Xu Luo couldn't be bothered with Master Mao's racket. He met Phoenix's gaze for a moment, and eventually, she shyly lowered her head and said softly, "Let's go."
"Alright."
"You two look like a couple of idiots, HAHAHAHA!" Master Mao continued to bombard Xu Luo's ears with his voice transmission.
"Shut up!" Xu Luo snapped coldly.
The giant eagle transformed into a palm-sized mini-eagle and perched on Xu Luo's shoulder. Its eyes darted around everywhere. It had probably gotten used to robbing places with Master Mao recently, and whenever it saw something good, it couldn't help but think about snatching it...
However, this was a sect, and from the looks of it, a sect her bastard master was very familiar with. Although Sister Ying had her ideas, she knew she couldn't act on them.
"When did you start keeping pets?" Phoenix asked with some surprise, looking curiously at the mini-eagle on Xu Luo's shoulder.
"Heh, not long ago," Xu Luo replied.
Sister Ying rolled her eyes and turned her head to the side, not bothering to look at the little human girl. 'You're the pet,' she thought. 'Your whole family are pets!'
Seeing Sister Ying's very human-like actions, Phoenix grew even more surprised. "Wow, this little one is so cute!"
The corner of Xu Luo's mouth twitched. He decided he should probably reveal Sister Ying's identity to Phoenix.
"She's actually a Tier Nine Spirit Beast. This is just her form after transforming. Her real body... is huge!"
Phoenix glanced at the cute mini-eagle on Xu Luo's shoulder in surprise. A light flashed in her beautiful eyes, and she suddenly smiled sweetly. Looking at Sister Ying, she cooed, "Big sister has some yummy food over here. Want to come play with me?"
"..." Xu Luo was speechless. 'That's not how you poach someone, is it?'
Who would have thought Sister Ying had long had enough of this bastard Xu Luo? She flapped her wings and flew directly to Phoenix's shoulder, making Xu Luo roll his eyes dramatically. Phoenix, on the other hand, laughed gleefully.
"Well, don't mind if I do."
'Good thing I still have Miaomiao,' Xu Luo thought. 'Miaomiao doesn't like women.'
But just as he was thinking this, Master Mao suddenly popped out of Xu Luo's pocket and shouted, "Where? Where? Where's the yummy food?"
"Oh, there's another one! What a cute little kitty!" Phoenix said, looking at Master Mao with pleasant surprise.
Master Mao rolled his eyes. 'Dammit, you're the little kitty!' he thought. 'I only came out because there was talk of yummy food...'
Phoenix's lovely eyes fell upon Xu Luo. She said softly, "It seems you've become very strong now. Even top-tier Spirit Beasts are willing to follow you."
"I was forced!" Sister Ying said mercilessly, her voice that of a young girl.
"I... *cough cough*, alright, I'm following him willingly, okay?" Master Mao had been about to say that he was also forced, but seeing Xu Luo's playful look, he decided it was better to be a decent beast. 'Otherwise, what will I do if I anger this kid and he doesn't let me absorb Star Power anymore?'
Phoenix led Xu Luo toward Merak's reception area. The joking was over. She began to explain Merak's current situation and the details of the upcoming Sect Assembly.
"Ever since that incident, the Supreme Elder went directly into seclusion and hasn't come out. They say she's trying to comprehend the Transformation Realm. If she succeeds, things might... become turbulent in the future. But for now, at least, it's very peaceful."
"The Transformation Realm isn't so easy to comprehend. Countless Martial Artists spend their entire lives unable to advance beyond the True Martial Realm of a Sword Venerable."
"Ever since Crystal died, Grand Elder Leng Yu Lian has become much more withdrawn. She's started living in seclusion and no longer concerns herself with sect affairs. Perhaps... she's biding her time and building her strength, waiting to see what the Supreme Elder does."
As Phoenix spoke, she lifted her head and glanced at Xu Luo, her eyes filled with a hint of gratitude. "Xu Luo, thank you!"
"For what?" Xu Luo scratched his head, confused.
"Hehe, it's nothing." Phoenix smiled sweetly. This was her sect, after all. No matter what, Crystal had been a disciple of Merak. 'I can't just say, "Thank you for helping me kill Crystal," can I?'
Phoenix continued, "Uncle-Master Qiushuiduan seems to have seen through the vanities of the mortal world. His progress has been incredibly fast. He broke through to the Transformation Realm a few months ago. Now, he's become the strongest expert in the sect!"
"That's to be expected." Xu Luo nodded. He remembered the first time he had met Qiushuiduan back in the Cao Kingdom. He wasn't surprised that the white-haired man, who was brimming with Sword Intent from head to toe, had been able to break through to the Transformation Realm.
"Uncle-Master Qiushuiduan is also a case of biding one's time and building strength. He suppressed his realm for many years. Now that he's returned to the sect and is focused on cultivation, his rate of improvement is simply astonishing." As she spoke, Phoenix glanced at Xu Luo and suddenly added, "My master has a very good impression of you. She's always mentioning you to me. For this Sect Assembly, before I could even say anything, my master said we should invite you..."
