Lu Ye still remembered the first time he ran into Amber, when he met those amber-colored pupils, his mind went blank for a moment.
Afterward, Amber didn't show many abnormalities, not until this time.
Yiyi thought for a moment and then said, "I don't think so." She turned her head and asked, "Amber, do you know any magic and spells?"
Amber responded with a whine.
Yiyi then said, "It says it doesn't."
The corners of Lu Ye's mouth twitched. To this day, he had not figured out how Yiyi was able to communicate with Amber, able to judge what it wanted to convey just by its voice, which was quite magical.
It could only be said that this was a unique skill that Yiyi had as a minion spirit.
Lu Ye did not continue to ask. He was just bringing it up casually.
After eating his fill, Lu Ye began cultivating, with Amber sprawling beside him, sleeping soundly.
The night passed without any conversation.
At the Xuanmen base, Chu Tian, following Lu Ye's requests, was collecting elixir pills and food from his fellow disciples, hence the news of Yiye's imminent departure spread quickly.
The day had not yet fully dawned when Chu Tian began to contact Lu Ye, confirmed his location, then brought two disciples with him to meet with Lu Ye. After exchanging pleasantries, Lu Ye received a large amount of food and more than two hundred Spirit-Nurturing Pills.
By now, it was broad daylight. Lu Ye mounted the tiger's back, and Chu Tian cupped his fist, saying, "We will meet again, stay in touch when you have the time."
Lu Ye nodded slightly, and Amber darted out, heading deeper into the Sky-Splitting Gorge.
Watching Lu Ye's departing figure, Chu Tian suddenly felt a bit envious. Such a carefree journey of cultivation must be truly liberating. However, only someone from a big sect with such confidence and resources could afford this lifestyle. If he tried to do the same, he probably wouldn't survive a few months.
Leading the two disciples back to the Xuanmen base, Chu Tian was promptly summoned by Wang Yeang and hurried over.
Only when he got there did he realize something was amiss—all the hands at the base had been summoned, including not just disciples of his own sect but also the independent cultivators affiliated with it. Hundreds of people gathered in an open square. Wang Yeang stood there, straight as a pin, his hand on the hilt of his sword, seemingly waiting for something.
The atmosphere was somewhat stern...
Chu Tian stepped forward, cupped his fist, and greeted, "Senior Brother!"
"Has that mountain tiger left?" Wang Yeang asked.
"He has," Chu Tian replied.
Wang Yeang nodded slightly, seemingly pleased, "Good that he's gone. Fall in." He appeared to be eager for Lu Ye to leave as soon as possible.
"Yes!" Chu Tian moved into his own formation, confused by the turn of events, yet Wang Yeang's sudden gathering of everyone clearly indicated that something big was afoot.
Chu Tian felt a vague premonition—if it was as he suspected, a great battle awaited them today.
As time slowly passed, after the duration of one incense stick's time, only then did Wang Yeang, who had been standing there all along, suddenly raise his eyebrows and proclaim loudly, "Xuanmen and Nine Stars Sect have been neighbors in the Sky-Splitting Gorge for thirty years. In those thirty years, incessant fights between disciples have led to many casualties and insurmountable blood feuds.
Although Xuanmen was victorious in the recent battle at Sky-Splitting Gorge, as long as the Nine Stars Sect base remains, the disciples of Xuanmen will never know peace! Therefore, I intend to conquer the Nine Stars Sect base. I ask my fellow brothers and sisters to lend me their strength!"
Upon these words, the crowd was abuzz.
It had only been a day since the declaration of war ended, and Wang Yeang was already planning to attack the Nine Stars Sect base, which shocked all the disciples of Xuanmen. They should be enjoying the fruits of their victory now, not complicating matters further.
To attack and seize a base was no simple matter, for a base was protected by a big array, and without breaking the array, it was impossible to conquer it.
But when everyone thought about Wang Yeang's actions over the years, they knew he must have made arrangements long ago.
Chu Tian was the first to raise his arm and shout, "Willing to follow Brother's lead, to elevate the might of our Xuanmen!"
The crowd shouted in unison, "Willing to follow Brother's lead, to elevate the might of our Xuanmen!"
At the front of the crowd, Wang Yeang's lips curled into a smile, "Very good!"
He turned to Chu Tian, "Send a message to that mountain tiger, tell him that one incense stick's time ago, Dong Shuye had already personally set out to kill him."
Chu Tian was startled upon hearing this, shocked by Dong Shuye's audacity, but even more so by Wang Yeang's well-informed sources.
Dong Shuye was the cultivator with the highest cultivation at the Nine Stars Sect base, and with him there, the base was as solid as a rock. But if he were to leave, the defenses of the Nine Stars Sect base would surely be compromised.
It looked like the Young Sect Master of the Nine Stars Sect being killed had indeed caused them to lose face. It was acceptable to lose the war with Xuanmen, but that mountain tiger must die. Otherwise, Dong Shuye wouldn't have risked leaving the base to personally pursue and kill him.
He wouldn't leave with great fanfare, as that would give Xuanmen an opportunity; even so, Wang Yeang's side had received exact information. Clearly, there were arrangements outside the Nine Stars Sect base long ago; as soon as Dong Shuye left, Wang Yeang would immediately get the news.
He then remembered that several fellow disciples hadn't shown up at last night's victory banquet...
But how did Dong Shuye find out that the mountain tiger had already left?
Chu Tian was no fool and in an instant, he figured out the sequence of events.
The news had leaked from Xuanmen's own ranks.
No wonder last night, when he reported to Senior Brother Wang about the mountain tiger's trading demands, he was told to collect from fellow disciples—an arrangement that would have been simpler to coordinate internally within the sect.
As he collected elixir pills and food, many people asked the reason for it, and he did not conceal it, sharing that Lu Ye was preparing to leave.
Sect Disciples couldn't possibly be the ones to send messages to the Nine Stars Sect, so the leak must have come from those independent cultivators who had come seeking refuge!
Just as he was pondering this, Wang Yeang suddenly looked toward a cultivator in the crowd and spoke up, "Shi Jun, do you have anything to say?"
The independent cultivator named Shi Jun, sweating profusely from his forehead, nervously responded, "No… nothing…"
Wang Yeang just looked at him.
Shi Jun grew more tense and blurted out, "Senior Brother Wang, have mercy!"
"It appears you truly have nothing you wish to say."
With a flick of his thumb, the longsword at his waist sang out. The sword turned into a streak of sword light that in an instant, wrapped around Shi Jun's neck, causing his body to instantly stiffen.
As the sword light returned to its sheath, Shi Jun's head fell to the ground, blood spurting from his neck like a fountain, his headless body collapsing to the earth.
This sudden turn of events made all the independent cultivators break out in a cold sweat, looking at Wang Yeang with uncertainty and fear.
Wang Yeang's expression was icy, "Shi Jun here outwardly claimed allegiance to our Xuanmen, but in reality, he was a spy for the Nine Stars Sect. Today, I executed him as a warning to others, I hope everyone present will take heed."
As these words were spoken, no one dared to believe it, yet recalling Shi Jun's last plea for mercy, they realized this must be the truth; his plea was the clear sign of a guilty conscience.
"Let's move out, to annihilate the Nine Stars!" Wang Yeang commanded with a wave of his hand.
Moments later, hundreds of Xuanmen cultivators filed out from the base, leaving the entire base eerily deserted.