Chapter 754: Void Stone

Qing Nü was given an early leave by Chen Mobai and traveled to Linwu Grotto-Heaven, carrying ten water spirit pearls. Before she left, Chen Mobai had already informed Wenren Xuewei, who would arrange the necessary preparations. After Qing Nü left, Chen Mobai also began to bid farewell to his friends in Wangwu Grotto-Heaven.

He also visited the Boundary Gate Administration and purchased two void blind boxes again. One of them was completely empty, but the other contained something. Due to an auspicious blessing, the contents were quite decent. Surprisingly, they included Tier 3 talisman paper and ink, along with several well-preserved talismans of varying grades that had already been drawn. Among these, what surprised Chen Mobai the most was a Heaven's Heart Sword Talisman.

After inspecting the talisman paper and ink, he indeed found Tier 3 Verdant Mist Talisman Paper and Flying Rainbow Talisman Ink. However, Chen Mobai's own talisman factory had already reproduced these. Nevertheless, he could take them back to compare and see if there were any differences between what his factory had reproduced and the originals.

Chen Mobai stored all the spoils from the blind boxes in his domain, pondering what he should claim to have obtained to the outside world. He certainly wouldn't mention the Heaven's Heart Sword Talisman; after all, even without a blind box, he could draw it himself with a little time, thanks to the self-observation ability granted by the Crown of All Beings. After thinking for a while, Chen Mobai quickly thought of something and decided that would be it.

After opening the blind boxes, Chen Mobai arranged the New Year's duty roster for the Heaven-Mending Group, then announced the holiday three days in advance. However, as a leader, he naturally had to stay until the very last shift.

For the last three days, he also took the time to see Meng Huang'er. Having been in Wangwu Grotto-Heaven for so long and only now seeing his good friend, Chen Mobai felt quite embarrassed. However, he had indeed been very busy before. Meng Huang'er was very delighted by his arrival and showed not a hint of dissatisfaction. After all, appointment notices from the Immortal Sect's Three Great Halls had been continuous during this period, and as a public servant within the system, she clearly understood the immense pressure borne by someone in charge of one of the Immortal Sect's four major branches. She was already very happy that Chen Mobai could come to see her. She was afraid that since Chen Mobai held such a high position, he might sever ties with her, a performer, to maintain his reputation.

On this day, the morning alarm rang. Chen Mobai, who had spent a wonderful night, opened his eyes and released the smooth, delicate body in his arms. Meng Huang'er, who had fallen asleep from exhaustion after a night of exertion, was immediately awakened by this movement.

"Have a good rest," he said. Chen Mobai had a morning flight today. After using the Underworld Array, his visit to Meng Huang'er would not be discovered by anyone, nor would he need her help to see him off.

"Mmm, see you next year!" Meng Huang'er murmured. She, feeling a bit lazy, wrapped herself in the quilt and weakly waved at Chen Mobai, who was picking up his clothes from the floor beside the bed and getting dressed. She then fell back into a deep sleep.

After getting dressed, Chen Mobai, shimmering with silver light, vanished from the room where he had stayed for three nights. For these three days, after finishing his work in the evenings, he had come here to spend the night. Meng Huang'er was very delighted by his arrival and did not leave the house for three days and three nights. Especially last night, knowing he was leaving, she was even more passionate. It was a pity that after Chen Mobai formed his Core, she was no longer his match. Moreover, his Immortal Dao Body excelled at recovery, and each time, Meng Huang'er would softly beg for mercy.

Upon arriving at the airport lounge, Chen Mobai still savored the pleasant memories of the past few days. Fortunately, his will was firm, and by the time he arrived in Danxia City, he had already restored his calm Dao heart. At the airport, Sui Shanfu, the City Lord of Danxia City, personally led officials from various departments to await his arrival.

"In the future, there's no need for this; I'm just going home for the New Year," Chen Mobai told Sui Shanfu. He had always been low-key and disliked such displays.

"Yes, yes, yes, Commissioner Chen!" Sui Shanfu replied. He immediately nodded in agreement, but even if Chen Mobai hadn't said it, he would have certainly arranged it. That's how this circle works: you must do your best before the leader says no. After all, Chen Mobai's current status was different. He was not only a rotating committee member of the Kaiyuan Hall but also the Deputy Minister of the Enforcement Department and a Major General in the Military Department, ranking among the top twenty most powerful figures in the Immortal Sect. Not to mention, Danxia City was nominally still under his control, considered part of his direct lineage.

On the way, Chen Mobai chatted with Sui Shanfu about Danxia City's government affairs and people's livelihoods for the year. Although he didn't directly manage affairs, he would inquire about them every year, as the final summary submitted to Wangwu Grotto-Heaven required his signature and approval as the nominal regional governor.

"Oh, Xuan Shuang Company's revenue reached 300 million this year. Very good, very good," Chen Mobai remarked. Among these, Sui Shanfu mentioned something that greatly pleased Chen Mobai: the Malevolent Qi Energy Company, managed by Yan Bingxuan, had begun to flourish with continuous policy support and an unending supply of students from the three major academies, becoming one of Danxia City's top three taxpayers. The malevolent qi energy markets in both Danxia and Yumu cities were basically dominated by Xuan Shuang Company.

