Chapter 228: First Encounter with Yang Wudi

228. Chapter 225: First Encounter with Yang Wudi

Li Xuan and Bang Chui, the two of them, led the Min Clan members forward at a normal pace.

Finally, before the sunset, they arrived outside De La City.

Before they even entered De La City, Bai Chuan walked out of the city.

Bai Chuan also spotted Li Xuan's convoy, and hurried to Li Xuan's side.

"Young master, the Courtyard has already been purchased; let's go straight there," Bai Chuan said as he came to Li Xuan's side.

"Thanks for your hard work, Bai Shu," Li Xuan nodded at Bai Chuan, then led the party into De La City and returned to the Courtyard.

De La City, being a trade hub between the Tian Dou Empire and the Extreme North, has many inns, and some warehouses are still vacant; Bai Chuan directly found a very large warehouse and bought it.

Under Bai Chuan's guidance, Li Xuan's party entered the warehouse and began arranging rest for the Min Clan members.

The warehouse hadn't been used for a long time, so dust covered everything, but the living quarters were still fairly clean.

"We'll rest here for the night today; tomorrow Bai Chuan will have you clean this place up. We'll be staying for a while. It's already late, and the day's travel was tiring, so rest early!" Li Xuan stood in the Courtyard and loudly addressed the Min Clan.

"Yes, young master!" everyone replied in unison.

Immediately after, Bai Chuan roughly assigned rooms to them and went back to rest.

Li Xuan didn't return to his bedroom; instead, he went straight to the study in the corner of the Courtyard.

From now on, he has to wait for Bai He and also for the merchant Huang, so this rare free time is perfect for Li Xuan to study his cultivation techniques.

…

Early the next morning, the Min Clan members rose early and, under Bai Chuan's lead, began a thorough cleaning of the Courtyard.

Since they'll be living in this Courtyard for at least a week, keeping it clean is certainly doable.

Li Xuan, however, continued studying his techniques and did not appear.

…

Three days slipped by.

Li Xuan looked at the hourglass on the table, set down his pen, calculated the time, and concluded that Bai He should already have arrived in De La City.

Then, with a thought, Li Xuan emerged from the space inside his Palm Sky Bottle and returned to the study.

Just after exiting the Palm Sky Bottle, Li Xuan saw a letter left on the table.

"Bai He has already reached De La City? That's fast," Li Xuan said, smiling as he shook his head while reading the note Bai Chuan had left for him.

The note said that Bai He had arrived in De La City with the remaining Min Clan members and checked into the most luxurious tavern in the city.

Seeing Bai He arrive safely in De La City pleased Li Xuan; the plan was proceeding smoothly, and now he only awaited merchant Huang's return.

Once merchant Huang's caravan arrives, Li Xuan and his group can blend into the caravan and, in about a month, safely return to Ladi Canyon.

Li Xuan used the Small Cave Heaven to communicate with merchant Huang, who said he would need roughly ten more days to reach De La City.

"Since Bai He has already reached De La City, he should come see me soon; the matter of the techniques may be delayed for a while," Li Xuan muttered to himself.

Bai He could come at any time, so staying inside the Palm Sky Bottle wasn't ideal; Li Xuan could only wait here.

He took an ancient tome from the Small Cave Heaven and idly began leafing through it.

Suddenly Li Xuan's pupils contracted; he felt as if being watched, and his soul power instantly ignited into flames, his black pupils turning red.

Li Xuan instantly entered combat mode, ready to unleash extremely powerful attacks at any moment.

"Young master Ande, long time no see," Bai He's voice suddenly reached Li Xuan's ears.

Li Xuan was startled, quickly turned toward the source, and saw Bai He materialize in the room; the flames in his body reverted to soul power, withdrawing into his dantian, and his pupils turned black.

"Grandfather Bai He, the sky hasn't darkened yet, and you've already arrived," Li Xuan said, giving Bai He a puzzled look.

Indeed, Bai He is the fastest man on the continent; without Li Xuan's strong soul power, he wouldn't have easily detected Bai He's presence. The Min Clan truly are natural scouts.

The Min Clan's role may be even larger than Li Xuan imagined, so he raised the Min Clan's status a bit.

"Ha ha, young master Ande, now that I've come to you, I must report the situation," Bai He said with a smile to Li Xuan.

"Grandfather Bai He, you're too courteous. I just spoke with merchant Huang; he still needs about ten days to reach De La City, which won't affect your gathering. Feel free to proceed as you wish," Li Xuan nodded to Bai He.

