Baiyun Ancient City.
A large bunch of iron cavalry appeared.
It made all the cultivators in the entire Baiyun Ancient City panic.
The cavalry was unique. Their mounts were not horses but a type of powerful ancient beast.
They were like lions but they had three tails. They were three-tailed blood lions, which were rare demonic beasts that were extremely ferocious. Once they reached adulthood, they would be able to fight Golden Core cultivators.
Such ferocious beasts were rare. However, the tens of thousands of cavalry were all riding on those ferocious beasts.
The leader was extremely terrifying. He did not ride a blood lion but a qilin.
Its feet were covered in flames and its body was full of purple scales. It was three feet tall and its eyes were as large as lamps, and a single glance would make one shiver.
However, the more terrifying thing was not that but the battle flag behind them.
“Great Xia Dynasty”
“Mighty”
The battle flags were embroidered with a dragon pattern and a black python respectively.
Those were the flags of the Marquis of the Great Xia Dynasty.
The Great Xia Dynasty Marquis.
He was a powerful existence. How could they not be shocked?
In Qingzhou, Baiyun Ancient City could only be considered an ordinary city while Qingzhou was an ordinary existence in Jin Nation.
Jin Nation was the weakest of the Ten Nations.
The Great Xia Dynasty was the existence that unified the Ten Nations while the marquis of the Great Xia Dynasty was the mighty figure.
A single thought of his could destroy Baiyun Ancient City.
In a moment, the city lord of Baiyun Ancient City scurried over in a panic. He was at least an early-stage Golden Core cultivator, but in the face of the existence that rode on a qilin, he couldn’t help but be flustered.
As a Golden Core realm cultivator, he knew what demonic beast it was.
It was a Purple Jade Qilin. It was not a real qilin but one that contained some of the genetics of the qilin. It could be considered a half-spiritual beast.
The Purple Jade Qilin did not need to reach adulthood to kill a Golden Core realm cultivator.
How terrifying must the rider of the Purple Jade Qilin be?
He swallowed his saliva, raised his head slightly, and looked at the man on the Purple Jade Qilin.
It was a young man who was in his early thirties that seemed rather valiant and mighty. He was powerful and domineering, as if he had absolute control of the world.
“Greeting, Your Excellency.”
The city lord of the Baiyun Ancient City was kneeling on the ground and seemed rather flustered. Even when facing a Jin Nation envoy, he would not kneel down.
However, the marquis of the Great Xia Dynasty was rather outrageous.
“Where is the Qingyun Dao Sect?”
A calm voice spread from the Purple Jade Qilin.
The city lord of the Baiyun Ancient City was dumbfounded.
‘Qingyun Dao Sect?’
‘Is it that sect?’
He frowned and pondered but soon thought of it.
However, before he could speak, the man on the Purple Jade Qilin suddenly spoke.
“Got it.”
The calm voice sounded. Afterwards, the qilin advanced and led the army away from Baiyun Ancient City.
After they left, the cultivators in Baiyun Ancient City could not snap back to their senses.
They had never seen such a mighty figure before and the majesty of the imperial dynasty was deeply etched in their minds forever.
At the same time, in the Qingyun Dao Sect.
The sounds of knocking and banging rang continuously in the Qingyun Dao Sect and Daoist Tai Hua did not stop talking.
He did not decide to suddenly revamp the Qingyun Dao Sect on a whim. Previously, he had had that thought in mind too, but later on, he thought that he should save up a little. However, now, Ye Ping had already joined the Jin Nation Academy.
He also brought two of his friends back. Regardless of whether they were from the Jin Nation Academy or not, Ye Ping’s friends were naturally geniuses since he was a genius too, though Da Xu and Xia Qingmo were exceptions.
However, no matter what, Ye Ping would definitely bring many of his friends to the sect in the future.
If the sect was shabby, it would be embarrassing.
Hence, he decided to do some simple renovation and build a few new residences, lest their future guests did not have a place to stay in.
On the cliff in front, Ye Ping, Da Xu, Xia Qingmo, Xu Luochen, and Chen Lingrou watched the workers renovate.
Ye Ping felt that there was no need to renovate the sect as the simpler it was, the more it would suit the Great Dao.
However, Xu Luochen and Chen Lingrou were very excited. After all, it was not as simple as renewing the sect. They were naturally agitated, and hence, he was worried that the workers might skive.
