After collecting the Dragon Palace, Mu Jinyu turned around and looked at the Taoist-robed youths who were showing envy, pondered for a moment, and said, "The matter is over, let me send you back."
"Thanks for the trouble, Dragon Master." The Taoist-robed youths cupped their hands together with him.
Mu Jinyu waved his hand to extract a flying boat and said, "You may board."
Upon hearing Mu Jinyu's words, the Taoist-robed youths were momentarily dumbfounded.
Then they understood what Mu Jinyu meant; he had no intention of returning to the mainland and instead intended to continue exploring at sea.
Not daring to say much, they expressed their thanks again to Mu Jinyu and promptly boarded the flying boat one by one.
Once everyone was on board, Mu Jinyu gave the flying boat instructions to return them to the coast of Yang City.
"Swoosh!"
The flying boat instantly soared from the sea, piercing the sky and flying towards the distant coast.
Watching the flying boat disappear from sight, Mu Jinyu withdrew his gaze and turned to look at Gu Xiyan and the others behind him, smiling, "What's this? Do you all want to go back?"
"No, no."
The group of women shook their heads in unison.
"We thought you would just take us back directly," Lin Qiaoxia lifted her bright smile, saying with a gentle laugh.
Mu Jinyu laughed, "I saw that you all didn't seem to have enough fun just now, so since we're already out here, we should definitely enjoy ourselves thoroughly before heading back."
...
Yang City's abandoned harbor.
The flying boat crossed the air, leaving a long white streak behind, finally pausing above the harbor.
The Taoist-robed youths, seeing this, knew they could not control the flying boat or claim it as their own, so they obediently jumped off the flying boat.
As soon as they left the flying boat, with a swish, the flying boat shot straight up and disappeared from their sight in the blink of an eye.
"What a wonderful treasure, and it moves so agilely even without its owner present. If only I had this magic treasure," sighed the Taoist-robed youth, somewhat reluctant to see the flying boat leave.
"You should be satisfied. We barely did anything this trip yet gained so much. And you're still thinking about someone else's spiritual treasure?" The youth in a suit laughed upon hearing the Taoist-robed youth's sigh.
The youth in the white shirt chimed in, "Exactly. Even if you're eyeing someone else's magical artifact, why this flying boat? It's not all that useful. That Bronze Cauldron of the Dragon King, now that's valuable—it can take an entire Bronze Dragon Palace."
The youth in a jacket said, "All right, I've got the Dragon Marrow; I should head back and report to my master. Goodbye everyone, until we meet again."
With a bow to the five, the youth in the jacket flew off immediately into the sky.
Seeing this, the others also bid each other farewell before dispersing.
Half a day later.
The Taoist-robed youth returned to Mount Mao and found his master, now Mount Mao's master, Zhuo Bufan.
"Master, that's how it went..."
After detailing their encounter with Mu Jinyu, finding the Dragon Palace, and acquiring Dragon Bones and Marrow to Zhuo Bufan, the Taoist-robed youth dutifully stood aside.
"He easily slaughtered the Five Great Sea King Beasts, and with possibly top-grade spiritual treasures like the Bronze Spear and Cauldron, the Dragon King Hall's Dragon King returning from the Kunlun Ruins, his power surely reaches the late Fanxu Realm!"
Hearing his disciple Song Zijin's account, Zhuo Bufan pondered deeply for a moment before shaking his head with a sigh.
"Master, isn't he not even twenty yet? Already at the late Fanxu Realm? Is the Kunlun Ruins really that beneficial?"
Song Zijin heard his master's sigh and shuddered, asking with a slightly incredulous tone.
Zhuo Bufan slowly shook his head, his expression grave, "Kunlun Ruins are not as simple or as good as you imagine. Years ago, the Spiritual Energy on Earth was scarce, the environment poor, so most martial artists, after painstakingly reaching the Divinity Transformation Realm, would try to enter the Kunlun Ruins, yet less than one in ten survive and return!"
"Even among those who survive, few have greatly advanced in strength; most come out crippled, like Yu Shenfeng, Li Zhexiong... "
Zhuo Bufan said with a tone carrying some helplessness, "We are like poor students from impoverished regions; those who can eventually go to college and make a name for themselves are very few because our foundations and resources are far too lacking."
Looking up at Song Zijin, Zhuo Bufan advised, "The Dragon King thriving in the Kunlun Ruins is an extraordinary exception, and you don't know what he went through there, so don't assume that just because someone enters the Kunlun Ruins at the Mid Divine Transformation Realm and returns in a year at the late Fanxu Realm that the same will happen to you. More likely, you'd die there rather than come out crippled!"
Song Zijin heard his master's words and smiled wryly, "Master, am I really that bad?"
Feeling a bit unconvinced, he thought he, too, might excel in the Kunlun Ruins, given his rise from the Early Energy Transformation Stage to the Mid Divine Transformation Realm within a year!
Zhuo Bufan glanced at Song Zijin, shaking his head, "Don't get complacent. You think that being in the Mid Divine Transformation Realm at your age is top-notch among your peers, but remember, you only reached this level in a year because there were hardly any who could compete with us for resources on Earth."
"We seized these cultivation resources first because there were no stronger experts around to claim them, allowing us a chance to smoothly develop and enhance! But in the Kunlun Ruins, such opportunities are rare."
After pausing, Zhuo Bufan continued, "For instance, you are in the Mid Divine Transformation Realm now, but you're nearly thirty; a year ago, when the Spiritual Energy had not yet revived on Earth, you hadn't even reached the Divine Transformation Realm, unlike the Dragon King."
Unconvinced, Song Zijin said, "That's because he was nurtured by the Dragon King Hall from a young age. Wouldn't it be different for me if I were raised there?"
Zhuo Bufan sighed, "If that were the case, I wouldn't marvel at the Dragon King's talent. Unfortunately, the Dragon King hadn't joined the Dragon King Hall until he was eighteen; he achieved everything before that through his own cultivation!"
"How is that possible?!" Song Zijin didn't believe it, looking at his master with eyes full of skepticism.
Zhuo Bufan handed a document to Song Zijin, "See for yourself."
This document, he'd recently ordered someone to gather after learning of the Dragon King's return from the Dragon King Hall.
A year ago, Zhuo Bufan wasn't even the master of Mount Mao; he had average cultivation and lacked the opportunity to learn about Mu Jinyu or the Dragon King Hall. Later, benefiting from the Spiritual Energy Revival, he managed a swift rise to become Mount Mao's master and reached the Fanxu Realm, making him a prominent figure. However, since Mu Jinyu wasn't in the Dragon King Hall then, he hadn't specifically inquired about Mu Jinyu's past experiences.
It wasn't until Mu Jinyu's recent return that he sought to understand her more deeply.
The more he learned, the more he was in awe, even feeling a bit inferior.
He believed that had Mu Jinyu not left suddenly for the Kunlun Ruins a year ago, under the Spiritual Energy Revival, she would have similarly reached the Mid-Stage of the Fanxu Realm and still outclassed the entire world!