News of Cao Yan!

Meng Jiangchu stood to the side with an intensely tense expression. Long Hou, who stood before him, had begun walking the path of cultivation several thousand years before he did! He had been a colossal titan whom Meng Jiangchu revered deeply when he had first entered the immortal sects! Long Hou looked at the young woman beside Li Guanqi and chuckled. "So this is the Wanshu girl who lived next door to you back in Fulong Village?" Li Guanqi was taken aback for a moment, then murmured, "Uncle Long, you know about her?" Long Hou did not object to being called 'uncle.' Instead, he nodded with a smile, his originally stern countenance softening considerably because of it. "I went there a few times back then. She was just a tiny thing at the time. "Who would have thought that in the blink of an eye, as the years drifted past, she would grow into such an outstanding young woman?" Hearing his words, Meng Wanshu bowed bashfully and greeted him softly, "Junior pays her respects to Senior Long." Long Hou offered a faint smile and flicked his finger toward the empty air. Immediately, a speck of golden light sank into the center of Meng Wanshu's brow. Meng Jiangchu's pupils constricted abruptly. He hastily bowed in salute. "This junior thanks Senior for conferring a blessing upon my daughter!" In an instant, a brilliant glow erupted from within Meng Wanshu's body, and her aura underwent a quiet transformation right then and there. It was as though her whole being had grown far more ethereal. Such a method—forcibly elevating a person's comprehension—could only be described as defying the heavens! Moreover, this elevation did not damage her foundation in the slightest. Long Hou waved his hand with a chuckle. "Consider it a meeting gift for my niece." Li Guanqi's eyes lit up as he watched from the side. He hurried over, pointed at himself, and asked, "What about me? What about me? Uncle Long, give me one of those too!" Long Hou shot him a sideways glance. "You possess an Ethereal Dao Body yourself. Do you really need me to enhance your comprehension?" Feeling deflated upon hearing this, Li Guanqi immediately spoke up again: "Well, I have two brothers outside. Could you give each of them one?" Ye Feng and Xiao Chen, who had noticed the situation here long ago, did not dare approach in the slightest. They had no idea what was happening here; they could not even catch a glimpse of Long Hou's figure. Long Hou turned his head to glance at Ye Feng and Xiao Chen, the disdain in his eyes practically palpable. Yet Li Guanqi said, "Xiao Chen is a really good person. He was severely injured trying to rescue Wanshu back then. And there's no need to even mention Ye Feng—he's gone through life and death with me for years, and he went to the Purgatory Abyss solely to keep pace with my footsteps." At this point, Li Guanqi's expression gradually grew solemn. "I know Ye Feng's cultivation talent is only average, and he knows it too. Things I can comprehend in a single thought take him painstaking study to grasp..." Long Hou raised a hand to cut him off, golden light abruptly flaring in his eyes as he turned his gaze! After a long pause of contemplation, Long Hou flicked his fingers toward the empty air, and two wisps of spiritual light shot into the brows of the two men in an instant! Immediately afterward, a crimson-gold jade casket abruptly appeared in Long Hou's hand! The moment the casket was brought out, the surrounding void was slashed with countless fissures by a terrifying wave of Geng Metal power! He handed the box to Li Guanqi and said softly, "Your grandfather prepared this for him. It is very dangerous. If he swallows it, it's a nine-in-ten chance of death." Li Guanqi took the jade casket, and countless cuts were instantly sliced into his fingers! Startled, he hastily enveloped it in primal energy, looking up to ask, "What does the thing inside do?" Long Hou chuckled. "It can elevate the quality of Ye Feng's spiritual root to the Saint Grade, and it can advance his Sword Ruins, giving him enough to touch upon the profound mysteries of Apocalypse." Even Meng Jiangchu, standing nearby, showed envy in his eyes at this treasure. Hearing that, Li Guanqi beamed from ear to ear and stowed it away with utter delight. "Uh... right, Uncle Long, why didn't my grandfather come to see me? Or maybe I could go with you to see him? "I haven't seen him in so many years. I miss him quite a bit." To his