The sun was hanging in the sky, and the flying boat broke through the clouds, crossing the Central Region border to return to the Western Region . The scenery outside the window gradually changed from rocks and deserts to green mountains and blue waters.
A gentle autumn breeze blew softly into the room, making that silver-white hair flutter gently.
Feng Yu Die was lying on the windowsill, looking in boredom at the mountains floating backward like a scroll. Every now and then, she blew her bangs, lost in thought.
---Sister Xiao and Young Master Ye were together.
She had heard with her own ears what the two had said on the promenade that night, and she had also seen Young Master Ye hugging and kissing Sister Xiao.
Feng Yu Die was genuinely happy for Sister Xiao and Young Master Ye. She always thought that they were a good match.
Moreover, Master Ye would have to spend more time with Sister Xiao in the future, which meant that she would have more time alone with Sister Pei.
This should have been a good thing.
But Feng Yu Die didn't know why, every time she thought of the scene she saw that night, she felt rather uncomfortable.
So much so that--
--These days, she felt that even roasted chicken didn't taste good anymore.
"Woo..."
Xiao Tian was sprawled on the pillow of the bed, holding the Heavenly Dao Scroll and studying it. Hearing Feng Yu Die's voice, she glanced up at her. "Yu Die, what's wrong?"
"Wooo!!" Feng Yu Die ran back from the window as if she had gone crazy, hopped onto the bed, and buried her face inside the pillow, patting the bed with her arms and legs. "It's just upsetting! I don't know why, it's so upsetting! Oooh waa~yah--!"
Xiao Tian stared at her, sighing softly. Looking like she didn't care, she licked her fingers and turned the page to continue reading.
"Yu Die, if you are bored, why don't you go find Anping?"
Hearing this, Feng Yu Die turned to look at her, but after a short hesitation, shook her head and buried her face in the pillow again.
"Forget it..."
"Hmm?"
Feng Yu Die pouted and said with a slightly aggrieved tone, "He should be with Sister Xiao, why should I disturb him?"
However, after hearing this sentence, Xiao Tian suddenly seemed to feel something. Did she detect a hint of jealousy?
She quickly floated up and landed beside Feng Yu Die, raising her eyebrows. "Yu Die, you're not jealous, are you? You are uncomfortable seeing Ye Anping and Miss Xiao together, right? Hehe---"
"Why should I be jealous? I don't have any feelings for Sister Xiao." Feng Yu Die raised her head as she patted her chest proudly. "I am devoted to Sister Pei!! But... by the way, what has she been doing these days? She doesn't leave the room and won't let me go in to accompany her..."
Xiao Tian averted her eyes and answered, "Ah... um... She should be practicing energy condensation?"
"Is that so..."
Feng Yu Die pouted, a little disappointed, then lay back on the bed and rolled over.
"So boring, so boring~~"
Xiao Dian looked at the innocent Yu Die and felt a little tired for some reason. She shook her head and sighed.
Speaking of which, Ye Anping also turned out to be the type to forget his old love when he found a new love.
These days, apart from accompanying Miss Pei, he also accompanied Miss Xiao and forgot about Yu Die. Previously, when they were in Heavenly Gate City , he would come to wake Yu Die up on time every day and urge her to practice.
"Hmph! Anping, you big bastard!"
Although Feng Yu Die didn't know why Xiao Tian suddenly scolded Ye Anping, she nodded immediately and put her hands on her hips. "Yes! He's a big bastard!"
？
Xiaotian was stunned for a moment before saying, "Why do you say that?"
"I just felt like scolding him!"
Knock knock---
Suddenly, there were two knocks on the door. Feng Yu Die froze and twitched her nose as she smelled the aroma of roasted chicken. Her originally lifeless eyes instantly lit up.
"It's roasted chicken!!"
She quickly jumped off the bed and rushed to the door.
Ye Anping stood in the doorway, looking speechlessly at Feng Yu Die who opened the door. Handing her the roasted chicken, he said, "It's me, not the roasted chicken."
"Hehe, didn't you bring me the roasted chicken? It's all the same."
Feng Yu Die squinted and smiled, grabbed the chicken from Ye Anping, and carried it back to the round table in the room. She then started to tear the skin and eat it.
Ye Anping shook his head, walked into the room, and sat opposite her.
Seeing that he had no intention of leaving, Feng Yu Die paused, and the action of stuffing herself with the roasted chicken became more restrained and elegant as she asked, "Eh? You want to eat too?"
"...If I wanted to eat, wouldn't I know how to roast one more?"
Ye Anping took off a new storage bag from his waist and put it on the table. "This is the reward for your work in the Imperial Sect. Brother Liang and Miss Ye sorted out the account book yesterday, and I brought you your share."
