Yuanshi did not just address Ink Jade Qilin and Yanlin individually; his voice echoed directly in the minds of all the qilin within the Qilin Blessed Land, plunging everyone into instant panic.
The highest cultivation level among these ordinary qilin was merely at the Taiyi Golden Immortal stage, with the vast majority being Mystic Immortals or Golden Immortals. At this moment, the power displayed by Yuanshi appeared to them like that of gods and demons.
"Your Excellency, aren't you going too far?"
Ink Jade Qilin also released his own aura, attempting to withstand the pressure emanating from Yuanshi. Yet the gap in their realms was too vast—it was like a mayfly trying to shake a giant tree.
Yanlin hastily chimed in, "Senior, we truly possess no Top-grade Innate Spiritual Treasures, nor do we even have a single Low-grade Innate Spiritual Treasure."
"Hmph! The Qilin Clan was once one of the overlords of Honghuang; how could you possibly lack even a single Innate Spiritual Treasure?" Yuanshi clearly did not believe him.
"To tell you the truth, our Qilin Clan's treasury was stolen. Not long after the Ancestral Qilin fell, all the Innate Spiritual Treasures in the Qilin treasury mysteriously vanished," Yanlin said.
"Stolen..."
Hearing this, Yuanshi's expression turned somewhat unsightly. As far as he knew, it wasn't just the Qilin Clan; the treasuries of the Dragon Clan and the Phoenix Clan had also been plundered.
Ever since the tribulation, the Dragon and Phoenix Clans had been in decline, prompting certain powerhouses to set their sights on their treasuries. Yet when these powerful figures broke in, they discovered not a single Low-grade Innate Spiritual Treasure left inside.
One must bear in mind that the Dragon and Phoenix Clans had dominated Honghuang for hundreds of millions of years; out of a hundred Innate Spiritual Treasures collected in their treasuries, at least ninety-nine should have remained, yet all of them had vanished.
This had become one of the great unsolved mysteries of Honghuang.
Now it seemed the Qilin Clan's treasury shared the exact same fate.
Yuanshi's divine sense swept across the Qilin treasury and even blanketed the entire Qilin Blessed Land, yet he detected no trace of any Innate Spiritual Treasure's aura.
"Who? Exactly who stole my Innate Spiritual Treasures?"
At the thought of the Innate Spiritual Treasures lost from the Qilin treasury, Yuanshi felt a pang of heartache. If that person hadn't stolen them, all the Innate Spiritual Treasures in the Qilin treasury would belong to him right now.
"Don't let me find out who is behind this, or I will surely snatch them back and beat you until your body and soul are pulverized."
Suddenly, Yuanshi's eyes lit up as he reached out a palm and grabbed toward a mountain peak.
"Yuanshi, stop!"
At the sight of this, Ink Jade Qilin's eyes split with fury. The mountain peak Yuanshi was reaching for had been formed from the remains of his deceased father, and was known as Qilin Cliff.
"Overestimating your own capabilities."
Watching the enraged Ink Jade Qilin charge toward him, Yuanshi raised a hand and unleashed a bolt of Jade Qing Divine Lightning, blasting Ink Jade Qilin out of the void.
Had he not cared about the aura of auspiciousness on Ink Jade Qilin, he would have killed him outright long ago.
Without another glance at Ink Jade Qilin, Yuanshi turned his gaze toward the rapidly approaching Qilin Cliff.
"So this was the object indicated by my opportunity. Though not an Innate Spiritual Treasure, it is nonetheless extraordinary."
"Stop..."
Down below, countless qilin roared in anger, yet they could do nothing to stop Yuanshi in the slightest.
With a mere flick of his sleeve, Yuanshi pressed all the members of the Qilin Clan firmly to the ground, rendering them unable to lift even a single finger.
"A mere pack of ants. If not for your auspicious aura, I would have swatted you all to death with a single slap," Yuanshi said disdainfully.
"So, you take great pride in bullying a pack of ants?"
At that very moment, a voice suddenly rang out. Yuanshi's pupils constricted as he discovered that a figure was standing atop the Qilin Cliff flying toward him, though he had no idea when the person had arrived.
Yet a moment later, Yuanshi relaxed again.
The newcomer was merely a Mid-stage Da Luo Golden Immortal. To him, there was no real difference between a mid-stage and an early-stage Da Luo Golden Immortal.
With a wave of his hand, Yuanshi sent a bolt of Jade Qing Divine Lightning shooting straight toward Panshi.
