Li Mengyun was already nineteen years old, and Li Qingyun felt a deep melancholy.
The last time they met, Li Mengyun was only three or four years old. She would bury her head in Li Qingyun's chest and act spoiled, whimpering, "Daddy, you're so handsome."
The happiest days of raising a daughter had passed just like that, and in the blink of an eye, she had grown into a beautiful young woman.
In terms of appearance, she had inherited the traits of both Li Qingyun and Hong Yu, making her a breathtaking beauty.
When everyone arrived at Canxiang Valley, they were stunned by Li Mengyun's beauty.
Liang Zifan swallowed hard and said, "Brother Qingyun, from now on, we'll go our separate ways. You call me brother, and I'll call you dad."
Li Qingyun kicked him all the way to the Outer Heavens.
Li Mengyun was being groomed as the future successor of Canxiang Valley. Fortunately, this character did not grow up astray; at present, she seemed different from Hong Yu.
"Uncle, Auntie, hello!"
Seeing Li Qingyun's companions arrive, she was very enthusiastic.
She was very curious about these people, who were said to be heroes who had fought against the Shitian Clan.
Moreover, they would get to meet a living Immortal Emperor, Li Qingyun's master, Emperor Qing.
This Immortal Emperor was completely different from what they had imagined. It wasn't that he had little pretense; he had no pretense at all.
He treated everyone as his brothers, and every day he played rock-paper-scissors and drank with Wang Teng.
The native people of this world were accustomed to Emperor Qing's behavior. They had seen the Valley Master of Canxiang Valley, Xia Yunxi, drag Emperor Qing by the collar and beat him up more than once.
What made them most dumbfounded was that this Emperor Qing was caught peeking at the female disciples of Canxiang Valley bathing... and apparently, it wasn't the first time.
Whenever this happened, Emperor Qing would put on airs, with an expression that said, "I am an Immortal Emperor, how could I possibly do such a thing?"
Everyone was stunned. They suddenly began to sympathize with Li Qingyun. No wonder he deliberately avoided the topic of Emperor Qing whenever he talked about his hundred years of experience in this world.
However, they were only here to play for a few months. They knew their mission was to bring Li Qingyun back.
Li Qingyun also knew that he had to leave. He had already spent several years here accompanying Hong Yu.
Hong Yu was very supportive of her man's endeavors. So, after a few days of passionate intimacy, they left satisfied.
If they could spend a few years here after successfully saving each world, it wouldn't be a big problem.
The worlds they had fought in before took no more than fifteen years in total. For worlds where the disparity between humans and the Shitian Clan was significant, it might take a bit longer.
But at their level, ten years or so was just a blink of an eye, the time it took for a single period of closed-door cultivation.
"Goodbye, I'll come back to see you after I complete my next campaign!"
"I heard you almost got yourself killed last time. Don't you dare leave me a widow!"
"Don't worry, I know my limits now!"
"..."
After a flash of light, everyone returned to Blue Star.
Chu Yang was already waiting for them.
After they tidied themselves up, they quickly gathered before Chu Yang.
Chu Yang looked at Li Qingyun and asked, "How is it? Are your family members well?"
Li Qingyun scratched his head and said, "They are quite well. With Emperor Qing around, no one dares to bully them."
"Then you should settle down and come back, because you will soon be embarking on your next campaign. Although it will be arduous, I believe it is all worth it. I wonder if you feel proud of what you are doing."
Everyone straightened their chests. It was more than pride; they were practically floating.
Saving the world was something that only appeared in hot-blooded manga before. Now, they were like protagonists in hot-blooded anime, and they had even successfully saved a world.
They had played a crucial role in the salvation, and watching the victors cheer at the end filled them with immense satisfaction.
It was only now that they finally understood the words, "All races called human are our kin."
"But before you depart, I want to give you some gifts. You can choose whether to accept them or not."
Seeing their confused gazes, Chu Yang explained, "I now have an ability that can help all of you increase your cultivation by a minor realm, with no side effects. However, I cannot help you advance a major realm. For example, for Li Qingyun, who is already at the late stage of Soul Transformation, I cannot directly help you advance to the Mahayana stage."
"But each person only has one chance. You can wait until you are in the middle stage of Mahayana, and then I can help you advance to the late stage of Mahayana, or you can choose to let me upgrade you now. The choice is yours."
Zhuang Hongxia was once again stunned. Enlightenment through infusion was a known concept in the cultivation world. It was typically used by dying elders of sects to impart their power to their disciples.
However, in such situations, they could usually only help disciples advance by one or two minor realms, and after doing so, the imparting elder would essentially cease to exist.
Everyone started gathering around, whispering to each other. This matter required careful consideration.
Although everyone's situation was different, as a team, they had to consider the opinions of others.
After about ten minutes of discussion, everyone turned around, seemingly having made up their minds.
"How is it? Have you decided?"
"Brother Xian, we've decided. Everyone will upgrade immediately."
Chu Yang was slightly surprised. Were they that reckless?
He had expected them to wait until the middle stage of Mahayana to use it. After all, the further one progressed, the slower the cultivation advancement became, and the most cost-effective time to use it was in the middle stage of Mahayana.
It was like playing a game of chess, having a hero duplicator and thinking of upgrading to a three-star hero.
"Everyone is upgrading immediately? No further consideration?"
Meng Zibin replied, "Because we will be constantly campaigning, the higher our combat effectiveness, the better. If we can be more powerful when we go to other worlds, it will be easier to turn the tide of battles, and fewer people will be sacrificed."
Everyone nodded solemnly. This was their thinking.
They believed they could advance on their own in the future, so immediate combat effectiveness was the most important thing.
"Clap, clap, clap..."
Chu Yang applauded them. Their resolve truly touched him.
Then, he said to everyone, "Are you ready?"
"Ready!"
With a gentle snap of Chu Yang's fingers, everyone's eyes widened in an instant. Vast spiritual energy converged from all directions.
Thunderclouds churned in the sky, and it seemed as though heavenly tribulations were about to descend.
For geniuses like them, a heavenly tribulation would typically appear every time they broke through a minor realm.
However, Chu Yang stared at the churning thunderclouds in the sky, frowned, and said, "You are not allowed to strike."
Everyone seemed to turn to stone, watching as the fierce heavenly tribulation directly dissipated into nothingness.