Mountain and River Festival

Chapter 320: Sailing on Land
The two entered the cabin, but not to do *that* kind of thing.

Entering the room and causing trouble in front of so many elders was something Ye Tinglan couldn't bring herself to do, and Lu Xingzhou didn't want to ruin her composure... and probably couldn't anyway.

Ye Tinglan even only left the cabin door slightly ajar to appear magnanimous, then turned around and said in a pleading voice, "Please don't do it here, okay? I'll reward you when we get back."

Look at how aggressively he was pulling her ear just moments ago, and now he's like this after entering the house. Lu Xingzhou already felt extremely satisfied: "Look at what you're saying, do you think I'm that kind of person?"

A hint of seductive glint appeared in Ye Tinglan's eyes: "Aren't you one?"

"Don't do this... I can't help it."

"Pah, still denying it."

Lu Xingzhou smiled and took out the Soul Banner, sitting down next to Ye Tinglan: "There's a prisoner here, and I'm about to lose control. Can you help me out?"

The Myriad Soul Banner was originally designed to counter yin spirits, and with the added purification and suppression effects of his Crimson Lotus Calamity Flame, even this double effect couldn't bind the yin spirit. At this moment, the banner began to sway wildly, showing signs of breaking, and wisps of black energy emanated from it, creating a very demonic scene.

It's like a righteous ally has been imprisoned by a great demon and is trying to escape...

Ye Tinglan, who would normally be extremely disgusted by such a scene, showed no reaction at all now, and instead pointed a finger at the banner.

The struggling spirit inside immediately fainted.

Ye Tinglan asked, "This one possessed Duan Ning's body?"

"Hmm, it's a male spirit. It's a wonder he managed to get the job."

"He probably had no other choice. His soul is very weak, far from reaching the proper Radiant Yang level, merely clinging to life. In this state, he probably can't seize something as stable and powerful as Fang Qihao's, so he has no choice but to target that girl. Similarly, if he were strong enough, your Soul Banner and Crimson Lotus Calamity Flame would be useless... A Super Grade is still a Super Grade, you must not be so disrespectful in the future. This Yin Soul's weakness does not mean that other Super Grades are so useless."

"Okay, okay, I got it." Lu Xingzhou couldn't help but laugh; he found her motherly lecturing adorable now.

So people feel differently about the same thing depending on their position. If she were really a disciple, she would only mutter "stinky old hag" in her heart when being lectured, and Yuan Muyu's rebelliousness is probably related to this... But when you are someone who can shut her up and kiss her little mouth at any time, her lectures are just cute.

Ultimately, whether she was addressing her disciple or her lover, her teachings were well-intentioned.

Ye Tinglan studied his Myriad Soul Banner, somewhat puzzled: "Your Soul Banner has also been upgraded, otherwise the gap would be too large to bind it... Strange, I've been with you for the past six months and haven't seen you touch the Soul Banner. When did you secretly upgrade it?"

Lu Xingzhou laughed and said, "The upgrade of the Soul Banner depends on the main soul. Back then, in the desert between the first and second levels of the Demon Subduing Domain, Chen Yu and the others used the desert fire seed there to trick me. I fed that fire seed to the Flame Demon. The Annihilation Golden Fire was collected later in the volcano on the second level."

Ye Tinglan suddenly realized: "So that means you actually took two sparks back then!"

"Well, others think I only got one, but actually I fed the other one to the Flame Demon. It leveled up, so the Soul Banner naturally leveled up as well."

Ye Tinglan wasn't particularly familiar with this type of evil cultivation and found it rather rare. From an energy perspective, the Soul Banner itself was practically powerless; it would be difficult for it to even make a hole in a wall. However, it was a perfect counter to Yin spirits, possessing power comparable to a top-tier third-grade cultivator.

For a normal cultivator, its ability to summon and control the soul is also very strong, making it a terrifying treasure that allows one to advance beyond their level. However, it hardly needs to be nurtured, and its advancement is so silent and rapid.

