217: Red Plum Blossoms in the Cold Courtyard

In the afternoon, they learned a bit about the Tinghua City Lord.

The City Lord of Tinghua City was, of course, a female cultivator named Hongmei.

Jiang Ning was startled when he first heard the name.

His paternal uncle's wife, his aunt, was also named “Hongmei,” and he thought his aunt had transmigrated.

But seeing the courtyard full of plum blossoms, Jiang Ning knew that this woman loved plum blossoms, especially red ones, and had named herself accordingly.

Jiang Ning lowered his head, observing the scene in the courtyard.

After a dozen breaths.

Jiang Ning looked at the quiet courtyard.

Occasionally, male servants would shuttle through the pavilions, taking small, mincing steps, like eunuchs.

“The outside is almost always at spring-autumn temperatures, but it’s deep winter here. There must be a large Formation underground creating the cold Qi, which is better than air conditioning.

However, using Spiritual Qi to operate such a large Formation year-round is truly extravagant.”

Jiang Ning used his Divine Sense to probe underground.

Indeed, he sensed the large Formation operating beneath the ground.

“Oh?”

He then sensed a different power.

Within the large Formation, there was another Formation, continuously deliverying a peculiar power.

With the cold Formation concealing it, if his Realm hadn't been high, he would have found it difficult to detect.

This hidden power was very gentle; it wasn't Spiritual Qi, yet it had that “nourishing” quality of Spiritual Qi.

Jiang Ning became much more serious.

He suddenly realized.

This power was actually flowing in from outside the courtyard.

Jiang Ning thought of the large Formation of the entire city.

He ascended higher into the air.

Overlooking the entire Tinghua City.

From this vantage point, Tinghua City resembled a peony, with its petals forming the streets.

The central stamen was where the City Lord’s mansion was located.

“Interesting.”

Under the prying of his Divine Sense.

In Jiang Ning’s vision.

The entire “peony” seemed to come alive, with streaks of luminous white light flowing, outlining the “peony’s” contours.

Indeed, the large Formation outside was not only the basic large Formation of Tinghua City but also the “cornerstone” of the City Lord’s mansion’s “small Formation.”

“Come!”

Jiang Ning reached out.

From within the large Formation, he “stole” some energy.

Silver-white “small insects” danced on his fingertips.

Jiang Ning felt it.

“This is... vitality?”

Jiang Ning looked at these white lines again, somewhat shocked.

These were all vitality!

The vitality of all the flowers in the entire Tinghua City was being plundered little by little!

Jiang Ning suddenly understood something.

Even if the flowers in Tinghua City had proliferated to the point where the soil lacked nutrients, if they were planted and nurtured daily, the so-called “proliferation” still had a lot of room for growth.

Following a line of vitality.

Jiang Ning concealed his aura and arrived at the City Lord’s mansion.

In the “deep winter” of the City Lord’s mansion, the main hall was lit.

These lines of vitality intertwined, continuously entering the underground of this room.

He manipulated his Divine Sense to enter the main hall.

On the Formation core in the main hall, there was an egg-sized “egg” placed.

The egg was jade-green, and under the continuous input of vitality, it glowed with a faint green light.

Jiang Ning thought for a while but didn't understand what kind of Spirit Beast’s “egg” this was.

Not to mention that he had already separated Chen Hai from himself; even if he hadn't, Chen Hai's knowledge wouldn't have been able to identify this egg.

“I'll go back and ask Flowing Water.”

Jiang Ning used a recording stone to capture the appearance of this egg.

He then prepared to leave.

After all, he was now prying into someone else’s secrets.

As for the City Lord of Tinghua City encouraging flower planting in the city and then stealing the vitality of these flowers, this was not a big deal in the cultivation world.

If anything, it was just a bit unethical.

After all, you encourage everyone to plant flowers, but then you plunder the vitality of these flowers, and it's for a Spirit Beast's “egg.”

It sounds too comical and two-faced.

It's like a revered monk who preaches purity and abstinence, but secretly has several wives.

“Your city is truly peculiar. Do you really want to create a female-dominated city?”

The main hall's door opened.

Outside, a handsome man in his twenties entered first.

He directed his words at Hongmei, the City Lord of Tinghua City, who was wearing a red dress and followed closely behind him.

Hongmei waved her hand, and the main hall's door closed directly.

She directly hugged the handsome man from behind.

Hongmei pressed her face against the man’s back and said in a muffled voice, “Peculiar or not, as long as it brings me enough benefits, that’s all that matters.

The people below, either resonating due to personal experiences or being incited, are the ones who care about male dominance or female dominance.

With resources and strength, these things are meaningless.”

“Look at you.”

The man turned around, embraced the City Lord of Tinghua City’s slender waist, and lowered his head to kiss her lips.

He laughed and said, “You really are wicked. Others listen to your incitement, treating you as a leader and revering you as a god, but you just want to earn their money...”

“Stupid people deserve to be punished, don’t they?”

Hongmei wrapped her arms around the man’s neck.

“Everyone knows their own cultivation and how their life is going, but they let others’ incitement affect their life and cultivation.

For such people, their Dao Heart is inherently insufficient; I am merely screening them in advance for the Heavenly Dao.

The resources of the cultivation world are inherently reserved for the intelligent and talented.”

The man chuckled, offering no comment.

He released Hongmei.

Looking at the “egg” in the middle of the room, he asked, “How much longer until it matures?”

“A few more days.”

Hongmei walked forward, her eyes filled with longing.

She had been at Golden Core Perfection for over a hundred years; this was her hope for a Nascent Soul Breakthrough.

“If it takes any longer, I’ll hold a few lectures. The Dao field also has a Formation that can absorb people’s vitality.”

“Aren’t you afraid of being discovered?” The male cultivator chuckled, “If you’re discovered and it escalates, the Ting Yu Palace Revered Master might send people to punish you!”

“It’s fine; I’ve absorbed it a few times before. As long as it’s moderate, they won’t find out.”

After Hongmei finished speaking, she grabbed the man’s arm.

“Don’t talk about these things. You rarely come all this way...”

“See, you’re impatient again...”

...Jiang Ning silently withdrew his Divine Sense.

He decided not to watch the rest of the scene.

This trip, he had certainly gotten an earful of gossip.

He hadn't expected such a secret behind Tinghua City.

But he wasn't going to do anything about it.

After all, these were “personal choices”; it wouldn't be an exaggeration to say it was a case of one willing to strike and the other willing to be struck.

After returning to the inn.

Shen Jinhuan was still in the room.

Jiang Ning was surprised, “Huanhuan, you didn’t go out to explore?”

Although his trip seemed long, it actually didn’t even last half an hour.

Shen Jinhuan shook her head.

“Revered Master isn’t here, so I don’t want to go out.”

She walked over, getting very close; Jiang Ning could smell her faint fragrance.

Shen Jinhuan blinked, asking playfully, “Did Revered Master discover anything fun during this outing?”

“Indeed, I did!”

Jiang Ning took out the recording stone.

“Can you tell what kind of egg this is?”