The Family Head of This Generation (Girls' Love) - Chapter 16

Regardless of the Eldest Princess’s suspicion of the Southern Xinjiang sorceress, Zhao Ziyan, seeing the reddish glow in Zhao Wenxiu’s eyes, knew how much she yearned for the advancement of that small Gu worm. “Eldest Princess, let’s leave this place first! The commotion just now was huge, and I’m afraid all the martial cultivators who entered the Heaven’s Secret Realm are heading here,” Zhao Ziyan subconsciously grabbed Feng Qinyue’s hand and pulled her away from the battlefield. The Eldest Princess was still being pursued. If some of her enemies were among the group coming to investigate, a battle would likely be inevitable.

“Good.”

Feng Qinyue followed behind Zhao Ziyan in a distracted manner. All her attention was focused on the hand that Zhao Ziyan was holding. Although she was already married and had lost the shyness of a maiden, a slight flush still colored her ears.

“Aren’t you worried about the Gu Saint?” Feng Qinyue asked with some hesitation.

“No need. My aunt is very strong. She will come find me after that Gu worm completes its evolution,” Zhao Ziyan said without looking back. If it were her beautiful mother, she would certainly be careful to protect her. As for Zhao Wenxiu, that shameless rascal, she only needed to worry that she wouldn’t indiscriminately kill innocent people and cause trouble for the Zhao family.

“You two have a great relationship,” Feng Qinyue said sourly. Feng Qinyue didn’t ask where Zhao Ziyan was taking her. She had a blind trust in Zhao Ziyan. Perhaps it was because Zhao Ziyan had saved her before, or perhaps because Zhao Ziyan did not act like a sixteen-year-old girl. Feng Qinyue subconsciously hoped that Zhao Ziyan’s endless stream of methods would bring her more surprises.

Sometimes, Feng Qinyue would often mock herself, “Love truly is harmful.” When she was being pursued, she had hoped her subordinates would find her soon. But now that she was out of danger, she suddenly didn’t want to leave Zhao Ziyan’s side quickly, even though Zhao Ziyan was completely oblivious to her feelings.

“Hehe,” Zhao Ziyan chuckled softly, not taking the Eldest Princess’s bait.

“We’ve arrived. Eldest Princess, please wait,” Zhao Ziyan carefully surveyed the deep cave of the Gibbon Monkey, and seeing no danger, Zhao Ziyan set up a simple Starfall Array left to her by Wuchenzi at the mouth of the cave, to prevent others from having the same idea of going to the Demon King’s lair to search for treasure. Demon beasts with awakened spiritual intelligence have an instinct to find treasures. Being able to find a demon beast’s lair means harvesting a considerable amount of wealth.

Feng Qinyue looked at the white, crystalline Gu worm in Zhao Ziyan’s hand with surprise. Wasn’t Zhao Wenxiu the only sorceress in the Zhao family? How could Zhao Ziyan also control a Gu worm? And the level of that crystalline white Gu worm didn’t seem low.

“Hehe, this Gu worm was found for me by Luo. I was too mischievous back then and couldn’t practice martial arts. She was afraid I would encounter danger, so she gave this Gu worm to me,” As if knowing Feng Qinyue’s doubt, Zhao Ziyan explained. Of course, she didn’t tell the Eldest Princess that Luo was her beautiful mother.

“Is that so?”

A dangerous glint flashed in Feng Qinyue’s eyes. Zhao Ziyan’s gaze toward the Gu worm was full of tenderness, as if looking at her lover. This made Feng Qinyue’s heart tighten. Zhao Ziyan’s expression when she mentioned Luo was so similar to her own expression when she thought of Zhao Ziyan. Otherwise, why would Zhao Ziyan look at a Gu worm as if it were a lover?

“A’Yan, this doesn’t seem to be that Demon King’s lair. My cultivation is higher than yours, let me lead the way!” Feng Qinyue possessively held Zhao Ziyan’s hand, her tone strong and allowing no argument.

