"I owe you again."
Ning Huarong said suddenly in the high sky.
After taking the high-grade recovery elixir given by Ning Fa, her condition had recovered significantly, but it would take time to fully heal.
"You don't need to feel guilty. Tan Yingzhen might have been after me," Ning Fa sighed.
He had felt something was off from the start. The woman in the green dress seemed to know he was coming, and Lu Caifu's sound transmission later confirmed it.
"Brother Ning, it's right here."
At this moment, Lu Caifu, not far away, turned and smiled lightly at Ning Fa.
Below, on the peak of a spirit mountain, stood a grand and elegant pavilion courtyard.
"Go back and recuperate first,"
Ning Fa said to Ning Huarong before descending with Lu Caifu.
Ning Huarong remained silent, paused for a long time, then transformed into a purple light and flew away in an instant.
Soon, Ning Fa and Lu Caifu were seated opposite each other in a pavilion within the courtyard. Beautiful maids served spiritual tea and quietly withdrew.
Lu Caifu examined Ning Fa carefully and sighed, "I never expected it would be so long and so much would happen before I saw you again, Brother Ning.
You've progressed by leaps and bounds as always. To have broken through to the Late Nascent Soul stage at such a young age, under two hundred years old, is truly rare even in the long history of our Great Qin Cultivation World.
Moreover, your strength far surpasses others at the same level. You even defeated the renowned Liang Xiong so thoroughly.
Of course, with your clan's unfathomable divine abilities capable of rivaling Spirit Transformation cultivators, not to mention Liang Xiong, even other famous Nascent Soul experts in our Great Qin would likely be no match for you."
As she spoke, Lu Caifu's star-like eyes suddenly shone with brilliant light, and she looked directly at Ning Fa, asking, "Brother Ning, I just arrived at the Nine Dragons Sea and heard an astonishing rumor.
They say that the exceptionally talented Spirit Transformation Demon Cultivator of the Nine Dragons Sea Demon Court, Ying Xiao, was killed by you alone. Is this true?"
Ning Fa nodded faintly.
Even though Lu Caifu had anticipated it, her delicate body couldn't help but tremble, and she looked at Ning Fa as if he were a monster.
After a long while, she finally relaxed and sighed, "Unbelievable, inconceivable... Even if I searched through the vast sea of records in my merchant alliance, I would be hard-pressed to find someone like you, Brother Ning."
"What exactly happened?" Ning Fa, too lazy to explain further, stared intently into her eyes and pressed her for an answer.
Lu Caifu had previously sent him a sound transmission saying there was more to this matter than a simple conflict.
Lu Caifu shook her head with a wry smile, "Brother Ning, do you know Tan Yingzhen's true identity?
She is a direct descendant of an elder Tan, a deceased Spirit Transformation elder of our Qianyuan Merchant Alliance. Currently, she has also been taken in as a personal disciple by another Spirit Transformation elder, Elder Zhong.
Furthermore, Elder Tan was previously the Cultivation Elder of our alliance, and countless mid-to-high-level members benefited from his kindness. This legacy naturally fell upon Tan Yingzhen.
Therefore, her background within our merchant alliance is as profound as mine."
Ning Fa's brows rose, somewhat surprised.
He had a general idea of Lu Caifu's background.
Among the five Spirit Transformation cultivators of the Qianyuan Merchant Alliance, one bore the surname Lu and ranked third within the alliance, even above Venerable Ling Jun.
Lu Caifu was likely his direct descendant.
That Elder Zhong was likely Elder Zhong Wenlan, the fifth-ranked Spirit Transformation cultivator in the Qianyuan Merchant Alliance, whose Daoist title was Fairy Guanlan.
Although she ranked fifth, she was very famous, and Ning Fa had even heard her name before.
This Spirit Transformation cultivator was known as the number one Array Formation Grandmaster in the Human Realm.
Such a status elevation might place her slightly higher than ordinary Spirit Transformation cultivators.
Tan Yingzhen's background was even more significant than he had imagined.
But why did she only mention being Gu Ying's Dao Companion just now and not her master at all?
Could it be that she felt Gu Ying carried more deterrence?
At this point, Lu Caifu pondered for a moment and then said, "At the same time, Tan Yingzhen is indeed Gu Ying's Dao Companion, or more accurately, she soon won't be.
As for Gu Ying, Brother Ning can probably guess from his name that he is indeed the great-grandson of our alliance's Chief Supreme Elder, Gu Zun.
He is also the most talented descendant of the Gu family in over a thousand years, possessing a superior innate spiritual body.
He formed his Nascent Soul at 130 years old and advanced to the Late Nascent Soul stage at 220 years old. He has a good chance of impacting the Spirit Transformation stage in the future, and a significant one at that.
Therefore, Gu Zun dotes on him immensely. In terms of status, I am far inferior to him. Gu Ying was long ago designated as our alliance's top seed for Spirit Transformation.
