"Teacher? Teacher?"
Seeing Yun Yun lost in thought, Nalan Yanran called out softly.
"What is it?"
"Teacher, so… this time you must help me. Brother Hao is in Wu Tan City. Although I did not find him, I am certain he is still there."
Nalan Yanran tightly grasped Yun Yun's hand.
She spoke almost as if pleading.
Yun Yun neither agreed nor refused. Instead, with an unnatural expression, she asked, "Yanran, this Ye Hao you speak of… what does he look like?"
Perhaps it is only someone with the same name.
Yun Yun thought so.
Nalan Yanran immediately took out a scroll and unfolded it.
The moment Yun Yun saw the portrait,
her entire body seemed to petrify, her face filled with shock.
Was this not her former lover, Ye Hao?
Yanran…
Why would Yanran dream about him?
"Teacher, how is it? Handsome, right? Hehe. Elder Ge Ye said that at such a young age, he is already an Eight-Star Dou Grandmaster. His talent is astonishing."
Nalan Yanran did not notice Yun Yun's expression at all.
She remained immersed in her own world.
Constantly boasting about Ye Hao's excellence.
She even began to fantasize about their future together.
"When the day comes that we marry, the Yun Lan Sect will gain another powerhouse. By then, under Brother Hao and my leadership, the Yun Lan Sect will surely become the number one sect in the Northwestern Continent."
"Not only that, I will bear him many, many children!"
As she spoke, a smile of happiness, satisfaction, and pride appeared on Nalan Yanran's face.
When she looked at Yun Yun, she even seemed to be waiting for praise.
However,
what greeted her was not commendation.
But a rather stern voice.
"So… you spent half a year down the mountain this time, all for him?!"
Yun Yun slowly raised her head.
Looking at Nalan Yanran, a trace of panic was hidden deep within her eyes.
Nalan Yanran was stunned. "Ah? I… I…"
"Did I not tell you to return immediately after breaking off the engagement? And you delayed for so long over such a trivial matter? Look at you. Half a year has passed, and you have made no progress at all!"
Yun Yun suddenly stood up and turned her back to Nalan Yanran, not allowing her to see her expression, afraid that she might fail to conceal it properly.
Nalan Yanran hurriedly explained, "Teacher, Brother Hao is extraordinarily gifted. I… I was doing this for the Yun Lan Sect."
"Enough with your excuses! Starting today, you will be confined for one year. No, five years. If you fail to break through to Dou Spirit within five years, you will be confined for another five!"
Yun Yun had her reasons for saying five years.
In five years, let alone Ye Hao recalling fragments of their past.
Even their child would be running around on the ground.
By that time,
Nalan Yanran could only address Ye Hao as Teacher.
Yanran, it is not that your teacher refuses to help you.
It is just that some men… you are too young, too inexperienced to handle. Leaving him to your teacher is for the best.
I am thinking of your future.
Even when Nalan Yanran cried until she was a complete mess, Yun Yun showed no mercy.
To prevent her from escaping,
Yun Yun ordered Yun Du and Yun Sha to personally guard her. If Nalan Yanran dared to step even half a foot out of the Yun Lan Sect, they would be punished.
Not until she was confined within the courtyard did Nalan Yanran realize that what truly angered her teacher was not her half-year delay outside.
It was the two words Ye Hao, and that portrait.
Had she known, she would have first returned to the Nalan Clan and asked her grandfather and father for help.
Yun Yun instructed Yun Leng to temporarily handle the affairs of the Yun Lan Sect. Using the excuse of going down the mountain to gather medicinal herbs, she left Jia Ma Sacred City and headed straight for Wu Tan City.
Several days later,
Yun Yun arrived at Wu Tan City.
Only upon arrival did she realize she did not even know where to begin searching.
At that moment,
several voices reached her ears.
"Have you heard? The Miteer Auction House is auctioning Qi Gathering Powder again. And it is a top-grade pill. They say even Pill King Gu He cannot refine something like it!"
"Really? Let us go take a look."
"What is there to look at? Qi Gathering Powder is a luxury pill. How could poor people like us afford it?"
…
"Excuse me, may I ask which direction the Miteer Auction House is in?"
Yun Yun's eyes lit up, and she stepped forward to ask.
One of them pointed ahead. "Th-th-that way… the most magnificent b-building is it."
"Thank you."
After expressing her thanks, Yun Yun quickly left.
The three men stared at her departing figure.
All three wore intoxicated expressions.
"So, so beautiful."
"I wonder which bastard will get lucky."
"If only I could marry her."
"Marry her? If I could speak even one sentence with her, I would be willing to die."
The words had just fallen when that man suddenly collapsed to the ground, foaming at the mouth, dead.
The other two covered their mouths in terror, their bodies trembling.
Yun Yun arrived at the Miteer Auction House.
"Who is in charge here? Have him come see me immediately."
"Yes, honored guest. Please wait a moment."
The maid summoned Ya Fei and Gu Ni.
From a distance, both Ya Fei and Gu Ni recognized Yun Yun.
"Heavens! Why has Lady Yun Yun come?"
Gu Ni hurried forward to greet her.
Ya Fei followed behind, carefully observing this uninvited guest.
Yun Yun waved her hand and asked directly, "Have you heard of Ye Hao?"
Gu Ni and Ya Fei froze at the same time.
Especially Gu Ni, who slowly turned to look at Ya Fei.
His expression was uglier than if he had swallowed a fly.
The moment Ya Fei heard the name Ye Hao from Yun Yun's lips, she immediately grew alert.
She was about to deny it, but noticed Gu Ni's gaze shifting toward her.
"May I ask which Ye Hao Lady Yun Yun is referring to?"
Ya Fei wanted to confirm whether it was the same Ye Hao she knew before deciding how to respond.
Yun Yun took Ye Hao's portrait out of her storage ring and placed it on the table.
Ya Fei stepped forward to look.
Her pupils shrank.
Her delicate body trembled uncontrollably.
That single tremor was caught by Yun Yun.
"Where did he go?"
Ya Fei thought for a moment. "I have indeed seen this Ye Hao. Not long ago, he said he was going to the Tager Great Desert. I do not know for what purpose."
The Tager Great Desert?
The Medusa Queen!
That scene flashed through her mind.
Worry and panic instantly surged across Yun Yun's beautiful face.
"How many days has he been gone?"
"About half a month… perhaps."
Before Ya Fei could finish speaking, Yun Yun had already dashed out of the auction house.
Then, under the terrified yet envious gazes of the crowd, she soared into the sky and shot toward the direction of the Tager Great Desert.
After a long while,
Gu Ni wiped the cold sweat from his forehead.
"Miss, Lord Ye Hao and the others clearly went to the Magical Beast Mountain Range. Why… why did you direct Lady Yun Yun to the Tager Great Desert?"
"Because she wants to steal Lord Ye Hao from me."
Ya Fei folded her arms and pouted.
"Ah? You… what did you say? You mean Lady Yun Yun…"
Gu Ni thought he had misheard.
"As women, even though she tried to conceal it, when she mentioned Ye Hao, her eyes were shining. And when she heard he went to the Tager Great Desert, the worry in her eyes was about to overflow."
Gu Ni swallowed hard. In just a few sentences, she could see so much?
Ya Fei continued, "Besides, Yun Yun is nearly thirty. A woman like that has far more attraction to men than that immature girl Xun Er."
Gu Ni was still worried. "But… but Lady Yun Yun is a Dou Emperor. If she discovers you deceived her…"
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Bonus chapters every 200 Power Stone!
10, 20, 30 Advanced chapters in my Patr(e)on!
patr(e)on.com/hollyrisk