Chapter 40: A Welcoming Gift for Junior Brother Ye Cha

“Have you completed the tasks Master assigned? If not, hurry up and go! Don’t just idle around West Cloud Peak all day, or your tasks might double.”

Upon hearing Xiong Ni’s surprised exclamation, Lu Xi shot her a sharp glare. Immediately realizing her lapse in composure, Xiong Ni let out a sheepish chuckle, quickly turned, and fled.

Seeing this, the two remaining women, despite their strong desire to chat with Junior Brother Ye Cha and deepen their bond, respectfully bowed under Senior Sister’s deadly gaze. They then swiftly followed Xiong Ni’s hurried footsteps, departing from the area.

Though Ye Cha was quite intrigued by Xiong Ni’s recent words, he understood this was not the time for an in-depth inquiry. He decided it would be best to first establish himself on West Cloud Peak before considering anything else.

From his observations, it seemed that aside from Senior Sister Lu Xi, all the other women on West Cloud Peak were quite easy to get along with.

He surmised that with his methods, extracting information from them wouldn’t be a difficult task.

Thus, Ye Cha feigned ignorance, adopting a docile and obedient demeanor, which greatly pleased Lu Xi, who had been wary of him.

Despite suspecting Ye Cha was not a simple man, Lu Xi would not continue to treat him with hostility, given his compliant attitude.

However, if she were to discover any ill intentions from Ye Cha, the sword in her hand would show no mercy.

“Junior Brother Ye Cha, follow me. From now on, you will reside in the Bamboo Courtyard.”

Lu Xi mused on these thoughts, her expression betraying nothing. She then led Ye Cha to a secluded corner of West Cloud Peak, deliberately separating his living quarters from those of the other women, not wishing for them to be too close.

The purpose of this was not to prevent Ye Cha from scaling walls in the dead of night to approach the female cultivators of West Cloud Peak. Rather, it was to prevent the female cultivators of West Cloud Peak from secretly scaling walls to Ye Cha’s side at night…

Lu Xi had to admit one thing: Ye Cha’s appearance was simply too striking.

West Cloud Peak housed not only the Master and her disciples but also female cultivators who handled miscellaneous tasks. If any of them were to harbor wicked thoughts after seeing Ye Cha’s captivating looks, it would be truly problematic.

Now, the Bamboo Courtyard was remote, and few people from West Cloud Peak ventured there.

Coupled with a powerful barrier, unless the Master herself intervened, others would not be able to breach the formation in a short time.

This ensured Ye Cha’s safety, guaranteeing that he would not be defiled by any unscrupulous women.

Ultimately, these concerns stemmed from Ye Cha being too weak.

Even though Ye Cha had already reached the Foundation Establishment stage, it was still insufficient in Lu Xi’s eyes. She believed that while he couldn’t instantly reach the Nascent Soul stage, a substantial investment of resources could rapidly elevate his cultivation.

As Shen Ruotong’s direct disciple, Lu Xi had accumulated considerable resources over the years. There was no need to trouble the Master to personally worry about Ye Cha; the resources she possessed were sufficient for his early cultivation.

Were it anyone else, even if they treated a new junior brother kindly, they wouldn’t readily part with their own cultivation resources. This wasn’t solely due to Lu Xi’s good nature, but also because West Cloud Peak commanded substantial resources.

After all, the four direct disciples Shen Ruotong had taken were so exceptionally talented that their reputations alone incited envy in other sects.

When the sect began to allocate resources preferentially, no one naturally raised any objections.

Ultimately, this was about nurturing the next generation of the sect, and no amount of resources spent was considered too much.

Therefore, the resources given to Ye Cha were, for Lu Xi, merely a drop in the ocean.

They amounted to nothing significant.

Moreover, Shen Ruotong was not a stingy person; she often bestowed many precious resources upon her four disciples. This led the four disciples of Shen Ruotong to somewhat disdain the sect’s general resources.

It wasn’t that they had become arrogant, but rather that their Master possessed an abundance of treasures. Even a few items casually taken out were coveted by many in the outside world.

In such an environment, even the originally frugal Lu Xi had developed a much higher standard.

“Senior Sister, is there a barrier here?”

“Yes, there is. I will have the Bamboo Courtyard recognize you as its master shortly, so there’s no need to worry about safety.”

“Understood. Thank you, Senior Sister.”

Upon hearing that the Bamboo Courtyard had a barrier, Ye Cha finally felt relieved, knowing he wouldn’t have to continue tormenting himself.

While living in the outer sect, Ye Cha had been summoned by a demonic enchantress using a special secret technique. Although he later understood it was due to his Heavenly Net Physique, the constant pain preventing his wounds from healing was unbearable for an ordinary person.

If it continued, Ye Cha felt he would either be driven mad by the Heavenly Net Profound Poison or become mentally strained by the unhealing wounds, leading to trouble sooner or later.

However, with a barrier, he could guard against the enchantress using her secret technique again.

At least, within the Bamboo Courtyard, Ye Cha wouldn’t have to worry too much.

Aside from the overall barrier of West Cloud Peak, the Bamboo Courtyard’s barrier served as a second layer of defense. No matter how powerful the demonic enchantress was, while she remained bound, she could not lure him away again.

“Junior Brother Ye Cha, you must be tired. It’s best to rest now. If Master has anything to instruct, she will ring the spirit bell, and you can gather at the previous location then.”

After swiftly completing the process of having the Bamboo Courtyard recognize its master, Lu Xi’s task of guiding him was complete.

Having said her piece, she took out a spare storage bag from her waist, intending to give it to Ye Cha as resources for his initial cultivation.

Just as Lu Xi was about to speak again, Xiong Ni’s voice suddenly rang out.

“Junior Brother Ye Cha, I’m back!”

Accompanying Xiong Ni’s excited tone, as she rushed over impetuously, she saw Lu Xi’s face darken. With an expression that screamed, ‘Explain yourself immediately, or you’ll copy the Skysoaring Sect Disciples’ Rules a thousand times,’ she nearly scared Xiong Ni to tears.

However, upon remembering her perfectly legitimate reason for returning, Xiong Ni quickly regained her composure.

The slight bow in her posture straightened once more.

“Senior Sister, what a coincidence, you’re still here! I just ran into Master when I went back, and she gave me this. Guess what it is!”

As Xiong Ni spoke, she immediately raised her clenched left hand, then chuckled, inviting Lu Xi to play a guessing game.

This left Lu Xi speechless. She then signaled with her eyes, giving Xiong Ni a choice: either copy the Disciples’ Rules or quickly explain herself.

The obvious threat made Xiong Ni pout in frustration, thinking, ‘Senior Sister always tries to scare her!’

Hmph, once her cultivation realm advanced, she would finally be able to hold her head high.

However, after pondering Senior Sister’s diligence, Xiong Ni suddenly felt that even in another hundred years, she probably wouldn’t be Senior Sister’s match.

Thinking this, Xiong Ni grew even more dejected. She immediately opened her left hand, revealing a ring lying in her palm.

“This is…”

Upon seeing the ring, Lu Xi’s expression shifted to one of profound surprise. She had never imagined it would be this item!

“Master said Junior Brother has just arrived at West Cloud Peak and doesn’t have a suitable magic treasure, so this Sumeru Ring is her welcoming gift to Junior Brother Ye Cha.”

As Xiong Ni spoke the words “Sumeru Ring,” an envious look appeared on her face. She recalled that when she was accepted as a disciple by Master, her welcoming gift had merely been a ten-thousand-year Mysterious Silver Secret Ore, nowhere near as favored as Junior Brother Ye Cha!