Chapter 218 - Here Comes the Elder Brother
There were all kinds of items with brilliant lights and vibrant colors being displayed in a transparent case.
There were talismans placed everywhere around the display counters to prevent people from touching. There were big wooden tablets at the side of the cases with information about the items inside. There was also a small servant girl at the side, looking around and answering questions for the noble guests.
Many ladies and gentlemen in fancy clothes crowded around the exhibits, discussing quietly.
Lu Mingshu looked over the items one by one. Seeing her carefully checking them out but not asking about the prices, it gave others a feeling that it was a pointless trip for her.
"Heh, pitiful poor girl!" A young lady who passed by sneered.
"Maybe a disciple from a smaller sect? It's not easy for her to travel here though," the young lady's companion said.
"True…."
Lu Mingshu turned a deaf ear to the comments.
Finally, she stopped by the public exhibition.
It was a huge table with no talismans or cases. The items were randomly thrown on the table, and they looked cheap.
Most people who were at the Treasure Assembly had big family backgrounds, so these items were garbage to them that they wouldn't even spare a glance. There were only a few people looking around.
Even the servant girl was standing there lazily, looking like she was about to fall asleep.
Lu Mingshu stood there for a moment. Most items here were defects or things that nobody could identify.
She looked around for a moment before taking three items and passing them to the servant girl. "Excuse me, I want these three items."
The servant girl yawned. She wiped a tear away before taking out a notebook to write down the items. "Please pay at the side."
Just three gold and she got herself three pieces of "garbage."
This "garbage" had the same quality - old, a small amount of mystic force, and hard to refine. It wasn't suitable to be sold at a high price, but it was a waste to throw it away. In short, they were just chicken ribs.
However, Lu Mingshu had seen many treasures in the Heavenly Wheel, and she had carved a collection of treasures from various worlds in her mind. These three pieces of "garbage" were definitely treasures to her.
As for the "real" treasures, they were garbage to her. The Treasure Assembly can just keep them.
As she walked out of the venue, she saw someone shouting out loud. "The boats are back!"
With a loud bang, many took their mustard seed pouches with them and carried a wooden barrier or rattan basket with them. These people were shopkeepers, clerks, or even booth owners.
The stream of people sped past Lu Mingshu.
She turned to an aunty who was busy closing her shop in a rush. "May I ask what's going on?"
"The boats are back! Go grab the goods!" The aunty rolled everything up and carried it on her back before dashing in the same direction. She's fat, but her speed is surprising!
Lu Mingshu looked at the situation in front of her blankly before following the crowd.
In the blink of an eye, the dock was filled with people.
From afar, a fleet slowly entered the harbor under the anticipation of many, then slowly parked by the dock.
The sailors jumped down the ship and placed a ladder leading up. The people then gushed forward, fighting to go up the ladder first.
Those who tended bigger shops went over to the big ships, while the booths and smaller shops chose the smaller boats. There was a boiling cauldron of voices and people pushing each other, yelling for the prices.
So, it's to get goods.
The fleets went out to hunt beasts. When they returned, they sold various water beasts, fish, pearls, algae, and ores. There were a lot of places in Beiming that one couldn't travel as they wished since it was too dangerous, so some goods could only be acquired from these ships.
"Wow! Look! Such a huge fish!" someone cried out in surprise.
The crowd looked over to where the cry came from.
A few ships were coming in late, dragging a net toward the harbor slowly. A huge shadow could be seen amongst the ships.
The closer the ships got, the clearer the shadow became.
"It's a Mountain Whale!"
"It's gigantic! Even bigger than a ship!"
"Of course, that's why it's called a Mountain Whale."
"Eh, why did they stop?"
The ships stopped outside the harbor and dropped their anchors.
"Idiot! Where are they going to put the Mountain Whale if they come in the harbor? It's better to sell it alive than dead, so of course they're bidding now!"
During the conversation, some boats had already made their way to those ships.
"Let's get going, maybe we will get something too!"
Lu Mingshu walked back to the Ding family's boat, and Ah Ling was just coming out. "Miss, you're just in time! We are planning to go over to have a look."
"Come along!" Captain Ding smiled. "We are just in time, this is a rare event!"
"Ladies and gentlemen!" As the crowd got bigger, a steward came out yelling. "We, the Bon Voyage Fleet, have captured a Mountain Whale. Please take a look!"
The ropes tightened, and the Mountain Whale came up to the surface. It was uncomfortable because of the bindings, so it shook its tail to struggle.
