489: Chapter 489 I've seen your portrait at my mother's place.

“Just now, I heard that you were fighting to Seal the Erosion Source Blood Tree for a reward?”

As soon as Ling Hao said this, An Ruosu and the others understood that this Senior did not know much about the affairs of Fusang Province.

Then he must at least be from outside Fusang Province...

An Ruosu nodded and replied,

“Yes, Senior might not know. The Golden Crow Holy Land collects these Erosion Source Blood Trees, and they can be used to exchange for resources. Those resources even include precious Heaven And Earth Treasures.”

“Golden Crow Holy Land?”

Ling Hao raised an eyebrow slightly. “Do you know what they do with these trees? Could there be some issue, like... colluding with the Niding Alliance?”

“That shouldn't be the case...”

Senior Sister Bai Zijin and the others hesitated, but their tone was clearly lacking confidence.

Ling Hao shook his head.

Some might suspect it, but with the benefits right there, what could they do? Wasn't it just like the situation before them now?

“How much do you know about the Niding Alliance? I heard that Fusang Province does not have the main root of the Fallen Immortal Ancient Banyan?”

“Yes, Senior.”

Senior Sister Bai Zijin chimed in, “According to legends, since ancient times, that main root was wiped out by the Fusang Supreme.”

“Then what about your main tripod—the xi tripod?”

“The xi tripod is in the Fusang Land of the Tanggu Kingdom, used to suppress Ancient Demons.”

“Are the sub-tripods there as well?”

An Ruosu and the others exchanged glances, showing hesitation, as if unsure whether they should continue.

Seeing this, Ling Hao said indifferently, “If you don't want to say, then forget it. I won't force you.”

An Ruosu exchanged a look with Senior Sister Bai Zijin and finally spoke up:

“The information we have here might not be entirely accurate... Of the eight sub-tripods, the li tripod is said to have gone missing with the destruction of the Linglong Blessed Land. As for the remaining ones, three are in the hands of the Golden Crow Holy Son, two are held by the Niding Alliance, and two are scattered outside, their whereabouts unknown.”

Ling Hao pressed further, asking if they knew the whereabouts of the two scattered sub-tripods.

All three shook their heads in unison.

“No idea at all?”

They shook their heads again.

But Ling Hao noticed that when An Ruosu shook her head, her eyelashes trembled slightly, as if she was hiding something.

He did not expose her, but merely looked at her for a long while before suddenly asking an unrelated question:

“Why are that Saint and Saintess so insolent toward you, the daughter of the Sect Master?”

Senior Sister Bai Zijin sighed and softly explained the situation of the Qingmu Cliff Sect.

And Ling Hao came to understand.

An Ruosu was the daughter of the Qingmu Cliff Sect Master.

Qingmu Cliff was divided internally into three factions: the Saintess faction was the strongest, the Grand Elder held the middle ground, and the Sect Master faction, controlled by An Ruosu's mother, was the weakest.

An Ruosu's talent was mediocre, possessing only a Dual Spiritual Root, and her cultivation progress was slow, leaving her in an awkward position within the Sect.

If not for her status as the daughter of the Sect Master protecting her, she probably wouldn't even be able to sustain her cultivation resources.

The main reason was actually that An Ruosu's mother had coupled with a Mortal without the Sect's consent and gave birth to a daughter with low talent, which was regarded as the 'shame of the Sect'.

After this round of questions and answers, Ling Hao understood most of the situation in Fusang Province and also learned some information that even Yu Zhaohua had not managed to gather.

Using his spiritual energy, he sent the apologetic gifts he had just collected from Junior Sister Tang Yuanxiang, Senior Brother Han Wuji, and the others, along with what Senior Sister Bai Zijin had given him, in front of the three women.

“These things are for you, consider them payment for the information just now. They are useless to me.”

An Ruosu, Senior Sister Bai Zijin, and Fang Qianyi waved their hands repeatedly, saying in panic, “Senior, since these have been given out, we cannot...”

Ling Hao didn't bother to waste words. With a push of his spiritual energy, all the items fell directly into their arms.

“Let's go.”

