"Qingqing, what's wrong?!"
Old Lady Jin Hua and Lixin Xianzi were the first to notice something amiss and immediately flashed over. Qiao'er, standing nearby, was also badly frightened and cried out, "Senior Sister! Senior Sister! Why is your face so pale? What's wrong? Don't scare Qiao'er..." At the same time, Mo Baiyu, Yun Zhou, Fu Ying, and others saw Upper Immortal Qingqing's deathly pale complexion and anxiously rushed over.
At this moment.
Upper Immortal Qingqing clutched her chest, her expression filled with extreme panic. The radiance around her body flickered wildly, her Immortal Power surging chaotically as if provoked by something. Seeing this, Old Lady Jin Hua asked, "Did you overexert your vital energy earlier when you took action to heal inside?"
Upper Immortal Qingqing shook her head and said, "I don't know why, but Ling Yu suddenly and inexplicably erupted into a frenzy!"
Everyone present knew that Ling Yu was Upper Immortal Qingqing's Immortal Sword, and moreover, an Immortal Sword of extraordinary spiritual nature. It was said that Qingqing's Ling Yu Immortal Sword even contained a sword spirit, capable not only of sensing danger but also of protecting its master in critical moments—a truly rare Immortal Sword.
"Could it be that Ling Yu has sensed some danger?"
Mo Baiyu and the others inquired with concern.
They might not know, but Old Lady Jin Hua and Lixin Xianzi were aware that if Qingqing's Ling Yu Sword sensed danger, it would only emit a sharp, urgent buzzing sound; it would never erupt into a frenzied state. Moreover, as Qingqing's closest confidantes, they had never heard of Qingqing's Ling Yu Sword undergoing any such violent disturbance.
"Not good!"
Suddenly!
Qingqing's expression changed drastically. She leaped into the air, flashing to appear high above the deck. Immediately after, with a deafening explosion, vast Immortal Power erupted from Upper Immortal Qingqing's body.
"Do not approach me, anyone!"
After uttering these words.
Upper Immortal Qingqing immediately began forming Immortal Seals with her hands, attempting to suppress the uncontrollable Immortal Power within her.
"Everyone who values their lives, get away from here now!"
Seeing that Mo Baiyu, Yun Zhou, and other foolhardy individuals still wanted to approach Qingqing at this moment, Lixin Xianzi immediately flashed over and sternly rebuked them. Then, she also began forming Immortal Seals, deploying layer upon layer of defensive formations to protect Upper Immortal Qingqing. Due to the suddenness of the event and their lack of understanding regarding the true situation within Qingqing's body, they dared not act recklessly.
On the deck.
Huode still stood there, stroking the few strands of his beard, frowning as he watched for a while. Then he lowered his head and transmitted a secret message, asking, "What's going on here?"
Gu Qingfeng shrugged, indicating that he didn't know either.
Huode whispered, "It couldn't be you causing trouble, could it?"
Noticing the unfriendly look Gu Qingfeng shot his way, Huode quickly amended, "That's not what I meant. I meant to say, could it be that Upper Immortal Qingqing's Immortal Sword got scared by you, kid? Didn't they say Qingqing's Ling Yu Sword is highly spiritual and can sense danger?"
"What's that supposed to mean? Are you saying my very existence is dangerous?"
"Isn't that stating the obvious? On this big ship of ours, besides you, kid, who else could be the most dangerous?"
"That shouldn't be very likely, right?"
Gu Qingfeng reclined in his chair, rubbing his chin as he thought. Even he couldn't be sure about this matter. "I'm just sitting here. I haven't said a single word, nor have I stirred any killing intent. How could I be dangerous?"
"That's hard to say. Back here earlier, you didn't stir any killing intent either, but didn't Immortal Yunyan, that little demon lord, still get scared shitless by you, not even daring to fart?"
