Chapter 427: Supreme Sea Palace: Ji Qianrou
Ling Kun took the ring, glanced at its contents, and a barely concealable excitement flashed in his eyes. He did not return the space ring to Ye Xinghan, instead putting it away with a beaming smile. "Young Palace Master is indeed straightforward. It seems this old man made the right choice in seeking you out for this transaction. That woman is just nineteen years old this year, and is currently in the Cang Feng Kingdom."
"Cang Feng?" Ye Xinghan showed surprise, then gave a contemptuous light laugh. "Such a tiny, insignificant place that feels beneath one's dignity just to visit—and it can produce a legendary divine body like the 'Nine-Xuan Exquisite Body'? Elder Ling, are you truly certain that is a 'Nine-Xuan Exquisite Body'?"
Ye Xinghan's last sentence carried a clear warning tone. In a barren land like the Cang Feng Kingdom, where a King Xuan was already the peak, he could hardly bring himself to connect it with the Nine-Xuan Exquisite Body, a treasure that appeared but once in ten thousand years. Ling Kun's expression remained unchanged, and he said in a low voice, "If I were not certain, I would not dare to make this transaction with the Young Palace Master even if I had ten thousand times the courage. If the Young Palace Master uses this Nine-Xuan Exquisite Body as a furnace, your cultivation will advance by leaps and bounds! In comparison, these three catties of Purple Vein Divine Crystal are nothing at all."
Ye Xinghan's expression softened, and he said with a chuckle, "Having traded with Elder Ling so many times, I naturally trust your words. There is still one catty of Purple Vein Divine Crystal; I will slowly gather it. When the time comes, Elder Ling, do not disappoint me."
"Heh! When the time comes, the Young Palace Master can look forward to a huge surprise!" Ling Kun said with narrowed eyes. He did not mention that the person with the Nine-Xuan Exquisite Body was a stunning beauty almost on par with the Snow Princess. If he had, he could have raised his price, but it would also have easily led Ye Xinghan to directly focus on Xia Qingyue, the number one beauty of the Cang Feng Kingdom, and then he would lose that catty of Purple Vein Divine Crystal.
In an inconspicuous corner of the seats, a man with an utterly plain appearance and attire stared coldly at Ye Xinghan's back. His hands slowly clenched, and between his gritted teeth, words filled with bone-deep hatred escaped: "Sun... Moon... Divine... Palace..."
The people from Tian Wei Sword Domain and Sun Moon Divine Palace had arrived, but Huangji Sacred Domain and Supreme Sea Palace had not yet come. Feng Hengkong seemed unaffected by Ye Xinghan's arrogance. He sat down calmly and glanced at the time. There were only a few dozen breaths left until the scheduled start of the ranking battle.
At that moment, a gentle breeze suddenly blew in, carrying a faint floral fragrance that was intoxicating. Above the arena, flower petals began to drift down from nowhere—some pure white, some crimson red, some brilliant yellow... They fluttered in the air, creating an extremely beautiful scene.
"So fragrant..."
"Has some immortal fairy arrived?"
"It must be a fairy from one of the sacred lands... What luck today! Not only do we get to see the Snow Princess, but we also get to witness the grace of a sacred land fairy!"
Seeing the petals dancing in the sky and smelling the intoxicating fragrance, all the men present grew excited, their eyes blazing as they stared upward. The petals fell thicker and thicker, and the fragrance grew richer and more intoxicating. Suddenly, a large cluster of petals burst open beautifully in midair, and amidst the massive petal rain, a figure appeared—elegant as jade.
This was a young man of extreme handsomeness. He wore clothes as white as snow, with hair as black as ink. His complexion was fair as jade, his features finely sculpted and exquisite. His slender eyebrows curved like crescent moons, slightly upturned. His eyes were like peach blossoms, shimmering with the tender gaze of a young girl. Ye Xinghan's appearance was also handsome and refined, but compared to this man who seemed to have stepped out of a painting, he was utterly obliterated, not even a trace left. The crowd below raised their heads, their mouths agape as they stared at this man descending slowly amidst thousands of flowers. Regardless of gender, everyone felt a sense of shame at their own inferiority.