On the cliff, Da Xu was a little curious.
‘Must there be so many carpenters for building a house? Can’t it be done with a single wave of the hand?’
However, despite being confused, Da Xu did not think much about it. After all, it was difficult for ordinary people to understand the thoughts of supreme experts.
“Girl, you seem to be troubled, what’s the matter?”
At this moment, Da Xu discovered that Xia Qingmo was troubled. He couldn’t help but ask her curiously.
After their interaction in the past few days, they had been getting along rather harmoniously.
They all got along well with each other. Apart from cultivating, they would either chat, play chess, or take everyone to go on a spin in the Qingyun Mountains.
All of a sudden, Xia Qingmo was indeed elated.
That was a kind of joy that she could not experience in the palace.
She could be carefree and there was no need to scheme against each other or be on tenterhooks all the time. She didn’t have to be like a golden bird that was caged in a prison.
However, Xia Qingmo was well aware that those days would not last for long.
He had gone missing for a long time and the Great Xia Dynasty would not sit back and do nothing. Besides, the Great Xia Dynasty had her life lamp and they knew that she was safe. In fact, they could find her location just by sending a few heavenly secret powerhouses.
In fact, Xia Qingmo sometimes preferred to die.
She had no fear of darkness, but she was afraid of encountering light.
After staying in the Qingyun Dao Sect for a few days, she was indeed in a much better mood than before. Actually, she really yearned for such a life.
Her Senior Brothers and Senior Sisters did not need to live too luxurious lives. They just needed food and drinks. She looked forward to living an enriching life each day.
However, she knew that she did not deserve to have such a life.
How many princesses of the imperial dynasty could be free and easy?
Unfortunately, her cultivation level and aptitude did not make the cut. Otherwise, she would probably be able to change fate.
However, no meant no.
Hence, she was pondering about it and also treasuring every single minute.
However, at this moment, with Da Xu’s question, Xia Qingmo couldn’t help but snap back to her senses.
“No…”
Xia Qingmo smiled and gave her response.
Da Xu was actually a wise person. He was a Ghost King of the Nascent Soul realm who had lived for many years. He was akin to a sly old fox.
He could tell what Xia Qingmo was thinking.
Besides, he was also aware of Xia Qingmo’s identity.
“Girl, everyone in this world is envious of your identity, but I am also clear that there are many things in the world that are beyond your control.”
“Instead of resisting, it is better to change your thinking and abide by the will of heavens. Enjoy yourself, and you won’t be too tired. Of course, in fact, I have an idea if you want to break free from this fate.”
Da Xu tried to persuade Xia Qingmo and at the same time gave her an idea.
“What idea?”
Xia Qingmo was curious.
“Sister, hear me out, you’re a princess and your future destiny is either to marry someone of another nation or within the royals. The latter is not too bad, you can find a random marquis to marry. At least, it would be within the Great Xia Dynasty and you’d get to leave the palace too.”
“If you marry someone from another nation, it would be terrible. Since ancient times, princesses who marry into another nation would be worse than concubines. If you meet a man who truly likes you, it won’t be too bad, but all the princes of the five dynasties are in pursuit of immortality. When they’re happy, they will treat you like a fairy. If not, they will fall out with you.”
“So, you might as well marry Exalted Immortal. I don’t mean anything else but look at him. He’s so young and yet he can already condense the Qi and Blood True Dragon. His future potential is boundless.”
“Besides, he’s so good-looking and he has a sweet tongue. Most importantly, he’s a nice man too. You’ll be getting the best of both worlds if you marry him.”
Da Xu suppressed his voice and tried to matchmake Ye Ping and Xia Qingmo.
However, after he said that, Xia Qingmo’s beautiful face turned flushed and she glanced at Da Xu before saying, “What nonsense are you spouting?”
“Nonsense? I’m not spouting nonsense. You’re getting married anyway so you might as well let the Exalted Immortal get the advantage. Girl, hear me out, you don’t need to marry a man with a high status. Actually, a man who treats you well is better than anything else.”
At this moment, Da Xu was giving Xia Qingmo some advice like a master of relationships.
However, Xia Qingmo did not pay attention to Da Xu as she felt that the topic was a bit off.