Suddenly, the water moved up and down, causing the boat to jolt and people to shriek.
"Ladies and gentlemen, this fully-grown whale has the strength of a Spirit Realm cultivator. We've sent out our top-notch elites to bring it under control."
After the endless introduction, the steward announced an auction on the spot.
Somebody shouted, "A hundred and ten! We will pay a hundred and ten mystic crystals!"
"A hundred and twenty!"
"A hundred and thirty!"
A hundred mystic crystals was a sky-high price, and those who could still compete were either big chains or aristocratic families. Most people were just here to join the hype.
"Two hundred and eighty!"
"Three hundred!"
"Three hundred and fifty!"
"Four hundred!"
The auction price went up quickly until there were only two buyers left - the Pure White Grace Pavilion shopkeeper and the Ye Family.
"One thousand!"
As soon as the Ye Family spoke that number, it caused an uproar from the crowd.
A thousand! A thousand mystic crystals! This is the largest trade in the Remainder Island market in recent years!
Even a Spirit Realm elder wouldn't have more than a hundred mystic crystals. The Bon Voyage Fleet really struck it rich.
The Pure White Grace Pavilion shopkeeper hesitated for a moment. He then sighed and bowed toward the Ye Family. "The Ye Family is indeed wealthy, we concede defeat."
The Ye Family member in charge of their Remainder Island branch smiled like a Cheshire Cat. "You let me win, you let me win."
The fleet's steward announced. "A thousand mystic crystals. Deal!"
The Ye Family member shook hands with the steward and got a ship to collect the Mountain Whale, bringing it to shore.
Ah Ling looked green with envy. "The Bon Voyage Fleet is really something, I couldn't even finish using a thousand mystic crystals in my lifetime. Such a pity that we are too low-class, they wouldn't even take us in."
"How would a kid like you know how hard it is? The Bon Voyage Fleet is not like how it used to be. You only see them earning a thousand mystic crystals, but have you taken into consideration how much they spend a day to feed the whole fleet? From what I see, the Bon Voyage Fleet will have a hard time after this."
"What does Sir mean?" Lu Mingshu asked.
"The Ye Family is getting more and more powerful, haish!" Captain Ding sighed.
Lu Mingshu understood what he meant.
The Mountain Whale was being dragged up on shore, and there was nothing else for the crowd to see, so everyone left.
As the Ding family's boat made a turn, somebody called out to them.
"Lu Mingshu?"
She turned back.
A young gentleman was not far behind.
He had almond-shaped eyes and looked handsome. He was wearing the turquoise shirt that represented the Ye Family, and he was riding a silver leaf.
A Ye Family gentleman.
Ah Ling gripped Lu Mingshu's sleeve tightly in panic.
"Hello, Sir…?"
The other party held his hand and greeted her. "Ye Zhenyan, third in my family."
Lu Mingshu nodded. She had injured the younger ones, so the older one came.
"So, it's the third young master of the Ye Family. How may I help you?"
Ye Zhenyan smiled. "Miss's performance during the Qilin Festival has left me in surprise, but I haven't yet had the chance to meet you. It's such a coincidence that I could meet you in Beiming. I was wondering if Miss would be willing to advise me?"
Chapter 219 - Water Cage
"Miss?" Ah Ling nudged her.
Lu Mingshu turned back, "Sir, you can go back first."
Captain Ding looked at Ye Zhenyan with fear before nodding in agreement. "Okay, we will stop here. Miss can just shout for us if anything happens."
Lu Mingshu threw the bronze leaf on the water surface and jumped onto it.
The Ding family's boat slowly got further away.
Ye Zhenyan looked at the bronze-colored leaf she was standing on and moved his hand, signaling for her to start. "Miss Lu, please."
As soon as he finished, a lightning-like sword-light made a beeline for Ye Zhenyan.
Ye Zhenyan focused on the sword-light, and clear rays of light appeared as a circle of water was formed. The water rippled as it blocked the attack.
Ding!
The sound of the swords colliding could be heard.
The swords separated immediately, and Ye Zhenyan stepped on his silver leaf. Like a ghost, he moved behind Lu Mingshu. Sword energy was unleashed, and waves surged as if there was a huge force pulling the water, forcing it up to the sky.
Whoosh!
This alerted the others nearby.
The harbor's market just started, so there were many shopkeepers and owners still bargaining prices with the ships. There were also some who were just here to watch the auction and hadn't left yet. This was the busiest time in Remainder Island's harbor.
