Yao Ruoxian scoffed as he walked away with a hand behind his back.
"Senior Yao, I am only doing this out of goodwill. Think about it! You won’t have to stay a Loose Cultivator without any support—to register your name and enter the system is such a wonderful thing. Many others wouldn’t be able to get such a good opportunity even if they wanted to. I don’t even know much of your background, so I am taking all the risk if anything happens. I am taking the initiative here, to help you process an official status. Why won’t you understand this junior’s goodwill? What are you still unhappy about?" Miao Yi said, trying hard to persuade Yao Ruoxian.
"Bullshit!" Yao Ruoxian cursed. He suddenly turned around and jabbed his finger at Miao Yi’s nose as he berated him. "You think I don’t know what sort of goodwill you have, you brat? If you trick me into the current system, I will be under your thumb, won’t I? Then I won’t dare to kill you openly, right?"
"Uhh…." Miao Yi said meekly; his plan was found out. "Nothing of the sort. Without an official status, it isn’t appropriate for you to stay at my East Arrival Cave. That wouldn’t be too convenient, isn’t it?"
"What kind of inconvenience is there?" Yao Ruoxian replied; he circled Miao Yi as he continued to rebuke. "Cut the crap. East Arrival Cave is your territory. You are the one with the final say. What does that have to do with anyone else? Stop trying to confuse me here. Scram!"
"Ugh! My goodwill is being treated as ill-intent..."
Before he could finish, he saw Yao Ruoxian lifting his leg to kick him. The Great Cave Master Miao hurriedly shut his mouth as he ran away dejectedly.
He returned to his temporary shelter, and discussed the matter of transporting the Orbs of Will to Mount Calming Sea with his subordinates.
To tell the truth, Miao Yi was quite unwilling to go to Mount Calming Sea. The main reason was because he didn’t want to meet that vile woman Qin Weiwei. In addition, his sights were now much higher. His troops were quite strong, and his thinking was, ‘Were a hundred or so Orbs of Will worthwhile for this Cave Master to personally transport?’
Rather than doing such menial tasks, he could have used the time to raise his cultivation, or, think about ways to take revenge for those ten corpses—hanging as they were in the chill winter breeze, and continuing to serve as a reminder for him.
However, he had to go. This was the rule. The Cave Master had to personally transport the harvest to the Mountain Chieftain; the Mountain Chieftain had to personally transport it to the Manor Head; then from the Manor Head to Hall Master; the Hall Master to the Palace Lord; the Palace Lord to the Overlord; and finally, the Overlord would in turn directly transport the harvest to the Sage in the Realm Beyond Heaven.
Seeing the Cave Master about to depart again, Qian’Er and Xue’Er followed behind him every step of the way. Evidently, there were still a little traumatized from the recent ambush on East Arrival Cave.
"It will be alright!" Miao Yi comforted. He faced the others and said, "Once I leave, all of you should take care of our home. If someone has the gall to cause trouble here again, just kill them first. If you get in trouble, I will shoulder it!"
"We shall follow the Cave Master’s command!"
The group of old men from the School of Blue Jade cupped their fists and acknowledged the order. They were strangely obedient and were much easier to handle than the previous group with Song Fu. It seemed that Elder Hong Changhai was putting greater effort into redeeming himself.
"Move out!" Miao Yi shouted as he jumped on top of his dragon steed. He led Yuan Fang and Lai Yuhan to gallop away through the snow.
This time he didn’t bring many men. He simply brought two Blue Lotus experts with him. If even Blue Lotus experts could not protect him, then he would just be sending the others to their deaths.
There were eighteen School of Blue Jade disciples besides Yan Xiu staying behind in East Arrival Cave to stand guard. Miao Yi wasn’t at all worried—with such a formation protecting East Arrival Cave, a normal abode most likely wouldn’t be able to gobble it up, unless they faced a major ambush like the one before…
Just as he was about to reach Mount Calming Sea, he met up with Gongsun Yu on the way by happenstance; he was also heading towards Mount Calming Sea with his subordinate in tow.
Gongsun Yu only had one subordinate now. There was no helping it—the current Mount Calming Sea lacked manpower.
This was why Gongsun Yu had been extremely anxious on the entire journey. It was no small matter to lose the tribute of Orbs of Will. It would directly affect the Six Sages.
When he saw Miao Yi at the fork of the road, Gongsun Yu shouted from afar, "Please hold, Cave Master Miao."
