Shrouded Sky

Chapter 199 - Jade Pool Saintess

Ye Fan, unwilling to tangle with Sunset Clouds Sect, led Wang Shu and Er Lengzi away from the confrontation.

By the lakeside, shaded by lush trees and dotted with pavilions, the atmosphere was poetic and serene. The clamor faded, replaced by hushed whispers, as people’s hearts calmed. Prominent figures from Flatrock City, including those from Super Lucky Gambling House and various sects, had gathered.

Ye Fan, observing closely, was startled to spot the loudmouth Tu Fei.

“He’s here to stir trouble, no doubt,” Ye Fan frowned. Tu Fei was a chatterbox, fearless in his speech, capable of saying anything.

Tu Fei stood with several young men, some rugged, others exuding bandit-like vibes, utterly at odds with the elegance around them, resembling rogues.

“Those elders mentioned small-time bandits. Must be them,” Ye Fan thought, shifting away. He didn’t want Tu Fei spotting him, knowing it would spark chaos. With those guys around, trouble was inevitable, Tu Fei was no peacemaker.

“Why is the Jade Pool Saintess in Flatrock City? Just a simple tour?” someone speculated.

“Hard to say. Jade Pool Sacred Ground keeps a low profile; outsiders rarely know their affairs,” another replied.

The crowd buzzed with guesses, eyes fixed on the lakeside pavilion. Shrouded in mist, the Saintess’s true face was hidden, heightening anticipation to glimpse her immortal visage. Her figure, sculpted to divine proportions, was breathtaking, but her hazy allure captivated most, her voice gentle and melodic, like a warm breeze stirring hearts with a strange enchantment.

Only when her words ended did many snap out of their trance, realizing she’d spoken. Jade Pool Sacred Ground would display several stones for appraisal, offering generous rewards for keen insight.

“What a remarkable woman!” Ye Fan marveled inwardly. Her words rippled with Dao power, instinctively fostering goodwill. Her voice’s exact tone faded from memory, recalled only as sublimely beautiful.

“Is this the ‘immortal charm’ the elders mentioned?” he mused.

The Saintess felt extraordinary, her form and voice ethereal, almost unreal, as if she dwelt in a celestial palace. “Hazy” summed her presence.

At her gesture, white-clad maidens glided over the lake like butterflies, retrieving nine stones from the sapphire-like water, arranging them on the shore. The stones, ranging from a thousand kilo to palm-sized, looked unremarkable.

“All may approach to examine what makes these source stones unique,” the Saintess said, her voice like immortal music, dreamlike.

“Her voice alone is intoxicating. Marrying her would leave no regrets,” Tu Fei muttered, audible to those nearby.

The elders Ye Fan had seen earlier chuckled softly. “Those little bandits are here to make trouble.”

“They wouldn’t dare. They’re just gawking. Jade Pool Sacred Ground’s Grand Elder is present.”

“This generation’s Saintess is peerless, unmatched among peers. Even unguarded, she could dominate the Northern Region.”

Many surged forward to inspect the stones, eager for clarity. Ye Fan stayed put, wary of Ji Clan or Radiant Light Sacred Ground members spotting him, he’d be in trouble.

“Something’s calling me,” Er Lengzi said, dazed.

“I feel off too, blood racing, like some magic ahead,” Wang Shu added, puzzled.

Ye Fan was startled. “You sense something special?”

“Yeah, familiar yet strange, really weird,” Wang Shu described.

“It’s those nine stones,” Er Lengzi said, staring at the lakeside.

“Hush!” Ye Fan’s heart stirred. Zhang Wu had hinted that Wang Shu and Er Lengzi’s ancestral bloodlines were extraordinary, likely triggering this innate spiritual sense.

The stone village had three surnames: Zhang, descendants of the Celestial Source Master, and Wang and Lei, whose ancestors were adopted by the Master in his later years, their bloodlines unique, though details were vague.

Ye Fan, studying the Celestial Source Tome, felt no such sensation, yet these two were restless, astonishing him. “I need to get closer. I haven’t mastered ‘Heaven-Swapping Earth-Changing,’ but I know some basics.”

Retreating, he activated the technique, his bones shifting. His shoulders broadened, cheekbones rose, transforming his delicate features into a chiseled, commanding look, exuding sharpness, vastly different from before. “Won’t last long, but it should fool them for now.”

Wang Shu and Er Lengzi gaped, silenced by Ye Fan’s gesture. “Go forward too, but say nothing about what you sense. We’ll talk later.” They nodded, blending into the crowd.

Tu Fei approached the stones, studying them, then asked, “Jade Pool Sacred Ground’s fairy, if I explain these, what’s the reward?”

“You’ll be invited to stay at Jade Pool Sacred Ground, with some wishes granted,” a female disciple replied.

“My grandpa always rambled about Jade Pool Sacred Ground’s wonders, but I dare not go. I’d probably end up a prisoner, never leaving,” Tu Fei said.

“Are you here to cause trouble, little bandit?” a middle-aged woman’s voice came from the pavilion.

“No trouble, just looking,” Tu Fei stepped back. “My grandpa sends his regards.”

“Then behave,” the voice replied, falling silent.

