The Emperor's Domineering Favor, the Evil Consort's Unparalleled Reign

In a moment of panic, Ying Li condensed the spiritual array she had just learned. Although it was a somewhat weak barrier of six paths, with the added imposing presence of Ying Li, the wolf howled twice and finally obediently lay down in the spiritual array. Ying Li looked angrily at its round belly, knowing it wouldn't need to eat anything for the next two or three months.

Ying Li fixed her gaze on the five hundred top-grade Lingluo grasses that had been barely salvaged, and her lips twitched involuntarily. All three thousand two hundred spirit herbs had been eaten by the hunting wolf. Her gaze toward the hunting wolf became somewhat fierce, but the hunting wolf whimpered twice as if it hadn't seen her.

Ying Li wondered if her expression had been too amiable, as the little creature wasn't afraid of her at all. Thinking this, Ying Li quickly sat cross-legged and slowly refined the remaining five hundred superior-grade Lingluo grasses in her palm. Superior-grade Lingluo grass was indeed a good thing; although the quantity was somewhat small, it still made Ying Li feel a surge of spiritual energy in her dantian. She had recently broken through to the fifth stage of spiritual cultivation, and unless she found some special opportunity, she probably wouldn't be able to break through again in the short term.

"How are you feeling now?" Ying Li tentatively spoke to the alluring man in the Bone Ring. Ever since he helped her break through the Disorientation Array, he had seemed somewhat absent-minded.

The alluring man stretched lazily within the bone ring, his face showing signs of fatigue. Leaning against the small space within the ring, he looked up at Ying Li's elegant and lovely face and said, "Finally remembered you, brother? It's nothing, really. I've just been asleep for too long. I finally woke up, but because I couldn't cultivate on my own in this state, I used all my resources to break the spirit-loss array, so I'm quite tired lately. I was thinking of cultivating with you, but I feel like I'm not making any progress. I've been in a drowsy state the whole time, and I don't know when I'll fall asleep again."

Ying Li was startled and quickly got up. She waved her hand to summon the alluring man from the bone ring. After not seeing him for several days, the alluring man's face was a little pale. He looked languid and was leaning against the bed, looking weak and listless. No wonder he hadn't joked with her these past few days. It turned out he was in this state.

"Is there any way to help you recover? Tell me, and I'll help you." Ying Li's face was full of worry. She and the alluring man had gone through thick and thin together these past few days. Although they weren't family, they had developed a sense of kinship. During their escape, he had been with Ying Li the whole time. Ying Li couldn't imagine what the consequences would be if he continued to weaken like this, but she knew clearly that she didn't want to see such a consequence at all.

The alluring man raised his eyelids slightly and looked at Ying Li's sincere face. For some reason, a warm feeling welled up in his heart. Although he knew in his heart that he had not saved Ying Li from the bottom of his heart, Ying Li's feelings for him were one hundred percent sincere.

"Girl, thank you..." After saying this, the alluring man closed his eyes and fell asleep again. He leaned against the bed, the crescent-shaped scar on his forehead faintly glowing red. Under his tranquil face, the corners of his mouth were slightly raised. Ying Li always thought that his appearance was almost demonic, but now seeing him sleeping, he looked very much like a child.

His body swayed and fell. Ying Li stepped forward and hugged him. However, the next second, the bewitching man passed through Ying Li's body, crashed heavily to the ground, turned into a wisp of white smoke, and flowed back into the bone ring.

"It's actually..." Ying Li stared at his empty hands, probing the alluring man who had fallen asleep again within the bone ring, his face filled with surprise. "Wake up, you still haven't told me how to recover..."

Ying Li panicked. She kept calling out to the alluring man within the ring of withered bones, but found that no matter how she called, she received no response. At this moment, she suddenly realized that she didn't even know the man's name. He didn't say, and she didn't ask, so she remained unaware and had never noticed anything amiss.

A wave of guilt washed over her. What could possibly bring him back to life? Ying Li recalled the scene of her first encounter with the alluring man. She had been killed by Ying Luo, and her blood had awakened him from the skeletal ring. Now, would her own blood be effective?

Thinking this, Ying Li took out the dagger from her waist for self-defense and made a cut on the palm of her left hand. Blood slowly oozed out, and Ying Li felt a burning pain in her left hand. Ignoring it, she clenched her left hand and moved it to the bone ring on her right hand. Blood dripped into the bone ring, and the black bracelet shone with a bewitching purple light, absorbing the blood floating on the surface and finally returning to its original state. However, the bewitching man did not wake up for a long time.

What exactly is going on? Even blood doesn't work anymore?

"Ah Li! Isn't it time for dinner?! I'm so hungry!" Just as Ying Li was deep in thought, Old Man Yan's voice came from outside the door, carrying a hint of laziness.

Ying Li turned to look at the door, remembering Old Man Yan's identity as a yellow-robed spirit mage, who also possessed strong mental control abilities. Perhaps he knew something about the alluring man. With this in mind, Ying Li quickly wiped the dagger clean and put it away, hastily bandaged his left hand, and opened the door for Old Man Yan.

