Book One: First Steps on the Path Chapter Ninety-Seven: Harvest

Ye Junze paid no attention to those who fled. With a wave of his hand, he retrieved the small cauldron and the Lingxu Sword. He clapped his hands lightly, steadying the slightly uneven rhythm of his breath after the brief battle.

Having done this, Ye Junze walked toward where Qi Yi and the others stood.

Wenyu, seeing Ye Junze approach, her face showing concern, asked with deep care, "Brother Junze, how are you? Are you alright?"

Ye Junze waved his hand, indicating that everything was fine.

"Thank you, Senior, for saving our lives. We siblings have no way to repay you, but should you ever have any request in the future, I, Qi Yi, swear to go through fire and water for you, without hesitation."

Ye Junze waved his hand and said, "It's nothing. There's no need to make a big deal of it."

Then he added, "Now that the Skythief Gang no longer exists, the two of you are safe and can rest easy. However, you should still be more cautious in the future. This time, I happened to be here, but who knows what might happen next time. You must improve your own strength and have enough ability to protect yourselves."

"Yes, thank you for your advice, Senior. After returning this time, I will train even harder." Qi Yi, hearing this, bowed with his hands cupped and expressed his gratitude sincerely.

Wenyu, hearing this, immediately added, "Mm-hmm, Brother Junze, I understand. I'll work hard after I return too." As she spoke, she vigorously raised her small fist, as if she had made up her mind.

"Mm, it's good that you have this resolve, but be careful not to rush things too much. Remember, haste makes waste." Ye Junze smiled and reminded them.

"I know, thank you, Brother Junze." Wenyu playfully stuck out her tongue and said in a sweet voice.

Seeing Wenyu's adorable manner, Ye Junze barely suppressed the urge to ruffle the little girl's hair. After all, he still had to play the part of a senior cultivator who had achieved great mastery in the Dao.

Ye Junze smiled, and as if something else had occurred to him, he looked at the two and asked, "So what are your plans next?"

Qi Yi, hearing this, answered respectfully, "The two of us had already finished our collection work and were planning to leave this place and head home, but unexpectedly, we ran into the Skythief Gang."

"Well, since the Skythief Gang no longer exists, you can head back without worry." Ye Junze nodded upon hearing this.

Wenyu, hearing their conversation, rolled her eyes and suddenly said, "Brother Junze, why don't you come back with us? Our home is a lot of fun. How about coming along?"

"Wen'er, don't be silly." Qi Yi immediately said, "Senior probably has important matters of his own to attend to. Don't be rude."

Ye Junze waved his hand, entirely unconcerned, and said, "It's fine. I don't have anything pressing. Besides, just in case something like what happened earlier occurs on your way back, having me along would provide some measure of protection."

"This..." Qi Yi seemed at a loss for words. After thinking for a moment, he continued, "Then we'll trouble you, Senior."

Wenyu, hearing Ye Junze's answer, couldn't help but clap her hands joyfully, her face beaming as she said, "Hehe, wonderful! I get to be with Brother Junze again."

Ye Junze smiled, and as if another thought had struck him, he stroked his chin and said, "But before that, there are still some matters to take care of. Follow me."

With that, Ye Junze turned and walked forward.

Qi Yi, though puzzled, hastily followed.

Wenyu, full of enthusiasm and curiosity shining in her eyes, hopped along behind the two, bouncing as she walked.

...

Meanwhile, in the outside world, everyone remained peacefully within their light pillars, deep in their dream projections, showing no signs of waking.

Fang Lin, gazing at the crystal ball before her, wore an intrigued expression. She murmured to herself, "Interesting. It seems this student Ye Junze truly hasn't wasted the praise of the other teachers."

Indeed, what Fang Lin had just been examining was Ye Junze's dream. Naturally, everything that happened within it was perfectly clear to her.

When she saw Ye Junze attack the Skythief Gang without the slightest hesitation, she couldn't help but let out a word of admiration. And when his combat experience unfolded in the ensuing battle, it drew her repeated exclamations of praise. As the fight drew to a close, seeing that he did not show mercy because of the enemy's pleas, and that he destroyed them in an extremely unexpected manner, the admiration in Fang Lin's eyes grew impossible to conceal.

"Brave and resourceful, richly experienced. He can distinguish right from wrong with great clarity even in matters of grave importance. After dealing with the ringleader, he did not slaughter the innocent indiscriminately—his character is excellent." Fang Lin could not stop singing his praises.

Then she thought to herself, "Could someone like this really have only just come into contact with cultivation? No wonder the others all speak so highly of this student Ye Junze. Perhaps he truly could become the pillar around which the Dao Arts Department will rise in the future."

Fang Lin shook her head, setting aside the thoughts in her mind, and turned her attention back to the crystal ball before her.

Only this time, her eyes and her face were filled with unconcealable admiration—clearly because Ye Junze's performance had far exceeded her expectations.

Naturally, Ye Junze, still within his dream, was unaware of Fang Lin's thoughts or her words.

At this moment, Ye Junze had already led Qi Yi and the other to the spot where the Skythief Gang's spacecraft had landed.

The spacecraft sat there steadily, awaiting the masters who would never return.

