Chapter 2184: Benefits Obtained

Lu Ye didn't mention it, but Zi Ying seemed to sense his thoughts and interjected, "How about two hundred pieces a month? An extra fifty or fifty less won't make much difference to your Yan family."

"Deputy Zi..." Yan Yong looked at Zi Ying with a pained expression.

"Your Yan family is vast and prosperous; do you really care about such a small amount?" Zi Ying pursed her lips. "Also, don't forget the fourth benefit you just mentioned. Afterward, give young Lu Ye one of your Yan family's retainer tokens. Although it's not terribly useful, it can come in handy sometimes. However, let's be clear: Lu Ye will merely possess the token; he won't be subject to your commands!"

"Deputy Zi!" Yan Yong cried out again. He desperately wanted to ask Zi Ying if Lu Ye was her long-lost son, given how much she was looking out for him. However, considering he was no match for her, he didn't dare to voice the question.

What kind of retainer holds a token but isn't subject to orders? Isn't that clearly exploiting the situation?

"What? Is there a problem?" Zi Ying glared at Yan Yong, her expression stern. "There are several groups of Fusion Dao cultivators waiting outside. If you have an issue, I'll simply let them in! It's utterly ridiculous. When this star was under attack, there was no support, but now everyone's eagerly rushing over. Do you really think I, Zi Ying, have no temper?"

"No problem! I'll agree to this on my own authority!" Yan Yong quickly nodded.

He couldn't possibly allow those Fusion Dao cultivators inside; otherwise, the competition would become endless. And he himself was among those who had rushed over; he had heard from Yan Hong that the Zhou family's and Sun family's Fusion Dao cultivators were severely beaten earlier.

"Do you have any objections?" Zi Ying asked, looking at Lu Ye.

"I... have no objections!" Lu Ye said, sniffing slightly.

"That settles it then!" Zi Ying's face brightened with a smile. "The Yan family has happily acquired the Myrmidon. Congratulations!"

"Heh..." Yan Yong wasn't sure whether to laugh or not; his emotions were quite complex.

After a moment's silence, Yan Yong recalled something else and spoke, "By the way, what kind of Dao artifact would you prefer, worthy nephew?" This was one of the conditions he had previously proposed; since it was meant for Lu Ye, his preference naturally had to be considered.

Lu Ye immediately drew his Mountain-Stabilizing Blade. "If there's a Dao artifact similar to this blade, that would be ideal. If not... then anything will do."

Yan Yong carefully examined the Mountain-Stabilizing Blade. "Such long blades are uncommon; it might not be possible to find one. I'll do my best."

"Thank you, Uncle Yong," Lu Ye replied cheerfully.

With the arrangements finally settled, Yan Yong turned his head, looking at Zi Ying with anticipation. "Deputy Zi, the Myrmidon..."

The Myrmidon now belonged to the Yan family!

"What are you flustered about? No one is going to snatch it from you." Zi Ying said with a dismissive look, standing up. "Everyone, follow me!"

She led the way outside.

The others didn't understand the reason but could only follow.

Soon, the group exited the Blue Water War Star. As expected, several Fusion Dao cultivators were waiting outside, clearly powerful individuals from various families who had hurried over after hearing the news. Having announced their presence but not yet granted permission, they dared not intrude rashly and could only wait quietly.

Upon seeing Zi Ying, they all eagerly stepped forward to greet her.

However, they were all startled when they saw Yan Yong behind Zi Ying.

Yan Yong glanced at them sideways. "You all arrived a bit late; that Myrmidon already belongs to my Yan family."

The expressions of the Fusion Dao cultivators shifted, and one of them asked, "Deputy Zi, is Brother Yan's statement true?"

Zi Ying nodded. "It's true; the matter has been settled."

The Fusion Dao cultivators sighed in frustration, no longer in the mood to linger, and turned to leave.

A moment later, a streak of light rapidly approached from a distance, landing nearby. The figure bowed to Zi Ying with clasped fists. "Madam, I've found it!"

As he spoke, he flipped his palm, revealing a stone.

Zi Ying nodded and took it. The cultivator explained, "They used to be easy to find, but the last major battle affected such a wide area that most of the stone worms died. I had to travel a great distance to find just one."

"You've worked hard."

As Zi Ying spoke, she flicked the stone with her finger. "What are you pretending for? Open your eye!"

The stone slowly opened a single eye, revealing itself to be a stone worm, an ocular spy of the Insect Mother.

"Look closely." Zi Ying waved the armor piece she had been holding in front of the stone worm. "This is the Myrmidon!"

She then tossed it directly to Yan Yong, who was waiting nearby.

Zi Ying then pointed. "This is Yan Yong of the Yan family!"

Yan Yong's face darkened as he realized Zi Ying's intention. He quickly cupped his fists and said, "Deputy Zi, farewell! We shall meet again!"

As he spoke, he channeled his spiritual power, enveloping Yan Hong, and prepared to depart.

The Myrmidon had been prepared for Yan Hong, and now that they had obtained it, Yan Yong naturally intended to bring Yan Hong back to their home star.

Before leaving, Yan Hong called out to Lu Ye, "Brother Lu, remember to let me know in advance when you return to your home star."

"Take care, Brother Yan." Lu Ye clasped his fists in farewell.

Lu Ye only withdrew his gaze once the Yan family uncle and nephew had disappeared from sight.

Beside him, Zi Ying had casually crushed the stone worm.

Lu Ye then solemnly bowed to Zi Ying. "Thank you for your patronage, Deputy Guard!"

Beyond the additional benefits Zi Ying helped him secure during the negotiation with Yan Yong, her deliberate act of having a stone worm found and then publicly handing the Myrmidon to Yan Yong in its presence was also a form of protection for Lu Ye.

