In Pill Capital.
”Miss, six sects have already issued a bounty for Ye Fan, and experts from all major sects have poured into Pill Capital.” The maid next to Mu Xue said.
Mu Xue stood in front of the window with her hands behind her back, and muttered, “The reactions of all sects are not slow!”
”Miss, do you think Ye Fan is still in Pill Capital?”
Mu Xue shook her head and said, “I don’t know.”
If she were Ye Fan, she would have left Pill Capital as quickly as possible after being teleported back.
Although the reaction speed of all the sects was not slow, the flow of people in Pill Capital was very high. By the time the various sects got the news and arranged for personnel to blockade the place, it was still a little late. By that time, many cultivators had already left.
”Miss, the total bounty for Ye Fan from various sects has exceeded six million spirit stones.”
Mu Xue pursed her lips. Ye Fan had many good things in his possession. Whether it was the heaven-level mirror or heavenly fire, they were worth far more than six million.
”Miss, what’s wrong with the various sects? Just a few Foundation Establishment cultivators have died. Is there any need to mobilize troops like this?” The maid asked in confusion.
Mu Xue frowned and thought to herself: Of course if it was just a few dead Foundation Establishment disciples, no sect would act like this, but the problem was Ye Fan had treasures that moved people’s hearts!
Not many cultivators had come out safely from the secret realm, and many sects had no surviving cultivators come out. Judging from the current situation, the various sects that had received the news had a tacit understanding of concealing the fact that Ye Fan had valuable treasures. However, other forces were not fools either. Saying that the reason Ye Fan was wanted was because he killed many people in the secret realm – the reason couldn’t stand up to scrutiny.
……
Xuanjian Sect
”Senior brother, are you in a bad mood?” Luo Dieyi asked.
Lin Mo nodded and said with a gloomy face, “How can all the major sects talk such nonsense?”
Even if Ye Fan’s character was not good, it was not extremely evil. However, now all the major sects were hunting Ye Fan in the name of eliminating evil in the cultivation world, and describing Ye Fan as a devil who everyone should work together to kill.
Luo Dieyi took a deep breath and said, “I heard that the Sect Master of Tianyi Sect went to Pill Capital in person and planned to conduct a thorough investigation of the cultivators in Pill Capital. As a result, Lou Yuehua of Pill Capital was offended and the two had a big fight.”
Lou Yuehua was the president of the Alchemists Association, and he was also a cultivator at the Nascent Soul stage. Pill Capital could be said to be Lou Yuehua’s territory.
The Sect Master of Tianyi Sect went to Lou Yuehua’s territory to look for someone with great fanfare, which naturally aroused Lou Yuehua’s dissatisfaction.
Lou Yuehua was only a cultivator in the early stage of Nascent Soul, but Liu Yunhe, the Sect Master of Tianyi Sect, was in the middle stage of Nascent Soul. In terms of cultivation, Lou Yuehua was far inferior to Liu Yunhe. However, Lou Yuehua was a heaven-level alchemist*! There were many cultivators who wanted to find Lou Yuehua for alchemy requests. There were also many cultivators who had benefited from Lou Yuehua. Liu Yunhe could only order the people of the sect to restrain their actions.
After negotiation, Tianyi Sect withdrew the sect disciples guarding the entrance and exit of Pill Capital. However, there were still many cultivators from Tianyi Sect who hid their identities and searched for Ye Fan’s whereabouts in Pill Capital. In fact, not only Tianyi Sect, but also all the major sects sent cultivators to enter Pill Capital continuously.
”The behavior of the Tianyi Sect in the past few hundred years has become more and more disgusting,” Lin Mo said coldly.
We’re sorry for MTLers or people who like using reading mode, but our translations keep getting stolen by aggregators so we’re going to bring back the copy protection. If you need to MTL please retype the gibberish parts.
”Senior brother, be careful what you say!” Luo Dieyi couldn’t help but say.
Tianyi Sect was the largest sect in the Eastern Continent and occupied the mountain peaks with the richest spiritual energy. Sects of all sizes had to send offerings to Tianyi Sect every year. Even so, Tianyi Sect was not satisfied and always found various reasons to destroy the sects that opposed it.
Their Xuanjian Sect was just a grasshopper in the eyes of the Tianyi Sect. Tianyi Sect could destroy their Xuanjian Sect without any effort.
……
After the convoy traveled for a day, they arrived at a small town.
On the walls of the small town, there were many wanted images with bounties on them. The first one on the bounty list was a cultivator at the peak of Golden Core, and the bounty amount had reached 20 million.
Ye Fan and Bai Yunxi were only at Foundation Establishment, but the bounty offered was catching up to the Golden Core cultivator at the top of the list.
Situ Jiaojiao frowned and said, “This is wrong! How many people has Ye Fan killed? Why is the bounty so high?”
On the crystal light screen on one side, the bounties offered by various sects for Ye Fan and Bai Yunxi were scrolling in turn. More than twenty sects, large and small, had issued bounties for Ye Fan. The bounty posted by a single sect was not large, but added up, it was a bit scary.