"Huh?" Wenyu let out a soft sound of surprise, then asked with confusion, "Brother Junze, isn't this the Skythief Gang's spacecraft? Why are we here?"

Ye Junze turned around and replied, "In the fight just now, I couldn't control my power quite well, and as a result, nothing was left of those two. I figured the only valuable thing they had left was this spacecraft. There might be some treasures on board. Let's go up and take a look. Even if there aren't any, the spacecraft itself is quite a good find."

Upon hearing this, the two of them simultaneously showed expressions of sudden realization.

Only Qi Yi felt a little puzzled, as though he hadn't expected that even a Nascent Soul senior of such standing would have thoughts of looting treasures.

Wenyu, on the other hand, didn't think much of it. Her eyes merely showed curiosity, as if she were eager to try it out.

"Let's go inside and have a look." Having said this, Ye Junze was the first to step aboard the spacecraft.

The two of them, seeing this, had no choice but to follow, stepping into the interior one after another.

The moment Wenyu stepped inside and saw the scene within, she couldn't help but exclaim, "Wow, it's so spacious in here!"

Ye Junze was naturally shocked as well. After all, strictly speaking, this was the first time he had seen a spacecraft up close and stepped inside one. However, in order not to reveal his inexperience and to maintain the appearance of a man who had seen much of the world, Ye Junze could only remain silent and quietly survey the interior of the spacecraft.

After looking around for a while, Ye Junze seemed to recall something important and said, "Let's split up and search for any treasures on this spacecraft."

"Alright!" Hearing Ye Junze's words, Wenyu's tone was filled with excitement, looking as if she couldn't wait.

Qi Yi naturally had no objections and said, "Whatever you say, Senior."

"Then off you go." Ye Junze waved his hand and walked toward another part of the spacecraft.

The two exchanged a glance, nodded at each other, and then headed toward the right side and the rear of the spacecraft respectively.

Wenyu bounced along as she walked, looking even more adorable.

Ye Junze searched the left side of the spacecraft in a full circle, finding nothing but some devices of unknown purpose. He had no choice but to give up the search.

Ye Junze smiled helplessly, somewhat self-deprecatingly, and said, "It seems I really have no talent when it comes to searching for things."

He waited where he was for a while, then saw Qi Yi approaching. So he asked, "How did it go? Did you find anything?"

Qi Yi shook his head helplessly, his tone filled with apology, and said, "I'm sorry, Senior. I searched for a long time but found nothing."

Ye Junze waved his hand and replied, "It's fine. I only came with the thought of giving it a try anyway. No need to apologize."

"Yes." Qi Yi, though knowing that Ye Junze didn't mind, still had an apology he couldn't conceal written all over his face.

Ye Junze noticed this and intended to say a few words of comfort. But just as he was about to speak, he was interrupted by a sudden voice.

"Brother Qi, Brother Junze, come here quickly!" Wenyu shouted excitedly.

The two exchanged a glance and walked toward where Wenyu was.

When they drew close and saw the sight before them, they couldn't help but squint their eyes, as if dazzled by the light radiating from the dazzling array of treasures.

Only after adjusting did the two open their eyes and take in everything before them.

Every conceivable treasure lay in sight. Besides numerous spirit stones, there were all kinds of magical artifacts—some offensive, some defensive. For a moment, Ye Junze's eyes were nearly overwhelmed.

Seeing all these things, Ye Junze looked at Wenyu and said with a smile, "Well done."

"Hehe." Receiving the praise, Wenyu let out a silly laugh and said, "I just felt something was a little strange here, and after pushing open the door, I saw all these good things."

Hearing this, Ye Junze couldn't help but sigh inwardly, "A woman's intuition can sometimes be terrifying."

"What a pity this is all in a dream. If only I could take these things out with me," Ye Junze thought helplessly.

He shook his head, dispelling the thoughts from his mind, and waved his hand, saying, "Alright, you two should put all these things away. You both have storage artifacts, right?"

Wenyu nodded and said, "I do, but Brother Junze, don't you want any of it? After all, you're the one who defeated the Skythief Gang. These things should rightfully be yours."

Qi Yi added, "Indeed, Senior. These are yours. You should keep them. We were saved by you—we have no right to take any of this."

Ye Junze waved his hand and said, "There are some things I can't easily explain to you. Just put them away."

"But..." Wenyu wanted to say more, but Ye Junze interrupted her.

Ye Junze said, "How about this: I know you have your reservations, so consider them kept in your care for me. When I need them, you can give them back to me then."

Qi Yi nodded at this and said, "Then we'll do as Senior arranges."

"Then remember to ask us for them later, Brother Junze." Wenyu, though not understanding the reason, obediently nodded.

With that, Ye Junze waved his hand to signal the two to put away all the treasures.

After watching them finish, Ye Junze said, "Then it's time to leave. Do either of you know how to pilot this spacecraft?"

"Brother Junze, you've asked the right person! The spacecraft we came here on was piloted by Brother Qi. Leave it to him." Wenyu said with a smile.

Ye Junze looked at Qi Yi upon hearing this.

Qi Yi nodded and said, "I have studied it, but I'm not sure if this spacecraft is the same as the last one. I'll do my best to give it a try."

"It's fine. Just try." Ye Junze said casually.

With that, the three walked toward the cockpit of the spacecraft.