The appearance of Luo intensified her sense of insecurity. A woman who was the most special in Zhao Ziyan’s heart made her have a deeper possessiveness toward Zhao Ziyan. She had originally wanted to use the method of ‘slow-boiling a frog in warm water’ to make Zhao Ziyan adapt to her presence. But now, she realized that Zhao Ziyan had attracted a lot of romantic attention. The first time she saw Zhao Ziyan, she was haughtily causing trouble. If Madam Bai didn’t have a good impression of Zhao Ziyan, how would she have allowed Zhao Ziyan to be so outrageous?

Madam Bai and she had known each other for ten years. What she talked about most was how Zhao Ziyan had made her angry again today, that Zhao Ziyan was a scoundrel, and that she would one day severely discipline her. But once Zhao Ziyan was bullied, Madam Bai would be the first to stand up for Zhao Ziyan.

And there was Zhao Ziyan’s Gu Saint aunt, who was old and showed no respect for her age. If she didn’t have a good impression of Zhao Ziyan, why would she be so docile and obedient to Zhao Ziyan that it almost made her believe that Zhao Wenxiu’s cruel reputation was a rumor? (If Auntie knew that trying to squeeze more benefits out of Ziyan turned into an old cow trying to eat tender grass in the Eldest Princess’s eyes! — Auntie: Eldest Princess, you come over here. I promise I won’t beat you to death.)

But the woman who caused Feng Qinyue the most headache was Luo, the most special woman in Zhao Ziyan’s heart. Why had her previous investigation of Zhao Ziyan never mentioned a woman named Luo approaching Zhao Ziyan? It seemed the Phoenix Team she established, which she thought was all-encompassing, still had major flaws.

Feng Qinyue rubbed her slightly aching forehead. If Zhao Ziyan were more ordinary, without the prominent status of the Zhao Family Head, she wouldn’t have to be so conflicted. She would simply imprison Zhao Ziyan in the Eldest Princess’s manor, and Zhao Ziyan would be hers for life, alive or dead.

“The Eldest Princess has a noble status and should not put herself at risk. Having Little Luo lead the way is enough. She is very sensitive to spiritual energy, so there’s no need to worry about taking a wrong turn,” Zhao Ziyan tried to pull her hand, which was tightly held by the Eldest Princess. The Eldest Princess’s strength was too great. Zhao Ziyan tried several times but couldn’t pull her hand out. She looked at the Eldest Princess in confusion. She always felt that the Eldest Princess’s gaze towards her was very intense, and her attitude, though seemingly gentle, carried a hidden dominance that made Zhao Ziyan completely uncomfortable. Fortunately, after leaving the Heaven’s Secret Realm, the Eldest Princess would return to the Imperial Capital to fight for the throne, which relieved Zhao Ziyan. She wouldn’t have to interact with her again, and the Eldest Princess wouldn’t pose a threat to her…

Little Luo happily led the way in front. Keeping Little Luo locked in the Immortal Artifact Space all these days almost drove her to depression. But the Heaven’s Secret Realm was too dangerous, and Zhao Ziyan was worried about letting Little Luo fly around freely. Little Luo was a protective Gu given to her by her beautiful mother. If she were injured, Zhao Ziyan would probably be heartbroken.

Little Luo was a Flying Silkworm. Unlike Zhao Wenxiu’s Silver Phoenix Gu, it did not possess strange and powerful attacks. The Flying Silkworm’s greatest ability was for healing. If the host’s life was in danger, the Flying Silkworm would draw upon its own life force to supplement the host’s vitality. As long as it wasn’t an instant kill, under the Flying Silkworm’s life force replenishment, the host’s injuries would slowly heal.

Zhao Ziyan had been beaten up many times before she transmigrated. The Zhao family always liked to feign weakness to lure the enemy (act like a pig to eat the tiger). In White Tiger City, the Zhao family only showed the strength of a typical small family. And Zhao Ziyan was an arrogant and overbearing person. There were quite a few pampered children in White Tiger City, such as the Bai family, a major taxpayer who also liked to feign weakness to lure the enemy like the Zhao family, and the Lin family, who pretended to be weak with declining talent. Except for the Bai family, who liked to show off and had a small reputation in the Empire, the Zhao and Lin families were both known for their low-key existence.