"Our gathering will be in five days, lasting three days; the timing should work out perfectly," Bai He smiled and nodded.

"By the way, young master Ande, among the Four Great Single-Attribute Soul Master Families, the Force clan produced a Shen Jiang Titan who thrives in the Tian Dou Empire, while the Defense clan's construction techniques are also top‑notch. The Min Clan lacks any notable abilities, so they're impoverished. As for the Po Clan, although they excel at alchemy, their combat strength is so high that they are heavily suppressed," Bai He sighed, looking at Li Xuan with a hint of melancholy.

"So I'd like to discuss with you, young master Ande, whether we could bring the Po Clan along; they could produce some elixirs to boost your cultivation speed," Bai He asked Li Xuan hesitantly.

When Bai He said that, Li Xuan was overjoyed but couldn't show it; he hadn't even decided how to go about recruiting the Po Clan, and Bai He had brought it up on his own.

"Oh? You like alchemy? I also enjoy cultivating medicinal herbs. Grandfather Bai He, you may not know, but the wine god flower is cultivated by my family, covering an entire expanse. It's a pity it ended up in my hands... sigh..." Li Xuan pretended surprise at Bai He's words, then showed a look of regret.

"That's wonderful; for cultivating medicinal herbs, the Po Clan's Clan Leader Yang Wudi also has great expertise," Bai He said, his eyes brightening, then smiled at Li Xuan.

The Po Clan has long aided the Min Clan; now that the Min Clan has taken refuge under Li Xuan, they naturally hope to pull Yang Wudi along, since the Po Clan's situation isn't great at present.

"Fine, fine. Then, could you, Grandfather Bai He, as Clan Leader, recommend Mr. Yang Wudi of the Po Clan? I wonder whether the Po Clan's Clan Leader would agree to join my domain," Li Xuan frowned and shook his head helplessly at Bai He.

At this moment, Li Xuan should put on an expression of complete ignorance.

"Alright, since young master Ande has agreed, after the gathering I'll arrange for Yang Wudi to meet you. I think the chances of success are high," Bai He said, nodding to Li Xuan.

"By the way, Grandfather Bai He, your family gatherings naturally need wine. Here are a few wine bags; consider them my gift to you," Li Xuan said, handing several thousand-year wine god flower wine bags to Bai He.

These can cultivate one per day; Li Xuan still has plenty, so giving some to Bai He is no problem. "Young master, that's enough; later when we raise children we can use them to boost their talents," Bai He laughed, shook his head, and pushed the wine bags back into Li Xuan's arms.

"Then... alright," Li Xuan could only nod, and gathered the wine bags again.

"Young master Ande, I can't stay here long, so I'll be leaving now," Bai He stood, nodded to Li Xuan, and prepared to depart.

There are still watchers near Bai He; a short departure won't be noticed, but a prolonged absence would be detected.

"Take care, Grandfather Bai He; if any issues arise, just call me," Li Xuan nodded to Bai He.

Bai He nodded, then slipped away.

After watching Bai He leave, Li Xuan returned directly to the space inside his Palm Sky Bottle.

"Great! Great! Bai He, you really understand me! Po Clan, you must be mine! Mine!" Li Xuan exclaimed excitedly, leaping and hopping beside the Hot Spring.

Yang Wudi is different from Bai He, has no relation with the protagonist, and his combat power is extremely high, even possessing the ability to fight above his level; more importantly, Li Xuan's main purpose this time must be the Po Clan.

More importantly, the Po Clan not only has strong combat power but also excels at cultivating herbs; Li Xuan's medicinal garden can be completely entrusted to the Po Clan to manage! After being excited for a while, Li Xuan also calmed down.

"There are five days left until the Four Great Single-Attribute Soul Master Families gathering, and eight days left until the gathering ends; it seems there is no time to continue the cultivation method, and if Yang Wudi arrives early, we cannot miss it." After Li Xuan sat by the Hot Spring and calmed down, he began to analyze seriously.

"Forget it, waste a few days, waste a few days, it's also a good time to rest; the cultivation method research has hit a bottleneck." Li Xuan sighed helplessly, then left the Zhang Tian Bottle space.

After leaving the Zhang Tian Bottle space, Li Xuan also took out some books copied from Han Book City and sat down to read.

