Inside that treasure box was a cage-shaped treasure emanating Golden Core-level pressure.
The cage was pitch black, stained with mottled, dried blood of fierce beasts, and a bloodthirsty, terrifying aura spread out from it.
Under this aura, everyone except Qi Ping felt their minds violently shaken. Only Qi Ping, with his powerful soul and a Dao heart that had already reached the second realm, was able to withstand this fierce, malevolent energy.
“What a terrifying magic treasure!” Han Li and Zhang Danju were filled with dread.
“This is… a third-tier low-grade spiritual artifact? It looks like an extraordinary weapon of malice! Hm…? No, wait—there seems to be a life force inside!”
With the help of his druid abilities and his own keen perception, Qi Ping faintly sensed that there was a special life force inside the cage treasure!
After sensing it more carefully, Qi Ping finally came to a realization.
“Lord Garrison Commander, this treasure may be fierce, but it truly is my family’s heirloom. I beg you, please save my daughter—she’s only six years old! She’s my only family left, and I promised her mother I would take good care of her…”
As if terrified that Qi Ping might refuse, the middle-aged man Mo Fan began kowtowing frantically again, his voice full of earnestness and pleading. In just a moment, the freshly healed wound on his forehead was bleeding again from the impact.
Faced with Mo Fan’s plea, Qi Ping had already made his decision.
With a surge of spiritual power, he immediately lifted Mo Fan to his feet, while simultaneously channeling healing spiritual power into Mo Fan’s body.
In the blink of an eye, Mo Fan’s dying body and injuries rapidly healed, and his life force quickly strengthened.
Qi Ping really had been worried that if things dragged on much longer, Mo Fan would die on his own without anyone else lifting a finger.
At the same time, Qi Ping also took the treasure Mo Fan had offered into his storage ring, and then said:
“Now come with me!”
“Thank you, Lord Garrison Commander! Thank you, Lord Garrison Commander!”
Seeing Qi Ping heal his injuries and accept the treasure, Mo Fan understood immediately what Qi Ping meant. His eyes were filled with joyful surprise.
He was well aware of the two major things Qi Ping had recently done. Never mind sweeping through Lingxiao City—just a day ago, Qi Ping had brought the entire Xingyun City to heel, including his enemy, the Xianyu Tower!
As long as Qi Ping took action and his daughter was still alive, Qi Ping would definitely be able to save her.
Seeing that Mo Fan was about to kneel again, Qi Ping simply restrained him with spiritual power, then flew out of the Qingxian Manor with him. In no time, they appeared inside the main building of the Xianyu Tower.
“Who dares to trespass—”
A guard saw someone intrude and was habitually shouting a challenge, but before he could finish, his head was crushed.
However, the one who acted was not Qi Ping—it was the Xianyu Tower’s tower master, who came rushing over with a fawning expression.
He casually crushed the guard’s skull and wiped away the blood with spiritual power, then respectfully and obsequiously approached:
“Lord Garrison Commander, what brings you here? Is there anything I can do for you?”
But inside, the Xianyu Tower master was falling apart. It had only been a day—why was this great deity back again?
Qi Ping coldly glanced at the Xianyu Tower master and pointed to Ye Fan beside him saying:
“Your Xianyu Tower captured his daughter not long ago. I’m here to collect her.”
“Don’t say anything I won’t like,” Qi Ping added at the end.
Then Qi Ping swept a cold gaze over the Xianyu Tower, the meaning unmistakable—he had no intention of arguing about whether they had captured her or not. Even if they hadn’t, they had better give him an explanation that said they hadn’t!
Under Qi Ping’s sweeping gaze, everyone in the Xianyu Tower felt their scalps go numb.
They were cursing inwardly, desperately wanting to know which idiot had brought this terrifying existence, Qi Ping, down on them.
“Yes, yes, yes! Lord Garrison Commander, please wait a moment. I will handle this with the utmost speed!”
The Xianyu Tower master immediately agreed respectfully, not daring to utter a single bureaucratic platitude.
Then, after asking for Mo Fan’s daughter’s name and appearance, he immediately turned and roared:
“Find her right now! Don’t touch a single hair on her head! Otherwise I’ll drag every one of your entire clans here and torture them for a hundred years! And the ones who did this—bring them to me as well!”
No further words were needed—everyone went into a frenzy of action.
Mo Fan was utterly shocked at this scene. He knew that if Qi Ping came, his daughter would surely be saved, but this display was completely beyond anything he had imagined. His understanding of Qi Ping’s fearsome reputation deepened even further, and he knew he had truly found the right person!