When Zhao Ziyan transmigrated, she complained more than once that the major families in White Tiger City all liked to employ the ‘feign weakness to lure the enemy’ tactic. Clearly, any one of these forces would be a top-tier major family outside of White Tiger City, yet they all preferred to stay nestled in White Tiger City. She wondered what kind of treasure White Tiger City held. Otherwise, why would it require the presence of three top-tier families? Zhao Ziyan absolutely did not believe that the three families had no ambition and were content to live out their lives guarding White Tiger City. Of course, with her current strength, she couldn’t yet access such secrets, even though Zhao Ziyan was the Zhao Family Head.

“Luminous Gold Stone, Starfall Gold, Gold Essence Stone, and there’s even a spiritual stone mine… I’m rich! Sure enough, cultivators all like to explore ancient ruins. It’s an uncapitalized business for sudden wealth. In the cultivation world, these artifact-refining treasures would probably have been completely plundered, leaving nothing but scraps. Yet, here in the Cang Kui Continent, they are just casually placed in the passage. It’s such a waste! No wonder a heavenly spiritual essence like Dragon Saliva Grass can grow above the ruins. This place is practically a treasure trove!”

Zhao Ziyan suppressed her excitement and carefully surveyed the treasures appearing in the ruins one by one. She had struck gold! If she could move all these back to the Zhao family, she wouldn’t have to worry about artifact-refining materials for decades. And with this batch of ores, when her cultivation reached the Golden Core stage of the cultivation world and produced the Three Flavors True Fire, Zhao Ziyan could forge several spirit artifacts for the Zhao family. With the aid of several spirit artifacts, the Zhao family’s strength would definitely rise to a new level. She was grateful to heaven for letting her transmigrate to a world without cultivators. Thinking about how people in the cultivation world would fight fiercely over even a thousand-year-old ginseng, the Cang Kui Continent was simply an undeveloped treasure trove. Spiritual herbs and precious ores were everywhere. As long as one had people and money, there was no treasure they couldn’t find.

“A’Yan, do you know what this black ore is used for?”

The Eldest Princess casually picked up a black ore, handed it to Zhao Ziyan, and at the same time looked at the agitated Zhao Ziyan in confusion. Although Zhao Ziyan concealed her emotions well, the Eldest Princess was adept at reading people and naturally saw that Zhao Ziyan’s emotions were fluctuating greatly. These ores were useless, and the texture wasn’t hard enough. Only the spiritual stone mine was somewhat useful, but given the Zhao family’s financial resources, Zhao Ziyan shouldn’t be so excited about this small amount of spiritual stone.

“Wait, it’s a Void Stone! Eldest Princess, can I take a look at this ore?” Zhao Ziyan grabbed the Eldest Princess’s hand in excitement after just one glance.

She took the black ore from Feng Qinyue’s hand and examined it carefully. Her divine sense also probed inside the black ore. If she wasn’t mistaken, this black ore was a Void Stone, specifically used for refining storage rings.

The Void Stone was the ore Zhao Ziyan needed most right now. Although Void Stone was not considered a very precious mineral in the cultivation world, Zhao Ziyan hadn’t been able to find any on the Cang Kui Continent.

She only had one Immortal Artifact left to her by Wuchenzi for defense that could be used for storage. But frequently using an Immortal Artifact to store things meant the Immortal Artifact could be exposed at any time. But if she refined several more storage rings, she could claim that the storage rings were made by her when storing things. Zhao Ziyan believed that the powerful individuals of the Cang Kui Continent wouldn’t go so far as to commit murder and robbery for a storage ring that could be refined at any time to hold things. At most, Zhao Ziyan would compromise and help them refine one. But once the Immortal Artifact was discovered, Zhao Ziyan knew she would die a miserable death. Even the Zhao family couldn’t protect her. She wouldn’t be naive enough to believe that there truly were no Martial Venerable-level experts on the Cang Kui Continent.

