Winds Rising Overseas: Yuan Yao

“I never thought that after barely a hundred years apart, Miss Yuan would have already reached Core Formation. Truly a cause for celebration,” Han Li said, his smile suddenly fading as he spoke with an air of solemnity.

“What Miss Yuan? You’ve mistaken me for someone else. My surname is Ruan.” The black-robed woman’s anger vanished the instant Han Li addressed her as “Miss Yuan,” replaced with a panicked, outright denial.

This was unexpected. Han Li stared at her flickering, beautiful eyes.

The woman’s face had paled, and one hand rested on her storage pouch. Her eyes were wide open, her hostility clear.

The atmosphere suddenly tensed.

All of this stemmed from Han Li’s simple address of “Miss Yuan.”

Han Li still wore a faint smile, but inwardly he was puzzled.

Ziling the Immortalette was equally taken aback by the situation.

Without needing to think, she naturally moved half a step closer to Han Li, making her allegiance clear.

In terms of both strength and familiarity, Han Li was the obvious choice.

“It seems there may be some misunderstanding. I suppose Fellow Daoist Yuan doesn’t remember me. After all, we only met once, many years ago,” Han Li said slowly, his expression unchanged.

“A hundred years ago? A single meeting?”

The black-robed beauty’s expression softened, but wariness still lingered in her beautiful eyes, accompanied by a trace of doubt.

The tension eased considerably.

After staring at Han Li for a moment, she spoke with a full face of doubt, “I still find you unfamiliar. I truly cannot recall where we met. Fellow Daoist, are you intentionally deceiving me?” A hint of hostility crept back into her gaze.

Han Li found this both amusing and exasperating.

“Miss Yuan, over a century ago, did you visit the ‘Celestial Capital Street’ market on Kuixing Island?” he asked directly, dispensing with further circumlocution.

“Kuixing Island’s Celestial Capital Street? I have been there a few times. Did you see me there?” The black-robed woman was startled, then nodded after a moment of thought. Her gaze swept across Han Li’s face as if a thought had occurred to her.

She seemed to be remembering something.

“Correct. You were with another daoist friend, a Miss Yan. We met just outside the market, together with myself and Uncle-Master Qu.” As he mentioned Qu Hun, Han Li shot a subtle glance at Ziling. She knew Qu Hun was his incarnation.

As expected, a wry smile flickered across Ziling’s face when she heard Han Li refer to Qu Hun as his uncle-master.

She didn’t know the full story, but she could guess that Han Li had been playing a double-act at the time. She found it rather amusing.

But she certainly wouldn’t reveal the truth for no reason.

Speaking of Qu Hun, Ziling was also curious. Why hadn’t Han Li brought that incarnation with him? It would have been a great asset.

“Now that you mention it, you do seem somewhat familiar. Could you have been the person standing at the entrance to Celestial Capital Street, together with that Late Foundation Establishment senior, Qu?” The black-robed woman suddenly realized, blinking her beautiful eyes.

Then an expression of disbelief appeared on her face.

Han Li could only smile wryly.

“Miss Yuan has finally remembered. It seems I left a rather unremarkable impression on you, Fellow Daoist,” Han Li said with a self-deprecating laugh.

At his admission, the woman blushed deeply. But having confirmed he was not who she feared, she relaxed completely and said with some embarrassment, “Please don’t take offense, Fellow Daoist Han. It was just that at the time, your…”

She trailed off, unable to continue.

But Han Li laughed heartily and finished for her, “Was it that my cultivation and appearance were too ordinary, hardly worthy of a second glance from you two young ladies?” He spoke calmly, without any trace of displeasure.

“You flatter me, Fellow Daoist Han.” Seeing his demeanor, the woman relaxed.

After all, Han Li’s abilities were considerable; she was afraid he still harbored a grudge about that day.

Having already depleted much of her magical power, she was in no position to offend him.

With this in mind, she smiled radiantly and continued, “Let me congratulate you as well! It hasn’t been a hundred years, and you’ve gone from Qi Condensation to Core Formation! Your magical power is so profound, and you’ve even dealt with a Ghost King-level evil spirit!”

Hearing her conciliatory words, Han Li shook his head internally.

He hadn’t gone from Qi Condensation to Core Formation at all. He had already been at Foundation Establishment back then. If it hadn’t been for his self-crippling cultivation base, he would never have reached Core Formation.

This woman, however, had genuinely gone from Qi Condensation to her current state.

When he had first recognized her, he had been truly shocked.

Either her aptitude was far beyond the ordinary, or she had encountered some great fortune over the past century. An ordinary cultivator could never have advanced so quickly, Han Li speculated.

Though he had just appraised her carefully, with both of them being early Core Formation cultivators, he couldn’t detect her spirit root type. His Dharma eye was blocked by the magical power within her body.

Han Li was about to speak again when Ziling, who had been standing by with a furrowed brow, interjected, “Fellow Daoists, shouldn’t we be on our way? This place is too dangerous. If more powerful ghosts appear, we will be in trouble.”

With that, Han Li gave an amused nod of agreement.

The black-robed woman, Yuan Yao, had no objections.

The three of them oriented themselves, parted the ghostly mist, and departed.

…

This was a garden-like location, surrounded by strange grasses and rare flowers, along with seven or eight meticulously carved jade pavilions. Twenty to thirty cultivators were scattered around, standing or sitting.

Most of these cultivators were either pale-faced or covered in bloodstains, as if they had fought their way here, yet excitement was written on all their faces. Some were even huddled together, whispering.

Grandmaster Extreme Yin and Wan Tianming, along with the other Nascent Soul cultivators, were also here. They were resting with their eyes closed in separate jade pavilions.

The two white-robed Star Palace elders, whether by intent or accident, were seated cross-legged in the open space between the two groups. Their faces were expressionless, like carved statues, completely still.

Beyond the garden, a hundred zhang in every direction, there was only surging, pitch-black ghostly mist. The mist surrounded the area as tightly as water, making it feel like two different worlds.

Suddenly, the ghostly mist at one spot parted, and a male cultivator strolled out from within, unhurried.

He was young, with a refined face, and wore a green robe.

What was most surprising was that he was completely spotless, his demeanor utterly relaxed, as if he had arrived here without encountering any conflict at all.

This bizarre situation immediately drew startled looks from the nearby cultivators, their gazes filled with a mix of curiosity and envy.

At that moment, Grandmaster Extreme Yin’s eyes snapped open. He gave the male cultivator a single glance, sighed in disappointment, and closed his eyes again, as if the newcomer was beneath his notice.

The male cultivator, catching sight of Extreme Yin, let a flash of venomous hatred cross his face before quickly returning to a normal expression. He strode in.

Instead of entering a pavilion to sit with the others, he found a secluded corner, clasped his hands behind his back, and stood there. His gaze then swept coldly over the assembled cultivators.

Not seeing Han Li, his refined face furrowed slightly before reverting to its usual stoic expression.

But then, unbeknownst to everyone, a deep male voice suddenly echoed in this young cultivator’s mind.

“What’s this? Your helper isn’t here? Could it be he was devoured by some other evil spirit? Heh! It seems the person you found isn’t worth much after all,” the voice said lazily.

“Shut up! Do not speak casually inside my body. There are a number of Nascent Soul cultivators here. If even one of them has a sufficiently powerful spirit sense, they might detect you with a single word,” the young cultivator said with secret annoyance, reprimanding the voice sharply through his own spiritual sense.