Chapter 951: Cooperation

The fire blazed!

In the forest, a bonfire blazed. A fat ox, about ten feet long, was skinned and cleaned. Yuan Kun, holding a wooden pole with one hand, skillfully and effortlessly rotated the ox back and forth over the fire.

He scattered some spices over it, and a fragrant aroma immediately wafted through the air.

The fat ox was roasted to a golden brown on the surface, its fat dripping into the bonfire and causing flames to leap up. The scent was absolutely mouth-watering.

He handled it like a seasoned chef.

After a while, Yuan Kun nodded with satisfaction, tore off a steaming hot ox leg, and handed it to Zhou Yuan, who was standing nearby.

“Heh heh, try it. My cooking skills are unique in the Beast Control Domain,” Yuan Kun said, clearly filled with strong pride. It seemed he was prouder of his culinary skills than of being the top figure in the Divine Dwelling Tier of the Beast Control Domain.

Zhou Yuan's lips twitched as he took the leg. He then watched Yuan Kun divide the remaining ox in half: one portion for himself to devour heartily, and the other he tossed to the Earth Divine Ox lying beside him.

The Earth Divine Ox seemed to love it immensely, eating even more quickly than Yuan Kun, its mouth glistening with oil.

Seeing this bizarre scene, Zhou Yuan shook his head, a little speechless. He ignored them and lowered his head, slowly enjoying the ox leg in his hand. He had to admit, the taste was exceptionally delicious; no wonder Yuan Kun was so pleased with himself.

By the time Zhou Yuan finished the ox leg, Yuan Kun had also patted his belly, looking utterly content.

“Brother Yuan Kun, let's discuss the innate spiritual energy,” Zhou Yuan said, having finished the roasted ox feast and turning to serious matters.

Yuan Kun, picking his teeth with a twig, smiled and said, “Brother Zhou Yuan must have noticed that peculiar fluctuation of energy in the surroundings when you entered this space, right?”

“This space indeed contains innate spiritual energy.”

“You arrived here a few days late. We had actually already discovered the location of the innate spiritual energy.”

“Are you saying you've already obtained the innate spiritual energy?” Zhou Yuan asked, somewhat puzzled.

Yuan Kun's smile stiffened. “If I had, why would I be looking for your cooperation?”

“Someone else got there first?” Zhou Yuan's eyes flickered as he spoke.

Yuan Kun replied with a hint of helplessness, “Within this space, besides our two main teams, there's also the team led by that girl Jiu Gong from the Mystic Region, and another team from Zixiao Region, though they're not a main force.”

“Mystic Region, Jiu Gong?” Zhou Yuan was a little surprised, not expecting another main team besides theirs. Although he wasn't familiar with Jiu Gong from the Mystic Region, her reputation preceded her. After all, she was the one who reviewed the Divine Dwelling Ranking, and his previous low ranking was due to her.

“You couldn't contend with her?” Zhou Yuan asked with a smile.

A hint of red seemed to flush Yuan Kun's plump, greasy face, before he grumbled, “That girl is incredibly overbearing. She preemptively occupied the location of the innate spiritual energy and set up a Meridian Gold Light Barrier. I led my people to try and break through for half a day but couldn't, so I had no choice but to leave and search for other innate spiritual energy. Unfortunately, after circling around, I didn't find a second source.”

“Brother Yuan Kun, are you suggesting we cooperate to break through the Meridian Gold Light Barrier set up by Jiu Gong and seize the innate spiritual energy?” Zhou Yuan asked softly.

Yuan Kun nodded. “Otherwise, given that girl's domineering personality, it will be difficult for us to get our hands on the innate spiritual energy in this space.”

He looked at Zhou Yuan. “How about it? Is Brother Zhou Yuan interested? If you don't want to offend Jiu Gong, I won't blame you. That girl is arrogant, but due to the Mystic Region's special status, she's genuinely quite formidable in Hunyuan Heaven.”

Zhou Yuan detected a hint of provocation in Yuan Kun's words and chuckled. “Brother Yuan Kun doesn't need to provoke me. We came to this Nine Regions Grand Meeting precisely for the innate spiritual energy. While Jiu Gong's reputation is great, in my eyes, she's absolutely no match for innate spiritual energy.”

“If she truly intends to stop me from obtaining innate spiritual energy, then she's an enemy. Being soft-hearted towards an enemy is simply foolish.”

Yuan Kun's eyes lit up, and he chuckled. “Brother Zhou Yuan, your words resonate with me. So, once our teams have finished gathering the spiritual energy veins in this area, we'll depart immediately?”

Zhou Yuan naturally had no objections and nodded with a smile.

He was also somewhat curious about the girl whose reputation in the Divine Dwelling Tier of Hunyuan Heaven was second only to Wu Yao and Su Youwei. However, if she truly intended to monopolize the innate spiritual energy, she would have to ask if the Heavenly Yuan Brush in his hand agreed...

In the face of innate spiritual energy, what does beauty truly count for?

