Points of Suspicion
Upon hearing this, Liu Yunhe frowned slightly. The Lake God's words were quite clear.
The Lu Household has had all its cultivators wiped out by Daozi, who also demanded that within twenty years, the Lake God specifically requested that the Lu Household produce new cultivators who would specialize in Witch Talisman. Behind this must be a secret realm that only cultivators of the Lu Household bloodline who practice Witch Talisman can open.
But once Michiko makes a decision, it's unlikely he'll easily change it.
He pondered inwardly, but his expression remained unchanged; he simply cupped his hands and said:
"It is common for the Lake God to have requests. However, I previously stated that no one from the Lu Household should embark on the path of cultivation for the next twenty years."
After speaking, there was no response for a long time, and the gates of the Water Mansion remained tightly closed. Liu Yunhe knew that this was the end of the day, so he did not linger any longer. He left the pills in front of the gate, bowed to the gate one last time, and then turned and left into the water.
Upon returning to Golden Ao Mountain, Li Siyi immediately came to greet him:
"How is it?"
Liu Yunhe didn't answer directly, but said in a low voice, "Let's go back to Daozi's place first."
The two walked one after the other through the stone steps and entered the cave abode in the back mountain. Su Yao was sitting cross-legged on a futon, with three birds perched on the perches on the cave wall. When they saw the two of them come in, Xiao Huang tilted its head and chirped once, then fell silent.
Su Yao looked up and saw Liu Yunhe's solemn expression, and he already had a plan in mind.
He raised his hand, gesturing for the two to sit down and talk.
Liu Yunhe bowed, sat down to the side, and recounted the conversation in the water mansion verbatim.
When he mentioned the lake god's statement that "the Lu Household needs to produce a few more cultivators to specialize in the path of Witch Talisman," he paused, deliberately softening his tone and trying not to include his own judgment.
After listening, Su Yao did not speak immediately.
The cave fell silent for a moment.
The waves from the direction of Cibi Lake continued to pound against the gray light of the formation, producing a dull sound.
After a long silence, Su Yao finally spoke:
Is he trying to blackmail me?
Liu Yunhe and Li Siyi exchanged a glance, but neither of them spoke. The word "coercion" carried a heavy weight.
But they all understood that the Lake God had indeed found a dead end. The Lu Household cultivators had been wiped out, and the Daoist's decree had been proclaimed to all.
If the ban is broken to save face for the lake god, the Pear Garden will lose all its influence in Nanzhao in the future.
But if we don't agree, Cibi Lake is right at the foot of the mountain, and a Purple Mansion Lake God is watching us day and night. Life after the mountain is opened will definitely not be peaceful.
Su Yao stood up, walked to the edge of the cliff with his hands behind his back, and looked at the still churning blue water. The waves of Cibi Lake were not as violent as before, but they had not completely subsided either. The waves crashed against the cliff face one after another, as if urging him on, or as if waiting.
"The gates of the Water Palace are still tightly shut?" he suddenly asked.
Liu Yunhe nodded:
"After I conveyed Daozi's message, there was no further response from within the manor. The door remained closed, and no words were left behind."
Su Yao nodded slightly:
"His decision to stay indoors means he knows I won't agree. Since he knows I won't agree, yet he still brings it up, it's not that he wants me to agree, but that he wants me to make the first move and negotiate."
He turned around, his gaze cold and indifferent.
"In that case, let him wait."
Liu Yunhe felt a chill run down his spine, realizing what Su Yao meant.
No agreement, no bargaining, no initiative.
This is a battle that will drag on with Lakers.
Li Siyi asked softly:
"Daozi, what if he causes trouble on the day the mountain opens?"
"He wouldn't dare," Su Yao said calmly. "If he truly had the guts, things wouldn't just be storming today. He's a mixed-blood dragon, and the reason he's been able to stay peacefully in Nanzhao until today isn't because of courage, but because of caution. What he wants is that secret realm; the bloodline of the Lu Household cultivators is merely a means to an end. What I want is the stability of the Pear Garden. If the deal falls through, we'll put it on hold for now. He's not in a hurry, and neither am I."
