Shuang Qingqing had been silent all the way, contemplating whether to take a gamble and later privately seek out the Nascent Soul cultivator from "Gui Qu Lai Xi" to sound them out.
"Senior, since you also feel that this matter has a high chance of success, you still need to explain the general situation."
"Otherwise, even if others owe a favor, they won't agree rashly without knowing the reason. After all, they will be facing a Grand Cultivator who is capable of killing them."
After some thought, Li Yan made a request.
Shuang Qingqing's gaze focused, but she did not immediately respond to Li Yan's request, seemingly weighing the pros and cons.
"Are you planning to go directly to the Nascent Soul cultivators of those two clans later? From your previous account, you only guessed that there are three Nascent Soul cultivators among these seven clans, right?"
Li Yan nodded.
"Senior, I actually only know that there is a Nascent Soul in the Giant Wood Clan. I only just heard from you what their realm is."
"Therefore, I plan to return to the Giant Wood Clan later, and then have them pass on the message. Finally, we'll see if this matter can succeed!"
Li Yan, of course, did not know how to contact those two Nascent Soul cultivators. He didn't even know where those two clans were located.
"In that case, I plan to accompany you on a trip to the Giant Wood Clan. When we get there, I will explain the reason, and the other party will be clearer."
"In addition, you might only be able to see the Giant Wood Clan's Clan Head when you go."
"I want to personally meet the Nascent Soul cultivator of that Giant Wood Clan. Some things might be better if I explain them in person."
After some thought, Li Yan also felt that this was better.
This was a request for a Nascent Soul stage cultivator to act. Although he had a favor with the other party, the difference in status was too great. It was highly likely that Ting Bixiao would be the one to see him.
Li Yan was also decisive in his actions. Once a decision was made, the three of them immediately set off for the Giant Wood Clan.
...
"This child pays his respects to his mother!"
In a cave residence of the Black Demon Clan on the Forsaken Continent.
A tall young man bowed and paid his respects to a stunning woman in a black robe sitting above him.
The young man looked to be in his early twenties. Although his features were handsome, among the Demon Clan, where men were naturally handsome and women beautiful, he could only be considered ordinary.
He was over a zhang tall, with short, jet-black hair. He was clad in Crimson Essence Armor, which protected him securely. In his hand, he held an ink-black helmet with a red tassel, and on his feet, he wore Dragon-Pattern Cloud-Stepping War Boots.
The most surprising thing about the young man was his pair of eyes. His eyes were dark, abyssal, and profound. When one looked into them, they felt as if they were being drawn in.
The black-robed woman above had exquisite and beautiful features. Her figure was also very slender. The black robe was stretched taut over her devilish figure, rising and falling in waves.
The smooth robe was like a layer of tight silk wrapped around her body. Above her slender waist, her twin peaks stood proud and erect, while below her slender waist, it was as flat as a plain.
The black-robed woman leaned against the wide back of the chair, one hand supporting her forehead, her knees together. Her long legs were stretched out diagonally, half-bent and half-extended, making her look even taller and more alluring.
She looked to be only a few years older than the armored youth below. After a sweep of her phoenix-like eyes, the black-robed woman waved her hand.
"Sit down. After six years in seclusion, you have finally broken through to the peak of the Demonic Soldier realm. How confident are you in tomorrow's contest for the centurion position in the 'Demon Blade Battalion'?"
The "Demon Blade Battalion" that the black-robed woman mentioned was one of the elite armies in the Black Demon Clan's military. The "Demon Blade Battalion" was involved in everything from long-range raids on enemy armies to guarding the "God's Road."
The armored youth did not sit down but remained standing below, holding his helmet, his expression respectful.
He had put on his armor as soon as he came out of seclusion today, already prepared for battle. The cultivators of the Black Demon Clan were always prepared.
Moreover, his mother was the famous Demonic General level expert in the Black Demon Clan—Mu Guyue, a mid-level Demonic General with a considerable reputation in the Black Demon Clan.
"This child will give his all in every battle!"
The armored youth said softly, his voice calm and revealing an unparalleled placidity.
Mu Guyue nodded. No one knows a son better than his mother. She knew the armored youth's character too well.
It was hard to see the flamboyance and fierceness of the Demon Clan in him, nor did he have Mu Guyue's cold arrogance and reclusiveness. Instead, he was unusually calm and had a tenacious will when faced with matters.
After not seeing him for several years, looking at that increasingly mature face, Mu Guyue was in a trance for a moment. Certain parts of the armored youth's face overlapped with someone else's.
'His character is becoming more and more similar to that person's!'
Mu Guyue knew that this seemingly calm armored youth had a fierce undercurrent deep in his bones!
Because of her existence, some in the Demon Clan who suspected that the armored youth was not of the orthodox Black Demon Clan line had, at least in her presence, never dared to say anything.
The Demon Clan's character was inherently uninhibited. There were plenty of people who had children out of wedlock. At most, they would gossip about others behind their backs, but when it came to her, fearing her power, they only dared to mention it implicitly.
It was just that after the matter of Mu Guyue suddenly having a son came to light, it had left many talented young men in the clan heartbroken for a long time.
Although there were many female cultivators in the Demon Clan with looks like Mu Guyue's, it was extremely rare to find one with her level of cultivation and temperament.
Most demon women were fiery and bold. Only as their cultivation deepened would they become more indifferent to the seven emotions and six desires, and their entire temperament would slowly settle down.
But Mu Guyue had been like this since she was a child. This was her innate character, not changed by any cultivation method.
This kind of alternative existence might have made it extremely difficult for her to fit in as a child, but in adulthood, it made her stand out. She had always been pursued by many.
It was just that Mu Guyue was dedicated to the Dao and never talked about matters between men and women, which made many people only able to wait and wait for a good opportunity.
