The Flying Ship, bathed in rosy twilight, sped across the sky, and in no time, arrived over the vast, boundless ocean.

"...This is the place. Let’s go down!"

Ling Qiyue said.

The spot she chose was quite far from the Sea Boat convoy where Ling Zifeng was, but the advantage was that they could avoid the Loose Cultivator Pearl Gatherers.

Tang Qiu Yao agreed and steered the Flying Ship to gradually descend.

At this moment, the sea was calm and the winds were still. Looking down from high above, the ink-blue water was like a giant mirror.

The view was wide open. In the distance, numerous islands of various shapes and sizes were clearly visible. Occasionally, large raptorial flying beasts would streak across the Celestial Vault.

Seeing no Loose Cultivators or other suspicious creatures passing by, Tang Qiu Yao had the Flying Ship descend to a height of less than thirty feet from the sea’s surface.

Then, Tang Qiu Yao also changed into a tight-fitting, ink-black Samurai Armor, put away the Flying Ship, and dove into the water with Ling Qiyue, bringing Ling Changqing along.

Their entry into the water was very smooth. A Glazed Yellow Umbrella, shimmering with spiritual light and inlaid with gold filigree, appeared above Ling Qiyue’s head. Three successive layers of faint golden light spread out from it, one inside the other, pushing away the seawater and protecting the three of them.

This was one of Ling Qiyue’s Top Grade Spiritual Artifacts, and its Defense was far stronger than any Rank One or Rank Two Talisman.

The Magical Artifacts of this world are divided into four grades: Top Grade, as well as the Upper, Middle, and Lower Three Grades. These correspond to Cultivators in the Qi Cultivation Stage.

Above Magical Artifacts are Spiritual Artifacts. They are also divided into four grades and correspond to Cultivators at the Foundation Establishment Stage. Their power is even greater, and the difficulty of Refining them is naturally far more outrageous.

Five hundred feet, one thousand feet, one thousand five hundred feet...

The two women flanked Ling Changqing, one on his left and one on his right. Each held one of his arms, and a faint, sweet fragrance wafted from them.

As they descended deeper, the water pressure increased rapidly. However, the light shield from the Glazed Yellow Umbrella remained very stable, only shrinking by a small fraction.

"...Senior Sisters, how deep are we going?"

Ling Changqing couldn’t help but ask.

The undersea environment had already become quite unfamiliar to him. There were many strange and bizarre deep-sea creatures he had never really seen before.

"At least three thousand feet,"

Tang Qiu Yao said with a smile, "We’re just testing the waters first. If we can prove this method really works, we can go even deeper next time!"

Ling Changqing nodded thoughtfully. The deeper one went, the fewer Cultivators had ever set foot there, which meant there would surely be more ownerless, rare resources.

Before long, they reached a depth of three thousand feet. The light shield from the Glazed Yellow Umbrella remained stable.

Thanks to the clear water and the many bioluminescent sea creatures, Ling Changqing’s vision wasn’t obscured by darkness. He could even clearly see schools of migrating fish thousands of feet away.

On the surfaces of the massive, pockmarked undersea rocks, spiky sea urchins, glowing crabs, slow-moving armadillo fish-turtles, and colorful Snake Scale Moss were visible everywhere.

"...Alright, let’s stop here for now!"

Ling Qiyue, with her dark brows, cold beauty, and enchanting charm, pursed her cherry-like lips and whispered into Ling Changqing’s ear:

"From here on out, Little Junior Brother, you can just rely on your own Spiritual Sense to decide our course of action."

"Okay."

Ling Changqing agreed. Recalling the many types of resources recorded in the Jade Scroll, he began to focus his senses and search.

Tang Qiu Yao, on the other hand, was quite excited. Compared to previous dives, the vague sense of danger that always lurked in the back of her mind seemed to have weakened considerably. She didn’t know if it was a coincidence or because of the purple-robed young man beside her.

’Maybe we won’t be going home empty-handed today?’

Ling Changqing calmly and quietly observed his surroundings, and in just a moment, he discovered a target of interest.

Over two thousand feet away, past a cluster of rugged sea rocks, a large patch of seaweed undulated slowly with the undercurrent. Specks of light flickered intermittently from deep within the seaweed.

At the far end of that ’meadow,’ thousands of Silver Ganoderma Flowers shone with a faint, almost imperceptible white glow.

"That must be the place."

Ling Changqing said softly. Moreover, he hadn’t sensed any dangerous auras lurking nearby, so it was clearly safe for the time being.

Ling Qiyue cautiously scanned the surrounding waters. Two ferocious Blood-winged Sharks swam slowly by in the distance, showing no interest in the three sudden intruders.

"Let’s go, Senior Sister. It should be fine."

Tang Qiu Yao whispered. She had spent more time with Ling Changqing, so she had more confidence in his judgment.

Ling Qiyue thought for a moment before finally nodding in agreement. The three of them then carefully made their way over.

A few hundred feet away, a colorful, barrel-thick Blood Python meandered past, stirring up strong undercurrents.

Tang Qiu Yao already had her sword in hand, her focus sharpened in preparation for any sudden developments. Several of her favorite Magical Artifacts were also ready to be deployed at a moment’s notice.

