Zhao Yunxiao: "!!!"
Didn't Fei Weng say that Elder Feng Wanjia had already inspected his physique yesterday? Why was she suddenly asking to do so again?
Could she have discovered the existence of the Heaven's Descent Bowl?
What should he say when asked about it?
Saying that it was a gift from Cha, the guardian spirit of the Origin Lake Sect, was definitely not an acceptable answer!
Countless thoughts ran through Zhao Yunxiao's mind while stepping forward as instructed. No matter how reluctant he was, he could not ignore the instructions of an elder.
"Greetings, Elder Feng," Zhao Yunxiao summoned the most nonchalant look he could muster as he clasped his fists towards the seniors. "Greetings, Sect Master Kui and various elders of the Armed Ape Tower."
"Be at ease," Elder Feng Wanjia said. "How are you feeling?"
"Reporting to Elder Feng, thanks to the great care by the Armed Ape Tower, I am mostly recovered now," Zhao Yunxiao answered matter-of-factly.
"That's good to hear," Elder Feng Wanjia nodded. "You did very well yesterday, perfectly displaying the sheer tenacity befitting a member of our Black Tortoise Sect. Unfortunately, you did not receive any rewards for your efforts. Are you disappointed?"
"This is my duty. Rather than my personal gains, my focus is on realising the sect's wishes," Zhao Yunxiao replied without hesitation.
"Good, well said! This is exactly what a disciple of my Black Tortoise Sect should be like!" Elder Feng Wanjia exclaimed with a smile. "But in the same vein, as your elder, my focus is on preparing the sect for the future. Because of that, I cannot allow your efforts to go unrewarded. You have truly pushed your limits in challenging the Zodiac Tree, and here is your much-deserved compensation."
Elder Feng Wanjia opened her palm, and a flute appeared in her hand.
Made of a slightly black-tinted jade, the flute could be considered rather large – reaching around a metre from end to end.
But that was naturally not the thing that was special about it.
Instead, it was the aura of wind that was being constantly emitted from the flute that immediately drew in everyone's attention.
Be it the sect administrators of the Armed Ape Tower, the core and inner disciples, or even members of the Black Tortoise Sect entourage, everyone was stunned silent for a moment.
And by everyone, that naturally included Gan Luozhi.
From afar, Gan Luozhi widened his eyes in horror.
What the hell?!
Why was Elder Feng Wanjia suddenly rewarding Zhao Yunxiao with a treasure?
And from the strong aura that it emitted, this might even be a treasure that was at the Origin Core realm!
He suddenly thought back to how proud he had been to have relinquished the challenge of the Zodiac Tree to Zhao Yunxiao, believing that it was the right decision. Had he known that this would be the compensation for accepting the challenge – that he could get such a valuable reward simply by getting hit a few times – he would take that trade any time of the day!
"This...!" Zhao Yunxiao blinked blankly as the flute floated over and landed on his two open palms.
Wind gently embraced him the moment he made contact with the flute, causing his hair and robes to flutter slightly. There was no doubt that the flute in his hands was at least of the rare quality!
"This is the Window of Tunes, a flute that I have acquired by coincidence in the past. I heard from Fei Weng that you play the flute, so I decided that from today onwards, it will belong to you," Elder Feng Wanjia smiled upon seeing the shock on Zhao Yunxiao's face. "Nevertheless, I understand that this is not nearly enough to compensate you for what you have gone through. I can only hope that you can acknowledge my sincerity in this matter."
"This is already more than I could ever wish for; I dare not complain!" Zhao Yunxiao hurriedly bowed to Elder Feng Wanjia. "Thank you, Elder Feng!"
"You don't know the value of what you did. Your actions have helped the Armed Ape Tower identify issues in the Zodiac Tree that could have had severe implications if gone unnoticed. In comparison, this hardly counts as sufficient compensation after the huge mistake that we, as seniors, made yesterday," Elder Feng Wanjia remarked. "Don't you agree, Elder Xiong?"
