Xiyou widened his eyes in shock, staring at Zhao Li as he stammered, “Y-you… you’re going to act as their bodyguard?”
Zhao Li chuckled. “What, is a 40th-level Grand Spirit Master like me not qualified enough? Or do you look down on the foxfire of our Nine-Tailed Celestial Foxes?”
“Of course not! It’s just relying on you alone is still a bit too much. Other races usually bring at least two 40th-level or higher Spirit Masters as guards. And even though we’ve always advocated harmony, these past years, many races have still fought fiercely over the Peaches of Immortality.”
Xiyou heaved a heavy sigh before continuing, “You know as well as I do—in the Boundless Realm, strength is the only voice that matters. All that talk about ‘harmony brings wealth’ or ‘peace is precious’ is just nonsense. You…”
He looked at Zhao Li with deep concern.
Chu Rou and Zhi Die wouldn’t be able to help her at all. Xiyou was afraid she’d suffer a disadvantage.
Zhao Li smiled reassuringly. “Don’t worry, my friend. Zhao Li doesn’t fight battles she isn’t prepared for.”
Her decision to act as Zhi Die and Chu Rou’s bodyguard wasn’t just a spur-of-the-moment act of kindness. Her real goal was to take advantage of the opportunity to enter the secret realm alongside lower-level Spirit Masters and gather a large number of Peaches of Immortality to benefit her own people.
Although the secret realm of Flower-Fruit Mountain allowed Spirit Masters below the 49th level to enter, the Monkey Clan had set a rule to prevent groups of peak-level Spirit Masters from swarming in and stripping the realm bare—only Spirit Masters below the 29th level, who genuinely needed the peaches for cultivation, were permitted entry.
Each low-level Spirit Master could bring up to two bodyguards below the 49th level for protection.
The fastest-growing Peaches of Immortality took ten years to bloom and another ten to bear fruit. There were plenty of clever individuals out there. If they were allowed to enter in droves, future generations would have no peaches left to enjoy.
Moreover, while Zhao Li claimed to be at the 40th level, her actual cultivation was at the 65th level. If necessary, she could restore her original strength at any time.
Although the secret realm would block Spirit Masters above the 50th level from entering, once inside, the realm wouldn’t forcibly eject her even if she regained her full power.
With her true 65th-level Spirit Venerable cultivation, combined with the various spell and martial arts manuals she had scavenged from the ruins of other races during the apocalypse in her past life, Zhao Li was confident she could ensure flawless protection.
Of course, while one or two Spirit Masters at the Spirit Lord realm might not be a match for her, if they ganged up on her and dragged the battle out to exhaust her, even Zhao Li wouldn’t last forever. Once her spiritual energy was depleted, the game would be over.
But was Zhao Li the kind of fox who would sit idly by without a plan?
“I’ve called in reinforcements,” Zhao Li said with a mysterious smile.
“Reinforcements? Who?”
“The young masters of the Rhinoceros Clan and the Porcupine Clan—both 40th-level Spirit Lords. Oh, and I also convinced them to establish diplomatic relations with your Flower-Fruit Mountain. They should be arriving soon.”
She didn’t want to reveal her 65th-level strength right away, so even inside the secret realm, she wouldn’t casually restore her Spirit Venerable cultivation.
Her month-long diplomatic efforts hadn’t been in vain.
The Rhinoceros Clan and the Porcupine Clan had already formed alliances with Qingqiu and reached a cooperative agreement with Zhao Li. They would send their young masters—first to establish diplomatic ties and offer birthday congratulations, and second, to provide support in the secret realm.
The Peaches of Immortality from the secret realm were the generous reward Zhao Li had negotiated with them.
These two clans were in a similar situation to Qingqiu. Although they had a few Spirit Venerables and Spirit Ancestors overseeing their clans, the majority of their members, like the fox clan, had very low cultivation levels. They desperately needed the flat peaches from the ape clan’s secret realm to enhance their overall strength.
However, the rhinoceros and porcupine clans had never been on friendly terms with the ape clan. Showing up uninvited to offer congratulations would likely invite ridicule from the myriad clans, as it would seem they were only after the flat peaches.