"Hehe, Sect Leader Li is too kind." Xu Luo smiled calmly, but a faint ripple stirred in his heart. He immediately dispelled that wisp of a ripple, because he knew very well that even if he and Phoenix were just ordinary friends, there was no way anything could happen between him and Li Wenxi.
'Societal conventions aren't so easily broken.'
"Let's talk about the Sect Assembly instead," Xu Luo said with a smile.
Phoenix had been observing Xu Luo's reaction. Seeing his calm expression, she finally breathed a sigh of relief.
For some reason, she always felt her master was a little strange whenever she mentioned Xu Luo.
She seemed a little shy!
'That's right, shy,' Phoenix thought. 'To be honest, Li Wenxi isn't that old, and with that deceptively youthful face of hers, she's practically started aging in reverse since breaking through to the Transformation Realm, looking younger and younger. When she walks with me, anyone who doesn't know better would think we're sisters. No one would ever guess she's my master.'
She often found herself wondering, '"That day I left, Xu Luo was healing Master... could something have happened?"' But then she would think of her master's pure and pristine character, how she never got involved in worldly affairs, and decide it was impossible.
At the same time, she felt guilty for speculating about the relationship between her master and her friend.
Phoenix had been suppressing this thought until she saw Xu Luo today and couldn't help but test the waters again.
'Thankfully, the result didn't disappoint me. At least, nothing is going on between Xu Luo and Master!'
"This Sect Assembly will be different from the previous ones. This time, there will be an excellent opportunity for the disciples of the younger generation, but within this opportunity also lies a massive crisis!"
Speaking of serious matters, Phoenix's expression grew solemn. She looked at Xu Luo earnestly. "That's why we all wanted you to participate this time, but it still depends on your own decision."
"Tell me the details."
"In the past, the Sect Assembly was mostly a large-scale gathering for exchange. People from the major sects would bring out treasured items they no longer needed to sell or trade. You could find a lot of rare and exotic treasures."
"Then there were some competitions for the younger generation. After each assembly, a list would be published ranking the top one hundred strongest members of the current younger generation. Any young disciple who made it onto this list would receive a massive supply of resources upon returning to their sect, and their future achievements would naturally be extraordinary."
Phoenix smiled at Xu Luo. "The last Sect Assembly was many years ago. I was still young back then and didn't participate. I was originally planning to snag a ranking this time, but then, a while ago, we suddenly heard that this Sect Assembly has changed."
"What kind of change?" Xu Luo asked.
"Each Sect Assembly is hosted by a few super-sects, and this time is no exception. However, a while ago, they suddenly sent out a notice saying that the sparring matches for the younger generation have been canceled. In its place, they will go on an expedition into a recently discovered, massive ancient ruin!"
"Something like that is happening?" Xu Luo's eyes narrowed slightly, his interest immediately piqued.
The Blood Pills he had obtained from the Ancient Emperor Tribe's ruins were already world-shaking items. If news of them were to spread, it would surely cause an uproar throughout the entire Cultivation Realm!
A single Blood Pill might even be enough to provoke a mighty expert from the Ancient Race to come and seize it.
Not to mention, he had also obtained the Three Great Tomes and the Seven Star Sword there. Although his haul wasn't particularly large in quantity, the quality was unimaginably high.
So, upon hearing the theme of this Sect Assembly, Xu Luo was immediately tempted. But then he grew vigilant and asked, "Those ruins... who discovered them? Why didn't they explore them secretly themselves, instead of bringing them out to be used as a trial ground for the Sect Assembly?"
"We had the same suspicion. My master raised this question on the spot. The other party's answer was that when they discovered these Ancient Ruins, they found an unimaginable domain power within them. Anyone over the age of twenty-five is completely unable to enter."
Phoenix continued, "That sect only discovered this secret after paying a heavy price. They then tried sending in a large number of young disciples under the age of twenty-five to try and uncover the secrets of the ruins. Unfortunately, they suffered heavy casualties and still returned empty-handed. Those ruins... are terrifying! In the end, the sect realized they couldn't possibly explore the ruins alone, so they simply announced it to the public. Whoever has the strength can go inside and get the treasures."
"There's a restriction like that? Those ruins... how do they determine the age of the people who enter?" Xu Luo found this very strange.
Phoenix shook her head. "We don't know. But the story is most likely true, because the sect that discovered the ruins would have no reason to share a place that could contain supreme treasures with everyone."
Xu Luo nodded. What Phoenix said was true. It was just like the Ancient Emperor Tribe's ruins his brother had discovered. Even though there was nothing left inside now, Xu Luo had never intended to make its existence public.
"So this time, you could say it's an opportunity for us younger people. When the time comes, whoever can make it out of there alive is a true expert. Whoever can find more treasures inside is an even greater expert!" Phoenix said with a look of longing, then added, "We're here."