Ye Ziling's body had recovered somewhat, and she was slowly recalling things about the Heavenly Realm.
After Ye Ziling's primordial spirit destroyed the Sun and Moon Divine Lamp, the lamp did not shatter completely but broke into four fragments. She had managed to grab one of the fragments when the power surged and casually tossed it into her mustard seed bag for future use.
With the destruction of the Sun and Moon Divine Lamp, the four heavenly pillars supporting the Heavenly Realm had collapsed. The remaining four large cavities had since been repaired into four sky-reaching paths, bridging the Human Realm and the Divine Realm. This was why she could see humans, beasts, and gods coexisting in the same domain.
The person just now had actually known that she carried the Sun and Moon Divine Lamp in her bag and had managed to take it away smoothly. It seemed he had come prepared.
"Run! The Taotie has escaped! Everyone, flee for your lives!"
A panicked shout interrupted Ye Ziling's thoughts. The crowd scattered like startled birds, dispersing from the center. The shopkeepers, clutching their money, scrambled away in a panic, while immortals, carrying the small beasts in their cages, fled in haste. The street had already descended into utter chaos.
The Taotie, one of the Four Fierce Beasts of antiquity, possessed extreme aggression. Ordinary minor immortals could not control such a fierce beast, let alone extract its inner core. High-ranking immortals enjoyed their leisure in the Heavenly Realm, while only a few cast-off fallen immortals and minor immortals deigned to live in the mortal world. Who among them could possibly contend with an ancient fierce beast like the Taotie?
Ye Ziling frowned, a sense of foreboding creeping in.
If her primordial spirit were still intact, the Taotie coming after her would only serve as a tonic. But now, in her mortal form, a single claw from that monster could spell her doom. It was uncertain who would become the tonic.
The street was now completely deserted. She had thought she was escaping fast enough, but the Taotie seemed to be under someone's control. No matter how many detours she took through the streets, it remained stubbornly at her heels, impossible to shake off.
She turned back and stopped.
She saw the colossal creature charging forward, leaving a trail of destruction in its wake. The once bustling street was now devoid of anyone but herself.
As the behemoth, resembling a pig and a tiger, lunged at her like a wild, untamed horse, Ye Ziling flipped through the air, evading its attack.
The giant beast missed its target and plunged headfirst into the city gate tower.
Dust billowed and thunderous roars erupted as the archway collapsed.
Before the dust had settled, the ferocious beast locked onto her again, its eyes glowing red as it continued to charge, exhibiting the tenacity of a relentless fighter.
Truly reckless.
Ye Ziling observed the beast's expression and felt that something was amiss. She sniffed the air on her shoulder and realized she had been dusted with a powder. This Taotie was attacking her because it could smell the powder.
Ye Ziling raised an eyebrow, flicked her toe to pick up a branch from the ground, and advanced towards the ferocious beast. The branch blade, imbued with a killing aura, struck towards the monster's vital point. However, for the Taotie, it was like a tickle, devoid of any offensive power.
Ye Ziling's wrist moved swiftly, concentrating her inner energy to launch a surprise attack at the beast's flank, diverting its attention. In the next instant, she struck its crown with her palm.
The Taotie was hit, but only sustained minor injuries. Realizing it had been toyed with, it became enraged, opening its massive maw and revealing its sharp teeth as it lunged to tear at the person before it.
If the celestial beings knew that the divine maiden Tu Yao was being bullied to such an extent by a mere Taotie, they would surely burst into laughter.
With the sharp claws mere feet away from her, Ye Ziling quickly bent down to dodge, picked up a sharp wooden stick from the ground, and prepared to stab fiercely at the monster's crown.
A free inner core was too good to pass up.
In the center of the alleyway, a man dressed in dark robes leaned lazily to the side, watching the spectacle.
[System: Lord Ling Xi, it's your cue. If you don't act soon, the divine beast I gave you will be off on a journey to the West.]
"You can't catch a beauty without letting go of a divine beast."
The man's thin lips parted, and with a slight smile, he vanished from the alleyway with a whoosh.
A cold glint flashed before Ye Ziling's eyes, and the wooden stick in her hand fell to the ground.
?
Ye Ziling's eyes sharpened, and she looked up to see a man in dark robes standing before her, sword in hand. He was tall and elegant, his dark robes fluttering, exuding an inexplicable mystical aura.