“You must believe what I said. Let me ask you, how do you feel about Exalted Immortal?”
Da Xu continued.
Hearing his words, Xia Qingmo couldn’t help but ponder in silence.
In the beginning, Xia Qingmo was grateful towards Ye Ping. After all, Ye Ping had saved her and what he did next was nice too, be it his personality or way of doing things.
He was modest and polite to his superiors.
To his subordinates, he treated them like equals.
He was not tyrannical at all, and he was very good-looking too. His aura wasn’t too bad either. Besides, Xia Qingmo had never thought about getting into a relationship before and would not think about it either.
“Girl, let me teach you something. If you think the Exalted Immortal is not too bad, I’ll risk having the hoop put on my head and help you get him drunk. Then, you can get the deed done with him.”
“I understand the Great Xia Dynasty’s style of doing things. The royals only ever care about the outcome and their interests, and never about the process. Exalted Immortal is an elite, and although your father will definitely be angry, he’ll at most just scold you for the sake of the bigger picture.”
“Once you marry Exalted Immortal, you will be free. What do you think?”
Da Xu asked.
“Don’t spout nonsense here.”
Hearing the mention of getting the deed done, Xia Qingmo immediately felt that Da Xu was getting more and more absurd with his words.
Da Xu did not get angry either. Instead, he exclaimed at Ye Ping.
“Exalted Immortal…”
A voice sounded.
While cultivating, Ye Ping opened his eyes which were full of curiosity.
“Exalted Immortal, let me ask you, what do you think of Qingmo’s appearance?”
Da Xu cut straight to the chase.
Hearing his words, Xia Qingmo blushed again. She didn’t mean it that way at all. However, Da Xu’s attempt to force her and Ye Ping to get together made her feel rather awkward.
However, despite blushing, Xia Qingmo did not stop Da Xu, seemingly wanting to hear Ye Ping’s evaluation of her too.
“The most beautiful woman on earth.”
Ye Ping found it a little strange and didn’t know why Da Xu asked that question, but he nevertheless answered without hesitation.
“Would you want to marry her?”
Da Xu was even more direct with his next question.
After he said that, Xu Luochen and others also snapped back to their senses.
“What? Junior Sister Qingmo is going to marry Ye Ping?”
“Ye Ping is getting married?”
“That’s a good thing. If they quickly get into a marriage alliance, they can give birth to a child sooner and bring some joy to us.”
Xu Luochen and the other spoke up. They were purely messing around.
“Da Xu, don’t spout nonsense.”
Xia Qingmo stood up and hurriedly stopped Da Xu.
Not far away, Ye Ping glanced at Xia Qingmo but did not think much about it.
“No, the betrothal gift money is too expensive.”
Ye Ping answered very seriously.
He was not very interested in women and lust. After all, cultivators competed with the heavens and would not waste time on romance.
However, they could have Dao companions. Of course, Ye Ping was most concerned about the betrothal gift money. Xia Qingmo was the princess of the Great Xia Dynasty and it would definitely cost a massive amount of money to marry her.
Since it was too expensive, Ye Ping decisively refused.
Everyone was stunned after hearing what he said.
No one expected that Ye Ping would refuse because of the betrothal gift money, and his answer made them feel awkward.
“It’s just getting married. Is that necessary? How much money is it going to cost? It’s not like he’s going to marry a princess, can’t the sect afford that meager amount of money?”
Xu Luochen said calmly, but he soon couldn’t help but look at Xia Qingmo.
“Junior Sister Qingmo, are you from Jiangxi?”
He was a little curious.
“No.”
Xia Qingmo subconsciously replied. In that instant, Xu Luochen couldn’t help but heave a sigh of relief, thinking to himself that it was good that she wasn’t.
“In that case, what are you scared of, Ye Ping?”
“Yeah, we haven’t had anyone from the Qingyun Dao Sect get into a marriage alliance. Ye Ping, why don’t you be the first?”
“Okay, okay, let’s stop it. Can’t you see that Junior Sister Qingmo is already blushing?”
Everyone teased, but some told them to stop because they felt that it was inappropriate.
However, at this moment…
Boom!
Boom!
Boom!
Sounds of horror suddenly filled the air.
In an instant, Da Xu’s face became even more sullen as he stood up and looked into the distance.
The Great Xia Dynasty.
