Mortal Bones

"Bang, bang, bang!"

Lingyue did not waste any more words. With each powerful punch, she struck the Peacock King again and again, pushing it to the brink of death.

It wasn't that Lingyue had any sadistic tendencies, but rather that Xu Taiping's body was simply too weak, and his true essence was far too scarce. He could barely sustain the higher-level spells Lingyue was capable of, so she had to resort to slowly exhausting the Peacock King with Thousandfold Strength.

"Who dares to offend my Qingxuan!"

At that moment, a thunderous roar echoed from the sky, and Xu Taiping looked up to see a massive dragon wrapped in lightning tearing through the air from the west.

"Could that be the Black Dragon Elder's true form?"

Xu Taiping thought in shock.

"I was waiting for you, little mudfish."

Lingyue seemed to have anticipated the Black Dragon Elder's arrival. With a cold smirk, she delivered another punch to the Peacock King, who was already on its last breath.

"Bold!"

The Black Dragon Elder roared in fury and suddenly shot through the clouds. In the blink of an eye, he was hovering over Danxia Plain. He opened his enormous mouth and unleashed a blast of black flame-like dragon breath toward Xu Taiping.

"Boom!"

The dragon breath, like a fiery pillar, shot straight toward the ground.

Lingyue, however, only raised Xu Taiping's arm and extended three fingers. She slashed down, shouting, "Split the Sea!"

As her voice fell, a mighty energy blade flew out from the Cangluan Ring, resembling a massive sword that seemed to span the entire Windy Valley. With terrifying power, it clashed directly with the dragon breath.

"Boom!"

The dragon breath was instantly shattered by the energy blade, while the Black Dragon Elder's body was forced to retreat thousands of feet in the air after catching the sword with his claws. One of his formidable dragon claws was even sliced off by the energy blade.

"So this is the true power of the Cangluan Ring?"

Xu Taiping stared in awe.

"Fully unleashing the power of a treasure requires not only sufficient true essence but also a strong soul force. My soul essence is much more powerful than yours, so naturally, the strength is greater," Lingyue explained as she swiftly flew toward Guanzhong Cliff, her voice calm yet filled with a hint of excitement.

"Is that all?"

Xu Taiping nodded, but a bitter smile appeared on his face.

The Cangluan Ring in his hands was completely different from the one in Lingyue's hands.

"Ask about the mother and son, the three fingers earlier could only hold off the Black Dragon Elder for a moment. Your true essence is now depleted, and you can no longer withstand a blow from him. Also, my time controlling your body is almost up," Lingyue's voice came again, soft but urgent.

"Alright, I'll check on them."

Xu Taiping took control of his body again and landed in front of the Night Sparrow's body.

However, when he landed, he saw that the Night Sparrow's head was still hanging on the ground, with no breath left in her body. Bai Yu stood motionless next to her head.

"Bai Yu, we must leave."

Xu Taiping called to Bai Yu.

He could already guess what had happened.

"Xu Taiping."

Bai Yu suddenly turned and spoke, her eyes brimming with tears. "My mother… she's gone."

Xu Taiping's heart tightened.

But immediately, his expression grew resolute. He grabbed Bai Yu in his arms and turned to Lingyue, saying,

"Sister, let's go."

Lingyue once again took control of Xu Taiping's body, and in an instant, their figures vanished from Danxia Plain.

"Seal the mountain! Seal the mountain! Don't let him escape!"

The Black Dragon Elder's furious roar reverberated through the entire Windy Valley.

But by then, Xu Taiping had already entered the secret passage with Bai Yu.

...

That night.

Rainstorm raged across the land.

Countless spirit beasts and cultivators were dispatched to search for the fugitive.

They quickly arrived at Qingzhu Residence, but Xu Taiping had already changed clothes and hidden the Qinghulu, leaving them with nothing.

...

"Creak."

After sending away another batch of cultivators, Xu Taiping closed the gate and returned to his bedroom.

"Xu Taiping, my mother wanted me to give you something."

From within the Qinghulu, Bai Yu's weak voice reached Xu Taiping's mind.

"What is it?"

Xu Taiping opened the Qinghulu and released Bai Yu.

"My mother said… your skills and spells don't seem like those of a cultivator from this continent. Perhaps this half of a teleportation token from another continent will be useful to you."

Bai Yu walked out of the Qinghulu, holding a broken golden token in her mouth.

"Teleportation token?"

Xu Taiping took the token, confused. The strange symbols and characters etched on it didn't resemble anything from this continent.

"Huh? This is a Teleportation Token leading to Youyun Continent?"

Just as Xu Taiping was wondering what it was, Lingyue's voice suddenly rang out in his mind.

"What's a Teleportation Token?"

Xu Taiping asked mentally.

"A Teleportation Token is a key to activate an ancient teleportation array. It allows you to instantly travel to another cultivation continent. For your cultivation world, this is a priceless treasure," Lingyue's voice became excited.

"Youyun Continent… what kind of place is that?"

Xu Taiping asked, curious.