Yu Ruoshuang concluded.

"Right! How could I have overlooked that?"

Yu Yalan had a sudden realization. No matter how well that guy hid himself, as long as he had Female Cultivators around him, he was bound to leave some clues.

Especially with Ling Changqing’s lecherous nature, the number of Female Cultivators surrounding him was sure to be high. That would make him even easier to track.

"Sister Lan, we shouldn’t delay. Let’s go..."

Yu Youqin said excitedly, but Yu Yalan stopped her with a look.

"There’s a problem,"

Yu Yalan said calmly. "Our family has quite a few spies and informants from other powers within its ranks. If we do find something, I’m afraid it won’t be long before they get the news as well, right?"

She wanted to find the Child of Destiny as soon as possible, but she didn’t want other powers to get a share of the benefits.

If that happened, a falling out and war between the Yu Family and the other major powers would be inevitable.

By then, the flames of war would spread, countless family disciples would perish, and the entire Yuzhou Cultivation Realm would be shrouded in a storm of blood.

"We can investigate in secret, but we must not inform anyone else. Don’t even breathe a word to our closest Maids!"

Yu Yalan said.

If they really found Ling Changqing in the future, they shouldn’t make it public, but just maintain a secret relationship with him.

The advantage of this approach was that the secret wouldn’t be exposed, benefiting both Ling Changqing and the family. At the same time, it would also secure the two sisters’ own grand cultivation ambitions.

"That you can be so thorough in your thinking puts my mind at ease."

Yu Ruoshuang said with satisfaction, "To be even more certain, why not count me in this time? The three of us can act together."

Yu Yalan’s expression faltered slightly. She said in a low voice, "But Aunt, your current condition isn’t good... Can you still go out as you please?"

Due to years of divining Celestial Secrets and over-exhausting her lifeblood, Yu Ruoshuang’s life force was now dim, and her Lifespan was less than fifty years.

Yu Ruoshuang had already used all the various life-extending resources the Yu Family could find. Now, there was basically nothing left to be done.

If she wanted to restore her Lifespan, she would have to break through to the Divinity Transformation Realm. But Yu Ruoshuang’s accumulated Cultivation was insufficient, and the hope of success was far too slim.

The only other possibility was to find the legendary Child of Destiny and ask for his help.

"It’s fine. Things are already like this, so I have nothing left to worry about."

Yu Ruoshuang smiled. This was her only hope. If she didn’t dare to go all out and stake everything on this one chance, then when her time came, she would probably have no choice but to use the Scattering Technique and pass away.

Yu Yalan nodded. "Then it’s settled. To avoid any unexpected problems, let’s set off tomorrow. We won’t let anyone know."

...

「Changqing Continent.」

Inside the Cultivation Chamber, more than three months passed quietly.

On the Thousand-Year Cold Jade Cloud Bed, Ling Changqing awoke from a state of deep enlightenment.

In his sea of consciousness, a message radiating a mysterious Dao Rhyme silently appeared:

[Master of the Era Star Palace: Ling Changqing]

[Bone Age: 47/1093]

[Cultivation: Early stage Golden Core]

[Destiny: 199+463]

[Blessed Fortune: 191+349]

[Physique: 84]

[Root Bone: 88]

[comprehension: 99]

[Divine Soul: 210]

[Alchemy Dao: 993/50000 (Third Grade high rank)]

[Talisman Dao: 1960/40000 (Third Rank Low Grade)]

[Primary Cultivation Technique: Supreme Profound Oceanic Soft Water Technique (4th Floor) 5355/50000]

[Primary Cultivation Technique: Taiyin Moonlight Divine Heart Refining Scripture (2nd Floor) 19740/30000]

[Sword Cultivation Technique: True Understanding of the Sword Dao (2nd Floor) 7501/30000]

[Primary Cultivation Technique: Langhuan Celestial Essence Secret Manual (2nd Floor) 8133/30000]

[Body Cultivation Technique: Long Xiang Fan Brahma Scripture (3rd Floor) 29/30000]

[Spirit Root: Gold, Wood, Water, Fire, Earth, Bottom Grade Celestial Rank 840/50000]

[Noble: Shentu Hong/Luo Qingning/Luo Qingyu/Flow Shadow Ice Cicada/Liu Ying Meng Luan/Yu Yalan/Tang Wanying]

[Dao Companion: Ling Qiyue/Tang Qiu Yao/Luo Qingxuan/Xue Qingtan/Meng Feiyu/Qin Yun/Fu Yin Xue...]

After Refining two Profound Yin Water Pearls, his Primary Cultivation Technique, the Supreme Profound Oceanic Soft Water Technique, had smoothly advanced to the 4th Floor. This meant Ling Changqing’s combat strength had significantly increased again.

Additionally, his Body Cultivation Technique, the Long Xiang Fan Brahma Scripture, had broken through to the 3rd Floor, making his Physique and physical Defense even more formidable.

With the increase in his Luck and Fortune, the improvement of his Cultivation Technique Divine Techniques, and his transformation to a Celestial Grade Spirit Root, the speed of his Cultivation progress had also increased.

