Chapter 1573: I Am Talented

A few moments later, a scorpion the size of a pot lid was trapped in a formation, disoriented and unable to escape.

Lu Ye strode towards the bamboo building. He climbed the stairs to the second floor, and as he pushed open the bamboo door, a foul, pungent smell assailed him, accompanied by a hissing sound.

He casually grabbed a green snake, catching it in his hand. On closer inspection, the snake resembled a tender bamboo branch. Even with its head pinched, its ferocity remained undiminished, its tongue flicking in and out.

Lu Ye stared at it, and with a slight surge of his own aura, the green snake instantly wilted, its previously rigid body going limp.

He casually coiled it around his waist and tied a knot. Looking up, he saw Hua Ci emerging from the inner room, carrying a large pile of bags and bundles, looking as if she were about to embark on a long journey.

Lu Ye watched in surprise: “Oh, wife, where are you off to?”

It was Hua Ci’s first time hearing him call her that, but they were used to joking around, so she wasn’t particularly surprised. She put on a stern face and spat: “Bah, who’s your wife? Don’t just blurt that out!” She then raised a hand to wipe beneath her eyes, her gaze resentful, her expression on the verge of tears: “Where else could I go? Of course, I’m making space for your family of three. You can live here from now on, enjoying a happy, harmonious life with a loving father and filial daughter.”

Lu Ye had followed her, intending to explain, but seeing Hua Ci’s demeanor, he knew there was no need for further explanation. He chuckled: “If you don’t live here, where else would you live?”

Hua Ci’s voice was forlorn: “In this vast world, there’s always a place for me to stay. At worst, I’ll just find a small hideout somewhere in the starry sky. I’ll survive.”

“Are you really leaving?” Lu Ye feigned surprise.

Hua Ci said: “Newcomers always bring joy, while old ones only get in the way. Why should I stay?”

Lu Ye nodded: “That makes sense. Be careful on your journey. Let me know when you find a place, and I’ll come visit you.”

“Take care!” Hua Ci gave him a deep look and, carrying her numerous bags, began to walk out.

As they brushed past each other, Hua Ci suddenly gasped, her body lifted into the air as she was swept into a horizontal embrace. Instinctively, she dropped the bundles in her hands and wrapped her arms around Lu Ye’s neck: “What are you doing?”

Lu Ye lowered his head and gazed at her, retorting: “Guess!”

He walked straight towards the inner room. Hua Ci tried to struggle, but a firm pat from Lu Ye instantly made her compliant.

Her hair was disheveled, her hairpin askew, and the flush of passion faded from her face.

A long while later, Hua Ci lay languidly on Lu Ye’s chest, her hands clasped, resting her chin on them. Then she looked at him with wide, startled eyes, her expression a mix of surprise and bewilderment: “You mean that little girl is a Sunlit Realm cultivator?”

Lu Ye, with his hands clasped behind his head, nodded gravely: “Ya Ya is indeed a Sunlit Realm cultivator, but she suffers from the Soul-Devouring Aphids, which caused some mental issues, so she has the mind of a child now.”

Hua Ci expressed doubt: “Are you trying to trick me? This whole thing sounded incredibly far-fetched.”

Lu Ye raised a hand and gently pinched her nose: “If I were really trying to trick you, I wouldn’t make it sound so outlandish.”

Hua Ci thought about it and realized he had a point, so she said: “So she thinks of you as her father, and that woman as her mother?”

“That’s Daoist Lishang. Lishang is from the Soul Clan. Yi Yi has some similarities to her. I brought her back mainly to resolve the issues at Xian Yuan City.”

Few people in the entire Kyushu knew about Xian Yuan City. Lu Ye had mentioned it to Hua Ci a few times before, so Hua Ci had a slight understanding of the situation there.

Hearing this, Hua Ci nodded: “The ancestors of Xian Yuan City have suffered for many years; it would be a good thing if the problem could be resolved.”

“So, you understand now, right? Don’t easily trust your eyes in the future; at least listen to what others have to explain.” Lu Ye raised his hand and gave her a playful pat on the bottom. Her flesh rippled, providing an excellent feel.

Hua Ci smiled sweetly, then suddenly opened her mouth and bit Lu Ye’s shoulder. It was a hard bite, making Lu Ye wince in pain.

“What are you doing?” Lu Ye felt his shoulder had been bitten through, showing how hard Hua Ci had bitten.

“You’re getting back at me, aren’t you?” A dangerous glint appeared in Hua Ci’s eyes as she squinted at Lu Ye.

“What do you mean?” Lu Ye asked, puzzled.

“Back then, on Wushuang Continent, I held someone else’s child… so now you’ve suddenly brought a child back.”

“That’s not true!” Lu Ye adamantly denied it. Even if it were true, he absolutely couldn’t admit it; otherwise, given Hua Ci’s temperament, she would surely get her revenge eventually.

“Alright, let’s pretend it’s not.” Hua Ci pouted, then suddenly opened her mouth again and bit Lu Ye’s other shoulder.

“What is it now?” Lu Ye endured the pain. This bite was even harder than the previous one, and he was sure his shoulder had been bitten through.

Hua Ci looked up, her lips stained a vivid red, the gleam in her eyes even more dangerous. She breathed out a fragrant sigh towards Lu Ye: “Just now, you seemed to have some new tricks up your sleeve, things you’ve never done before. How do you explain that?”

Lu Ye’s heart skipped a beat, but his face remained composed: “Natural talent, self-taught!”

