Chapter 49

Lin Feng played with the black cloud banner, which had shrunk to the size of his palm.

This was the first golden core stage magical treasure he had obtained. Although it was tainted by the Netherworld Blood River and its power was only about thirty percent of its peak, it was still an extraordinary magical treasure, stronger than all the magical treasures Lin Feng currently possessed, even surpassing the Northern Polar Celestial Magnetic Sword.

The black cloud banner was both offensive and defensive, and it had the ability to move short distances through space, making it very practical.

More importantly, unlike the Northern Polar Celestial Magnetic Sword, the black cloud banner was a golden core stage magical treasure. It had its own array inside that absorbed the essence of heaven and earth to nourish itself. When Lin Feng used it, it did not consume as much magical power as the Northern Polar Celestial Magnetic Sword.

However, how to purify the tainted blood on the banner and restore its original glory was a headache.

What made Lin Feng even more pleased at this moment was the system notification that sounded in his mind: "Host has obtained the black cloud banner, completed the random side quest in the Black Cloud Palace, rewarded with 500 exchange points!"

Lin Feng smiled. Before he figured out the pattern of the lottery system, he actually preferred the solid exchange points.

Compared to the lottery system, which relied on luck, the items in the exchange system were clearly priced, and he could buy whatever he wanted, provided he had enough exchange points.

After a moment of thought, Lin Feng did not rush to exchange anything but decided to save the points.

Based on experience, if he could take on a third disciple, the system would reward him with another 500 exchange points and one lottery chance.

Lin Feng planned to accumulate more points and then make a big move.

As he had guessed, the black cloud banner, being the life-bound magical treasure of Black Cloud True Man, was indeed closely related to the Black Cloud Palace. The magical power within the treasure was intricately connected to the flow of spiritual energy in the palace.

After refining the black cloud banner with his own magical power, Lin Feng communicated with it mentally, and a detailed map of the Black Cloud Palace immediately appeared in his mind.

"Having a map makes things easier," Lin Feng nodded, thinking, "I wonder if I can determine the location of Zhu Yi and the others."

As soon as the thought crossed his mind, three light points appeared on the map.

Lin Feng was overjoyed, knowing that these three light points represented Xiao Budian, Xiao Yan, and Zhu Yi. However, what surprised him was that the three light points were clustered together, indicating that his two disciples were with Zhu Yi.

Lin Feng did not feel happy; instead, he frowned slightly and gave another command to the black cloud banner: "Are there any other people around the three of them?"

Upon receiving the command, five more light points appeared on the map, each extremely bright, surrounding Zhu Yi and the others.

Lin Feng sighed, realizing that the situation might be worse than he had anticipated.

"Where is Liu Yang?"

A huge light point appeared on the other end of the map, brighter than all the previous points combined. This large light point, representing Liu Yang, was flashing, likely because Liu Yang was still struggling with the Netherworld Blood River.

Lin Feng's frown deepened. As he had guessed, the brightness of the light points indicated the cultivation level of the targets.

Liu Yang's light point was the brightest, consistent with his golden core stage cultivation.

Zhu Yi's light point was the dimmest, almost invisible among the five large light points.

Xiao Budian and Xiao Yan's light points were similar in brightness but still relatively weak.

The five large light points likely represented five foundation establishment stage cultivators.

This meant that not only Zhu Yi, but also Xiao Yan and Xiao Budian had fallen into the hands of others. Whether it was the Fierce Wind Association or the Xuanji Marquis Manor, it was not good news for Lin Feng.

"I hope they haven't been hurt." Lin Feng waved the black cloud banner, and he disappeared from his spot.

When he reappeared, Lin Feng had already teleported to where Zhu Yi and the others were.

With the help of the black cloud banner, Lin Feng seemed to merge with the Black Cloud Palace. Only golden core stage cultivators like Liu Yang and Huang San could detect his presence; the foundation establishment stage cultivators could not.

Lin Feng did not appear immediately but decided to observe the situation first.

What he saw made him somewhat stunned.

The scene he had imagined, where his three disciples were being brutally tortured and remained unbending, did not materialize.

In the tunnel, Xiao Budian and Xiao Yan were calm and composed, chatting and laughing with six cultivators from the Marquis Manor as they walked toward the surface.

