Myriad Rivers to the Sea

Chapter 1083: The Strange Interaction

Li Yu stood before the paralyzed woman while the campfire cast dancing shadows across his hardened expression. The cold reality of the martial path continued to taste bitter in his mouth and a heavy sigh escaped his lips once again. He raised his hand and gathered a dense orb of spatial Qi in his palm. The twisting energy hummed with destructive intent as he thought about killing them off right away and just being done with the headache. He helped them without thinking about getting anything in return so it did not really matter if they were to just die by his hand now.

Just as he prepared to thrust his palm forward and shatter Seline into dust since she was like a mortal person in front of him now, Elysia drifted down from the sky and placed a gentle hand over his wrist.

"While this was a good reminder for you about the cruelty of things, you should not let anger lead your actions either," Elysia advised with a soft and melodic voice. "You have already secured their lives with the soul seal. There is no need to waste resources that you have already spent so much time repairing."

Li Yu frowned and lowered his hand while the spatial Qi dissolved back into the ambient air. He looked at the Ancestor and waited for her to elaborate but he already knew what she meant. Li Yu had indeed let his emotions guide him far too much, first to help them and now to kill in his anger.

"They are still two powerful experts that you can use to your advantage," Elysia pointed out while gesturing toward the two sisters resting on the earthen bed. "A Sovereign and an Origin Awakening expert hold significant value and at your level are certainly useful to you. If you do not wish to use them in battle, they can serve you in other ways. At the very worst, they can take care of the fish back home at your Five Star Lakes. Tending to the gardens and feeding the fishes are a fitting punishment for a failed betrayal."

Seline laid frozen on the dirt and her mind spun with panic. She could hear every word they said but her Sovereign strength remained locked tight beneath the ethereal chains. She was torn between the humiliation of having to serve a master and the primal desire to keep living. She did not know which path she would actually prefer if given the choice but the terrifying reality of her situation dawned on her. Now that she was bound by the Ancestor, she could not even take her own life if she wanted to. Detonating her own core was impossible without the explicit permission of the human youth standing over her.

Li Yu looked at the two sisters and ultimately calmed down a bit while deciding to keep them alive so they could serve him. However, his current mood was ruined and he did not even want to look at them anymore, at least not right now. The betrayal was still raw and he wanted them gone from his sight.

He reached into his storage ring and pulled out a high tier communication token adorned with the crest of the Zhan Clan. He channeled a surge of Qi into the jade surface and asked one of the elders from the Zhan Clan base to come and take the prisoners away. They were still injured after all and needed a safe place to fully recover before they could be put to real work.

A few moments passed in quiet anticipation before the space above the silver grove began to violently tremble. The fabric of reality tore open and a pressure descended upon the campsite. The silver trees bent toward the earth under the heavy aura while Borum and Garren took a step back to brace themselves.

An older man stepped out from the spatial rift and floated down to the grass. Elder Jin wore luxurious flowing robes woven from golden silk and carried an ornate folding fan in his right hand which were both out of the norm for a Zhan Clan elder. He possessed the overwhelming cultivation of a Creation Lord and his mere presence made the surrounding world feel small and fragile.

Seline felt her heart stop beating as she stared at the newly arrived expert. Her mind blanked and her world view shattered into pieces. She was a Sovereign, practically the top of the power in this realm and this man was immensely stronger than her. For a Karma Severing youth to casually summon someone so strong just to come and act as a transport escort was unthinkable. It meant the boy she planned to murder belonged to a lineage so powerful that her entire Mirage Dragion race on this realm would be wiped out with a single passing thought. The realization filled her with a deep dread and confusion of who he really was.

"Hello young Li Yu," Elder Jin greeted with a warm smile as he snapped his fan shut and offered a polite nod. "I received your message and came as quickly as I could. What seems to be the trouble out here in the wilds?"

