Chapter 410: Senior Brother, It’s Only Natural
Blazing sun, sand and dust obscure the sky.
After passing Yushan Pass, seven hundred miles east of Tianan City, the pristine and beautiful spiritual energy of the mountains and rivers transformed into a desert of yellow sand where birds and beasts couldn’t survive.
Whoosh—
Four flying swords skimmed close to the ground, passing through the sand plain and stirring up waves of sand and dust. The venomous scorpions, which were originally searching for prey, immediately buried themselves in the sand upon hearing the sound, hiding themselves.
On the flying swords, Ye Anping wore a bamboo hat and a sand-yellow windproof mask, his gaze vigilantly sweeping for any sign of movement in the desert.
The Snow Sky Lark, hung inside his collar, had retreated back into his clothes after taking a mouthful of sand. It had created a round bulge at his abdomen, making it look as if he were pregnant.
In terms of sheer area, the Central Domain was twice the size of the Southern Domain and five times the size of the Western Regions. However, a large portion of its land was uninhabited yellow sand Gobi desert, becoming more desolate the closer one moved to the east.
The four people and one fox galloped eastward, and as the sun was setting—
Boom—!!
Behind a sand dune about ten miles away, a sudden burst of fire and rising dust caused everyone to turn their heads.
Roar—!!
A roar that sounded like a dragon or flood dragon erupted, as a sand dragon leaped from behind the sand dune into the sky. It also brought out dozens of golden spiritual lights. It appeared to be a group of sword cultivators fighting the sand dragon, and they were in a difficult battle.
Judging by the sand dragon’s size, it was likely a juvenile dragon, with a cultivation level roughly equivalent to a human cultivator at the late Foundation Establishment stage, but it lacked intelligence.
Ye Anping pondered for a moment before ultimately deciding to take a detour. He had no reason to intervene, and besides, there were too many opportunists in this desert. If he were to help a group of ingrates, he would only be causing trouble for himself.
Thus, he quickly signaled to his junior sisters following behind him, indicating that they should not interfere.
However…
Feng Yu Die narrowed her eyes and watched for a moment, then suddenly retracted her head and quickly flew her sword closer.
“That group of people looks like disciples of the Moon Shadow Sword Sect… I just saw someone wearing yellow being flung into the air by the sand dragon.”
“?”
Ye Anping was taken aback by this and turned to glance at the cultivators fighting the sand dragon again.
To be honest, he really couldn’t tell.
The information Li Longling had sent previously stated that the Moon Shadow Sword Sect was led by Yun Tianchong and Yun Yiyi in a team of three heading to Donghuang. Therefore, logically speaking, such a juvenile sand dragon shouldn’t require Yun Tianchong to intervene; Yun Jiujiu alone could handle it with a single sword…
How could these people be…
Could it be that Yun Yiyi and the others had run into trouble?
Ye Anping fell silent for a moment, then raised his hand and gave another signal to his junior sisters and Xiao Yunluo behind him. Carrying the three of them, he then turned his flying sword and flew towards the sand dune.
… …
————
Boom—!!
Swoosh—!
Sword winds howled, and flames flared continuously.
Dozens of Foundation Establishment disciples, clad in the golden sect uniforms of the Moon Shadow Sword Sect, exerted their remaining strength to swing their swords at the sand dragon, which was dozens of times their size. However, each sword struck its scales, only managing to scratch its surface.
“Dodge! Dodge! Why are you flying towards me…”
“Ah! Senior Brother, you!”
“Ah—!”
Two disciples of the Moon Shadow Sword Sect, who were flying on their swords, failed to coordinate properly and collided in mid-air.
As the sand dragon thrashed its body, several other disciples of the Moon Shadow Sword Sect were knocked off their flying swords and crashed heavily onto the sand, creating deep pits.
“Senior Brother! Hurry and cut its eyes! Blind it first.”
“I know! It’s not giving me a chance to get close!”
“Ahhh—!!”
Whether it was due to a lack of experience fighting such large demonic beasts or because this was their first encounter with a sand dragon, these dozens of Moon Shadow Sword Sect disciples were flustered and helpless.
