Jiang Yan smiled faintly and said, "Gu Yao is a member of our Heavenly Academy. There is no problem with him living with us. We respect Gu Yao's decision, and this mission should not be a forced conscription, right?"
Gu Yao did not want to. Of course, he did not want Gu Yao to live on the territory of the City Lord's Mansion. He could fully imagine what kind of situation Gu Yao would face after moving in.
He was actually thinking for the sake of the City Lord's Mansion. Chi Changye was not someone to be trifled with due to his temperament. If they did something excessive, there might not be a way to resolve it in the end.
He was just being kind-hearted.
Elder He paid more attention to Chi Changye. When Chi Changye made an appearance after reaching the late Foundation Building stage as a sword cultivator, news of it naturally spread. With the strength of such a sword cultivator, how many people would admire and yearn for it? It would inevitably cause some people to be jealous, and Elder He, as one of them, was also in this category. However, Chi Changye's eyes were slightly lowered, his attitude indifferent, seeming unaffected by the outside world, making it impossible for Elder He to figure him out.
At this moment, he heard Gu Yao refuse the call from the City Lord's Mansion, and Jiang Yan also rejected on behalf of the Heavenly Academy. He paused for a moment while stroking his beard, looking at Gu Yao with a slightly unfriendly expression, and asked, "Young friend, is this your final decision?"
Gu Yao forced a smile and said, "Besides being an alchemist, I am also a renowned cultivator. I am willing to join everyone in resisting the sea beasts and restoring peace to Tianlin Continent as soon as possible." As he spoke, he had a righteous expression on his face, not weaker than the female cultivator who tried to suppress him with righteousness.
Lu Qiusheng almost laughed out loud, and the others also twitched their mouths, especially those who knew Gu Yao and knew that he was a good person, a very humble person. So it was hard to imagine him saying such righteous and lofty words in public. Now that he said it like this, the only possibility was that he was doing it on purpose.
However, the onlooking cultivators who were not familiar with him were stirred up with a sense of justice and fighting spirit in their hearts at this moment. Previously, they were almost swayed by the intentions of the City Lord's Mansion, but upon careful consideration, Gu Yao's presence on the frontline of the battle during this special and sensitive time was enough to represent his stance.
"Good, good! Then we'll wait for Alchemist Gu's good news!" Elder He suppressed his anger and said, then turned around and left. He came here personally not for Gu Yao; despite Gu Yao's high talent in alchemy, he was still only a Qi refining cultivator. Did it warrant him, as an elder of the City Lord's Mansion, personally welcoming him? He would wait until Gu Hu, the Lord of Hus, reached that level. What he really wanted to see was Chi Changye.
As they watched the City Lord's Mansion group leave, the crowd of onlookers buzzed once again. Lu Qiusheng gloated and said, "Junior Gu, you've offended the City Lord's Mansion."
Gu Yao blinked and said, "Offended them? Is it because I didn't move into the City Lord's Mansion? But what's the difference? Besides, the City Lord's Mansion doesn't have a mindset as narrow as yours."
"...Pfft!" Lu Qiusheng paused for a moment, then spat out with annoyance. This kid did it on purpose.
Late at night, a gentle smile floated in Chen Yeye's eyes as she gently brushed Gu Yao's hand and said, "Xiao Yao, just follow your heart in everything you do. Let's go to the market."
"Okay," Gu Yao smiled brightly.
Blinding the dog's eyes, this is Lu Qiusheng's idea.
Gu Yao is about to go back with Jiang Yan and the others. Watching this process, the Elder of Tianhai Gate frowned and said to Tian Feiyang, "You go with Senior Gu Dan and protect his safety."
"Yes, Elder." Tian Feiyang couldn't wait to spend more time with his younger brother. After bowing, he quickly followed Gu Yao and the others out.
"Elder..." the disciple next to him worriedly looked at the Elder of Tianhai Gate. Would this offend the City Lord's Mansion?
The Elder sighed, "Senior Gu Dan came to help our Tianhai Gate. How can we repay him with ingratitude? Besides," he glanced at the disciple beside him, "compared to the people from the City Lord's Mansion, they all came here the same way. Did Senior Gu Dan do more or did those people from the City Lord's Mansion do more?"