"Wow! A fight at the harbor! Aren't they afraid to get caught?"
"Are you an idiot? A turquoise shirt and a silver leaf, that's a Ye Family member!"
"Who's so daring to fight a Ye Family member? That person really doesn't want to live."
"I know, right?"
The water blocking her line of sight and the sounds of water gushing disturbed Lu Mingshu. She was able to condense her energy but not use it.
Ye Family members spent most of their time in water, and their silver leaf was like land to them. In addition, their skills were related to water, so fighting on water was an advantage for them.
As soon as Ye Zhenyan started, she knew that he was better than Ye Zhenfan and the rest. If he participated in the Qilin Festival, he would be in the top ten at least.
Lu Mingshu guessed that she might have a 70-80% chance of winning if they were on shore, but now, they were on the water, and the fight had already started.
A ray of sword-light held between the water ripples had already reached her silently.
Lu Mingshu's eyes shone as she shook her hand and sent out a wave of sword-light.
The other party's sword-light shattered, but it didn't have much effect on him.
Lu Mingshu was astounded. She immediately turned around in panic.
Whoosh~~~~!
The water screamed as more than ten streaks of sword-light came out from the water, forming a sudden echo effect.
In a moment of urgency, a hum could be heard as Lu Mingshu's mystic light enlarged. A mild golden light blinked, like there was a talisman.
The water dropped down toward Ye Zhenyan.
"Spiritual tool?" He raised his eyebrows.
The golden rays faded slowly, and the spiritual tool went back to Lu Mingshu.
"Miss Lu," Ye Zhenyan yelled, "As the holder of first place in the Qilin Festival, your ability is too disappointing."
"Gentleman Ye, you're indeed much more capable than the previous ones."
"Hah!" Ye Zhenyan didn't know if he should be angry or laugh. Trying to say that Ye Zhenfan is too weak? Well, it's true.
"Do you want to see something even more powerful?"
Lu Mingshu held up her sword. "Just do it already. What's the need for so many words?"
Ye Zhenyan smirked, and the killing aura got thicker.
The water started bubbling. Lu Mingshu had seen this before when she fought Ye Zhenfan, but the aura was different.
Whoosh!
The water shot up high like a fountain, arousing the numerous streams and taking up half a mile.
The sword energy surrounded the water, getting faster as timed passed.
"Mystic Water Sword! The Ye Family's Mystic Water Sword!"
More and more people gathered at the harbor. It was now packed like sardines as they all looked over to where Lu Mingshu and Ye Zhenyan were fighting.
"Mystic Water Sword? That's a Ye Family disciple?"
"80% at least. Look at how young he is, he is definitely a young master."
A sharp voice interrupted the conversation going on between the crowd. "Don't you all know who he is?"
The crowd turned to him.
The middle-aged man who spoke looked at them proudly. "That's the Ye Family's third young master!"
"Third young master? That's the third young master of the Ye Family?" Many people cried out in surprise.
"Who's the third young master of the Ye Family?" There were some who were unaware.
The man who revealed Ye Zhenyan's identity rolled his eyes. "You don't even know who the third young master of the Ye Family is? Are you even a resident of White Heron State? He's the best in his generation. Back when Ling Wuxia came to White Heron State, he drew against her!"
"Wow, a draw against Ling Wuxia. Isn't he the best in the Harmonization Realm then?"
"Exactly. The best from the biggest sects - Kou Wei from the Heavenly Sea Pavilion and Wei Chunqiu from the Seventh Truth Platform - are going to break through to the Spirit Realm soon. By then, the Harmonization Realm will belong to the Ye Family's third young master and the rest."
The crowd gasped in awe, but in reality, the man had exaggerated. Ling Wuxia indeed had a draw against Ye Zhenyan, but it was when they were both in the Inner Breath Realm. The Inner Breath Realm and the Harmonization Realm were two different worlds, and Ling Wuxia's reputation only rose when she entered the Harmonization Realm.
"Who's that girl? So daring."
"Yeah, she looks young too. Must be a newbie who doesn't know where she stands."
Streams of water soared into the sky like swords.
Lu Mingshu felt like there was Sword Intent everywhere. Wherever there was water, there were swords.
Fighting on the water was an advantage for Ye Family members. When she met Ye Zhenfan and the rest, it seemed manageable because they weren't good enough, but when she met Ye Zhenyan today, she realized how good their skills were.
No Physical Manifestation of Sword Intent was even needed at this point; the water was a sword, and the sword was water. Lu Mingshu felt like she was in a cage made of water.
