility. Could it be that Lin Ruhu had also realized Li Guanqi's intention just now? "You two are making me feel like a complete fool..." Li Guanqi chuckled and said softly, "You'll slowly come to understand once you travel through the Immortal Realm in the future. But... I should still share a bit of advice with you. In your spare time, play more chess with your elders and cultivate the habit of thinking three moves ahead for every step you take. Only by looking beyond what lies right before your eyes can you see more." Han Feng could not help feeling a growing admiration for Li Guanqi. If he had merely held Li Guanqi's combat prowess in high regard before, he now viewed Li Guanqi's character and temper in a completely different light. Such wisdom and depth of thought... were truly rare! Lin Wujiu sighed and said gravely, "Whatever the case, don't worry about things here at home. I'll keep an eye on Qisha. As for you, you'll need to be careful when you go to the Linluan Realm." Li Guanqi gave a slight nod. Just then, Lin Ruhu's deep voice called from outside the door, "Let's go. Time is short." Li Guanqi rose, brushed his sleeves, and said softly, "Fellow Daoist Han, please rest in the estate for now. Once this matter is settled, I shall return." Han Feng stood and cupped his fists in salute. "Many thanks, Fellow Daoist Li." Turning to Lin Wujiu, who seemed about to speak, Li Guanqi patted his shoulder with a smile. "Wait at home. Taking you along would only make things worse." Lin Wujiu shrugged, closed his mouth, and murmured, "Fine, I'll listen to you." Li Guanqi turned and followed Lin Ruhu, stepping into a powerful spatial rift. Lin Ruhu cupped his hands toward the old man standing in the distance. "Elder Lin, we take our leave." Lin Changlu nodded slightly, his expression solemn as he spoke. "Be careful on the road!" The moment the two departed, Lin Changlu did not hesitate to raise his hands and form hand seals. In an instant, array light surged across the vast Lin estate, and an immense ripple of celestial spiritual energy burst forth. A thick golden barrier of light slowly rose and converged shut. Across Qinzhou City, countless cultivators broke into hushed discussions, secretly speculating about what could have happened. Inside the dazzling, flowing lights of the teleportation corridor, Lin Ruhu sat cross-legged on the ground and said in a low voice, "The teleportation scroll can only take us to the border. We'll have to transfer to another teleportation corridor along the way. Rest for now." Li Guanqi gave a slight nod, then sat cross-legged beside the man. With a wave of his hand, he manifested a chessboard and lightly tapped down a piece. Lin Ruhu took just one look and shook his head gently. "This game... holds too many variables. There's no point to it." Li Guanqi did not share that view, stating bluntly, "Until the final stone is played, no one can determine the outcome of a game." The reason he said this was entirely because of everything he had experienced in the Human Spirit Realm! As long as the dust had not settled, anything was possible. A sharp glint flickered in Lin Ruhu's eyes, and he looked at Li Guanqi with a sigh of admiration. "I truly wonder what kind of environment could have raised someone like you. If I'm not mistaken, the technique you inscribed into the jade slip earlier was a heaven-acknowledged original technique, wasn't it?" A heaven-acknowledged original technique was one recognized by the Heavenly Dao. It was no ordinary spell! Li Guanqi smiled without elaborating. Compared to the Three Phantasms Heavenly Gates, what he wished to recreate even more was the sealing-type spirit incantation, the Four-Direction Heaven-Reaching Pillars. Sealing-type spirit incantations were far more potent than mere suppression techniques. Suppressing the complicated thoughts in his mind, Li Guanqi slowly put away the chessboard. He retrieved a jade slip and asked in a low voice, "Uncle Lin, how are things on your end?" Lin Ruhu, sitting beside him, pricked up his ears to listen as well. Lin Jinting's voice soon came from the jade slip. "Ran Shiming contacted me. He'll be here in another hour. You little devil... in the end, you still dragged the Ran family into this mess." The corner of Li Guanqi's mouth curved upward