Many children, many blessings: Stealing the offspring of powerful figures to cultivate immortality.

"Tonight, I'm sleeping on the inner bed, and you're not allowed to touch his things again."

Jiang Yining raised her hand and gently flicked his forehead. The Fire Spirit Falcon shrank its neck in fright, while Wu Bao hugged the little wooden tiger and laughed so hard that he rolled around.

"If you want to keep watch, just say so. Why make it sound like someone has taken the inner bed from you?"

Fan Chenxin looked at her, her ears burning slightly, but she stubbornly stood still.

"Whether I keep watch or sleep on the inner bed, I'll be closer to you and April. I don't want to experience what happened in the herb garden last night a second time."

Upon hearing this, Jiang Yining paused for a moment, then reached out to smooth the wrinkles on his shoulders.

"Sure, but if you sneak up and patrol the door three times in the middle of the night, I'll have the Fire Spirit Falcon stand by your pillow and call out until dawn tomorrow."

Wu Bao immediately raised his little hand and earnestly chimed in.

"In April, you can teach the big red rooster how to crow. It crows so loudly that the whole street can hear it."

The Fire Spirit Falcon huddled in the corner of the table, burying its head in its wings in a pitiful state.

The following morning, the bells rang throughout Tianhuang City as the semi-finals of the Hundred Cities Beast Fighting Tournament commenced.

Outside the central arena, warriors from various cities thronged, with beast-drawn carriages and weapon racks lining the long street. On the high platform, the Lord of Tianhuang City, clad in black-gold armor, stood with ten beast-patterned banners behind him, his voice amplified by the array, resounding in all directions.

"The ten winners of the semi-finals of this year's Hundred Cities Beast Fighting Tournament will be qualified to enter the Heavenly Desolate Secret Realm. The secret realm contains fragments of laws left behind by the upper realm. If one can obtain such an opportunity, reaching the Divine Power Realm and the Qi Condensation Realm in the future will not be a pipe dream."

The crowd erupted in cheers.

"The Heavenly Desolate Secret Realm has been closed for seventy years, yet it has been opened in this year's Beast Fighting Tournament."

"I heard that the bones of ancient beasts and fragments of laws that fell from the upper realm are buried inside."

"Once you enter the secret realm, even if you only find a fragment of a law, it can make your family prosperous for decades."

Jiang Yining stood outside the preparation area, looking up at the secret realm command flag hovering on the high platform.

Her face didn't reveal much emotion, but her fingertips gently pressed against her dantian. The Myriad Spirits Divine Tree seemed to sense some distant aura as well, its branches glowing faintly within her body.

The Boundary of the Azure Sea.

The place where she was thrown down by the spatial rift, the world where the children are still scattered in all directions and Mo Xie doesn't know where he is, has finally seen a traceable clue again.

Fan Chenxin stood beside her and noticed the subtle change in her aura.

"You want to enter the Heavenly Desolate Secret Realm, not just for the bloodlines of exotic beasts and mineral resources."

Jiang Yining did not deny it.

"I need a way back. The fragments of the laws of the upper realm may not be able to open the rift, but at least they can let me confirm whether there is still a stable passage between the Martial Spirit Realm and the Azure Realm."

Fan Chenxin looked at her, his voice very low.

"If you find your way back, will you take April with you?"

"I will take April back with me, and I will also take those who are willing to come with me."

Jiang Yining turned her head to look at him, a faint smile in her eyes.

"But if you're still as jealous as you are now when you get to the Canglan Realm, Gu Qinghan and the others will probably throw you into the ice field first."

Fan Chenxin's expression stiffened for a moment, then she answered in a low voice.

"I will learn to get along with them, as long as you don't leave me here."

Not far away, Huyan Lie arrived quickly with the guards of the Manshi tribe. He still had the beast teeth he had hunted the day before hanging on his shoulder, clearly indicating that he had been waiting outside the arena since early morning.

"Miss Jiang, the drawing of lots is about to begin. There are quite a few unfamiliar martial artists from the Zhang family today, and the Mu family is also sitting on the VIP platform. Please do not get too close to them."

Jiang Yining glanced at the high platform.

Mu Ziying sat down beside the elders of the Mu family. Most of the scars on her face had been covered by the medicinal herbs, but when she looked at Jiang Yining, her gaze still seemed to be poisoned.

