Chapter 1 The Land of Aurora

In the land where the aurora meanders, Ye Chuxiao allowed the ice lotus to absorb the aurora.

Looking at the remnant souls imprisoned within the ice lotus, gradually transforming into light and shadow, losing the last trace of their true essence, yet engraving the traces of time flowing through their souls onto the ice lotus, Ye Chuxiao occasionally felt something, but he still couldn't grasp the substance of this fleeting thought and could only set it aside for the time being.

The eighteen prisoners also sealed within the ice lotus had all their senses locked, losing their perception of the outside world.

Perhaps it was precisely because of this that their cultivation of the Denglou (Ascending the Tower) secret technique became exceptionally focused.

Denglou is a 'fool's' skill, with a low threshold for cultivation, but each level consumes more time than the last. For prisoners who have lost their senses and freedom, it is undoubtedly the best choice.

Even if only to avoid collapsing in this state of ignorance, insensitivity, lack of smell, and deafness, they would instinctively continue to cultivate Denglou to numb their spirits.

"Ye Chuqi told me that the next opportunity will open in more than a month. Although that opportunity is near Dongjing City in the Chu Kingdom, bordering the Han Sea, there is no need to rush there yet."

"What needs attention right now is still the Wen family's matter. Although I left Wen Family Mountain City, this matter is not really over."

"From any point of view, the Wen family cannot really let me go. The reason they haven't immediately come to hunt me down is because they haven't yet figured out how to arrange manpower to target me."

To the Wen family, Ye Chuxiao was troublesome.

After all, he was not a soft persimmon that could be easily manipulated.

His battle reputation was known, and in the battle of leaving the city, he had even killed several Huajing (Transformation Realm) retainers of the Wen family and forced back Wen Liangjue, who was also in the Huijing (Wisdom Realm), and the shadow demon's encirclement. This showed that simply sending ordinary Huijing cultivators to hunt him down could not cause any substantial harm to Ye Chuxiao.

And Huijing cultivators were already the threshold for top cultivators. Even in the Wasteland Fighting World, Huijing cultivators were not so rampant that they could be seen everywhere.

As for arranging Yijing (Intent Realm) cultivators to hunt down Ye Chuxiao, that was not very realistic either.

Although the Wen family was strong, the number of Yijing-level cultivators was at most two or three, or perhaps only Wen Xianfu alone.

After all, Yijing cultivators also age and die. Within the Wasteland Fighting World, time cannot excessively stack buffs on these so-called great families.

Once the Wen family's Yijing cultivators were dispatched and left Wen Family Mountain City, rival forces who coveted the Wen family's prosperity and prosperity would likely take advantage of this vacuum to invade.

At that time, the gains would not outweigh the losses.

"So, after thinking about it, the Wen family's methods of continuing to target me are nothing more than continuing to smear me, trying to instigate some mindless jianghu (martial world) rookies who only want to eliminate demons and gain fame to find trouble with me, while secretly offering heavy rewards to hire assassins to deal with me." Ye Chuxiao stood in the Wen family's perspective, deducing and simulating the possibilities.

As for how the conflict between Ye Chuxiao and the Wen family intensified?

Before that day, when he stood beside Mr. Nan Shan, facing the Wen family cultivators' invasion, to the Wen family, he might have only been a piece of fat that they would eat sooner or later.

Whether to appease and recruit him or to suppress him strongly was still wavering and undecided.

But since that day, the Wen family's disposal of him had only one option: 'removal.'

Wasn't it a routine operation for a great family to use some means to deal with a 'small cultivator' who didn't have much friendship but knew the ugly side of the Wen family?

It was just that they underestimated Ye Chuxiao's foundation and growth rate, which led to the rapid escalation of the entire incident.

Even more unexpectedly, Ye Chuxiao had made arrangements for evacuation in advance, making their final assassination attempt fall short.

And since Ye Chuxiao calmly retreated from Wen Family Mountain City, for a considerable period, the name 'Xiao Ye' would be an ugly scar, branded on the faces of the Wen family, making them lose face.

From the perspective of face, the Wen family needed to use the method of killing Ye Chuxiao to wash away this scar.

And from a practical point of view, they also needed to use means to prove to people that they were still not to be provoked or questioned, and continue to maintain their authority. Otherwise, if they lost their authority, Wen Family Mountain City would likely fall into some chaotic situation for a considerable period.

A tiger was pecked on the head by an eagle. The hyenas hiding in the mountains thought the tiger was old and it was time to divide the spoils.