Li Yu returned the nod with a bow and pointed toward the two sisters resting on the earthen bed. He told Elder Jin what happened over the last few days and how this situation came to be. He explained the battle at the trade hub, the healing process, the sudden betrayal and the soul seal that now bound them to his will. He asked the elder to take them back to the Zhan Clan base so they could be secured while they recovered.

Elder Jin listened to the story while stroking his short beard. He walked over to the earthen bed and inspected the two women with a keen and appraising eye. The elder noted their shimmering dragon scales, their vibrant red hair and their incredibly beautiful features. A wide and knowing grin spread across the face of the Creation Lord as he turned back to Li Yu and nodded his head with exaggerated understanding.

"Yes, of course," Elder Jin said with a rich laugh that echoed through the grove. "You went through all that trouble and spent days healing them, just doing it out of the kindness of your own heart. I am sure it has nothing to do with them being beautiful sisters and strong ones at that."

Li Yu blinked and his brow furrowed in confusion as he tried to process the sudden shift in tone. "Elder Jin, I assure you I only healed them because they were injured."

"There is no need to be modest with me, boy" Elder Jin interrupted while waving his fan dismissively.

"Their Mirage Dragion lineage is quite rare too and from what I can tell, their bloodline is quite pure. You have an excellent eye for quality, truly a man with fine tastes. They would make an excellent pair to warm your bed once you return home. I will make sure they are healed quickly and fed the best pills so they can return to your side in peak condition. The wilds are cold after all and a young man needs proper companionship on the path towards the Dao." Elder Jin with a perverted look on his face.

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Li Yu felt a vein pulse in his forehead as he stared at the esteemed Creation Lord. The older man was treating the situation like Li Yu had just procured two exotic dancers for a private estate. Seline could only widen her eyes in horror as the conversation took a bizarre and degrading turn.

‘Was this his idea the entire time? He just wanted us for those sorts of things?’ Seline dreaded, noting how it's always the ones you least suspect that would be like that. However, what could she do now? It was an impossible thing to escape now.

"Zhan Tian would be very proud of you," Elder Jin continued while giving Li Yu a hearty pat on the shoulder. "He would be thrilled to see his grandson acting just like he did in his youth. Your grandfather had quite the reputation for collecting rare beauties back in the day and there is nothing wrong with following in those legendary footsteps! Youth is for playing and having fun after all!"

The elder was clearly stating that Li Yu wanted their beauty and was praising him for the bold acquisition. Li Yu rubbed his temples and let out a long breath to calm his rising frustration at the misunderstanding.

‘How did someone like him reach Creation Lord? How did he become an elder of the clan?’ Li Yu thought to himself.

"Elder Jin," Li Yu asked with a dangerously calm voice. "Should I tell my grandfather Zhan Tian that you are out here talking about his youthful reputation and accusing his grandson of collecting the same?"

The threat hung in the crisp night air and Elder Jin finally shut up. The Creation Lord coughed awkwardly and adjusted the collar of his golden robes while glancing away, finally ending that kind of conversation. He knew Zhan Tian would likely beat him through a mountain range if he heard such gossip being spread around the younger generation. However, the elder still managed to give Li Yu a sly wink when he thought others were not looking.

The elder actually began to quickly think that Li Yu was just saying this and doing this for appearances. He was still too young to accept his own nature and wanted to keep a good looking image for himself with others.

‘He will learn that once you are older you stop caring about what others think about you. That you should accept yourself and your desires.’ Elder Jin thought to himself as the perverted look on his face returned.

It became incredibly clear to Li Yu and the others that this powerful elder was somewhat of a pervert and lacked the stoic dignity usually associated with his cultivation realm. The eccentric nature of the older man was once again fully revealed a moment later when Elder Jin leaned in close and lowered his voice to a conspiratorial whisper.

"You have nothing to be ashamed of," Elder Jin told him while nudging Li Yu in the ribs with his elbow. "We men of culture must stick together and take care of one another. The world doesn’t understand us. I myself have a total of fifteen wives and over thirty concubines waiting for me back at my various estates. Building a proper household requires ambition and a broad appreciation for the many wonders of the Dao."

