87: Goodbye, Pei Yu

By the time he finished his cultivation, it was already the next day. He went out to gather information on Coastal City. The Human Race and the Yao Race had both ceased their offensives for some reason. Gu Yuchuan didn't know if this was the calm before the storm or if the war was going to end with a whimper, but it didn't matter much to him anymore. All he had to do was prepare to return and manage his Linlang Pavilion, using vast resources to rapidly increase his cultivation.

Just as he arrived at his residence, an unexpected visitor appeared. It was Pei Yu. It made sense; now that the front lines were largely quiet, there was no need for so many troops to be stationed there. After all, the front lines required high-intensity defense and reconnaissance, making cultivation impossible. Having too many people there wasn't a good thing, so Pei Yu had returned.

Gu Yuchuan looked at Pei Yu. Indeed, her time on the battlefield had changed her significantly. She used to appear very indifferent and gentle, but now she was different. One could feel the Evil Qi on her from a distance. It was clear she had killed many people on the battlefield and achieved significant results; otherwise, she wouldn't possess such an Aura.

When she saw Gu Yuchuan, she hurried over and knelt down. "This subordinate greets the Great King. Congratulations to the Great King on advancing to the Foundation Establishment Stage and becoming a Demon General. I have also lived up to your trust and earned 100 Battle Merits. I haven't spent any and have saved them to offer to the Great King."

Gu Yuchuan helped her up. He was very gentle toward subordinates who were both loyal and had potential.

"Alright, there's no need for such formalities. Sit down and try the spirit tea I recently acquired; it's good stuff. As for your Battle Merits... 100 Battle Merits might be a lot to you, but they are nothing to me. I have several hundred myself. You should use them. The front lines are dangerous, so it's a good thing for you to enhance your cultivation and combat strength."

Pei Yu's eyes were already moist as she knelt down again. "The Great King is so good to me. I truly don't know how to repay you. I will definitely do my best for the Great King. Even if it means going through fire and water, I will do it at a single command from the Great King."

Gu Yuchuan was even more satisfied. A subordinate's loyalty is naturally pleasing, especially the loyalty of a useful one.

"Alright, I've spent so many resources nurturing you, how could I let you die so easily? Just Cultivate well on the battlefield. When the war ends and we return, our Bright Stream will have its own capable Great King. These two Magical Artifacts are for you. Now that you are in the Late Stage of Qi Refining, you can use High Grade Magical Artifacts. Use them for self-defense and don't refuse; if you were to die, my loss would be too great."

She reverently accepted the Magical Artifacts, and crystal-clear tears finally fell to the ground. "Rest assured, Great King, I will definitely speed up my cultivation and hone my strength. When I return, I will be the sharpest blade in the Great King's hand."

Gu Yuchuan signaled for her to dry her tears while he took a sip of spirit tea. He wasn't very good at handling such emotional scenes, which left him feeling a bit at a loss.

"Now that I have officially become a Demon General, don't be afraid of trouble in the army. If someone provokes you, you can use my name or the name of the Black Tortoise Demon General. If there's anything you can't handle, remember to find the Black Tortoise Demon General; he can solve it for you."

Pei Yu nodded. "Rest assured, Great King, I am not a Yao who looks for trouble, but I am not afraid of it either. If someone provokes me, I won't back down. By the way, Great King, I may have indeed attracted some trouble recently. Someone has their eye on my pearls. The pearls of us Five-Colored Clams can be refined into excellent Water Manipulation Beads with a little work. They allow monsters or Cultivators who aren't good at swimming to display their strength underwater. However, I've already spread the word that I am your subordinate, and no one has been observing me in secret these past few days."

Gu Yuchuan immediately thought of how he had been intercepted and attacked when he went out. That was likely related to this matter. They wanted the clam pearls, and since he was Pei Yu's backing, they naturally had to deal with him before they could deal with her. But why were the people hunting him from the Human Race? Could there be someone among them colluding with the Human Race? Not necessarily. If the Yao Race still had human spies after so many searches, then the Yao Race wouldn't even need to fight; they might as well just surrender. If they couldn't even solve internal issues yet wanted to expand, it was simply laughable.

The other party might have used money or something else to hire Human Race Cultivators to take action.

Gu Yuchuan thought for a moment before speaking. "Fine, I understand. I'll keep this in mind. During this time, identify exactly who wants your clam pearls. Once you're certain of the candidates, send me a message. It's simply insane that some of the Yao Race would want to attack their own kind during a time of war."

With his words, Pei Yu felt much happier. "Rest assured, Great King, I will go investigate this immediately and guarantee results within a few days."

Gu Yuchuan didn't ask how she planned to do it. This was a virtue a leader should have; you only need to look at the results. As for the process, there's no need to care too much as long as the outcome is fine.

After talking a bit more, he let Pei Yu go rest. He also needed to continue his cultivation. Today, he hadn't recited the Golden Light Incantation yet; it had to be recited a hundred times every day.

Pei Yu didn't go straight to rest. Instead, she went out to meet some of her colleagues and spread a rumor that she had a Water Manipulation treasure made from the essence of her own clam pearls, which had the same effect as a Water Manipulation Bead. Water Manipulation Beads weren't actually very High Grade treasures; they were rare simply because they were quite useless in the Cloud Sea Marsh. Most inhabitants of the Cloud Sea Marsh were aquatic tribes who were naturally most powerful underwater, so they didn't need them.

The trap was set. Whoever contacted Pei Yu would be the one plotting in the shadows.

Two peaceful days passed. On the third day, a Tiger Spirit at the Ninth Layer of Qi Refining found Pei Yu, saying he was willing to pay a high price for the Water Manipulation treasure. Pei Yu immediately knew someone had taken the bait. she secretly notified Gu Yuchuan to come and capture him, as she was no match for a Cultivator at the Ninth Layer of Qi Refining.

Gu Yuchuan arrived immediately and subdued the Tiger Spirit. He took the Tiger Spirit to see the Black Tortoise Demon General. He didn't have the authority to punish people in the army, but the Black Tortoise Demon General did.

The attendants at the mansion entrance saw Gu Yuchuan looking aggressive and immediately let him in. The Black Tortoise Demon General also received the news and received Gu Yuchuan in the main hall. He also wanted to know why the usually good-tempered Gu Yuchuan was so furious with a junior in the Qi Refinement Stage.