"Oh..." Feng Yu Die nodded slightly. "Put it there. I'll have a look after I finish eating."
"There's also the matter of you reaching the Core Formation stage. In this storage bag, I have prepared all the natural materials and treasures needed. With your heavenly spiritual root, the blood of the Holy Emperor, and Xiao Tian by your side, entering the Core Formation won't pose a problem, but you still have to pay attention to some things."
Ye Anping took a few jade slips out of his storage bag. They contained the methods of forming the core that he had sorted out for Feng Yu Die in the past half month, such as the main acupuncture points for condensing energy, the placement of the Spiritual Gathering Array , and the choice of time for the thunder tribulation...
Putting the jade slips on the table, Ye Anping felt a little weary. Looking at Feng Yu Die nibbling on the roasted chicken, he suddenly felt like a father, and Feng Yu Die was just like his carefree daughter.
"You must read these jade slips carefully. Core Formation is not a trivial matter."
Feng Yu Die glanced at the jade slips, seeming a little annoyed, and waved her hand. "Mhm! Got it~"
"Don't be so perfunctory. Take it seriously." Ye Anping frowned with a hint of sternness in his eyes. "The process of forming the core can take as short as half a year or as long as two years. If you encounter any difficulties later, you can't find me."
Feng Yu Die looked at him with a smile. Imitating Pei Lianxue, she took a deep breath and responded loudly, "Okay!!"
Xiao Tian also floated over.
"Anping, it's okay, I'll accompany her. Yu Die has good aptitudes, so it's not a big problem to form her core. However you, with your dual spiritual roots, will have a much harder time forming the core. How about I accompany you? If there is any problem, I can also help you resist one or two thunder tribulations."
"No need, just stay with her."
Ye Anping replied, sighing slightly before continuing, "This flying boat will reach the Hundred Lotus Sect in two days. After landing, you, Sister Xiao, and her sister will go back to the Black Star Sect first. After I help my sister break off the worldly bond, I will send her there too. I have already told Sister Xiao and Miss Xuanji about the matter of the Core Formation . They will help you get ready. There is nothing else to do."
"I know~ You're so nagging."
"I told you before. If I stop nagging you, it means there is no hope for you."
"..."
"I'm leaving now. Enjoy your meal."
Ye Anping straightened his clothes, stood up, and walked toward the door.
Seeing that he was really leaving, Feng Yu Die hesitated for a moment, looking at the roasted chicken on the table, then tore off a chicken leg and chased after him.
"Wait! Here, take this!"
"Huh?"
"Just expressing my thanks, hehe---"
Feng Yu Die grinned, stuffed the chicken leg into Ye Anping's hand, then pushed him out of her room and closed the door with a 'click'.
Ye Anping stood silently at the door of her room for a long time, looking down at the oil-dripping roasted chicken leg. He sighed slightly, raised his hand, and took a bite.
"Hmm... add more sweet spices next time."
After tasting the chicken leg, Ye Anping slowly left the corridor.
Feng Yu Die closed the door and returned to the room. She sat back at the round table and looked at the storage bag and several jade slips that Ye Anping had put there. For some reason, her mood had improved.
She didn't know why, but she felt quite happy.
"Hehe... Ah~"
Then, she lifted the chicken and took a large bite.
---The roasted chicken, which had tasted bland the past few days, seemed to have become delicious again.
...
Whoosh---
The autumn wind swept across the mountains, driving red leaves in the forests to fall to the ground.
In the Thousand Fingers Lake near the Hundred Lotus Sect, a canopied bamboo raft floated isolated in the middle of the lake, undulating on the waves.
Ye Ao, wearing a pink robe and holding a jade fishing rod, had been sitting on a bamboo chair for two hours. However, the fish basket at his feet was empty, as if he had just arrived.
"Hey! It's hooked!"
Suddenly, a rough voice stirred up a ripple on the lake.
The cultivator sitting on the bamboo chair beside Ye Ao stood up, picked up the fishing rod, pulled up a six-pound grass carp from the lake, and put it into his own fish basket.
This person was the leader of the Tiger Roar Sect, Huang Shanhu, who was in the late Core Formation stage.
Huang Shanhu looked at his fish basket with more than ten fish in it, then looked at Ye Ao's empty basket and laughed.
"Haha -- Old Ye, I told you a long time ago. Fishing depends on skills, not fishing rods. Your fishing rod worth one hundred thousand spirit stones is not as good as my bamboo rod."
"..."
Ye Ao's face suddenly turned green as he felt a little aggrieved but didn't know how to retort.