Beneath his seemingly affectionate eyes, a single tear mole was dotted. His sword-like brows were slightly arched, giving him a bewitching and disdainful look, making him appear incredibly alluring.
Ye Ziling glanced over him and recognized him as the person who had taken the Sun and Moon Divine Lamp earlier.
The man gracefully removed his bamboo hat, revealing his handsome features. A proud demeanor emanated from his brow, and his peach blossom eyes were slightly upturned, filled with a hint of amusement. The word "enchanting" was the most fitting description.
Although Emperor Qingbai's actions were questionable, he was still considered the most handsome man in the Heavenly Realm. Compared to this mortal, he seemed to pale significantly.
Ye Ziling turned to evade the Taotie and struck out at the man with the faint celestial power she possessed. However, he clasped her fingers, his slender, bony fingertips entwining and caressing her hand like venomous snakes. With a sudden force, he flipped her entire body.
Her celestial power was ineffective against him? Was it because it was too weak?
A flicker of surprise flashed in Ye Ziling's eyes. She used his momentum to reverse her position, tracing an arc in mid-air before landing steadily on the ground.
[System: Brother Ling, you've got some skills.]
[Ling Xi: Stand down.]
[System: ...]
[System: You continue with the conquest. I'll take my leave.]
At this moment, Ye Ziling's hands were still tightly held. Due to their close proximity, the faint scent of balloon flower on her person quickly spread, and the man's lips curved into a smile.
In the midst of the intimate moment, a voice echoed in the man's mind again.
[System: Lord Ling Xi, embrace her waist! Embrace her waist! Do you know how to flirt?]
Ling Xi found the incessant chatter annoying.
[Ling Xi: Do I need you to teach me?]
Seeing that the man had no intention of letting go, Ye Ziling was about to kick him in the abdomen. To her surprise, the man mimicked her previous move, using her momentum to reverse their positions and forcefully push her towards the Taotie's open maw.
As the great female lead was about to fall into the Taotie's mouth, the system held its breath.
This was a female lead with a naturally rebellious spirit, her heart sharper than a knife. If she held a grudge, it wouldn't be as simple as being killed.
[System: Master, you've played enough! Quickly pull her back!]
[Ling Xi: I have a sense of proportion.]
Although he had never been intimate with a woman before, many women had thrown themselves at him. Unfortunately, compliant prey was too boring; he didn't like them.
Ever since this neither-human-nor-demon-like beast had settled in his mind, he hadn't had a single peaceful day. It kept telling him to track people or act like a thief, and now it was telling him to flirt. He wondered what perverted things it would ask him to do next.
Fortunately, for every completed mission, he received corresponding rewards, so he wasn't at a loss.
Ye Ziling's face paled slightly. She twisted her body, narrowly dodging. Due to the inertia, she was still pulled forward by the immense force. As the beast's fanged mouth was about to reach her, she was about to adjust her direction when a flowing silk sash suddenly wrapped around her waist. With a twist, it carried her to another direction.
A warmth brushed past her waist, as if something were caressing it. Strangely, her body didn't resist at all; instead, it felt quite comfortable.
This was the first strange thing that had ever happened.
Her body would usually become agitated even if a man was a few feet away, as if resisting. But this man casually brushed her waist, and she found it quite comfortable.
Ye Ziling stumbled slightly, took a few steps back, and stood firm on the ground. She saw the enchanting face curve into a smile: "Your waist is quite slender."
Ye Ziling finally realized she had been flirted with. Her expression remained unperturbed, and she said faintly, "It must be beneath you to be a beast tamer."
In the previous exchange, Ye Ziling had figured out the man's identity. The sachet hanging from his waist was not for incense. Although he did carry a faint scent of cold white plum, the sachet actually contained a type of beast powder. As long as any ferocious beast smelled the powder, it would lose its mind and attack the person emitting the scent.
Although the man carried the scent of this powder, the ferocious beast did not attack him, which was highly suspicious.
Being able to tame a fierce beast like the Taotie and develop such beast powder could only mean one identity: a beast tamer.
The Heavenly Realm once had beast tamers, but they could only tame mounts or low-level divine beasts. Fierce beasts like the Taotie could not be tamed at all, let alone the development of beast taming powder.