"What a handsome and elegant man!" Yun Che couldn't help but exclaim, adding silently in his heart, "Almost as good as me."
When Ye Xinghan and Ling Kun saw this man appear, their expressions changed simultaneously—but not from shock or wariness; rather, they wore expressions of extreme discomfort. Ling Kun growled lowly, "Damn it! Why did it have to be this guy!"
When the petal rain began to fall, Feng Hengkong was slightly startled. When the snow-white figure appeared among the petals, Feng Hengkong—the great emperor of the Divine Phoenix Empire, the sect master of the Fenghuang God Sect—actually trembled all over, his pupils constricting for a moment. He hurriedly shouted, "Ximing... quickly... go and welcome him for me!"
Before Feng Ximing could even respond, the man's gaze had already automatically landed on Feng Hengkong. Instantly, his already slender and curved eyebrows arched even more. His eyes rippled with emotion, he covered his mouth with his hands, and revealed a... charmingly flirtatious smile. In a soft, coquettish voice, he said, "Little Kongkong, I finally see you again. It's been a hundred years, and I've missed you to death... Have you missed me?"
………………
………………
The entire arena fell into a silence so deep you could hear a pin drop. Everyone was dumbfounded, their eyes wide, their jaws dropped to the floor.
This... this person...
Was he a man... or a woman... or half man, half woman... or neither man nor woman...
That expression... that posture... those eyes and brows... that voice... and 'I've missed you'... Wait! What he said was 'Little Kongkong'... Could it be...
Could he be referring to... the Phoenix Sect Master, Feng Hengkong!?
Oh my god!!
Feng Hengkong had already been about to find a place to hide himself, but that 'Little Kongkong' came crashing down like a thunderbolt, making the Phoenix Sect Master, who had remained unflappable even under Ye Xinghan's arrogance, tremble all over. His face twitched, and he nearly spat out a mouthful of old blood on the spot.
Feng Ximing hurriedly rushed forward and said with utmost respect, "This junior is Phoenix Crown Prince Feng Ximing. Greetings, Senior... Ji. Welcome to the Fenghuang God Sect. Your seat has been prepared. Please, Senior Ji, take your place."
"Oh my!" Ji Qianrou's eyes were as limpid as waves as he looked Feng Ximing up and down. His tender, watery gaze made Feng Ximing's whole body go numb. He swayed his waist, turning with a thousand charms as he walked toward Feng Ximing, letting out a tinkling, seductive laugh. "So it's Little Mingming! No wonder you're so handsome—almost as good as my Little Kongkong. Last time I saw you, you were just a little toddler of two or three. In the blink of an eye, you've grown so big. Come, let me feel—have you grown sturdier?"
As Ji Qianrou walked, his soft waist twisted like a water snake dancing, and his buttocks swayed left and right in a captivating rhythm. If he had been a woman, it would have been a sight that made men stare and even spit blood...
But now, every man felt his stomach churn violently.
This was someone from a sacred land?
This was really someone from a sacred land!?
Before Feng Ximing could react, his hand was already picked up by Ji Qianrou, who gently stroked it in his palm. "Little Mingming's skin is so smooth. I love the feeling of smooth skin. Little Mingming must keep maintaining it..."
Feng Ximing snapped back to reality and pulled his hand back like lightning, retreating several steps. He felt his heart convulsing, and goosebumps covered his entire body... Especially the hand that Ji Qianrou had touched—it felt like thousands of ants were crawling over it, making him wish he could chop off the entire hand.
He finally understood why his father, who feared neither heaven nor earth, would show panic at the mere mention of the name 'Ji Qianrou' and would avoid him at all costs. Cold sweat dripped from his forehead, and he stammered out in humiliation, "Sen-sen-sen... Senior Ji, the ranking battle is ab-ab... about to begin! Please take your se-se... seat!"
Such a simple sentence, but Feng Ximing stumbled over it, speaking incoherently. Ji Qianrou pinched his fingers and said in a voice as sweet as water, "Little Mingming, what's the hurry? I haven't even given Little Kongkong a loving hug yet... Little Kongkong, your servant has already arrived. Why haven't you rushed up to me? Could it be that in all these hundred years, you haven't missed me at all?"