Li Yu took a slow step backward and stared at the elder in stunned silence. The sheer audacity and numbers of the brag left him speechless. He summoned a supreme expert to handle two prisoners and the man was using the opportunity to boast about his sprawling harem. However, deep down, Li Yu was actually really impressed that the elder could have so many wives and concubines. Not because Li Yu wanted that for himself but the logistics involved, the vigor the elder must have and the sharp mind to prevent them from killing him was all very impressive.

"I really like your style," Elder Jin added with another rich laugh while snapping his fan open to cool his face. "Snatching up two sisters like this is a very bold move. When I was your age I was barely getting by in the cultivation world and here you are with this level of strength and women. It shows initiative, young man. I envy you!"

"Please just take them away," Li Yu pleaded while gesturing toward the spatial rift. He wanted this ridiculous interaction to end before his mind fractured. "Take them back to the base and use them as a source of information for the Zhan Clan. The training time period is ending soon and they could be of help to the clan with the information they know about this realm. They might possess strategic knowledge regarding the surrounding territories and the coalition forces."

Elder Jin nodded his head and his demeanor shifted back to a semblance of professional duty for a brief moment. He understood the strategic value of the Sovereign realm captive and the intelligence they could provide regarding the shifting power dynamics of the Mosaic realm.

"Of course," Elder Jin agreed while tapping his fan against his palm. "More information is always better when charting new borders. I will have the people in charge of such things speak with them once they are settled in the medical pavilion. We will extract whatever knowledge they hold and the layout of the region some more."

The Creation Lord gave Li Yu a jade slip. “In there is all of the reported back information from the clan members from both the Li and Zhan Clans. You can check out what everyone has experienced and perhaps decide on a path forward yourself for the remaining time.” This might be one of the few times he sounded like an elder.

Elder Jin then waved his hand and a gentle bubble of Qi enveloped Seline and the still unconscious Alys. The earthen bed crumbled away as the two sisters were lifted into the air and floated toward the shimmering spatial tear. Seline still did not know how she should feel as she was carried away from the Karma Severing youth and handed over to the eccentric elder.

As Elder Jin prepared to step back through the rift, he paused and looked over his shoulder. The professional demeanor vanished once again and the sly grin returned to his weathered face. He really did like Li Yu, thinking that he found one of his own within the youth of the clan and one that had such good tastes as well.

"Do not worry about a thing, Li Yu," Elder Jin called out while giving Li Yu one final reassuring nod. "While they are recovering under my care, I will give them some ‘secret’ manuals to the sisters. I have a few rare texts detailing how to serve you in various ways that I am sure you will find useful. I will ensure they study the materials thoroughly so they are fully ready for you when they return to your side."

Li Yu opened his mouth to protest but the words died in his throat as Elder Jin was already gone. He stood there completely stunned by the sheer absurdity of the promise. He had raised his hand to stop the elder and correct the misunderstanding but he was too late.

Elder Jin offered a final cheerful wave directly after his words and stepped through the spatial tear. The fabric of reality mended itself instantly and the heavy pressure of the Creation Lord vanished from the silver grove. The campfire crackled in the silence that followed and left Li Yu staring at the empty space where the elder had just been standing.

Faen sat on her log and carefully sheathed her weapons while trying very hard to hide the amused smile pulling at the corners of her lips. Borum and Garren exchanged a confused glance as the rock elementals did not understand the nuances of human romance or the strangeness of the powerful elder.

Li Yu dropped his face into his hands and groaned loudly into the quiet night. He survived a war, healed two powerful people and bound them to his will. Yet the most exhausting part of the entire week was dealing with the shameless assumptions of Elder Jin. The wild events of the day left him feeling drained but the departure of the two sisters finally allowed a true sense of peace to settle over the camp.