However, Lu Mingshu would never wait helplessly for death.
Lu Mingshu waved her sword and dodged the attack.
Like a swallow, she grabbed her sword tightly and sent out an attack!
Clank~~!
The swords met, and Lu Mingshu retreated again.
Ye Zhenyan narrowed his eyes.
He had never seen someone like her, daring to play with a Ye Family member on the water.
So what if she can adapt well? Water is the Ye Family's territory. I even stand a chance to win against the Heavenly Sea Pavilion elites!
Ye Zhenyan went after her immediately.
No matter where Lu Mingshu went, he was in front of her in the blink of an eye.
Ding! Ding! Ding!
The sound of sword energy clashing was intense as two figures danced on the water, fast and light.
"Eh, that girl isn't bad."
"Yeah, she isn't falling behind too much!"
"Capable, but such a pity that she's going against the Ye Family's third young master."
On the Ding family's boat, Ah Ling bit her lips nervously as she watched the fight.
"Brother, would Miss Lu lose?" She tugged on Ah Lang's sleeve.
Ah Lang looked at her helplessly. "How would I know? They're both much more powerful than I am. You don't understand it, but neither do I!"
Ah Ling turned to Captain Ding immediately. "Grandpa?"
Captain Ding furrowed his brows. "I… don't know. Ability-wise, Miss Lu doesn't fall behind by too much, so she still stands a chance. But on water, the Ye Family's Mystic Water Sword has a huge advantage."
Ah Ling pouted. "The Ye Family disciple that day used the Mystic Water Sword too, but he lost anyway!"
"It's not the same. That disciple and this one are both in the Harmonization Realm, but the difference in their ability is very big!"
Chapter 220 - Torrential Waves
There was water everywhere as well as sword energy.
Lu Mingshu only had a sword, but the other party was able to condense water into swords and use them anytime he wanted.
The same sword, but Ye Zhenyan only needed 50% of his power to block 70% of Lu Mingshu's attack.
The sound of water and sword energy surrounded her. Lu Mingshu listened to them carefully and focused on them.
To her, this was a brand-new challenge that was even more difficult than the fight against Kou Wei or Wei Chunqiu.
To her, Kou Wei's and Wei Chunqiu's abilities were easy to see, so she could calculate them easily. For Ye Zhenyan though, the Mystic Water Sword was way too mysterious, and his data was all concentrated in the water. To be able to get it, she had to eliminate all distractions.
Numerous data flowed into her mind, but Lu Mingshu focused only on getting the useful bits and filling up the information.
"Miss Lu." Ye Zhenyan smiled. "Taking it all forcefully is not a good choice."
Light blue sword-light surrounded Ye Zhenyan, and he sent it out a little bit. Everywhere within half a mile around him was filled with his Sword Intent. No matter where she went, the Sword Intent would prevent her from going further.
"How do you know I'm taking it forcefully?" Lu Mingshu attacked calmly.
Specks of sword-light followed her sword, leaving behind a mild golden trail mixed with the light blue sword-light.
Ye Zhenyan smiled seeing that.
Using that against my Sword Intent, huh? A smart move. She's ranked first in the New Generation Ranking after all. But, what a pity that I'm the opponent!
What outsiders weren't aware of was that, after Ling Wuxia became famous, Ye Zhenyan went to the Ancient Jade Summit and requested another fight. On the Ancient Snow Lake, he suppressed Ling Wuxia until she was unable to even attack. At the last moment, he lost to her because of her excellent control, which allowed her to power to seep into the Mystic Water Sword.
After the fight, Ye Zhenyan went back to White Heron State and never left his house for half a year until he finally found a way to fill that loophole.
Lu Mingshu chose the same method that Ling Wuxia did, but he was now immune to it!
The light blue Sword Intent seemed to be permeable, but it kept joining into a web. No matter how much surface area Lu Mingshu's mystic force took up, it was strong and unbreakable.
Whoosh!
The sound of water gushing could be heard again, covering the specks of gold and dissolving it slowly.
In the eyes of the crowd, all they saw was the mild golden sword energy being swallowed up by the light blue sword-light.
Rays after rays.
"Oh no, it's ending."
"Looks like that Miss is about to lose!"
"Not bad. She managed to last for quite a while with the Ye Family's third young master."
"She should be quite capable, seeing her fight like this. Which aristocratic family is she from? Or is she a disciple of a top sect?"
"Her clothes look like she's from the south. A Zhongzhou citizen?"