He paused, then looked at Liu Yunhe:
"Did you leave that bottle of pills behind?"
Liu Yunhe nodded quickly:
"I've placed it outside the Water Palace gate."
Su Yao's lips curled up slightly:
"That's enough. Show him the proper manners and attitude; the rest is up to him to see when he comes to his senses."
He gazed at the lake, his voice low but steady:
"He knew I was watching from the mountain."
The wind and waves remain, the gray light remains.
Su Yao withdrew his gaze, waved for the two to leave, turned back to his cave abode, sat down on the futon, closed his eyes, and said nothing more.
Five days later, two streaks of light, one gold and one red, flew from the north, one after the other, through the barrier of the Soul-Losing Radiant Fire Formation, and landed halfway up the mountain.
Zhang Ziyan had just landed and was about to speak when he saw Su Yao leading Liu Yunhe, Li Siyi, Han Ziyi out of the main hall after hearing the news.
Zhu Xuejie lagged two steps behind, her pace unhurried, her crimson palace dress remaining perfectly still in the mountain breeze. She glanced at Zhang Ziyan's back, her lips pursed slightly, but she remained silent.
Zhang Ziyan's mouth hadn't stopped talking the whole way, and she had long since learned to remain silent at the right time.
Seeing Zhang Ziyan's beaming face and barely concealed smugness, Su Yao knew that the matter must have been accomplished. Therefore, without giving Zhang Ziyan a chance to speak, he asked:
"Did you manage to get it done?"
Zhang Ziyan nodded and was about to recount what had happened when Su Yao interrupted him with a look. He chuckled, took out seventeen jade boxes from his Storage Bag, and neatly stacked them on the stone steps in front of the hall.
Su Yao looked at Liu Yunhe, Liu Yunhe and stepped forward to take the jade box from the top shelf and presented it to Su Yao.
Liu Yunhe presented the jade box to Su Yao and gently lifted it. Inside the box was a layer of soft spiritual moss, and in the center was a spiritual embryo about the size of a fist, shaped like an infant curled up. It was light green all over, and covered with a thin, translucent membrane, through which one could faintly see light flowing slowly. The spiritual embryo had not yet opened its eyes, but it already had very subtle breathing.
Su Yao examined the jade box carefully for a moment, then closed it and checked the remaining jade boxes one by one.
The sixteen spirit embryos were all of uniform size and in good condition, except for one that was slightly smaller and paler in color than the others. It was curled up in the corner of the jade box, and the luster on its membrane was much weaker than that of the other spirit embryos. At first glance, it was indeed an underdeveloped defective product.
Su Yao pointed to the smaller spiritual embryo and looked at Zhang Ziyan.
Zhang Ziyan scratched his head, a hint of uncertainty on his face:
"This spiritual embryo grew a little off-center on the Nurtured Splendor Tree. The steward of the Flower-Shifting Palace initially said it wasn't part of the transaction. But then he said that Qixia Temple is the orthodox lineage of the Mysterious Gate, and out of consideration for the shared origins of the Mysterious Gate, he would give it to us as a gift. I wanted to refuse, after all, one shouldn't accept something for nothing. This errand was to buy something, how could the seller give it away for free?"
He paused and continued:
"But the steward was so sincere that he wouldn't take it back even after we refused three times. Junior Sister Xuejie said that since the other party insisted on giving it to us, it would seem petty to refuse again. So I brought it back with me."
Upon hearing this, Su Yao did not speak immediately.
Liu Yunhe had thoroughly researched the reputation of the Flower-Shifting Palace beforehand: they were extremely disciplined, only accepting elixirs, Law Artifact, or spiritual items from those at the Foundation Establishment or above, and never engaged in unprofitable business. Why would such a family be "too sincere" to give away a spiritual embryo for free?
Even if it's not a normal, intact spiritual embryo.