The man wearing the headband was named Qi Tianyun, who hailed from an ancient family of martial cultivators.
As for the old ghost beside him, twenty years ago, he was being pursued by enemies, on the verge of death, when he was saved by the head of the Qi family.
From then on, to repay the life-saving grace, and being alone in the world, the old ghost simply joined the Qi family.
However, due to the old ghost's extraordinary skills, everyone in the Qi family respected him greatly, and no one dared to treat him as a subordinate.
After Qi Tianyun was born, the old ghost favored him greatly, and the head of the Qi family arranged for the old ghost to become his teacher.
Over the years, the old ghost had taught Qi Tianyun everything he knew. By rights, Qi Tianyun should have called the old ghost master.
But the old ghost felt that his own strength was far inferior to that of the Qi family's head, and furthermore, Qi Tianyun was the most outstanding among the younger generation of the Qi family, so he absolutely refused to let Qi Tianyun address him as master.
Yet, even so, Qi Tianyun held the old ghost in high regard.
Their current visit was precisely to obtain the Seven Star Lotus.
The head of the Qi family had fallen gravely ill, and the Seven Star Lotus was required as the primary ingredient to refine a life-saving medicine.
At this very moment, witnessing the Seven Star Lotus being taken, both Qi Tianyun and the old ghost were filled with immense anger and shock.
The anger stemmed from the fact that the Seven Star Lotus was vital to the health of the Qi family head, while their shock arose from the knowledge that the guardian beast of the Seven Star Lotus was a giant python over a hundred years old. Even the entire Qi family combined would not be its match.
Yet now, the giant python had been killed. This truly left Qi Tianyun and the old ghost in a state of extreme disbelief.
"Old Ghost, didn't you say that the guardian beast here was incredibly powerful? Who in the entire southwestern region had the strength to kill it?"
In his shock, Qi Tianyun spoke first.
Qi Tianyun had once heard the old ghost describe the terrifying might of this giant python.
This giant python had lived for a full one hundred and fifty years, and its strength had reached the point of imminent transformation.
With one more step, it would gain sentience and be considered a true demonic beast.
The reason the old ghost had encountered this giant python was by chance.
He, along with a group of martial cultivators, had accidentally stumbled into this cave and discovered the Seven Star Lotus.
At that time, the Seven Star Lotus had only five leaves and was still some time away from its true maturity.
However, even so, a five-leaf Seven Star Lotus was extremely precious.
But just as the old ghost and his companions were about to step forward to pluck it, the giant python in the pool emerged.
What followed was a massacre.
All the martial cultivators with the old ghost were killed by the giant python. The old ghost was also severely injured, barely escaping the place.
It was precisely because of this severe injury that even after recovering, the old ghost's strength could never return to its former peak. This led to him being pursued by enemies later, and being saved by the head of the Qi family.
These were all past events, but when the old ghost was nearly killed by the giant python, its strength was already on the verge of transformation.
Later, after the old ghost fled the cave, he concluded that the giant python's presence in the cave was likely to await the maturity of the Seven Star Lotus, intending to devour it and further advance its own strength.
But for some unknown reason, the powerful giant python had been killed.
The old ghost slowly shook his head, "As far as I know, no one in the entire southwestern region is a match for this giant python if fighting alone. However, if multiple people were to join forces to attack it, there shouldn't be no casualties."
After discovering the giant python's demise, the old ghost was indeed very shocked.
But after his shock, he quickly surveyed the situation within the cave.
Although the cave was in disarray, with water splashed everywhere, apart from that, the old ghost found no excessive signs of a struggle.
Moreover, based on his judgment, the number of people who fought the giant python was small, and none of them were injured.
This discovery sent a wave of profound shock through his heart.
When did such a master emerge in the southwestern region, capable of killing a giant python on the verge of transformation?
For a moment, the two fell silent again.
"Old Ghost, if we can't bring back the Seven Star Lotus this time, my grandfather's illness..."
Qi Tianyun and the old ghost had taken a significant risk in coming to retrieve the Seven Star Lotus.
However, the head of the Qi family was critically ill, and if no cure was found soon, he wouldn't live much longer.
Once the Qi family's most powerful patriarch perished, the Qi family would soon be annexed, and its members would either become prisoners or face certain death.
It was precisely for this reason that Qi Tianyun had disregarded all opposition and accompanied the old ghost to retrieve the Seven Star Lotus.
"I apologize, Young Master. I didn't anticipate that the giant python would be killed beforehand."
The old ghost was well aware of Qi Tianyun's concerns, but who could have foreseen that the fearsome giant python would be slain?
Speaking of which, this could not be blamed on the old ghost.
Qi Tianyun naturally understood this as well, and he sighed deeply, "Alas, perhaps fate decrees the demise of my Qi family. After returning, I will immediately discuss with my grandfather to have the family members disperse and evacuate..."
"Young Master! Young Master! The Old Master's illness can be cured!"
Just as Qi Tianyun's face was filled with dejection, the old ghost beside him suddenly shouted with excitement.
When Qi Tianyun turned his gaze towards the old ghost, he saw him squatting beside the corpse of the slain giant python.
"Old Ghost, what is this thing?"
As Qi Tianyun walked over, he saw the old ghost forcefully prying open the giant python's body with both hands, and retrieving something bloody and mangled from the head of the snake.
"Haha," the old ghost laughed heartily twice. "Young Master, didn't I tell you earlier that this giant python was on the verge of advancing and transforming? This is a cultivated inner core, or to be more precise, it should be called a pseudo-core."
"Pseudo-core?"
Qi Tianyun showed a hint of confusion. "Didn't you say this giant python hadn't successfully advanced yet? How could it have an inner core? And shouldn't the inner core be in its abdomen, not in its head?"
Seeing Qi Tianyun's puzzled expression, the old ghost immediately clarified his doubts.
"Actually, I heard from my master before that some exotic beasts could cultivate pseudo-cores under opportune circumstances. Although this pseudo-core is not a true inner core, it possesses thirty to forty percent of the power of an inner core. I was just trying my luck, and I never expected to actually find one!"
The old ghost exclaimed with obvious excitement.
Although the old ghost was brimming with excitement, this thing was not the Seven Star Lotus, and his grandfather's illness remained unresolved. Thus, Qi Tianyun merely showed a moment of surprise, his expression remaining somber.
"Young Master, although this giant python's pseudo-core is not as miraculous as the Seven Star Lotus, with this item, combined with some other medicinal herbs, I believe that even if it cannot completely cure the Old Master's illness, it can restore seven to eight tenths of his peak strength. This is already a blessing in disguise."
"Furthermore, although I made thorough preparations and purchased special realgar powder at a great cost, it's still uncertain whether it would be as effective as the legends claim against this giant python."
"In short, the fact that we obtained the giant python's pseudo-core effortlessly this time is already excellent."
The old ghost explained the reason for his previous excitement.
After hearing him speak, a look of relief finally appeared on Qi Tianyun's face.