"It seems word has come from the Futu Ancient Clan. Some people in the clan are not very satisfied with her staying in the Heavenly Emperor Palace and want to call her back."

Zhu Kun paused and said, "I am not entirely clear on the specific details."

Qing Xuan was silent for a moment before nodding. "I understand."

After Zhu Kun left, Qing Xuan stood by the window, gazing in the direction of the distant Spirit Array Pavilion, lost in thought.

Spirit Array Pavilion.

Qing Yanjing had been staying in the Spirit Array Pavilion these days, rarely even stepping outside.

An unfinished array diagram was spread out before her. The jade brush in her hand hovered in mid-air, but she hesitated to let it fall.

The sky outside the window had already darkened, and only one lamp was lit inside the hall.

At the corner of the table lay a transmission Jade Slip that had already dimmed.

That was the message sent by Elder Qing Tian. She had read it many times, and she remembered every single word clearly.

"Several Elders from the Xuan Vein and Mo Branch have jointly petitioned the Grand Elder, demanding that the Clan Head recall you to renegotiate the matter of the marriage alliance."

"The Qing Lineage is doing its best to mediate, but the situation is not optimistic."

"Stay in the Heavenly Emperor Palace for now and do not return to the clan. We will discuss everything after the Clan Head returns."

Qing Yanjing put down the jade brush and sighed softly.

She had originally thought that after Xiao Qing defeated Maha Tian in the Holy Abyss, the matter of the marriage alliance would be completely over.

Maha Tian had been defeated so miserably; the Maha Ancient Clan should not have brought this matter up again.

But she hadn't expected that the people from the Xuan Vein and Mo Branch would still be unwilling to give up. They even petitioned the reclusive Grand Elder Futu Xuan to use him to check her father, Clan Leader Qing Muxuan.

She knew exactly what those people were planning.

It wasn't really that they wanted her to marry Maha Tian, but that they wanted to use this matter to strike at the Qing Lineage.

She was the most outstanding Genius of the Qing Lineage. If she could be recalled to the clan and pushed back onto the negotiation table for the marriage alliance, it would be a heavy blow to the prestige of the Qing Lineage.

As for whether she was willing or not, that was never a consideration for those people.

Qing Yanjing stood up and walked to the window.

Outside the window, the moonlight was like water, illuminating the bluestone slabs in front of the Spirit Array Pavilion until they turned white.

She suddenly remembered the day she left the Futu Ancient Clan, when Elder Qing Tian had looked at her for a long time, wanting to say something but stopping, before finally saying those words.

At that time, she didn't understand what the complexity in Elder Qing Tian's eyes meant.

Now she understood.

It was helplessness.

The Futu Ancient Clan had three branches standing together, but the Qing Lineage was weak; it couldn't even protect the Clan Head's own daughter.

Qing Yanjing took a deep breath and was about to withdraw her gaze when she suddenly saw a small figure running from afar.

"Sister Qing!"

Xiao Xuan'er ran until she was out of breath, carrying a bowl of hot soup in her hands.

She stood on her tiptoes, placed the soup bowl on the table, and looked up at Qing Yanjing, saying, "I cooked a bowl of soup for you."

"My cooking skills are great; Mother has even praised me!"

Qing Yanjing was stunned for a moment and looked down at the bowl of soup.

The soup was still steaming, with a few slices of Spirit Herb mushrooms and some emerald-green Spirit Herbs floating inside. It looked quite good.

She couldn't help but smile, reached out to take the bowl, and said softly, "Thank you, Xuaner."

Xiao Xuan'er giggled and pulled up a chair to sit next to her.

"Sister Qing, are you unhappy?"

Qing Yanjing held the bowl without answering.

Xiao Xuan'er didn't press her and continued, "I was often unhappy when I was little too."

"Back then, Father went to a very far place and didn't come back for a very, very long time."

"I would sit at the entrance of the Heavenly Emperor Palace every day and wait, waiting and waiting, until I forgot how long I had been waiting."

She swung her legs, her tone very casual, as if she were talking about a very ordinary thing. "Later, when Father came back, I was never sad again."

"Because I knew he would definitely come back."

Qing Yanjing turned to look at her.

The young girl's face appeared exceptionally gentle in the candlelight, and those eyes were as clean as a pool of clear water, without the slightest bit of impurities.

"Sister Qing, is there someone in your heart waiting too?"

Xiao Xuan'er suddenly asked.

Qing Yanjing was taken aback.

Xiao Xuan'er didn't wait for her to answer and said with a grin, "I guess it's Father!"

"Because every time Father is mentioned, your eyes light up!"

Qing Yanjing's face flushed red instantly.

"What nonsense are you talking about!"

She glared at Xiao Xuan'er, but her voice was soft and lacked any deterrent power.

Xiao Xuan'er stuck out her tongue, jumped off the chair, ran to the door, turned back, and smiled at her. "Sister Qing, drink the soup while it's hot!"