"I knew she wouldn't let this go."

Jiang Yining hung the thunder-patterned short sword on her waist.

"She lost the Flowing Light Sword yesterday, and she'll have to find a way to regain her former glory today."

At the drawing table, participants from each city stepped forward one by one.

The referee in charge of the semi-finals wore a gray-gold robe and held a blood-red jade box in his hand. Inside the jade box were dozens of beast-patterned tokens; those who drew tokens with the same beast pattern would be placed in the same group.

Jiang Yining was in the middle of the line. As soon as she got close to the jade box, she saw the referee and the maid next to Mu Ziying exchange a quick glance.

As the maid retreated into the crowd, a black jade bead gleamed faintly from her sleeve.

Jiang Yining lowered her eyelashes and did not make a move immediately.

"Miss Jiang, would you like me to take a look at your token first?"

Hu Yanlie lowered his voice and leaned closer, his face full of unease.

"I always felt that the Mu family had ulterior motives. If we draw an opponent that doesn't seem right, we can suggest switching groups."

Jiang Yining reached out and pressed down on his shoulder.

"The city lord's mansion is monitoring the lottery draw. If you cause trouble without evidence, you'll only be playing into their hands. Besides, I can draw whatever they want me to draw, which might not be a bad thing."

When it was her turn, the referee pushed the jade box forward.

"Jiang Yining from the Barbarian Stone Tribe, please draw the semi-final token."

Jiang Yining reached into the box, and the moment her fingertips touched the tokens, she sensed a very faint foreign aura emanating from one of them. That aura resonated with the jade bead in Mu Ziying's sleeve, clearly indicating that it had been tampered with beforehand.

She didn't avoid it; she took out the token directly.

The crimson beast pattern lit up in his palm.

Tuba, the Great Axe City.

A collective gasp of surprise erupted from the surrounding crowd.

"How could it be Tuba the Bone Crusher? He's a mid-stage Qi Refining Realm martial artist."

"Tuba advanced in the previous two Beast Fighting Tournaments by crushing his opponents' bones with his bare hands. No matter how strong Jiang Yining is, she is only at the peak of the Qi and Blood Realm."

"This grouping is too coincidental. The Mu family just had a falling out with Jiang Yining yesterday, and today they drew Tuba."

Hu Yanlie's face suddenly turned pale, and he grabbed Jiang Yining's arm.

"We can't fight this match. Tuba is no ordinary martial artist; his giant axe is used to smash joints, and at least a dozen contestants have died at his hands."

Fan Chenxin raised her hand and moved Hu Yanlie's hand away. The movement was light, but her eyes were cold.

"Her arm hasn't recovered yet, don't pull her too hard."

Huyan Lie was so anxious that sweat beaded on his forehead.

"Buddha, aren't you worried? Tuba is already in the mid-stage of the Qi Refining Realm. No matter how powerful Miss Jiang is, she can't possibly fight him head-on across such a vast realm."

Jiang Yining looked at the giant axe pattern on the token and suddenly smiled.

"If he's truly capable, I'll test my newly forged Thunder Pattern Sword on him. If he's not, then I'll save Mu Ziying the effort of killing someone."

Sitting on the VIP platform, Mu Ziying saw the token in her hand from afar, and a smug smile finally appeared on her lips.

Not long after, a maid in green entered the preparation area carrying a white jade wine cup.

The maid stopped in front of Jiang Yining and bowed her head in greeting.

"Miss Jiang, my mistress is deeply ashamed of her inappropriate words yesterday morning. She has specially ordered me to bring you the Ten-Thousand-Year Snow Lotus Wine to apologize to you and wish you a successful start to the semi-finals."

The white jade wine cup held clear wine with a very faint snow lotus fragrance that smelled mild and harmless.

As Jiang Yining took the wine cup, the Myriad Spirits Divine Tree in her dantian suddenly trembled slightly.

Deep within the wine lay a shadow thinner than a hair, curled up beneath the fragrance of snow lotus, carrying a subtle, almost imperceptible, fishy-sweet aroma.

Blood-Devouring Gu that Locks Veins

Once the Qi and blood are circulated, the Gu worms will bite into the heart meridian along the meridians until the Qi and blood collapse.