Surrounded by so many ferocious undersea creatures, they could be targeted at any moment. It would be a lie to say she wasn’t nervous.

After taking a wide detour and carefully avoiding the many terrifying passersby along the way, the three of them finally reached their destination safely.

Ling Qiyue was just about to make a move when Tang Qiu Yao stopped her, explaining in a low voice:

"Let Little Junior Brother do it. His Blessed Fortune is stronger, so he should be able to avoid any accidents."

"Alright."

Ling Qiyue pondered for a moment and didn’t object.

So, the two women stood guard while Ling Changqing unhurriedly began to pick the flowers, placing the Silver Ganoderma Flowers into his Storage Pouch one by one.

"This is great! Once we take these back and gather the other ingredients, we can refine several more batches of Bone Marrow Condensing Pills!"

Tang Qiu Yao said, unable to contain her joy. Even if they found nothing else, this trip would have been worth it.

During this time, powerful sea fish and Sea Beasts did pass by, but they all ignored the three intruders.

In just half an hour, all the Silver Ganoderma Flowers were safely in Ling Changqing’s Storage Pouch.

Ling Qiyue let out a breath of relief. "That went unbelievably smoothly. Little Junior Brother, keep looking. See if there’s anything else good around?"

Ling Changqing agreed and continued to survey the surrounding seabed.

A few hundred feet away, a Kui Wolf Jellyfish the size of a small mountain was waving its long tentacles, leisurely hunting its prey.

A passing Jade Horned Dragon Whale failed to dodge in time and was ensnared by its tentacles, unable to escape. After a struggle that lasted several rounds, the Third Grade Sea Beast was on the verge of death, its body covered in numerous wounds deep enough to show bone.

The pungent smell of blood quickly attracted a crowd of strange creatures, all watching with greedy eyes, ready to swoop in and scavenge.

Ling Changqing ignored the cruel and bloody hunting scene. In less than the time it takes to burn an incense stick, he found a new, suitable target.

They were stones covered by large patches of Snake Scale Moss, ranging in size from a few feet to dozens of feet. A faint fluorescent light shone from within them.

"Is that Rock Heart Illusion Spirit Vine?"

Ling Qiyue looked surprised, her crisp and gentle voice filled with pleasant shock.

"It must be."

Ling Changqing said. The Rock Heart Illusion Spirit Vine was one of the main ingredients for refining the Second stage Beauty Pill, and its market price was naturally not low.

The two women led Ling Changqing closer with caution. A Thunder Eel, over thirty feet long, approached with ill intent, seemingly hoping to get a piece of the action.

"You’re courting death!"

Ling Qiyue snorted coldly. With a light wave of her fair hand, a sharp, chilling Sword Aura flashed. The Second Rank Demon Beast had no time to react before it was decapitated in an instant.

Tang Qiu Yao immediately sealed the large creature in ice with a Profound Ice Technique and put it into her Storage Pouch. Its meat was also famously delicious and tender, and would be enough to eat for a long time back home.

Once they were close, Ling Changqing drew his Longsword, aimed carefully, and slashed down.

CRACK! The hard rock was split open by the Top Grade Magical Artifact, and an even brighter fluorescent light seeped out from the crack.

Ling Changqing struck a few more times, finally shattering the rock completely and revealing a snow-white vine inside that emitted a soft, fluorescent glow.

This was the Rock Heart Illusion Spirit Vine. It usually grew inside undersea rocks at depths of three to five thousand feet, a rare treasure that only Cultivators Above Foundation Establishment could possibly obtain by diving into the sea.

Once again, it was Ling Changqing who acted, placing the Rock Heart Illusion Spirit Vine into his Storage Pouch before turning to the next rock.

By the time the third rock was split open, Ling Changqing felt a wave of weakness wash over him. The Spiritual Power in his body was nearly depleted.

"Little Junior Brother, are you spent already?"

Tang Qiu Yao teased, somewhat amused.

’I’m only at the Fifth Layer Qi Cultivation,’ Ling Changqing thought, rather speechless. ’How can my endurance compare to you two?’

"Here, take them. They’re all for you!"

Ling Qiyue smiled, taking out a bottle of Spirit Revitalizing Pills from her Storage Pouch and handing it to him.

Ling Changqing took it, uncorked the bottle, tipped out a pill, and swallowed it. A warm energy surged through his organs and meridians, and his Spiritual Power began to recover quickly.

There were still several dozen Spirit Revitalizing Pills in the Pill Bottle, which were, of course, all his now.

He continued gathering. Half an hour later, Ling Changqing had nearly a hundred Rock Heart Illusion Spirit Vines in his Storage Pouch.

"We really hit the jackpot this time! It’s great to have you with us, Little Junior Brother!"

Tang Qiu Yao said with a beaming smile, putting her arm around Ling Changqing. The Second stage Beauty Pill was no common item. Its market price remained consistently high, as its main consumers were, after all, Foundation Establishment Cultivators.

If just one batch reached Pill Formation, Ling Qiyue would not only earn a large sum of Spirit Stones, but her own Alchemy Mastery would also improve slightly.