Chapter 244

Chapter 244: The Seven Immortals of Cloud Capital, Ye Xu Joins the Fray

Half a day later, eight Emperor Venerables arrived at Linglong City.

"Brother Ye, I’m back!"

Great Emperor Ziwei, beaming, physically placed an arm around Ye Xu’s shoulder and said, "These are my seven Uncle Masters. They’ve remained aloof from worldly affairs, cultivating alone, and style themselves the Seven Immortals of Cloud Capital."

"Seven Uncle Masters, this is the top-ranked cultivator on the Great Emperor Golden List, certified by Heaven’s Secret Pavilion as the most powerful being in the Great Emperor Realm, Ye Qing Xuan."

Great Emperor Ziwei made the introductions one by one.

Ye Xu’s gaze rested on the Seven Immortals of Cloud Capital. He gave a slight nod and clasped his hands in greeting. "Respects to all seven Daoist friends."

"Truly, a hero emerges among the young!" A silver-haired elder declared with a hearty laugh. "Young friend Ye, there’s no need for such formality."

The Seven Immortals of Cloud Capital comprised five men and two women.

Among these seven cultivators, even the weakest had cultivated to the peak of the Emperor Venerable Realm. They each excelled to the extreme in one of the great paths: the arts of music, chess, calligraphy, painting, talismanic methods, formation arrays, and physical body cultivation. Each was a top-tier expert who had mastered their chosen Dao.

The silver-haired elder, named Heavenly Talisman Old Man, was the most powerful and the oldest among the Seven Immortals of Cloud Capital, specializing in talismanic methods.

"Heard from that kid Yu Zi that you once relied on a formation array to slay Eleven Emperor Venerables with a single sword strike. Is that true?" A middle-aged man, his eyes blazing, fixed his gaze on Ye Xu.

This man was the Nine Palaces Emperor Venerable, a master of formation arrays.

"Merely good fortune," Ye Xu replied lightly. "Moreover, those Eleven Emperor Venerables weren’t powerful cultivators. With the power of the Chaos Divine Vine as reinforcement, slaying them was more than enough."

"Hahaha… That’s crazy!" A two-meter-tall giant with bulging muscles and dragon-like vital energy roared, his voice like the roar of a tiger and dragon, causing the ground to tremble. "Kid, I like your spirit! Why not join our Seven Immortals? We can call you Ye the Madman?"

"Sixth Brother sure loves his jokes. Yet, Sixth Brother’s proposal doesn’t seem half bad." A woman with an ethereal aura and features as exquisite as a painting spoke softly, though her gaze towards Ye Xu was also full of curiosity.

"This senior sister must be the Fairy of the Painting among the Seven Immortals?" Ye Xu’s voice held a note of certainty.

The Fairy of the Painting looked astonished. "How could you tell?"

"Senior sister’s vital energy feels empty and weak – far from that of a Peak Emperor Venerable cultivator. This fleshly body was most likely painted by you, senior sister. Your true form must be concealed within your hair accessory."

Ye Xu fixed a piercing stare on the Fairy of the Painting’s hairpiece.

The Fairy of the Painting’s expression turned serious.

"Are you truly only at the peak of the Great Emperor realm?" she asked, astonished.

Ye Xu’s techniques were clearly profoundly mysterious; not one of the Seven Immortals could accurately gauge his cultivation level.

Ye Xu merely smiled. "I’m not."

"Brother Ye, you broke through?" Great Emperor Ziwei exclaimed in delighted shock. "I knew it! With Brother Ye’s unparalleled talent, how could he remain stagnant in the Great Emperor realm for long!"

"Congratulations, Brother Ye!"

Great Emperor Ziwei’s congratulations were utterly sincere; he was genuinely happy for Ye Xu.

"Dear friends," Ye Xu said, "since everyone is here now, let us proceed to Heaven’s Secret Pavilion."

"I’ve been waiting long enough!"