Miao Yi turned his head and looked at him. He raised his hand, and their three steeds slowed their pace as they waited for the other party to catch up. Then, he asked, "What does Cave Master Gongsun ask of me?"
Gongsun Yu smiled bitterly and said, "Let us go together. There isn’t enough manpower now to transport the Orbs of Will."
Miao Yi couldn’t help but chuckle. He felt a little smug because he had the most manpower out of the entire Mount Calming Sea. If he were upset, he could decimate the entire Mount Calming Sea without resistance.
The both of them then journeyed together to Mount Calming Sea, and left their subordinates waiting outside. As they entered the courtyard behind the manor, they saw Hong Mian and Lu Liu coming towards them. They immediately cupped their fists and said, "We pay our respects to Elder Auntie and Little Auntie!"
Unexpectedly, Hong Mian and Lu Liu actually bowed low at the knee to Miao Yi in a sombre show of respect—making Miao Yi scramble back a little. It wouldn’t be appropriate to help them up. After all, men and women should not carelessly touch one another. However, they were not his handmaidens, so it wouldn’t be appropriate to not help them up. Feeling anxious, he quickly said "Please don’t make fun of me Elder Auntie and Little Auntie."
Hong Mian replied with a serious tone, "We have heard how Cave Master Miao threw caution to the wind, risking his life to single-handedly cut open a path of blood into the encirclement, and saved Mountain Chieftain’s life. Of course, the both of us should pay our respects to you."
A handmaiden’s entire world revolved around her master. If their master had glory and wealth, they would also prosper accordingly from their humble beginnings. If their master fell on evil days, they would also become lowly servants. Hence, they were truly thankful to Miao Yi.
Miao Yi thought, ‘I see. They have a much better conscience than that vile woman. She didn’t even have a word of gratitude after I saved her life!’ Miao Yi forced a smile and said, "No need for thanks. This is what your subordinate should do." He pointed towards Gongsun Yu to his side and added, "Cave Master Gongsun and the rest also risked their lives. If you must offer thanks, you should not offer it to me alone."
He added another line in his mind, ‘Hurry up and express your gratitude to your master’s illicit lover.’
Gongsun Yu cupped his fists courteously. Lu Liu smiled as she said, "When Cave Master Gongsun escorted Mountain Chieftain back then, we already thanked him."
Miao Yi looked Gongsun Yu over from top to bottom for a moment. Then he noticed Gongsun Yu’s gaze turn gentle for an instant as he stared in a certain direction.
The Great Cave Master Miao couldn’t help but follow his gaze, only to find a white silhouette looking down at them, from beside a window of the nearby loft. He couldn’t help but chuckle as his lips curved with ridicule. It was unknown what train of thought he was associating the both of them with, but it definitely wasn’t anything pleasant.
"Will both Cave Masters please follow us? The Mountain Chieftain is waiting for you." said the two handmaidens, extending their arms and leading the way from the front.
As they ascended the loft, the two Cave Masters once again paid their respects to Qin Weiwei. After which, they delivered the reports of their respective domains. Naturally, the report held information on the past year’s state of affairs for their respective domains.
Seated behind the long table, Qing Weiwei read Gongsun Yu’s report. After she was done, her emotions became a little perturbed as she reached out to pick up Miao Yi’s report.
To a woman who always strove to preserve her purity, some things were really hard to forget. She couldn’t forget it even if she tried. She could not forget—that scene of being surrounded.
Just when she had completely fallen into despair, when she could no longer endure no matter how hard she grit her teeth—that voice that she had detested so much in the past, actually stirred within her an unexpected hope. At that critical juncture, there was a peculiar tug at her heartstrings when she heard…. ‘The East Arrival Cave Master is here. Who dares challenge me!?’
She wasn’t sure how it could be, that every time he said something along those lines, he would always give everyone an unexpected surprise.
In that moment of peril, as she laid her eyes on him, that detestable man appeared grander than any other time she had ever seen him before. Armed with a silver spear and armor, and riding a heavily clad steed—his battle armament had radiated a vicious and murderous aura as he single-handedly charged towards her with an indomitable momentum.
His shout—‘Those who stand in my way shall die!’—hadn’t disappointed her. He had slaughtered his way into the tight encirclement as if he were cleaving through the ocean waves, and then extended his arm to grab her just as she was about to fall, and pulled her back.
