Jiang Ningxian watched the battlefield not far away.
Especially after seeing the methods Zhou Yunqiong displayed, astonishment surfaced in her eyes, for she knew very well what kind of divine ability that was.
Noticing the confusion on Lu Yuan's face, she immediately explained, "This is the Ji clan's True Phoenix Technique. In the Ziwei Immortal Domain, it and the True Dragon Technique are known as the two great taboo divine abilities, closely guarded secrets of the Ji lineage that even sequence prodigies can rarely master."
"Unless one's bloodline and innate talent reach a certain level, it cannot be learned. Yet before the Ji clan has even arrived in this realm, she has already mastered it."
"Zhou Yunqiong must be connected to some great figure who values her highly enough to have passed it down to her."
Jiang Ningxian knew a great deal about the Ji clan, which was why she could identify it at once.
Moreover, the True Phoenix Technique and the True Dragon Technique had both been passed down from the era of Xuanyuan the Yellow Emperor.
They were of paramount importance, which explained her reaction.
"If she weren't so highly valued," Lu Yuan replied, having already anticipated this and feeling no great shock, "she wouldn't have grown to the Sovereign King Realm in such a short time."
Just think about himself: how many divine objects had he fused, how much fortune had he grasped before reaching the Sovereign King Realm? Yet Zhou Yunqiong was in the same realm as him. Without outside help, that would have been utterly impossible.
This world was indeed reviving, possessing exquisite conditions for cultivation and evolution, but growing strong still required time.
"That makes sense." Hearing this, Jiang Ningxian nodded in full agreement with his words.
"Let's go," Lu Yuan said. "The Golden-Winged Garuda and the others are falling into a disadvantage."
As he had said before, the matters between them truly ought to be resolved now.
Over on the other side.
Zhou Yunqiong was enveloped by the phantom of a True Phoenix.
From time to time, bursts of sunset glow surged from her body, transforming into true phoenix feathers that shot forth incessantly like deadly swords.
Rays of iridescent light spread out around her.
She looked just like a fairy descending from the celestial realm.
Her combat prowess seemed to have been bolstered; with every move she made, fierce astral winds whipped about, completely enveloping the surrounding heaven and earth.
The four Beast Kings were indeed formidable—outside, barring otherworldly beings, they were practically invincible. Yet confronting Zhou Yunqiong now, not only could they not suppress her, but after she revealed her true strength, they even fell into a disadvantage.
Chi chi chi!
The Peacock King, the Spirit Monkey, the Nine-Tailed Fox King, and the others were all under immense pressure.
The weakest among them, the Golden-Winged Garuda, could not hold out and was forced back again and again. Several wounds were pierced through its body; fortunately, its bloodline was potent enough and, coupled with its already terrifying physique, it could still withstand such injuries.
The Golden-Winged Garuda and the others also sensed the crisis, knowing they could hardly withstand her.
Alarmed, the four Beast Kings immediately joined forces, unleashing their respective techniques.
Yet it was completely different from before.
Her strikes grew heavier and heavier. In the end, Zhou Yunqiong gathered all the true feathers together.
Her entire body radiated dazzling, brilliant radiance as all the true phoenix feathers converged into a peerless sword of slaughter, brimming with murderous intent, which then slashed down without the slightest hesitation!
A killing sword forged of true phoenix feathers could slay saints!
This strike was aimed at severely wounding the four Beast Kings.
If this blow landed in the outside world, it could easily obliterate a small mountain range.
Had this not been inside the Mount Kunlun Mystic Realm, the mere aftershocks would have caused catastrophic destruction.
"Still not retreating?"
Seeing this, Zhou Yunqiong frowned.
She had already shown mercy, yet she hadn't expected the four Beast Kings to remain so stubbornly unyielding.
She knew that under these circumstances, she had to teach them a lesson.
Without hesitation, Zhou Yunqiong took a step forward in midair and drew forth even stronger power from within her body.
