Mortal: Starting in a chaotic starry sea, I can upgrade everything.

The headquarters of the Miaoyin Sect is not located in Tianxing City, but on an island in the inner sea near Tianxing City.

Following the instructions on the jade slip, Jiang Yu flew away.

Half an hour later, a misty, spiritual island suddenly appeared on the sea ahead.

The island is covered with verdant mountains, and the faint sounds of celestial music drift on the wind among the buildings. This island is the location of the Miaoyin Sect's mountain gate—Miaoyin Island.

As soon as he landed on the island, all he could see were female cultivators dressed in the same light purple dresses.

She has a slender figure and light steps.

Looking around, it resembled a purple cloud, and even the female disciples leading the way were beautiful and elegant.

Indeed, beautiful women are a long-standing tradition of the Miaoyin Sect!

Jiang Yu landed in the center of the square, and three streaks of light, carrying faint spiritual energy, landed directly in front of him.

The person at the head, dressed in a magnificent purple palace gown, was none other than Zhou Yuan, the sect leader of Miaoyin Sect, exuding the elegance of a female cultivator from Miaoyin Sect.

On her left and right sides stood two middle-aged cultivators with calm expressions, both at the early stage of Core Formation.

Jiang Yu understood immediately; these were Fu and Zhao.

Upon seeing Jiang Yu arrive, Zhou Yuan's brows relaxed, and she stepped forward with a smile, saying, "Elder Jiang, I am very grateful for your timely arrival."

Jiang Yu nodded slightly and said, "You're too polite, Sect Leader."

Zhou Yuan then stepped aside and raised her hand to introduce the two people behind her: "Elder Jiang, please allow me to introduce you. This is Elder Zhao, and this is Elder Fu. Both are elders of our Miaoyin Sect."

Jiang Yu's gaze slowly swept over the two men, his eyes calm and unwavering. He then cupped his hands in a slight bow and said in a gentle tone, "So you are Fellow Daoist Zhao and Fellow Daoist Fu. I have long admired you both. I hope you will take good care of me during our collaboration."

Upon hearing this, Zhao and Fu exchanged a silent glance.

A hint of something unseen flashed in his eyes, but it was quickly masked by smugness.

The two immediately adopted gentle expressions and laughed in unison, "Hehe, since Fellow Daoist Jiang and we are already fellow disciples of the Miaoyin Sect, supporting each other is only our duty, and it should be so."

The two men smiled and spoke politely, but what they were really thinking was anyone's guess.

After exchanging pleasantries...

With a gentle smile in her eyes, Zhou Yuan said softly, "Elder Jiang must have expended a lot of spiritual energy flying all the way here. It's still early, so there's no need to rush. I have already prepared a small banquet to welcome Elder Jiang and to show my hospitality."

Upon hearing this, Jiang Yu frowned almost imperceptibly.

He disliked such social engagements and only wanted to complete the task quickly, so he immediately declined.

"There's no need to trouble the sect leader with the banquet. I just want to complete the escort as soon as possible. Let's arrange to set sail early."

Zhou Yuan smiled faintly and said, "Since that's the case, this isn't the place to talk. Elder Jiang and the two elders, please come with us to the main hall for a while."

After pondering for a moment, Jiang Yu finally nodded in agreement.

The four walked through the narrow path inside the Myriad Sounds Gate, which was filled with exotic flowers and rare herbs, and stepped into a palace surrounded by spiritual energy.

The hall was elegantly furnished, with spotless jade tables and stools. Several beautiful young female disciples dressed in light purple dresses stood at attention, and the air was filled with a faint fragrance of spirits and wine.

Upon seeing this, Elder Zhao and Elder Fu immediately took their seats in order with great smiles.

Maids came forward and respectfully poured the two of them wine. The two looked relaxed and comfortable, enjoying themselves immensely.