Hua Ci smiled, looking at him, her deep gaze seeming to pierce into the depths of his soul. Then she lowered her head, her disheveled hair obscuring her delicate face, making her expression unreadable. Her voice, however, sounded as if it came from the Nine Nether Purgatory: “Then I’ll have to see for myself.”

Lu Ye couldn’t help but shiver.

At the core of the Ao Mountain Grand Formation in the Blood Sect, several disciples guarding the area were staring at the sky, appearing idle.

Suddenly, a streak of light swept in from outside, directly entering Ao Mountain and heading towards Shouzheng Peak.

A disciple, chewing on a blade of grass, said idly: “How many waves has it been today?”

“This is the fourth wave. Nearly a hundred Star Constellation cultivators have come and gone,” another disciple replied.

“What’s going on?” Someone asked, puzzled.

The disciples guarding this place were not high in cultivation, only at the True Lake level, so they didn't know the exact reason. They only knew that for several days now, Star Constellation cultivators had been continuously visiting. Initially, there weren’t many visitors, and the frequency was low, but as time passed, more and more people came, and the frequency increased, as if all the Star Constellations in Kyushu were rushing back from the starry sky and heading here.

It was foreseeable that this situation would become even more frequent in the future.

A True Lake cultivator who knew a little more whispered: “This should be related to that person on Cui Zhu Peak.”

“Cui Zhu Peak?” Hearing this, several people immediately had the image of a gentle and refined woman appear in their minds. Many had seen this woman, knowing she was among the earliest disciples of the Blood Sect in this generation, and one of the few Star Constellation cultivators within the sect.

The name of the Poison Doctor was even more widely known.

The speaker immediately knew who they were thinking of and said: “Not Senior Aunt Poison Doctor, but the Peak Master of Cui Zhu Peak!”

The True Lake cultivators were immediately astonished: “That legend?”

Everyone knew that the Peak Master of Cui Zhu Peak was a legendary figure. He hadn’t joined the Blood Sect many years ago and didn’t seem very old, yet in all the major events in Kyushu in recent years, his strategic hand seemed to be present.

And he was also among the first cultivators to advance to the Star Constellation Realm. Six years ago, he mysteriously disappeared, and there had been no news of him since.

“He’s back?” Someone asked in surprise.

“I heard from Senior Uncle Kong Niu that he seems to be back, and there’s apparently some major event happening, which is why all these Star Constellation cultivators from Kyushu are coming to visit.”

“What major event?”

“Who knows? But just wait. Anything related to him is never a minor matter. Kyushu might be on the verge of another upheaval.”

On Shouzheng Peak, Shui Yuan looked with a troubled expression towards Cui Zhu Peak. Since the day Hua Ci and Lu Ye left one after another and hadn’t been seen since, Shui Yuan knew exactly what the two of them were doing, even if she just thought with her toes.

After a long separation, like dry wood and raging fire, what else could they be doing?

But it had been several days now; why hadn’t they come out yet?

The Star Constellation cultivators who had received the news and came to visit couldn't see Lu Ye, so Shui Yuan had to receive them herself. In the past few days, she had already received over a hundred people, leaving her no time to even research elixir recipes.

Although Lu Ye hadn’t discussed anything with her after his return, from Lishang and from the word-of-mouth among the Kyushu Star Constellations, she had learned of Lu Ye’s intentions after this return.

Precisely because he intended to take a group of people to the Myriad Manifestations Sea, the Kyushu cultivators who received the news rushed back from the starry sky without delay to inquire with Lu Ye about various matters.

But everyone knew that Lu Ye couldn’t take everyone with him this time and could only take a portion. However, there were simply too many Star Constellations interested in the Myriad Manifestations Sea, so deciding who would go and who would stay was a problem that required careful coordination.

The visiting Star Constellations were all relatively familiar with Lu Ye, wanting to greet him in advance and pull some strings.

Finally, left with no choice, Shui Yuan could only inform everyone that in one month, they should gather at the Kyushu Guardian Hall, where Lu Ye would appear and explain everything.

Only then did the Blood Sect regain much of its tranquility.

One month was still a bit rushed, as some Kyushu Star Constellations were very deep in the starry sky, and even if they received the news, they wouldn’t be able to return within a month.

Currently, Kyushu’s only Star Boat had already set sail, preparing to pick up the scattered Star Constellations from afar as much as possible.

Everything was proceeding intensely and rapidly, except the instigator was nowhere to be seen.

Three days, five days, ten days, half a month…

Lishang and Ya Ya were living on Shouzheng Peak. Ya Ya, being childlike, spent her days bouncing around, searching for birds, and catching fish. Others didn’t know the full extent of her Sunlit Realm cultivation, but Lishang did, so she stayed by her side every day, lest someone inadvertently provoke her.

With the one-month deadline approaching, Lu Ye still hadn’t appeared. Shui Yuan had no choice but to personally go to Cui Zhu Peak to discuss matters with him.

As soon as she arrived at Cui Zhu Peak, she saw a familiar figure clinging to the bamboo building’s stairs, stumbling down step by step.

Shui Yuan looked closely, her face turning pale with shock, and hurried forward: “Junior Brother, what happened to you?”

At this moment, Lu Ye’s eyes were dark and sunken, his face pale, looking severely drained of energy. Despite his cultivation at the late Star Constellation Realm, his legs were actually shaking as he walked.

Hearing the voice, Lu Ye looked over, his eyes slowly focusing, and he forced a weary smile: “Second Senior Sister…”