A fierce and terrifying aura erupted from her, and her momentum far surpassed what it had been before, continuing to surge without pause, as if it had only just begun.
However.
Right at that moment.
An even more intense aura descended abruptly!
Boom!
Lu Yuan strode before the four Beast Kings and reached out his right hand, exerting force with his five fingers, directly blocking this True Phoenix killing sword!
Bang!
A powerful blast of air erupted from the collision, rippling out wave upon wave.
It was impossible for him to let anything happen to them.
After all, the four Beast Kings were his own people. If he couldn't even protect them, he would truly be cold-blooded and unprincipled.
Standing within the blast, Lu Yuan remained motionless as a mountain. Then he gestured once more, and the Jiuzhou Map flew into his hand.
Everyone's heart trembled.
"Lu Yuan?"
Opposite him, Zhou Yunqiong was shaken, stumbling back several steps with anger showing on her face.
She had thought Lu Yuan would come, but hadn't expected him to be so fast. Seeing the Jiuzhou Map seized, dissatisfaction naturally showed in her heart.
Upon seeing who it was, she had been somewhat startled, but quickly regained her composure and could not help saying, "Lu Yuan, striking amid the chaos to claim this map for yourself doesn't seem like your style."
Holding the Jiuzhou Map, Lu Yuan looked completely calm. "If you are dissatisfied, you are welcome to take it back by force."
"Didn't you say before that since ancient times, opportunities and fortunes belong to the strong?"
These words made Zhou Yunqiong's dissatisfaction deepen even further.
The Nine-Tailed Fox King stepped forward and said, "King Lu, we were clearly the ones who discovered this map first, yet she suddenly attacked. There's no need to reason with her at all!"
Believing the opponent was very likely an extraterrestrial being, the Nine-Tailed Fox King lodged an outright complaint.
None of the Beast Kings, including the Golden-Winged Garuda, knew about the past relationship between Zhou Yunqiong and Lu Yuan.
"That's right! Now that King Lu is here, why aren't you acting as fierce as you were just now?"
Clashing over fortunes was, in truth, the most normal thing in the world.
Hearing these words, Zhou Yunqiong frowned slightly.
This made her brow knit tight; she found it hard to stomach such treatment. But Zhou Yunqiong was not an impulsive person after all, and would not easily be swayed by emotion. Especially seeing Jiang Ningxian not far away, she understood that she could no longer linger here.
Lu Yuan's reputation was far too resounding.
With Lu Yuan here, she could not gain the slightest advantage.
Meanwhile, Uncle You and the others had also rushed over, as if facing a great enemy. If their Eldest Miss fought him, the outcome would be dire.
Zhou Yunqiong knew how to assess the situation and understood when to retreat. A smile immediately appeared on her face as she looked at Lu Yuan. "You should know that even if only for a short time, I have the power to severely injure or slay them. The reason I didn't strike ruthlessly was because of you."
Lu Yuan replied, his voice calm, "I know. Otherwise, I wouldn't have held back in my strike just now either."
Hearing this, Zhou Yunqiong was slightly shaken. She could tell completely that Lu Yuan had shown no regard for their past relationship.
As for Zhou Yunqiong, she knew that his attitude toward her was indeed completely different from before.
Still, if he wanted to kill her, it would not be that simple either.
The aura on her body also slowly began to release.
Yet very quickly, Zhou Yunqiong spoke, understanding that easing her relationship with Lu Yuan would be very difficult.
At least, it could not be done in a short time.
Zhou Yunqiong believed that resolving the grievances between the two could not be achieved in one or two attempts. If things continued like this, their conflict would only escalate further.
It was better to first defuse the tense atmosphere between them before trying to draw closer. Taking it slowly was the better path; she had plenty of patience.
After all, this man was crucial to her future fortunes.
"In that case, I will take my leave for now. Let us meet again another day."
Yet right at that moment, Lu Yuan suddenly spoke once more:
"Wait."
Chapter 184