Oh no! My grandmother made me shoulder the responsibility for eight households!

Chapter 342 Blue Phoenix's Cultivation Breakthrough

The next day.

Lin Chen left Nandu City with only Blue Phoenix and three hundred Great Snow Dragon Riders.

Yan Da and the Imperial City Guard stayed in the city to protect Yao Yao and the others, awaiting Liu Shengxue's orders.

Given the current situation in Nandu City, nothing unexpected is likely to happen to the women.

Even in the event of unforeseen circumstances, Lin Chen had a trump card up his sleeve, which is why he felt at ease leaving the women in the city.

The carriage left the city gate and headed south.

The farmland along the official road gradually decreased, replaced by rolling hills and dense forests.

The air became humid and muggy, and tall palm trees and bamboo groves began to appear along the roadside, their canopies entwined with vines so dense that no light could penetrate.

After driving for a short distance, Lin Chen lifted the carriage curtain and glanced back.

A person followed behind, dressed in white with long hair, walking at a leisurely pace.

The pace seemed slow, but it always kept the same speed as the carriage, like taking a stroll.

Lin Chen smiled helplessly: "They really did follow us."

Lan Fenghuang glanced outside; Lingbo's figure was faintly visible at the end of the official road.

"Husband, should we invite her to ride with us?"

Lin Chen smiled and called out, "Miss Lingbo, would you like to come up and sit down? It's sunny outside."

Lingbo didn't speak, but quickened her pace to walk alongside the carriage.

She glanced at Lin Chen, shook her head, and then looked at the distant mountains.

Lin Chen didn't insist, lowered the carriage curtain, and continued walking.

This woman, who has been with us for so long, doesn't speak first or try to get close; she just stays there quietly.

Lin Chen sometimes felt that she was like a cat, wanting to get close but insisting on keeping her distance.

As the carriage traveled south, the official road grew narrower and narrower, and the woods on both sides became increasingly dense.

Sunlight filtered through the leaves, casting dappled shadows on the ground.

The air was damp, carrying the smell of decaying vegetation, mixed with the fragrance of soil and wildflowers.

Lan Fenghuang changed into a light outfit, a light blue short jacket with a long skirt, revealing half of her arms, and slowly waved a round fan in her hand.

Lin Chen leaned back on the cushion, looking lazy. He was wearing only a thin shirt with the sleeves rolled up to his elbows, and he had changed his boots into straw sandals.

Lan Fenghuang glanced at him: "Aren't you hot?"

Lin Chen closed his eyes: "It's not hot."

Lan Fenghuang didn't believe it and reached out to touch Lin Chen's forehead—it really wasn't hot. She muttered to herself:

"It's good to have high cultivation levels; you're immune to heat and cold."

Lin Chen smiled, reached out and pulled her close, letting her lean against him:

"Will this make it cooler?"

Lan Fenghuang blushed and nudged Lin Chen, saying, "In broad daylight..."

Lin Chen glanced out the window. Ling Bo walked beside the carriage, her gaze fixed on the distant mountains, completely ignoring them.

Lin Chen chuckled, his hand resting on her waist: "Nobody's watching."

Lan Fenghuang glared at him, then stopped struggling and leaned against Lin Chen, slowly fanning herself.

The carriage fell silent, save for the sound of wheels rolling over the road and birdsong from the distant woods.

After a while, Lin Chen suddenly spoke up: "Phoenix, how long have you been following me?"

Lan Fenghuang was taken aback for a moment: "It's been almost half a year."

Lin Chen nodded: "It's been half a year, from strangers to..."

He paused, then didn't continue.

Lan Fenghuang leaned against Lin Chen's chest and asked softly, "Why are you suddenly asking this?"

Lin Chen didn't answer. He took out a small porcelain bottle from his pocket, uncorked it, and poured out a pill.

The pill was pure white with faint golden patterns flowing across it. As soon as it appeared, it emitted a rich spiritual energy, and the carriage was instantly filled with a refreshing medicinal fragrance.

Lingbo paused outside and glanced towards the carriage.