Feng Hengkong trembled all over, his neck turning red and swelling to twice its size. Finally, unable to bear it any longer, he slammed the table and stood up, roaring, "Ji Qianrou! If you dare spout such nonsense again, I... I... Do you believe I'll have you thrown out!"
To make the dignified Phoenix Sect Master lose control and explode in front of so many people—Ji Qianrou was probably the only person in the entire Tian Xuan Continent capable of that.
Faced with the furious Feng Hengkong, Ji Qianrou was not panicked at all. Instead, she giggled again. "Giggle, giggle, still shy. Little Kongkong is just the same as before. Alright, alright, I'll do as you say. After the ranking battle is over, you have to treat me to a good drink, you hear... Little Mingming can come too."
Having said that, Ji Qianrou twisted her waist and walked gracefully to her seat.
Feng Hengkong: "~!#￥%……"
Feng Hengkong slumped back down, his forehead covered in cold sweat. At that moment, he suddenly felt Feng Xue'er beside him staring at him with an extremely strange look. His eyes widened, and his expression became somewhat flustered. He quickly explained, "Xue'er, it's absolutely not what you think. That Ji Qianrou is a lunatic. Xue'er, just ignore him."
"I understand, Father," Feng Xue'er nodded and then let out a soft laugh. "Little Kongkong... hehe, so Father's name can be that cute too."
Feng Hengkong: "￥x%$#(/^%$##$%〇#……"
"Could this... be that legendary demon... no, a shemale?" Feng Zhanyun was almost kneeling on the ground. Their own sect master of the Fenghuang God Sect had been molested by a man to the point of going insane on the spot... He felt like his worldview was collapsing.
"This person... is not simple," Yun Che murmured thoughtfully, cupping his chin.
"Mo Li, what level is this person's cultivation?"
"Late-stage Overlord Xuan! An out-and-out high-level Overlord Emperor! Also a level that you absolutely must not provoke!" Mo Li said indifferently.
The Supreme Sea Palace's seating was to the right of the Sun Moon Divine Palace. After Ji Qianrou sat down, Ye Xinghan and Ling Kun beside him sat bolt upright, not even greeting him, acting as if they hadn't seen him. Ji Qianrou leaned over on her own, gazing at him with deep affection, and said, "Little Hanhan, it's been so many years since we last met, and I've missed you to death. Have you missed me?"
Ye Xinghan's face twitched, his chest heaving. He forced out two words through clenched teeth: "Shut up!"
"Hmph!" Faced with Ye Xinghan's rough attitude, Ji Qianrou spat contemptuously and turned her head away in a pout. "Stubborn! You smelly men are all the same—each one more heartless than the last. I can't be bothered with you, hmph!"
The muscles on Ye Xinghan's face convulsed violently, but he finally let out a long sigh of relief. But immediately, Ji Qianrou, who had just declared she "couldn't be bothered," leaned in again, her voice as sweet as honey.
"Little Hanhan, are you really not going to pay me any attention? I've really missed you all these years, you know."
"Look, Little Kongkong now is much more mature than a hundred years ago, so much more manly... So charming. Compared to a fresh young thing like Little Hanhan, I really do prefer Little Kongkong's type."
"Oh dear, Little Hanhan, the women around you are getting worse and worse. Look at this skin, so rough—so much worse than my skin."
"Little Hanhan..."
The sweet, syrupy voice made Ye Xinghan's heart convulse, his limbs convulse, his meridians convulse... his whole body convulse. It was worse than death. If it weren't for the fact that he couldn't beat Ji Qianrou and didn't want to start a conflict with this freak who could chop someone to pieces while smiling sweetly, he would have torn his head off and shoved it up his own ass.
"Elder Ling..." Ye Xinghan ground his teeth. "Three pieces of Purple Vein Heavenly Crystal... swap seats with me!"
Cold sweat instantly poured down Ling Kun's forehead. Hastily, he said, "Well... this... ahem, it's not a matter of Heavenly Crystal or Divine Crystal. This old man is advanced in years and can't take such a beating. I still want to live a few more years..."
Ye Xinghan: "..."