"If they are looking for assassins, then I need to pay attention to Hongxiu Lou (Red Sleeve Tower), Dingxue Shan (Snow Peak Mountain), and Lianyai Dong (Cliff Cave). In the Wasteland Fighting World, these three assassin organizations are the strongest. According to my younger brother's explanation to me, the most powerful assassin organization at this time is Hongxiu Lou. Dingxue Shan and Lianyai Dong are still temporarily weaker."

"And Hongxiu Lou's most famous are the Thirteen Golden Hairpins, all of whom are stunningly beautiful female assassins. They are best at using their beauty to confuse their target's minds and then carry out unexpected kills. They are divided into two factions: the 'carnal' and the 'vegetarian.' The carnal faction creates opportunities to directly engage in carnal戏. No matter how cautious a man is, as long as his lifeline is grabbed, he will always have a moment of flaw at the point of near-explosion."

"Even Yijing-level cultivators, if their own domain has flaws, the possibility of being killed still exists reasonably."

"As for the vegetarian faction, it is much more troublesome. They will first investigate the target's preferences and then create suitable opportunities for encounters, gradually breaking through the target's defenses, and finally striking ruthlessly when the target is relaxed."

"They are playing with technique and psychology."

"Among them, the carnal faction mainly targets male targets, while the vegetarian faction is suitable for both men and women. Later, the reason why Hongxiu Lou fell and became on par with Dingxue Shan and Lianyai Dong was entirely because one of the Golden Hairpins in the vegetarian faction made a mistake when playing with emotions and trapped herself. Instead, she helped the assassinated target to set up ambushes against the assassins in the tower, resulting in more than half of the Thirteen Hairpins being killed or injured, not only greatly reducing their strength but also losing their deterrence."

"From the current point of view, the greatest possibility for the Wen family to hire assassins to deal with me is to hire assassins from Hongxiu Lou."

"So, for insurance, starting today, I will abstain from色. Any suspicious-looking beauties should be kept far away from. Don't even mention letting them throw meat buns at the dog and never return. If you have to be on guard against someone suddenly hitting you on the back of the head while you are working, how can you do that? What if these crazy female assassins have mastered the means of hiding poison in their ( ), then it would be even more difficult to defend against."

After looking at the ice lotus that was still absorbing the aurora, Ye Chuxiao sat down cross-legged and began to shake his spiritual root, greatly absorbing and compressing the energy of heaven and earth, transforming the vast energy into true qi, constantly collecting it into his body, and then using true qi to temper and forge his physical body. At the same time, the spiritual root was also rapidly transforming, becoming more real, solid, and stable.

For at least the next half month, Ye Chuxiao would retreat in this aurora-filled place to improve his other physical qualities and completely enter the level of the Huijing Realm.

The green mountains were continuous, but shrouded in fine rain and mist, adding a bit of ethereal charm.

The mountain road was muddy. Ye Chuxiao was shrouded in a water-repelling talisman, climbing high and looking at the sea, his gaze deep and distant.

Seven days had passed since he retreated in the land of aurora.

And Ye Chuxiao had already arrived at the shore of the Han Sea, waiting for the opening of the next opportunity.

"This time's opportunity doesn't have more specific clues. I only know that near Dongjing City, on the shore of the Han Sea, there will be 'a dragon holding gold in its mouth and falling.'"

"And the gold in this dragon's mouth is the main material for forging the artifact 'Dragon Vein Blood Sword' in the future."

"If I get this dragon pendant gold, I can keep it for upgrading the Yuanyang Treasure Saber after returning to the Good Fortune Boat, perhaps pushing the treasure saber to the level of a divine weapon."

"With my current Huijing cultivation, even a divine weapon can barely be mastered. If I have entered the Yijing Realm by the time I return, then that would be even better."

Thinking of this, Ye Chuxiao paused this self-intoxicated train of thought.

Opportunities that can be widely known will inevitably cause great commotion and are difficult to hide.

The ice lotus opportunity was that Ye Chuxiao opened the treasure trove in advance and took the lead.

And the Dragon Pendant event is an opportunity that cannot be opened in advance. At most, Ye Chuxiao can only prepare in advance and have more advantages of initiative and first-mover advantage when the event occurs.

Ye Chuxiao was observing the surrounding terrain and mountain range, planning how to set up formations and ambushes in advance.

Then he heard someone shouting, "This young hero, please stop!"

Ye Chuxiao turned his head with a hint of joy.

"They're finally here! The Golden Hairpin assassins of Hongxiu Lou!" It had to be said that since making the deduction, Ye Chuxiao had gradually developed some curiosity from the initial vigilance.

After all, Ye Chuqi had described the Golden Hairpin assassins of Hongxiu Lou as stunningly beautiful, but Ye Chuxiao had never actually seen them, which aroused his curiosity.

