Chapter 642 - 260: The Woman (3)

As far as he knew, of the Celestial Treasure Upper Sect’s ten current True Disciples, only two were women: Huo Qiushui, ranked fifth, and Ruan Lingxiu, ranked ninth.

He had already met Ruan Lingxiu. As for Huo Qiushui, he had never seen her, but she was rumored to have a cold and aloof aura, which didn’t seem to perfectly match the woman before him.

’Who... who in the world is this woman?’

Chen Qing suppressed his confusion. ’She can enter and exit the Grotto Heaven freely and dares to venture into the core region. Her status must be anything but ordinary. It’s likely on par with a True Disciple, or perhaps... even more special.’

An unknown amount of time passed. The aura in the Grotto Heaven’s core region gradually calmed down, the raging storm clouds slowly dissipated, and the churning Primordial Qi settled.

Chen Qing stepped out from behind the ancient tree, his gaze flickering uncertainly as he looked toward the core region.

In his mind, the cluster of Purple Light, after a period of intense agitation, gradually returned to its former stillness.

’Could that disturbance have been related to the Purple Light in my mind?’

Chen Qing pondered this internally.

When the upheaval occurred in the core region, he had clearly felt the Purple Light in his mind become unusually active, almost as if it were about to burst out.

’Forget it. I’d better not dwell on it.’

Chen Qing suppressed his curiosity. ’My Cultivation is too low right now. Prying into this would be suicide. My priority is to use the Primordial Qi here to increase my strength as quickly as possible.’

He found a quiet corner and sat down cross-legged.

Casting aside distracting thoughts and Concentrating and Calming the Mind, he began to circulate the Primordial Five Elements True Astral Spell.

The moment he activated the Cultivation Technique, the incredibly dense Heaven and Earth Primordial Qi around him surged into his body like a hundred rivers flowing into the sea.

After a single Circulation, Chen Qing was stunned to find that the growth of his True Astral was far beyond what he achieved through normal hard work—the progress was astonishingly fast.

After an unknown amount of time, Chen Qing felt the Identity Token hanging at his waist grow slightly warm, a reminder that his Cultivation time limit was approaching.

He slowly Finished the Practice, exhaling a long, slow breath of turbid air. He felt his True Astral surge within him, more consolidated than before he entered by a significant margin. His vitality was also more vigorous and abundant, as if he had undergone a baptism.

’A single day of Cultivation here is worth more than half a month of hard work outside! And the Primordial Qi is so pure; its effect on strengthening my foundation is far beyond my imagination.’

Chen Qing marveled to himself. This Grotto Heaven Blessed Land truly lived up to its reputation.

If he could come here twice a month, it would greatly accelerate his progress toward the True Essence Realm.

Moreover, the core region seemed even more extraordinary. It was probably related to Cultivation in the True Essence Realm—a secret he couldn’t touch for now.

He lingered no longer and turned to step out of the Grotto Heaven’s entrance.

As Chen Qing emerged from the Grotto Heaven, the sunlight and gentle breeze of the outside world brought a slight sense of relief.

However, the scene before him made his heart clench.

At the Grotto Heaven’s entrance, besides Elder Xiang, who was still sitting in his bamboo chair, there were four or five other Elders with profound auras. Every one of them looked displeased, and the air was thick with suppressed anger.

"This is absurd! Someone must have broken the rules and trespassed into the inner region!"

A red-faced Elder, his beard and hair bristling with rage, growled furiously.

"Hmph, greedy, insatiable fool! It wouldn’t matter if they got themselves killed, but they nearly threw the entire Grotto Heaven’s Primordial Qi out of balance! My True Essence almost reversed its flow!"

Another Elder in a blue robe, his face ashen, chimed in. His voice was filled with lingering fear and indignation.

"I wonder which greedy maggot it was! If I find out, I’ll make sure they’re punished severely!"

....

One after another, the Elders cursed the culprit who had caused the disturbance.

Chen Qing’s gaze swept over them, his wariness deepening.

He spotted a familiar figure in the crowd—Luo Ziming of the Nine Heavens Lineage!

Luo Ziming wasn’t part of the shouting match. He stood slightly to the side, his brow tightly furrowed.

Not wanting to get involved, Chen Qing lowered his head and silently walked past the Elders, intending to leave this place of trouble as quickly as possible.

"Chen Qing."

However, a calm voice stopped him.

It was Elder Xiang, the Defender of the Grotto Heaven.

Chen Qing’s steps faltered and his heart tightened, but he kept his composure, turning to say respectfully, "Elder Xiang."

Elder Xiang looked at him and asked in a normal tone, "The Primordial Qi in the Grotto Heaven erupted just now. It was quite a commotion. You were cultivating in the outer area; you weren’t affected, were you?"

’Is that the new True Disciple from the True Martial Lineage!?’

The indignant, debating Elders, including Luo Ziming, all subconsciously focused their gazes on Chen Qing.

Chen Qing shook his head, his voice tinged with lingering fear as he replied, "Thank you for your concern, Elder Xiang. This disciple is unharmed. It’s just that the Primordial Qi suddenly went berserk, like a tidal wave. The pressure was immense. Even in the outer area, I was affected and had to stop my Cultivation to defend myself. It gave me quite a scare."

His words were a mix of truth and lies. He explained that he had been affected, which was reasonable, while positioning himself as an innocent disciple caught in the crossfire.

Hearing this, Elder Xiang nodded and didn’t ask any more questions. He just waved a hand. "Mm, as long as you’re all right. You may go."

"This disciple takes his leave." Chen Qing bowed again and turned to depart.

"Elder Xiang."

But at that moment, Luo Ziming’s voice rang out. He took a step forward. "I was wondering, when did Nephew Chen enter the Grotto Heaven to begin his Cultivation?"

Because of the disturbance, many people had come out early.

Elder Xiang glanced up at Luo Ziming, his expression unreadable. "This old man is only responsible for verifying identities and recording entries and exits. I don’t recall the specific time."

Luo Ziming was momentarily speechless, having been stonewalled by this polite but firm rejection.

He instantly realized his mistake. Elder Xiang, in his capacity as a Su Elder who guarded this place, had always been neutral and did not get involved in the disputes between the various lineages.

As an Elder of the Nine Heavens Lineage, publicly questioning the Cultivation details of a new True Disciple from the True Martial Lineage did indeed seem overly deliberate, even suspicious.

......