As long as the Insect Mother knew that the Myrmidon was no longer with Lu Ye, her attention on him would significantly decrease in the future.

Furthermore, Zi Ying's initial decision not to let Yan Yong discuss Lu Ye's life-saving grace to Yan Hong, but rather to urge him to directly negotiate for the Myrmidon, was also a thoughtful consideration for Lu Ye.

This was because if Yan Yong had first settled the matter of the life-saving grace, there would have been no room for sentiment between them, and it would have become a mere exchange of interests. In such a scenario, Yan Yong would never have made so many concessions.

Although Zi Ying didn't mention many of these details, Lu Ye understood them thoroughly and felt immense gratitude toward the Deputy Guard.

"It's only right; your contribution to defending Blue Water was significant," Zi Ying said calmly. She then cautioned him, "However, even though the Insect Mother witnessed the Myrmidon's change of ownership, the fact remains that you killed a Blood Clan Fusion Dao cultivator. In the future, be as careful as possible when you're out and about; it's quite possible that both the Insect and Blood clans still maintain some interest in you."

"Understood."

"Furthermore, I've already reported your merits in defending Blue Water to our home star to request commendations for you. There should be results within a few days. For now, don't wander off; stay here in Blue Water. Once the benefits from the Yan family have arrived, then you can make your plans."

After a few more words of caution, Zi Ying departed.

However, Lu Ye vaguely sensed that Zi Ying seemed to have something she wanted to tell him but ultimately left unsaid.

Since she didn't bring it up, Lu Ye naturally found it inappropriate to press the matter.

He returned to his dwelling and sat in quiet meditation.

His Dao bones were now fully refined, and his strength had improved somewhat. However, having just experienced a major battle, there would likely be no combat in Blue Water for a while.

Even if Lu Ye were to venture deep into the battlefield now, he likely wouldn't achieve significant gains.

Another point was that Zi Ying's act of handing the Myrmidon to Yan Yong in front of the stone worm was intended to inform the Insect Mother that the Myrmidon had changed hands. Normally, the Insect Mother should no longer pay much attention to Lu Ye.

However, only Lu Ye truly knew that despite Zi Ying's actions, the Insect Mother's attention on him would not lessen at all.

This was because he had previously, by his own power, slain a former owner of a Myrmidon. From the Insect Mother's perspective, he must surely possess another Myrmidon.

Handing over one piece was utterly meaningless.

Therefore, when operating outside in the future, he would still need to disguise his appearance. He could not easily reveal himself until he possessed sufficient self-preservation capabilities.

Several days later, the benefits promised by the Yan family arrived.

They were delivered by a Yan family retainer.

It wasn't a blade, but a short hammer.

The Yan family had evidently been unable to find a Dao artifact similar to the Mountain-Stabilizing Blade, so they substituted it with this short hammer. Its quality, however, was impeccable; it was a top-grade Dao artifact, on the same level as Yan Hong's long spear. This was the pinnacle of Dao artifacts that could be refined within Splendid. Depending on its compatibility with the user, it could augment the wielder's strength by three to five levels of Dao!

Lu Ye tried it and discovered that the Dao artifact was completely useless to him, providing no augmentation whatsoever.

This was expected, considering that even a Dao artifact like the Myrmidon provided him with negligible augmentation, let alone other Dao artifacts.

However, the reason he wanted this item was not for its augmentative properties, but as a form of concealment.

In the future, when he fought enemies on the battlefield, having this Dao artifact would make it easier to maneuver, and often provide a plausible explanation for his actions.

The two hundred Dao bones for the first month were also delivered, and their quality was quite good.

In addition, there was a Yan family retainer token. Possessing this token allowed one to mobilize some Yan family cultivators in various locations and conferred other rights.

Normally, Yan family retainers had obligations to fulfill while enjoying benefits. However, due to the previous negotiations, Lu Ye was exempt from these duties.

These three were the benefits he received. Additionally, he gained the qualification to enter the Dao Pattern Pavilion, which would require him to return to his home star to utilize.

Until he intended to advance to the Fusion Dao realm, this benefit would have to remain on hold.

Along with the benefits from the Yan family, the military merits for defending Blue Water were also issued.

His contributions this time were immense, leading to Lu Ye's promotion to Silver Guard, fourth rank of Alliance Guard. While advancing from Iron Guard to Bronze Guard only required accumulated military merits, progressing from Bronze Guard to Silver Guard demanded not only accumulated merits but also genuinely significant contributions.

Lu Ye's significant role in defending Blue Water this time served as an example.

When Lu Ye first arrived in Splendid, his primary goal was to quickly advance to Silver Guard and then find a way to acquire a Dao artifact for study.

He hadn't expected to achieve this so quickly, and now he even possessed an excellent Dao artifact.

This meant he no longer needed to exchange for one. However, he still visited the Military Merit Pavilion and exchanged for various items, such as pills.

After the conflict, having stayed in Blue Water for a month, Lu Ye began to feel the urge to depart.

To swiftly increase his strength, he needed to constantly slay enemies and acquire Dao bones. Otherwise, relying solely on the Dao bones provided monthly by the Yan family, his progress would be slow.

However, following the recent major battle, both the Insect and Blood clans needed to recuperate, and the Blue Water sector required the same.

To put it bluntly, it was unlikely that any intense conflicts would erupt in this war zone within the next three to five years; at most, there would be minor skirmishes.

If one sought a peaceful existence, staying in Blue Water was undoubtedly an excellent choice. However, if true peace was what he desired, Lu Ye might as well return to his home star in the rear, where he would never have to engage in combat.