A person suddenly appearing in the main hall startled Tang Yuniang. The appearance of this ordinary-looking young man was completely without warning, and the sect's formation had not given any alarm at all. Her Divine Sense swept over him and found him to be like a mortal. But to appear in the sect like this, Tang Yuniang was no fool and naturally would not treat him as a commoner.
Although she couldn't see through his cultivation, as the Vice Sect Master, and with her connection to the Malevolent Spirit Sect, she was about to bravely question him.
The young man in the green robe saw Tang Yuniang look up and, with a raise of his hand, a token flew towards her.
Tang Yuniang subconsciously caught it. A glance at it startled her. After carefully identifying it for a few more breaths, her face immediately became respectful. It was unmistakably a Malevolent Spirit Sect token!
The person who had come was none other than Li Yan. He had originally intended to appear directly in front of Bai Rou, just like last time. But after arriving here, a sweep of his Divine Sense revealed Bai Rou's aura in a refining chamber, which also had its formation and restrictions activated. After a brief moment of thought, Li Yan did not sneak into the refining chamber on his own.
Although his relationship with Bai Rou was good, it was clear that Bai Rou was in the middle of refining something. He didn't want to see Bai Rou's refining techniques, as that would only be disliked.
Immediately, he discovered Tang Yuniang handling matters in the sect's main hall. She was also the highest-ranking cultivator in the sect besides Bai Rou, a Great Perfection Foundation Establishment cultivator.
Tang Yuniang immediately bowed respectfully, presenting Li Yan's token with both hands, and at the same time, said with utmost respect, "Senior, may I ask what brings you to our humble sect? As long as it is within this junior's ability, I will do my best to handle it!"
Li Yan glanced at the beautiful female cultivator before him and said lightly, "Is Senior Sister Bai Rou in the sect?"
This was, of course, a rhetorical question from Li Yan. Tang Yuniang's heart stirred upon hearing this.
'This person is indeed a Golden Core stage cultivator. It seems highly likely that he is a cultivator from Four Symbols Peak!'
The reason Tang Yuniang guessed that Li Yan was a Four Symbols Peak cultivator was that she understood Bai Rou's temperament. She must have rarely left Four Symbols Peak when she was in the Malevolent Spirit Sect before. Previously, out of curiosity about that Sun-surnamed cultivator, she had taken the opportunity to roughly ask a certain deacon when she was delivering puppets to the Malevolent Spirit Sect each month, and learned that that person was a new Golden Core expert from Four Symbols Peak in recent years.
Her thoughts raced, but her mouth quickly replied with respect, "Reporting to this senior, Sect Master Bai is currently refining artifacts in the refining chamber! Oh, but it should be possible to notify her!"
"Oh, if it would disturb her refining, then this one will come back next time!" This sentence from Li Yan was genuine. If Bai Rou was really refining some important treasure, it certainly couldn't be interrupted.
This time, Tang Yuniang didn't answer immediately. She thought carefully for a moment before replying again. "Sect Master Bai should just be practicing the way of artifact refining. She didn't leave any special instructions beforehand! It should be fine."
What she said was half-truth, half-lie. The Wood Flow Sect was an artifact refining sect. Besides daily cultivation of magical power, the rest of the time was spent cultivating through continuous artifact refining to improve the purity of magical power and gain insights. There was basically an unwritten rule among the disciples that once others were refining artifacts, they could not be disturbed.
So, unless there were special circumstances, one should never interrupt another's refining. If things went wrong, the other party would directly flip out, or even resort to violence.
Tang Yuniang's other sentence was also true. If a cultivator in the sect was really refining some important treasure, the refiner would still give a warning in advance. And they would use a grand formation to seal their refining chamber to avoid being disturbed and failing. What artifact refiners feared was not failure, but the loss of the consumed refining materials, which often could only be gathered over several decades, and there might only be one set. Once it really failed due to being disturbed, it would not be surprising for someone to fight to the death.
