Every single person who came to the District Pavilion knew about the Purple Qiong Fruit quest. Ever since it was posted a year ago, its generous rewards and incredibly high contribution points had attracted wave after wave of powerful cultivators to take it on, yet not a single team had managed to complete it.

Consequently, the quest had been nicknamed the "Death-Guaranteed Quest" by the Ling Shi—meaning, accepting this quest guaranteed death. Now, the Death-Guaranteed Quest had been accepted, and the Magic Transference Device had clearly stated that the one accepting it was a seventeen-year-old First-Grade Ling Shi!

Everyone was stunned by the sheer news of a seventeen-year-old First-Grade Ling Shi!

Chen Feng and Ling Feng exited the inner chamber after accepting the task and stepped into the main hall. The previous clamor immediately ceased.

Everyone in the hall instinctively stood up and saluted the pair. These people were all those who had been eliminated during the Ling Shi selection trials. They deeply understood how difficult the selection process was. A seventeen-year-old Ling Shi, who had also accepted the "Death-Guaranteed Quest"—how could they not respect such a person?

“Hoo…” A neat sound of salutes echoed throughout the hall, and every face showed a look of reverence.

Chen Feng glanced around the hall, his Ling Shi badge gleaming on his chest, and strode out with Ling Feng.

The gate guard turned out to be the same one from that day. Upon seeing the badge on Chen Feng’s chest, his eyes widened until they were perfectly round, his mouth forming a stark ‘O’ shape as he froze in place. He never imagined that the youth he hadn't thought highly of had actually passed the trials!

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Stepping down the platform stairs outside the District Pavilion, Chen Feng turned to Ling Feng and said, "Come with me!"

He had decided to take on the Purple Qiong Fruit quest without consulting Ling Feng first. Moreover, Ling Feng had mentioned wanting to return to the Phoenix Domain. Chen Feng's true motive in asking her to come along was simply to spend more time with her.

Ling Feng hesitated for a moment, but ultimately nodded.

Now that the Profound Heaven Illustrated Codex was secured, returning to her clan would only lead to a swift increase in strength, aiming to reach the peak of the Saint Domain within five years, allowing her to claim a Godhead and achieve godhood within the Profound Heaven Demon Palace. Since Chen Feng’s current goal was finding the Purple Qiong Fruit, and the journey would undoubtedly be fraught with danger, she naturally needed to go along to assist.

“No matter what, I carry the blood of the Divine Beast Vermilion Bird within me. Although the Phoenix Might is not as overbearing as Dragon Might, it still exerts a certain pressure on demonic beasts. Perhaps it can help him…” Ling Feng thought to herself.

In reality, she didn't realize that if Dragon Might and Phoenix Might genuinely deterred these demonic beasts, the Dragon Domain and Phoenix Domain would have collected all the Purple Qiong Fruits long ago. How could they have remained untouched in the Myriad Beast Cave for such an extended period?

Having accepted the quest, there was no rush to depart immediately. Chen Feng’s primary concern now was reuniting with Little Tiger and the others. With the Ling Shi badge, using long-distance teleportation arrays was no longer an issue, making the costly option of flying illogical.

Standing in place, Chen Feng gauged the general direction of Little Tiger, and then he and Ling Feng located the nearest magic teleportation array. This array, like most, was set up in the outskirts of the city. After paying a certain amount of crystal stones, a flash of magic light enveloped them, transporting them nearly ten million kilometers away.

Long-distance magic arrays were always fundamental to any power structure. If anyone with money could simply ride them, the wars between the Seven Great Empires would be far too simple—they could just dispatch soldiers via the array directly into the enemy's heartland! The status of Ling Shi symbolized free experts, individuals unrestrained by, or belonging to, any single power structure. Therefore, the privilege of using these long-distance transports was reserved exclusively for Ling Shi.

From the moment he stepped onto the magic array, Chen Feng understood the advantages of being a Ling Shi. It was clear why so many strived to pass the trials; the allure of authority was immense for anyone.

Emerging from the magic array, he checked the sky. It was already late. They were now much closer to Little Tiger. Previously, he could only vaguely sense its direction, but now he could clearly feel its exact location.

"I'm less than a million li from Little Tiger now. If I fly, it will only take a few days!" Chen Feng calculated, losing his sense of urgency.

"Let's head into the city and get something to eat!" Chen Feng turned and said to Ling Feng.

Ling Feng nodded.

Truthfully, she hadn't eaten anything substantial in a long time. During their escape, it had been fish, fish, and more fish, to the point where the sight of fish now made her feel nauseous.

Because they were wearing Ling Shi badges, they easily found a luxurious carriage and rode within the compartment toward the town. Flying was prohibited above cities on the Overseas Continent. He had heard this from the guide shortly after they landed. Given the dense spiritual energy and countless powerful cultivators on the continent, if unrestricted flight were allowed, occasional mid-air battles could easily result in the entire city being pulverized.