When Old Man Yan saw Ying Li leave the door, his expression changed. He looked Ying Li up and down, then fixed his gaze on the white handkerchief in Ying Li's left hand. The handkerchief was still stained with some fresh blood, and a faint smell of blood lingered in the air.

Old Man Yan grabbed Ying Li's hand and examined it closely, saying, "Ah Li, I asked you to learn a beginner's spiritual book, what's going on with you?"

Ying Li withdrew her hand, intending to find an excuse to ask Old Man Yan about the withered bone ring, but Old Man Yan turned to look at the broken walnuts and bloodstained dagger on Ying Li's table, smacked his lips, flicked Ying Li on the head, shook his head and scolded, "A little brat like you, how can you be so greedy? You even cut your hand. How can a girl get married if she's covered in scars?!"

Ying Li had three black lines on his forehead. Looking at Old Man Yan's serious expression, he couldn't help but stick out his tongue. It was exactly as Yi Bicheng had said. This old man really didn't play by the rules, so it was no wonder that some people in the Yun family couldn't stand him.

“Master, it was Ali’s fault. Ali will have the waiter bring up the wine and dishes in a little while. What do you think, Master?” Ying Li asked tentatively, putting her hand behind her back.

Old Man Yan was already staring at the walnuts on the table, and he nodded repeatedly. He turned to the table and started peeling and eating the walnuts by himself.

He didn't forget to set up a disorientation array on Ying Li with his right hand, but this array was more than three times more effective than the one he had used in the morning. After all, he was a high-ranking yellow-robed spirit mage, and even if his personality was eccentric, he was still very cautious about teaching and cultivating spirit techniques.

Ying Li's expression changed as he watched the six barriers surrounding him press down relentlessly. He quickly gathered his spiritual energy to defend against the attacks of the spiritual array. Remembering the techniques he had learned that day, Ying Li gathered his spiritual energy in the back of his hand, silently reciting the incantation. Following the methods recorded in the spiritual book, he released the spiritual energy to break through the array one by one. After a short while, Ying Li easily walked out of the spiritual array.

Old Man Yan chuckled almost imperceptibly, then turned his gaze back to the walnuts on the table. "Ali, you must say, these walnuts are really delicious. Next time you eat them, remember to bring some more for your master."

Ying Li chuckled and sat opposite Old Man Yan, thinking about how to steer the conversation toward the Bone Ring. When he saw the yellow leaf spirit mark on Old Man Yan's arm, an idea struck him, and he asked, "Master, what's the deal with the yellow leaf mark on your arm? Is there some secret behind it?"

Old Man Yan's hands never stopped peeling walnuts. "This is the mark of a Yellow-Robed Spirit Master, the Yellow Leaf Spirit Guide, which I obtained during the assessment. This spirit guide doesn't have any offensive effect, but it greatly helps with mental control. This is the third level for me, and there are four more levels of spirit arts and spirit guides to follow. You little girl have high comprehension; I think you will definitely be stronger than me in the future."

"Master, I've heard that to become a spirit mage, one must have the ability to control one's mind. The rare treasure, the Bone Ring, on the Spirit Realm Continent also requires a king with the ability to control his mind to restrain the power of the totem. I'm very curious, what exactly is the use of this ability to control one's mind?" Ying Li asked step by step.

"Mental control is an extremely rare ability. There are very few people on the Spirit Realm Continent who possess this ability; only about one in a thousand people has it. But of those thousand, only one can become a Spirit Master. Once someone possesses mental control, they can anticipate the opponent's attack and movement, and detect the abilities of those stronger than themselves. At the most basic level, they can use this mental control to manipulate spiritual power and set up various Spirit Master formations. Therefore, this ability is highly coveted by the people of the Spirit Realm Continent." Old Man Yan was still completely unaware of Ying Li's scheme.

"As for the Bone Ring, I don't know much about it either. I only know that the mental control it contains is extremely strong. If the owner knows how to use the Bone Ring, then they can cultivate with the King at the same time and use the power of totems. That is a world-destroying ability. However, from ancient times to the present, only a handful of people have ever used it. If you don't know how to use the Bone Ring, you can also cultivate with the King by forcibly absorbing the spiritual power of a large amount of spiritual herbs and plants. If you don't have enough spiritual power, this dual cultivation of spiritual power won't work."

"So what if the owner cannot cultivate spiritually at the same time as the king, and has overdrawn the king's abilities?" Ying Li directly posed the most important question.

Old Man Yan then looked up from the pile of walnut shells and stared at Ying Li. Why was this girl so curious? But it was something she should know. The sooner she knew, the sooner she would save herself trouble. So the old man continued, "As far as I know, if one cannot cultivate spiritually with a king at the same time, and one has depleted the king's spiritual power, then the king will fall back into slumber. Unless one obtains the Qilin Pearl or finds a way to use the Bone Ring, the king will remain asleep forever."

Ying Li was startled, a sudden pang of sadness washing over her as she realized the alluring man might never wake up. The alluring man had promised to help Ying Li find a way to use it, but before she could even teach him, he had fallen asleep. Currently, the only way to wake the alluring man was with this Qilin Pearl.

Ying Li secretly resolved that no matter what method he used or what price he had to pay, he must obtain the Qilin Pearl.