This time, Bai Rou's refining had indeed not informed Tang Yuniang not to disturb her, nor had she activated the sect-protecting grand formation. With Bai Rou's cultivation and refining methods, if she was really refining a treasure she considered important, the sect-protecting grand formation would definitely be activated, and she would also instruct Tang Yuniang to do all the defense work.
"Alright then, please go and inform her that Junior Brother Li is visiting!" Li Yan nodded. It seemed that Bai Rou was really just practicing her artifact refining skills. He was about to enter a state of comprehending immortal arts and cultivation methods again. This time he came out, there was one thing he needed to find Bai Rou for. Otherwise, who knows when the next time would be.
"Oh, that's very easy. Sect Master Bai left me a few directional Voice Transmission Talismans. I'll send her a message right now!"
For this matter, Tang Yuniang felt it was necessary to contact the Sect Master. The Wood Flow Sect had been bullied too miserably in the past. Since coming here, their days had slowly gotten better. Tang Yuniang believed that it was naturally better to get closer to the Malevolent Spirit Sect. Although their Sect Master was also a disciple of the Malevolent Spirit Sect, since the two old ancestors had been gone for too long, the situation had gradually become different.
Especially since Bai Rou was introverted by nature and didn't want to trouble others with many things. Tang Yuniang could see that Li Yan didn't seem to be looking for trouble. For this, Tang Yuniang, who had been in charge of the sect for so many years, still trusted her own judgment. For someone to come for a special visit, there must be a reason. Using a secret Voice Transmission Talisman to contact Bai Rou, Sect Master Bai probably wouldn't blame her.
As she spoke, Tang Yuniang slapped her storage pouch at her waist, and a talisman emitting a faint green light appeared in her hand. And just as she was about to send the voice transmission according to Li Yan's instructions, Li Yan waved his hand. "Since we're using a Voice Transmission Talisman, it's better if I say it myself!"
Tang Yuniang didn't say much upon hearing this and immediately handed the Voice Transmission Talisman in her hand to Li Yan. Anyway, she was just relaying a message. Whether to see him or not was up to Bai Rou to decide.
After Li Yan took the Voice Transmission Talisman, his lips moved slightly, and with a flick of his hand, he sent the talisman out. The two of them then waited in the main hall. As time passed, breath by breath, neither a Voice Transmission Talisman flew back, nor did a reply from Bai Rou come.
Tang Yuniang immediately became a little nervous and couldn't help but feel anxious. "Sect Master, oh Sect Master, you're not really refining some supreme treasure, are you? But you didn't give any instructions beforehand…"
After another dozen breaths, just as Tang Yuniang was about to apologize and go over to see for herself, Bai Rou's otherworldly voice suddenly sounded in her heart. "Let him come over!"
When Li Yan flew to the courtyard where Bai Rou lived, the courtyard gate was already open, and Bai Rou, in a white dress, was standing in front of the reception hall. Seeing Li Yan land in the courtyard, Bai Rou quickly bowed deeply. "Congratulations to Martial Uncle Li on achieving the Great Ascension of Nascent Soul!"
Li Yan, however, reached out a hand and touched his nose. The last time he came, because Bai Rou had also formed a Golden Core, she had been much more natural when calling him "Junior Brother Li."
"Senior Sister, why are you acting like we just met on the Verdant Continent again? We're very familiar with each other, there's no need for this. I still call Eldest Senior Brother and the others 'Senior Brother' and 'Senior Sister.' If you do this, it'll just make things more confusing. Let's just use the old address. Otherwise, it's too distant. Are you telling me I can't come in the future?"
Upon hearing this, Bai Rou slowly straightened up, but then she suddenly smiled. "Isn't it because a Nascent Soul cultivator is gracing our humble sect? As the Sect Master, I can't be rude, can I? Alright, the welcome is over. It's a blessing our humble sect could never have prayed for that Junior Brother Li could come!"
Her smile, combined with the sudden change in her attitude, made Li Yan's expression freeze for a moment. He then stared blankly at Bai Rou's pretty face.
