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Three days later, the colossal explosion's wind spiritual energy faded. In the sky, a naked figure hovered, eyes half-closed, skin pale as a newborn's, muscles brimming with vitality, veins prominent, physique tall and balanced.
Lan An opened his silver-white eyes, assessing his body, muttering, "Mid-Stage Three-Turn Body Cultivation. Body refinement is grueling…"
Unsatisfied with his progress, he sighed.
"Not bad. It's only an Earth-Grade art, after all. This much is decent," Jin Ni consoled.
Lan An nodded, reaching for a robe.
"Eek! Pervert, shameless nudist!" A panicked shout interrupted him.
Frowning, Lan An spotted a veiled woman, a hundred miles away, atop a massive White Crane, pointing at him. Her regal attire, glossy black hair, and ocean-blue eyes hinted at a lofty status.
Unfazed, Lan An donned a plain robe, preparing to leave.
"Stop, you pervert!" She spurred the crane, blocking his path.
"Lady, my clothes tore during a battle," Lan An said helplessly.
"Liar!" She pointed a slender finger, huffing, "No one's around, and this place, though ruined, shows no recent fighting. Don't try fooling this Granny!"
"What do you want?" Lan An glared.
"You're too perverse. Someone must reform your mind. I'll take that role until you're pure," she lectured pompously.
"Crazy woman," Lan An cursed inwardly. Her aura suggested beauty, and normally, he'd flirt, but his urgency to scout Qing Yun Sect left no room for games. Activating Phantom Charm Wander Step, he vanished.
Moments later, his face froze as the woman reappeared, blocking him again.
"She's Void Refinement," Jin Ni warned coldly.
Lan An's heart sank, cursing his luck. The woman produced a rattan whip, aiming for his backside. "Pervert, still running? Time for a spanking!"
His mouth twitched. Who's the pervert, targeting a man's rear? Whoosh. He dodged with Speed Shift.
"Oh?" She gasped, surprised, then whipped again. Whoosh. Lan An evaded, but—Crack!—the whip struck his rear, making him yelp.
She'd predicted his Speed Shift's endpoint. Terrifying.
"Hmph, know Granny's might? Dodge again, and I'll whip you raw!" she crowed.
Lan An's face flushed with humiliation. This madwoman was formidable. "Nudist, follow me to the mountain for repentance!" she ordered.
"Damn it, I'm not a nudist! It was an accident!" Lan An fumed, tempted to use Qin Meng Ying's sealed strike but reserving it for Qing Yun Sect. "It was an accident," he insisted.
"Really?" She sounded skeptical, though her eyes twinkled with amusement.
"Of course, my clothes tore during training," he nodded firmly.
"I see!" She propped her chin, feigning understanding.
"Can I go now?" He shot her a look.
"No," she replied, nearly driving him mad. "What now? I'm busy!" he snapped.
She sighed dramatically, "Since I saw your body, I must take responsibility."
"Responsibility? Fine, 1,000 Supreme Spirit Stones settles it," Lan An extended his hand.
"Too unfair to you," she shook her head, declaring, "Marry me as my male consort. I'll care for you forever."
Cough! Lan An nearly fell. "You don't want to?" She pouted, hands on hips.
"I'm unworthy of you, thanks for the offer," he bowed.
"I say you're worthy!" she declared domineeringly.
"I've got three wives and four concubines," Lan An played his trump card.
Her eyes widened. He smirked, expecting retreat. "They can marry me too. We'll be family!" she countered.
Lan An wanted to spew blood. "You're a woman!" he roared.
"Granny eats men and women alike!" she huffed proudly.
Speechless, Lan An gripped his Minor Step Talisman. "Don't try escaping. I can seal space," she warned. Defeated, he grasped at a straw. "Someone bullied me. I need to settle scores."
"Dare bully my consort?" She flared, demanding, "Who?"
"Qing Yun Sect. Help me deal with them, and I'll consider being your man," he said earnestly.
"Consort!" she corrected, then nodded, "But those stinking Qing Yun taoists bullied my consort. Unforgivable!"
"Yes, crush them!" Lan An cheered inwardly. She extended a delicate hand. Unhesitating, he grabbed it, climbing behind her on the crane, wrapping his arms around her slender waist.
