The un-transformed demonic beasts resided in giant tree hollows or perched on tree trunks.
Feng Jinyao and Feng Haocang needed to first escort the injured little girl back to the Undying Phoenix Clan for treatment.
The two thus bid farewell to Xin Ci in advance.
Before leaving, Feng Jinyao cupped a brocade box in her hands and presented it to Xin Ci.
"Senior Xin Ci, thank you for your assistance this time. This is a small token of our appreciation. We hope you will accept it."
"This is... a Phoenix Flame Fruit!"
Mu Qing's starry eyes flickered. After clearly identifying the item in the brocade box with her Star Wheel Eye technique, a hint of astonishment appeared in her eyes.
Hearing Mu Qing's exclamation, Xin Ci was also slightly taken aback.
When Xin Ci studied alchemy under Elder Han, he had come to know many spiritual herbs and exotic fruits.
He naturally knew how precious a Phoenix Flame Fruit was.
In human territory, a Phoenix Flame Fruit was practically priceless, a treasure that alchemists dreamed of.
This was because the Phoenix Flame Fruit could not only enhance physical strength but also boost an alchemist's flame affinity.
Furthermore, Phoenix Flame Fruits only grew on the Phoenix Sun Treasure Tree, yielding just one fruit every thousand years.
He hadn't expected Feng Jinyao and Feng Haocang to offer a spiritual fruit as precious as the Phoenix Flame Fruit to repay his life-saving favor.
Mu Qing also knew that since Xin Ci had entered the Saint Emperor realm, the intensity of his Undying Phoenix Flame had gradually become insufficient.
After all, the Undying Phoenix Flame they had refined was only left behind by a fallen Venerable-tier Undying Phoenix.
This Phoenix Flame Fruit would be perfect for enhancing the intensity of the Undying Phoenix Flame.
Xin Ci did not stand on ceremony and accepted the brocade box containing the Phoenix Flame Fruit.
However, he still expressed his gratitude to Feng Jinyao: "Thank you, Miss Feng. The item in this brocade box is indeed of great help to me."
"Senior Xin Ci, you don't need to be so polite. Compared to your life-saving grace, this Phoenix Flame Fruit is merely a trivial gift from us," Feng Haocang stepped forward and said humbly.
However, their gifting of the Phoenix Flame Fruit to Xin Ci also stemmed from a slight ulterior motive.
Feng Jinyao and Feng Haocang hoped to forge a connection with the Undying Golden Dragon senior before them through this Phoenix Flame Fruit.
Although the Undying Golden Dragon and Undying Phoenix clans were outwardly on peaceful terms, there was still competition between them.
Especially with the upcoming Dragon Ancestor Grand Ceremony, the Undying Golden Dragon and Undying Phoenix clans would once again engage in a struggle to seize opportunities.
Feng Haocang knew that Xin Ci was not weak, and was very likely a peak Saint-tier powerhouse.
He assumed that this senior would also participate in the Dragon Ancestor Grand Ceremony.
He believed that Xin Ci would go easy on the members of the Undying Phoenix Clan because he had accepted the Phoenix Flame Fruit.
Even if Xin Ci did not do so, Feng Haocang could still announce to the public that Xin Ci had accepted the Phoenix Flame Fruit, thus causing both clans to resist Xin Ci over this matter.
Xin Ci was unaware of the Dragon Ancestor Grand Ceremony, but he could sense from the subtle changes in Feng Haocang's expression that the Phoenix Flame Fruit was not so easy to accept.
However, Xin Ci did not care what Feng Haocang was plotting in his mind. In any case, his primary objective in coming to the Beast God Valley was to find the Eternal Dao Seal.
He was indifferent to the affairs of the Undying Golden Dragon and Undying Phoenix clans.
After accepting the Phoenix Flame Fruit, Xin Ci bid farewell to Feng Jinyao and Feng Haocang.
More than a month passed in the blink of an eye.
To avoid exposing his human identity, Xin Ci was extremely cautious within Celestial Beast City.
He mostly stayed in his treehouse during the day and only came out at night to search for the Eternal Dao Seal.
