A terrifying aura erupted, throwing the spiritual energy of heaven and earth around them into chaos.
Ye Yu, who had been cultivating inside the flying vessel, sensed the disturbance in the spiritual energy. He abruptly opened his eyes and hurried outside.
There, before the flying vessel, Situ Guang was confronting a woman. Situ Guang was clearly in poor condition—his face was pale, cold sweat pouring down his brow, as though he were enduring immense pressure.
Ye Yu's first thought was that they had run into trouble. But when he saw the woman's face, he immediately gave a bitter smile and stepped forward, cupping his hands. "Elder Ziyun, why are you here?"
The woman was none other than Elder Ziyun of Lingyun Pavilion, the very person who had given Ye Yu the Elder Token back then.
At the sight of Ye Yu, Zi Yun withdrew much of her aura. Situ Guang immediately let out a long breath, then looked at Zi Yun with shock in his eyes.
Within Lingyun Pavilion, experts were as numerous as clouds. Some even speculated that Lingyun Pavilion possessed enough strength to sweep across more than half of Azure Prefecture.
In terms of sheer strength, Zi Yun might not rank among Lingyun Pavilion's foremost experts. But when it came to talent, Zi Yun was absolutely in a class of her own.
Otherwise, she would not have become an elder of Lingyun Pavilion at such a young age.
"If I hadn't come, I wouldn't have known that you had become Great Qin's Imperial Son-in-law. What about what you promised me back then?" Zi Yun smiled faintly, her gaze fixed directly on Ye Yu, making his scalp tingle.
Imperial Son-in-law? Ye Yu frowned, then looked at Situ Guang. Seeing the slight awkwardness on Situ Guang's face, he immediately guessed most of what had happened.
Situ Guang's gaze shifted back and forth between the two of them. Could Zi Yun be the Ninth Princess's love rival? No way!
"I will naturally fulfill what I promised Elder Ziyun back then. I simply need a little more time," Ye Yu said.
Hearing this, Zi Yun walked straight up to Ye Yu and said calmly, "There isn't much time left. Back then, you spoke with such conviction, determined to prove that I was wrong. Yet now, I see you falling into a woman's hands, bound by that so-called love."
"This time, you will not be right. I will prove it to you," Ye Yu said, lifting his head and looking firmly at Zi Yun.
Zi Yun sized Ye Yu up, then smiled faintly. "Then prove it to me."
"I will. In one month, I will come find you," Ye Yu said resolutely.
Zi Yun said nothing more. The corners of her lips lifted slightly before she turned and headed into the flying vessel.
"Are you coming with us?" Ye Yu asked with a frown.
"What, are you afraid? Don't worry. The time has not yet come." Zi Yun turned around and gave Ye Yu a meaningful smile.
Ye Yu sighed and waved a hand. "Do as you please."
Once Zi Yun entered the cabin, Situ Guang finally stepped forward and asked, "Mr. Ye, what should we do?"
Ye Yu shook his head. "Let her be. Just act as though she doesn't exist."
Back then, in order to establish trade relations between Lingyun Pavilion and Great Flame, Ye Yu had sought out Zi Yun.
But Zi Yun was someone utterly devoid of human warmth. No matter how brilliantly Ye Yu talked, no matter how flowers seemed to rain from the sky, Zi Yun remained unmoved.
Later, Ye Yu learned from others that Zi Yun's path of cultivation differed from theirs. What she cultivated was the Dao of Heartlessness, a path that abandoned all emotions.
At the time, Ye Yu knew only familial affection and love. Naturally, he could not accept Zi Yun's path.
Thus, the two of them made a wager. Ye Yu was to prove that the Dao of Heartlessness was wrong, and the method of proving it was both simple and difficult.
He simply had to defeat her.
The reason Zi Yun had agreed to Ye Yu's trade request was precisely because of this wager. Within the limits of her ability, she would provide Ye Yu with every convenience for three years.
After Ye Yu died in his previous life, Zi Yun had come once. At the time, she left behind only one sentence: Among all things in this world, only oneself can be trusted. So-called love is nothing more than a shackle.
The reason Ye Yu was unwilling to tell Situ Guang why was that, even after living two lives, he had no confidence that he could defeat Zi Yun. And Zi Yun truly would kill him.
Telling Situ Guang and the others about it would be useless. It would only add to their worries.
Seeing that Ye Yu did not wish to say more, Situ Guang did not press further. He turned and controlled the flying vessel straight toward Bianhuang City.
Two days later, the flying vessel arrived at Bianhuang City.
After disembarking, the group found an inn to settle into. During this time, Qin Ruoxian had asked about Zi Yun, but seeing that Ye Yu did not want to talk about her, she did not pursue the matter.
Setting everything else aside, Qin Ruoxian had already surpassed everyone around Ye Yu in this one matter alone: trust.
Once they had settled down, Ye Yu immediately headed for the trading fair, unable to wait any longer.
Whenever a secret realm opened, or some large gathering was held, Rogue Cultivators would come here to exchange cultivation items or sell things they did not need in return for cultivation resources.
Usually, however, such trading fairs did not produce anything particularly valuable. They were filled with Rogue Cultivators; unless someone had heaven-defying fortune, what good things could possibly appear?
But this time was different.
Because Ye Yu remembered clearly that, at this trading fair in his previous life, a secret treasure had appeared.
It was a sword. Although Ye Yu did not know its origins, he had once witnessed its power.
A cultivator at the Nascent Soul Early Stage had relied on that sword to slay three Devil Race cultivators at the Nascent Soul Middle Stage with a single strike. Its power was plain for all to see.
The moment Ye Yu stepped outside, he sensed that something was wrong. The people on the streets all seemed to be looking at him.
Although word of what had happened in Great Yan Imperial City should have spread, it should not have made him famous to this extent.
Not to mention that the cultivators' gazes carried disdain, even hostility.
Strange as it was, Ye Yu did not take it to heart. He went straight to the trading fair. Finding that sword as quickly as possible was what mattered most now.
Before long, Ye Yu spotted the sword at a stall in a corner.
Although the blade was covered in black stains and emitted little spiritual energy, Ye Yu recognized it at a glance. The sword strike from his previous life had simply been too stunning.
"How much for this sword?" Ye Yu asked the stall owner.
Seeing a customer approach, the female stall owner happily turned around. But after seeing Ye Yu's face, her expression suddenly turned cold. "Are you Ye Yu?"
Ye Yu frowned. At a trading fair like this, asking about another person's name or affiliation was highly taboo. Most of the goods here had been obtained through plunder, and to prevent people from settling accounts after the autumn harvest, no one usually asked about origins.
But Ye Yu was determined to obtain this sword. To prevent delays from breeding unforeseen complications, he still nodded.
"So it really is you. Get lost. I won't do business with you." Seeing Ye Yu nod, the female stall owner's expression turned cold as she spoke indifferently.
Ye Yu froze, then raised his head and asked, "What do you mean by that?"
"What do I mean? You're asking me? After what you did to Ruyan, you still have the nerve to ask?" the female stall owner said coldly.
"Ruyan? Liu Ruyan? What does this have to do with her?" Ye Yu asked, thoroughly confused.
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