Elder Xiong Yan felt his heart skip a beat upon seeing her meaningful smile. Not because he was enchanted by her beauty, but because he suddenly understood the reason behind her actions.
By openly rewarding Zhao Yunxiao for his efforts, followed by explicitly stating that it was a huge mistake and that this alone was not enough of a compensation... she was definitely putting pressure on them to make up the difference!
Elder Xiong Yan took a quick glance at Sect Master Kui Tui, who nodded in acknowledgement. It was clear that he had caught the drift as well.
After all, this so-called huge mistake could only be pinned on the Armed Ape Tower. If someone had to compensate Zhao Yunxiao for his efforts, it should have been the Armed Ape Tower.
For Elder Feng Wanjia to have brought out an Origin Core realm flute, it only meant that the compensation from their end would have to at least match that level!
This was outright extortion!
At the same time, he could not help but feel relieved by the fact that this matter only involved an outer disciple at the Essence Gathering realm.
Had it been a disciple with a higher cultivation level, Elder Feng Wanjia would probably have given a more precious gift, forcing them to follow suit!
"Elder Feng is right," Elder Xiong forced a smile. "What happened yesterday is a huge mistake of the Armed Ape Tower. For that, we would also like to seek the brave challenger's understanding with a small gift of apology. Come over here, good lad."
"Y-Yes...!" Zhao Yunxiao walked over excitedly.
Despite his excitement, he had still managed to catch the subtleties being exchanged by the elders here.
What psycho?
The many senior martial brothers and sisters of the Black Tortoise Sect could not be more wrong.
No matter how he looked at it, Elder Feng Wanjia was undoubtedly a living bodhisattva!
"On behalf of the Armed Ape Tower, I formally apologise for the mistake yesterday," Elder Xiong Yan started. "I hope you accept this little token as compensation for your efforts."
With a wave of his hand, he retrieved a flexible armour and allowed it to float towards Zhao Yunxiao.
But unlike the usual flexible armours that most people were familiar with, this one was actually made of countless small bamboo pieces instead of metal.
Still, as expected of a gift from Elder Xiong Yan, there was more to it than met the eye. As it fell into his hands, Zhao Yunxiao could sense a faint aura of metal coursing through the flexible armour.
"This is the Bamboo Barricade, a treasure armour I created that can easily be concealed under other clothes. I have been searching for a suitable owner since its creation, and I am certain that it would be put to good use in your hands," Elder Xiong Yan said. "Don't underestimate it just because it is made of bamboo. This flexible armour can even help you resist certain attacks at the Origin Core realm!"
Gan Luozhi felt his limbs turn cold.
Another Origin Core realm treasure!
This time, even Hua Shui felt the corner of his lips twitch. He was only at the Peak Origin Core realm himself, so these were treasures that he would be thrilled to receive as well!
On the other hand, Xiong Yekong carefully observed Zhao Yunxiao.
The latter had clearly not shown much fluctuation in his emotions when he visited the Armed Ape Tower's treasury. Coupled with how thrilled he was acting right now, it was likely that while Zhao Yunxiao had seen a lot, he possessed little.
This showed that he had strong connections to those in power.
Interesting.
So, was it really because of his amazing mental fortitude that Chen Pingxi was placing such emphasis on him? Or was it simply for political reasons?
Not good.
Now that his curiosity had been piqued, he would definitely have to spend some effort to find out exactly what was going on behind the shadows!
"That is a good treasure," Elder Feng Wanjia praised. "What are you waiting for? Hurry up and thank Elder Xiong."
Indeed, she had to admit that this was a more fitting reward for Zhao Yunxiao than her Window of Tunes.
After all, everyone present had witnessed Zhao Yunxiao's challenge of the Tribulation of Combat.
In doing so, he had adopted a combat style that heavily relied on his ability to take punishment. If that was his focus, then having a good defensive treasure would surely be a great boost to his combat capabilities.
"Thank you, Elder Xiong!" Zhao Yunxiao quickly bowed after storing away his two newly acquired treasures.