Ling Hao turned around, and Yu Lingshuang and Yue Xinlan also prepared to follow.

“Senior—please wait!”

An Ruosu suddenly called out to stop him.

Ling Hao turned back.

An Ruosu bit her lip and said to Senior Sister Bai Zijin and Fang Qianyi:

“Senior Sister Bai, Elder Fang, please go wait for me over there for a moment.”

Senior Sister Bai Zijin and Fang Qianyi exchanged a glance, their eyes darting back and forth between Ling Hao and An Ruosu. Though worried, they still complied and walked away.

The corner of Ling Hao's mouth curled up slightly as he looked at her with interest.

Once those two were far enough, An Ruosu took a deep breath and lowered her voice:

“Senior... you are Moon Shadow Sect Master, aren't you?”

“Oh?” A flash of surprise crossed Ling Hao's eyes.

“I... I have seen your portrait at my mother's place.”

An Ruosu's voice grew softer and softer. She had only suddenly remembered it at that very moment.

Ling Hao: ???

What was going on? Why would her mother have his portrait?

Yue Xinlan cast a strange look at Ling Hao.

Yu Lingshuang was first incredulous, and then her gaze turned to disdain as she sent a sound transmission:

‘Sect Master, you couldn't have... seduced a married woman, right?’

“Nonsense!”

Ling Hao retorted via sound transmission, his face turning dark. “I haven't even met her mother!”

Suppressing the absurdity in his heart, he asked An Ruosu:

“Why does your mother have my portrait?”

“I... I don't know either.” An Ruosu shook her head.

She paused, as if making up her mind, and spoke again:

“Actually... regarding those sub-tripods Senior asked about just now, my mother... seems to have one too.”

Ling Hao's gaze narrowed.

“But my mother told me never to tell anyone else.”

“I know what mother wants to do... She wants to use that tripod to exchange for the support of the Golden Crow Holy Son.”

Ling Hao stroked his chin.

“Then why are you telling me?”

“Because... the Golden Crow Holy Land might be in collusion with the Niding Alliance, and the Golden Crow Holy Son is not trustworthy either.”

An Ruosu looked up, a trace of earnestness in her eyes.

“Senior, I want to use this tripod to exchange for your protection once.”

Ling Hao looked at her, fell silent for a moment, and then nodded. “Very well.”

An Ruosu felt a wave of relief, and a bright smile blossomed on her face.

Ling Hao took out a cup-shaped Magic Treasure from his sleeve and handed it over:

“Since you know my identity, I will give this to you. This is the water from the Chaos Azure Lotus Pool. After soaking in it, it can improve the quality of your Spiritual Root.”

However, An Ruosu did not reach out to take it, but instead shook her head:

“Senior, my Spiritual Root... is actually not the biggest problem.”

It wasn't? With a thought, Ling Hao summoned the System to check her information—

[Name: An Ruosu]

[Age: 508]

[Spiritual Root: Earth and Wood Spiritual Roots, Earth-grade]

[Physique: Imbalanced Kurong Physique (Stagnant Spiritual Veins)]

[Cultivation: Fifth Level of Nascent Soul]

[Favorability: 80]

“I was originally only a Yellow-grade Spiritual Root,”

An Ruosu explained softly, “It was my mother who consumed countless Heaven And Earth Treasures to help me raise it to Earth-grade. But my real problem... is my Physique.”

“Imbalanced Kurong Physique.”

Ling Hao said indifferently.

“The wood and earth elemental spiritual energies cannot convert smoothly. Absorbing Spiritual Qi is extremely slow, and cultivating for a day is less effective than half an hour for an ordinary person. The amount of Spiritual Qi required for a Breakthrough is immense, and your Comprehension Ability is sluggish.”

An Ruosu abruptly raised her head, her eyes filled with shock:

“Senior, how did you know? Do... do you have a way to solve it?”

“I know, and I do have a way.”

Ling Hao nodded, but then changed his tone, “However...”

Hearing this, the light in An Ruosu's eyes dimmed.

Indeed, why would Senior help her for no reason? Besides, the price for such a method would probably be very high...