The evil and demonic arts are indeed extraordinary, especially suitable for those who are eager for quick success and instant benefits.

Ye Tinglan was somewhat inclined to tell him to give up... Demonic items have obvious advantages, but of course they also have great drawbacks. For example, the Soul Refining Banner can easily make its owner's temperament gloomy. It is said that the Judge was quite gloomy before, and Lu Xingzhou was not much better when he first arrived in Xiazhou. His current smiling appearance is a completely different template.

But then he thought about it again. His soul banner had never stopped, and it didn't seem to have prevented him from becoming more and more cheerful. Maybe it had nothing to do with that... He had his own opinions and didn't need to care too much.

So he stopped talking about that and instead said, "Give me this spirit. Your soul banner level is still too high to control it, and you might even suffer a backlash. Why not give it to me? I'll tell you what conclusions I have after I pry it open."

Lu Xingzhou was both amused and exasperated: "You two sisters are really..."

"Hmm?" Ye Tinglan's expression turned dangerous: "You can give her one, but not me, right?"

"Don't mention it." Lu Xingzhou directly pulled the unconscious Yin spirit out of the soul banner and handed it over: "The value of these things is to explore the ancient realm. They will also help you figure out the root cause of their attack on Tianyao Holy Land. Anyway, the affairs of the ancient realm are a bit far from me and are not my business for the time being. They should be yours anyway."

Ye Tinglan put the ghost into some kind of bag. Then she looked at Lu Xingzhou, somewhat hesitant.

He does not mean that.

His exploration of the ancient realm was indeed quite far. As a third-grade cultivator, he still had much to solidify his skills with. For example, his alchemy studies had been interrupted by various matters, resulting in almost no progress. He definitely needed to continue his advanced studies. Given the current situation—the sea was turbulent, Zhao En's whereabouts were unknown, and Ye Tinglan would certainly be stationed in the East Sea for the time being and wouldn't be wandering around aimlessly—could he also stay here for further studies and not go back?

I feel he won't agree; his heart doesn't actually belong to the Tianyao Holy Land. He's never been a disciple of the Holy Land.

Furthermore, Ye Tinglan has never approved of the solitary practice of cultivation; she has always encouraged experience and training. Raising the little white-haired boy was also to allow him to experience the cold river from a young age. She had previously told Lu Xingzhou that she suggested he cultivate and train alone, without her, and even advised him not to bring A'nuo along. How could she force him to stay in the Tianyao Holy Land just because she couldn't bear to part with him?
Lu Xingzhou noticed that his husband had suddenly fallen silent, and felt somewhat puzzled. Even the most intelligent person couldn't fully fathom the complexities of a woman's heart; just a moment ago he was giving her a motherly lecture, and now he was contemplating the sorrow of parting…

Thinking that she was worried about the situation in the sea because of the ghost, she comforted her, saying, "Their plan to quickly establish a foothold in the human world has failed. Now you have ghosts to search for, so you have the initiative in your hands. Why worry?"

Ye Tinglan snapped out of her reverie, smiled, and said softly, "I know... Well, we've arrived. We'll talk later."

The imperial carriage had returned to the Tianyao Holy Land. Ye Tinglan stepped out of the cabin, and the elders exchanged glances secretly, all of them breathing a sigh of relief.

The doors were all ajar, and there were no strange noises inside; the occasional sounds heard were all serious conversations.

Who said Shendu and the little puppy were like that? Is Shendu that kind of person?! Nonsense!

The elders had already informed the sect of the unexpected events in the Grand Competition of the Sea via jade talismans, and the sect was overjoyed to see them return.

The Holy Lord has once again led his troops in a brilliant battle, his might shaking the East Sea, and the prestige of the Tianyao Holy Land continues to rise. The disciples are filled with pride, and wherever the imperial carriage passes, everyone bows and makes way for Ye Tinglan at the bow.

Ye Tinglan remained expressionless, only transmitting her voice to various places: "The matter of Golden Wind Island is the most important thing for the Holy Land at the moment, and the disciples' training missions will be arranged in this direction in the near future."

