Chapter Fifty: Yan Yao

  "Clang!"

  A middle-aged martial artist drew his broadsword and looked at Ye Yang coldly, saying: "Youngster, I've lived for 37 years, and no one has ever dared to speak to me like that!"

  Ye Yang smiled faintly and sniffed his nose, saying: "This qingyang meat should be cooked too, right?"

  The girl glanced at the middle-aged man with a hint of displeasure, and the middle-aged man reluctantly sheathed his long sword, his eyes filled with disdain, muttering: "Shameless greedy people, humph!"

  Ye Yang pulled out a short dagger and cut off a piece of leg meat from the qing lin, which was a specialty of the mountain plateau region. The qing lin had extremely strong jumping ability, with legend saying that an adult qing lin could jump dozens of meters high in one leap, surpassing even the average fifth-level martial artist's abilities.

  So, the leg meat of the green deer is the most tender and delicious, especially after being roasted to perfection, that fragrance can literally knock people out.

  He stood up, walked straight to the girl and bowed, presenting the green lotus meat on the short blade: "Thank you, miss, for taking us in. My brother Zhang Tianhe and I have nothing valuable, so we can only offer flowers to Buddha."

  The girl nodded and smiled, just about to take the barbecue, but unexpectedly the middle-aged man said in a low voice: "Your Highness, we are drifting outside, everything must be careful, beware of petty people!"

  As he spoke, the middle-aged man stood up, pulled out a silver dagger from his waist and swiped it across the Qinglin meat. After detecting no poison, he nodded and said, "Alright."

  Ye Yang was somewhat surprised and became even more interested in the origins of this group. Logically speaking, a girl called "Your Highness" should be the daughter of a certain monarch, but looking around the world, although Zhongyuan is unified, the Qin Empire is on shaky ground, and the original six countries' nobles have risen up one after another, with a momentum that seems to be restoring their country.

  The girl in front of her was extraordinary, dressed simply but exuding an unusual demeanor that was not common among ordinary people. If she wasn't the daughter of a wealthy family, then she must be a princess from some country.

  ……

  Yeyang didn't ask anything else and walked back over to sit down beside Zhang Tianhe.

  Zhang Tianhe may be a bit dull, but he's not stupid. He smiled slightly and lowered his voice, saying: "Zi Yu, you've taken a liking to someone?"

  "Hmm..."

  Ye Yang couldn't help but smile, and in a similarly hushed tone said: "This Qingyun mountain range is full of crises everywhere, no one knows if they can even survive till tomorrow, do you think I'd bother with such trivial matters?"

  "Why then?"

  "Just want to know more about some things."

  "Oh..."

  ……

  Before long, everyone was full and drunk. Zhang Tianhe belched contentedly, took out a thin blanket from behind him, and fell asleep beside the bonfire.

  Ye Yang couldn't sleep, and the realm of his spiritual energy was exceptionally full, even in the dead of night, he was still radiant, holding the Broken Flame Sword, he came alone to the edge of the camp, looking at the distant bright moonlight, suddenly feeling a pang of melancholy, wanting to think about those friends two thousand years later, wanting to see again those scenes of lanterns and wine.

  However, what's in front of me now is a magical and strange world. One misstep could cost my life. To return to the world I once knew, the first thing I need to do is survive.

  His senses extended outwards, Ye Yang silently closed his eyes, guarding his good friend Zhang Tianhe behind him. This kid had greatly increased in strength, but was too reckless, making it impossible to put one's mind at ease. For example, in the Qingyun Mountains, Ye Yang always slept lightly, maintaining a state of semi-dream and semi-wakefulness, with his sword never leaving his side. Meanwhile, Zhang Tianhe slept soundly, snoring loudly like thunder.

  The night was deep, the bonfire's light flickered, more than half of the people had fallen asleep, even the middle-aged martial artist had fallen asleep with his broadsword by the side of the horse carriage.

  At this moment, a rustling sound came from behind, Ye Yang sensed it, and a weak force was present behind him, roughly at the level of the earth, posing no threat to himself.