However, after searching for over a month, Xin Ci still could not find the last Eternal Dao Seal, which caused him to frown. He murmured in confusion, "Strange, the two Eternal Dao Seals I possess are giving off an extremely strong resonance. Logically, the last Eternal Dao Seal should be within Celestial Beast City."
"But no matter how I search, I can't find the third Eternal Dao Seal."
"Perhaps, there is one place you haven't searched yet," Mu Qing transmitted telepathically.
"Where?"
"The Dragon Blood Treasure Tree."
Xin Ci's eyes lit up at this suggestion.
During his time in Celestial Beast City, he had naturally heard of the Dragon Blood Treasure Tree.
It was said to be the sacred tree of the Undying Golden Dragon clan, cultivated with the dragon ancestor's own blood tens of thousands of years ago.
At the same time, the divine tree contained residual divine thoughts left by the ancient Dragon Ancestor. Whoever gained the tree's recognition could receive the Dragon Ancestor's blessing.
"Could it be that the third Eternal Dao Seal is inside the Dragon Blood Treasure Tree?" Xin Ci speculated.
He had already investigated and searched every other part of Celestial Beast City. The only place left unsearched was the Dragon Blood Treasure Tree.
However, the Dragon Blood Treasure Tree was the sacred tree of the Undying Golden Dragon clan. Even the elders of the Undying Golden Dragon clan were not allowed to approach it.
It was likely that the Dragon Blood Treasure Tree would be heavily guarded, given its importance to the Undying Golden Dragon clan.
The Dragon and Phoenix Emperors might have set up restrictions on the divine tree. If he acted rashly and attracted their attention, it would be troublesome.
Xin Ci was aware that the Undying Golden Dragon blood and soul within him could help conceal his human aura, and the Golden Scale Technique made the demonic beasts in Celestial Beast City believe he was from the Undying Golden Dragon clan.
However, these methods could only fool ordinary Great Emperor experts. If he encountered the two peak Great Emperors, the Dragon and Phoenix Emperors, the situation would be different.
Therefore, Xin Ci had to be extremely cautious and find an opportunity to approach the Dragon Blood Treasure Tree.
Mu Qing, in the consciousness space, pondered for a moment and then transmitted telepathically, "Based on my understanding of the Dragon and Phoenix Emperors, they are likely in seclusion right now, so we don't need to worry about our identities being exposed for the time being."
"Even so, approaching the Dragon Blood Treasure Tree remains a challenge."
"However, we have a perfect opportunity to approach the Dragon Blood Treasure Tree now."
"What opportunity?" Xin Ci immediately inquired.
Mu Qing smiled slightly and transmitted telepathically, "The Dragon Ancestor Grand Ceremony is our best opportunity to act."
"The Dragon Ancestor Grand Ceremony!"
Upon hearing Mu Qing's words, Xin Ci suddenly understood.
The Dragon Ancestor Grand Ceremony was a grand event that occurred in Celestial Beast City only once every hundred years.
During the past month, he had noticed an increasing number of demonic beast species gathering in Celestial Beast City.
These demonic beasts were likely here to participate in this year's Dragon Ancestor Grand Ceremony.
The venue for the Dragon Ancestor Grand Ceremony was near the Dragon Blood Treasure Tree.
Demonic beasts who achieved victory in the Dragon Ancestor Grand Ceremony could meditate beneath the Dragon Blood Treasure Tree, and the divine tree would bestow blessings based on their aptitude.
The transformed demonic beasts who had traveled from afar had likely come to Celestial Beast City to participate in the Dragon Ancestor Grand Ceremony to receive blessings from the Dragon Blood Treasure Tree.
"There are still half a month before the Dragon Ancestor Grand Ceremony begins. We can take this opportunity to gather more information about it."
"Mm."
Xin Ci nodded.
At this point, waiting for the Dragon Ancestor Grand Ceremony to begin was their only chance to search for the third Eternal Dao Seal.
...
In the blink of an eye, it was time for the Dragon Ancestor Grand Ceremony.
Celestial Beast City was bustling with transformed demonic beasts gathered from various regions of the Beast God Valley.