The Dragon Lord, who cultivated physical body refinement, laughed heartily and charged off towards Heaven’s Secret Pavilion first.

"Sixth Brother truly has an impatient temperament."

Another woman gently shook her head, revealing a hint of helplessness.

Ye Xu glanced at the woman. Her demeanor was gentle and graceful, serene and tender, like a refined young maiden from a modest family, possessing an extremely captivating aura that made it increasingly hard to pull away the longer one spent time with her.

She should be the one skilled in the Dao of the Zither, Qin Fei Yan.

"Brother Ye, on my way back, I heard astonishing news," Great Emperor Ziwei said solemnly. "It’s said that the Bi Fang divine clan tried to ambush people who had purchased information from Heaven’s Secret Pavilion, only for their scheme to backfire. The master of Heaven’s Secret Pavilion directly wiped out their entire clan."

"I’ve long heard about this matter, which stirred up quite a commotion," Ye Xu responded.

"Since ancient times, wealth stirs men’s hearts. It’s uncertain how many eyes are fixed on Heaven’s Secret Pavilion at this moment. We need to be careful," Heavenly Talisman Old Man stated calmly.

After half a cup of tea’s time, the group entered Heaven’s Secret Pavilion.

The Dragon Lord had long been waiting inside.

However, there were two others present in the pavilion: Duobao Daoist Su Mu and another person, Shen Yueyi.

Having been forcibly taken by Su Mu, Shen Yueyi was clearly still fuming and kept her head low in silence.

"Daoist friend Ziwei, Daoist friend Ye."

Su Mu looked at Great Emperor Ziwei and "Ye Qing Xuan", raising his hand in greeting.

"And you are?"

Great Emperor Ziwei frowned; he hadn’t seen Su Mu’s youthful appearance before.

"Duobao Daoist," Su Mu smiled.

"So Daoist brother looked so handsome in his youth!" Great Emperor Ziwei exclaimed with admiration. "Nearly catching up to Brother Ye and me."

"…"

Shen Yueyi stole a glance upward at Great Emperor Ziwei, pouting her little mouth as she silently grumbled, This person really has thick skin.

She then looked at Su Mu again. Compared to Great Emperor Ziwei, Su Mu was much more pleasing to the eye.

Of course, when it came to the most handsome man present, Ye Xu and "Ye Qing Xuan" undoubtedly shared the top spot.

"Daoist friend Ziwei, Daoist friend Ye, dear friends," Su Mu greeted each member of the group one by one, adopting an extremely humble posture. "To be frank, the reason I’ve been waiting in Heaven’s Secret Pavilion is that there is a matter where I seek your assistance."

Great Emperor Ziwei secretly glanced at "Ye Qing Xuan", his brows slightly furrowed.

He actually had no prior connection with Su Mu, so naturally, there was no existing rapport.

"Please state your matter, Daoist friend," "Ye Qing Xuan" replied.

"I learned from the Master," Su Mu explained earnestly, "that there is a Tree of Light within the Heaven Deficiency Forbidden Land. I need this Tree of Light to treat a severe illness afflicting an old friend of mine. However, I fear accomplishing this alone may be beyond my capabilities."

"Therefore, my wish is to journey with you, dear friends, into the Heaven Deficiency Forbidden Land, so we might mutually assist and support one another."

"This…"

Great Emperor Ziwei displayed visible hesitation, clearly unsure how to respond.

Their group was already adequately staffed. The sudden addition of Su Mu took Great Emperor Ziwei completely by surprise.

"Brother Ye, Uncle Masters," Great Emperor Ziwei questioned, "what are your thoughts?"

Old Man Heavenly Talisman frowned, saying, "Daoist friend, you bear no relation nor connection to our group, yet insist on journeying with us. This matter is truly somewhat unreasonable."

Dragon Lord, with his volatile temper, passionately rejected it outright: "Daoist friend, you’d best set aside these impractical notions."