"Master, watch out!"
Down below, Ink Jade Qilin anxiously cried out in warning.
"Leave it to me."
Uttering those three words, Panshi likewise waved his hand, sending a bolt of Grand Supreme Divine Lightning to meet the incoming attack.
Rumble—
The two bolts of divine lightning collided in the void. After a mere momentary stalemate, the Jade Qing Divine Lightning was swallowed up by the Grand Supreme Divine Lightning, which maintained its remaining might and surged straight toward Yuanshi.
The Grand Supreme Divine Lightning was the primordial divine lightning of creation, on par with the Heavenly Dao's Zixiao Divine Lightning. Moreover, the Three Pure Ones' respective divine lightnings were all actually derived from the Grand Supreme Divine Lightning.
Using the Grand Supreme Divine Lightning to counter the Jade Qing Divine Lightning was as simple as a father beating his son.
Following a violent explosion, Yuanshi was blasted backward, flying directly out of the Qilin Blessed Land.
Outside the Qilin Blessed Land, Yuanshi steadied his figure, his gaze locked fixedly onto Panshi as he ground out each word:
"Who... on... earth... are... you?"
To have lost to a Mid-stage Da Luo Golden Immortal despite his own Da Luo Golden Immortal Perfection cultivation was entirely unacceptable to the face-conscious Yuanshi.
Meeting Yuanshi's gaze, Panshi smiled faintly and said, "No need to be nervous. I'm just a kind-hearted person."
"A kind-hearted person? What kind of kind-hearted person?" Yuanshi couldn't help but be stunned.
"A kind-hearted person who can answer your questions."
"Don't you want to know who stole the Innate Spiritual Treasures from the Qilin Clan's treasury? I can tell you," Panshi said.
"Who?"
Yuanshi's breathing grew slightly hurried.
"Hongjun."
Panshi slowly spat out those two words.
He was not simply making things up; in truth, it really was Hongjun who had completely plundered the Innate Spiritual Treasures from the treasuries of the three clans.
Hongjun possessed so many Innate Spiritual Treasures not because he was merely blessed with good luck and collected them one by one.
In fact, had he transmigrated slightly earlier in the timeline, he might well have learned from Hongjun and ransacked the three clans' treasuries himself.
"Master?" Yuanshi looked dazed.
"That's right. I just heard you say you were going to snatch all the Innate Spiritual Treasures back, and even beat Hongjun until his body and soul are pulverized."
"I didn't... I never said that..."
"No need to explain, I support you."
As he spoke, Panshi even gave Yuanshi an encouraging thumbs-up gesture.
Yuanshi felt a sudden wave of panic. He rapidly swept his gaze across the surroundings, a murderous intent flashing in his eyes—an intent directed not only at Panshi, but at the entire Qilin Clan residing within the Qilin Blessed Land.
"Thinking of silencing witnesses? What a pity you lack the ability." Panshi showed no fear whatsoever.
"I was careless before, but not this time."
With those words, Yuanshi charged at Panshi once more. Countless divine abilities enveloped Panshi as the void within a radius of one hundred thousand miles shattered completely, the two figures trading blows as they tore in and out of spatial rifts.
Panshi did not employ any Innate Spiritual Treasures; he also wished to test his current combat strength.
In the end, he conjured a small world out of thin air to trap Yuanshi, then reversed the world, forcing it to return to nothingness, nearly sweeping Yuanshi away in a single move.
"What kind of divine ability is this?"
Escaping from the void, Yuanshi looked at Panshi with lingering fear. Just moments ago, he had genuinely felt the breath of death—very clear, and very real.
"You mean that last move? I came up with it during our fight. It doesn't have a name yet," Panshi replied with a deadpan expression.
Yuanshi: "......"
Though he was loath to admit it, Yuanshi had to concede that he could do nothing against Panshi. During that battle, he hadn't even seen Panshi's limits; if anything, he felt as though Panshi had merely been playing along with him.
Realizing he could gain no advantage here, Yuanshi turned around and prepared to leave.
"Wait—"
Panshi called out, stopping him in his tracks.
"What do you want?" Yuanshi turned his head, eyeing Panshi with deep vigilance.
"I answered a question for you earlier. Shouldn't you answer one of mine now? That would only be fair."
"Ask."
The word seemed squeezed out from between Yuanshi's teeth.
"Didn't you say earlier that you were in a bad mood? Do you feel a bit better now?" Panshi asked with a smile.
Yuanshi: "......"
His mood was even worse now.