Although he was still in the Early stage Golden Core, according to Gong Ling’s assessment, Ling Changqing’s current overall strength had more than doubled since he first broke through to the Golden Core Realm. And that was without factoring in the support from his Magical Treasures.

After sacrificing large quantities of Demon Beast Cores many times, Ling Changqing’s Lifespan had now surpassed the thousand-year mark, making it roughly equivalent to that of a Nascent Soul True Monarch.

Moreover, his Alchemy Dao skill had risen to Third Grade high rank, a level higher than even Ling Qiyue, allowing him to refine almost all Third Grade Elixirs.

Even for Quasi Rank Four Elixirs, with the blessing of Ling Changqing’s extraordinary Luck and Fortune, the probability of successful Refining was quite high.

By consuming his Lifespan, Ling Changqing had also raised his Talisman Dao skill to the Third Rank Low Grade, while his master in the art, Qin Yun, had still only barely reached the Second Rank High Grade.

’My Alchemy Dao and Talisman Dao skills are fine for now. Next, I have to learn Artifact Refining, Arrays, and the Path of Celestial Secret Art and Divination.’

Ling Changqing mused.

The Artifact Dao and Array Dao were obvious necessities. But for High Rank Cultivators, the Path of Celestial Secret Art and Divination was one of the most important means of survival and could not be ignored.

"No problem. In any case, Master, you have enough Lifespan now. If you want to raise these three Supporting Art Skills, you just need to perform a few more sacrifices."

Gong Ling said with a laugh.

These Supporting Art Skills don’t directly increase combat power, but they are a crucial component of a High Rank Cultivator’s strength.

Earning resources was secondary. The key was that you wouldn’t have to ask others for help with most things, and you could also protect yourself from being plotted against.

’...Hmm, it’s still going to be a while before I can advance to the Middle stage Golden Core. Should I consider raising a Spirit Companion or two?’

Ling Changqing continued to communicate with Gong Ling.

This was what most Cultivators did. When it became difficult to advance their Cultivation Realm, they would increase their combat power by raising Combat Spirit Companions.

Of course, other methods like High Grade Talismans, Talisman Treasures, and Daoist Soldier Puppets were also indispensable.

For any Cultivator, the more of these methods, the better. They were assets that could save one’s life at a critical moment.

At Ling Changqing’s current Cultivation Level, a Third Grade Spirit Companion was beneath his notice. He would need at least a Quasi Rank Four, or preferably a Rank Four, Combat Spirit Companion.

"Of course you can,"

Gong Ling responded. "But High Grade Spirit Companions are definitely not cheap, and they aren’t something you can get just by having Spirit Stones. This matter requires careful planning."

To put it bluntly, a High Grade Combat Spirit Companion was more valuable than Core Formation Resources and had always been a strategic resource strictly controlled by the major powers.

Not even Xue Qingtan could help him with this. Only Luo Qingxuan had the means.

However, for safety reasons, Luo Qingxuan couldn’t risk contacting Bai Qingyi right now. If anyone else were to notice something amiss, the consequences would be severe.

Another problem was that it was best to raise a Combat Spirit Companion personally from a young age, without relying on others.

However, the higher the grade of the Spirit Companion, the longer its growth period. It wasn’t uncommon for it to take decades or even centuries, making it a truly bottomless pit for resources.

’Forget it. I’ll leave it for now and think about it later.’

After weighing his options for a moment, Ling Changqing decided to set the issue aside for the time being.

In any case, he didn’t have many opportunities to fight people, and his own combat strength was already formidable enough. There was no rush to resolve this matter.

Deactivating the Array Restriction in the Cultivation Chamber, Ling Changqing got out of bed and expertly opened the door.

On the Golden Gemstone Chair not far away, Luo Qingxuan, dressed in a fiery red gown and looking bright and elegant, was resting with her eyes closed.

Hearing the soft footsteps, the beautiful woman opened her lovely eyes. In the next instant, she appeared in front of Ling Changqing and pulled him forcefully into her embrace.

Nestled in her snowy-white, deep cleavage, a faint, unique fragrance captivated his senses, making his heart race with desire.

"My dear, your Cultivation... how far are you from the Middle stage Nascent Soul?"

After a moment of tenderness, Ling Changqing asked gently, caressing her smooth, firm waist.

Luo Qingxuan was all smiles. "Not too far. If my husband is diligent about Dual Cultivation with me, it will probably only take another eight or ten years."

"Mm, I will be."

Ling Changqing gave a helpless smile.

But this speed was truly astonishing. An ordinary Nascent Soul True Monarch would usually need hundreds of years of arduous cultivation plus a massive amount of resources just to advance one minor realm.

For a Nascent Soul Cultivator whose innate potential had been exhausted, they might remain stagnant for their entire life, unable to advance their Cultivation no matter what.

After chatting and laughing for a while, the two of them went to the Patriarch’s Women’s Embroidery Tower.

At that moment, Tang Qiu Yao was discussing something with Ling Qiyue.

"...Senior Sister, the number of surrounding powers coming to us for Alchemy help has been increasing lately!"

Tang Qiu Yao said with a frown, "If we refuse all of them, it seems we’ll easily offend people. What do you think we should do?"