"You won't feel bad after you drink it!"

After saying this, she scurried away.

Qing Yanjing stood in place, holding the bowl of soup, the flush on her face taking a long time to fade.

She lowered her head and took a sip.

The soup was neither too salty nor too bland, the temperature was just right, and the warmth slid from her throat all the way to her stomach.

Somehow, the restlessness that had been pressing on her heart for several days seemed to have been diluted quite a bit by this bowl of soup.

She sat back down at the table, picked up the jade brush, and continued sketching the unfinished array diagram.

Outside the window, the moonlight was like water, and the lamp in the Spirit Array Pavilion remained lit for a long time.

Holy Abyss, Great Thousand Palace outpost.

The patrol of the Holy Abyss was still continuing.

After Xiao Qing became famous in one battle, the attitudes of the many representatives of various forces, who had originally been polite to him only on the surface, changed significantly.

Tai Cang was the most direct.

He had already thought Xiao Qing was amazing before, but now he admired him so much he wanted to prostrate himself in admiration and wished he could become his disciple on the spot.

Clan Elder Tai Yuan couldn't stop him and could only let him be.

Because it was better this way; letting a straightforward young man like Tai Cang befriend the Heavenly Emperor was far more effective than having an old, scheming fogey like him do it.

Wan Xuan also came over to chat, and as they talked, they got onto the topic of the Maha Ancient Clan's attitude.

"I heard that Moha Yu has issued a gag order and won't say a word about it to the outside world."

He lowered his voice and said, "This is not a good sign."

"The quieter they are, the more it means they are bottling up their energy."

Xiao Qing leaned against the railing and said nonchalantly, "Let them be."

Wan Xuan looked at his demeanor and suddenly felt that he had lived his life in vain all these years.

He had lived for tens of thousands of years and had seen at least eight hundred to a thousand Prodigies, yet he had never seen anyone like Xiao Qing, who could be so calm even after provoking the Primordial God Clan.

Qin Tian had also been very busy lately.

After the patrol ended, he convened a meeting of all the representatives of the various forces to report on the latest movements of the Extraterritorial Evil Clan.

"The troop deployment in the Demon Region has increased by 30% compared to last year."

He pointed to the huge map on the wall, which was marked with dense red dots.

"The concentration of Demonic Qi around the Seal is also continuing to rise. Preliminary judgment is that the Extraterritorial Evil Clan may be trying to break the ancient Seal."

The atmosphere in the hall was heavy.

An Immortal Grade Heavenly Sovereign from Lingdou Continent frowned and said, "30%?"

"Are they planning to attack?"

"Not certain," Qin Tian shook his head and said.

"But we must be prepared."

He also reported the news of several Lower Planes falling.

Those planes were not large, nor were they rich in resources, but their locations were critical.

They were exactly at the nodes of the Extraterritorial Evil Clan's infiltration route.

"The Extraterritorial Evil Clan is testing us."

Clan Leader Qing Muxuan said in a steady voice, "They are looking for weak points in our defensive line and also testing our reaction speed."

Everyone was silent.

After the meeting, Qin Tian kept Xiao Qing behind alone.

Qin Tian called Xiao Qing into the hall where he handled official business and took out a few Jade Slips from his storage ring, placing them on the table.

"These are the breakthrough insights left behind by the Saint-Rank Heavenly Sovereigns of the Great Thousand Palace through the generations."

Qin Tian said in a solemn tone, "Take them and read them; they will be helpful for your future path."

Xiao Qing took the Jade Slips but didn't look at them immediately; instead, he raised his eyes to look at Qin Tian.

This Chief Elder of the Great Thousand Palace stood by the window, his back straight.

But Xiao Qing always felt that there was a trace of exhaustion hidden between his brows that others couldn't see.

"Elder Qin," Xiao Qing suddenly spoke up.

Qin Tian turned his head and responded, "Hmm?"

Xiao Qing paused, wanting to say something, but swallowed it back.

"Nothing, thank you, Elder Qin."

Qin Tian smiled and waved his hand.

"Prepare well; there will be times when you are busy in the future."

Xiao Qing nodded. He had almost said it just now.

About the hidden trap deep within Qin Tian's soul, and about the methods of the Heart Demon Clan.

But now was not the time; his cultivation was not yet high enough, and even if he said it, others might not believe him.

Furthermore, he was not confident in facing a Late Stage Saint-Rank Heavenly Sovereign Heavenly Demon Emperor who excelled at manipulating people's hearts.

He had to wait a little longer.

Qin Tian motioned for him to sit down.

The two sat opposite each other, and the hall was so quiet that only the sound of the candle flames flickering remained.

"Heavenly Emperor," Qin Tian suddenly said.

"Do you know why I want to give these things to you?"

Xiao Qing thought for a moment. "Because of my performance in the Holy Abyss?"

Qin Tian shook his head. "Not only that."

He stood up, walked to the window, and looked towards the territory in the distance that was shrouded in Demonic Qi.