54: Chapter 54 The Generous Gift of the Feathered Dynasty

The Heavenly Secret Boat streaked through the Void Realm like a ray of light.

Its speed was extremely fast.

Inside the boat, the atmosphere was deathly silent.

Ji Lingxuan sat cross-legged with her eyes closed, doing her utmost to stabilize her surging cultivation.

Dao rhymes flowed around her, and her Aura became increasingly solid and reached Perfection.

However, her tightly furrowed brows betrayed her inner anxiety.

On the other side, Old Xuan looked miserable.

His face was deathly pale, and dried blood still hung from the corner of his mouth.

His entire Aura was withered.

The trauma of having his Divine Thought erased had directly injured the Origin of his Divine Soul.

It left a permanent void.

There were even signs that his cultivation was regressing.

But that was not the most fatal thing.

The most fatal thing was fear.

Every time he closed his eyes, that twelve-petaled golden Dao lotus appeared in his mind.

And that name carved into his Divine Soul.

Great Xia, Li Xuan.

These four words were like an ancient divine mountain, pressing heavily upon his Dao Heart.

It left him unable to muster even the slightest thought of resistance.

"Your Highness... are we... are we really going to see the Emperor?"

Old Xuan's voice was hoarse, carrying uncontrollable trembling.

He was afraid.

He feared that when he returned to the Imperial Capital and spoke that name, he would be directly erased by that existence from across billions of miles of the Void Realm.

"We must go."

Ji Lingxuan opened her eyes.

In those cold Phoenix eyes, only gravity remained.

"Old Xuan, do you think we have any other choice?"

"From the moment you spied on that Senior to the moment he took action to enlighten me, our fate—the fate of the entire Imperial Dynasty—was no longer in our own hands."

"What we saw was not a threat, but a warning and reminder from that Senior."

"If he wanted to kill us, we wouldn't even be able to leave the city."

These words caused Old Xuan to tremble all over.

The fear in his eyes receded, replaced by deeper awe and despair.

Indeed.

They were like two clowns intruding into the nest of a Dragon.

That Dragon had merely yawned.

And they thought the world was about to end.

Yuhua Dynasty, Hall of Imperial Supremacy.

The center of power in the Eastern Wilderness was filled with a stern atmosphere.

The Emperor of Yuhua sat high on the Dragon Throne, listening to his daughter's report, his brows locked tightly.

His fingers tapped unconsciously on the armrest of the Dragon Throne.

Tap.

Tap.

On both sides of the main hall, dozens of high-ranking officials of the Imperial Dynasty stood with their hands hanging down.

Each one of them held their breath.

When Ji Lingxuan spoke of that "spicy stick" made from several kinds of thousand-year Spirit Medicine and rare treasures, the temperature in the hall dropped by a few degrees.

When she repeated Li Changsheng's words, "I like eating Dragon liver," the corners of several Marquises' eyes twitched.

And when Ji Lingxuan described, detail by detail, how that withered grass came back to life and bloomed into a twelve-petaled golden lotus with "Perfection" Dao rhymes...

"Crack!"

A crisp sound broke the deathly silence.

Everyone looked over in shock.

They saw that the Emperor of Yuhua on the Dragon Throne had actually squeezed a crack into the ten-thousand-year warm jade wine cup in his hand.

The fine wine in the cup flowed down the crack and dripped onto the floor.

Yet, this Supreme of the Eastern Wilderness did not notice.

His gaze was fixed tightly on his daughter and Old Xuan, who was missing half his life, standing beside her.

"Lingxuan, is there even half a word of falsehood in everything you have said?"

The voice of the Emperor of Yuhua carried an unprecedented dryness.

"Your daughter swears upon her Dao Heart. If there is even half a word of falsehood, may I be destroyed by heaven and earth, never to reincarnate!"

Ji Lingxuan's reply was decisive.

Her cultivation had leaped from the fifth level of the Venerable Realm to the Peak of the seventh level.

This was ironclad proof.

The main hall was deathly silent.

No one present was a fool.

Eating Dragon liver as a meal, using Saint medicine as snacks.

The information this revealed was only one thing.

In that place called "Great Xia," real Dragons and Saint medicine might be as common as the pigs, sheep, and cabbage in ordinary households.

They were worthless.

Not to mention that unbelievable "blooming flowers with a single thought."

What kind of method was that?

Words following the law, twisting life and death.

That was the great power of the Creator God, which only existed in ancient myths.

A single thought could make the Heart Demon Bottleneck that had plagued a Prodigy for twenty years disappear.

Breaking through two cultivation levels in a row.

This was equivalent to personally creating a future Saint.

This kindness was higher than the sky and deeper than the sea.

"Great Xia, Li Xuan."