"Yes."

Ye Tinglan stopped the imperial carriage and walked straight to her bedchamber without looking to the side: "Lu Xingzhou, come with me for a moment. We haven't finished talking about what happened earlier."

Lu Xingzhou followed, and the elders didn't see anything wrong with it.

Dugu Qingli and A'nuo sat together on the bridge leading to the bedroom, hugging their knees, watching the dragon turtle below eat. After a long while, Dugu Qingli said, "A'nuo, it seems like your master is ignoring you after he found a mistress."

Ah Nuo said, "Your master is too."

Dugu Qingli: "..."

Ah Nuo took a piece of candy out of her pocket, threw it into the pond for the dragon turtle to eat, and casually said, "What, isn't that why you're asking me?"

Dugu Qingli said, "Don't you feel uncomfortable? I'm used to traveling alone, and I still feel uncomfortable. You're used to being with your master all the time, so how come you're all smiles... I sincerely ask for your advice."

“Because when Master and Sister Yu were together before, it was like this... I’m used to it…” Anuo stroked her chin: “But it’s not good now, there are too many… White-haired Sister, let’s form an alliance.”

Dugu Qingli asked, "What do you mean?"

"I need to find a way to hold my master back, so that I can't have any more mistresses."

"What do you need me to do?"

"You need to stay away from my master."

Dugu Qingli: "..."

After feeding the dragon turtle, A Nuo finally stood up and swayed away, saying, "Let's go, my master won't be able to come out tonight..." Du Gu Qingli followed closely behind, humbly asking, "Weren't they acting perfectly normal just now, talking about serious matters?"

"You know that was just now. Back then we were on the ship, now we're in bed."

Xiao Bai Mao felt that ever since he met this master and apprentice pair in Xiazhou, his knowledge base had been continuously polluted and had now gone completely astray.

The Holy Lord, who appeared confident and had just secured the throne, closed the door after entering the bedchamber and immediately turned around to embrace the young man.

They held me so tightly that my arms were even trembling slightly.

Lu Xingzhou sensed that she had been acting strangely since earlier, so he gently patted her back and asked softly, "What's wrong?"

"I won't be leaving the sea anytime soon." Ye Tinglan leaned against him and whispered, "If I asked you to stay in Tianyao Holy Land with me, would you be willing?"

Lu Xingzhou was stunned and remained silent.

Silence is an answer. Ye Tinglan understood and sighed softly, "I knew it."

He then touched the back of the man with his hands and said, "The inner armor on your back is cracked. Take it off and I'll repair it for you."

Lu Xingzhou readily agreed and took off his clothes, revealing his muscular upper body.

Ye Tinglan simply put the cracked Dragon Subduing Armor into the ring, without any intention of repairing it.

Lu Xingzhou: “?”

Ye Tinglan bit her lower lip and gently stroked his chest: "You're injured... Shouldn't we consider treatment first?"

Lu Xingzhou then temporarily put aside the matter of the Dragon-Subduing Armor and whispered in his ear, "Now that we're here, what kind of progress reward should we give you, sir?"

Ye Tinglan looked up slightly at his eyes, her beautiful eyes somewhat misty.

This silence was also a form of answer. Without waiting for her response, Lu Xingzhou quickly bent down, picked her up in his arms, and strode towards the bed.

Ye Tinglan obediently let him lay her flat on the bed, reached out and hooked her arms around his neck, and whispered, "That day, I said I would be willing if you wanted me, but because of the waste of my primordial yin and the possibility that my primordial yin might have an impact on you, I ultimately did not agree."

Lu Xingzhou lowered his head and kissed her earlobe: "Are we still going to say that today...? Isn't being a third-rank official enough?"

"What I'm trying to say is that I was actually lying to you that day. It's true that my virginity would be wasted, but to say that it would have an impact on you is an exaggeration, not to that extent. The real reason is that I couldn't let go. In the eyes of the world, the Holy Master of Tianyao, True Person Tinglan, is a nun. There's no concrete evidence of our ambiguous relationship. If I really lost my virginity and it became known, I... I don't know how to live my life, and I don't know how to face the position of sect leader."