Just as everyone thought they were going to perish today…
Rumble—
A dragon’s lightning descended from the sky, striking the sand dragon’s forehead and engulfing its entire body. When the lightning dissipated, three flying swords leaped towards the sand dragon’s head from three different directions like scattered blossoms.
“Junior Sister, you take the right.”
Ye Anping calmly commanded, seizing an opportunity created by Xiao Yunluo’s spell. He and Pei Lianxue, wielding their spirit swords, directly slashed at the sand dragon’s left and right eyes, robbing it of its sight.
The sand dragon thrashed its body in pain but could not control itself, smashing heavily onto the ground. Then, Feng Yu Die used her spirit sword to cut it in two at its seven inches.
Within mere moments, the sand dragon that had caused so much trouble for the disciples of the Moon Shadow Sword Sect had lost its life, lying motionless on the sandy ground.
Ye Anping landed his flying sword and flicked the blood from his spirit sword into his storage bag. He then turned to look at the scarred disciples of the Moon Shadow Sword Sect surrounding him.
These people looked as if they had just emerged from a battlefield; their golden robes were riddled with holes, and their spirit swords were either chipped or broken.
He found a Foundation Establishment disciple of the mid-stage who was not severely injured and walked over.
“What happened?”
Looking at Ye Anping’s attire, the sword sect disciple was initially wary. However, upon sensing his Core Formation stage cultivation, he quickly stood up and cupped his hands in greeting.
“Thank you for your help, senior. I am a disciple of the Yi Shui Peak of the Moon Shadow Sword Sect…”
Ye Anping did not wish to engage in pleasantries and raised his hand to stop him, asking in return, “Yi Shui Peak… are you one of Yun Yiyi’s people? Where is your Eldest Miss?”
The sword sect disciple’s eyes widened slightly, and he cautiously sized up Ye Anping again, appearing to deliberate his words. After a long silence, he asked,
“… Does Senior know Eldest Miss Yun?”
Seeing the man’s wariness, Ye Anping felt that this would take a while. He then directly produced his Xuan Xing Sect identity token and said, “I am a disciple of the Xuan Xing Sect. Just answer what I ask, there’s no need to be so vigilant.”
Upon seeing the identity token, the man finally relaxed slightly, exhaled heavily, and quickly cupped his hands in response, “We got separated from Eldest Miss Yun…”
“Separated? What happened… Isn’t your Sect Master with you? How could you get separated?”
The man showed a hint of helplessness and replied, “Ah… to answer Senior… I, along with the Sect Master and three Eldest Misses, set out from the sect towards Donghuang. But as soon as we crossed the border, we encountered a severe sandstorm. Originally, more than a thousand disciples were scattered, and more than half of them got separated. Later on, on the road, we accidentally entered a sand dragon’s lair. Although the Sect Master was present, there were too many. Many of the remaining disciples were also scattered, and then…”
Hearing this, Ye Anping raised his hand to stop him from continuing and pinched the bridge of his nose, feeling utterly exhausted.
Even without hearing the rest, he could probably guess what had happened to Yun Yiyi and her group.
This sort of thing never happened in the game, and the Moon Shadow Sword Sect never even came to the Central Domain. This situation should have been completely unexpected for him, but for some reason, Ye Anping didn’t feel surprised at all…
He fell silent for a moment and then asked again, “… How long ago did you get separated?”
“To answer Senior, we have been separated from Eldest Miss and the Sect Master for seven to eight days.”
“…”
Ye Anping was somewhat speechless. He glanced around at the several sword sect disciples who were looking his way. He took out a blank map from his storage bag, swept it lightly with his sword finger, and threw it to the man.
“Try your best to find the other scattered sword sect disciples. Following the route on this map, you can safely return to the Sword Sect. There’s nothing more for you here.”
“Ah… but Senior, we were supposed to…”
“You’ll only be a burden in Donghuang.” Ye Anping glanced sideways, gesturing with his chin at the sand dragon lying on the ground, “Even one sand dragon could inflict such injuries on twenty-odd of you. You’ll all die in Donghuang.”
“But…”
“No buts. If any elders question you upon your return, just say you encountered disciples from the Xuan Xing Sect, and they told you to return.”