However, Wang Shouren, who was on Ye Ao's left, said, "Master Huang, fishing is a process. Nine times out of ten the catch is ordinary. We, cultivators, fish to cultivate our character. If it's for the fish, it's better to buy it from the market, right?"
Hearing this, Ye Ao hurriedly picked up the idea. "That's right, Old Huang. Fishing is not for catching fish but for peace of mind."
Huang Shanhu glanced at the ten fishes in Wang Shouren's basket with a smile. "Elder Wang is really amazing. Meditating on fishing, he actually harvested a lot, I am very impressed!"
Ye Ao had nothing to say at this. After thinking for a while, he turned to look at Wang Shouren and asked, "Elder Wang, is there any news from the Imperial Sect in the Central Region ? I heard that the Demon Clan unexpectedly came out of their own territory. Is it true?"
Wang Shouren looked at the two of them before replying, "It is true, but the specific situation in the Central Region is not known yet. The Black Star Sect has sent disciples to investigate, but it seems that the situation there is a bit chaotic now, and the disciples sent there have not returned yet."
"Is that so..." Ye Ao nodded slightly worriedly. "I don't know what happened to Anping. He really must have been born under a troublesome star. Wherever he goes, something bad will happen."
Huang Shanhu listened to him, then asked, "What is your kid doing in the Central Region ?"
"How should I know? He didn't tell me, he just said he was going. As a result, as soon as he left, I heard about the Demon Clan breaking the boundary."
Ye Ao had just lost to Huang Shanhu at fishing, and now he was ready to show off his excellent son to save face, so he deliberately changed the subject. "Old Huang, how is your son? What's his current cultivation level?"
"Heh, he reached the middle stage of the Foundation Building last month. He is a single spiritual root anyway. I am satisfied. Being in the middle stage of the Foundation Building at the age of 20, it's not bad."
"He's only in the middle stage of Foundation Building at the age of 20, isn't that a bit slow? My kid was already in the middle stage of the Foundation Building last year. By now, he might have already reached the late stage."
"Get out of here--" Huang Shanhu waved his hands, obviously not believing him. "How could your kid with dual spiritual roots improve so quickly? Have you used some kind of magic means to rush him?"
"How could that be? If you don't believe me, ask Elder Wang. My kid is cultivating in the Black Star Sect."
"Ah? How did he get in with his dual spiritual roots?"
"As a study companion."
"Study companion?" Huang Shanhu laughed when he heard that. He shook his head and said jokingly, "I remember that a companion has to wash the disciples' clothes and feet? Your kid is serving another kid?"
Wang Shouren shook his head repeatedly when he heard these middle-aged men's competitive spirit.
However, Mr. Qi and the Sect Matriarch seemed to like Ye Anping very much, so he spoke up for Ye Ao. "Master Huang, Young Master Ye of the Hundred Lotus Sect is the companion of the Young Lady Xiao from the Black Star Sect."
"Lady Xiao..." Huang Shanhu's eyes widened, and he asked back, "What the hell?! His kid is a companion for the Immortal Matriarch's daughter?!"
"Hehe... That's right."
"..."
Huang Shanhu was speechless.
Then, Wang Shouren stroked his beard and looked up at the sky, sighing. "Come to think of it, the old lady has been in seclusion for half a year. She used to ask me to play chess with her from time to time. I don't know how long she will be in seclusion this time."
"In seclusion? Is she going to break through the Void Returning stage and enter the Mahayana ?"
"It shouldn't be that fast. I don't know what she's thinking. Who can guess the mind of a Void Returning cultivator?"
"That's right."
While they were chatting, the blue lake was suddenly covered by a huge black shadow, as if there was a solar eclipse, and the entire lake darkened in an instant.
The three people on the bamboo raft paused, and after a moment, they looked up at the sky, only to see a rather large divine boat slowly flying at low altitude toward the main peak of the Hundred Lotus Sect.
The three of them were stunned for a while, and Wang Shouren was the first to come back to his senses. He looked at the totem painted on the tail of the flying boat and murmured, "Is this the divine boat of the Imperial Sect's Justice Division ? Patriarch Ye, have you invited people from the Justice Division over?"
"Ah?" Ye Ao shook his head in confusion. "I don't know."
Huang Shanhu patted Ye Ao on the shoulder. "Looking at its trajectory, it is going to land in your Hundred Lotus Sect. Imperial Sect's Justice Division ... Old Ye, could it be that there are some escaped criminals hidden in your sect?"
Ye Ao blinked and didn't answer. Speaking to the Imperial Sect's Justice Division was beyond his qualifications, so he cupped his hands and said, "Old Huang, Elder Wang, can you two come with me to take a look? I could use some support."