Zhou Han led them to a side room filled with the fragrance of herbs.
But from the moment they entered, Jiujiu on Tian Ning's head became restless, pecking at Tian Ning several times with its beak. Jiujiu only acted like this when encountering danger. But this was in the Beast Taming Sect, where there was clearly no danger…
Until Zhou Han pushed open the door, the room was piled high with various spirit plants and herbs. A man in green robes, his eyes still drowsy from sleep, sat in the chair in the center.
Zhou Han bowed to the man respectfully, saying, “Senior Xuanjiu.”
He gestured for Shi Qinxin to come forward: “This is the person with the shattered Golden Core I mentioned earlier. Please refine the Star Shattering Lotus to help her restore her Golden Core.”
The man in green robes slowly opened his narrowed eyes, his scrutinizing gaze falling on Tian Ning: “Who is she?”
Zhou Han immediately spoke: “These two are also disciples of Sword Protecting Mountain. I brought them here because they recently experienced the Mysterious Netherworld Gu incident. I ask that you check their bodies for any effects.”
Tian Ning and Long Aotien were surprised. Zhou Han… was surprisingly nice?
Zhou Han said directly: “You owe me a favor. If you see Zhou Mengya in the future, kill her for me!”
Tian Ning: “…”
Long Aotien: “…”
It was clear he really wanted to kill Zhou Mengya!
“The man next to her is fine; restoring his cultivation is just a matter of time,” Xuanjiu casually said, pointing at Long Aotien. But he was unexpectedly interested in Tian Ning. In a few quick steps, he approached her, and taking advantage of his height over the young girl, he reached out and grabbed the little sparrow on Tian Ning's head.
!
“What are you doing?”
Tian Ning had never seen anyone snatch someone's bird like that. Knowing that Jiujiu hated being touched, she immediately tried to retrieve Jiujiu!
“Don’t be disrespectful to Senior Xuanjiu!”
Zhou Han hadn't expected this development. Xuanjiu was usually lazy, uninterested in anything except food. He hadn't expected him to suddenly snatch a little girl's sparrow!
Although he knew who was at fault, Senior Xuanjiu was of high status, so Zhou Han instinctively tried to stop Tian Ning.
Tian Ning was very fast, making Zhou Han miss completely. She grabbed Xuanjiu's arm with great strength, preventing him from retreating: “Let go of Jiujiu!”
Before Tian Ning could act again, a rooster, previously unconcerned, burst in from outside the courtyard, instantly transforming into a young man and shouting at Tian Ning: “Don’t disrespect Senior Xuanjiu!”
True to their master-servant relationship, they even spoke similarly.
But Tian Ning wasn't without backup. At that moment, a dazzling red light emanated from Xuanjiu's palm, and the dull-colored sparrow transformed before everyone's eyes into a stunning red-haired woman.
The woman was furious. Without a word, she stepped on Xuanjiu's cold face with bare feet: “Damn you! You… sweaty hands! Don’t touch me!”
“Ah——!” The Fire Phoenix, transformed into a young man, covered his mouth in surprise, looking like a mouse seeing a cat, his earlier bravado gone as he cowered behind Zhou Han: “It’s the Phoenix Lord…”
He didn't even recognize her?
The pressure from their bloodline caused the Little Fire Phoenix's body to instinctively recoil. He never imagined the Phoenix Lord would appear in the Cultivation World!
“What?”
Zhou Han understood the two words from the Fire Phoenix but found it unbelievable. The Phoenix Lord was an unreachable existence, just like Senior Xuanjiu…
But the scene before them was quite magical. The red figure grabbed the green one and beat him up. Surprisingly, although Xuanjiu didn't look particularly strong, he could take a beating. Even with Jiujiu's furious hammering, there were no bruises on his face.
“This…?”
Shi Qinxin and Long Aotien were baffled. So what exactly was going on?
Zhou Han looked at Tian Ning with a scrutinizing gaze: “We need to ask your junior martial sister why the Phoenix Lord, one of the Ancient Four Divine Beasts, is by her side.”
He hadn't considered the possibility of a contract. That was one of the Ancient Four Divine Beasts, far stronger than ordinary Divine Beasts. Even his Fire Phoenix was only one of the Phoenix Lord's retainers.
Tian Ning thought they were equally unbelievable: “Fellow Cultivator Zhou Han, before you question others, explain yourself first.”
But the truth was, Zhou Han had never made a contract with Xuanjiu. He wanted to, but it was impossible. Contracting an Ancient Four Divine Beast was a pipe dream. If Xuanjiu agreed to help him kill Zhou Mengya, he would be laughing in his dreams.
“I found Senior Xuanjiu by chance on the roadside, starved for months,” Zhou Han said, his words slightly rushed. “Senior Xuanjiu found the food in the Beast Taming Sect delicious and decided to stay temporarily…”
Yes, it was simply because the Beast Taming Sect had better food.
Tian Ning: “…”
This Black Tortoise was a foodie!
“And you?” Zhou Han insisted, unable to understand why the Phoenix Lord would be with a Qi Condensation Stage little girl.
Tian Ning replied casually: “Because Jiujiu likes to nest on my head. It’s cozy, it feels like home!”
Zhou Han: “…”
Could you be any more absurd?
As if to confirm her words, the red-haired woman, finally finished venting her anger, transformed back into a little sparrow and flew back to Tian Ning's head.
Zhou Han's expression was complicated: “It seems that with the Phoenix Lord protecting you, you don’t need to worry about that fellow attacking you.”
Xuanjiu, who had been beaten up, didn't seem angry. He casually got up from the ground, cheerfully saying, “The scruffy bird and I haven’t seen each other in a long time; I got a little excited!”
“The three of you can stay here. It’ll take a few months to fully restore a Golden Core, and the herbs here will also benefit the other one in restoring their cultivation.”
He said this to Shi Qinxin and Long Aotien, but his gaze remained on Tian Ning the whole time.
The three of them had no objections; they weren't in a hurry to return to Wanjian Sect. However, Xiao Roushu and Long Kangnian needed to go back. The Six Sects Grand Competition was imminent, and as new disciples, they needed to return to receive instruction from the Elders.
Thinking of Long Kangnian, Xiao Roushu, and Zhizi, Long Aotien said, “I’ll go make arrangements for my other two junior martial brothers and sisters to return to the sect. And there’s also someone from my Long Clan.”
“Don’t worry about it,” Zhou Han, always efficient, said. “I’ll arrange for someone to send them back to Wanjian Sect. As for the person from the Long Clan, they can stay at the Beast Taming Sect to assist with the follow-up investigation.”
After expressing their gratitude, the three stayed at the Beast Taming Sect.
Shi Qinxin needed to restore her Golden Core, and Long Aotien needed to restore his cultivation. Only Tian Ning had nothing to do.
Fortunately, she was someone who could always find ways to enjoy herself. She read storybooks every day, teased cats and dogs – the Beast Taming Sect had plenty of them – and checked on her senior martial siblings. The Xuanwu clan were skilled healers, and both of them were recovering well, so there was nothing to worry about.
Tian Ning felt that her days were full and wonderful!
But that was just how she felt… someone had been looking down on her for a long time.
Zhou Han couldn't believe that such an unambitious Sword Cultivator could exist?
Every day, she either stayed in her room reading storybooks all day or went out to play with spirit beasts. When extremely bored, she wouldn’t even refine swords; she’d just take a worn-out brush and draw… She wasn’t a Talisman Cultivator!
Speaking of which, he had also seen Tian Ning processing medicinal plants. He had never seen her touch a sword!
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