Even before Gu Yao arrived at Tianhai Gate, he had saved a group of commoners and several disciples of Tianhai Gate from the attack of the beast tide. When he arrived at Tianhai Gate, he immediately refined a batch of high-quality pills for Tianhai Gate without any delay. Just when he left Tianhai Gate, people from the City Lord's Mansion came, daring to use moral righteousness to suppress Gu Yao. In his eyes, it was extremely ridiculous.
The disciple moved his mouth but didn't say anything. He knew that the Elder was not in a very good mood. After the people from the City Lord's Mansion came, they turned the tables and made things difficult for the Elder, obstructing him at every turn. But when it came to battles against sea beasts, which sect had more experience than Tianhai Gate?
But the City Lord's Mansion was powerful, what could they do? If they offended the City Lord's Mansion, would there be a good outcome?
Upon returning to the City Lord's Mansion, the group was enraged. Ru Guofei, the female cultivator who invited Gu Yao, was the most furious. In her opinion, Gu Yao was not giving her face and embarrassed her in front of so many people. She had never experienced such humiliation from childhood to adulthood. Because of her background in the City Lord's Mansion, she was always admired wherever she went.
"Uncle He, what kind of person is this surnamed Gu? How dare he ignore our City Lord's Mansion! As long as we give the order, he will have nowhere to go on the Tianlin Continent!" Ru Guofei's first thought was to teach Gu Yao a harsh lesson, to let him know the power of the City Lord's Mansion.
Chi Changye's eyes filled with a gentle smile, he brushed Gu Yao's hand and said, "Xiao Yao, just follow your heart when you do things, let's go to the market."
"Okay," Gu Yao smiled brightly.
Blinding dogs eyes, this is Lu Qiusheng's idea.
Gu Yao was about to go back with Jiang Yan and the others. The Elder of Tianhaimen frowned slightly after witnessing this scene and said to Tian Feiyang, "You go with Master Gu and protect his safety."
"Yes, Elder." Tian Feiyang was eager to spend more time with his brother and hurriedly followed Gu Yao and the others.
"Elder..." The disciple next to him looked worriedly at the Elder of Tianhaimen, wondering if this would offend the Lord's Manor.
The Elder sighed and said, "Master Gu has come to help Tianhaimen. How can we repay him with ingratitude? Besides," he glanced at the disciple beside him, "compared to the people from the Lord's Manor, they are all the same. Who has done more, Master Gu or the people from the Lord's Manor?"
Before reaching Tianhaimen, Gu Yao had already saved a group of people and several disciples of Tianhaimen from the beast tide. After arriving at Tianhaimen, without wasting a moment, he refined a batch of high-quality elixirs for Tianhaimen. It was only after leaving Tianhaimen that people from the Lord's Manor arrived, dare to use righteousness to suppress Gu Yao. In his eyes, it was extremely ridiculous.
The disciple moved his mouth but didn't say anything. He knew that the Elder was not in a good mood. After the people from the Lord's Manor arrived, they turned the tables, making things difficult for the Elder and obstructing him at every step. But when it came to fighting the sea beasts, which sect had more experience than Tianhaimen?
But the Lord's Manor was powerful, what could they do? Offending the Lord's Manor, could there be a good outcome?
The group from the Lord's Manor who returned were furious. Ruang Xinhui, the female cultivator who invited Gu Yao, was especially angry. In her eyes, Gu Yao was disrespecting her and causing her to be embarrassed in front of so many people. From childhood to adulthood, when had she ever suffered such humiliation? Because she was from the Lord's Manor, she was always adored wherever she went.
"Uncle He, what does this Gu person think he is, daring to ignore our Lord's Manor? As long as our Lord's Manor gives the order, he will have nowhere to go on the Tianlin Continent!" Ruang Xinhui's first thought was to teach Gu Yao a harsh lesson and let him know the power of the Lord's Manor.
"Miss Ruan, don't be angry. This kind of person is not worth you going all out for. If you really are unhappy, there's no need to involve the City Lord's Mansion. With the few of us, we can make him fall flat on his face." Gu Yao said with righteousness that he wanted to participate in the battle with the sea beasts, but accidents are most likely to happen during the battle. With a little carelessness, one may end up in a situation where not even the bones remain.