Yuan Muyu said, "You also have inner demons."

The inner demon is that he is too concerned about his reputation and is too heavily bound by his identity as the Holy Master of Tianyao.

So much so that in her interactions with the younger man, even though she knew she couldn't hide it, she still insisted on finding various aliases to deceive herself and others, as if it was acceptable as long as it wasn't the Heavenly Yao Saint Master, all for the sake of that one step forward.

But if you know it's a lie, how can you deceive your own heart?

She was never able to fully let go.

The reason he couldn't fight Shen Tang was because he was limited by his status and couldn't openly take her away.

Yuan Muyu said, "You don't dare to go public, so is he your brother-in-law?" No.

Even now, as we are about to part ways, it still isn't over.

Lu Xingzhou was silent for a moment, then said in a low voice, "Even now, you still refuse to face it?"

Ye Tinglan, panting, replied in a low voice, "Xingzhou, give me some time... We can... we can do it like last time, right outside..."

"The gentleman agreed to add one step to the schedule."

Ye Tinglan pleaded, "Xingzhou...please don't force Mr. Xingzhou anymore..."

"Shall we try a different approach?"

"As long as it's not that, I'll agree to whatever you ask."

Lu Xingzhou gently rubbed Tianyao Peak with his hand and whispered in her ear, "Has Madam finished reading that storybook from last time?"

Ye Tinglan was a little dazed from being rubbed, and replied blankly, "I...I've finished watching."

“In that story, the male and female protagonists also went through evil and crooked paths.” Lu Xingzhou gently untied her sash: “Coincidentally, I am one of those evil and crooked paths.”

Ye Tinglan's eyes widened, her mind going blank for a moment.

Until she realized what he meant, Ye Tinglan felt an extremely absurd feeling, but her heart was pounding uncontrollably, and an impulse was awakening within her.

If they don't want to take the right path, then launching an attack through Xiegu might not be out of the question.

Since they met, he has solved so many problems, including this time. Without him, Ye Tinglan doesn't know if Tianyao Holy Land would have been embarrassed... But she has never given him anything. Even giving him armor was done under the guise of a competition prize, which he deserved.

What else could he have for him? He didn't need anything else anyway.

With parting just around the corner, why not go crazy for once?
Ye Tinglan also wanted to go crazy for once.

For the identity that bound him for a lifetime, for this inner demon.

She heard her own voice, as if from the heavens, so alluring it seemed to drip with water: "A small boat doesn't travel by water... so it's called Land Traveling Boat, is that right?"

Lu Xingzhou almost burst out laughing at those words, but then he realized that her teasing, rather than her refusal, meant... she agreed?

Only a fool would keep asking questions at this point; all that's needed is to take action.

He lowered his head and kissed the Holy Lord's lips, his large hands expertly separating her sect leader's robes.

The Heavenly Yao Saint Lord, who had just broken through the Super Grade and dominated the East Sea, obediently catered to her.

His comforting words were gentle, and Ye Tinglan knew that this gentleness was only for the sake of the final brutality, but she was still somewhat looking forward to it.

"Turn around?" After what seemed like an eternity, Ye Tinglan was almost completely disoriented when she faintly heard his voice, as if he were forcefully turning her over.

Ye Tinglan gave him a look that seemed both melancholy and resentful, but still obediently turned over.

Traveling by boat on dry land would be difficult and painful for most people. But for the two who both cultivated Dao and martial arts, it was at most a bit rough.

Just like how he was often made to use his teeth before, the reactions were all expressions of the Holy Lord's suppressed emotions. Only when he felt pain did he feel it was real.

Unbeknownst to her, pain struck, and Ye Tinglan groaned softly as she lay on her pillow, biting her forearm.

The madness that had been suppressed in my heart for decades finally blossomed amidst the pain, and a sense of relief arose—at least I had shared joy with him, hadn't I?
(End of this chapter)