Hu Yanlie stood to the side, unable to help but frown.

"Why would Mu Ziying be so kind as to send you wine? I have a feeling something's off about this."

The maid quickly lowered her head, her voice trembling.

"If Young Master Huyan is worried, he can have someone test the wine. However, my young lady is already waiting for Miss Jiang's response on the stands. If Miss Jiang refuses to drink it, outsiders may misunderstand that she is not sincere."

Jiang Yining looked up at the VIP table.

Mu Ziying sat there, holding a teacup in her hand, looking at her with an almost certain gaze.

Jiang Yining suddenly picked up her wine cup and drank it all in one gulp.

Huyan Lie's expression changed drastically.

"Miss Jiang, how could you actually drink it? There's clearly something wrong with what she sent. You should at least let me have a doctor test it first."

The moment the wine entered the stomach, the roots of the Myriad Spirit Tree suddenly opened up.

The Bloodthirsty Gu that locked the meridians didn't even have time to burrow into the meridians before it was seized by the purple-gold wood energy, instantly twisting into a wisp of pure life force. The medicinal power in the snow lotus wine was also absorbed by the divine wood, turning into a warm current that surged through the limbs and bones.

A cold, mocking glint flashed in Jiang Yining's eyes. She then raised her hand to her chest, her face quickly turning pale.

She staggered back half a step, her breathing becoming erratic.

"This wine... doesn't balance your blood and energy."

Hu Yanlie hurriedly helped her up, his voice changed.

"I knew the Mu family had ill intentions. Don't try to be tough. I'll go find the people from the City Lord's Mansion right away. We'd rather withdraw from the competition than let you go on stage today."

Fan Chenxin stepped in front of him first, raising her hand to block the view around Jiang Yining.

He looked at her slightly reddened ear tips and knew she was acting again, but he deliberately put on a stern face.

"Jiang Yining, I told you long ago, don't think you can do whatever you want just because you're good at fighting. Now that your blood and qi are depleted, what are you trying to prove?"

Jiang Yining leaned against the wall and weakly looked up at him.

"I didn't know there was something wrong with the wine. If you're going to scold me, you should at least think of a solution first."

Fan Chenxin bent down and grasped her wrist, gently squeezing her palm as his Buddhist breath probed into her meridians.

Jiang Yining hooked her fingertip around his arm, a smile playing in her eyes.

Fan Chenxin's breathing became slightly sluggish, and then he scolded her even louder.

"We'll find a way to get you out of the preparation zone alive. If you dare to fight today, I'll personally bring you back to the inn."

Huyan Lie paced back and forth anxiously.

"The Buddhist disciple is right, Miss Jiang, you can't go on stage anymore. Even someone like Tuba might not be able to stop you when he's at his peak, and now that you're poisoned, you can't gamble with your life."

Jiang Yining closed her eyes briefly, her voice perfectly weak.

"If I withdraw from the competition, the Barbarian Stone Tribe will lose its qualification for the secret realm. Young Master Huyan has already staked a lot of the tribe's resources on me, and I can't let you work for nothing."

Huyan Lie gritted his teeth.

"Resources are not as important as your life. If you really want to enter the secret realm, we can think of other ways later."

Fan Chenxin looked up and glanced at the stands, just in time to meet Mu Ziying's smug gaze.

He suppressed the murderous intent in his eyes and spoke in a cold voice.

"If she insists on going up, I will stand outside the ring to protect her. Anyone who tries to take advantage of her weakness will have to ask the knife in my hand first."

Hearing these words from afar, Mu Ziying's smile deepened.

She assumed that Fan Chenxin was just putting on a brave face, never imagining that Jiang Yining was secretly gathering a wisp of purple-gold blood energy from swallowing the Gu worm in her palm.

Just then, heavy footsteps echoed from deep within the semi-finals tunnel.

A burly man nearly two zhang tall slowly walked over, carrying a giant axe. Dark marks that couldn't be washed off remained on the axe blade. With each step he took, a clear indentation was left in the ground, and the surrounding contestants quickly stepped back.

Tuba stopped in front of Jiang Yining, looked down at her pale face, and revealed a cruel smile.

"Little beauty, once we're on stage, I'm going to start from your toes and crush your bones inch by inch!"