Chapter 1436: Lu Qing'er's Transformation

"Qing'er?"

Li Luo looked at the beautiful girl walking towards him. It was as though he had fallen into a trance momentarily. It had already been two years since they had separated at the Spiritual Resonance Cave, and he had never expected that they would finally meet again. The slender and graceful young lady still had the same pretty face, her long hair falling down her back like a waterfall and swaying softly in the wind.

Lu Qing'er's skin was like ice and her bones were like jade, soft and radiant. Under her short skirt were two straight and long legs that seemed as though they were carved out of the finest jade, her white stockings covering them but also highlighting their astounding luster. It seemed that her youthfulness had faded away and she had turned colder but even more stunning.

She radiated a cold air, causing frost to condense around her. Whenever she took a step, the ground iced over. From afar, she resembled a fairy of ice entering the mortal world. With each step, shocked gazes shot in her direction. This girl was not only incomparably beautiful, but what differentiated her was her frigid demeanor. It was simply eye-catching.

She then stopped before Li Luo.

Li Luo's eyes reflected the icy individual before him. His handsome face then gave a wide, beaming smile full of happiness. "It's been a while, Qing'er."

Lu Qing'er's frozen lake-like eyes continued to watch him as she nodded and lightly replied, "Indeed. It has been a while, Li Luo."

Her voice was familiar, but there was an unexplainable iciness to it. It was almost as though her frosty aura was capable of freezing her emotions. Li Luo's heart trembled slightly. He could sense that Lu Qing'er had changed, and the most obvious thing was that her once charming smile seemed to have mostly faded. It was as though it had a hint of coldness to it.

It lacked a little bit of spirit.

He hesitated before saying, "Qing'er, it seems you've changed a little."

Lu Qing'er's gorgeous eyes rippled and she fell silent for a few moments. After which, a smile bloomed on her pretty face like a snow lotus. "So what? Were you scared?" She grinned.

Li Luo finally heaved a sigh of relief as he grumbled, "I almost thought you had transformed into someone else."

He could sense from the cold air flowing around her body that her resonance was much more powerful than before. It was clear it had evolved to a much higher grade.

Lu Qing'er gave a shallow laugh.

"What stage are you in now?" Li Luo asked curiously.

"I can't compare with you. I'm still a first-grade Duke," she answered.

"That said..." She paused. "I have a Ten-Pillar Golden Duke Bergfried."

Li Luo hefted her a thumbs up. He wasn't surprised by this as Lu Qing'er was from Golden Dragon Mountain and possessed an immense foundation, one that was superior to even the Bloodline of Heavenly Emperor Li. When Lu Qing'er was sealed in ice, his grandpa had mentioned that she had used the power of the Sacred Seed to freeze her body. This allowed her to deepen her connection with the Permafrost Sacred Seed. Therefore, it made sense that she was capable of forging a Ten-Pillar Golden Duke Bergfried.

Lu Qing'er's gaze then turned towards the other three, and she greeted them. "Mentor Cao Sheng, Mentor Mi Er, Mentor Chi Chan."

"Haha, I finally get to see you again, Qing'er. It has been many years, and you've become even more beautiful. Your mother even asked me to take care of you." Cao Sheng laughed heartily.

Mi Er glanced at him. "Those were just polite words from President Yu. Couldn't you tell?"

Cao Sheng's laughter stopped abruptly. Li Luo clicked his tongue. Mentor Mi Er was truly savage—he had directly shut Cao Sheng up with a single sentence.

Lu Qing'er smiled before her gaze turned towards the silent Li Hongyou, who was standing behind Li Luo, and she asked, "May I know who this older sister might be?"

"I'm Li Hongyou and from the Dragon's Fang Lineage. I just entered the Astral Sage College's squad with him." Li Hongyou's gaze flickered with a hint of interest. She could vaguely sense that the frosty fairy before her seemed to have a close relationship with Li Luo.

Lu Qing'er smiled. "I hope you're well. I'm Lu Qing'er, and I thank you, Sister Hongyou, for helping the Astral Sage College out."

Li Hongyou's usually cold face revealed a small smile as she nodded and accepted the greeting.

At this moment, a woman piped up. "Qing'er, is he the one you are waiting for?"

