Ye Fei had never imagined that his father actually had a disciple, let alone one with such a high cultivation realm.
Then what realm was Father in?
Nascent Soul?
Towering waves surged through Ye Fei's heart.
"What? Junior Brother, you don't believe me?"
Seeing no response from Ye Fei, Deng Chao asked anxiously.
"Words alone aren't proof!"
Ye Fei curled his lips.
Although he said that, he already believed him almost completely.
Without that connection, Deng Chao would never have given him the Medicine God Cauldron.
Considering the circumstances back then, this fellow had clearly been waiting there for him.
And this time, he had helped him fish in troubled waters and gain so many Spirit Stones.
If they had no connection, Deng Chao would never have done that.
"Master really never gave me any token."
"And you haven't practiced Master's cultivation method."
"How am I supposed to prove that my master is my master?"
For a moment, Deng Chao scratched his ears and head in agitation, looking rather comical.
"Forget it. You don't need a token. Just tell me where my father is now."
Seeing him like this, Ye Fei decided not to make things difficult for him anymore. His eyes shifted as an idea came to him.
"Huh? I don't know that."
Deng Chao hurriedly shook his head.
"You don't know?"
"Then how did you know my whereabouts?"
Ye Fei found Deng Chao's words hard to believe.
"Master told me where you were."
Deng Chao answered, his eyes wide.
"And you still don't know where my father is?"
Ye Fei practically felt the urge to punch him.
"Junior Brother, I really haven't lied to you. I truly don't know where Master is."
Deng Chao put on a thoroughly innocent expression.
"Then how did you learn my whereabouts?"
Forcing himself to calm down, Ye Fei asked again.
"Master told me."
Deng Chao answered earnestly.
"Ah! I'm going mad!"
"Since my father told you, you two must have met recently, right?"
Ye Fei tugged hard at his hair and hurriedly changed his approach.
He realized that if he kept asking the same way, he would fall into an endless loop.
Deng Chao's intelligence really gave him cause for concern.
"No. Master and I haven't seen each other in twenty years."
Deng Chao shook his head.
"You haven't met in twenty years? Then how do you communicate with my father?"
Ye Fei asked curiously.
"Oh, that."
As he spoke, Deng Chao took a Voice Transmission Jade Plaque from the storage belt at his waist.
"Is this my father's Voice Transmission Jade Plaque?"
A sharp gleam flashed in Ye Fei's eyes, and he hurriedly snatched the Jade Plaque.
"It isn't Master's. It's mine."
"Whenever something comes up, Master tells me through the Voice Transmission Jade Plaque."
Deng Chao explained.
"Then can I contact my father?"
Ye Fei asked excitedly.
"No! Whenever I send him a message, Master never replies."
Deng Chao shook his head again.
"You two really are a pair of oddballs."
Ye Fei was utterly speechless.
"Hehe, Master's wife said the same thing back then."
Deng Chao scratched his head sheepishly.
"My mother?"
"My mother is still alive?"
"Where is she?"
The moment Deng Chao finished speaking, Ye Fei stepped forward and grabbed his shoulders, questioning him urgently as his body trembled slightly.
"Of course Master's wife is alive. But she ascended to the Upper Realm over a decade ago."
Seeing how excited Ye Fei was, Deng Chao hid nothing and answered truthfully.
"She ascended?"
"Then what is my mother's name?"
Ye Fei asked again.
"Fairy Luo Yue, once the strongest person in the Divine Feather Kingdom."
Deng Chao answered without even thinking.
"The Grand Supreme Elder of the Free and Easy Gate who ascended is actually my mother?"
"My master is actually my aunt?"
Hearing that answer, Ye Fei stood rooted to the spot, a spectacular array of expressions crossing his face.
"Ahem, Junior Brother, when you meet Master, please don't tell him I was the one who told you."
"Master said I wasn't allowed to tell you about this until you formed your Nascent Soul."
Deng Chao said sheepishly.
He remembered how Ye Canglong had repeatedly instructed him not to tell Ye Fei about this.
Yet, to his surprise, he had blurted it out during their very first meeting.
"Don't worry, Senior Brother. I absolutely won't tell."
The corner of Ye Fei's mouth twitched as he laughed it off.
"In that case, Junior Brother, hurry back and cultivate."
"There's less than half a year until the Divine Feather Secret Realm opens. You need to reach the peak of Qi Refining quickly, or you'll be at a serious disadvantage."
For once, Deng Chao grew serious.
"The Divine Feather Secret Realm?"
"What is that?"
Ye Fei asked in confusion.
He remembered that Huo Qiuyang had also mentioned that name in the woods outside Qingyuan Town.
"The Divine Feather Secret Realm is the most important secret realm in the Divine Feather Kingdom, and even on the entire Divine Dragon Continent."
"Although cultivators who enter cannot be above the Qi Refining stage, the natural treasures it produces are the highest-grade treasures on the entire Divine Dragon Continent."
"Among them is the God-Devouring Zhi, which drives every Nascent Soul Cultivator in the Cultivation World mad."
"You could say that the size of a sect's harvest in the Divine Feather Secret Realm directly determines its survival or destruction."
Deng Chao explained to Ye Fei.
"The God-Devouring Zhi?"
"The God-Devouring Zhi used to refine Ascension Pills?"
Ye Fei could not help drawing in a sharp breath.
"Exactly. So you need to work hard, Junior Brother. Don't end up dying in there because you aren't strong enough."
"Now that Master's wife has ascended, if you die in there, Master won't be able to give me another junior brother. How pitiful would I, Deng Chao, be, without even a junior brother?"
Deng Chao said worriedly.
"You're the one who'll die in there! No ivory ever comes from a dog's mouth."
Ye Fei glared at him irritably.
"I was only joking. Don't be angry, Junior Brother."
"Take this Jade Plaque. If anything happens, send me a message directly. I can receive it within a hundred li."
Deng Chao smiled sheepishly, then handed Ye Fei a Voice Transmission Jade Plaque.
"Got it."
"Senior Brother, stop following me around when you have nothing to do. It must be exhausting."
Ye Fei said pointedly.
"All right! All right! I won't follow you anymore!"
Deng Chao gave an awkward smile.
After exchanging a few more words, the two parted ways.
Since there was nothing much to see here, Ye Fei rode the Black Disc back toward the Free and Easy Gate.
Ten days later, Ye Fei returned safely to Jade Maiden Peak at the Free and Easy Gate.
"Finally back."
Looking at the familiar Herb Garden before him, Ye Fei took a deep breath, an inexplicable sense of contentment rising in his heart.
"Martial Nephew Ye, come here for a moment."
Ye Fei was just about to return to his cave abode when Jiang Mengyun sent him a voice transmission.
Hearing Jiang Mengyun's summons, Ye Fei dared not delay and quickly ran into her cave abode.
In the sitting room, Jiang Mengyun was already waiting for him in the seat of honor.
"Sit."
Before Ye Fei could salute, Jiang Mengyun waved him over and had him sit in the chair beside her.
"What did you need me for, Uncle-Master Jiang?"
Ye Fei asked respectfully.
"There is indeed something I'd like to ask your help with, Martial Nephew Ye."
Jiang Mengyun said somewhat awkwardly.
"Whatever it is, just give the word, Uncle-Master Jiang."
Ye Fei hurriedly replied.
"Martial Nephew Ye, do you know about the Divine Feather Secret Realm?"
Jiang Mengyun asked softly.
"A little."
Ye Fei nodded.
"Then, when you enter the Divine Feather Secret Realm, could you take me in with you?"
Jiang Mengyun lightly bit her crimson lip with her pearly teeth and forced herself to voice the request.
Before you continue