The moment Ru Meng stepped inside, her eyes fell upon the handsome Li Guanqi and, beside him, Meng Wanshu, whose extraordinary presence was like a glacial lotus of the celestial peaks.
Facing three Body Integration Realm powerhouses, Ru Meng was not as timid as one might have expected.
She approached Qin Wushang, curtsied gracefully, and said in an alluring voice, "Young Master Qin, you sent for me?"
Looking at Ru Meng, whose very bones exuded natural charm, Meng Wanshu maintained an impassive expression, showing no sign of displeasure.
This allowed Li Guanqi to breathe a sigh of relief. These days, he was constantly worried about Meng Wanshu being overly sensitive.
Qin Wushang chuckled. "Ru Meng has another identity: she is the head of our Qin clan's intelligence division. She oversees nearly all the intelligence operations across the entire Coast of the Eastern Sea."
Li Guanqi nodded slightly in greeting.
Ru Meng cast a sultry, bewitching glance at Li Guanqi. After all, cultivators this formidable were rarely seen, to say nothing of his remarkable background. She knew very well that Li Guanqi's identity was far from ordinary.
Yet that casual glance made Meng Wanshu's brow furrow slightly.
The instant he noticed Meng Wanshu's displeasure, Qin Wushang said with a placid face, "Put away your charm technique. Don't look for trouble."
She was merely a Ru Meng; he had no desire to offend Li Guanqi and Meng Wanshu over her. The world could have countless Ru Mengs, but there was only one Li Guanqi. Qin Wushang was well aware of where the true weight lay.
Ru Meng hastily tried to rein in her allure, but born with natural sensuality in her bones, that captivating charm radiated from the inside out. She was on the verge of tears from panic; completely suppressing it was something even she was incapable of doing.
In the end, Li Guanqi waved a hand and said, "Never mind, it is fine. Let us talk about the reason I came to see you today."
Hearing this, Ru Meng finally breathed a sigh of relief, though the look Meng Wanshu had just given her still sent a chill down her spine. Now, she did not even dare meet Li Guanqi's eyes, quietly standing behind Qin Wushang and listening.
Li Guanqi said in a deep voice, "The reason I came to the Ethereal Immortal Domain this time is to find two things!"
Qin Wushang frowned. "What things?"
"The Qilin Soul and the Seven-Colored Glazed Flower!"
Qin Wushang was well-read, having perused countless ancient texts, yet he had only heard of these two items mentioned in rare, surviving ancient volumes.
"Do these two things really exist? If there truly were creatures of the qilin kind in the Human Spirit Realm, wouldn't someone have discovered them long ago?"
Li Guanqi gave a wry smile. "I don't know either. I can only try. I'll need your help to keep a close eye out for news regarding them."
Qin Wushang nodded, his expression turning solemn. "Rest assured, I will have Ru Meng issue a task and mobilize all our intelligence resources to help you look, though there are no guarantees whether we can find them. In addition, I will mention this to my father so he can tap into his own network to aid in the search."
Li Guanqi showed genuine gratitude and said in a heavy voice, "Thank you. If there is ever anything you need my help with in the future, don't hesitate to speak up."
Ru Meng also committed the two items to memory and asked, "Do you know their specific shapes, features, or the like? That would make searching for them much easier."
Li Guanqi thought for a moment. "I'll have the Gu clan compile some information and send it to you later."
He then exchanged transmission jade slips with Ru Meng, but before he could put his away, Meng Wanshu snatched it right out of his hand.
"If anything comes up in the future, you can just contact me."
Li Guanqi smiled, while Ru Meng nodded somewhat awkwardly, bowing. "Understood. In that case, Ru Meng will take her leave."
Qin Wushang waved his hand, then rose and said, "Do you want to meet my father?"
Li Guanqi pondered for a moment. "Forget it, next time. Right now, I plan to make a trip to the Nine Dragons Immortal Sect."
