Chapter 941: Join Hands Against the Enemy

Mang Gu only told Dai Bufan about Lu Yang's visit to Laurel Immortal Palace; he didn't tell anyone else.

Tao Yaoye had rushed to the Immortal Palace after receiving an urgent message from Lan Ting from afar.

Just being able to see such a tiny Senior Brother Lu Yang made the trip worthwhile.

Lan Ting snorted, "We're just short-staffed, that's all."

As Lu Yang was confined to the Hall of Sinners, Immortal Palace disciples came to visit him in an endless stream. Lan Ting, unable to manage alone, had to ask Tao Yaoye for help.

"I didn't expect even you, Junior Sister Lan, to become so small," Tao Yaoye said. As an adult, she naturally felt superior and didn't bother arguing with someone as tiny as Lan Ting.

Lan Ting replied unhurriedly, "Being small has its advantages. For example, Senior Brother Lu and I grew up together, childhood sweethearts, innocent and inseparable. I doubt, Junior Sister Tao, you could ever experience something like that."

The two stared intently at each other, trying to find a flaw in the other's expression.

It was futile.

"Forget it, why am I bickering with a little squirt like you? Let's talk about the current situation."

Lan Ting's brows were furrowed. "It's not looking good. I don't know how many people in the Immortal Palace have designs on Senior Brother Lu Yang, but yesterday, quite a few came here under the guise of visiting him."

"And with this incident, once Senior Brother Lu Yang is out, they'll have even more excuses to visit him."

"That's certainly a problem." There was already Lan Ting vying for Senior Brother Lu Yang; if potential rivals from the Immortal Palace got to interact with him and became actual competitors, it would be even harder to win him over.

"It seems the immediate issue to solve is how to prevent them from entering the Hall of Sinners to visit Senior Brother Lu Yang."

"What if we just say Senior Brother Lu Yang is in seclusion and shouldn't be disturbed?"

"That won't work well. Once Senior Brother Lu Yang comes out, a simple question would expose the lie. Besides, if others can't enter the Hall of Sinners for that reason, it means we can't either."

It was a rare chance to interact with Lu Yang in such a unique place as the Hall of Sinners. Visiting him could increase their favor. Future conversations with Lu Yang would be topics exclusive to them, and they could share a knowing smile afterward. Therefore, neither of them would easily give up this opportunity.

They needed to find a solution that satisfied both their needs.

"Senior Sister Lan Ting, what are you doing standing here? And who is this...?" A voice interrupted their thoughts.

Lan Ting turned her head and saw it was Junior Sister He Miao from the Artifact Forging Room.

"Oh, Junior Sister He Miao! Are you here to visit Senior Brother Lu Yang again? Let me introduce you: this is Tao Yaoye from the Dao Seeking Sect. The most popular illusory bubble technique right now was developed by her."

Tao Yaoye raised a hand to stop Lan Ting's introduction. "The illusory bubble technique isn't solely my achievement. Senior Brother Lu Yang helped me a great deal, putting in considerable effort. Even the name 'Illusory Bubble' was his idea."

"Greetings, Senior Sister Tao," He Miao said. She hadn't expected this to be the renowned Tao Yaoye, and it sounded like her relationship with Senior Brother Lu Yang was extraordinary.

"I'm not here for any other reason," He Miao explained, "I just heard Senior Brother Lu Yang entered your Hall of Sinners and came to visit him."

Tao Yaoye sighed. "I just visited Senior Brother Lu Yang and found fruit baskets everywhere. He barely has room to stand! With so many spiritual fruits, how could he possibly eat them all by himself?"

"Furthermore, Senior Brother Lu Yang has been constantly entertaining your Immortal Palace sisters and junior sisters all day, leaving him physically and mentally exhausted. To his right, there's also a prisoner who seems to have some illness, constantly writhing on the ground and emitting chilling, low chuckles. It's quite unsettling. I don't think he rested well last night; he looked quite listless this morning when I saw him."

After He Miao, Immortal Palace disciples continued to arrive: An Qiuxia, Xia Tang, Huang Shan, Bu Lianxin...

Seeing that no one else was entering the Hall of Sinners, and noticing Tao Yaoye and Lan Ting standing earnestly at the entrance, deep in conversation, they felt awkward about pushing past them to enter.