”Why is there a reward from Qingxiao Sect? I recognize this sect, but it seems that none of its cultivators went to the Heavenly Wood Secret Realm!” The power of Qingxiao Sect was not small. When the Heavenly Wood Secret Realm opened, it happened to coincide with the opening of Qingxiao Sect’s own small secret realm, so the Qingxiao Sect did not get involved with the matters of the Heavenly Wood Secret Realm.
”I heard that when this guy was in the secret realm, he was full of ferocity and demonic nature. Qingxiao Sect is probably trying to eliminate evil from the cultivation world!”
Situ Jiaojiao sneered, her eyes flashing as she said, “There are so many people who want to eliminate evil in the cultivation world, and the Qingxiao Sect still wants to get involved. I don’t know when the Qingxiao Sect became so concerned about the peace of the cultivation world.”
”Princess, why do you think Qingxiao Sect is doing this?”
”It’s probably because this guy Ye Fan has something in his hands that makes these big sects excited.” Situ Jiaojiao lazily waved her whip.
Bai Yunxi raised his eyebrows. There were many people who could see through the bounties offered and guess that Ye Fan had something good in his hands. However, there were few who would say it outright like Situ Jiaojiao, mocking a large sect like this. If the backstage was not strong enough, something would probably happen.
……
”Fellow Daoist Fan Ye, what did you see that made you so happy?” A cultivator walked up to Ye Fan and asked.
After coming out of the secret realm, the original name could no longer be used. Fan Ye* was Ye Fan’s pseudonym.
”I’m just a little shocked. I didn’t expect that the bounty for a Foundation Establishment cultivator would be higher than that for a Golden Core cultivator.” Such a high bounty made him want to sell himself.
”This Ye Fan is amazing! It is said that those who came out of the secret realm are saying that he is the first person under Golden Core. His combat power is amazing. He can fight one against ten. Many powerful Foundation Establishment cultivators are not convinced and want to find him to fight,” Wei Rong said.
Ye Fan touched his chin and said, “Really? There are many people who want to challenge him?”
Wei Rong nodded and said, “That’s right! The title of number one under Golden Core is coveted by many people. If they beat Ye Fan, can they replace Ye Fan and become the number one under Golden Core?”
Ye Fan waved his hand and said with some disdain, “It’s a false title, and it can’t be exchanged for money.”
”Fellow Daoist Fan is right! It would be great if we knew his whereabouts. There is such a huge bounty.” Wei Rong paused, and then said, “This bounty is not easy to collect.”
Ye Fan said with some suspicion, “What do you mean? Could it be that those big sects will not admit their accounts?”
”There are so many sects offering bounties. Knowing Ye Fan’s whereabouts, I don’t know which sect I should tell first!” Wei Rong said.
”You can tell them all at the same time,” Ye Fan said.
Wei Rong smiled, shook his head, and said, “It’s possible to tell them at the same time, but if you tell so many sects at the same time, those top sects won’t be able to seize the opportunity, and they probably won’t be too happy. Also, with so many spirit stones, if your strength is not enough, you’ll receive the spirit stones on the front foot and be killed by someone looking for treasure on the back foot.”
Ye Fan nodded and said, “I see!” The bigger the sect, the more shameless they were. It was not easy to collect the bounty.
”However, why are we thinking so much? We probably won’t meet this guy anyway.” Wei Rong shook his head and said.
Ye Fan nodded and said, “That’s true” When they met, these blind people couldn’t even tell.
”Xi Yun, look, Ye Fan’s bounty is so high.” Ye Fan pointed at the light curtain happily.
Xi Yun* was Bai Yunxi’s pseudonym.
Yunxi looked at Ye Fan’s excitement and couldn’t help grinding his teeth. With such a high bounty, there were so many people waiting to tear off their masks. This guy Ye Fan was so happy that he really didn’t know what to say.
Ye Fan looked at Bai Yunxi’s gloomy face and rubbed his nose.
”That first place is amazing, worth 20 million,” Ye Fan said.
Bai Yunxi: “…”
……
After the convoy passed through the small town, it hit the road again.
Ye Fan used his soul power and monitored the movements in the convoy.
”Princess, the martial law seems to be more serious in front.” The maid in Princess Jiaojiao’s carriage said.
Situ Jiaojiao held her chin and said gloomily, “I heard that in some areas, if you want to enter, you must get your spiritual roots checked first.”
”Checking the spiritual roots! What does checking the spiritual roots accomplish?” The maid asked in confusion.
”I heard that Ye Fan has eight-line miscellaneous spiritual roots, that Bai Yunxi has a single ice spiritual root, and that Ye Fan is an alchemist who can refine medicinal pills that can change one’s appearance. Therefore, if you want to use their appearance to catch the two, it would be very difficult for people to find them, but spiritual roots are different. Ice spiritual roots and eight-line miscellaneous spiritual roots are both very distinctive spiritual roots,” Situ Jiaojiao said.