Later, Gu Ying pursued Tan Yingzhen, and they became Dao Companions, which was considered a beautiful story within our merchant alliance. However, in recent years, Gu Ying has wanted to dissolve his Dao Companion relationship with Tan Yingzhen, and the reason for this..."
Lu Caifu paused here, her expression conflicted, as if unsure how to proceed.
Ning Fa's brows furrowed, "Could this also be related to me?"
Lu Caifu gave a wry smile, "Indeed."
She hesitated, seemingly unsure whether to speak or not, and finally sighed after a long moment.
"The reason Gu Ying wanted to break off his Dao Companion relationship with Tan Yingzhen was entirely because of Daoist Ning, or more accurately, because of your daughter.
Gu Ying wants to marry Daoist Ning's daughter, which is why he did this."
Upon hearing this, Ning Fa was stunned for a moment.
His first reaction was that it was absurd.
No, it was utterly absurd!
In that instant, he almost doubted his own ears, looking at Lu Caifu with an incredulous expression.
Lu Caifu's wry smile deepened. "Daoist Ning, I'm not joking with you. This is the truth.
Your daughter seems to possess rare talent in the world.
When the Yuan Cha Gate's branch in your Cangyuan Cultivation World was still active, they had already identified her as their Mystic Maiden before she was even born, and even tried to snatch her away.
This matter later came to the attention of the Yuan Cha Gate's main sect.
To be honest, if the Yuan Cha Gate's Spirit Transformation Ancestor hadn't been in closed-door cultivation at the time, she might have personally come to seize Daoist Ning's daughter.
Later, although the Yuan Cha Gate's Spirit Transformation Ancestor emerged from seclusion, the news that Daoist Ning had hired the Heavenly Treasure Immortal Merchant had already spread, and she could only give up.
However, the Yuan Cha Gate later told Gu Zun about this matter to curry favor with him.
Since then, Gu Ying has firmly believed that if he were to cultivate with your daughter as his Dao Companion, it could even provide him with significant assistance in breaking through to the Spirit Transformation stage.
Daoist Ning's personality is also known to outsiders, so Gu Ying knew that if he had other Dao Companions, it would be difficult for him to successfully propose marriage to Daoist Ning.
That's why, even though Tan Yingzhen has a deep background within our Merchant Alliance, he insisted on breaking off their Dao Companion relationship.
Initially, this matter was highly confidential, and our Merchant Alliance didn't know why Gu Ying was suddenly doing this.
But clearly, Tan Yingzhen now knows the inside story, so her seeking out Daoist Ning Huarong for trouble is actually intended to make Daoist Ning and Gu Ying fall out, thus lowering his chances of success."
Hearing this, Ning Fa's expression changed several times.
So, it was for this reason.
This Gu Ying actually wanted to use Le'er to attempt Spirit Transformation!?
The mere word "dual cultivation" ignited an boundless rage within Ning Fa's heart.
With a "boom" sound!
A fierce aura, like a collapse of a mountain ten thousand feet high, surged from Ning Fa's body, sweeping outwards.
Lu Caifu's pretty face immediately turned pale, and she retreated rapidly. At the same time, she summoned a defensive Magic Treasure that resembled a white umbrella, which spun rapidly, protecting her.
In an instant, the courtyard, which had a not weak Barrier protection, was reduced to ruins.
After a long while, Lu Caifu cautiously approached again, her heart trembling.
She carefully looked at Ning Fa's face, which was like eternal ice, and gave a wry smile.
Although she had anticipated that Ning Fa would be difficult to persuade, she never expected his reaction to be so intense upon hearing the news.
At this moment, Ning Fa regained his senses, and his anger was beyond words.
Because in his eyes, Le'er was still an innocent child, and yet this old man Gu Ying, who was hundreds of years old, wanted to lay his hands on her.
This had completely crossed his bottom line.
"How dare he! How dare he!?"
Ning Fa gritted his teeth and repeated these two sentences, the rage in his eyes almost tangible.
If Gu Ying were in front of Ning Fa right now, Ning Fa would likely disregard everything and crush him to death.
Lu Caifu was also startled by Ning Fa's current state, but a hint of confusion flickered in her beautiful eyes.
In her opinion, Ning Fa's reaction seemed a bit too extreme, making her hesitate whether to continue with what she had prepared to say.
However, remembering her previous promise, she carefully chose her words. "Daoist Ning, in reality, Gu Ying is not that unbearable.
Despite his background and status, he still cultivates diligently and is not swayed by external temptations.
Otherwise, even with his excellent talent and the support of the Merchant Alliance, it would be difficult for him to cultivate so quickly.
Before this, he only had Tan Yingzhen as his Dao Companion, and his actions were not particularly wicked.
While he can't be called noble, his conduct can be described as upright.