While they had been breaking through the encirclement, they were suddenly struck a vicious blow. As she fell, she watched helplessly as he coughed up a mouthful of blood onto her face.
She thought she was gone for good then, but he continued to persevere. He pulled her back up again, and held her in his embrace. They galloped away in the snow and the entire time, she felt as though she was flying.
It was the first time for her to be embraced by a man ever since she had come of age. Whenever she thought back to the sensation of being wrapped around those strong, robust arms, her heart would race a little, and her face would become flushed. She would always remember that sensation; together with the blood dripping from the corner of his mouth, as he held her in his arms.
She really didn’t know how many times she had recalled that scene as of late. As soon as she had a moment to herself, she couldn’t help her expression becoming flustered as she reminisced.
Qin Weiwei’s attention was not on the report in her hands; Miao Yi’s voice quickly brought her back to reality from her melancholy. From the corner of her eyes, she watched as Miao Yi handed over East Arrival Cave’s harvests to Hong Mian and Lu Liu. Belatedly, she realized that Gongsun Yu had been staring at her silently, so she hurriedly shifted her gaze back.
She quickly skimmed through the contents of the jade archive and put it down. As soon as Hong Mian and Lu Liu confirmed both Caves’ harvests were accurate, they delivered it to her.
Gongsun Yu was in no rush to leave. He would always linger around at this time every year—to consult with the Mountain Chieftain, and seek her counsel for a moment.
What advice could there possibly be? He already had a cultivation that was even higher than Qin Weiwei. To put such an affair from the cultivation world into more shocking perspective, he had been by Yang Qing’s side and actually watched on as Qin Weiwei grew up. As he saw the little girl slowly become a beautiful woman, all he desired was a chance to get closer to her.
Speaking of which, there were only a few dual-cultivation partners in the cultivation world whose ages matched one another. One could not make a judgement based solely on age in the cultivation world.
Of course, some matters could only be spoken of after the Great Cave Master Miao left. Based on Gongsun Yu’s knowledge, the Great Cave Master Miao didn’t have an amicable relationship with Qin Weiwei, so he would definitely be eager to be excused.
Unexpectedly, the Great Cave Master Miao was in no hurry. Instead, he was dawdling there, giving Gongsun Yu the urge to ask what the Great Cave Master Miao intended to do.
Qin Weiwei also felt a little surprised. Based on her understanding, Miao Yi was the kind of person who couldn’t wish for more than to be as far away from her as possible. Today was her first time seeing such a scene.
"Is something the matter?" Qin Weiwei asked him.
Miao Yi raised a fist to his mouth and made a hollow cough, then awkwardly said to Gongsun Yu, "How do I put it... Cave Master Gongsun, could you please excuse yourself for a moment? I have something to report to the Mountain Chieftain."
"Ah…" Gongsun Yu was stunned. He had been waiting for Miao Yi to leave, but instead, the Great Cave Master Miao was actually asking him to go away the moment he opened his mouth.
Hong Mian and Lu Liu shared a glance. They also felt it was a little strange.
Qin Weiwei looked towards Gongsun Yu. Gongsun Yu was a little bewildered at first, but in the end, he could only cup his fists and say, "Your subordinate will step away for now."
As he left, Gongsun Yu threw a curious glance at Miao Yi. He didn’t think that Miao Yi had the same intention that he did, because Cave Master Miao and the Mountain Chieftain would always be in discord. He just felt curious about what Cave Master Miao wished to report.
After he left, Qin Weiwei sat behind the long table and stared at Miao Yi, before asking, "Cave Master Miao, what is it you wish to report?"
Miao Yi was all smiles as he flashed out a jade archive from his storage ring, and brought it before Qin Weiwei, "Mountain Chieftain, you have promised me something."
The six storage rings on his hand left Hong Mian and Lu Liu speechless, as they realised that the Great Cave Master Miao had become someone opulent indeed.
Qin Weiwei took the jade archive and quickly looked through it. There was a list with the names of twenty School of Blue Jade disciples inside. She understood what Miao Yi meant, and marked the jade archive with her transcendent seal of approval before him. She then tucked the jade archive away, and nodded as she said, "I have no objections here. I will pass it over to the Manor Head to register their names."
Miao Yi breathed a sigh of relief, but he still wasn’t in a rush to leave. Instead, he started fidgeting where he stood.