Ye Fan’s interest piqued. A stay at Jade Pool Sacred Ground was a golden opportunity, especially as he lacked a Dao Palace technique. But the timing was off, his disguise incomplete.

The nine stones, dull and earthy despite being fished from the lake, seemed freshly mined. Ye Fan touched them, sensing an odd power unsettling his mind. Suddenly, he realized, this was the Primordial Mine’s aura, far stronger than the stones in Super Lucky’s ninth courtyard, on a different magnitude.

“I sense these stones are from that Forbidden Burial Ground,” Tu Fei declared.

A Jade Pool Sacred Ground disciple nodded. “Any other sensations?”

“Nope,” Tu Fei stepped closer, his big mouth running. “Can’t Jade Pool Sacred Ground disciples marry? I heard in ancient times, one or two Saintesses wed outsiders.”

The crowd gasped. This taboo topic was rarely broached, yet Tu Fei blurted it out. The disciple smiled, shaking her head, saying nothing.

“Tu Fei, stop playing mad. As a descendant of the Thirteen Warlords, daring to show up here? You won’t leave Flatrock,” someone sneered.

“Who’s spouting nonsense?” Tu Fei scanned the crowd.

“Your filthy words defile Jade Pool Sacred Ground’s fairy,” the voice taunted, shifting left and right, clearly a young expert, hard to pinpoint.

“Hypocrite, I voiced what many think. What’s wrong with that? Even the Jiang Clan’s Patriarch said so,” Tu Fei retorted.

“Lies! The Jiang Clan’s Patriarch wouldn’t say that,” someone rebuked, likely a Jiang youth prodigy.

“My mistake. It was the Radiant Light Sacred Lord,” Tu Fei slapped his forehead. “He said, Men who don’t want to woo the Saintess aren’t real men.”

The crowd erupted. Tu Fei’s audacity was staggering, sparking laughter. Radiant Light’s members fumed, itching to slap him for such slander.

“Stop your nonsense!” Without Jade Pool Sacred Ground’s no-fight rule, a brawl would’ve erupted.

“Was I wrong?” Tu Fei doubled down. “Look at Radiant Light. Having a Saintess is fine, but a Saint too? Historically, most Saintesses married Saints, future Patriarchs. Obvious, right? A Saint who can’t win the Saintess isn’t good enough to lead.”

The crowd was floored, barely stifling laughter to avoid offending Radiant Light. “Tu Fei, you’re begging for death!” Two dashing young men stepped forward, ethereal as immortals.

“Your Saint’s here, yet you two jump in?” Tu Fei taunted. “Your Patriarch’s wise. Men who don’t pursue the Saintess aren’t good men. You’re defending others, doomed to never be Saints, you’re not good men.”

The crowd chuckled, Tu Fei’s venom unmatched. “Enough, or you’re out,” Jade Pool Sacred Ground’s Grand Elder warned.

“Fine, I’ll shut up,” Tu Fei grumbled.

Ye Fan found it odd. Tu Fei yielded to Jade Pool Sacred Ground but relentlessly mocked Radiant Light, clearly biased.

Wang Shu and Er Lengzi had touched the stones, their eyes betraying unease, but they said nothing, retreating as Ye Fan instructed. Ye Fan lingered, studying the stones intently.

Suddenly, a man and woman approached, parting the crowd. The man was striking, like a jade tree; the woman, ethereal, outshining pearls and jade, pure as divinity.

“Radiant Light’s Saint and Saintess!” someone exclaimed.

Ye Fan frowned, recognizing Yao Xi, a bad encounter. He stepped back, blending into the crowd. “Tu Fei, I know you brought men to target us. You’ll be disappointed,” the Saint said, his smile radiant like a sun.

Some exude natural charisma effortlessly, and the Saint was such a figure, distinguished, towering above others, extraordinary. Yao Xi, breathtakingly beautiful, shone like a divine moon, her flawless skin otherworldly, radiating immortal aura, making others feel inferior.

Tu Fei scoffed, “Radiant Light Saint, what can I say? You’re much less wise than your Patriarch. You’re not a real man, no chance to lead. Our trade’s genius is sharper.”

Radiant Light’s members itched to thrash and kill him. The Saint’s smile held, silently watching.

“Let me be clear,” Tu Fei coughed. “You won’t be Patriarch. Why? You can’t marry the Saintess. She’s not yours.”

Radiant Light disciples nearly lunged, wanting to stomp him. “I’m telling the truth, like it or not. In our trade, we see people clearly,” Tu Fei said gravely. “Fairy Yao Xi won’t stay with Radiant Light. She’ll join us someday.”

“You’re quite the joker,” the Saint smiled, shaking his head. “I know your goal. Your men can’t kill us. Try when we leave Flatrock.”

“You’re missing my point,” Tu Fei’s mouth ran. “Haven’t you heard? Fairy Yao Xi gifted her scented panties to our trade’s genius…”

Yao Xi’s brows twitched, like mist veiling a moon, her lips parting. “Tu Fei, your days are numbered!”

Those who knew her saw her killing intent peak. Outside Jade Pool Sacred Ground, her sword would’ve swung. “Odd, you and our genius Ye Fan are already ‘entangled,’ allies of sorts, yet I sense strong killing intent?”