178: Ye Xingzhou leaves! Showdown...

Watching the excited crowd head towards the Heavenly Tribulation Dojo, Yue Xiyan turned her head and gave Li Shengyuan a meaningful look, then got up and excused herself, saying she needed to prepare.

Yue Qingmeng looked at Li Shengyuan, wanting to speak but hesitating, and ultimately followed her Master away.

Li Shengyuan naturally understood the meaning in Yue Xiyan's eyes.

Since he was choosing to break through here, he definitely had to sort out the matters between the three of them before she went into secluded cultivation...

Otherwise, if a heart demon tribulation arose during the Heavenly Tribulation, the consequences would be very severe!

The crowd gradually dispersed. After Li Shengyuan chatted with his parents, the two of them went to prepare for the celebration banquet five days later.

Ye Hangzhou walked up to him with a smile, congratulating him. The Coal Ball on his shoulder had gotten much fatter, indicating that living with Ye Hangzhou had indeed improved his diet considerably!

Glancing at Li Shengyuan, Coal Ball shifted into a comfortable position on Ye Hangzhou's shoulder and spoke, "Congratulations, you've finally broken through to the Second Rank!"

"You need to work harder too. If I leave you too far behind, I won't play with you anymore!" Li Shengyuan said with a smile.

"Mm..." Ye Hangzhou smiled slightly.

Then Coal Ball spoke, "Chancellor has summoned me, and the Six Demon Lords's heart has a restriction placed by the Demon Sect High Priest, which requires Chancellor to personally remove. The Insectoid Queen also needs to be handed over to Chancellor, so I need to return to the capital first!"

"That battleship will be left to you all. I'll teleport back myself."

Li Shengyuan blinked in surprise, then nodded and smiled, "That's good... It's just, after fighting side by side for so long, it feels a bit hard to part when you suddenly have to leave first!"

"Mm..." Ye Hangzhou smiled slightly.

The Coal Ball on Ye Hangzhou's shoulder, meanwhile, chewed on a medicinal pill and blurted out, "I'm not going to be gay with you, why are you being so sentimental!"

For a moment, everyone present fell silent, all looking at the fat Coal Ball on Ye Hangzhou's shoulder with stunned expressions.

Having spent a long time with Li Shengyuan, they naturally knew what being gay meant, as even Ye Hangzhou knew...

The usually calm and composed Ye Hangzhou's face was now flushed red. He forcefully patted Coal Ball's head.

"You didn't need to say that... Ouch..."

Coal Ball bared his bird beak, clutching his head in pain.

Looking at Ye Hangzhou's furious gaze and what he was thinking, Coal Ball suddenly realized what he had just said...

He couldn't help but laugh awkwardly, "Ha... hahaha..."

"Uh, I was just talking nonsense, don't overthink it, okay!"

Li Shengyuan, meanwhile, looked at Ye Hangzhou with a strange expression. He hadn't expected this guy, who usually didn't talk much, to be such a repressed pervert, remembering so clearly what he meant by being gay...

Then again, if he wasn't repressed, he wouldn't have gone to...

Li Shengyuan's expression suddenly changed, and he stopped his thoughts, looking at Coal Ball with apprehension. He couldn't let this guy blurt out his thoughts!

Otherwise, Ye Hangzhou would surely never let him off the hook!

After being scolded by Ye Hangzhou, Coal Ball finally behaved, standing pitifully on his shoulder, not daring to speak.

He finally understood the meaning of 'words can bring disaster'.

Feeling the strange gazes from Li Shengyuan and Shen Xinrong, Ye Hangzhou gritted his teeth, secretly hating it.

The Coal Ball on his shoulder shivered, then cautiously said, "I'll head back to the capital first. We'll catch up when you all arrive in the capital!"

"Mm, have a safe trip!" Li Shengyuan smiled and waved goodbye to him!

Generally speaking, when close buddies are going on a long journey, they should at least give each other a brotherly hug...

But thinking about what just happened, he decided against it...

After Ye Hangzhou left, Zixuan approached Li Shengyuan with a cold face and said indifferently, "His Majesty said that after your tribulation ends, she wants you to contact her personally!"

Looking at Zixuan's cold demeanor, Li Shengyuan smiled and made a gesture of raising his hand and patting downward at her...