These books are the parts of the Killing Treasure Vault concerning cultivation, and they are of great help to Li Xuan in creating a cultivation method.

……

Four days slipped by in an instant.

The early morning of the fourth day.

Li Xuan was reading, hadn't rested yet, when he suddenly heard a sound from the ceiling, raised an eyebrow, and glanced at the ceiling.

In the next second, the room door opened slowly, and a black‑and‑white pair appeared in the room.

It was thanks to Li Xuan knowing Bai He; otherwise Li Xuan would have thought the Black and White Impermanence had arrived.

"Grandfather Bai He?" Li Xuan's eyes shifted, and he asked softly.

"Ande Young Master's insight is indeed strong; even a level‑50 Soul Master could not detect my trace. Every time I come, you discover me." Bai He said to Li Xuan with a smile.

"Grandfather Bai He, why did you come so late at night?" Li Xuan blinked and asked Bai He.

Li Xuan's gaze, however, passed beyond Bai He, looking at the black‑clothed elder behind him.

The black‑clothed elder was thin and tall, with jet‑black hair, a grim visage, and a gaunt face, looking unlike a pleasant person to get along with.

"Haha, Young Master Ande, this is the Clan Leader of the Po Clan I mentioned to you, an eighty‑two‑level limit Soul Douluo, Broken Soul Gun Yang Wudi!" Bai He pointed at the black‑clothed elder and said to Li Xuan.

"Young Master Ande, I have met Senior Yang Wudi." Li Xuan stepped forward without hesitation and grasped Yang Wudi's hand.

"Young Master Ande, you're too kind. I heard you have a Wine‑God Flower cluster under your command?" Yang Wudi looked at Li Xuan arrogantly and asked.

As a limit Soul Douluo, his pride makes him look down on Li Xuan a bit.

"You are Young Master Ande? I heard there is a cluster of Wine‑God Flowers in your domain? Is it true?" Yang Wudi asked Li Xuan with a haughty expression.

"Senior Yang Wudi, I actually do have a cluster of Wine‑God Flowers here, and I could use a senior like you to help me tend it." Li Xuan smiled at Yang Wudi and nodded.

When Yang Wudi heard Li Xuan's words, he frowned, turned his head, and glanced at Bai He.

"It's our first meeting, I don't know what gift to give you, how about this…" Li Xuan opened the Small Cave Heaven, took out a Jade Box from inside, and handed it to Yang Wudi.

The moment the box appeared, Yang Wudi's eyes instantly brightened.

"What is this…?" Yang Wudi took the box, looked into Li Xuan's eyes and asked.

Then, in front of Bai He, Yang Wudi opened the Jade Box; a refreshing fragrance wafted toward them.

Hearing the scent, Bai He also froze for a moment, then fixed his gaze on the box.

Inside the box lay a five‑thousand‑year cultivation mature Drunken Moon Rouge, a Heavenly Material Earth Treasure that promotes blood circulation, removes stasis, and heals hidden injuries.

When Li Xuan first obtained the Bing Huo Liang Yi Yan, he harvested a large batch of mature Heavenly Material Earth Treasures; the one he now holds is also a prepared medicinal material.

As for the few Immortal Grade spirit plants in the Zhang Tian Bottle space, Li Xuan was reluctant to use them to win over Yang Wudi, but the Heavenly Material Earth Treasure should be sufficient.

"Young master, do you know what this is!" Yang Wudi raised an eyebrow and asked Li Xuan.

Yang Wudi thought Li Xuan was just a wealthy young master, bringing a family treasure here as a favor.

Bai He also looked at Li Xuan; he was unsure whether Li Xuan recognized this item.

"It's just a five‑thousand‑year Drunken Moon Rouge, offered reluctantly as a meeting gift; I hope senior won't despise it." Li Xuan smiled at Yang Wudi.

"Haha, you know its value and still want to give it to me, you're really generous." Yang Wudi showed a grim smile to Li Xuan, looking very cold and making people uncomfortable.

"I also have another thing to give you, though its value may not be as high as this herb." Li Xuan said, took another item from the Small Cave Heaven and handed a porcelain bottle to Yang Wudi.

Yang Wudi placed the Drunken Moon Rouge into his Soul Guide Device, then took the bottle Li Xuan gave him.

While receiving the bottle, Yang Wudi also fixed his gaze on Bai He.

His eyes were full of inquiry.

Bai He blinked as well, indicating he knew nothing. (End of chapter)