“… Yes.”
Seeing his agreement, Ye Anping glanced at the other sword sect disciples, sighed again, and then called over his junior sister and Feng Yu Die, who were busy whipping the sand dragon, preparing to continue their journey.
However, seeing them about to leave, the sword sect disciple was taken aback and quickly stepped forward to stop them.
“Senior!”
“… What?”
“May I ask if you seniors are going to Donghuang?” The sword sect disciple cupped his hands and took out a jade wine gourd from his storage bag, offering it. “This is a wine gourd that the Second Young Lady lost earlier. If you happen to see Eldest Miss and the others, could you…”
Ye Anping nodded slightly and glanced sideways at Feng Yu Die.
“Take it… it’s your wife’s.”
?
Feng Yu Die was stunned and immediately scowled.
“She’s not my wife. If you say that again, I’ll get angry.”
Ye Anping shrugged and smiled slightly, then reached out to take the jade wine gourd from the sword sect disciple’s hand before leading his junior sisters and the others into the air on their spiritual swords, continuing eastward…
… …
————
The bright moon hung high in the sky, its luminescence casting a snow-white sheen on the sandy desert below. A small inn stood solitary on the sand plain, with a few tattered red lanterns swaying in the wind beneath its signboard.
In a private room on the second floor, four people sat around a round table, facing each other in silence.
Seated to the north was a man with golden-yellow hair, dressed in a brocade robe.
The man had sword-like eyebrows and blue eyes, with a pair of bright red double-petaled plum blossoms tattooed on his brow. He appeared feminine but possessed sharp, masculine eyes.
Yun Tianchong took a deep breath, reached for the teapot on the table, and poured a cup of tea for the bandaged person seated to the east.
“Xi’er…”
Yun Xi quickly covered her teacup with her hand and glanced at her infuriatingly powerful father. If she could speak, she would have cursed him out.
Yun Tianchong looked embarrassed and quickly picked up the teapot again, heading towards Yun Jiujiu, who was seated to the west.
“Jiu’er…”
But her teacup was also covered by Yun Jiujiu.
Although Yun Jiujiu wasn’t as incapacitated as Yun Xi, she was still heavily bandaged.
Yun Tianchong gave an awkward smile and then looked at Yun Yiyi, who was sitting opposite him with a speechless expression.
“Yi’er… have some tea. You can’t blame your Daddy for this…”
Yun Yiyi sighed softly and still gave him some face, pushing her teacup forward and letting him pour her a cup of tea.
“Father, we brought a total of nine hundred and seventy-three disciples on this trip. However, after traveling only 1,700 li in the Central Domain, there are only a little over sixty disciples left. The other disciples are all scattered, and their whereabouts are unknown.”
“This…”
Yun Tianchong also found himself at a loss for words. He felt utterly unlucky.
After the demise of the Imperial Sect in the Central Domain, an elder in the Moon Shadow Sword Sect had proposed that they could take in the remnants of the Imperial Sect’s Xing Tian Division who were wandering in Donghuang, thereby restoring the sect’s vitality.
He thought about it and decided it was a good idea, so he intended to go to Donghuang and negotiate with the Pavilion Master of the Xing Tian Division.
Originally, he had planned to take only some disciples from the Sword Sect. However, he then thought that Yun Yiyi and the others had rarely ventured outside the sect before, and since he had come out of seclusion, none of his three daughters were close to him.
Therefore, Yun Tianchong thought he would take them out to see the scenery of the Central Domain, treating it as a form of travel and an opportunity to mend their father-daughter relationship.
Who could have known that the journey would be like a pilgrimage to the west, filled with eighty-one trials and tribulations.
They encountered sandstorms, quicksand, several level eight and nine demonic beasts, and a horde of beasts…
Especially a level nine demonic beast, with a strength close to a late Nascent Soul cultivator, had directly buried Yun Xi in the ground. After he killed the level nine demonic beast, hundreds of people dug for several hours to unearth Yun Xi.
Yun Xi’s current injuries were all thanks to that beast.
As for Yun Jiujiu, it was when he killed an adult sand dragon that the dragon’s head flew off and hit Yun Jiujiu directly on the head…
Yun Jiujiu, enraged, puffed her nostrils wide and glared at her wretched father.