And as it turned out, nothing was impossible under pressure. In less than a quarter of an hour, several figures appeared inside the Xianyu Tower’s main building.
Among them were several men in a wretched state—the ones who had directly captured Mo Fan’s daughter. They had already been tortured before being brought here.
The last one was a little girl with fair skin but covered in many whip marks. The wounds had just been treated with top-grade healing medicine.
However, when the girl arrived, her eyes were unfocused and she was curled up, her clothes in disarray, her body trembling uncontrollably from fear. She had clearly suffered inhuman torment.
“Xiaoxi!” A voice filled with immense grief cried out.
Mo Fan rushed forward and embraced his daughter, his heart aching beyond measure. His whole being seemed on the verge of shattering. As a father seeing his daughter in such a state, the grief in his heart was simply beyond words.
He couldn’t even imagine what his daughter had endured during this time.
But his daughter, Mo Yunxi, seemed not to hear his voice at all. It was only after a long while, after she stared blankly at her father for a long time, that she finally burst out crying with a loud “Wah…”
After everything was handled, Qi Ping brought Mo Fan and his daughter back to the Qingxian Manor. The ones who had directly laid hands on her were naturally dead beyond any doubt.
But Qi Ping’s mood wasn’t particularly good upon returning to the Qingxian Manor. He had only rescued Mo Yunxi—one person—but how many thousands had been victimized by the Xianyu Tower?
Yet right now, the only one he could save was Mo Yunxi.
Because now was not the time to act. Even if he destroyed the Xianyu Tower, there would still be the Yanyu Tower. He had to wait for the right moment, wipe out all these forces in one sweep, and then lure out and kill the mastermind hidden deep behind the Qingyuan Sect. Only then could this problem be solved once and for all.
“Soon, very soon!” Qi Ping forcibly suppressed the killing intent in his heart.
“Thank you, my lord, for saving us father and daughter!” Mo Fan, his face streaked with tears, held the still-trembling Mo Yunxi and spoke with gratitude.
“It’s nothing—just a trade.”
After saying this, Qi Ping reached his hand toward Mo Yunxi’s forehead and used a soul technique to smooth away the fear in her soul.
But it was at that very moment that Qi Ping noticed something unusual.
“Hm? Such a terrifying water-attribute cultivation aptitude? Even stronger than the Cloud Dream Body?”
Qi Ping was slightly taken aback. Good heavens, what a coincidence—the person he casually saved had a aptitude rarely seen even in the Qingtian Domain!
But considering that Mo Fan could produce such a treasure, his ancestors were probably extraordinary, so a higher chance of high-grade aptitude made sense.
Qi Ping didn’t pay it too much mind, though. A earth-grade cultivation aptitude was indeed remarkable, but he wasn’t particularly interested. He simply casually transmitted a set of water-attribute cultivation techniques ranging from Qi Refining to Foundation Establishment, settling the karmic debt for obtaining the Golden Core treasure.
“I’ve erased the fear from her soul. Take good care of her for a while, and she should gradually recover when she has the chance. Her cultivation talent is quite good—I’ve injected cultivation techniques into her soul, so you can teach her to cultivate properly in the future. You two stay at the Qingxian Manor for now. Once things are safer in a while, I’ll have someone send you away from here!”
“Thank you, my lord! Thank you, my lord!”
Mo Fan held Mo Yunxi and bowed repeatedly. He truly didn’t know how else to express his gratitude to Qi Ping.
After handling this matter, Qi Ping gave Han Li and Zhang Danju some further instructions, then returned to his cultivation spot.
Shaking off the distractions of the outside world, Qi Ping took out the palm-sized bloodstained cage treasure.
After examining it for a while, Qi Ping didn’t hesitate at all. He directly used his soul power to wear away the remaining soul barrier on it. At that very moment, the scene inside the cage treasure was revealed.
What was imprisoned inside was actually a Golden Core-level spiritual beast!
It was a spiritual beast that looked like a monkey, with a very fierce appearance—a hideous face and exposed fangs!
The pressure of a third-tier spiritual beast radiated from it!
A mountain ape!
This was a Golden Core-level mountain ape!
“Sure enough, it’s a mountain ape. But it seems to be getting on in years—its fur has already turned slightly white.”
This was exactly what he had guessed!
And just as Qi Ping looked at the old mountain ape, the old mountain ape inside also looked at Qi Ping—except its face showed some astonishment.
“Child of the Forest?”
A voice of astonishment came from its mouth.
