Ye Yan is dead.
There's a hole in the middle of his forehead, fresh blood trickling out in streams.
And as for Ye Qiubai? He had already vanished from the Ye residence.
Clearly, he's left.
The Ye family's Ancestor watched the scene, his face extremely dark and stormy.
After all, Ye Yan was his chosen heir, and now had been killed by Ye Qiubai.
But when Ye Qing saw Ye Qiubai escape smoothly, he relaxed and smiled.
The Ye family's Ancestor looked toward Ye Qing, snorted coldly, and said, "From now on, the position of family head will be held by Great Elder Ye Ling!"
On hearing this, Great Elder Ye Ling froze for a moment, but there was no way to feel happy—his son had just been murdered.
Ye Qing just shrugged, unconcerned. For him, now that Ye Qiubai had regained his strength, that was the best outcome.
Meanwhile, the real instigator—Ye Qiubai—was sitting in a mountain cave outside Tianyuan City.
Meditating and regulating his breath.
After all, previously unsheathing the Green Cloud Sword had caused a significant backlash on him.
At the same time, Ye Qiubai was secretly shocked in his heart.
Only drawing out a small part of the sword's blade, and yet he could kill someone under the nose of a powerhouse like the Ye family's Ancestor.
If he drew it out fully, the Ancestor himself probably couldn't withstand a single strike, right?
But if he really unsheathed the whole Green Cloud Sword, that overwhelming sword intent would likely destroy Ye Qiubai instantly…
He remembered what Family Head Jiang Tianhan had said before.
Sunset Dynasty… huh.
The ruler of the Northern Region, and the current king is ranked fourth on the Ranking Of The Four Regions—a truly terrifying existence.
But Ye Qiubai didn't feel even a trace of discouragement.
As far as he was concerned, even the Sunset Dynasty—he might not be unable to surpass it!
Thinking of this—
A surge of sword intent rose from Ye Qiubai's body.
Shooting up into the clouds, carrying an unstoppable momentum!
Sword Heart tough and unwavering, unstoppable, able to cut through all things!
Sword intent breakthrough!
Now, Ye Qiubai could be called a sword master!
Two days later, Ye Qiubai finished his insights, left the cave, and headed toward the Hidden Dao Academy.
He wondered whether his master was feeling lonely—after all, there was just him as a disciple.
Now that he was gone, there was no one to talk to him, no one to cook meals.
...
At the same time—
The Cottage.
A woman frowned, carrying a bowl of fish soup as she walked out from the kitchen.
She set it in front of Lu Chang'sheng, coldly saying, "Can you give me some guidance now?"
Over the past days—
Lu Chang'sheng had truly shaken her so many times.
From the very start, she couldn't see through him at all.
That faint but immense Sword Dao aura he exuded was far deeper than ordinary sword intent, suffused with the Power of Law!
Even in her previous life, Hong Ying had never seen such Sword Dao presence.
And then, the willow tree by the cliff—clearly already spiritual, even though it had no aura at all.
Yet it made her feel an indefinable sense of dread.
The bird on the phoenix tree was even drawn to Hong Ying by some kind of bloodline attraction.
Strangely enough, she even felt vaguely suppressed by it!
And not only that—
Lu Chang'sheng's understanding of cultivation techniques had also left Hong Ying deeply shaken.
A casual remark, a fleeting bit of advice, and Hong Ying could suddenly reach a new insight!
You have to know—she was the Great Empress in her past life!
Her mastery of the martial arts was among the very best in this world.
So it's clear—Lu Chang'sheng's grasp of the Way of Martial Arts far exceeded hers by who knows how much!
This was why Hong Ying had taken the initiative to seek his teachings.
Of course, the guidance wasn't free.
Just right—now that Ye Qiubai was gone, no one was cooking for him, and she was lazy about making meals herself.
So she traded cooking for instruction, as long as Hong Ying handled three meals a day, Lu Chang'sheng would guide her once.
You have to know—for tens of thousands of years, Hong Ying had never cooked for herself.
Lu Chang'sheng looked at the fish soup in front of him, chuckled, and nodded, "Not bad! Way better than that pitch-black crap from before."
Then he tasted a spoonful.
"Hmm, at least this is edible."
Hong Ying snorted, annoyed.
When was the last time the Empress had been ordered around like this?
"Is that enough? Hurry up and teach me!"
"No rush. Let me finish eating first."
So Hong Ying sat opposite Lu Chang'sheng, watching him eat, one slow mouthful at a time.
But Lu Chang'sheng ate excruciatingly slowly, chewing every bite with maddening deliberation.
Even Hong Ying was getting impatient.
Suddenly, Hong Ying paused.
Wait—when did she become so irritable?
Just waiting a little while, and she was already getting antsy?
Realizing this, Hong Ying immediately sat cross-legged and began to adjust her mindset.
Mood.
On the cultivation path, it's incredibly important, yet often overlooked.
If you're anxious, you might get nowhere in your cultivation.
And in severe cases, you could even become possessed!
Cultivation stagnates, harming your Dao foundation!
Only by maintaining a tranquil state can you gain deeper insights.
Every true cultivator knows this principle.
But—
The simplest things are often the most easily forgotten.
Like Hong Ying now.
She was so desperate to recover, to improve her strength—
She hadn't even realized her state of mind was no longer fit for cultivation.
Now, recognizing this, she began adjusting immediately.
Lu Chang'sheng finished eating.
He found Hong Ying still meditating, so he shrugged and casually cleaned up the bowls.
The next day, Hong Ying was still meditating.
Third day—same thing.
Until the fifth day…
Hong Ying finally opened her eyes, a sharp gleam flashing through them!
Her aura burst forth!
Breakthrough—to Water Overflow Realm!
As natural as the flowing stream—effortlessly done!
After the Golden Core Pill Realm comes Purple Mansion; after Purple Mansion, the Sea Flow Realm; and after Sea Flow, it's the Water Overflow Realm.
Ye Qing was at the Beginner Stage of Water Overflow.
And the Ye family's Ancestor had already reached the peak of Water Overflow Realm!
Hong Ying let out a long breath, her lips curving into a stunning smile.
Lu Chang'sheng walked in at that moment, laughing, "You broke through?"
Hong Ying nodded, then bowed deeply to Lu Chang'sheng, saying, "Thank you for your guidance."
Hmm?
Lu Chang'sheng was startled—he hadn't guided her at all these past few days?
Hong Ying smiled and said, "You realized my mindset was off, so you had me cook, to make me notice my own problem, right?"
Lu Chang'sheng: "????"
No, I wasn't, I didn't, quit making things up.
I really just wanted you to cook for me.
Hong Ying continued, "Otherwise, with your current cultivation, you'd have reached the Inedia Realm long ago—why would you still eat everyday meals? Not to mention my cooking's not tasty."
Saying that last bit, Hong Ying couldn't help blushing.
Lu Chang'sheng was completely dazed.
Why do people around me love coming up with their own interpretations?
I seriously didn't think any of that…
Then Hong Ying suddenly dropped to her knees and bowed to Lu Chang'sheng, saying, "Learning knows no order, anyone accomplished is a master—please accept me as your disciple!"
Lu Chang'sheng: "..."
I really haven't done anything…
How did I end up conquering her, just like that?
My brain is fried…