As the two issued their commands, the two teams accelerated their pace in gathering spiritual energy veins. Finally, half a day later, they had collected all the spiritual energy veins in the mountain range.

Immediately after, Yuan Kun led the way, with Zhou Yuan and the Tianyuan Region contingent following closely.

The two groups, a mighty force, swept across the sky, heading straight towards the southwest.

Southwestern Region.

Compared to the vibrant life in other parts of this space, the southwestern region was starkly different. The air here was frigid, and fierce winds, like blades, howled across the land.

Endless snow-capped mountains rose and fell, and in their deepest reaches, towering ice mountains pierced the clouds.

At this moment, on the highest of these ice mountains, brilliant golden light shone, enveloping the entire peak, making it impossible to see what lay within.

The shimmering golden light was extremely mysterious, as if even the fierce, biting winds raging through the area could not penetrate it.

Suddenly, the sound of air being torn echoed from a distance.

Large groups of dark figures swiftly arrived, finally landing outside the golden-shrouded ice mountain.

Their aura was formidable.

Naturally, it was Yuan Kun and Zhou Yuan, who had traveled all this way.

“Is this the place?” Zhou Yuan gazed at the ice mountain covered in golden light, a hint of surprise in his eyes. To him, it wasn't just golden light, but a manifestation of countless Source Patterns.

This type of barrier was quite unique, a combination of Source Patterns and Source Qi.

“I've long heard that the Mystic Region's mastery of Source Patterns is second only to the Saint Rune Region. Seeing it now, it truly lives up to its reputation,” Zhou Yuan remarked.

Yuan Kun rubbed the oily sheen on his face, grumbling somewhat resentfully, “If it were a straightforward fight with Jiu Gong, I wouldn't be afraid. But once she sets up a barrier, she really does make me run around like a headless chicken.”

Zhou Yuan nodded. “Let's send someone in with a message first. Courtesy before force, so no one can say we two grown men are bullying others.”

Yuan Kun agreed, summoning a person to deliver the message.

As soon as Zhou Yuan and Yuan Kun's two groups arrived, numerous gazes from within the golden-shrouded ice mountain detected their presence.

One individual, after sizing them up, sneered and said, “I wondered who it was; turns out it's the Chief Pavilion Master from Tianyuan Region.”

This person was Xue Jingtao, the captain of the Zixiao Region's team.

Behind Xue Jingtao, a female disciple from Zixiao Region hesitated and said, “That Zhou Yuan is acquainted with Senior Sister Su Youwei. We don't need to make things difficult for him, do we?”

Xue Jingtao frowned and calmly replied, “You're overthinking it. How could Junior Sister Su Youwei be acquainted with such a commoner? And even if they did know each other, their friendship wouldn't be as deep as you imagine.”

“Besides, having entered the Nine Regions Grand Meeting, we are all competitors. Since we've met, how can we hold back?”

“Furthermore, the one in charge here isn't us, but Miss Jiu Gong.”

He waved his hand, preventing the female disciple from speaking further, and said, “I'll inform Miss Jiu Gong and see how she decides.”

With that, he moved and disappeared from his spot.

At the summit of the ice mountain, Xue Jingtao's figure reappeared. He looked ahead, where a beautiful woman with slightly furrowed willow-like brows stood. She wore a loose moon robe, yet it could not conceal her graceful figure.

In terms of pure beauty, she was not much inferior to Wu Yao or Su Youwei; each had her own unique charm. If Wu Yao was sharp and dominant, and Su Youwei was gentle and resilient, then Jiu Gong possessed a cold, proud, and intellectual quality, equally captivating.

Facing such a woman, Xue Jingtao couldn't help but feel a flutter in his heart, but he dared not show it. He cupped his fists and said, “Miss Jiu Gong, Yuan Kun has returned, and this time he's brought another team as backup.”

“They sent someone earlier to deliver a message, asking Miss Jiu Gong to open the Gold Light Barrier and share the innate spiritual energy.”

Jiu Gong's slender, willow-like brows subtly lifted. “Who is the helper he found?”

“Tianyuan Region's Zhou Yuan,” Xue Jingtao replied.

“Oh? It's him.”

A hint of a smile, not quite a smile, appeared on Jiu Gong's beautiful face. “Is Yuan Kun grasping at straws? Does he really think finding someone ranked ninth on the Divine Dwelling Ranking will be enough to break my Meridian Gold Light Barrier?”

She tilted her head, thought for a moment, and said, “Send back the message: if they want to share the innate spiritual energy, tell them to break through the Meridian Gold Light Barrier first. If they don't have the capability, they should go back to where they came from...”

If Yuan Kun had brought a main force from another domain, she might have considered it, but the Chief Pavilion Master of the Tianyuan Region? He probably lacked the necessary skill.

She watched Xue Jingtao's departing figure, her gaze drifting towards the outside of the mountain, and murmured to herself, “I want to see what ability you possess that could make Su Youwei favor you so highly.”