Zixuan knew the meaning of this gesture all too well, and subconsciously wanted to cover her perky bottom.

After realizing, the coldness on her face instantly vanished, replaced by a blush of indignation as she glared at the smug Li Shengyuan.

She gritted her teeth and muttered, "Pervert..." then flew away directly.

Only Li Shengyuan, Princess Pingyang, and Shen Xinrong were left at the scene.

Shen Xinrong, holding Princess Pingyang's hand, came up to Li Shengyuan with a beaming smile.

Ever since the threesome more than a month ago, and having fought together on the battlefield, the relationship between the two women had become increasingly intimate.

Shen Xinrong chuckled, "Brother Shengyuan, you're quite the ladies' man. Even a strong woman like Miss Zixuan, who is close to His Majesty, is completely under your thumb!"

"Not at all... Aunt Shen, don't talk nonsense. There's nothing between us." Li Shengyuan defended himself.

"Then on the day you broke through, after you separated from Princess Pingyang and me, why were you with her early in the morning? And that night, before you were with us, you had an unusual encounter with Miss Zixuan, didn't you!"

Shen Xinrong looked at Li Shengyuan with a half-smile. Princess Pingyang remained silent, looking as if she would follow whatever Shen Xinrong said.

Li Shengyuan was a little helpless; he had been caught red-handed. However, he had no intention of arguing. Instead, he chuckled and changed the subject with a smile, "Aunt Shen, you and Princess Pingyang should go back first. Palace Master Yue has something to discuss with me. I'll be back soon."

Shen Xinrong came up to Li Shengyuan with a gentle smile, straightened his collar, and said softly, "You don't need to rush back tonight. It's better to spend some good time with them, master and disciple. Your relationship with them still needs to be sorted out."

"Palace Master Yue is about to break through to the Tribulation Stage, so she can't be careless!"

Looking at Shen Xinrong, who was as gentle and considerate as a wife, Li Shengyuan felt a warmth in his heart. He held her and Princess Pingyang's delicate hands and said with emotion, "It's truly wonderful to have you... But Aunt Shen, you're so perceptive, I can't hide anything from you!"

Shen Xinrong playfully rolled her eyes at Li Shengyuan and said crossly, "You never intended to hide it, did you? Who can't see the flirtation between you and Palace Master Yue!"

"But then again, it would be strange if nothing happened after a man and a woman spent a whole year alone outside!"

Li Shengyuan thought about it and realized she was right. His and Yue Xiyan's terms of address, tone, and the way they looked at each other were all different!

Having spent so long together in his Sea of Consciousness, they had long since developed a tacit understanding!

As the saying goes, the involved are confused, while bystanders are clear.

"Alright, Aunt Shen, then you two go back to the mansion first. I'm going to find Xiyan and Mengmeng!"

Shen Xinrong smiled gently, "Go. If you can't handle them, or if you lose one of them, your aunt and I will never forgive you, understand?!"

"Understood, please rest assured, Madam Shen Xinrong, I guarantee I will complete the mission!" Li Shengyuan replied with a smile, then disappeared from their sight.

It was Shen Xinrong, however, who heard the title 'Madam' and instantly blushed.

She pulled Princess Pingyang, who looked like she was just enjoying the show, and left.

Yuehua Palace's station, Palace Master's private courtyard.

As a top sect in the Northern Territory, Yuehua Palace had a large compound in Shanhai Pass.

As the Sect Master, Yue Xiyan had her own exclusive private courtyard.

At this moment, Yue Qingmeng pushed open the courtyard door, poked out her cute little head, and smiled at Yue Xiyan, "Master, were you looking for me?"

Taking Yue Qingmeng's small hand, Yue Xiyan looked at her smiling disciple, momentarily unsure how to speak.

Finally, she took a deep breath and said with sincere eyes, "Mengmeng, Master is sorry. There's something I've kept from you until now!"

Yue Qingmeng's expression remained unchanged. Instead, she looked directly into Yue Xiyan's eyes and smiled, "Master, are you going to talk about your relationship with Li Dage?"

Yue Xiyan was stunned into silence upon hearing this...

"Mengmeng, you knew all along?!"