"What're you doing?" she yelped.
"Aren't I your consort? Or are you shy?" he teased.
"Hmph, why would I be shy? Hug all you want—it's my gift to you!" she snorted. Her flushed neck betrayed her inexperience. Lan An grinned, "She's all talk, pretending to be a playgirl. Let's see who tames who."
The White Crane sped toward Qing Yun Sect, rivaling Gu Dun Di's pace. Lan An inhaled her fragrance, pressing his face into her hair, hands wandering upward, grazing her ample chest—rivaling Mu Zi Yin's. He kneaded gently through the fabric.
She instinctively moved to stop him but succumbed to the strange sensation, eyes half-closing. Her veiled lips curled smugly. "How many consorts do you have?" Lan An whispered, licking her jade-like earlobe.
She shivered, replying coolly, "Too many to count." Lan An scoffed inwardly—her blush gave her away. Certain she approached him deliberately, sensing no malice, he played along, suspecting ties to Qin Meng Ying. "Let's see her game," he mused.
They entered Qing Yun Sect's territory, its towering peaks stretching endlessly. Lan An's eyes gleamed. A Seventh-Grade sect, lofty yet steeped in dark deeds. In this dog-eat-dog world, Lan An cared little for others' sins—he wasn't a savior. But Qing Yun Sect's repeated offenses demanded retribution.
Sensing his resolve, the woman asked, "How should we handle them? Consider it my first gift to my consort."
"Cripple all Spirit Transformation and above," Lan An replied ruthlessly.
She nodded without hesitation. A Seventh-Grade sect had few Spirit Transformation experts; it wouldn't take long.
Their intrusion alerted the sect. "What a huge crane!" "Who dares fly over Qing Yun Sect?" "Stop them!" Disciples soared, blocking the crane.
"Little White, ignore them. Head to the main peak," she pointed. The crane screeched, darting past the disciples' attacks with blinding speed.
"Insolence!" Two elders, Early-Stage Spirit Transformation, slashed with swords. The woman's eyes flickered. A delicate hand waved, summoning an ice-crafted zither.
"Supreme Earth-Grade artifact," Jin Ni noted.
Twang.
Her fingers plucked, unleashing ice spiritual energy as countless ice swords pierced the elders' skulls, killing them instantly. Lan An watched, awed. Her earlier playfulness vanished, replaced by regal lethality. "This is the real her," he thought.
"Heavens, Fifth and Seventh Elders!" Disciples gaped at the fallen elders' corpses. Unfazed, she urged the crane onward.
"Who dares?" Three roars echoed. The Second, Third, and Fourth Elders, Mid to Late-Stage Spirit Transformation, confronted them warily.
"You bullied my consort. Granny's here to punish you," she stated calmly.
"Bullied your consort?" The elders blinked, baffled.
"Exactly, your Grand Elder," Lan An chimed in.
The crowd's faces twisted with venom. "You killed our Grand Elder?"
Lan An feigned terror, hiding behind her, pointing shakily, "They're bullying me again!"
She stifled a laugh at his antics but glared at the elders. "I saw you bully him. Death penalty."
"Form the Sword Array!" The elders, seasoned, sensed her threat and attempted their sect's formation. But against absolute power, they stood no chance.
Twang, twang, twang.
Her zither's melody, soothing yet lethal, summoned ice spiritual energy into delicate snowflakes, drifting slowly but striking suddenly.
Boom! Boom! Boom!
The snowflakes detonated like bombs, engulfing the elders in a dazzling explosion. "What's happening?" A furious roar shook the heavens.
Two figures emerged from the mountain's depths: Gu Fei Tian and a hunched, bald elder with a white beard to his feet—Gu Wen Tian, the Void Refinement ancestor.
Gu Wen Tian dispersed the smoke, revealing three ice-encased corpses. He shattered the ice, but the bodies remained intact. The woman's eyes narrowed slightly.
"I don't care who you are. Without feasting on your flesh and blood, I, Gu Wen Tian, am no man!" the ancestor rasped emotionlessly.
Lan An sneered, "You're no man to begin with." Turning to the woman with a grin, "Leave the old fossil to you. I'll handle the other."
Gu Fei Tian's eyes blazed with fury. The air crackled with imminent violence.