36: The seven-colored lotus flower was stolen by disciples of the Yuntian Sect.

As for Gu Chen.

He also occasionally collected some Spirit Herbs that caught his eye, putting them into his bag.

The four people continued like this.

They collected as they walked, like a swarm of locusts passing through.

“Huh, Senior Sister, are those dozen or so lotus flowers in the middle of that small pond the Seven-Colored Lotuses?”

As the two of them continued collecting, they arrived next to a small pond.

Qin Fei'er pointed at the dozens of colorful lotus flowers in the center of the small pond and asked Mu Xueqing.

“That's right, Junior Sister Qin, our luck is good. The lotus seeds of the Seven-Colored Lotus are the main ingredient for refining pills that help break through to the Human Venerable level.” Mu Xueqing glanced at the Seven-Colored Lotus and replied affirmatively.

“Hehe, then let's quickly collect them.” Qin Fei'er looked happy and was about to rush over to gather the Seven-Colored Lotuses.

“Wait, Junior Sister Qin, such a treasure must have a Guardian Spirit Beast. Let Senior Brother draw that fellow out first so we can see what kind of creature it is,” Gu Chen said, stopping Qin Fei'er.

As Spirit Herbs of the Human Venerable level, they usually have Guardian Spirit Beasts.

They wait for the Spirit Herb to mature, then swallow it to advance further.

If they encountered a powerful guardian beast, Qin Fei'er might get hurt.

As a wise team leader, how could he let such a thing happen?

“Mhm, alright, Senior Brother Gu, please be careful.” Qin Fei'er paused before replying.

Although she was confident she could handle the dangers, Gu Chen was stronger than her and was acting out of good intentions, so she couldn't very well refuse.

“Mhm.”

Gu Chen nodded and rushed toward the Seven-Colored Lotuses.

The best way to draw out the Guardian Spirit Beast was to steal the Spirit Herb.

As long as it felt its treasure was about to be taken, it definitely wouldn't hide anymore.

“Croak!”

Just as Gu Chen was about to grab the Seven-Colored Lotus.

A Peak Heaven Soul Great Toad, covered in fleshy bumps, leaped out of the water.

Its eyes flashed with anger.

A massive circular burst of Spiritual Energy shot out from its mouth, attacking Gu Chen.

It vowed to smash this thief who stole its treasure into minced meat.

“Heh, I wondered what it was. Turns out it's just a Peak Heaven Soul Great Toad.”

Gu Chen looked calm and swung a Void Sword Qi towards the Great Toad.

He had been worried that the Guardian Spirit Beast might be at the Human Venerable level.

He didn't expect it to be Peak Heaven Soul. In that case, why not just finish it off?

“Pfft!”

With just one exchange.

The Great Toad, which had just been furious, lay dead on the spot, unable to rest in peace.

After dealing with the Great Toad.

Gu Chen casually collected the Seven-Colored Lotus, then returned to Qin Fei'er and the others.

“Here, Junior Sister Qin, your Seven-Colored Lotus.” Gu Chen handed the Seven-Colored Lotus to Qin Fei'er.

“No, Senior Brother Gu, you collected this, so you should keep it.” Qin Fei'er hesitated before refusing.

She hadn't exerted any effort during the process of collecting the Seven-Colored Lotus.

Now that Gu Chen was giving her all of the Seven-Colored Lotuses, how could she accept them?

“It's fine, Junior Sister Qin. You were the one who spotted the Seven-Colored Lotus first, so it should rightfully be yours.” Gu Chen looked sincere.

He had only acted originally because he was worried the Guardian Beast's level might be too high and injure Qin Fei'er.

Since he had easily dealt with the situation and collected the Seven-Colored Lotuses along the way, he should give them all to Qin Fei'er.

“How about this, Senior Brother Gu, we split it half and half?”

Seeing that Gu Chen insisted on giving her all the Seven-Colored Lotuses, Qin Fei'er still felt awkward, so she came up with this mutually beneficial solution.

One person provided the eyes, and the other provided the effort.