Not only could the man tame the Taotie, but he could also develop beast powder, making him an advanced beast tamer without a doubt.
The enchanting man's eyes twinkled with amusement, his dark pupils rippling, "You flatter me."
[System: Lord Ling, you're doing quite well. Keep up the cheeky behavior, and she'll remember you.]
[Ling Xi: ?]
[System: Conquering a rare specimen like this isn't easy. You have to go against the grain, steal what she values most, and leave an impression!]
[Ling Xi: So, all this you've asked me to do was just to get her attention?]
He had thought that flirting could directly grant him an immortal position.
[System: Otherwise?]
[Ling Xi: ...]
[System: As long as you conquer her, the celestial positions above will be available for your consideration. You can attain them without the celestial examination.]
[Ling Xi: Any celestial position I choose?]
[System: Yes.]
[Ling Xi: I want to be the Heavenly Emperor.]
[System: No signal...]
[Loading...]
[Loading failed...]
Ling Xi: "..."
He would never be able to wake up a beast pretending to have no signal.
Ye Ziling narrowed her eyes and kicked towards the man's abdomen, but he caught her ankle with one hand and flipped her to the ground, then quickly created distance between them.
The sachet and jade pendant on his waist spun with his robes, his dark, lustrous hair scattering like a waterfall. A breeze carrying the faint scent of white plum wafted towards her.
After a moment, the man landed steadily, his arms casually crossed, appraising her with a half-smile.
Crystal clear, jade-like face, truly a rare specimen.
"Hand over the item, and I'll leave you with a whole corpse." The perfect specimen before her parted her lips, her expression colder than ice, her tone capable of freezing someone to death.
Ye Ziling did not wish to speak further with this man. Her primordial spirit was shattered, and she was injured. She had no time to engage with him.
"May I ask what item of yours I have taken?" Ling Xi asked with an air of nonchalance, completely disregarding her threat.
The system, however, grew anxious.
[System: Give it to her! Hurry and give her the item! Just doing these things to get her attention is enough!]
The noisy chatter echoed in his mind once more. Ling Xi rubbed his forehead and decided to mentally recite a cultivation technique to forcefully shut off the voice in his mind.
[Ding—Host requests shutdown.]
[System: Rejected.]
[Ding—Rejection invalid. Shutting down...]
[System: Ling Xi! You will regret this! You will...] Before he could finish speaking, his mind instantly became clear. Ling Xi gasped, feeling a secret sense of exhilaration.
It felt good to not be accused.
"Made of sackcloth? So capable of holding so much." Ye Ziling raised an eyebrow, her picturesque eyes filled with disdain, her tone laced with mockery.
Ling Xi paused slightly, then his lips curved into a smile. He decided to be upfront: "Oh, this?" He then took out a piece of shattered glazed glass and casually examined it in his hand, a ripple of interest in his eyes. "I'm rather curious, where did you obtain this item?"
He was, after all, a top-ranking beast tamer; how could he not recognize a treasure of the Heavenly Realm?
Alas, he wasn't particularly interested in the title of Beast Tamer. Apart from earning a bit more silver than in the mortal world, it offered no significant difference. He found the mortal realm to be more carefree and unrestrained.
Furthermore, he had no desire to be a beast tamer. In his opinion, it was merely a useless talent.
Legend had it that the Sun and Moon Divine Lamp could destroy the heavens from above and the earth from below. Even though it had been shattered by the primordial spirit of the divine maiden Tu Yao ten years ago, its power still remained. As long as its fragments were found and reassembled, the four heavenly pillars could be repaired, and vitality could be restored.
Not only was this item immensely powerful, but rumor had it that possessing even a single fragment could be used to concoct elixirs for immortality, which were far better than those mere pills.
The two stared at each other, and the air grew thick with tension.
Seeing that the man had no intention of returning it, Ye Ziling pushed off the ground, employing the Nine Revolutions Mysterious Technique, and effortlessly snatched the glazed glass from his hand.
Ling Xi's expression remained impassive, without even a hint of surprise. It was clear he had deliberately let her take it.
He didn't want things that everyone else coveted.
This item was both rare and a harbinger of disaster; he found it inauspicious.
"Who is causing trouble in the street? Come out and accept your punishment at once!" a command boomed from the heavens. Hundreds of heavenly soldiers arrived in soaring ships, completely surrounding the two.