“Void Stone?” Feng Qinyue asked in confusion. Seeing Zhao Ziyan’s ecstatic look, she understood how much Zhao Ziyan valued this black ore. Feng Qinyue also examined it carefully but still couldn’t figure out what the use of this ore was.

“It’s for refining storage rings. Eldest Princess, please guard me. Once I refine the storage ring, you will know,”

Zhao Ziyan subtly took out eighty pieces of top-grade Fire Spirit Stone from the space. She hadn’t reached the Golden Core stage yet, so she had to rely on the Fire Spirit Power of the Fire Spirit Stones to refine this Void Stone. She didn’t have many top-grade Spirit Stones, but for the sake of her life, she was willing to part with a few Spirit Stones.

The Heaven’s Secret Realm was full of dangers, and a moment of carelessness could mean the downfall of even a Martial Saint cultivator. Zhao Ziyan and Zhao Wenxiu were currently on the fourth underground floor of the Heaven’s Secret Realm ruins. At this time, Zhao Ziyan no longer had her initial confidence. Her clothes and hair were messy, and her body was stained with black bl00d. She looked no different from a beggar on the street.

“Aunt, what kind of ghost place is this? Once you enter, you can’t get out,” Zhao Ziyan asked breathlessly, as she struck down a bat that was attacking her with a single sword slash.

“It’s the Martial Venerable Ruins. Three years ago, the Sect Master of the Heaven’s Mechanism Sect calculated that the Martial Venerable Ruins would reappear in the world after the Heaven’s Secret Realm opened this time. I initially thought that old fellow was talking nonsense, but I didn’t expect him to have some real ability,”

Zhao Wenxiu wiped the black-water bat bl00d off her face with her wide sleeve. Zhao Wenxiu, who usually relied on Gu worms to demonstrate her power, surprisingly did not deploy the powerful weapon of Gu worms. Instead, she wielded a cold-gleaming long sword, slowly cutting down the numerous black-water bats one by one.

“The Martial Venerable Ruins are filled with treasures. If we survive, Aunt, you won’t have to complain about being utterly poor all day long. We’ve only reached the fourth floor now, I wonder how many more there are?” Zhao Ziyan’s sword-wielding hand didn’t stop. Every strike killed a black-water bat. Once her True Essence was depleted, she would take a Returning Essence Pill from her jade bottle to replenish it. Although the black-water bats were numerous, Zhao Ziyan didn’t need to worry about exhausting her True Essence and dying of depletion.

“This is the last wave, Ziyan, don’t underestimate it,” As soon as Zhao Wenxiu finished speaking, a dense swarm of black-water bats flapped their fleshy wings and roared towards Zhao Ziyan. The countless black-water bats completely covered the spacious hall, which was the size of a basketball court.

“Glazed Shield, activate!”

Zhao Ziyan wielded the long sword, which emitted a three-inch red sword light, so tightly that it was impenetrable. The black-water bats that touched the sword light were all sliced in half. But seeing the increasing number of black-water bats, Zhao Ziyan knew she couldn’t resist. She grit her teeth and activated another defensive spirit artifact, the Glazed Shield.

“Aunt, come in!” Zhao Ziyan shouted, pulling Zhao Wenxiu, who was independently cutting down the black-water bats, into the Glazed Shield.

“Ziyan, you truly have quite a few good treasures on you. Why don’t you quickly take out ten or eight to honor this old woman?” Zhao Wenxiu looked at the Glazed Shield in surprise, then glanced at Zhao Ziyan, who was directing the Glazed Shield‘s energy consumption. She had always thought Zhao Ziyan only had one excellent spirit sword, but now she had taken out another top-grade defensive magical artifact. Her wealth was so abundant that it made her envious. She had been cheating and deceiving for decades and only acquired a few fine spirit treasures. How could her little niece casually take out several? Her little niece truly had many secrets! Should she just rob her little niece? Then she could stop fighting and plundering everywhere. Robbing her niece was truly a tempting thought.