“Damn your grandmother, if you ever throw a demonic beast’s head at me again, believe it or not, I’ll kick your remaining stubble till it bends!!”
“Hiss— Jiu’er, don’t speak rudely… such a good girl, how did she become like this…”
*Bang*—!
Yun Jiujiu slammed her hand on the table, making the wine glasses in front of the four of them jump.
Seeing that she was about to spit fire, Yun Yiyi stopped her.
“Second Sister, why bother arguing with him?”
“Hmph~”
Yun Tianchong was somewhat speechless. He sighed and then looked at Yun Xi beside him, asking, “Xi’er, the route you chose was also… how did we encounter everything? Your…”
“Third Sister’s luck has always been bad, as you know.” Yun Yiyi quickly defended Yun Xi. “When we set out, I told you not to take the route Yun Xi chose, but to avoid it as much as possible. What did you say then?”
“Uh…”
“It’s fine, with me here, I can even take down a level twelve demonic beast with a single sword.” Yun Yiyi said to Yun Tianchong with extreme indifference. “Who said that?”
“…”
Yun Tianchong looked at his three daughters, all staring at him angrily. He opened and closed his mouth, then quickly stood up.
“I’ll go check on the remaining Sword Sect disciples…”
None of the three responded.
Yun Tianchong’s face was filled with awkwardness, and he sighed before quickly turning and leaving the private room.
Yun Yiyi looked at her two sisters beside her, then stood up and walked to the window of the private room, pushed it open, and looked up at the full moon in the desert.
“Sigh… it’s almost been five years…”
Her gentle eyes reflected the silver moon, and a sigh escaped her lips, revealing the bitterness of longing.
Yun Jiujiu, who was sitting by the table, saw her like this and couldn’t help but cover her mouth and chuckle. She stood up and walked to her side, taking out a leather bag she had just bought downstairs from her storage bag and said, “Elder Sister, want some wine?”
Yun Yiyi turned her head to look, took the leather bag, unscrewed the stopper, and took a gulp, then wiped her mouth with her sleeve.
Seeing her like this, Yun Jiujiu jumped onto the windowsill, sitting on the edge with her legs dangling outside.
“Missing him again? Then why don’t you go to Hundred Lotus Sect sometime?”
Yun Yiyi was silent for a moment, shook her head slightly, and raised her hand to tuck away a strand of golden hair that had gotten wine on it.
“Just consider me being melodramatic, I won’t go. Besides, I was the one who broke off the engagement.”
“Then why did you break off the engagement with him? You liked him so much…”
Yun Yiyi hesitated for a moment, then smiled and asked, “Then why did you let Feng Yu leave?”
?
“Huh?” Yun Jiujiu withdrew her head, her suspended little wooden clogs coming to a halt. “Who said I liked her? She’s a girl, for crying out loud. I don’t like her.”
“Can’t you like a friend?”
Yun Jiujiu poked her nose and took a breath.
“It’s not exactly liking, I just think she’s quite loyal. Heh~”
Saying that, Yun Jiujiu snatched back the leather bag, took a gulp of wine, and then turned her head to look at the moon in the sky.
Yun Yiyi glanced at her, then shifted her gaze back to the moon.
The two of them spoke in unison:
“I wonder what he (that woman) is doing now?”
Yun Xi, who was sitting by the table, looked at her two sisters sighing while gazing at the moon with a speechless expression. She then tapped the table with her only usable left hand.
Bang bang—
Immediately, Zhang Yihe, who was waiting outside the door, tiptoed in.
“Third Miss, what’s wrong?”
“…”
“Ah? Third Miss, why aren’t you speaking… Oh right, you can’t speak.
Yun Xi’s left eye twitched, and she clenched her left fist tightly, but then relaxed it with a look of despair. Her lips parted slightly:
“Back… to the room…”
“Got it!” Zhang Yihe raised his eyebrows in response, then turned to look at Yun Jiujiu and Yun Yiyi, cupped his hands in a salute, “Eldest Miss, Second Miss, I’ll take Third Miss back to her room now. You should also get some rest early…”
… …