Zhao Li’s invitation and mediation completely alleviated these concerns for them.
Moreover, her actions also helped the ape clan gain two new allies.
The ape clan consisted entirely of agile-attack-type Battle Spirit Masters. With the addition of the royal Xi family’s divine-level spirit weapon, the Golden Cudgel, Xiyou, at level 48, could deliver damage comparable to a level 52 Spirit Ancestor.
But their only weakness was their low defense. A head-on fighting style was not conducive to prolonged battles.
The rhinoceros and porcupine clans, on the other hand, were renowned for their “impenetrable defenses.” While their defensive capabilities were slightly weaker than the ancient Black Tortoise clan, they were still among the top in the myriad clans when it came to defense.
If they could cooperate and establish a mutually beneficial relationship, they would no longer have to fear suppression from the major clans in the future.
Both the rhinoceros and porcupine clans would send their young masters to offer birthday congratulations. However, unlike Qingqiu, these two clans weren’t as wealthy and couldn’t afford divine beast-level mounts, so they likely wouldn’t arrive at Flower-Fruit Mountain until the afternoon.
“Xi You, after so many years of friendship, I can’t bear to keep this from you. The reason the young masters of those two clans and I are coming is to gather more flat peaches for the benefit of our people. Of course, we won’t—and can’t—strip the secret realm of all its peaches. In the future, if our three clans open the secret realm, we’ll also share its treasures with the ape clan. So, as the young master of Flower-Fruit Mountain, you won’t hold our ‘underhandedness’ against us, right?”
Xiyouwas taken aback for a moment before realizing Zhao Li’s thoughtful intentions.
If it were anyone else, he might have minded. But since it was Zhao Li, of course he didn’t.
Xiyouwas both surprised and impressed. He smacked his forehead and exclaimed, “Today, you’ve given me so many pleasant surprises. I’m completely in awe of you now! You truly deserve to be Qingqiu’s future leader. And while expanding influence for your own clan, you didn’t forget to bring Flower-Fruit Mountain along… All these years, my doting on you hasn’t been in vain!”
This cheeky monkey actually had the nerve to say such things with a grin.
Zhao Li scoffed. “You mean all those times you bullied me? The one who made me cry every now and then wasn’t you? And you call it doting—hmph…”
Xiyou choked.
The reason I made you cry was because…
He coughed awkwardly and quickly changed the subject. “Ahem, so… do you have enough spirit tools? Should I prepare a few more for you?”
“Sure, hand them over. And while you’re at it, get me a few maps of the secret realm.”
“Maps are useless. The secret realm has a spirit of its own. The terrain shifts every year according to the Five Elements and Eight Trigrams. The locations of the thousand-year and ten-thousand-year flat peach trees recorded last year might not be the same this year. Besides, the realm is infinitely vast. Even a peak Spirit Lord couldn’t traverse the entire place in five days, so drawing a map is practically impossible.”
Xiyou sighed, his face bitter as he said, “Your intentions are good. Having the rabbit, butterfly, rhinoceros, and porcupine clans owe you favors while also gathering peaches of immortality for your own people and securing benefits for them. But peach trees laden with fruit in the secret realm are truly rare and hard to come by. You should prepare yourself mentally for the possibility of arriving with high hopes only to leave disappointed.”
However, Zhao Li’s eyes sparkled brightly upon hearing this.
She smiled and said, “Since we know there’s no geomantic map, perhaps this young lady really will have a bountiful harvest.”
If there had been a geomantic map, other clans would have demanded it from the Xi family, and the Xi family wouldn’t have been able to refuse them.
Xiyou was taken aback. “What do you mean?”
She pulled something out from her soul storage and said with a grin, “I have this. I won’t be leaving disappointed.”
The Nine-Tailed Heavenly Fox’s inherited treasure—the Divine Compass—was the best tool for detecting heavenly and earthly treasures. Finding dense groves of peach trees in the secret realm wouldn’t be difficult at all.