"Who is that person?"

"That's Tao Yaoye, the one who invented the illusory bubble technique. She's Senior Brother Lu Yang's fellow disciple, here to visit him."

"She's Tao Yaoye?"

Inventing the illusory bubble technique meant a continuous flow of spiritual stones into Tao Yaoye's pockets. Her financial power was far beyond what her peers could match; even few cultivators at the Integration stage could compare with her.

Upon learning Tao Yaoye's identity as the inventor and hearing about her unusual relationship with Senior Brother Lu Yang, the Immortal Palace disciples naturally felt a bit inferior when facing her.

"I really don't think Senior Brother is doing well in the Hall of Sinners," Tao Yaoye continued. "I'm planning to speak with Palace Master Luo to see if we can temporarily stop visits to Senior Brother Lu Yang. It would be convenient for everyone."

"No!" Lan Ting exclaimed, quickly stopping her. Her words also voiced the unspoken thoughts of the other Immortal Palace disciples.

If visits to Lu Yang were directly blocked, wouldn't they lose all reasons to interact with him?

Tao Yaoye observed Lan Ting with interest. "I wonder what capacity Junior Sister Lan is stopping me in. Is it because you're the one with the best relationship with him in the entire Immortal Palace? Or is it because you completed a mission with him, risking your lives together to defeat the Immortal Cult's helmsman?"

Lan Ting sighed. "I don't have any particular standing worth mentioning. It's just that Senior Brother Lu Yang was a guest I invited back, and if something goes wrong, I should naturally take responsibility."

"Yesterday, many senior and junior sisters continuously visited Senior Brother Lu Yang, disturbing his rest, and I didn't stop them. That was our Immortal Palace's fault. So, I hope our Immortal Palace can rectify this mistake promptly."

"Since Junior Sister Tao believes too many people visited Senior Brother Lu Yang yesterday, why don't we reduce the number of visitors starting today?"

"I also ask Junior Sister Tao to supervise me."

Tao Yaoye stared at Lan Ting for a moment, deciding whether to trust her. Finally, she sighed and said, "Alright, I'll trust you this once."

Seeing that Tao Yaoye wouldn't go to their master to complain, Lan Ting and the other Immortal Palace disciples all breathed a sigh of relief.

Lan Ting stood on a large rock and waved her tiny hand to attract everyone's attention.

"All of you, Senior and Junior Sisters, I presume you all heard the agreement I just made with Junior Sister Tao."

Everyone acknowledged Lan Ting's status: Lu Yang was a guest she invited, she shared a life-and-death bond with him, and she had prevented Tao Yaoye from approaching the Palace Master. She could represent them in an agreement with Tao Yaoye.

"Senior Brother Lu Yang already knows that our Immortal Palace is hospitable and courteous," Lan Ting continued. "However, the continuous visits have indeed caused him inconvenience, and I bear the main responsibility for this."

"To ensure Senior Brother Lu Yang rests well, I believe the best method is for all of you, Senior and Junior Sisters, to prepare meals. I will then take these meals to Senior Brother Lu Yang, representing everyone during the visit."

"To let Senior Brother Lu Yang know of everyone's good intentions, I will inform him who prepared each dish."

The disciples whispered among themselves. If they could get Lu Yang to eat their cooking and leave a deep impression, that would indeed be an acceptable solution.

Tao Yaoye frowned and stepped forward. "Senior Brother Lu Yang's appetite is limited. Preparing too many dishes would be wasteful, so three meals a day should suffice."

"Then how will we choose who gets to cook? Draw lots?"

Lan Ting quickly said, "Our goal in visiting Senior Brother Lu Yang is to ensure he rests well and eats well."

"In that case, why don't we select based on cooking skills? Whoever cooks the best can visit Senior Brother Lu Yang and deliver his meals."

Lan Ting understood Tao Yaoye's intention. By having a cooking competition, everyone would stop trying to snatch the right to visit Senior Brother Lu Yang from her and instead turn their efforts into an internal rivalry: who could cook the most delicious meal, and whose dishes would leave the deepest impression on Senior Brother Lu Yang.