Qin Fei Yan, Fairy of the Painting, the teacher, and the chess enthusiast remained silent.

Nine Palaces Emperor Venerable, however, laughed and said, "Big brother, Sixth Brother, there is no need to be so absolute."

"If the daoist friend is genuinely sincere, he must display sufficient goodwill. With genuine goodwill, is there anything under heaven that cannot be discussed?"

"What are your thoughts, Daoist Friend Ye?"

Ye Qing Xuan dismissed it casually, "Save where you can."

Clearly, both Ye Qing Xuan and Nine Palaces Emperor Venerable approved of Su Mu joining.

Su Mu’s heart stirred, and he declared, "This lowly one is willing to bear one-fifth of the expense alone."

Swish!

The moment his words fell, Nine Palaces Emperor Venerable, Ye Qing Xuan, and Great Emperor Ziwei all had shining eyes, while Qin Fei Yan, Fairy of the Painting, and the teacher also showed signs of being moved.

One-fifth of the expense was no small sum.

It should be known that the Heaven Deficiency Forbidden Land ranked forty-third. Converted into heavenly secrets points, it required two hundred million heavenly secrets points.

But even in a single transaction, Ye Xu wanted to profit.

Therefore, bearing one-fifth alone meant Su Mu would have to produce treasures worth fifty million, even sixty million heavenly secrets points.

Ye Xu’s expression turned peculiar. Su Mu had impulsively given him 180 million heavenly secrets points to hunt for Yue Lingxi’s whereabouts, and to think he still had reserves on him?

Truly living up to the title "Treasured One".

"One-fifth of the expense…"

Old Man Heavenly Talisman sighed with a laugh, "Daoist friend, you’ve truly steeled your heart to accompany us, haven’t you?"

"I take it this old friend is exceptionally important to you?"

Su Mu subtly glanced at Shen Yueyi. Like a quail, she had shrunk into a corner, not even daring to lift her eyes to look directly at anyone.

Although Shen Yueyi had no grasp of the group’s cultivations, she understood that any one of them was vastly more powerful than the Palace Master of the Seven Stars Academy.

"Daoist brother has guessed correctly." Su Mu’s voice suddenly deepened. He clasped his hands towards the group and said, "Therefore, I implore all of you to grant me this."

"What are your thoughts now, Sixth Brother?" Old Man Heavenly Talisman looked towards Dragon Lord, whose stance had been extremely adamant earlier. The Seven Immortals of Cloud Capital were as close as brothers, always advancing or retreating together; no one’s feelings could be disregarded.

Dragon Lord grinned widely and declared, "In all my life, I have admired people of true feeling and righteous loyalty the most. Since your honor possesses such deep affection and firm righteousness, I will naturally aid your sincere wish."

"…"

Great Emperor Ziwei shot Dragon Lord a glance, inwardly scoffing.

Though Sixth Uncle Master usually seems blunt and straightforward, surprisingly, he’s shrewd as a fox behind the scenes.

"It seems no one objects. Then this matter is settled."

Old Man Heavenly Talisman brought the matter to a firm conclusion.

"I…"

Great Emperor Ziwei wore an astonished expression. He hadn’t even voiced his opinion yet!

"Kid Yu, do you have an objection?" Dragon Lord narrowed his eyes, unleashing an aura of warning.

"None whatsoever."

Great Emperor Ziwei adopted a solemn expression, clasped his hands, and said, "Daoist brother Treasured One is heartfelt and steadfast. In all my life, I have wished only to befriend men such as yourself."

"My thanks, Daoist friend Ziwei."

Su Mu clasped his hands in gratitude.

"Since the matter is settled, let us now discuss the important task."

Ye Xu revealed a slight smile, leaning forward slightly as he fixed his gaze upon the Seven Immortals of Cloud Capital and Su Mu’s group, like a starving tiger that had long lain in wait for its prey.