Chapter 69 : Birthday Banquet

Chapter 69: Birthday Banquet

Outside the Great Azure Mountain.

A mountain range stretching millions of li wound endlessly, like colossal dragons coiling and lurking upon the earth.

In the end, it merged into a boundless ocean.

This was the location of the Demon Kingdom of the demon race.

“Rumble—”

A palace more magnificent than any human structure suddenly shattered.

A tail wrapped in pitch-black scales, like a small mountain, emerged from the ruins.

“Sword Saint of Cangshan!”

The roar was like thunder, plunging everything within a hundred li into silence.

“Boom!”

The palace ruins exploded, endless dust rising. In the sky, a phenomenon of water and fire intertwining appeared.

Amid the swirling water and fire, the ruins completely melted away, leaving behind a massive crater.

Three mountain-like heads and a colossal black serpent coiled like a mountain appeared between heaven and earth.

A Three-Headed Profound Serpent with the bloodline of Nine Infants.

“Buzz!”

The serpent’s body trembled, transforming into an extremely handsome and demonic-looking man.

The demon race did not resist their natural instincts—during mating periods, they sought to mate with the strong.

Thus, all transformed male demons were handsome and eerie, while females were alluring and seductive.

He looked toward the direction of Qingzhou, his eyes filled with intertwining water and fire, and let out a roar like a dragon’s cry.

Then he shot into the sky and disappeared.

Due to his bloodline, he had few offspring. Some were even dissolved by water and fire at birth.

But now, the only surviving and exceptionally talented offspring who inherited his bloodline was also dead.

He would make the Sword Saint of Cangshan—and the human race—pay the price.

Even if the Demon Emperor forbade demons above the Demon King level from entering human territory—

Even if his injuries had not yet fully healed—

He could no longer care.

Some things stood above everything.

Hatred was one of them.

Two days later.

The night was thick, clouds covering the sky, leaving almost no light.

Inside Ziyun Pavilion, the flickering lamplight stretched the shadow of the figure sitting cross-legged on the couch long into the night.

“Mingyu Divine Art experience +5.”

“Mingyu Divine Art experience +5.”

“Mingyu Divine Art (Minor Completion 0/500)”

As the text flashed before her eyes, Li Yunqing’s body trembled slightly.

An intense tingling, itching, and numbing sensation surged from her internal organs.

It was like countless tiny insects gnawing at them.

“Cough, cough, cough…”

Turbid qi churned, forcing her to cough.

Her entire body collapsed onto the couch, her hands instinctively tugging at her clothes.

“This feeling…”

“Is it because the refinement is happening too quickly?”

“Why have I never heard others mention this kind of reaction?”

Li Yunqing murmured. As her gaze grew hazy, her Yin Spirit leapt out of her body, completely isolating the sensation.

She floated in the air, looking down at her physical body—clothes disheveled, skin flushed, revealing large patches of spring-like scenery.

“Such a beautiful body really must not be ruined.”

She murmured, raising her hand. The messy clothes and even the bedding beneath her smoothed out instantly.

Then her figure shot upward, passing through the roof and into the void, until the entirety of Qingzhou City lay beneath her. Only then did she begin to glide horizontally.

To others, the Yin Spirit was invisible and formless, but to herself, it appeared as a figure in white robes drifting through the night sky.

“A radius of ten li!”

Sensing the maximum distance between her Yin Spirit and physical body, Li Yunqing stopped.