Blue Phoenix's eyes widened: "This is...!"

"Shaolin Great Rejuvenation Pill." Lin Chen handed the pill to Lan Fenghuang.

"For those below the Celestial Realm, one is enough."

Blue Phoenix's hands trembled slightly.

She is at the peak of the Grandmaster level, and has been stuck at this juncture for a year.

With her talent, she could break through with a little effort.

But now, a single pill can allow her to transcend the Grandmaster realm and directly enter the Celestial Realm?

She looked up at Lin Chen, her lips moving slightly, "Husband, this is too precious..."

"What's so valuable about it?" Lin Chen smiled. "It'll just gather dust here anyway. You've been with me for almost half a year, so you deserve a proper reward."

Lin Chen paused, looking into Lan Fenghuang's eyes.

"Besides, you're one of my people. Your cultivation level is too low; it would be embarrassing for me if word got out."

Lan Fenghuang's eyes reddened; she felt like crying and laughing at the same time, and finally rolled her eyes.

She took the pill, hesitated for a moment, and then swallowed it in one gulp.

The pill entered his throat and transformed into a scalding hot current that rushed straight to his dantian.

Lan Fenghuang's face flushed red, veins bulged on her forehead, and she froze in Lin Chen's arms.

Lin Chen placed one hand on her back, channeling his true energy to help her guide the medicinal effects.

Lan Fenghuang felt the heat rushing through her meridians, clearing away blockages in her acupoints wherever it passed.

She gritted her teeth, sweat dripping from her forehead, her nails digging into her palms, but she didn't utter a sound.

Lin Chen controlled the intensity of his true energy, proceeding neither hastily nor slowly, as if he were clearing a long-blocked ditch.

Outside the carriage, Lingbo stopped and looked up at the carriage.

She could feel the fluctuations of spiritual energy—the medicinal power of the pill was being refined, and a new aura was brewing within Lan Fenghuang's body.

In the time it takes for an incense stick to burn, Lan Fenghuang's aura began to rise—a crack appeared in the bottleneck of the Grandmaster Peak, and then the entire wall collapsed.

Peak Grandmaster, Grandmaster... Half-step Celestial, Early Celestial.

Breaking through all obstacles with unstoppable momentum, it finally came to a steady stop at the peak of the early stage of the Celestial Realm, just one step away from the middle stage.

Blue Phoenix opened her eyes, and her whole demeanor had changed.

She used to look like a beautiful woman from the Nanzhao Kingdom, but now, sitting there, her eyes and brows have a sharper look, like a newly sharpened knife.

She looked down at her hands, clenched her fists, then relaxed them, repeating this several times.

The air distorted in her palm, and an invisible force emanated from her, causing everything in the carriage to tremble slightly.

Lin Chen withdrew his hand and patted it:

"Peak of the early stage of the Celestial Realm, not bad. After stabilizing for a while, you can reach the middle stage."

Lan Fenghuang turned her head, looked at him, and her eyes reddened.

She opened her mouth as if to say something, but nothing came out.

Lin Chen waved his hand: "Don't get sentimental, I hate that the most."

Lan Fenghuang rushed over, hugged Lin Chen tightly, and buried her face in his chest.

Lin Chen chuckled and patted her back: "Alright, alright, it's just a pill."

Lan Fenghuang said in a muffled voice, "It's not about the pills."

Lin Chen raised an eyebrow: "What is it?"

Blue Phoenix didn't answer, she just hugged him tighter.

Lin Chen didn't ask any more questions, and just held her in his arms, gently patting her back with one hand.

After a long while, Lan Fenghuang finally raised her head, her eyes red, but with a smile on her face:

"Thank you, my husband."

Lin Chen flicked her forehead:

"Stop with that nonsense, focus on consolidating your cultivation, don't waste the medicine's power."

Lan Fenghuang nodded, sat up straight, closed her eyes, and began to regulate her breathing.

The carriage fell silent, with only the sound of wheels rolling over the road.

Lingbo stood outside for a while, then continued walking, her steps lighter than before.