  Young hero?

  A sweet voice came, as expected, it was indeed the girl in black robes.

  "Miss, you're still awake?"

  "Uh-huh."

  The girl walked forward and stood beside Ye Yang, gazing at the bright moon. The clear moonlight cast a gentle glow on her snowy face, radiating a captivating color.

  "The moonlight in a foreign land is also so beautiful..." The girl said with a smile.

  Yeyang smiled slightly: "Miss is really in a good mood, in such a dangerous place, you still have the heart to appreciate the moon?"

  "Why can't I?"

  As she spoke, she took a deep look at Ye Yang and said: "Young Master, why must you join my merchant group? Although I am not well-versed in the ways of cultivation, I can tell that your demeanor is far from that of an ordinary expert!"

  Ye Yang slightly stunned, smiled and said: "Meeting each other in the world is fate, I don't want to see you people die in vain."

  "What, in vain death?"

  The girl was shocked: "Why say that? The Qingyun Mountain Range is two hundred miles deep, the strongest demon beast should be the sixth level of the earth, with our strength, passing through this mountain range and bypassing the border of Wei State, shouldn't it be easy?"

  Ye Yang shook his head, looking at the girl and said: "You're wrong, the high-level demonic beasts in the Great Rift Valley of Qingyun Mountain Range seem to be getting restless. In this area, it's not just sixth-grade demonic beasts, I even encountered an eighth-grade demonic beast before!"

  "What?! An eighth-tier magical beast?!"

  The girl's slender body trembled, and a look of fear appeared on her beautiful face.

  "Yes, it's an eighth-rank magical beast."

  Ye Yang said faintly: "If you just want to bypass the border of Wei State, then tomorrow turn around and head straight north. Maybe, you can walk out of the mountain alive."

  The girl looked at Ye Yang, biting her lip, and after a long time, she finally said in a low voice: "I... I am Yan Yao, the daughter of the king of Yan. During the war, I was captured and imprisoned in Shouchun, Chu State. Now, thanks to General Yuwen's desperate rescue, I finally escaped with my life. We dare not travel along the official road, so we can only take a detour through the Qingyun Mountains back to Yan State."

  "Oh..."

  Ye Yang's expression was calm and collected, but this girl had finally taken the initiative to confess. It seemed that he had indeed encountered a very special merchant group - one that possessed royal descendants!

  Yan State is located in the harsh and cold northeast, bordering Liaodong, with poor land and a weak economy, but it has also cultivated a strong and resilient folk culture. Nowadays, Yan State has secretly regained its independence, gradually breaking free from the control of the Great Qin Empire, becoming a vassal state. If Princess Yanzhuo returns to her country, she will definitely become extremely wealthy and noble!

  Unconsciously, three big words emerged in his mind - "Seeking a patron"!

  Ye Yang hastily shook his head, looking at the broken Flame Sword in his hand. A surge of heroic spirit arose within him. From now on, he also possessed considerable strength and would no longer have those thoughts without a future. The true energy derived from the Fire God's residual scroll had an extremely fast advancement speed. In less than half a year, it was highly likely that he would enter the ninth level of the Grand Earth Realm. Furthermore, after several years, it was highly likely that he would catch a glimpse of the secrets of the Heavenly Sky Realm. At that time, possessing the strength of a Starry Sky Master, not to mention seeking to be pampered, even relying on his own strength to split the land and become a feudal lord was completely not a dream!

  ……

  It's late at night.

  The forest gradually rose with thick fog, and the visibility was greatly affected.

  Yan Yao smiled slightly and said: "Heh, it's fogging up?"

  Ye Yang suddenly raised his sword-shaped eyebrows and said: "Wake everyone up, we've encountered a demonic beast attack!"

  "What?"

  Yan Yao's eyes widened as she opened her small mouth: "Why are you so sure?"

  Ye Yang's expression was stern: "When have you ever seen fog condense so quickly?"