Chapter 1194: Returning Home
Chapter 1194: Returning Home
While the Astral Sage College descended into a sea of cheers and happiness due to Li Luo's surprising news, Li Luo himself was on the way back to the Bloodline of Heavenly Emperor Li. His flying ship cruised through the cloud layers, swiftly speeding into the distance.
Li Luo was sitting cross-legged on the ship with Jiang Qing'e and Li Hongyou beside him. Escorting them were two Dukes from the Bloodline of Heavenly Emperor Li as well.
The two guards couldn't help but cast their gazes upon Jiang Qing'e and Li Hongyou occasionally, with a hint of amazement in their eyes.
They knew that Li Luo had come to the Heavenly Origin Ancient College alone; how had he managed to pick up two exceptional beauties on the way back?
The mysterious, golden-eyed maiden was especially shocking. She had an exquisite countenance and gave off a vague sense of oppressive pressure. The two of them were also Dukes and thus naturally knew the reason behind that.
This young lady was at the Duke Stage.
Just how talented was she to do so at such a young age? If she was placed in the Bloodline of Heavenly Emperor Li, she would definitely have suppressed an entire generation of geniuses.
So just how had the Third Young Master of the Dragon Fang Lineage managed to snare such a wonderful beauty?
Was it because of his good looks? Thinking back, it seemed as though the Green Nether Hall’s Hall Master Li Taixuan had done something similar in the past.
That said, Li Luo had clearly outperformed his predecessor by bringing back two instead of one!
On the flying ship, Li Luo was able to sense that the two bodyguards were stealthily taking glances at them. However, he was too lazy to explain the situation. Instead, he took out the quasi ninth-grade spirit liquid and purifying light and gave it to Li Hongyou.
"Senior Sister Hongyou, this is a quasi ninth-grade purifying light, known as a White Barrier Purifying Light. You previously mentioned that your resonance was on the brink of evolution and needed the right stimulus to do so. Why don't you try using this?"
Li Hongyou stared at the glass bottle before her in a daze. It was covered in complicated runes and she could feel a warm radiance coming from within, causing her own resonance to cry out for it.
A quasi ninth-grade spirit liquid and purifying light!
Such a high-grade object was something she could only dream about as she was unable to afford it.
A ninth-grade one, even though it was a quasi ninth-grade, was more valuable than most people could imagine.
It was worth no less than a triple violet-eye treasured artifact.
Thus, she was a little dumbfounded when faced with this exorbitantly generous gift. She even glanced at Jiang Qing'e momentarily. Was it even appropriate for Li Luo to give out such a gift before his fiancee?
Noticing her gaze, Jiang Qing'e smiled slightly. "Just accept it. Your Crimson Heart Vermilion Fruit resonance is special. If it can reach the lower ninth-grade, it will be of great aid to Li Luo in the future."
The value of the purifying light was immense, but Jiang Qing'e did not need it. Her resonances were already higher than the quasi ninth-grade by a mile.
It was only after hearing those words that Li Hongyou stretched her hand out to receive the glass bottle with a beaming smile. "Then I have to thank you, Junior Li Luo, for your generosity. If you have any requests for me in future, don't hesitate to ask."
She was naturally moved by this. No one could resist the temptation to evolve their own resonance.
"We are family, so there is no need to be polite." Li Luo grinned.
His trip to the Heavenly Origin Ancient College had netted bountiful rewards. He had also obtained a high-grade Tree of Resonant Power seedling for the Astral Sage College and an extra one for his Divine Cultivation Serum.
However, he had to return to the Dragon's Fang Lineage to complete it. It was a sacred object, so who knew what sort of disturbances would occur if he pulled it out? Attracting the covetous eyes of others was only asking for trouble, and with Li Jingzhe sitting in charge back at home, Li Luo was unafraid of any hungry ghosts that sought to steal his items.
"After I refine the Divine Cultivation Serum, I can raise my waterlight resonance to the lower ninth-grade. At that point in time, I will truly have a ninth-grade resonance! If I add that onto my True Dragon Pill, I will have two ninth-grade resonances whenever I go all-out," Li Luo thought to himself.
He could feel a burning desire in his heart. Dual ninth-grade resonant power was something he had been looking forward to for a long time.
Additionally, he had obtained the Purgatory's Crimson Dragon Banner, allowing him to finally have a chance at cultivating the complete Three Dragons’ Heavenly Banner Canon. This was also a Destiny-grade Duke Art!
However, there was a little problem. He would require a fire resonance to utilize it, and that was something that he lacked.
If he wanted to cultivate this art, he would have to find a treasure that could provide fire energy as a catalyst for it.
Perhaps not...
Li Luo's gaze flickered. Fire resonant power? It was not that he lacked it. He had the Acquired Resonance Flame after all.
Surely it would work as a stand-in for fire energy, right?
Would it be possible to cultivate the Purgatory's Crimson Dragon Banner with the Acquired Resonance Flame as the source?
