Chapter 786: A Lively Scene

As soon as Ye Chen stepped out of the cave dwelling, he saw a large group of people waiting outside the stone chamber. They were all elderly experts, each one at the Quasi-Heaven Realm.

Wuya Dao Ren immediately pinched his fingers as if divining, maintaining his usual charlatan demeanor while keeping a straight face. "According to my calculations, this fellow is about to activate his show-off mode."

Ye Chen looked unimpressed. "You're talking nonsense. I have no such intention."

"As if that's true."

While the two bantered, Tianzong Laozu glanced at Ye Chen's cultivation and exclaimed in surprise, "Peak of the Kongming Realm."

Su Family Laozu kept sighing and clicking his tongue. "Such a terrifying advancement speed—how can us old folks hold our heads up? It's only been a year; does it have to be this fast?"

Gu San Tong scratched his ear. "Advancing quickly doesn't mean much. Back in the day, the Demon King reached the peak of Quasi-Heaven in three years, just half a step from Heaven Realm, but he was stuck there for nearly a thousand years."

Long Wu shrugged it off. "A thousand years is nothing. There was once a peerless ruthless figure who advanced to the peak of Quasi-Emperor in five hundred years, only to be trapped at that level for over eight thousand years without ever becoming an Emperor. Compared to that, these guys from Great Chu are just child's play."

A group of old experts stared at Long Wu in astonishment. "Quasi-Emperor? Great Emperor? What kind of realms are those?"

Long Wu cleared his throat, realizing he'd said too much, and played dumb while shaking his head. "You must have misheard."

As they spoke, Hongchen Xue approached, holding a jade slip in her hand. "I've just received intelligence: Zhengyang Zong is gathering a large army. It looks like they're planning something big."

Zhong Jiang asked Hongchen Xue, "What's the scale?"

"At least nine halls' worth of forces."

Su Family Laozu smacked his lips. "That's a massive lineup. Who are they targeting? In today's Southern Chu, any faction except us would struggle to withstand such a huge cultivator army."

Ye Chen said casually, "They plan to attack Qingyun Zong."

Everyone's eyes turned to Ye Chen at once. "Qingyun Zong? How do you know?"

Ye Chen smiled. "I have my own intelligence channels."

Gu San Tong and Wuya Dao Ren looked at him skeptically. "That impressive? Is it reliable?"

Ye Chen shrugged. "War is serious business. When have you ever seen me joke about it? I mentioned Zhengyang Zong has a peerless expert, and soon after, the Demon King appeared, proving my information is accurate."

Zhong Kui stroked his beard and chuckled. "In that case, we should accept this gift from Zhengyang Zong. They probably still don't know we've taken control of Qingyun. That's our advantage—mobilize everyone and catch them off guard."

Ye Chen issued the order. "Start preparing. Make sure they come but never leave."

Everyone dispersed, full of enthusiasm. Annihilating an army of nine halls would be an epic battle, with a grand and magnificent scene.

Ye Chen sent a message to Zhong Li. "Zhong Li Qianbei, stay behind."

Zhong Li, who had already started walking, stopped in his tracks.

Once the others had left, Zhong Li turned to Ye Chen and smiled. "Is there another task for me?"

Ye Chen grinned. "Of course. Go select the most reliable experts. Once the battle at Qingyun starts, seize Zhengyang Zong's nine major branches with lightning speed and secure the void teleportation arrays there."

Zhong Li laughed. "So, we're hitting them from both sides!"

"Exactly." Ye Chen cracked his neck. "Once Qingyun is in battle, it signals that we're at war with Zhengyang Zong too. After these two fights, Zhengyang Zong will cease to exist."

"Understood. Leave it to me." Zhong Li patted his chest and strode away.

Ye Chen let out a deep breath and followed suit, heading outside.

Soon, he spotted four graceful figures. Two were Shangguan Yu'er and Shangguan Han Yue, who hadn't returned to their family and were staying on Jade Maiden Peak. The other two were one as bright and innocent as a sprite, and the other as cold and beautiful as ice—they were Luo Xi from Dan City and Xuan Nu.

Ye Chen was taken aback and walked over. "When did you all arrive?"

Luo Xi, who had been chattering with Shangguan Yu'er, ran toward Ye Chen as soon as she saw him. She leaped into his arms from a couple of meters away, her eyes brimming with tears. "Ye Chen."

"I thought you were dead." Little Luo Xi cried like a tearful mess, as if everything felt surreal, like a dream from another lifetime.

Ye Chen's face turned red from the embrace, perhaps because she was holding him too tightly. "I'm perfectly fine."

Shangguan Yu'er glared at Ye Chen. "You philanderer."

Nearby, Shangguan Han Yue and Xuan Nu looked equally uncomfortable, the air thick with jealousy.

Just then, a light voice chimed in. "Master, another new mistress." Little Luo Xi bounced over, followed by a woman in green robes—it was Bi You.

Ye Chen coughed awkwardly. "Xi Yan, don't make trouble."

Bi You greeted them politely, as if she already knew Shangguan Yu'er, Shangguan Han Yue, and Xuan Nu. She gave a courteous nod, but her expression turned odd when she saw little Luo Xi still hugging Ye Chen.

A ethereal voice spoke up. "Jade Maiden Peak hasn't been this lively in a long time." Chu Ling'er emerged from the Jade Maiden Pavilion, smiling at Ye Chen.

Ye Chen chuckled sheepishly. "It's pretty lively."

Xi Yan giggled and waved her hand, producing a massive ten-meter bed that clanged as it hit the ground. "I even prepared a big bed."

Everyone, including Ye Chen and Chu Ling'er, stared with mouths agape, momentarily speechless. No one could tell if Xi Yan was genuinely innocent or just playing pranks.

The scene fell silent, with everyone wearing amusing expressions.

A few seconds later, the silence broke from the entrance as four troublemakers arrived, arms around each other. It was Xie Yun, Xiong Er, Huo Teng, and Situ Nan.

Xiong Er walked up and patted the huge iron bed. "Wow, what a big bed!"

Xie Yun said seriously, "It could easily sleep a dozen people."

Huo Teng added, while pounding it with his hammer, "And it's sturdy as can be!"

Situ Nan glanced at the others with disdain, then approached Ye Chen. He eyed little Luo Xi in Ye Chen's arms before pulling out a large packet from his sleeve, with the words "Hehuan San" scrawled haphazardly on it, and handed it to Ye Chen. "Use this for now. There's more if you need it."

Situ Nan patted Ye Chen's shoulder meaningfully.

Ye Chen acted as if nothing was wrong and pushed Luo Xi aside. "Come on, Luo Xi, stand over there for a bit."

In the next second, Situ Nan was on the ground, and Xiong Er and the others were dragged over too. Ye Chen pinned them down and gave them a thorough beating.

Truth be told, he'd wanted to do this for a while. These four had corrupted his once well-behaved disciple Xi Yan into a mischievous girl.

Ahh!

Their screams were piercing as Ye Chen didn't hold back.

What was strangest was that after the beating, he divided the packet of Hehuan San into four portions and stuffed one into each of their mouths.

Finally, the four were flung off Jade Maiden Peak, their trajectories forming elegant arcs.