I immediately made a phone call, rousing my people. Half an hour later, the entire team was on their way to Lvshun that very night.
Meanwhile, Yaoyao, Jing Shen, and I returned to the room to examine the aura of the four antiques.
Yaoyao did some calculations and said that if she absorbed them all, she might reach the threshold of the Purple Qi intermediate stage. Perhaps Jing Shen wouldn't need to transform back into a great demon of black qi to act as a guardian, as Jing Shen was already in the Purple Qi intermediate stage, albeit a slightly weaker one.
"However, just to be safe... hehe, mainly because I want to see how a demon core is transferred," Yaoyao chuckled mischievously.
Diana was indifferent, saying anything was fine.
I feigned refusal for a moment, then followed Yaoyao's instructions. In front of her, I once again performed the act of exchanging demon cores with Jing Shen in the Tianchi Lake of Changbai Mountain. This time, however, Jing Shen had her back to me, and no special technique was applied. It was completed normally, taking about ten minutes. It seemed that all three participants in this transaction left with a degree of satisfaction.
Once the demon core was absorbed into Jing Shen's body, she instantly reverted to her original black qi state. Yaoyao then began her ritual, sitting cross-legged on the bed. She manipulated the four small treasures, which levitated and began to spin rapidly around her head, their sound growing louder and louder. Finally, I saw through my qi-sensing technique that Yaoyao had extracted a strand of aura from each of the four antiques. The antiques then fell onto the bed, as if all their spiritual energy had been drained, their surfaces becoming mottled and looking utterly worthless!
Essentially, she had absorbed true qi worth eight hundred thousand?
After it was done, Yaoyao's nose started bleeding, and her eyes were bloodshot. Jing Shen stood nearby with her hands behind her back, not intervening, likely because it wasn't necessary.
"How is it?" I asked softly.
Yaoyao shook her head and rested for a moment. She then got off the bed, wiped away the blood from her nose, and took a few tentative steps. She then circulated her qi, pressing the four strands of aura into her dantian and sea of qi like a pump. The instant they merged, I saw the purple qi above her head surge explosively, turning a purplish-black, but it quickly faded. Finally, it refined into a medium purple, no longer the light purple of the early stage. She had not only entered the Purple Qi intermediate stage but even felt deeper than Jing Shen's aura when she lacked a demon core.
She continued to bleed from her nose for a while. I wanted to help stop it, but Yaoyao said it wasn't necessary, considering it a form of detoxification. She felt that if it didn't flow out, it wouldn't feel right.
Yaoyao stood by the sink, washing her face as the blood flowed. After about a cup's worth, it finally stopped.
Afterward, Yaoyao felt much more refreshed and energetic. Her eyes were more spirited, and she exuded the aura of a master!
However, the matter wasn't over. Jing Shen said she had completed her task and wanted to return the demon core to me. Yaoyao also wanted a repeat performance and to witness it again.
Fifteen minutes later, the three of us went downstairs. Everyone else was already waiting in the cars. When I gave the order, I overlooked one point: I had asked everyone to mobilize. So, Lu Qianxun and the little boy made of ginseng also came down. I initially thought of sending them back, but Yaoyao said, "Bring them along. These two children will be great talents in the future. It's good for them to observe."
I agreed, but for the sake of caution, I instructed Mengmeng and Bingbing not to participate in the combat at all and to be solely responsible for guarding the two youngsters. After all, their combat effectiveness wasn't very strong. Bingbing was a sports powerhouse, but compared to true experts, she was a complete novice. Mengmeng's role was more evident in handling captives; she was a walking embodiment of "The Ten Cruel Punishments of the Qing Dynasty."
The team was assembled and, divided into five vehicles, we drove majestically into the night, heading southeast towards Lvshun.
The journey was uneventful until we reached Panjin City. Yaoyao reminded me to activate my qi-sensing technique.
I opened my eyes and saw a group of people driving past in the opposite lane. There were more than ten Purple Qi experts among them!
"This won't do. Lin Chi and the others can't hold them off," I said worriedly.
"Ask their headquarters to send reinforcements," Yaoyao suggested.
Good idea. I immediately contacted Lin Xi and explained the situation. Lin Xi took it very seriously and began making urgent arrangements.
A large-scale war involving two regions was about to commence...