Of course, Qingya wouldn't give up her determination to investigate further just because of Qin Feng's simple statement. She continued, "Could you elaborate?" Qin Feng paused, saying, "I'm not entirely sure myself. I only sense that the flow of spiritual energy has changed from before—this isn't anything extraordinary, really. After all, I've been taking pills containing the essence of Tianren Dan, so some differences are expected and normal." The beautiful Inspector bit her lip and said, "Think again." He asked, "What exactly did you observe? I truly don't see anything unusual. You should start by describing what you saw." Slowly, Qingya began to feel a sense of unease, as though she had made a mistake. She said, "I noticed a semi-transparent, white gas forming around your body, taking on a shape similar to a vortex. I suspect this might be a phenomenon that occurs in practitioners just before they ascend to the heavens." "Wait—ascending to the heavens? Impossible!" he laughed. "I haven't even reached the peak of the Yuan Sheng stage yet. How could I possibly ascend?" "The Lady Inspector, hesitantly remarked, 'Perhaps you yourself haven't even realized it—your rank has simply risen gradually, without any clear awareness, and now you've met the requirements.' 'Absolutely not,' he replied, waving his hand. 'Even if your level has been sufficient, it couldn't have been this fast. You've been in your peak phase for quite some time now, yet you haven't received a promotion in all that time. How could I possibly have achieved this so quickly?' Qingya gave a拍拍, 'Exactly. Even if you're lucky, you wouldn't have been this fortunate. I must have overthought it. Hehe.' Qin, gazing at her radiant beauty, found himself wanting to do something mischievous, but hadn't yet taken action. At that moment, a figure flashed through the air, and He Muqing appeared, saying, 'Xiao Feng, Qingya, the Director has arrived.' 'Why is the elder here? Hasn't he already secured the other magical realm's transmission bases?' he asked, somewhat puzzled. Qingya shook her head, 'Unlikely. It wouldn't have been this quick.' "Heroes see eye to eye. Though the combination of Master Lei Feng and Brother Hua Tao might seem rather unusual, it's clearly evident that with their intelligence, they wouldn't have accomplished the task in such a short span of time." This is a fairly balanced assessment. Such remarks, however, often come across as rather hurtful—after all, well-meant advice is often hard to hear. The beautiful监察使 glared at him and stepped forward first, launching herself from the small tripod. Outside, Master Lei Feng's face bore an expression difficult to describe. As soon as the two appeared, he immediately asked, "Who just arrived?" "What do you mean, who? Master, what exactly are you asking?" Qin Shao shrugged, finding himself unable to answer such an abrupt and vague question, even with his high intelligence. Master Lei Feng gestured and explained, "Just now, I sensed someone approaching the stage of ascending—next should have come the heavenly calamity. Yet it simply halted. What on earth is going on? My intuition hasn't failed me—I'm certain the event is taking place right here. So, is it you or Qingya?" "Qingya widened her eyes: 'Director, are you sure you're not joking?' 'Look at my face,' the elder pointed to his face, first letting Qingya examine it, then having Qin Shao do the same, and asked, 'What do you see?' 'Besides handsome, there's nothing else,' Qin Shao added with a cheerful smile. 'I must admit, you have the potential to be a charming elder. In terms of looks, you're only slightly less handsome than myself.' The elder's expression darkened. 'What I meant was—I'm serious. Do you see even a hint of humor on my face?' That's exactly what he meant to convey. I should have said it earlier. Brother Gong praised you! Wait—did someone actually almost achieve transcendence? Could it be me? He turned to Qingya and asked, 'What exactly happened just now?' "The Lady Inspector, her face solemn, said, 'It's all my fault. I shouldn't have interrupted you. Just now, I witnessed the imagery unfold and, subjectively, I believed you hadn't yet reached the level of transcendence. I thought it must be a case of internal disruption—perhaps even a fire entering the vital energy channels—so I woke you up.' 'Oh, how foolish!' the elder sighed with indignation. 'How could you possibly interrupt Qin Feng? As a cultivator, don't you know how rare the opportunity for transcendence is? Once lost, such a golden chance, you might have to wait years, decades, even centuries—perhaps even your entire lifetime—before seeing another. Heaven doesn't favor just one person.' Qingya felt somewhat at a loss; of course, she fully understood just how serious this was." The elder continued, "In Huaxia, no one has ever achieved transcendence over the past several centuries—so much so that even the heavenly realm has almost forgotten about this place. After finally securing a day of pride and glory, you've just slapped us back into the pre-liberation era. Qingya, how could you be so foolish?" "Director, I truly didn't mean to do it," the young woman said, her eyes welling up with tears. The cultivators had labored so diligently, all for this very moment of transcendence. If their chance of ascending were ruined, she would surely fight to the end. "Oh, it's too late now," said Lei Feng, his indignation deepening. "You've harmed Qin Feng—you've truly devastated him." "Woohoo, me…" "Cough, cough. Now, perhaps it's my turn to speak," said Qin Shao, stepping forward. "As the one directly involved, I haven't even had the chance to express my thoughts yet. You're both so passionate and so emotional—how come you haven't even asked me how I'm feeling?" "Qingya pulled at his arm, saying, 'I'm sorry, Qin Feng. I've let you down.'" "Wait," he gestured with his other hand to pause, saying, "Can I finish what I have to say first? Why do you all think I'm so eager to ascend?" "Didn't you want to?" the elder was taken aback, clearly puzzled. With a serious expression, he replied, "Of course I don't want to—well, not exactly. I just don't want to right now. If I were to ascend, who would fight off the demonic forces? I'm such a generous person—I couldn't just stand by and watch them win. So, in truth, your mistake was unintentional. In fact, from a certain perspective, you've actually done a good thing." Qin said this not merely to comfort her—he truly believed it. Here, he had his family, friends, and beloved ones. Facing the demons' overwhelming assault, he could not possibly remain indifferent. Especially these young women—having him leave them just as the danger loomed would be utterly impossible. "Qin Feng, you don't at all feel regret," Qingya said, her voice trembling as she asked. Her uncle stared intently at his face, clearly eager to know the answer—even though he himself had already undergone the process of ascending—to the present day, he still deeply cared. Qin lightly nodded his chin and then pursed his lips. "To say I don't feel regret is a lie. Ascension is something so many people dream of. I can only say I'm not sorry. Of course, if you can offer some compensation, I'd be delighted—something like promising to be with me forever... Ah, what's with your glare? Isn't it expected that someone who makes a mistake should be punished?"