Bai Rou's smile was like a secluded orchid in a valley blooming, elegant and sending out a secret fragrance. For a moment, Li Yan felt a faint fragrance floating in the air around him. For a moment, Li Yan felt that compared to the last time he had seen Bai Rou, her personality seemed to have changed.
And Bai Rou sighed slightly in her heart. Li Yan was the only person of the opposite sex she could talk to about anything. Sun Guoshu was respectful to her, and Bai Rou respected Elder Chigong. There were some things she couldn't say to these two. But with Li Yan, Bai Rou felt there was almost nothing they couldn't talk about. Li Yan would always listen quietly and give his own advice after thinking, which made her feel very comfortable.
With her gentle personality, she had always been particularly timid when talking to others in the past, but it wasn't like that with Li Yan. When she saw Li Yan again on the Verdant Continent, the moment she saw his cultivation was a whole realm higher than hers, she instantly felt that Li Yan was no longer the same person from Windy Cool Mountain. The distance between them instantly became vast. Especially since they were no longer on equal footing as before, Bai Rou immediately lost her confidence.
Another reason was the appearance of Zhao Min at Li Yan's side, which exposed Bai Rou's deep-seated weakness and inferiority complex. That time, when Li Yan and Zhao Min got engaged, when she saw Li Yan and Zhao Min standing together and kowtowing to Wei Zhongran and his wife, Bai Rou felt a little sour in her heart for some reason. After returning to the sect, she fell asleep!
A day later, when she woke up again and carefully thought about what had happened the day before, her heart suddenly calmed down, and many distracting thoughts disappeared in that instant. Some things were deeply buried in the depths of her heart. It was something she subconsciously wanted to keep and was unwilling to lose. Therefore, when she was refining earlier and suddenly heard Li Yan's voice in the Voice Transmission Talisman, she immediately had a feeling that her secret had been discovered, and her mind was in a bit of a panic.
At this moment, upon seeing Li Yan, she deliberately became serious, partly to hide the emptiness in her heart, and partly to tease the other party a little.
After Bai Rou finished speaking, she saw Li Yan staring at her in a daze. Her pretty face couldn't help but blush. She immediately turned and walked towards the reception hall, asking as she walked, "Junior Brother Li, have you stabilized your realm and come out of seclusion?"
Only then did Li Yan realize he had been a bit rude. After a dry cough, he quickly followed. "Oh, oh… I was just talking about some things with Master, and then I came over here!"
Bai Rou had already walked into the reception hall and sat down. Hearing this, a smile appeared on her face. "Oh, so Junior Brother came here to show off to me. I'm only at the initial-stage Golden Core!"
"What are you talking about, Senior Sister Bai? I see your cultivation is more than just initial-stage Golden Core. As for me, Junior Brother was just lucky. It was all due to luck. By the way, what was Senior Sister refining just now? I came to visit unannounced. I wonder if I affected Senior Sister?"
Li Yan didn't want to dwell on this topic and quickly changed the subject. And as soon as he said this, he noticed the smile on Bai Rou's pretty face stiffen.
'It seems I really did disturb Senior Sister Bai!' Li Yan immediately guessed in his heart.
The moment Bai Rou heard Li Yan's question, she felt her heart skip a few beats. She quickly suppressed it.
'He's a Nascent Soul cultivator. He wouldn't have seen what I was refining, would he?… So what if he saw? It's normal for me to refine artifacts by imitating the method of the ancient ape puppet…'
Thinking of this, Bai Rou's heart calmed down a little, and her expression quickly returned to normal. "Junior Brother really guessed right. In order to welcome you, this great Nascent Soul cultivator, I really wasted a lot of my refining materials! If you didn't come here for any special reason, Junior Brother will have to compensate me!"
"Sure, as long as it's not too precious, I can still compensate you!"
"What do you mean not too precious? You're a Nascent Soul cultivator!"
"Senior Sister, a tribulation has made me almost have to go out and rob people!"
"Oh, so you came here today to rob the Wood Flow Sect?"
Li Yan suddenly discovered that today's Bai Rou was much more talkative than before. Her personality also seemed to have become much more cheerful, not like before.