Splitting it evenly now was reasonable and fair.

“This...” Now it was Gu Chen's turn to hesitate.

His original intention was simply to protect Qin Fei'er.

But now he was taking half of Qin Fei'er's Spirit Herbs.

People who didn't know him might think he was only after the Spirit Herbs.

“Alright, why are you two talking so much just to split some Spirit Herbs? You two take half each. I've made the decision for you, so just take them.”

At this moment, Mu Xueqing saw their predicament and quickly stepped in to mediate.

She divided the Seven-Colored Lotuses into two portions and placed them into Qin Fei'er's and Gu Chen's hands.

None of them needed pills to break through to the Human Venerable stage.

The only use for the Seven-Colored Lotus was to take it back for their respective families.

And her Imperial Father was a Peak Heavenly Venerable.

Her family definitely wouldn't need these things.

Night Owl was even more unnecessary to mention.

He was a loner and certainly didn't need these low-level Spirit Herbs.

Therefore, they had already agreed.

All the Spirit Herbs harvested from this Secret Realm would be given to Gu Chen and Qin Fei'er to take back and supplement their household expenses.

“Alright, then we'll listen to Junior Sister Mu.” Gu Chen somewhat awkwardly put away his Seven-Colored Lotuses.

Qin Fei'er also put the Seven-Colored Lotuses into her Storage Ring.

Just as the group finished dealing with the distribution issue.

Over a dozen Peak Heaven Soul Yuntian Sect disciples descended from the sky.

They surrounded the group.

Among them, a male disciple who was the leader.

He glanced at the Seven-Colored Lotus, of which only the roots remained in the center of the pond.

Then he turned his head and viciously said to Gu Chen and his companions, “You stinking rogue cultivators, how dare you steal the treasure discovered by my Yuntian Sect? Hand it over immediately, or we'll ensure you die without a complete corpse.”

“That's right, our Yuntian Sect discovered this pond a hundred years ago. How dare you steal from it? You deserve death!”

“Senior Brother Wu, stop wasting words on these villains! Quickly subdue them and reclaim our sect's treasure.”

The other Yuntian Sect disciples also chimed in with unfriendly expressions.

Some even cast their eyes upon Mu Xueqing and Qin Fei'er, imagining the scene after subduing Gu Chen and his companions.

“Hiss, these people actually found the Seven-Colored Lotus. No wonder the Yuntian Sect people are trying to snatch it.”

“Exactly, the Seven-Colored Lotus is the main ingredient for refining pills that break through to Human Venerable. Which Peak Heaven Soul wouldn't be tempted?”

“Alas, they're unlucky. Rogue cultivators like us cannot contend against the Yuntian Sect.”

The shouts of the Yuntian Sect disciples.

Immediately attracted the rogue cultivators searching for treasure nearby.

They were all hiding to the side, cautiously observing the situation.

“Hmph, that's utter bullshit! This Seven-Colored Lotus was clearly ownerless. How did it become the property of your Yuntian Sect? Do you have no shame?” Gu Chen wasn't flustered at all by being surrounded; instead, he cursed loudly.

“Yeah, you discovered it a hundred years ago? If I had discovered your mother a hundred years ago, could I take her to a brothel to be a prostitute now?” Qin Fei'er also cursed alongside him.

Night Owl and the other person were much quieter and didn't curse out loud.

However, a trace of mockery appeared at the corners of both their mouths.

Especially Night Owl.

After the mocking expression, an excited smile appeared.

“What's going on? These two aren't crazy, are they? They clearly know the Yuntian Sect wants to steal their treasure, yet they're opening their mouths to provoke them.”

“At a time like this, they should obediently hand over the items and beg for mercy to have a sliver of a chance to live.”

“Alas, these few are still too young and don't understand the art of compromise.”

The rogue cultivators watching nearby.

Seeing that Gu Chen and his companions not only refused to yield but also started swearing loudly.

They all looked regretful.

They felt as if they could already see the scene of Gu Chen and his companions being beaten to death.