“Aunt, you’re still making sarcastic remarks! Using this treasure consumes a lot of True Essence. I can only last for an hour. If we can’t escape, Aunt will have to go to the Yellow Springs with me,” Zhao Ziyan glared fiercely at Zhao Wenxiu. Seeing that Zhao Wenxiu was still relaxed and composed, without any panic as if her life was threatened, she knew that Zhao Wenxiu still had unspent trump cards. Zhao Ziyan calmed down and focused on controlling the Glazed Shield.

“Look how anxious you are. Aunt still wants to achieve Martial Venerable status. How can I bear to die with you in this small place? Young people are just too impatient. Look how calm Aunt is,” Zhao Wenxiu threw a charming glance at Zhao Ziyan, covered her small mouth, and her eyes curved as she laughed, shaking with mirth.

Seeing that Zhao Ziyan’s mood had stabilized, Zhao Wenxiu decided to stop teasing her. Zhao Ziyan’s initial panic when caught off guard by the black-water bats truly amused her for a while, but in a blink of an eye, Zhao Ziyan recovered, which made Zhao Wenxiu lose interest. Her niece was not cute at all. Other people’s nieces were all soft and adorable, but hers had such a difficult temper.

Zhao Wenxiu frowned. She didn’t put the small black-water bats in her eyes. The reason she didn’t summon the Gu worm initially was to train Zhao Ziyan. The black-water bats were low level, which was perfect for Zhao Ziyan to practice with.

“Silver Phoenix, go! Multitude Shadow Clone,” Zhao Wenxiu’s clear voice echoed in the ruins hall. A black Gu worm flew out from Zhao Wenxiu’s body. At first, the black Gu worm desperately lunged at a black-water bat with a slight golden hue on its body. The black Gu worm’s teeth bit sharply into the black-water bat’s body. The golden black-water bat let out a miserable shriek and instantly turned into a shriveled, bloodless dead bat, which fell to the ground with a soft thud.

Immediately afterward, the Gu worm that killed the golden black-water bat transformed without hesitation into a swarm of black Gu worms that looked identical to the Silver Phoenix Gu. Zhao Ziyan heard Zhao Wenxiu muttering a chant she didn’t understand. Then, the swarm of black Gu worms viciously pounced on the crowded black-water bats in the hall. The slaughter began. Zhao Ziyan watched with initial interest.

Afterward, her face couldn’t help but turn pale. The swarm of black Gu worms were truly brutal and bloodthirsty. Watching the group of black Gu worms, only the size of a fingernail, slowly devour the black-water bats, which were the size of a bowl, until only a thin layer of skin remained, Zhao Ziyan silently recited the Cleansing Heart Incantation while looking at Zhao Wenxiu with pity. How had she, a young woman, endured the disgust of raising Gu worms for so many years? That swarm of black Gu worms were truly gluttons. There was still a bit of skin left just now, but now even the skin was eaten clean. They ate too much! No wonder Zhao Wenxiu always complained about being poor. To feed such a swarm of Gu worms, no amount of wealth would be enough!

“Now you know Aunt’s strength, right? If you dare to disrespect Aunt again in the future, Aunt will catch you and feed you to the worms,” Zhao Wenxiu patted Zhao Ziyan’s shoulder triumphantly. The evolved ancient Gu worm, the Silver Phoenix Gu, was truly powerful. The black-water bat king, which had the cultivation of a Martial General, was instantly killed before it could even touch the Silver Phoenix Gu. The small black-water bats, which had the cultivation of Great Martial Soldiers, were also completely wiped out.

“Let’s go. The restriction on the fifth floor is loosening. Let’s head to the fifth floor!” Zhao Ziyan regulated her slightly unstable internal energy and sat cross-legged on the ground to refine the medicinal power of the elixir remaining in her body. Although elixirs could replenish True Essence and even break through bottlenecks, they were not one’s own after all. If not refined in time after consumption, the medicinal power of the elixir would clog the meridians, leading to an unstable foundation, which would be very detrimental to future cultivation advancement.

