Chapter 23

After Zhu Ganglie demonstrated the power of the Divine Summoning Tower, he couldn't help but secretly rejoice. After transforming into a black dragon, he could possess the strength to manifest, far surpassing his current realm and power.

Especially when he crouched inside the Divine Summoning Tower, although his strength was still at the Manifestation Realm, he could hide in the tower and freely use martial arts techniques of the mortal world.

Moreover, he didn't have to worry about getting hurt, as the most that would happen would be some damage to the Divine Summoning Tower, while he would be well-protected.

After calming the waves in his heart, Zhu Ganglie settled down to cultivate and recover his damaged spiritual energy.

Zhu Ganglie had already cultivated eight spiritual energies and was just one step away from cultivating the ninth. When that time came, he could calmly absorb the elemental energy of heaven and earth, strengthen his divine soul, and seek the opportunity to break through to the Manifestation Realm.

"Immortal Sir, I am Hou Jing, and I have come to bring you your meal again."

As night fell, a young voice sounded outside the door, with a hint of curiosity in the tender voice.

Hearing this voice, Zhu Ganglie smiled faintly. This young man was the young master of the Hou family, who personally brought him meals every day and acted with great respect.

Zhu Ganglie understood the intentions of the young man and the Hou family, but he didn't want to pay attention to them. He was too busy cultivating himself to have the time to guide others.

However, Zhu Ganglie didn't want to disappoint Hou Jing, as he still needed to cultivate in the Hou family, so he had Dou Tai teach him some martial arts of the mortal world.

Hou Jing was very grateful for this and felt quite pleased with himself.

Now that the Divine Summoning Tower had been successfully refined and his spiritual energy had been restored, it was time to leave. So he smiled and said, "Hou Jing, I will be leaving soon, so you don't need to bring me meals anymore."

"Immortal Sir, you're leaving?"

Hou Jing immediately panicked, his voice tinged with fear, which made Zhu Ganglie somewhat suspicious. He frowned and said, "The martial arts I taught you, if you practice diligently, will strengthen your body and give you the power to protect yourself."

As he spoke, Zhu Ganglie pushed open the door, preparing to leave.

Although the elemental energy here was stronger than in other places, it was mixed with too much secular energy, making it impure. It was suitable for cultivation, but not for cultivating the ninth spiritual energy.

Otherwise, the ninth spiritual energy would be chaotic and impure, affecting his future cultivation.

"Immortal Sir, two female Taoists have come to the Hou family. They heard that you were in the mansion and are waiting in the main hall, saying they want to see you."

As Hou Jing spoke, his eyes flickered with fear and hesitation, and he dared not look at Zhu Ganglie.

Seeing Hou Jing's expression, Zhu Ganglie's eyes turned cold. He lightly tapped his hand, and an overwhelming pressure pressed Hou Jing to the ground. He coldly demanded, "Speak, what's really going on?"

"Immortal Sir, these two female Taoists say you are a fraud, that the so-called evil ghost is your creation, and that you have ulterior motives for coming to my home."

Hou Jing's face turned pale as he stammered out the story.

"Two female Taoists?"

Zhu Ganglie immediately thought of Yi Jing and Yuan Hong from the Illusory Wave Pool. Could it be that these two had tracked him here? He immediately had the urge to flee, as these two were much stronger than him and possessed a powerful talisman.

Just as this thought crossed his mind, two female Taoists appeared in his line of sight.

Seeing them, Zhu Ganglie relaxed slightly. These two female Taoists were not from the Illusory Wave Pool but were two female priests.

The two women were not very old, the older one being about twenty-seven or twenty-eight, and the younger one about twenty-two or twenty-three.

Both were tall and slender, wearing white Taoist robes, without any makeup, but with skin as smooth as jade, exuding a fragrant aura.

The older one had eyebrows that arched into her hairline, phoenix eyes that exuded authority, and a slender waist with a sheathed short sword.

The younger one had a faintly lazy and weary look on her face, but her eyes occasionally flashed with an indescribable brightness.

"Are you the fraud who pretends to be a divine being?"

The younger female priest changed her lazy expression, her eyes flashing coldly as she looked at Zhu Ganglie with a hostile expression, exuding a faint aura of pressure that made Zhu Ganglie's face change, realizing that the female priest's cultivation was far above his own.

"Brother Daoist, we are disciples of the Heavenly Sound Sect. This is my junior sister, Hou Xiufeng. I am Yan Hanqiu. The Hou family is the descendant of my junior sister's family in the secular world. Please leave here, and do not deceive people."

