The enthusiasm of these elders was almost overwhelming, making Ye Liuyun feel sowhat out of place.
Li Daoyuan sent him a ntal ssage, explaining that this was simply how the locals behaved. He assured Ye Liuyun that he would get used to it eventually—but once he did, he'd need to be cautious of outsiders. Unlike the locals, wandering martial artists often had a knack for deception.
Li Daoyuan had fallen victim to their sches more than once, mainly because he couldn't distinguish between locals and outsiders. Ye Liuyun, however, had an advantage—his golden pupils allowed him to tell them apart.
Still, he reminded himself internally that martial artists were a mixed bag no matter where they ca from. Just because soone was a local didn't an they could be trusted blindly. At the sa ti, he didn't want to disappoint those who were genuinely kind, leaving them disheartened.
Upon arriving at the Qin family's estate, the entire household expressed their gratitude toward Ye Liuyun. Most of them, however, held him in higher regard for his willingness to stand up for justice rather than for any other reason. As for the gifts he had accepted in return, no one saw any issue with that.
The Qin family patriarch, Qin Hesong, even personally hosted a al in their honor and invited Ye Liuyun to stay with them for a while.
After dinner, Qin ngxi took the initiative to arrange accommodations for Ye Liuyun and his companions. Once they were settled, she turned to Ye Liuyun and said, "Given that you showed signs of *reforming your ways* in the forest, I decided not to bring up your past misdeeds. I understand that outsiders like you tend to glorify violence.
"But I hope you'll spend more ti with us locals—maybe it'll help soften that aggression of yours. Get so rest. Tomorrow, I'll take you out to see the sights!"
Without waiting for a response, she promptly left.
"*Reforming my ways*? That makes it sound like I was so kind of villain," Ye Liuyun muttered with a bitter chuckle, shaking his head.
"Maybe that's exactly what they think," Li Daoyuan teased with a grin.
Having spent several days with Ye Liuyun, he had grown familiar enough with his temperant to joke around without worry.
Ye Liuyun pulled him back, urging him to explain more about the locals' mindset and customs, both for his own benefit and for Tian Dao's.
After listening carefully, Ye Liuyun concluded, "Most of the locals have lived sheltered lives—they don't understand the brutality of the martial world. Those who *do* know its cruelty always find so righteous excuse before acting. anwhile, outsiders take full advantage of the locals' naivety in their dealings. But the locals don't seem to mind—they're surprisingly tolerant and magnanimous."
"It's a miracle a world like this has survived at all," Tian Dao remarked, finding the whole notion baffling.
Ye Liuyun speculated, "That's because they haven't encountered anyone with overly ambitious intentions. The locals are nurous and united. Moreover, the unique nature of this planet makes it impossible to harvest its source energy, rendering it unworthy of serious attention from powerful figures.
At most, so outsiders co here to take minor advantages. The resources here are abundant, so they don't mind sparing a little."
After chatting a while longer, they each retired for the night.
Early the next morning, Qin ngxi ca to find Ye Liuyun, eager to take them out for a tour of the city.
"Perfect timing—we can visit the rchant guild to purchase a map of this star system."
The night before, Li Daoyuan had ntioned that star maps were available here, so Ye Liuyun had been determined to acquire one and study the uninhabited planets in the system. Even though Li Daoyuan had said these planets couldn't be claid by others, he wouldn't be satisfied without testing it himself.
Thus, the group followed Qin ngxi out of the Qin estate. Along the way, familiar faces greeted them warmly, and even strangers offered friendly smiles. Scanning the city with his divine sense, Ye Liuyun found the entire place brimming with harmony.
Qin ngxi hadn't even brought any guards, explaining that the city had always been extrely safe.
When they arrived at the rchant guild, the attendant didn't look down on Ye Liuyun for rely purchasing a map—instead, they provided detailed explanations.
The map itself was remarkably thorough, seemingly tailored for outsiders. It clearly marked uninhabited planets and the resources they contained. After buying the map, Ye Liuyun browsed around the guild and noticed an abundance of cultivation resources related to Buddhist Light energy.
One item in particular caught his eye—a golden-glowing crystal brimming with Buddhist Light energy. According to the attendant, these crystals were ordinary stones that had absorbed the energy over ti from their proximity to the planet's source power.
Both Qin ngxi and the attendant strongly encouraged Ye Liuyun to cultivate Buddhist Light energy, with Qin ngxi especially pleased, seeing it as a sign of his moral redemption.
Secretly, however, Ye Liuyun scoffed: *I've already mastered Buddhist Light energy—better than you, in fact! Yet I haven't turned into soone like you. It just goes to show that it's rely another form of energy, incapable of changing one's true nature.*
*Sorry to disappoint, but this blade of mine… will never be laid down.*
He kept these thoughts to himself, sighing inwardly.
He didn't buy too much at once, only selecting a few different resources to test their effects. He planned to compare them later, determine which worked best, and then make a bulk purchase accordingly.
He also bought so tal imbued with Buddhist light energy, asking Tong Xin and Qiong Qi to see if it could be forged into weapons or armor for better effectiveness against the otherworldly beings.
After leaving the rchant guild, they ca across a local combat arena. Ye Liuyun wanted to check it out, but Qin ngxi stopped him, saying his killing intent was too strong. She worried he might be influenced by the wrong crowd inside.
Ye Liuyun could only shake his head helplessly as she dragged him around—first to a tavern, then a teahouse, and other places—before finally stopping for a al and returning to the Qin family.
Back at the estate, Qin ngxi even invited Ye Liuyun to their family's training grounds to spar with the Qin disciples.
By now, Ye Liuyun had figured her out—Qin ngxi was clearly a pampered young lady with too much free ti and little dedication to cultivation. But he couldn't afford to slack off even for a mont.
"We've wasted enough ti today. I need to get back to training," Ye Liuyun said, no longer willing to indulge her whims.
"What's the rush with training? Take it slow! What matters is your mindset!" Qin ngxi insisted. "You need to spend more ti with us to develop the right cultivation philosophy!"
It seed she still thought he hadn't been sufficiently "reford" and needed more exposure to the locals.
"...Like you said, I should take it slow. My enlightennt isn't deep enough yet," Ye Liuyun replied, humoring her. "If I lose control in a fight and hurt soone, that wouldn't be good. I'd better go back and ditate on the Buddhist light energy first."
Qin ngxi found his reasoning sound and finally let him go.
Tian Dao and Li Daoyuan barely held back their laughter as they accompanied Ye Liuyun back to their quarters. What Li Daoyuan didn't expect, however, was that once they returned, Ye Liuyun imdiately began absorbing the Buddhist light-infused resources while studying the map with him, pinpointing their next destination.
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