“Wait a minute, we haven’t found the treasure on the fourth floor yet. Although the hall is empty, the first three floors all had treasures, so the fourth floor must have something too,” Zhao Wenxiu grabbed Zhao Ziyan’s body, which was about to step down, and continued to search the fourth-floor hall unhurriedly.

Zhao Ziyan had no choice but to accompany her. Zhao Wenxiu had been searching for an hour and still hadn’t given up. In fact, Zhao Ziyan was also a little unwilling. Knowing there was a treasure but unable to find it was truly frustrating.

“Aunt, where else haven’t you looked? It’s been two hours already. The Fountain of Life must be on the ninth floor. If someone gets there first, the loss will outweigh the gain,” Seeing no sign of any treasure, Zhao Ziyan finally couldn’t help but want to continue descending. The Fountain of Life was the most important thing. As for treasures, they were not essential to Zhao Ziyan.

“Fine, let’s go down first!” Zhao Wenxiu sighed, finally persuaded by Zhao Ziyan. If she couldn’t find the treasure on the fourth floor, so be it. If they wasted time, she might not be able to accomplish her objective for coming to the Heaven’s Secret Realm this time.

Fighting their way through, Zhao Ziyan and Zhao Wenxiu finally reached the seventh floor. Starting from the fourth floor, no treasures were found on the remaining floors, but many dead bodies were discovered. There were members of major sects, families, and even an outer elder of the Zhao family who died on the fifth floor.

Zhao Ziyan and Zhao Wenxiu exchanged glances, both understanding why no treasures were found on the fourth floor. It turned out that the first three floors existed independently. The entrance to the ruins was scattered around the Heaven’s Secret Realm, with no fixed location. One only needed to kill a Demon King guarding the entrance to the ruins to find the entrance. And starting from the fourth floor, the humans who entered the first three floors of the ruins all converged on the fourth floor.

“Aunt, should we help?” Zhao Ziyan and Zhao Wenxiu concealed their aura and hid behind a sand dune on the seventh floor. The seventh floor of the ruins was no longer a simple hall but contained a world within a world. The cultivators who survived the sixth floor were transported by a mysterious force to a boundless desert. Zhao Ziyan was currently following the Zhao family team led by the Grand Elder. Although she didn’t care about the lives of others, as the Zhao Family Head, she naturally couldn’t ignore them.

“No need. The Grand Elder is definitely not as incompetent as you think. That Sand Dragon Beast is absolutely no match for Zhao Xie. Although Zhao Xie is not the strongest among the eight Grand Elders of the Zhao family, only being in the late stage of Martial Saint, he is the most composed one. You can tell he has only used thirty percent of his power because he still hasn’t used the Zhao family’s Dragon Sword Transformation Divine Technique. Let’s go first! Zhao Xie probably intends to let the Zhao family disciples gain some experience,” Zhao Wenxiu whispered suggestively close to Zhao Ziyan’s ear. She then pulled Zhao Ziyan to look for the entrance to the eighth floor. There were already many cultivators who had reached the seventh floor. Just walking around, they noticed martial artists killing each other for spirit treasures and spirit herbs everywhere.

“Mhm, okay,” Zhao Ziyan responded and followed Zhao Wenxiu out of the sand dune.

The warm breath Zhao Wenxiu exhaled just now was puffing onto her ear, causing an itchy sensation that made Zhao Ziyan, who was usually conceited and thick-skinned, blush slightly, feeling a mix of shyness and excitement.

Zhao Ziyan secretly thought, was Zhao Wenxiu, who was always shamelessly tempting her to commit a crime, unable to suppress her lust? Well, she was an old woman of thirty-nine, almost forty, and still a virgin. No wonder she was desperate to hook up with her own niece. A woman in her prime, like a wolf at thirty and a tiger at forty, was probably constantly burning with lust. But besides herself, who else would dare to touch her, considering she raised bugs all day long?

If Zhao Wenxiu knew her niece was slandering her like this in her heart, she would probably be so furious and ashamed that she would pull out her long sword and try to perish with Zhao Ziyan.