This settlement was clearly beyond the level of a mere town; its prosperity suggested city status. Chen Feng had initially thought the port area was bustling, but seeing this place revealed just how backward the port truly was. It explained why every large settlement he’d previously visited was called a 'town'—like Gena Mu Town, Zhong Shang Town, or Kuta Town. Only the capitals of the Loki Empire, Nubia City, and the Fenlai Empire, Maya City, were called ‘Cities.’ Clearly, the gap between a city and a town was substantial.

This place was called Fekelia City, one of the five major cities of the Tern Empire. This ultra-long-distance transport had brought them out of the Rhine Empire.

Upon entering Fekelia City, Chen Feng selected a high-end restaurant and walked in with Ling Feng. Despite both wearing plain attire, the Ling Shi badges on their chests ensured that the restaurant staff dared not slight them.

They went upstairs to the second floor, found a window seat, ordered some food, and waited. Since it wasn't the main dining hour yet, the area was quiet, save for a young man at another window leisurely eating.

“Clang, clang…”

Just then, a group of burly men ascended the stairs, each clad in black scale armor, looking exceptionally imposing. The men settled at a round table and began conversing loudly.

"Did you hear about the humiliation suffered by the Purple Courtyard Demon Territory?" said a burly man sporting a large earring.

"What humiliation?" he asked a melancholy-looking man beside him.

The man with the large earring chuckled. "I heard that all the antiques collected by their Lord Assembly were completely stolen by a single person!"

"Oh?" The gloomy-faced man showed interest. "How did that happen?"

"It was quite a coincidence. Last time I was on duty, I happened to overhear some lads from the Purple Courtyard Demon Territory late at night. Apparently, that day when our territory and the Heavenly Snow Demon Territory teamed up for an offensive, a supreme expert snuck into the Purple Courtyard Demon Territory under the cover of night and cleaned out everything their lord had been collecting for hundreds of years!" the earring-wearing man gossiped.

"One person infiltrating the Purple Courtyard Demon Territory? Real or fake?" The gloomy man clearly found this hard to believe. How could anyone sneak into the heavily guarded stronghold of one of the three major powers undetected and make off with their treasures?

"Of course it's real! I even heard the name of this person!" the earring-wearing man insisted. "I heard that the lord who single-handedly breached the Purple Courtyard Demon Territory and shamed them is named Chen Feng, Lord Chen Feng!" The burly man’s voice was full of admiration as he spoke this.

"If what you say is true, then this Lord Chen Feng has certainly avenged some grievances for our Golden Crow Demon Territory!"

The Tern Empire was, after all, one of the empires under the jurisdiction of the Golden Crow Demon Territory!

"Naturally. If I had even half the courage and cultivation of Lord Chen Feng, I wouldn't have lived in vain!" the earring-wearing man sighed enviously. "To infiltrate the Purple Courtyard Demon Territory alone, steal all their goods, and retreat unharmed—that kind of cultivation is truly enviable!"

Chen Feng and Ling Feng, seated not far away, heard every word clearly.

Ling Feng allowed a faint smile to cross her lips and said with a hint of teasing, "It seems you've become quite famous."

Since opening up to Chen Feng, Ling Feng no longer maintained the detached coldness she once had and occasionally engaged in banter.

Chen Feng responded with a hum. He hadn't expected his embarrassing escape to be transmuted into such a legend outside. Were the security measures of the Purple Courtyard Demon Territory truly that poor? However, it made a certain amount of sense; both the Golden Crow Demon Territory and the Heavenly Snow Demon Territory had been ambushed and lost many elites after their joint offensive, leading to low morale. To boost spirits, striking back at the enemy appropriately was expected. His dramatic entry into the Purple Courtyard Demon Territory must have been witnessed by quite a few people, so the news spreading was inevitable.

But the embellishment—the claim that he left behind a taunting message—that was sheer nonsense. Yet, these fabrications were being recounted with such conviction, attracting blind admirers. If these people ever learned that he was only a Second-Grade Dou Zun at the time, they would probably laugh themselves sick.

Thinking of this, he couldn't suppress the smile bubbling up, and he let out a soft chuckle.

“Bang!” The burly man nearby slammed his fist on the table and shot up, glaring at Chen Feng. "What, friend? Do you find what I just said laughable?"

The only other parties in the entire restaurant were their group and the solitary youth nearby. Chen Feng’s loud laughter after hearing their conversation certainly carried an air of ridicule.

Chen Feng replied, "I didn't mean to mock. I just find it amusing... what if the real Chen Feng isn't as formidable as you imagine him to be?"

"Not as formidable?" The earring-wearing man roared, "Chen Feng is the lord I admire! If you dare disrespect him and spread nonsense again, I won't hesitate to duel you!"