All of a sudden, Da Xu looked even more dismayed.
The crowd couldn’t help but look in the direction of the sound.
However, they could not see anything.
Only Ye Ping and Da Xu saw what was happening.
In Qingyun Mountain Range, tens of thousands of iron cavalry arrived in a neat formation. They were not that quick, but the mounts they were riding were extraordinary as their feet were not touching the ground but the loud explosive sounds were the sounds of the void trembling.
Xia Qingmo did not see anything either, but she suddenly figured out what was happening.
“Is there another earthquake?”
Daoist Tai Hua, who was supervising the construction, could not help but be filled with shock after hearing this sound again.
The craftsmen who were working on the construction were also confused.
Soon, a scene that they would never forget appeared.
In the sky dome, numerous figures appeared and surrounded the entire Qingyun Dao Sect.
Tens of thousands of iron cavalry were emitting a murderous aura, clad in a light gold patterned bronze armor. They were holding spears in their hands and wearing copper helmets. Their faces could not be seen clearly and all that could be seen were their emotionless eyes.
The cavalry made the sky become much dimmer.
The wind blew, and the battle flags embroidered with the words “Great Xia Dynasty” and “Might” began making sounds.
They did not say anything, but their silence was also the reason that the people felt inexplicably pressurized.
Daoist Tai Hua, Xu Luochen, Wang Zhuoyu, Chen Lingrou, Xue Zhuan, Lin Bei, and even Da Xu seemed to be scrupulous.
In particular, Da Xu immediately knew what was going on.
The Great Xia Dynasty Marquis.
The marquis of the Great Xia Dynasty had personally arrived.
Da Xu swallowed his saliva as he looked at the man on the Purple Jade Qilin, knowing right away that he was the marquis of the Great Xia Dynasty.
He was the marquis who held great authority and was subordinate only to one.
There were 19 marquis under the supreme emperor, 17 of which were Hereditary Marquis. The Wei-Wu Marquis was one of them.
The other party was the hereditary Wei-Wu Marquis, but his power was not to be underestimated. In the Great Xia Dynasty, all the nobles were competent and were in fact even more outstanding than their predecessors.
Da Xu totally did not expect that the Great Xia Dynasty would actually send a marquis to escort Xia Qingmo home.
He honestly thought that Xia Qingmo was not favored in the Great Xia Dynasty, but after seeing this, he felt that it wasn’t what he thought.
Daoist Tai Hua and others swallowed their saliva.
They had never seen such a grand scene before.
In particular, the man on the Purple Jade Qilin had an inexplicable might and domineering aura.
He was the Fürst who held authority over a part of the Great Xia Dynasty military. He did not have to say or do anything; just standing there alone would make him emit a terrifying pressure.
There was silence.
Absolute silence!
Apart from the sounds of whistling, there were no other sounds between heaven and earth.
The wind was howling and the entire sky was dim and dark as it seemed to be pressed by the invincible cavalry.
However, at this moment…
On the Purple Jade Qilin, the invincible Wei-Wu Marquis slowly spoke.
“By His Majesty’s order, we are here to bring the Tenth Princess home.”
His voice was cold.
He did not have his nose up in the air but he did not show any respect either.
He was the Wei-Wu Marquis who was second only to the emperor.
Even the Crown Prince of the Great Xia Dynasty had to address him respectfully.
Hence, when faced with the unfavored Tenth Princess, he naturally wouldn’t show any respect.
In this word, he only had to respect one person.
That person was the king of the Great Xia Dynasty. There was no need for him to respect anyone else.
“The Tenth Princess?”
At this moment, everyone on the cliff except for Da Xu and Ye Ping was shocked.
They looked at Xia Qingmo in some disbelief.
Soon, they couldn’t help but look at Ye Ping again.
They somehow felt that Ye Ping was destined to have a relationship with the princes and princess.
Previously, he brought the Crown Prince of Jin Nation back with him, and this time, he brought the princess back.
‘Next time, why don’t you bring the Emperor of the Great Xia Dynasty to play too?’
Faced with the Wei-Wu Marquis, Xia Qingmo who was on the cliff, did not dare to look directly at him.
However, she slowly spoke.
“Marquis, can I go back at a later date?”
Xia Qingmo knew she must go back, but she wanted to leave later.