Ye Zhenyan was now on cloud nine.
It was hard to have an opponent who could fight him this long; it was such a fun fight! What's more fun though was that he won!
The taste of victory was so wonderful that no words could describe it.
"I'm sorry, Miss Lu!" Suddenly, a tremendous wave surged, smashing down with a loud bang.
Water could take on a thousand forms - humidity, silent streams, rivers that could carry anything - giving the world life. However, it could also be as heavy as a mountain and destroy the world!
Within a mile around Ye Zhenyan, the Mystic Water Sword manifestation went on a rampage, sweeping away everything that was present.
Fish jumped out of the water, turning into mincemeat after being crushed by the Mystic Water Sword manifestation. Planks and nets that were floating nearby had all turned into ashes.
Even boats that were nearby were affected. The boats were now shaking vigorously.
"Powerful!" The crowd gasped in surprise.
"Indeed a Ye Family member."
"The Ye Family's Mystic Water Sword has a fully justified reputation."
"Brother!" Ah Ling tugged on Ah Lang's sleeve so violently that she nearly ripped it. "Is Miss Lu losing?" Her eyes brimmed with tears.
"Uh, maybe." Ah Lang furrowed his eyebrows.
"What will she do if she loses? Miss beat those other Ye Family disciples badly back at the eye of the Ming River!"
Captain Ding sighed. "Miss Lu is a sect's disciple. The Ye Family should take that into consideration."
Even though he said that, he didn't dare to be certain. Such a large aristocratic family like the Ye Family wouldn't put a small sect in their eyes. They could only hope that Miss Lu had a strong supporter.
The tremendous waves went down along with the Sword Intent, and it was time to see Lu Mingshu all rolled up….
Buzz!
A gentle cry could be heard when the wave was about to get her.
The wind swelled on the water, and her pale face was reflected in the waves.
Ye Zhenyan stopped for a while, then tried to suppress her once again.
But the waves didn't move.
The golden rays that were originally swallowed up emerged, shining brighter than before.
"Hey, what's that?"
"The miss's sword energy?"
"Wasn't it already destroyed by the Ye Family's third young master?"
"Yeah! Why is it appearing again?"
The crowd in the harbor were mostly pretty weak. There weren't many who could understand what was going on.
On the Bon Voyage Fleet's biggest ship, a man came out of the cabin.
The steward on the fleet saw it and went forward to greet him. "Sir Ning, what brings you here?"
It was a skinny middle-aged guy who looked ordinary. He looked cultured like a teacher instead of a martial artist.
However, he was a Spirit Realm martial artist - an elite amongst elites.
Sir Ning looked around. Realizing that all his sailors had stopped their work and were watching the fight, he smiled at the steward. "It's rare to see an interesting fight. Of course, I'll have to take a look too."
"Ah, it's just a fight between Harmonization Realm disciples. Sir is valuing them too much!" Since Sir Ning is one of the powerful ones amongst those of the same realm, these two must be very good since he's praising them!
"They have interesting things in the Harmonization Realm," Sir Ning replied and stood by the edge of the ship.
Seeing the unmoving wave and the mix of both Sword Intents, Sir Ning squinted his eyes and mumbled, "Are the younger generation disciples that good now?"
"It's not the younger generation, it's them in particular." A woman slowly walked up to him.
The woman was almost in her thirties, with a ponytail and beautiful looks. She was also in the Spirit Realm.
Sir Ning smiled widely at her. "Junior Sister Yu, you're here to watch the fight too?"
"As you said, it's rare to see an interesting fight, so why not?" Junior Sister Yu said in monotone.
The steward gasped upon hearing the conversation between the best of their fleet. Are they really that good? Even Miss Yu is saying it.
Mild golden light appeared. At first, it was on par with the light blue light, but as time passed, it shone brighter and slowly overtook the light blue sword-light.
Ye Zhenyan gave Lu Mingshu a death glare.
He was unable to understand what happened. When did her Sword Intent hide? Why couldn't he feel anything?
No, if this continues, I'll lose. I must do something!
Ye Zhenyan turned his sword, exerting all his mystic force.
Whoosh!
The water gushed, and the huge waves soared up.
When the waves landed on Ye Zhenyan, he launched an attack. The sword was now like water, fusing into the waves as if they were one.
"Go!" Ye Zhenyan stood up straight, and the silver leaf below him sped forward. Like lightning, he slashed down.
"Ah!" Everyone cried out in alarm upon feeling his grandeur.