Qin Wushang nodded, personally seeing the two outside the Castellan Manor. Handing over two jade pendants, he smiled and said, "With these pendants, it will be much easier for you to come and go from Qin Imperial City in the future."
Looking at the dark-gold jade pendant, Li Guanqi stowed it away with a flick of his wrist, cupped his hands with a smile, and said, "Alright, until next time."
Whoosh!
The two leaped into the air, flying straight toward the Nine Dragons Immortal Sect.
Along the way, Meng Wanshu pouted and said, "I don't like that woman. The way her eyes were oozing sultriness was infuriating!"
Li Guanqi didn't know whether to laugh or cry. "She didn't do it on purpose. Being born with natural allure in her bones doesn't mean she was deliberately seducing me. She looked at Qin Wushang the exact same way."
Meng Wanshu shook off Li Guanqi's hand and snapped, "Oh, wonderful! You've only just met her, and you're already defending her? Am I in your way by staying by your side?"
Li Guanqi was choked for words. It turned out that when a woman grew angry, literally anything could become a reason. Yet a chuckle escaped him, which only made Meng Wanshu angrier.
"What are you laughing at? Do you think I'm making trouble out of nothing?"
Li Guanqi firmly wrapped an arm around her waist and smiled. "No."
"Then what is it?"
Looking down at the frowning woman in his arms, Li Guanqi smiled. "The way you are right now makes me feel much happier—it feels more real. You aren't that cold, aloof Meng clan Saintess in front of outsiders. You're more like... that feisty little girl back in Fulong Village who used to scold me as a stinky blind brat."
Meng Wanshu smiled, the lingering gloom in her chest dispersing considerably.
All along the way, like an immortal couple, they soared through the nine heavens, taking in many sights along their path.
They also encountered many powerful cultivators, which made them both marvel inward at how the overall strength of the Ethereal Immortal Domain far surpassed the six mortal domains outside.
On their journey, Li Guanqi also saw many sect clans firmly established here. The disciples within those sects paid no heed to the outside world, sitting upright on the mountain summits, breathing in the spiritual qi and meditating. Compared to the worldly entanglements outside, the path of cultivation here seemed far purer.
The journey to the Nine Dragons Immortal Sect was extraordinarily long, something Meng Wanshu had already experienced during her first visit. Even so, neither Li Guanqi nor Meng Wanshu was in a hurry; whenever they grew tired, they would find a picturesque spot to rest for a while.
The splashing of water echoed softly from the riverbank.
Meng Wanshu sat on a chair, warming herself by a fire as the crackle of burning firewood sounded without pause.
In the stream, Li Guanqi withdrew all his primal energy, rolled up his trouser legs, and stood hunched low in the water.
Meng Wanshu chuckled. "You've been standing there for half an eternity, and seventy-eight spirit fish have swum past. Aren't you going to catch a single one?"
Without turning his head, Li Guanqi smiled gently. "I naturally have to catch the plumpest and most delicious one for you."
As he spoke, his right hand darted out like lightning, scooping up a greenish spirit fish as long as an arm!
The large fish writhed violently, trying to break free, but the large hand held it fast like an iron vise.
Li Guanqi laughed aloud as he held up the spirit fish. "Hahaha, caught a fat one!"
Leaping ashore, a surge of primal energy instantly dispersed the moisture clinging to his body.
He pulled out a dagger. Swift, precise, and ruthless, he cleanly scaled and gutted the spirit fish in just a few deft strokes.
Meng Wanshu crouched beside him, watching the scene with keen interest.
"I really wonder if there's anything you can't do."
Li Guanqi said with immense pride, "A small matter like this is hardly a challenge for me."
Skewering the fish and setting it over the fire, Li Guanqi retrieved a variety of seasonings from his storage ring.
Under the roasting flames, the spirit fish soon began to exude a mouthwatering aroma. Meng Wanshu's eyes shone bright. She had never experienced anything like this before, and it all felt thoroughly novel to her.
Hugging her knees with both arms, she stared eagerly at the spirit fish turning over the fire.
Chapter 878