Turning his head, he saw that the person greeting him was actually just a jianghu hero in a black cloak, and beside this jianghu hero, there was also a group of companions, all full of baleful aura, which seemed not easy to provoke.

Looking at their image, it was obviously not the woman dressed as a man with a rough voice that Ye Chuxiao had preconceived.

Then the leading jianghu hero cupped his fists at Ye Chuxiao and said, "Is this young hero also here to find the whereabouts of the Eastern Vile Devil? If so, we might as well travel together. If we encounter the old demon, we can fight side by side."

Ye Chuxiao had questions in his heart, but he didn't show it on his face.

He just held the Yuanyang Treasure Saber in his arms, patted the scabbard, and secretly revealed his sharpness.

He said politely, "I am just traveling here and have no intention of participating in the killing of the so-called old demon. Please go ahead."

The few people looked at each other,

The jianghu hero who spoke before still cupped his fists and said, "If that's the case, then we'll disturb you!"

After saying that, several people quickly passed by Ye Chuxiao in single file and disappeared into the mountains in the blink of an eye.

From beginning to end, Ye Chuxiao was secretly on guard, but they did not attack.

Even though this group of people had gone far away, Ye Chuxiao did not completely relax.

It wasn't until all the auras had completely disappeared and dissipated that Ye Chuxiao exhaled a long breath.

"There are only a thousand days to be a thief, but not a thousand days to guard against a thief. My current state is still too tense. If it goes on for too long, I'm afraid that the assassins won't come, but I will be mentally overloaded first!" Although Ye Chuxiao knew the truth, he didn't have a very good way to deal with it.

Although the Yuanyang Treasure Saber was full of spirituality, being summoned to carry with him certainly had the effect of alerting and indicating the presence of hostility.

But the enemy may not have the means to hide their aura and conceal their purpose. Relying solely on the magic weapon's warning was too indulgent.

Stepping on the treetops and grass leaves, Ye Chuxiao began to randomly set up formations on this mountainside by the sea.

Accompanied by the roaring sound of waves hitting the reefs, Ye Chuxiao kept adjusting the details of the formation, gradually spreading the formation into the sea, forming a landscape of mountains and seas.

Night came, and layers of clouds obscured the moon. The mountains were pitch black, but some strange algae on the sea surface emitted a faint blue light.

In the deep sea and mountains, the roars of monsters were rising and falling one after another.

The short lifespan gave the monsters powerful strength, but did not give them the brains to match, so that most of these monsters only had instincts like wild animals.

In the dark night, they released their voices and momentum, intimidating their hidden opponents.

The rain had long stopped, and the air was fresher.

However, as the mountain wind blew and the sea breeze came from the sea, cold air also spread and rose in the mountains.

The cold mist had risen. Even though Ye Chuxiao had an amazing physique, he still felt a bit cold in such an environment.

Turning around two mountain folds, a Sea God Temple appeared by the roadside in front of him.

Perhaps because it was for resting and sheltering from the rain for passing travelers, it was barely repaired in a relatively neat manner.

And specks of firelight were seeping out from the temple, giving people a sense of comfort and warmth on such a cold and misty night.

Ye Chuxiao glanced at it from afar and didn't really walk over. He was about to leave.

"This young master, the cold wind is piercing, and the mountain stream is cold. It's not easy to travel. We are all wandering people of the jianghu, not particular about details! Why not come in and rest?" A crisp and soft female voice came from inside the Sea God Temple.

This voice was so pleasant to hear that just hearing it, he was already imagining what kind of beautiful appearance the woman with such a wonderful voice would have.

"Here it comes!" Ye Chuxiao said in his heart.

But he didn't turn around and leave. Instead, he looked at the surrounding mountains and ridges and smiled slightly, walking straight towards the Sea God Temple.

Inside the Sea God Temple, fragrance permeated the air. Deep in the scent of burning pine wood, there was a mixed fragrance of a woman's body.

This fragrance was not strong, but it was very long-lasting, giving people a feeling of accelerated heartbeat after smelling it, as if it was a touch of life's instinct.

"Is this a confusing fragrance? Poison? Or some kind of unique perfume?" Ye Chuxiao thought.

Then the true qi flowed, but he found that the speed of the true qi's operation was even smoother.

It was as if his body was making some kind of instinctive choice.

"This is not the scent of acquired medicine, but her body is releasing a kind of 'meat fragrance.' Is she a body cultivator?"

"It is said that when body cultivators reach a certain level, their physical body will undergo multiple transformations, no longer have dirt, but give birth to a refreshing body fragrance."

At this time, Ye Chuxiao looked at the woman's appearance in the temple.

With just one glance, he felt that the entire Sea God Temple had become bright.