Jiang Yu sat down on the opposite bank, his gaze sweeping indifferently over the scene before him, thinking to himself:

Indulging in pleasure and indulging in extravagance and debauchery is truly a major scourge on the path of spiritual practice.

As Jiang Yu pondered, unnoticed by anyone, Zhou Yuan, seated high above, subtly winked at someone in the shadows of the hall.

The next moment, a slender green figure slowly walked out from the side and gracefully came to Jiang Yu's side.

Jiang Yu's gaze sharpened, and he was slightly lost in thought.

This woman had already reached the Foundation Establishment stage in her cultivation. She had a beautiful appearance and a familiar cool and gentle demeanor in her eyes. The key point was that he had seen her before.

If it's not Zhuo Ruting, then who is it?

Zhuo Ruting remained silent, gently lifting her slender hand to pick up the jade wine pot on the table, and bent down to personally pour him wine. The wine poured into the cup, its fragrance filling the air; her movements were gentle and graceful, revealing no sign of anything amiss.

Just then, a faint, subtle malice quietly crept in from the direction of the person sitting opposite, like a venomous snake flicking its tongue, and vanished in a flash.

Jiang Yu's expression remained unchanged, as if he hadn't noticed anything, but his divine sense had already locked onto a person like a cold blade—

It was Elder Fu.

The opponent's aura was subtle and deeply hidden; if his divine sense hadn't far surpassed that of his peers, he would have had no way of detecting it.

Jiang Yu sat motionless, his fingertips lightly touching the edge of the table, a cold thought flashing through his mind:

"Holding ulterior motives and secretly harboring malice... is it because Zhuo Ruting is here?"

interesting!

His gaze inadvertently swept over Zhou Yuan, who sat on the high seat. She seemed detached from the situation, and he immediately understood.

No wonder this woman insisted on keeping him at the banquet; it turns out she had this in mind.

First, she had Zhuo Ruting personally pour wine, feigning intimacy, and then deliberately provoked Elder Fu to harbor ill will—clearly, she wanted to use a beauty trap to sow discord between him and Zhao and Fu, so that she, the leader of the Miaoyin Sect, could counterbalance the conflict.

In other words, he was outmaneuvered by Zhou Yuan.

Although he could have completely ignored Elder Fu with his strength, he was still annoyed at being tricked.

Alright, alright, you like using your femininity to your advantage, huh!

Then I won't stand on ceremony.

"Elder Jiang, please drink this cup."

At this moment, Zhuo Ruting presented him with a jade cup held in both hands, her voice soft and hesitant, her eyes lowered in a submissive and respectful manner.

Jiang Yu glanced at her indifferently.

He reached out and took the wine glass, tilted his head back and drank it all in one gulp. The spirit wine went down his throat, but his expression remained calm and undisturbed.

The next moment.

But he made a move that no one expected. With a flick of his wrist, he gently placed the empty cup on the table and then extended his hand.

He wrapped his arms around Zhuo Ruting's slender waist and, with a little force, pulled her halfway into his embrace.

"ah."

The woman let out a soft cry, her delicate body instantly tensing up.

Almost at the same instant, a very faint cracking sound came from the other side.

Jiang Yu knew without even looking that Elder Fu had lost his temper.

So what!

He looked up at Zhou Yuan on the high seat, a half-smile playing on his lips, while a flippant whisper went straight into her ear:

"Thank you for your kindness, Sect Leader. Three years have passed, yet you still haven't forgotten to send Fairy Zhuo to me."

Zhou Yuan's gentle smile froze for a moment, then returned to normal, and she responded softly via telepathy:

"Hehe, Elder Jiang, you misunderstand. Ru Ting volunteered to pour the wine today when she heard that Elder Jiang was coming. Besides, she is my personal disciple and the Right Envoy of our sect. I can't bear to see her off."

Jiang Yu's lips curled into a smile as he continued to transmit his voice:

"Sect Master, three years ago, the sect lent me 100,000 spirit stones. At that time, you promised to give me Fairy Zhuo."