He felt that it was worth a try. If it was truly possible, then the Acquired Resonance Flame was the most convenient way to do so, and it could even reap some unexpected benefits.
As Li Luo was deep in thought, Li Hongyou hurriedly made her way to a side chamber, intent on tempering her resonance with the quasi ninth-grade purifying light.
Jiang Qing'e, on the other hand, was holding a cup of tea with her slender fingers. "Now that you've entered the Greater Heavenly Resonance Tier, you should begin to prepare for the Duke Stage and start to look for a top-tier Foundational Spirit Treasure."
She seemed a little relieved as she said those words, mainly because Li Luo was not too far from breaking through.
Li Luo’s days were numbered, and she hadn’t forgotten. He only had five years to reach the Duke Stage when he had first started cultivating.
Based on her calculations, he had two years left. Li Luo grinned and nodded in agreement. He saw Jiang Qing'e's flickering gaze and asked, "What are you thinking about, Sister Qing'e?"
She shot him a look in response. "I was simply thinking... just how do you plan to introduce me?"
"Without a doubt, my fiancee!" Li Luo replied without hesitation.
A smile that was not a smile surfaced on Jiang Qing'e's porcelain like face. "Oh? Did you happen to forget one small thing? That we are no longer engaged?"
Li Luo looked like he had been struck by lightning. He had forgotten that he had returned the engagement contract to Jiang Qing'e when he had left the Xia Kingdom!
Thus, strictly speaking, they were more like siblings than an unwed couple!
In front of others, Jiang Qing'e would give Li Luo face and not talk about this. However, when it was just the two of them, she wouldn't mince words and would naturally remind him of this fact.
She supported her cheek with her hand on the table and she flashed the stupefied Li Luo a smile.
He had no idea that his stubborn determination to return the engagement contract would have such a result.
"I had reminded you in the past that the engagement contract would not be difficult to dissolve, but renewing it will not be easy," Jiang Qing'e unhurriedly continued.
These words were what she had told Li Luo when she had gone to Southwind Academy to pick him up in the carriage all those years ago.
However, Li Luo was brash and full of youthful spirit back then, completely unconcerned about this.
He paused for a while as he contemplated his next course of action. Immediately after, he gave the saddest expression possible. "Sister Qing'e! Don't mess with me any longer. Please return the engagement contract to meeeeeeeee!"
Jiang Qing'e grinned lightly. "How could it be so easy? If you want it, you have to wait till you reach the Duke Stage and we can fight. If you win, I'll naturally return it to you. Otherwise, you'll have to taste the bitter fruit that you sowed."
Although Li Luo was not far from the Duke Stage, Jiang Qing'e had decided to put some pressure on him to prevent him from slacking off, especially considering his time limit.
Li Luo was devastated. He had to enter the Duke Stage AND beat her? That was an impossibly difficult goal! This was as good as casually breaking off their engagement!
Looking at Li Luo's listless appearance, Jiang Qing'e said, "You don't have to worry. Even though we aren't engaged, you can still introduce me as such in the Dragon's Fang Lineage."
Li Luo gulped. There was no other choice. He would have to temporarily take on the position of her fiance in name only...
However, as they continued to chat casually, Li Luo could feel that Jiang Qing'e's mood seemed a little off, thus he directly broached the topic. "Sister Qing'e, is something wrong?"
Her face turned a little red, but she did not admit it. "The Dragon's Fang Lineage is the true hometown of Master and Mistress. There are also many relatives of yours."
Li Luo smiled. "There is no need to worry, they don't know how amazing you are. Once Grandpa sees you, he will definitely be exuberant."
"...Li Luo, I want to know exactly what happened to the Master and Mistress in the Heavenly Origin Divine Continent," Jiang Qing'e suddenly said.
Li Luo was a little startled by the question, but he quickly shared all that he knew about what had happened to Li Taixuan and Tan Tailan back then, including the enmity formed with the Bloodline of Heavenly Emperor Qing.
"Qin Lian is arrogant and uncultured!" When she heard of how rude Qin Lian was towards Tan Tailan, a hint of coldness could be seen in her eyes. The person she respected most was the Mistress, and she would not accept anyone disrespecting her.
Additionally, it was the Bloodline of Heavenly Emperor Qing that had forced the two of them to leave the Heavenly Origin Divine Continent with severe injuries.
Li Luo knew that Jiang Qing'e had taken note of Qin Lian. If they were to meet, the two would definitely erupt into battle. Either way, he didn't care—he didn't like her anyway.
Time passed by quickly as the flying boat shuttled across the skies. After a few days, they finally arrived at the Dragon's Fang Lineage.
It was also on this day that powerful undulations of energy were emitted from Li Hongyou as she sat in meditation. A dense fragrance wafted through the skies, permeating the air within a hundred meters.
Li Luo and Jiang Qing'e exchanged looks of delight.
Li Hongyou had successfully evolved her resonance.