Zhu Yi, though somewhat dejected, was also in a normal state, not having suffered any mistreatment, and was following the group.

Huang San had been killed by Liu Yang, and the Marquis Manor cultivators were at a loss. Liu Yang had witnessed them with Zhu Yi, and if they were to kill Zhu Yi and blame it on the Fierce Wind Association, it would not be easy to fool anyone.

It seemed Liu Yang did not care about such trivial matters, but if the news got out, it would be very bad. The Xuanji Marquis would kill them to save face and bury Zhu Yi with them.

Considering this, the six cultivators decided to take Zhu Yi back, at least as a token of merit.

However, they unexpectedly encountered Xiao Budian and Xiao Yan, who had become separated from Lin Feng in the palace.

By now, Xiao Budian was exactly four years old, and his cultivation at the sixth level of the Qi Condensation stage was indeed as eye-catching as a firefly in the dark, causing a greater shock to these foundation establishment stage cultivators than the Fire Sword Sect in Wu Prefecture had.

At that time, Xiao Budian, at the fourth level of the Qi Condensation stage, had stunned Elder Li, a golden core stage cultivator. Now, at the sixth level of the Qi Condensation stage, his innocent and adorable appearance created a huge contrast, temporarily robbing these foundation establishment stage cultivators of their ability to think.

Then they realized that a talent like this, if not brought into their sect, would make their ancestors rise from their graves in anger.

Both the middle-aged man in purple robes and the five cultivators from the Five Elements Sect approached Xiao Budian with smiles on their faces.

In comparison, Xiao Yan, at fifteen years old and currently at the seventh level of the Qi Condensation stage, was not as impressive.

After the incident with the Fire Sword Sect, Xiao Budian had a clear understanding of his situation and knew that many people coveted his talent.

Though he retained his childlike innocence, his mental maturity was far beyond his years. Having been with Lin Feng for some time, the little guy had become even more slippery.

Facing the group of foundation establishment stage cultivators, Xiao Budian was not intimidated. His two big, black eyes twinkled, and he showed a pair of bright little tiger teeth, smiling, "Greetings, uncles and grandfathers. This junior, Yu Hao, greets you."

Xiao Yan's eyes flashed, and he also spoke politely, "This junior, Yu Yan, greets the seniors."

"Yu?" Although these cultivators came from different sects and lineages, they were all well-informed and worked for the Xuanji Marquis Manor. Hearing Xiao Budian and Xiao Yan introduce themselves as surnamed Yu, their first thought was the Yu family, one of the four major families of the Great Qin Dynasty, a neighboring country of the Great Zhou.

The elderly man in yellow robes smiled and asked, "Little friend, you are surnamed Yu. Are you a descendant of the Yu family of the Great Qin Dynasty?"

Xiao Budian nodded vigorously and smiled, "Yes, Grandfather, how did you know we are from the Yu family? Do you know anyone from my family?"

"Your name is like thunder in my ears, but I regret not having the chance to meet you." The elderly man's smile became more sincere, but he felt a deep disappointment inside.

The Yu family was not easy to snatch.

As one of the four major families of the Great Qin Dynasty, the Yu family was well-known in this Tianyuan world. While it could not compare to the three great holy lands, it was a dominant force within the Great Qin Dynasty, just like the Fire Sword Sect.

The Yu family's foundation might not be as deep as the Fire Sword Sect, which had existed for ten thousand years, but because it was a family, its cohesion was stronger than that of a sect.

The six foundation establishment stage cultivators looked at each other, all feeling regret. This little guy's talent would be the most precious treasure in the Yu family. Even if their sects, or even the Shu Mountain Sword Sect and the Tai Xu Illusion, came to ask for him, they would be turned away.

A middle-aged cultivator from the Five Elements Sect secretly transmitted a message to the elderly man in yellow robes, "The Great Qin envoy indeed arrived in Tianjing City a few days ago. Could there be someone from the Yu family in the envoy, and this child came with his elders?"

The elderly man in yellow robes remained calm and continued to smile, asking Xiao Budian, "How did you end up here?"

Xiao Budian answered with an innocent face, "My clan brother and I came out to play. We saw a cave from a distance and went in to take a look, but we couldn't get out. Grandfather, can you take us out?"

(PS: Rushing for the rankings tonight, three updates tomorrow, the first one just after midnight. Please support, thank you!)