The reason being, she knew very well that she would be facing the high walls and cold palace when she returned.
However, the Wei-Wu Marquis soon answered.
“Tenth Princess, you don’t have the right to choose.”
His voice was emotionless.
The Wei-Wu Marquis sat on top of the Purple Jade Qilin as he looked down at the Tenth Princess of Great Xia Dynasty from above.
He sounded merciless.
It said everything about Xia Qingmo’s status in the Great Xia Dynasty.
She was a princess.
However, she was the least favored one.
She was destined to be in a marriage alliance.
Everyone looked at Xia Qingmo who likewise glanced at them.
They wanted to say something, but they couldn’t.
However, just then, Ye Ping interjected.
“Greetings, Marquis, I am Ye Ping.”
Ye Ping then took a deep breath and looked at the Wei-Wu Marquis.
“This time the princess met with a mishap as she was chased by the Fiendcelestial Cult. She got really flustered. Why don’t you let her stay here quietly for a few days lest she goes back injured?”
Ye Ping said.
He was very polite.
This was Xia Qingmo’s family matter, but Ye Ping was not poking his nose into it either. He merely felt that the Wei-Wu Marquis was being too inhumane as there was nothing wrong with waiting a few days before going back.
However, on the Purple Jade Qilin, the Wei-Wu Marquis spoke again.
“Like I said, the Tenth Princess doesn’t have the right to choose.”
“You were nice to have saved her. Take this treasure as a reward for you.”
“However, I hope that you are aware that she is the princess of the Great Xia Dynasty, so don’t harbor any designs on her, or you’ll be in trouble.”
The Wei-Wu Marquis still sounded as emotionless as before, and somewhat domineering and lofty too.
In fact, the Wei-Wu Marquis didn’t even look at Ye Ping and simply left behind a jade pendant.
It was a spiritual jade that could speed up cultivation and was extremely valuable.
“Tenth Princess, I don’t want to delay too long.”
The Wei-Wu Marquis spoke again.
Can I bid them goodbye?”
Xia Qingmo asked again. Since she couldn’t stay for a few more days, she wanted to say goodbye to the crowd properly.
“I’ll say it one last time.”
“Tenth Princess, you don’t have the right to choose.”
The Wei-Wu Marquis still sounded as heartless and emotionless as before.
Her title of a princess seemed insignificant.
It was extremely quiet.
Everyone was silent.
The Wei-Wu Marquis did not show any mercy.
Apart from her title as the Tenth Princess, she did not seem to be respected at all.
He was indifferent towards Ye Ping and others too.
In his eyes, Ye Ping and the others were akin to dirt on the ground while Xia Qingmo was like a marred prestigious phoenix who would be clean again after some washing up.
It would be delusional to think that dirt could keep sticking to the phoenix.
He could tell everything clearly so he didn’t show any mercy.
Ka-cha.
However, at this moment, a crisp sound of jade breaking sounded.
This sound drew the attention of the Wei-Wu Marquis.
He looked over using his peripheral vision.
On the front cliff, the psychic jade was crushed by Ye Ping’s foot.
“Worthless pride.”
However, on the Purple Jade Qilin, the Wei-Wu Marquis had some indifference in his eyes.
In his opinion, Ye Ping’s behavior was a display of worthless pride.
Ye Ping stepped onto the psychic jade to crush it.
He slowly looked at the Wei-Wu Marquis who was on the sky dome.
In the next moment, he spoke calmly.
“She can’t even bid us goodbye?”
The matter of the Great Xia Dynasty’s Wei-Wu Marquis taking Xia Qingmo back was honestly not a big deal and was in fact quite normal.
However, the Wei-Wu Marquis was being too overbearing and his words even made Ye Ping feel uncomfortable.
‘So what if the Wei-Wu Marquis is powerful?’
‘Is he as powerful as my Senior Brothers in the Qingyun Dao Sect?’
“Tenth Princess, stop delaying any longer. I don’t want to resort to other means.”
The Wei-Wu Marquis spoke again.
He did not answer Ye Ping’s question.
Instead, he told Xia Qingmo not to delay, and he even had a threatening tone.
However, at this moment, an indifferent voice sounded slowly.
“Who is disturbing me from cultivating in peace?”
All of a sudden, it drew the attention of the crowd.