Li Luo glanced in that direction, and countless people walked over. At the forefront was a middle-aged lady with a sharp gaze, giving off a domineering aura.

She was staring at Li Luo with an incisive look in her eyes.

These individuals were standing around Lu Qing'er previously, acting as her guards.

Lu Qing'er turned to them and nodded lightly. "Aunt Zhu, my squad is all here. I'll register under the Astral Sage College and enter the Celestial Mirror Martial Exchange with them."

The lady addressed as Aunt Zhu glanced at the group and helplessly replied, "Qing'er, they are simply too weak. If you stay with them, there is no guarantee that they can keep you safe. Will you not reconsider? The Family Head has prepared several other options for you. You simply need to agree."

Cao Sheng felt disgruntled upon hearing those words, but he didn't have anything to say. After all, he could sense a pressure emanating from Aunt Zhu that was no weaker than Lu Dian's. Clearly, she was also a seventh-grade Duke.

On top of that, the ones around her were also much stronger than him.

Lu Qing'er calmly shook her head.

Aunt Zhu sighed. "Qing'er, do you know how important the Celestial Mirror Martial Exchange is to you? Lu Ruyan is already here, and this might be your last and most important trial."

Aunt Zhu looked at Li Luo. "It is indeed amazing that he is a second-grade Transcendent, but the Celestial Mirror Martial Exchange is not a competition between peers of the same generation. He lacks sheer firepower."

At the same time, she couldn't help but to gripe. "And you're from the Bloodline of Heavenly Emperor Li. Couldn't you have arranged for some high-grade Dukes to accompany you here?"

Li Luo felt a little awkward upon hearing her words, and he explained, "The Heavenly Origin Divine Continent has been struck with an Other Disaster, so most of the powers there don't have the time nor manpower to be concerned with the Celestial Mirror Pagoda."

The Bloodline of Heavenly Emperor Li had stationed most of their strongest experts in the northwestern border to prevent the Other Disaster from spreading further. The fact that he, the Grand Guardian General, had run all the way over here was already pushing things. If he brought some of the experts with him, it would be too much.

Lu Qing'er interrupted the middle-aged woman's spiel. "Aunt Zhu, I know what I'm doing."

She paused. "I don't mind the danger. All I want is to do something for myself."

Aunt Zhu paused, seemingly remembering something. Then her forceful gaze gradually softened before she looked at Li Luo with a complicated expression. "Then I'll have to trouble my little friend Li Luo with taking care of Qing'er."

Li Luo hurriedly nodded.

After which, Aunt Zhu no longer hung around, leading the group away.

As Li Luo watched their departing figures, he scratched his head and said to Lu Qing'er, "If there is something important to you in the Celestial Mirror Martial Exchange, there's no need for you to have entered the Astral Sage College's squad. It's fine with just me around."

Lu Qing'er then replied with a question of her own. "So why are you here, anyway?"

Before Li Luo could respond, she whispered, "You've helped me many times in the past, so I want to help you this time.

"After all, it will be the last time."

That final sentence could barely be heard.

Li Luo helplessly replied, "What kind of relationship do we have? There is no need to be polite. You can rest easy and I'll take good care of you. Is Lu Ruyan your older sister from the Lu family?"

"I suppose Sister Shuanglu mentioned that to you?" Lu Qing'er asked.

"She might have said a word or two." Li Luo nodded.

Lu Qing'er then suddenly asked yet again, "I heard that Senior Jiang is also in the Celestial Mirror Pagoda? Wasn't she with you in the Dragon's Fang Lineage?"

Li Luo nodded yet again.

Lu Qing'er fell silent, and an inner iciness emerged from the depths of her eyes. This frostiness seemed to fill her body, even affecting her emotions. The chilly air around her mysteriously strengthened. After which, she nodded slightly and mumbled to herself, "That's good.

She then said to the other three, “Mentors, we should make our way to Celestial Mirror City as the Celestial Mirror Pagoda will officially open soon and we have to make preparations." Then she proceeded to lead them somewhere.

Li Luo glanced at Lu Qing'er's lithe figure, and a look of worry appeared in his eyes. It seemed there was something going on with her.