Xiyou’s brow relaxed, and he smiled. “Then there’s no problem. Besides, the rhinoceros and porcupine clans are both excellent defenders and are at the Spirit Lord realm. Even if you encounter other clans, you should be able to retreat unscathed. I was originally thinking that, if all else failed, you could teach me your fox clan’s transformation technique, and I’d disguise myself as someone else to accompany you inside. Now I’m completely at ease. With the three of you guarding Lady Chu Rou and Lady Zhi Die, there’s definitely no issue.”
But it wasn’t just “the three of us guarding”…
Zhao Li smiled confidently. She had one more, even stronger ally.
“Young Master! Young Master!” A monkey clansman ran over in a panic.
“What’s wrong?”
“Young Master, the clan leader requests your immediate presence at the Water Curtain Cave entrance to greet the guests!” The man gasped for breath. “The—the Ming family of the Asura Clan has come to offer their congratulations to the Ancestor!”
“The Asura Clan?! The Ming family—?!”Xiyou’s face was a picture of disbelief.
Zhao Li’s lips curled upward. Her strongest ally had arrived.
…
Not only Xiyou’s father but even the ageless elder personally went to the entrance of the Water Curtain Cave to welcome them.
The Asura Clan was the strongest race in the Boundless Realm, and the Ming family was the foremost among the Twelve Asura Lords. For a small clan like the monkey tribe, they were honored guests among honored guests.
At the same time, they were utterly astonished.
This was the first time in countless millennia that the Asura Clan had come to offer congratulations to the monkey tribe.
A powerful race like theirs had no need to establish ties with the monkey tribe, nor did they have any interest in the meager cultivation benefits of the peaches of immortality in the secret realm.
Any heavenly treasure from the Asura Illusory Realm would be top-tier, far surpassing the effects of the peaches.
Moreover, the Ming family had arrived two days early, adhering to the etiquette of the myriad clans, rather than appearing on the day of the banquet itself.
—This was an immense show of respect to the monkey tribe.
After all, while the people of the Immaculate City sent some scions of noble families to offer congratulations every year, they only came on the day of the banquet. On the surface, it was to offer felicitations, but in reality, it was a subtle show of pressure and intimidation.
Furthermore, the noble families sent by the Immaculate City were not from the “Eight Immortals”—the direct descendants of the eight great Spirit Sage clans who were the human emperor’s closest confidants. And the human emperor’s Huangfu “Imperial Clan” would never deign to send anyone to attend the birthday celebration of such a minor clan.
The humans preached benevolence and righteousness, yet they treated the monkey tribe with such disdain. Meanwhile, the Asura Clan—vilified by humans as “cruel and bloodthirsty”—showed the monkey tribe the utmost courtesy.
The Flower-Fruit Mountain had always adhered to the principle of “respect for the strong,” so they had never paid much heed to the Asura Clan’s so-called “infamy.”
Now, with the Asura Clan extending such courtesy, the Monkey Clan felt even more goodwill towards them, and their respect deepened.
The Monkey Clan welcomed them with the highest honors. Elder Bu Lao stood at the head of the procession, with his descendants lined up behind him in a row.
Aside from the Monkey Clan members, there were also guests who wished to catch a glimpse of the Asura Clan, all standing at the rear of the procession alongside Elder Bu Lao.
Xi You, as the next clan leader, should have stood at the front with his father. But he arrived late and had no choice but to stand at the end of the line with Zhao Li.
The Crown Prince of the Spirit Cat Clan, Hei Zhe, was not far from them. When he spotted Zhao Li, his face twisted with disgust.
Zhao Li noticed him as well, her gaze sharpening. Their eyes met, sparks of hostility crackling in the air between them.
Xiyou frowned and stepped in front of Zhao Li, wordlessly issuing a clear warning.
Hei Zhe, unwilling to provoke Xiyou, swallowed his anger and averted his gaze with a click of his tongue.
“Don’t mind him,” Zhao Li patted Xiyou’s shoulder and also looked away, turning her attention to the crowd’s line of sight.
The Asura Clan had sent six representatives.
At the forefront stood a woman, graceful and poised, exuding an air of elegance that seemed untouchably noble.
Who else could it be but Yelan?