”How is it possible for him to have eight-line miscellaneous spiritual roots? The eight-line miscellaneous spiritual roots are the waste materials among waste materials! I heard that Ye Fan went on a killing spree in the secret realm, killing members of all the sects. How could such a person be a cultivator of miscellaneous spiritual roots?” The maid asked in confusion.
Because the major sects had mobilized their troops to track down Ye Fan’s whereabouts, Ye Fan had now become the center of everyone’s after dinner conversations.
Situ Jiaojiao shook her head and said, “It’s hard to say whether Ye Fan has eight-line miscellaneous spiritual roots. However, Bai Yunxi produced a vision of heaven and earth when he built his foundation. He should have a single ice spiritual root. Ye Fan and Bai Yunxi are lovers. They go in and out in pairs. If they find Bai Yunxi, they will also find Ye Fan.”
”The major sects have laid such an inescapable net. Doesn’t that mean that Ye Fan is doomed?” The maid said.
Situ Jiaojiao nodded and said, “Most likely, but this Ye Fan is said to be very powerful. I really want to meet him.”
The maid looked at Situ Jiaojiao and said, “Princess, I heard that this Ye Fan is a pervert who eats human flesh and drinks human blood. You don’t want to avoid him, and you even want to meet him.”
Situ Jiaojiao snorted coldly and said extremely arrogantly, “He is very powerful, but no matter how powerful he is, can he be more powerful than this princess’s talismans?”
”The princess’s talisman drawing skills are naturally unparalleled.” The maid complimented.
Situ Jiaojiao’s cultivation talent was not considered top-notch among the Situ royal family, but her talent for making talismans was unmatched. Situ Jiaojiao was born with a jade pendant. On top of that jade pendant, there was a magical talisman diagram, which indicated that Situ Jiaojiao had a natural talisman physique.
The Situ royal family hired a famous teacher for Situ Jiaojiao to teach her since childhood. When Situ Jiaojiao grew up, the royal family sent her to the Talisman Masters Association and spent a lot of money to hire the president of the Talisman Masters Association to teach her.
……
Ye Fan held his chin and said a little depressedly, “Those big sects really know how to play tricks!”
Bai Yunxi looked at Ye Fan and said, “What’s wrong?”
When Ye Fan mentioned the matter of checking spiritual roots, Bai Yunxi’s expression changed a little.
Bai Yunxi looked at Ye Fan and said, “Is there any pill that can cover up spiritual roots?”
Ye Fan shook his head and said, “No.”
Bai Yunxi: “…” Being used to Ye Fan’s omnipotence, now that Ye Fan suddenly said that there was nothing he could do, Bai Yunxi really felt a little unaccustomed.
Ye Fan scratched his head, a little embarrassed.
Bai Yunxi took a deep breath and said, “I think we should find a place to hide.”
The reason for following Situ Jiaojiao in the beginning was to leave Pill Capital. There were many experts in the Situ royal family, and it was uncertain which cultivator had good eyesight, so it was better not to get too close.
Ye Fan nodded and said, “We should pass by Cangshan Sea of Clouds*. At that time, we can consider withdrawing.”
Bai Yunxi nodded and said, “Okay.”
Cangshan Sea of Clouds was a boundless forest. The place was shrouded in clouds and mist all year round, making it difficult for soul power to penetrate and making it difficult to search. There were many monster beasts and poisonous insects in the forest, and ordinary people would not want to go deep into it.
***
T/N: *Just a reminder for everyone, levels of alchemists were introduced in Chapter 191: ordinary, mysterious, spiritual, heavenly, and holy and each level is comprised of two pill levels (e.g. ordinary alchemists can refine level 1 and 2 pills, mysterious alchemists can refine level 3 and 4 pills, etc.). Normally, an alchemist’s level is equivalent to their cultivation (so ordinary = Qi Refining, mysterious = Foundation Establishment, spiritual = Golden Core, heavenly = Nascent Soul and holy = God Transformation). Ye Fan is special because he can refine pills above his cultivation level (he is already a spiritual-level alchemist at Foundation Establishment). Mu Xue was the same (as explained in Chapter 198).
*Not just the characters of his name reversed – that would be too obvious lol. The pseudonym Fan Ye uses the characters 梵夜 and Ye Fan’s name uses the characters 叶凡.
*Pseudonym uses the characters 席云 and Bai Yunxi’s name is 白云熙. In his pseudonym, Xi is the surname and Yun is the given name. The author mostly still uses Ye Fan and Bai Yunxi in the text – she’ll only use their pseudonyms when people are speaking or it’s obvious a thought is from someone else’s perspective.
*Natural physiques – a cultivation concept that basically means you have a natural talent for something. Can be anything, like talismans here, but can also be swords, formations, etc. It’s an inborn talent, like Xu Mingyang’s natural spiritual eyes.
*云海 (yunhai) – literally cloud sea and is a common name for places in cultivation stories. However, here, it’s a forest and not a sea, so I’ve translated it as Sea of Clouds.