The Emperor of Yuhua muttered to himself. He closed his eyes, and his entire Aura instantly retracted, making him look like a stone statue.

After a long time, he opened his eyes.

In those domineering eyes, only clarity and decisiveness remained.

"Convey my decree!"

The voice resounded through the main hall.

"Immediately open the Imperial Dynasty's treasury, select one hundred thousand Heaven And Earth Treasures, three thousand ten-thousand-year divine medicines, one hundred Acquired Spirit Treasures, and ten Innate Spirit Treasures!"

"Additionally, select three thousand sixteen-year-old virgins from various clans of the Imperial Dynasty, all with superior Aptitude and special Bloodline, and send them to Great Xia together!"

"Finally, bring along that top-secret dossier regarding the 'Eternal Prodigy Championship' treasured by the Imperial family!"

Boom!

As soon as the decree was issued, the entire court was in an uproar.

Heaven And Earth Treasures and Spirit Treasures were one thing.

Although it hurt, it was understandable.

But what was the meaning of those three thousand young women with superior Aptitude?

This was almost the cream of the Yuhua Dynasty's younger generation; was it just being given away for nothing?

And that dossier on the "Prodigy Championship."

That was top-secret intelligence that the Yuhua Dynasty had spent countless costs to obtain from ancient forces.

It concerned the contention for the future position of Great Emperor and was the Imperial Dynasty's highest secret.

"Your Majesty, please reconsider!"

A white-haired old Marquis could no longer hold back, took a step forward, and knelt on the ground.

"Is this gift perhaps too heavy?"

"Heavy?"

The Emperor of Yuhua sneered. He stood up, and a powerful pressure enveloped the entire venue.

"Do you think that Senior covets these scraps of ours?"

He pointed at the people below, his voice icy.

"They treat Saint medicine as snacks for children and real Dragons as ingredients. Sending this little bit of stuff to them, what difference does it make in their eyes from a pile of stones?"

"When giving a gift, you are not sending a present, but our attitude!"

"A Supreme existence capable of 'blooming flowers with a single thought' and having words follow the law disdains any of our possessions."

"All we can do is show enough humility, enough awe, and enough sincerity!"

"These three thousand young women are being sent to serve as maids for that Senior! This is the honor of our Yuhua Dynasty!"

"That dossier is to tell the Senior that our Yuhua Dynasty has no secrets in front of him!"

"We are not sending gifts."

"We are begging for that Senior's forgiveness! Begging him not to mind our previous offense and spying!"

"If we can exchange this for a trace of favor from this Senior and forge a good relationship, let alone three thousand young women, what would it matter even if I gave up this throne?"

These words shocked every Marquis and official.

They understood instantly.

This was no longer diplomacy between two forces.

This was more like ants submitting to a Dragon.

"We are dull-witted!"

"Your Majesty is wise!"

The entire court kneeled down in unison, cold sweat streaming down.

"Lingxuan."

The Emperor of Yuhua looked at his daughter.

"Your daughter is here."

"You will personally lead the team for this gift delivery."

The Emperor of Yuhua's voice softened slightly.

"Remember, put away all your pride. In front of that Senior, you are not a princess of the Yuhua Dynasty; you are just a Junior going on a pilgrimage, a Disciple going to give thanks."

"You only have one task."

"No matter what method you use or what price you pay, you must make that Senior 'Li Xuan' feel the sincerity of our Yuhua Dynasty."

Ji Lingxuan trembled in her heart.

She looked at her father.

This Supreme, who was usually brilliant and ambitious, now revealed a hint of pleading in his eyes that she had never seen before.

She knew the weight of this matter exceeded her imagination.

It concerned the survival of the Yuhua Dynasty.

She nodded heavily, accepting this mission, which was the heaviest and most sacred of her life.

"Your daughter will obey the decree!"

Three days later.

An unprecedentedly luxurious team set off from the Imperial Capital of the Yuhua Dynasty.

Nine Flood Dragons at the Peak of the Marquis Realm pulled a gorgeous carriage made of star divine gold, clearing the way in the front.

Sitting on the carriage was none other than Ji Lingxuan.

Behind her were three hundred and sixty huge treasure ships, fully loaded with Heaven And Earth Treasures radiating ten thousand rays of light.

At the very back of the team were three thousand young women dressed in uniform palace attire, beautiful in appearance and with an ethereal temperament.

They were nervous, curious, and carried a hint of longing.

They followed the team, heading towards that Eastern land which, in their perception, represented wildness and barrenness.

This time, there was no disguise, no concealment.

The Yuhua Dynasty, with the highest standard of etiquette, offered its most humble respect to that mysterious kingdom named Great Xia.

And it also offered the most generous gift.