However, after opening up the market, Yan Bingxuan did not blindly expand. Instead, she focused on continuous improvement, utilizing the advanced nature of the Five Elements Essence Qi Puppets to develop and synthesize higher-grade malevolent qi spirit liquids. Recently, she had been synthesizing Tier 3 spirit liquids. If she could successfully produce even one, she could expand beyond Danxia City and begin to enter the market of the larger Grotto-Heavens. With Chen Mobai's support at that time, they certainly wouldn't lack business.

Thinking of this, Chen Mobai immediately sent Yan Bingxuan a text message. Since she often led her team in synthesizing malevolent qi in the laboratory, he was afraid of disturbing her. Half an hour later, Yan Bingxuan called him back. Chen Mobai had just finished giving instructions for Danxia City's annual government report, so he immediately activated the Underworld Array and teleported to Xuan Shuang Company.

"Oh, are you close to a breakthrough in cultivation? Congratulations!" In Xuan Shuang Company's office, Chen Mobai saw the cool, beautiful woman sitting in the office chair. Noticing her somewhat uncontrolled spiritual energy fluctuations, he couldn't help but smile slightly, feeling very happy. Back when he was at the fifth layer of Golden Core, Yan Bingxuan had just reached the seventh layer of Foundation Establishment. After breaking through this late-stage bottleneck, even though she still needed to raise her Ice Spiritual Root value, her progress had been quite fast. Now, seven years later, she had not only broken through to the eighth layer of Foundation Establishment, but her spiritual energy fluctuations were also overflowing, clearly indicating she could break through to the ninth layer of Foundation Establishment at any time. Perhaps she could even try to open a domain with Chen Xiaohei in the same batch.

"Compared to you, I'm far behind," Yan Bingxuan said. She saw Chen Mobai appear out of thin air in her office, and a soft smile, like melting ice and snow, appeared on her face. Every time he saw her smile, Chen Mobai always felt a sense of warmth. After all, this was a beautiful sight only he could see.

"When you reach the ninth layer of Foundation Establishment, I'll see if I can arrange for the Boundary Gate to open. Back then, Yan Qiongzhi was able to successfully open a domain at the Foundation Establishment realm; you might be able to too." Chen Mobai's words made Yan Bingxuan shake her head, feeling a little unconfident.

"Ancestor Aunt had a congenital Ice Spiritual Root and exceptional talent; that's why she was able to do it. I probably can't," she said. What Yan Bingxuan said was true; under normal circumstances, the possibility of her opening a domain at the Foundation Establishment realm was minuscule. However, with Chen Mobai's assistance, it might be different.

"This is a Void Stone I obtained from a blind box; take it and try to comprehend it." Chen Mobai thought of his daughter, who was about to open a domain, and that it would clearly take him a considerable amount of time to cultivate the third layer of the Phoenix Facing the Sun Diagram, so he decided to "launder" the Voidstone within the Immortal Sect. It was a pity that Qing Nü and Meng Huang'er had already reached the ninth layer of Foundation Establishment long ago and had participated in domain opening attempts; after failing, they could only wait until they formed their Core to try again. Otherwise, Chen Mobai would definitely have made arrangements for them too.

"This is too valuable, I cannot accept it!" Yan Bingxuan exclaimed. She was astonished that Chen Mobai would give her a Void Stone; she stood up, repeatedly declining.

"Take it. Do we need to be polite between us? More than half of the merit points I spent on this void blind box were earned by you." On Chen Mobai's account, there were nearly seventy million merit points, which were Xuan Shuang Company's earnings over the years. His talisman factory in the Immortal Sect, although it could provide over ten million merit points in profit annually, was basically a display. Most of its production was still for Xiaonanshan Shop, producing talisman paper and ink. In the future, if he wanted to use more funds to purchase blind boxes in the Immortal Sect, he would probably have to vigorously develop Xuan Shuang Company. Previously, it was to avoid attracting attention, but now he held a high position and great power, capable of protecting it.

Yan Bingxuan still declined, but Chen Mobai directly placed it in her hand. "You painstakingly cultivated the Ice Soul Divine Light, and I don't want your efforts to be in vain. Take it. I want to see you successfully open a domain because that way, in the future, you can go further with me. I don't wish to be without you, my friend, a hundred years from now."

Chen Mobai's words made Yan Bingxuan, who still wanted to refuse, stop. She looked up, met his sincere gaze, gripped the Void Stone tightly in her hand, and nodded heavily. "I understand," she said. "I won't let you down!" Seeing Yan Bingxuan accept the Void Stone, Chen Mobai also smiled.

"Do you want to go out for a walk together?" Yan Bingxuan asked in a gentle tone unseen by others. In the past, when Chen Mobai came out of seclusion at the peak of Danxia Mountain to see her, he would always admire the scenery of the Wutong Forest with her.

