Chapter 112: Chapter 105: Flowing Cloud Banquet

"Little Miss, are you still waiting for that big villain here?"

"Don’t wait, don’t wait, the big villain boasted so much, but in the end, he couldn’t even defeat the humble genius of the Sunset Glow Sect!"

"Exactly, exactly, he’s completely useless and so fierce, let’s not wait for him, let’s hurry back!"

"Right, right, it’s all because the big villain is useless, otherwise we would have won for sure!"

Outside the huge black void, a luxurious treasure boat hovers silently.

Bian Chuyao stands on the deck, gazing into the distant black space, motionless for a long time, her eyes seem to carry a hint of confusion.

Several Little Flower Spirits cling to her hair, softly comforting her while constantly cursing Gu Yuan, as if all the failures were due to Gu Yuan.

"Alas!"

"Senior Brother Deng wasn’t wrong. I’ve been dwelling on Yunxuan Island without venturing out, relying solely on my family. I thought everything would come easily, but I didn’t expect to still lose..."

Bian Chuyao sighed deeply, very dissatisfied with her performance this time.

Before coming here, she was full of confidence, thinking everything would go smoothly, but the reality proved to be so harsh.

"It’s okay, Little Miss, it’s just a failure in magical combat, with us around, your root bone will definitely improve in the future. The path of cultivation isn’t just about winning in magical combat; as long as we cultivate fast enough, we don’t even need to fight!"

The Little Flower Spirit comforted.

"Though that’s true, without the Flowing Flame Golden Fruit, the matter of establishing the Foundation is likely to encounter more troubles..."

Thinking of this, Bian Chuyao couldn’t help but sigh inwardly and think of Gu Yuan.

She had already accepted her own failure, acknowledging her lack of skill, with nothing more to say.

However... that big villain, did he really lose to Junior Brother Yun from the Sunset Glow Sect?

Though the sound waves of magical combat were quite intense within the mist, she couldn’t help but feel a bit skeptical.

Along this journey, she had personally witnessed Gu Yuan’s methods. That guy surely did some shady business behind the scenes, with strange tactics emerging endlessly, and possessing a top-grade spiritual sense, his foundation was no less than that of a disciple from a great family.

Could someone like that really lose to a humble genius of the Sunset Glow Sect who doesn’t even have a top-grade spiritual sense?

The reason she lingered on the treasure boat without leaving was, firstly, to wait for Gu Yuan, hoping he’d return safe and sound.

After all, he was the one she invited for assistance; she didn’t want him to die here over this matter.

If that happened, she certainly wouldn’t let Flame Thunder Peak go!

Besides, there was another reason. She wanted to know... did that guy really lose just now?!!

"Pop!"

Just as she was filled with uncertainty, ripples like water spread in the air, and within the space, a figure emerged from the virtual to the real, slowly appearing.

The man wore a cyan-colored Daoist robe, his black hair like ink, his face handsome.

But at this moment, his face was pale, the Daoist robe had several large holes, his aura was weak, and his hair was singed black, as if he had gone through a harsh battle.

"It’s the big villain!"

"The big villain is injured!"

Several Little Flower Spirits immediately cried out.

Bian Chuyao was also shocked, seeming to want to express some concern, but then she remembered something, her eyes flashing with golden light, carefully observing Gu Yuan.

This guy, could he be pretending?

She usually didn’t want to harbor ill thoughts about others, but after spending a day with Gu Yuan, she felt her thoughts had become dark, always suspecting others of having ulterior motives.

"Junior Sister Bian!"

"Mission accomplished!"

But at this moment, Gu Yuan, dragging his exhausted body, stumbled onto the treasure boat and then handed a jade box to Bian Chuyao.

"This is..."

Bian Chuyao was shocked, her eyes showing disbelief.

"Pop!"

She eagerly opened the jade box, only to see a golden fruit placed quietly within, shining brilliantly, like golden flames flowing.

"Flowing Flame Golden Fruit? You actually got the fruit?"

Bian Chuyao looked at Gu Yuan in shock.