Unexpectedly, more than thirty years ago, Mu Guyue suddenly brought out a baby boy. At first, she did not explain the baby's origin, only constantly buying various herbs to refine medicinal liquids.
And she would place this baby in the medicinal liquid to soak daily to strengthen his bones. At first, others thought it was an abandoned baby she had picked up outside and planned to take as a disciple.
Mu Guyue had always been engrossed in cultivation alone. Even when her cultivation reached the Nascent Soul stage, she had still not taken a disciple. This time, a baby boy suddenly appeared by her side, which made many people very curious.
So, at a clan meeting, some Demonic Generals couldn't help but ask about this matter. They were just curious why Mu Guyue had suddenly changed her ways.
Since she could take one disciple, she could take others. Some of their own descendants were very suitable to inherit Mu Guyue's cultivation method.
But Mu Guyue's subsequent answer left the group of Demonic Generals looking at each other in dismay. She actually directly declared that this was her son, named "Mu Sha."
Then she fell silent, not saying who his Dao companion was at all. She refused all requests to take on disciples by shaking her head.
Mu Guyue's words left others half-believing and half-doubting. Many believed that she was still dedicated to the Dao, and the appearance of the baby boy was just an excuse to reject those who secretly admired her.
Especially as Mu Sha grew up, not only did his appearance not inherit Mu Guyue's peerless beauty, but in the Demon Clan, it could even be said to be extremely ordinary.
This further showed that Mu Sha was not of her bloodline as she claimed!
Mu Guyue gave no explanation for the gossip behind her back.
However, as Mu Sha grew up day by day, he eventually also began to doubt his own identity.
It was just that his mind was extremely heavy. He would never directly ask Mu Guyue, but no matter how deep a child's schemes were, how could they compare to an adult's?
After Mu Guyue saw through it, she didn't say much. Instead, she directly pulled the already sensible Mu Sha in front of her and took out a black talisman that emitted an extremely ethereal light!
This item could be found in the Demon Clan's markets. It was called a "Clan Talisman" and was often used to identify the authenticity of a family's bloodline.
This kind of talisman was very niche. Although its value was not very cheap, for cultivators, it was only a relatively small consumable item.
However, it was used quite a lot in some clans. When many clansmen who had been scattered outside returned, this talisman was usually used for testing.
Although the style of this kind of talisman varied after being refined by artifact refiners, the effect was largely the same.
Under Mu Sha's apprehensive gaze, Mu Guyue dripped a drop of blood from her fingertip onto the "Clan Talisman," and then pressed this talisman onto Mu Sha's glabella...
From that time on, a smile appeared on Mu Sha's face.
But as he grew up, some of his peers would still use this matter to mock him. Every time, Mu Sha would display the fierceness beneath his calm exterior.
His attacks were always aimed at least to cripple the other party, or even in a fatal manner.
Although this was very common in the bloodthirsty Black Demon Clan, it was still relatively rare at Mu Sha's age. Mu Guyue almost never interfered.
In any case, she felt that she herself had grown up step by step in this kind of bloodshed, and Mu Sha also needed to experience it, just with a different starting point.
However, she soon discovered a problem. Although Mu Sha's physique was considered strong, it was very thin compared to the other male demons of the same age.
But Mu Sha's muscles were very resilient, and his strength was surprisingly great.
At around the age of five, he could easily lift heavy objects two or three times his body weight without any sign of strain.
At first, Mu Guyue thought it was the effect of the many precious medicinal liquids she had spent to soak him in, and she was very satisfied with her decision back then.
Mu Guyue herself had never had such conditions as a child, nor had she ever taken any disciples, so she did not know how to specifically guide a disciple.
Her method of teaching Mu Sha, apart from forcibly instilling some cultivation methods and techniques, was to let him cultivate on his own.
At most, Mu Guyue would take the initiative to check his cultivation progress after a period of time.
If he failed to meet Mu Guyue's requirements, Mu Sha would receive a heavy punishment, even being directly imprisoned in a certain place for a few days to reflect on his mistakes.
Mu Sha constantly fought with others outside. Mu Guyue at first did not pay attention to Mu Sha returning with injuries.
In any case, she had long given Mu Sha many commonly used cultivation and healing medicinal pills. As long as it was not a fatal injury, he could just apply them externally and take them internally himself.
Mu Sha had grown up under this kind of teaching since he was a child and was long used to healing himself.
It was only later, one time, when Mu Sha returned, that he happened to run into Mu Guyue.
She then discovered that Mu Sha had an extremely severe penetrating wound on his back shoulder, which had almost severed one of his arms.
Mu Guyue then swept her Divine Sense over it and found that no important organs had been injured, so she let him be. She had no intention of healing Mu Sha herself.
It was just that Mu Sha's injury this time was still quite serious!
Even with the physical strength of the Demon Clan and the medicinal liquids that had strengthened his bones since he was a child, Mu Sha would need at least a month of proper healing before he could move normally.
However, he could also take the opportunity to comprehend the insights gained from fighting with others. This was Mu Guyue's teaching method.
But after only nineteen days, she saw Mu Sha running out again, full of life.
This time, Mu Guyue felt a little surprised. This didn't seem like the effect that her herbs could produce. She then sent out a wisp of her Divine Sense to follow him quietly.
When she saw Mu Sha dueling with those Demon Clan cultivators who were older and stronger than him, she finally noticed something very strange.
Whenever Mu Sha was injured, especially with those visible external wounds, Mu Sha would almost never take medicinal pills or apply medicinal liquid to the wounds, but would continue to fight crazily with the injuries.
What shocked Mu Guyue later was that those wounds on Mu Sha's body would actually slowly heal automatically during the battle!