"That's different. Demons and monsters fear me because I once ruled the Nine Nethers and commanded the Nine Nethers Ancestral Flame. I carry remnants of the Nine Nethers aura that inspires awe in them. Besides, this Nine Nethers aura is already extremely faint. Ordinary demons and monsters wouldn't even detect it; only those ancient fiends or ones bearing Heavenly Mandates might sense a trace of it. As for an Immortal Sword, no matter how spiritual it is, it's highly unlikely to perceive it."
"What if Upper Immortal Qingqing's Immortal Sword happens to be a demonic object?"
After voicing his suspicion, Huode shook his head again, dismissing it. "That shouldn't be possible either. After all, she's a disciple of Emperor Fusheng, bears the Immortal Dao's Edict Mandate, and is one of the Great Wasteland's publicly recognized Ten Great Upper Immortals. She wouldn't use a demonic object as her Immortal Sword."
"This little lady isn't just someone bearing the Immortal Dao's Edict Mandate. On top of that, she also possesses a Fortune born of destiny."
"Really?"
Huode scrutinized her carefully, looking her over repeatedly, but could only perceive several auras of mysterious Fortune around Upper Immortal Qingqing. As for what these mysterious Fortunes were, he didn't know. Hearing Gu Qingfeng say it was a destiny-born Fortune truly shocked Huode.
No matter what kind of Fortune it was, if it was born of destiny, it was beyond the imagination of ordinary people. In a sense, a destiny-born Fortune was even more precious and complex than so-called Heavenly Mandates.
Curious, Huode asked, "Upper Immortal Qingqing has four auras of Fortune on her. One is the Immortal Dao's Edict Mandate, one is the destiny-born Fortune. What are the other two?"
"The Great Dao's Radiance Immortal Physique, and not one bestowed by the Nine Heavens either. She was born with it, innate and inherent."
Hearing this, Huode couldn't help but take a deep breath, muttering, "No wonder rumors outside say Upper Immortal Qingqing is a favored child of the current era, a fairy blessed with boundless grace. A destiny-born Fortune and the Great Dao's Radiance Immortal Physique—that's already damn impressive. What about the other one? What is it?"
"Another Edict Mandate."
"What do you mean? Are you saying Upper Immortal Qingqing bears not only the Immortal Dao's Edict Mandate?"
Seeing Gu Qingfeng nod, Huode pressed, "What other Edict Mandate does she bear?"
Gu Qingfeng pointed upward. Huode looked up and exclaimed in astonishment, "You mean... the Heavenly Dao's Edict Mandate?"
"Not exactly the Heavenly Dao's Edict Mandate, but close. It's more like the Mandate of the Great Nature."
"Good heavens! This Upper Immortal Qingqing keeps her secrets well hidden! The world only knows she's an Upper Immortal bearing the Immortal Dao's Edict Mandate and a direct disciple of Emperor Fusheng. They don't know she's also a Destined Talent bearing the Mandate of the Great Nature, plus the Great Dao's Radiance Immortal Physique... That's just too many Fortunes."
Indeed.
Because Huode could tell that the four Fortunes Gu Qingfeng had just mentioned all belonged to the category of Major Fortunes. And aside from these Major Fortunes, Upper Immortal Qingqing possessed even more Minor Fortunes—about seven or eight of them. This couldn't help but amaze Huode. Having wandered the Great Wasteland for ten thousand years, upon reflection, Upper Immortal Qingqing was the person he had encountered with the greatest number of both Major and Minor Fortunes.
On this side, Gu Qingfeng and Huode continued their secret discussion while watching the spectacle.
High in the air, Old Lady Jin Hua, Lixin Xianzi, Qiao'er, Mo Baiyu, and the other admirers of Upper Immortal Qingqing were all filled with concern. Especially as they noticed Qingqing's face growing paler and paler, and the Immortal Power within her body showing signs of becoming increasingly uncontrollable, descending into greater chaos.
Whoosh!
In an instant, a sword radiance shot out violently from within her body, soaring straight into the sky, then dove back down, charging directly toward the deck.