Though she had just suspected Gu Yuan of holding back, she thought it was because Gu Yuan didn’t want her to get the Flowing Flame Golden Fruit and had other intentions.

She never thought Gu Yuan could single-handedly defeat her Senior Brother Deng, who had beaten her, and retrieve the fruit!

In her mind, she had already accepted the failure of this golden fruit endeavor; otherwise, she wouldn’t have spoken those harsh words to Senior Brother Deng before leaving Cloud Mist Valley!

But now... the Flowing Flame Golden Fruit lay quietly before her.

This is the key to the Foundation Establishment!

It’s the continuation of three hundred years of life!

"How did you do it? Didn’t you just fail to defeat Junior Brother Yun? How did you get the fruit?"

Bian Chuyao tightly clutched the box, looking at Gu Yuan with confusion.

"Defeating Junior Brother Yun wasn’t difficult; it just required time... Unfortunately, Junior Sister Bian, you lost too quickly; otherwise, this battle wouldn’t have been so tough. Fortunately, mission accomplished!"

Gu Yuan mustered the strength to say this, then sat cross-legged on the ground, beginning to regulate his breathing, speaking no more.

His mana was completely depleted and needed time to recover.

For a moment, the treasure boat was silent.

Bian Chuyao held the jade box containing the Flowing Flame Golden Fruit, looking at Gu Yuan’s meditating figure, her expression complicated.

She never expected Gu Yuan to actually help her retrieve the Flowing Flame Golden Fruit.

It seemed she had previously judged him with the heart of a petty person.

Though this person was a bit vicious, cruel, and had some despicable means, he was, after all, someone worth associating with.

With the fruit in hand, the process in between no longer mattered to Bian Chuyao.

Compared to the fruit, everything else was trivial.

Reflecting on this journey to the Secret Ruins, her performance was indeed unsatisfactory. If it weren’t for Gu Yuan, even a few Tribulation Cultivators on the road would be enough to trouble her, not to mention retrieving the fruit.

In this endeavor, Gu Yuan was the greatest credit.

Thinking of this, she sighed slightly, took out a Jade Scroll, and placed it in front of Gu Yuan.

At this point, Gu Yuan, after a round of breathing exercises, regained some spirit. Noticing the movement in front of him, he opened his eyes, looking at Bian Chuyao with some curiosity.

"Junior Sister, what is this?"

"This Jade Scroll contains the Secret Manual for cultivating the Cyan Lotus Dao Seed. Senior Brother can study it as a token of my gratitude to you."

As she spoke, Bian Chuyao also softly bowed to Gu Yuan.

"Junior Sister is too kind!"

"Having accepted your invitation, I must do my best!"

Though he said so, he still took the Jade Scroll and put it away.

"The method of the Ancient Seal is extraordinarily mysterious. I won’t hand it over to Senior Brother now. After Senior Brother successfully cultivates the lotus seed, Chuyao will visit you with the Ancient Seal!"

At this point, Bian Chuyao hesitated a bit but eventually spoke again:

"Has Senior Brother ever heard of the Flowing Cloud Banquet?"

"Flowing Cloud Banquet? Do you mean the Dao Foundation Spirit Banquet of the Daoist School held every hundred years?"

Gu Yuan had seen an introduction on this banquet in the Scripture Pavilion. It was said that this banquet was actually a competition for "Qi".

Every hundred years, the Daoist School would grant a batch of "Heaven and Earth Spiritual Qi" to its disciples to assist in their Foundation Establishment.

This banquet was extremely competitive, with all disciples participating, and even those from the Golden Core Sect had to compete fairly to seize the Spiritual Qi.

However, the last Flowing Cloud Banquet was only about thirty years ago?

Why did Bian Chuyao suddenly mention this?

Could it be?

Recalling what Bian Chuyao had been saying about silencing the endless gossip, Gu Yuan had a guess in his heart.

"Indeed, this banquet is going to be reopened and on a grander scale, for times have changed."

"Still some time before this gets announced, but Senior Brother could make early preparations."

At the end, she looked at Gu Yuan and couldn’t help but laugh, "However, I believe with Senior Brother’s abilities, you wouldn’t have any problem even without my reminder..."