He is even less than three hundred years old now, which is considered very young for his cultivation level, making him a suitable candidate for a husband.
If the two of them were to marry, it might be a beautiful union.
With Daoist Ning's background, coupled with our Qianyuan Merchant Alliance, it would be a powerful alliance. I believe it would make my niece, whom I have never met, have a remarkably smooth Immortal Path ahead of her, and..."
"Enough! Shut up!"
Before Lu Caifu could finish, Ning Fa roared at her in a furious rage.
Simultaneously, the wind and clouds changed, and a palpable, sharp Sword Intent pointed directly at Lu Caifu, as if she would suffer a tempestuous attack if she uttered another word.
Lu Caifu immediately froze, like a statue, regretting it deeply. She had secretly clutched a emerald green ring.
Although they were both at the Late Nascent Soul stage, Lu Caifu had a premonition that if she didn't use the life-saving Spiritual Material bestowed by her ancestor, she might be killed by Ning Fa within a single breath.
A long while later, Ning Fa's violent aura slowly receded. However, he still stared coldly at Lu Caifu, his voice icy as he said:
"Are you acting as a go-between for that Gu Ying? Did he approach you before?"
Feeling the terrifying Sword Intent recede slightly, Lu Caifu finally let out a long sigh of relief and quickly gave a wry smile.
"Yes, Gu Ying did approach me before.
He knew I had a bit of a connection with you, Daoist Ning, so he wanted me to sound you out first.
Naturally, I didn't want to, but then my grandfather personally spoke to me. I had no choice but to agree.
However, I'm not trying to sugarcoat things for him. Otherwise, I wouldn't have told you truthfully about him and Tan Yingzhen.
It's just that I did promise him, so I still have to put in a good word for him. What I've said is indeed the truth.
And Daoist Ning, you don't need to worry. Gu Ying has no other ill intentions. He doesn't intend to take advantage of your daughter in a one-sided manner. Instead, after marrying your daughter, he plans to cultivate a secret dual cultivation technique from our Merchant Alliance.
This technique is extraordinary. In fact, the reason Gu Ying is so persistent in wanting to marry your daughter is precisely because of this cultivation method.
Because this technique is very special, it has extremely high requirements for the aptitude of both the male and female cultivators. Even ordinary Heavenly Spiritual Roots or special spiritual roots won't suffice.
One must possess a congenital Spiritual Body, and not just any low-tier spiritual body will do. It must be a high-grade spiritual body to be qualified to cultivate it.
Furthermore, the better the aptitude, the greater the boost from cultivating this technique. It even has unbelievable effects on breaking through bottlenecks, including the bottleneck of Spirit Transformation.
Gu Ying is now convinced that your daughter possesses a spiritual body that is even stronger than his own.
As I said before, although he comes from a prominent background, he is like an ascetic. For him, improving his cultivation is more important than anything else.
So, despite the numerous obstacles, he resolutely decided to sever his Dao Companion relationship with Tan Yingzhen and propose marriage to you. He even began preparing for this a long time ago.
In fact, even if you agree, you wouldn't need to marry your daughter off immediately.
This is because the technique requires both cultivators to be within the same major realm.
So, you could wait until your daughter advances to the Nascent Soul stage before they officially get married.
Your daughter is likely only in her tens of years old, still very young, and possibly still at the Foundation Establishment stage.
But with her aptitude, combined with the full support of you, Daoist Ning, and our Qianyuan Merchant Alliance, advancing to Nascent Soul within a hundred years is not an impossible dream.
Therefore, Gu Ying is currently only seeking a verbal commitment from you, Daoist Ning. He has also prepared an extremely generous betrothal gift for this purpose."
Lu Caifu finished speaking in one breath and looked at Ning Fa somewhat nervously.
She had been somewhat confident at first because this was also greatly beneficial to Ning Fa's daughter.
After all, it would be hard to find a more outstanding son-in-law than Gu Ying in the entire Human Realm, and Gu Ying's sincerity was also very evident.
However, after seeing Ning Fa's reaction, she was no longer so sure.
At this moment, the rage on Ning Fa's face had subsided somewhat.
He realized he had been too quick to judge.
After all, he knew that Le'er was still just a child, but from Lu Caifu's perspective, perhaps decades had passed, and Le'er had already grown into an adult, at least at the Foundation Establishment stage.
But the problem was, how did this Gu Ying know Le'er's approximate age?
Zhu Lingyun only woke up after arriving at Qianmo Sea in the Nine Dragons Sea, and Le'er was born then. Currently, the outside world had no knowledge of Zhu Lingyun and Le'er's existence.
Ning Fa narrowed his eyes slightly and said coldly, "Why is Gu Ying so certain that Le'er definitely possesses a high-grade spiritual body? And why did he break off with Tan Yingzhen before even confirming it, just because the Yuan Cha Gate said my daughter is some kind of Mystic Maiden?"