"No, perhaps not. My current status is quite sensitive. Just chat with me for a while; it feels like a long time since I've chatted with you." Thinking of his current status, Chen Mobai shook his head, afraid of being seen and photographed by students. Yan Bingxuan nodded after hearing this, then sat on the sofa opposite Chen Mobai. The two mainly discussed matters concerning domains.

The Ice Soul Divine Light helps freeze void power, increasing the hope of cultivators opening domains. This was Yan Qiongzhi's method, and Chen Mobai, as a resource faction cultivator, naturally also had his own. He told Yan Bingxuan about the void fluctuations he had heard, guiding her to feel the void power within the Voidstone. This process was extremely difficult. After all, Yan Bingxuan was merely a Foundation Establishment cultivator. However, because she had Yan Qiongzhi's successful path to follow, her starting conditions already surpassed all other Foundation Establishment cultivators in the Immortal Sect who couldn't even begin. Chen Mobai guided her for a long time, finally allowing her, with the Ice Soul Divine Light, to capture the first wisp of void power. It was a pity her cultivation level was insufficient; this wisp of void power was not frozen by her and dissipated into the air. A look of heartache and frustration appeared on Yan Bingxuan's face.

"Practice slowly. After this Void Stone is used up, let me know; I have a few more from the blind boxes I opened."

"This one is enough," Yan Bingxuan said. "I will cherish it well." She, however, shook her head, indicating she would work even harder, striving to master the knack of freezing void power before this Void Stone in her hand was used up.

"You should also balance work and rest," Chen Mobai advised the tired but determined Yan Bingxuan, who was holding the Void Stone. "Take a good holiday during the New Year."

"This year, I'll be on duty at the company," Yan Bingxuan replied. "I don't trust others to watch over those Tier 3 malevolent qi spirit liquids." She, however, shook her head, indicating she would not take a holiday this year. Chen Mobai didn't say much more, as it was her company after all.

As the sky darkened, Chen Mobai also bid farewell and left, returning to his home in Danxia City. Chen Xinglan and Tang Pancui were preparing dinner. After this meal, he left Danxia City early the next morning and went to Yumu City.

The cozy Fuxia Flower Shop was exactly as it had been when he left. The crisp sound of wind chimes rang out as he stepped through the entrance. Shi Wanyu, who was arranging various fresh flowers, heard the sound and looked up. The moment she saw him, a look of unprecedented surprise appeared on her face. Soon after, Chen Xiaohei also came downstairs, and upon seeing Chen Mobai, happily called out to him.

"Tomorrow, go pick up your parents," Chen Mobai told Shi Wanyu that night. She immediately trembled and looked up, somewhat moved.

Shi Wanyu's parents were ordinary Qi Refining cultivators. Her mother was from the Yu family, and she was their only daughter. Back then, when Shi Wanyu returned after graduation, heavily pregnant, it enraged her parents immensely; they even declared they would sever ties. But after all, she was their flesh and blood. When Xiaohei was born, the old couple rushed to the hospital upon hearing the news. Later, it was also Shi Wanyu's mother who sought help from the Yu family, and finally, Yu Huiping personally came from Five Peaks Immortal Mountain and took away Xiaohei, who had the Nine Yin Absolute Meridian.

After Xiaohei was born, Shi Wanyu's relationship with her parents eased somewhat, especially in recent years as the old couple's lifespan was nearing its end and they moved into a nursing home. Perhaps as people neared death, they no longer cared about appearances. If it was an unmarried birth, then so be it; after all, it was still the continuation of their bloodline.

After Chen Mobai and Xiaohei acknowledged their father-daughter relationship, Shi Wanyu also told her parents about this matter and explained her reasons from back then. The old couple realized it was their daughter who had made a mistake, and finally understood why, for so many years, Shi Wanyu had been unwilling to reveal who Xiaohei's father was, no matter how much they pressured her. After learning the truth, the old couple also felt apologetic towards Chen Mobai. After all, this son-in-law had too great a reputation in the Immortal Sect. If Shi Wanyu hadn't used that method, it would have been impossible for her to bear him a daughter. So the old couple wanted to apologize to Chen Mobai on behalf of Shi Wanyu. But Shi Wanyu was too embarrassed to mention this to Chen Mobai; it was her daughter who, knowing her predicament, secretly told Chen Mobai.

Since they were family now, Chen Mobai, as a son-in-law, certainly had to meet his father-in-law and mother-in-law during the New Year. After gaining Chen Mobai's approval, Shi Wanyu brought her parents back from the nursing home. The old man and old woman, sitting in wheelchairs, saw Chen Mobai standing with Chen Xiaohei and couldn't help but nod repeatedly.

"My parents will also come tomorrow," Chen Mobai said, outlining his plans. "I bought a courtyard house in the suburbs, so we can celebrate the New Year together as two families there." Chen Xinglan and Tang Pancui had also arrived by train today.

"You just arrange it; we have no objections