The divine artifacts were indeed terrifying, possessing incredible power.
The Goumang Divine Skin exuded a soft glow, and even as ten thousand bolts of lightning struck it, not a single ripple appeared, its defensive capabilities truly astonishing.
The Nether Undying Vine was incredibly resilient and could actively absorb the life force of living beings. Even a mere graze would cause extensive damage and profuse bleeding.
Ximen Dun was whipped several times, and his entire body thinned considerably, becoming skin and bones, aging significantly.
He wailed and cried, his flesh and blood a bloody mess, constantly being beaten.
He was as arrogant as he had been moments ago, and now he was as pathetic, unable to escape even if he wanted to.
Ximen Yaoqing watched this scene, completely stunned.
He had thought everything was under his ancestor's control. As long as Chi Qingying was captured, he would be saved, and the Ximen family would be the ultimate victor.
He never expected such a turn of events; his ancestor was likely beyond salvation.
Ximen Yaoqing stared intently at Ji Mo, believing this bastard had orchestrated everything.
Otherwise, why would everyone worry about Chi Qingying's safety, and why would Madam Chi be scared to tears, yet he alone remained so calm, so convinced of a reversal?
"Could it be that everything was within this scoundrel's calculations?"
Ximen Yaoqing gritted his teeth, wishing he could devour Ji Mo alive.
If not for this scoundrel, how could the Ximen family have fallen to such a state?
And that bitch Han Zhu, treating them like chess pieces, discarding them after use, deserved to die. He had lost his mind back then, why did he instigate his father to defect to the Sea Clan?
Ximen Yaoqing was both angry and resentful, feeling that society was too complex, filled with insidious and wicked people.
"I never imagined that Miss Chi, with her soft and delicate appearance, like a fragile bird, would be so… fierce in spirit. Alas, I've come to my senses; I am utterly unworthy of her."
Seeing Ximen Dun wailing and crying as Chi Qingying whipped him with the Nether Undying Vine, many admirers felt a chill down their spines. Their idealized image of the goddess shattered, and their affections vanished.
Yet, there were those who preferred this very thing. Their eyes gleamed, and they whispered excitedly, "Being whipped, I like it so much. Oh, whip me to your heart's content!"
Nearby people heard this and quickly moved away from the speaker, blacklisting him and decisively severing all ties.
"It's a real reversal?!"
Madam Chi and the others couldn't believe their eyes.
Chi Qingying, suddenly aided by two divine artifacts, had made a desperate counterattack and was now dominating Ximen Dun. It was utterly unbelievable.
"Brother Ji Mo is truly talented!"
Madam Chi exclaimed, increasingly feeling that Ji Mo was unfathomable, as if everything was within his grasp.
"Honestly, you already gave your godmother protective treasures long ago and deliberately hid it from us, making us worry. You're so wicked."
Xia Wan'er was so angry she wanted to hit Ji Mo.
"You still want to hit your second uncle? Have you no manners?"
Bao Niu shielded Ji Mo, repeatedly reminding Xia Wan'er to be mindful of her status, which infuriated the latter into stomping her feet.
"I still underestimated Young Master Ji. His ability to strategize and predict events with divine accuracy makes him the undisputed choice for 'Saintess'."
Yan Zhi was increasingly satisfied with Ji Mo, finding him exceptionally outstanding and meeting her standards.
After observing him for a while longer, she could recruit him into the Moon Sect to compete for the position of sect leader.
The gazes of others towards Ji Mo also changed, their evaluation of him soaring several levels. They felt it was increasingly important to forge a good relationship with him.
Ximen Dun did not last long. He was drained of his life force by the Nether Undying Vine and became a corpse.
Pitiable was he, who had thought he would soar to prosperity after this battle, only to meet a tragic end.
With Ximen Dun's death, the Goumang Divine Skin and the Nether Undying Vine returned to their original state and went back to Chi Qingying's embrace, but they were now indifferent to her.
Chi Qingying found it strange but had no time to ponder the reason, rushing back to Lan Yu City.
Upon returning to the Chi family, the first thing she saw was the figure she had longed for.
She was so excited that she wanted to rush forward and throw herself into Ji Mo's arms.
But Bao Niu sensed something was amiss and immediately moved to Ji Mo's side, glaring at her with her clear, large eyes.
Chi Qingying's heart instantly turned cold.
If this scoundrel wasn't dead, why did he stand by and watch, not leaving the city to save her?
"Miss Qingying, are you alright? Do you want me to rub a medicinal herb for you to heal your injuries?"
Seeing that Chi Qingying still had a few scorched marks on her body, Ji Mo kindly offered to help her heal.
But Chi Qingying's response was a fierce glare, blaming the foolish Ji for not caring about her at all.
Cui Niang, being an experienced woman, saw Chi Qingying's thoughts and explained, "Miss, Mr. Ji actually cares about you very much. He rushed here the first moment he heard you were in trouble."
Chi Qingying's expression softened slightly and she asked, "Cares? Then why didn't you act?"
"Mr. Ji acted. He… he cheered you on."
Xia Wan'er chimed in, even imitating Ji Mo's words vividly: "Go Qingying, Qingying you're great, Qingying will win…"
Chi Qingying's forehead was covered in black lines upon hearing this, and she couldn't help but want to take out the Nether Undying Vine and whip this fool Ji to death.