The older female priest's eyes carried a faint aura of authority as she lightly swept over Zhu Ganglie.

Hearing their words, Zhu Ganglie was not angry. He quickly thought, recalling that during his conversation with the old Taoist from Moshan, he had heard that the Heavenly Sound Sect and the Divine Dawn Sect were on good terms. He then smiled and said, "I am a registered disciple of the Divine Dawn Sect, under the guidance of Ice Soul Daoist. I just passed by here and noticed the Hou family's ability to gather elemental energy, so I stayed for a few days. I believe the two female priests have misunderstood!"

As he spoke, Zhu Ganglie took out the talisman left by Ice Soul Daoist and gently shook it, thinking that the Heavenly Sound Sect would give the Divine Dawn Sect some face, even though he was only a registered disciple, they would not make things too difficult for him. This was a good opportunity to use the Divine Dawn Sect's name.

As expected, when the two saw the talisman, their expressions changed slightly. The younger woman, though still somewhat displeased, no longer glared at him. The older woman's expression softened, and she smiled lightly, "So you are a junior brother of the Divine Dawn Sect. Our two sects have a long-standing friendship. I was too hasty. But may I ask why you are staying here?"

Yan Hanqiu smiled and asked lightly.

"Without hiding anything from Senior Sister Yan, my name is Zhu Ganglie. I was taken in by my master on his way to the Qingqiu Kingdom. My master went to compete for a treasure, and he asked me to wait for him in this small town. I have waited for quite some time, but my master has not come.

To cultivate, I used some minor spells. I hope Senior Sister Hou will not be angry with me."

Zhu Ganglie was slightly pleased and a bit surprised.

He didn't expect Yan Hanqiu to become so polite. Yan Hanqiu and Hou Xiufeng had very high cultivation, and the Heavenly Sound Sect was a top-tier sect with the way to immortality.

Why would they be so polite to a registered disciple?

However, he wouldn't be polite either. He immediately took the opportunity to explain the situation.

"Indeed, I observed that Junior Brother has excellent talent. It's rare to see someone complete the stabilization of the spirit and the out-of-body state in just a few months. No wonder someone as discerning as Senior Uncle Ice Soul would take you as a registered disciple."

Yan Hanqiu was slightly surprised, her phoenix eyes lifting with a hint of astonishment. Her evaluation of Zhu Ganglie improved, and even the somewhat annoyed Hou Xiufeng turned to look at him.

"Three immortals, please come to the main hall and sit down to talk. I will prepare some refreshments."

Hou Jing, being quick-witted, saw the tension between the three ease and eagerly offered to help.

Zhu Ganglie glanced at the quick-witted Hou Jing with a faint coldness, feeling a bit of disgust. He had treated Hou Jing well, but Hou Jing had not warned him of the danger and even tried to deceive him into meeting these two. This showed his lack of gratitude.

Now that the situation had reversed, Hou Jing wanted to take advantage of it. Though clever, it was extremely annoying.

Yan Hanqiu also glanced at Hou Jing coldly, while Hou Xiufeng swept him away with a wave of her sleeve to avoid any disturbance.

Then she said to Hou Jing, "Although you have excellent talent, you have not officially joined the Divine Dawn Sect. Do not be arrogant. Senior Uncle Ice Soul is very strict in taking disciples. Now, on Ice Soul Peak, there is only one senior brother who has received the true teachings, and another who is just a formal disciple. You, as a registered disciple, don't know when you will be promoted."

"Junior Sister, don't speak rashly. Junior Brother Zhu, don't be upset. Senior Uncle Ice Soul is very strict in taking disciples. In hundreds of years, only one senior brother has received the true teachings, and one talented disciple has been accepted as a formal disciple. Now, taking you as a registered disciple shows that Senior Uncle likes you.

Especially during the competition for the treasure, he personally took you as a disciple and taught you spells, which shows how much he values you."

As Yan Hanqiu spoke, Zhu Ganglie understood many things and realized why the two were so polite to him.

It turned out he had accidentally hit the jackpot.

However, he still intended to join the Tai Bai Sword Sect. Although the Divine Dawn Sect was good, it wouldn't sway his determination.

"Since Senior Uncle obtained the treasure, he has been in seclusion to avoid being disturbed.

However, now that the Tai Bai Sword Sect has moved to the Star River, many major sects are taking advantage of the situation. I believe Senior Uncle will take this opportunity to return to the sect."

Seeing Zhu Ganglie in deep thought, Yan Hanqiu thought he was thinking about Senior Uncle Ice Soul and smiled to comfort him.

However, her words startled Zhu Ganglie out of his thoughts.