"You don't have to thank me. This is only expected of us after the mistake we made," Elder Xiong said with a sigh.
"Well then, we shall take our leave now," Elder Feng Wanjia said. "Farewell, Sect Master Kui, Elder Xiong, and various friends of the Armed Ape Tower. As promised, I will return in the near future. At that time, I would definitely allocate more time so that we can take a good look at the Zodiac Tree together."
"We look forward to that day," Sect Master Kui nodded. "Farewell."
Elder Feng Wanjia promptly turned around, and, with a wave of her hands, winds started howling across the open clearing.
The surrounding trees swayed with the wind, while fallen leaves and twigs started shuffling across the ground. In front of Elder Feng Wanjia, the powerful winds came together to form a giant tornado that reached into the skies, becoming more opaque as time passed, until it was no longer possible to see across.
At its base, a gap opened in the exterior of the grand tornado to reveal a shimmering and reflective surface, resembling a spatial gate that led to a different world.
Elder Feng Wanjia's Sky Tower Heavenly Palace.
Unlike most heavenly palaces that usually looked like proper structures, the Sky Tower Heavenly Palace took on the traits of the wind itself and was ephemeral in nature.
"Let's go," Elder Feng Wanjia said before walking straight through the reflective surface, which in turn rippled like water as she passed.
The rest of the Black Tortoise Sect entourage followed along without hesitation, and Zhao Yunxiao was no exception.
After stepping through the gate, he suddenly found himself at the base of a beautiful valley. It was a valley filled with beautiful vegetation and small animals, with a towering waterfall that originated from beyond the clouds.
It seemed like a spatial gate into a different world was exactly the right term.
"Pick any spot you want and have a good rest. I will let you know once we arrive," Elder Feng Wanjia said.
Without waiting for a response, she, Sect Protector Shan Lihui, and Fei Weng flew up the waterfall and entered the clouds.
"You heard what the elder said," Hua Shui reminded before sitting on a nearby rock to meditate.
Since they were the only two people left, Zhao Yunxiao instinctively glanced over at Gan Luozhi.
"What are you looking at? Don't think you are all that just because you got some rewards from the elders. Don't forget that you only managed to receive all those rewards thanks to me!" Gan Luozhi scoffed before finding a spot further away.
Zhao Yunxiao: "..."
Thankfully, the trip was just about over. Once they returned to Purple Plum Mountain, he could go back to staying far away from Gan Luozhi.
Looking around him, he was truly fascinated by the world that they had arrived at.
This was the first time that he had ever entered the Sky Tower Heavenly Palace, but it definitely did not feel like the inside of a structure. Instead, it was like a secluded paradise hidden away in a corner of the world.
Limitless, free, and full of vitality.
If he were to ever reach the level of the elders, he would probably want his heavenly palace to look like this as well!
Zhao Yunxiao walked to a huge boulder and sat down against it, closing his eyes in meditation.
Right now, the thing he wanted to do the most was definitely to check out the two treasures that he had just received from the elders. However, he knew better than to expose his treasures in front of others, especially not in front of Gan Luozhi, who was likely to cause trouble for him in the future.
Suppressing his urge, Zhao Yunxiao carefully scanned his body and confirmed that his injuries were mostly recovered. That also included the injuries that he had received even before this trip, especially those that had been inflicted by Old Niu back at Ghost Fog Valley.
That was an unexpected benefit.
Next, he organised his thoughts regarding the body strengthening tips that he had gotten from Lie Xian's group. There was definitely some useful information within, but nothing that would directly help with the opening of the Mind Gate.
At the same time, he also did not manage to receive the blessings from the Tribulation of Combat. Otherwise, their corresponding benefits would surely make it much easier to withstand the supposedly tormenting process.
All things considered, his main goal for coming on this trip had not been fulfilled. However, this would not impact his decision to pursue this matter either.
He would just have to do things his way.
One day.
After returning to Purple Plum Mountain, he would spend a day to adjust his state to prime condition. Following which, it would finally be time to make his first attempt at opening the Mind Gate!