Great, you dead scoundrel! Why are you so heartless, only moving your mouth and not your hands? It's obvious you want me dead so you can be shamelessly intimate with that mermaid.
Then, she noticed Ji Mo holding a fragment of the Heaven and Earth Three Talents Formation Diagram, and her entire face turned cold.
"You scoundrel, you broke my Heaven and Earth Three Talents Formation Diagram, you really broke my Heaven and Earth Three Talents Formation Diagram?"
She felt wronged and took the opportunity to lash out, wanting to find an excuse to teach Ji Mo a lesson.
Such an important item was destroyed; no matter the reason, she would blame Ji Mo first.
"That's right, he broke it. It has nothing to do with me."
Ximen Yaoqing quickly spoke up, afraid Ji Mo would shift the blame and he would be made a scapegoat.
However, as soon as he finished speaking, Chi Qingying rained down a barrage of blows on him, tragically becoming the target of her anger.
Poor child, he racked his brain but couldn't understand why she was beating him instead of Ji Mo.
Ji Mo watched Ximen Yaoqing being beaten into an unrecognizable state, his scalp tingling. He said softly, "It's okay, my craftsmanship is quite good, I should be able to fix it. If not, your beast hide is nice, I'll draw you a better diagram."
Upon hearing this, everyone around looked at Ji Mo strangely. Da Feng Novel Network.
The materials used for the Heaven and Earth Three Talents Formation Diagram were special, and the craftsmanship was peculiar. Once damaged, it was impossible to repair.
If one wanted to create a new one, it was an even more arduous task.
First, one needed astonishing attainments in formations, mastery of the layout and structure of thousands of formations, large and small, within Lan Yu City, and then to arrange the corresponding core formation patterns one by one and in order on a small diagram, integrating them into a whole.
During this process, even the slightest error could lead to failure and the explosion of the diagram.
In those days, it had consumed a massive amount of materials and resulted in the deaths of several Grandmasters of Formations before its success.
Therefore, no one believed Ji Mo's words.
"Take it. If you have the ability, make a new one. Otherwise, you'll have to sell yourself to the Chi family to repay the debt."
Chi Qingying, huffing with anger, threw the Goumang hide to Ji Mo.
…
Over the next few days.
There was great commotion in the Arctic Ocean.
Hurricanes swept through, and waves surged.
Sea monsters, merfolk, deep-sea behemoths, and various shrimp soldiers and crab generals could be seen emerging from the sea from time to time, gathering in the nearshore waters.
The entire Arctic Ocean seemed to boil, with large numbers of sea races converging, approaching the west coast defense line.
Clearly, the sea races were preparing for an invasion, and war was imminent.
Meanwhile, Ji Mo remained holed up in the Feng Hua Xue Yue Tower, never stepping out, completely ignoring the events outside.
"What has Young Master Ji been doing all these nights, staying up late?"
Yan Zhi, who was constantly monitoring Ji Mo's movements, couldn't figure out what Ji Mo was messing with so late at night for the past few nights.
Was her previous assumption wrong?
Ji Mo wasn't unfeeling; had he finally opened up and made a move on Bao Niu, having "done" her these past few nights?
Creak.
The door opened, and Bao Niu walked out with a resentful expression, pouting, and clearly annoyed.
Seeing that Bao Niu's clothes were neat and not as she had imagined, Yan Zhi couldn't help but ask, "Bao Niu, what exactly is Young Master Ji doing?"
"What else could he be doing? That scoundrel is drawing a map."
Bao Niu was very upset. She had been kicked out by Ji Mo, who said that it would cause gossip with a man and a woman alone in a room.
Ever since she had revealed her human form, Ji Mo had been unwilling to sleep with her, making her live in a separate room to avoid suspicion.
Without Ji Mo's warm embrace, Bao Niu was unaccustomed to it and had been suffering from insomnia.
"Drawing a map? Wow!!!"
Yan Zhi's eyes widened instantly, her face filled with astonishment.
She wasn't an innocent maiden, and having worked in a pleasure house for many years, she understood many things and her thoughts were not entirely pure. She immediately thought of certain scenes.
Her face flushed, she swallowed and asked, "Is Young Master Ji drawing it himself? Did he do anything to you? Did he ask for your help or to pose or anything?"
"He did it all by himself. I couldn't get involved, but I have to say, this scoundrel's craftsmanship is really amazing."
Recalling the scene she had witnessed earlier, Bao Niu felt a sense of awe.
A man who was talented and serious about his work was always likable.
She even started to feel that she wasn't good enough and was somewhat unworthy of the foolish Ji.
"His craftsmanship is amazing?"
Yan Zhi's eyes lit up, a fierce flame ignited in her heart, and her face turned red all the way to her ears. Biting her lip, she asked, "I've never seen it in my life. How about letting me sneak a peek."
Bao Niu had a good impression of Yan Zhi and nodded, "Alright. He's fully focused, so don't make any noise and disturb him."
Yan Zhi held her breath and tiptoed towards Ji Mo's room, pushing open a crack in the door.
The next second.
Her pupils dilated, and she tightly covered her mouth, daring not to make a sound.