With a thought, the panel appeared:

Name: Li Yunqing

Lifespan: 15/∞

Strength: Upper Tier of the Initial Realm (44% → 55%)

Frost Sword Intent: Mastery (21% → 25%)

Yin Spirit: Minor Completion (90% → 92%)

Skills: Zither, Chess, Calligraphy, and Painting (Perfection)

Traits: Undistracted Mind, Vigorous Spirit, Photographic Memory, Naturally Endowed with Spiritual Grace, Eight Tones Enter the Soul, Unparalleled Comprehension

Frost Sword Canon (Mastery 2734/5000)

Traits: Innate Sword Bones, Clear Sword Heart

Medicine King Scripture (Mastery 2986/5000)

Traits: Identify Medicine by Scent, Immunity to All Poisons, Plant Spirit Body

Five Elements Secret Manual (Minor Completion 0/1000)

Traits: None

Mingyu Divine Art (Minor Completion 0/500)

Traits: Ice-Like Skin and Jade-Like Bones, Clear Mind, Pure Yin Body

Blazing Flame Ocean-Burning Finger (Minor Completion 0/500)

Traits: None

Wind and Cloud Movement Technique (Minor Completion 0/500)

Traits: None

“At this rate, reaching Initial Realm Perfection will take about ten days…”

The martial arts she obtained from the Mingyu Martial Hall—she had trained day and night without sleep, pushing them all to Minor Completion in just five days.

With Taiyin energy and the Five Elements gathered, her refinement speed was already extremely fast.

But compared to the proficient Medicine King Scripture and its generated Medicine King Force, there was still a gap.

The proficiency of a cultivation method affected not only speed, but also the strength of force—and even the future condensation speed of True Qi and magical power.

If all techniques reached perfection, her cultivation speed would surpass the ordinary, rivaling even special physiques.

“I need to collect more techniques when I have time!”

“Palm techniques, leg techniques, movement techniques, sound-based attacks… I need them all!”

“After breaking off the engagement, maybe I should travel?”

“But with the Demon-Slaying Sword Art, there’s no urgent need.”

Li Yunqing murmured.

The Demon-Slaying Sword Art was created by the Sword Saint through slaughter. Combined with a Sword Heart, it was more than sufficient.

But to grow stronger as quickly as possible, she needed more traits derived from various techniques.

Sensing the abnormality in her body fade, and a faint sense of danger rising in the eastern sky, she streaked through the night and returned to Ziyun Pavilion.

After returning to her body, she walked to the window and looked eastward.

“I wonder if, after reaching proficiency in Yin Spirit, I can leave my body under the blazing sun?”

“If possible, then as long as I don’t encounter Profound Realm or Divine Realm experts, I could roam the world freely with just my Yin Spirit.”

With a Flying Sword in hand, she believed that even a Qi Realm Perfection expert could be killed if caught off guard without protective True Qi.

The only drawback was that the Yin Spirit could not function under the blazing sun, making its strength unstable.

“Miss!”

At dawn, Xiaolan rushed in energetically.

“Today is the birthday banquet—what will Miss wear?”

Looking at the faintly bright sky, Li Yunqing sighed.

This was the troublesome part of being a woman—waking early to dress and prepare.

“Just pick something at random.”

She replied lightly. For her, comfort mattered more than appearance.

With her looks and figure, nothing she wore would look bad anyway.

“That won’t do! You must dress up properly!”

Xiaolan immediately objected.

“Many young masters and young ladies will attend today, and they’ll all go on stage to offer birthday wishes.”

“If your outfit isn’t suitable, people will gossip.”

“And… these banquets, no matter what kind, are actually opportunities for young men and women to show themselves and be evaluated.”

“Miss is already engaged, so you don’t need to care about that—but since you’ll perform on stage, you must dress even more beautifully!”

Li Yunqing rolled her eyes, then spread her arms.

“You handle it.”

“Nothing too revealing, nothing too flashy. Other than that, do as you like.”

Xiaolan’s eyes lit up with excitement.

Her young miss was already stunning—if properly dressed, she would outshine the entire city.

The only pity was that her miss rarely cared about appearance, not even using cosmetics.

She usually wore the same style of purple dress—elegant, but lacking something.

Now that she had permission, how could Xiaolan hold back?

“Miss, don’t worry! I’ll make you the most beautiful in all of Qingzhou!”

“When the time comes, you’ll dazzle all the young masters and ladies!”