surprise, Long Hou's expression changed instantly upon hearing those words, and he spoke with grave solemnity. "Guanqi, your grandfather... his identity is extraordinary, and he shoulders far more burdens. It's not that he doesn't want to come see you—he cannot see you!" With that, his gaze inadvertently drifted toward Li Guanqi's bare back. Li Guanqi understood what was going on in an instant. He nodded slightly and murmured, "All right, I understand. One day, I will go find Grandfather on my own!" Long Hou nodded in satisfaction, then turned to Meng Jiangchu and offered a jade pendant that radiated an ancient, primeval air. Meng Jiangchu received the pendant with both hands. Looking down at the jade piece engraved with the character 'Xuan,' his heart pounded wildly! "Could this... could this be...?!" Long Hou nodded faintly and said softly, "All the answers you seek are within it. That is, provided... you are already prepared!" Meng Jiangchu inhaled deeply upon hearing this and asked in a low voice, "Which number am I?" The man made no attempt to hide it, stating plainly, "The second." "Then who was the first?" "Gu Yong, Pavilion Master of the Tianji Pavilion." *Hiss...* "I understand! Once I settle everything, I will make the trip!" Their conversation was veiled in mystery, leaving Li Guanqi with only a faint, speculative grasp of what was being said. Out on the mountain peak, both Ye Feng and Xiao Chen had plunged into an exceedingly wondrous state. Just like Meng Wanshu, both of them had involuntarily entered cultivation, intense fluctuations of primal energy surging around their bodies. After handing the item to Meng Jiangchu, Long Hou gave a slight nod to the others and said softly, "Since all business is concluded, I shall take my leave." Meng Jiangchu hastily cupped his fists. "Safe travels, Senior." Li Guanqi bowed respectfully as well. He felt an inexplicable admiration for this man, purely because of how unfathomably powerful he was. Moreover, the man carried the bearing and demeanor befitting a true powerhouse. Before departing, Long Hou turned toward Li Guanqi, the corners of his mouth curving into an abrupt smile. "Not bad. Very good indeed." Li Guanqi raised his head and grinned broadly. Once Long Hou left, Meng Jiangchu departed in a hurry as well. Li Guanqi helped Li Guilan clear the bowls and chopsticks, and Li Guilan asked in a conspiratorial whisper, "My! Was that shining golden person awfully powerful?" Li Guanqi nodded and replied, "Yes, terribly powerful. At the very least, beating up Uncle Meng would be no trouble at all." The woman looked enlightened and marveled, "Then he truly must be quite something." Li Guanqi turned to sweep his divine sense across the two men atop the mountain, the corners of his lips curving upward. Ye Feng had endured nothing but hardship following him all these years; today could be considered a taste of sweetness for him at last. Meng Jiangchu had casually tossed down two array plates roughly a zhang in size upon the peak where the two sat. The plates conjured two separate spirit-gathering arrays, where the spirit qi was thick enough to form a spiritual mist. Just then, however, Li Guanqi's expression changed abruptly! He discovered that an additional golden jade slip had appeared within his storage ring! Raising a hand, he erected a barrier to isolate the surrounding area, then channeled primal energy into the slip. The jade slip flickered with faint light, and Long Hou's voice immediately rang out! "Cao Yan is in peril. Go save him at once!" *Boom!* Li Guanqi's gaze turned razor-sharp, and he muttered under his breath, "I'd like to see who dares lay a hand on him!" Turning toward the mountain peak, he roared, "Speed it up! We found Big Head!" Atop the peak, Ye Feng's ears twitched, and a terrifying wave of oppressive pressure erupted from his entire body! In an instant, the surrounding spiritual mist began to swirl frantically, after which Ye Feng's body sucked everything in like a black hole. The spiritual light at his brow also erupted with a dazzling radiance before swiftly vanishing beneath the skin! Beside him, Xiao Chen was thoroughly shocked, for he knew all too well how difficult it was to refine that sliver of spiritual light. Yet hearing the non-stop clamor and rumbling beside him, he almost thought Ye Feng had gone mad... Spurred by this, Xiao Chen also began refining the spiritual light at his brow with manic intensity.