slightly, and he spoke in a light tone. "How can you call it dragging them into a mess? I'm saving him. There's no need to overthink it. The Ran family and the Lin family are now grasshoppers tied to the same string. Whatever you need, feel free to demand it from Ran Shiming." Lin Jinting and Lin Shengwu were currently inside a tavern in the city beneath Xutian Palace in the Linluan Realm. "This kid really has something. He's got Ran Shiming wrapped around his finger," Lin Shengwu remarked with a sigh of admiration. "Indeed. His mind and cunning are truly first-rate!" Li Guanqi's voice sounded through the jade slip once more. "Brother Ruhu is bringing me over right now. How about you wait a bit longer? You can send word to knock on Xutian Palace's doors first. I expect they'll leave us waiting for a while anyway, so the timing should be just right." The two exchanged a startled glance, their hearts jumping. "Why are you coming along?!" Li Guanqi hesitated for a moment. Before he could speak, Lin Ruhu sent a voice transmission, "He fears that once Xutian Palace learns the Xutian Stone is at the Lin estate, they might stall you while striking at the Lin family." Enlightenment dawned on Lin Jinting upon hearing this, and the three groups decided to convene in Linluan City. Time flew by. When Li Guanqi stepped out of the teleportation corridor, he was immediately struck by an exceptionally dense rush of celestial spiritual energy! The bustling, prosperous Linluan City spanned nearly two hundred li and was home to nearly ten million people—a sight of boundless splendor. Just as he stepped out of the central square's teleportation corridor, he spotted the grim-faced Ran Shiming, along with Lin Jinting and Lin Shengwu. Lin Ruhu strode forward, cupped his hands, and said in a deep voice, "Patriarch." "Now that everyone has arrived, let us find a place to discuss our plans before taking action," Lin Jinting said gravely. To the side, Ran Shiming scoffed coldly upon catching sight of Li Guanqi, his hands clasped behind his back with an utterly sour expression. Li Guanqi paid it no mind and merely nodded. The group then made their way into a private room in a tavern. Yet right at that moment, the earring within Li Guanqi's storage ring suddenly gave a faint flash! Beneath the firmament of the Ten Lands, a massive golden cloud boat over a hundred zhang in length cleaved through the sea of clouds. A transcendent, peerlessly beautiful woman stood at the prow of the cloud boat, lost in thought for no apparent reason. A kindly, white-haired elder clad in an embroidered white robe patterned with flowing clouds slowly walked over to her side. "Saintess... it will only take a few more days before we reach our subordinate sect in Zhongtian Land." Having said that, the elder showed a look of bewilderment and urged her with heartfelt sincerity, "Saintess, Jiuding Heavenly Palace is a formidable sect within the Immortal Realm. With your extraordinary talent, remaining in Dihuang Heaven would be the wisest choice. Why must you insist on cultivating your way up from barren lands like the Ten Lands?" The woman wore an azure-blue robe—a powerful immortal artifact of the third rank and ninth tier all on its own! A dreamlike azure ribbon drifted gracefully around her figure. The immortal primal energy within her surged, and five layered azure-blue dao rings of spiritual charm shimmered with radiant light. Her bearing was otherworldly, and her eyes were as serene as still water. The faint tremble of her delicate eyelashes and the fluid grace of her gaze were enough to bewitch countless young geniuses. Yet upon the woman's delicate ear hung a somewhat crude gilded earring. Meng Wanshu turned her eyes toward the old man, the corners of her lips turning up into a gentle smile. That smile was as warm and radiant as a patch of winter snow meeting the gentle sun. "Because I am searching for someone." The elder sighed softly at her words. "If the Saintess wishes to find someone, you need only give this old servant an order. Why must you go through such trouble..." All of a sudden! A golden beam of light abruptly flashed from Meng Wanshu's earring! Whoosh! Meng Wanshu rushed toward the edge of the prow, so overwhelmed with emotion that her voice trembled. "Land the ship!"