This comment somewhat boosted Ruan Xinhui's self-esteem. She, Miss Ruan, is still being sought after by countless subordinates, and yet a mere little alchemist dares to compete with her.
Elder He spoke up at this time and said, "Don't act recklessly. If we are discovered, what will become of the reputation of our City Lord's Mansion?"
The more critical the situation, the less our City Lord's Mansion can afford to have any suspicious activities. If it leaks out that the people from the City Lord's Mansion were plotting against other cultivators, especially a famous alchemist like Gu Yao, the reputation of the City Lord's Mansion will plummet immediately.
The male cultivator's face first froze, then relaxed: "Elder He, I know what to do. I will never let the reputation of the City Lord's Mansion be tarnished." They can't personally intervene, nor can they let others take action? This matter is too simple.
Gu Yao settled down in the temporary residence of the Heavenly Academy, and what happened at the entrance quickly spread throughout the entire market, and even outside, making Gu Yao a hot topic among cultivators during their leisure time, forming two completely different opinions.
Some admire Gu Yao even more. On his way here, he had already participated in a battle with fellow academy cultivators, saved the people of a town and the cultivators there, and after arriving at Tianhaimen, he refined a batch of pills for Tianhaimen. These things are not secretive and had spread as soon as news of him reached here. Looking at how he continued to hurriedly come here without stopping after refining the pills, what's not worthy of admiration for such an alchemist?
Especially disciples of Tianhaimen, after knowing what Gu Yao had done, they were very grateful to him.
But there are also people who think that he doesn't know how to appreciate favors, and he doesn't even give face to the City Lord's Mansion. He is arrogant to such a degree even before reaching the Foundation Establishment stage. He looks down upon the City Lord's Mansion and, as an alchemist like him, shouldn't he be focused on pill refining at this moment?
Do you know how many cultivators are lacking pills right now for the battle? Many cultivators have died because they lacked pills for treatment, yet he would rather not refine pills and participate in some battle. How much combat power can an alchemist like him bring? Maybe he will even drag down the retreat of his fellow disciples on the battlefield. Can't he have a little self-awareness?
The second opinion spread further, and Lu Qiusheng, who had gone out in anger, returned again. If it weren't for others stopping him, he would have fought those people who were spewing nonsense. When these people were pressuring Gu Yao, did they not see how much they themselves had done?
Their behavior is simply putting Gu Yao in the firing line. There are clearly so many alchemists, why are they all targeting Gu Yao? Why don't they go and scold those alchemists who are unwilling to come to the frontlines?
It's just because they think it's easy to bully Gu Yao and the Heavenly Academy.
Ruan Xinhui smiled satisfactorily when the monk who had just returned from the market described the situation outside, especially the attack on Gu Yao. At that time, she was furious and it would be effortless to deal with a little monk like him with no foundation. First, she would ruin his reputation, and then...
"Send more people to monitor their movements. Miss Ruan is going to teach them a lesson."
"Yes, Miss Ruan."
Cuiyan Valley.
Hu Guzhu had been keeping an eye on the situation over at Tianhai Sect, especially after hearing that Gu Yao and his companions had followed them. So, whenever something happened there, he would be immediately informed.
"Someone is deliberately making things difficult for Master Gu? Are you sure who did it? Is it related to the Lord's Manor?" Even though he wasn't very scheming and didn't understand much of those twists and turns, he couldn't believe that there was no connection between Gu Yao's previous acceptance of the Lord's Manor's invitation and the subsequent attacks on him. Even if the investigation didn't show any link between the two, Hu Guzhu would still believe that it was related to the Lord's Manor.
Hu Guzhu still didn't have much time to manage the trivial matters of Cuiyan Valley. However, this time he found someone who wasn't too involved with the various forces in the valley, and he wouldn't completely trust them like before. He would periodically inquire to avoid being fooled by the people below.
"I also think it's highly possible," the person agreed with Hu Guzhu's view, "Master Gu Yao probably realizes that once he is invited into the Lord's Manor, he can only refine pills all day and cannot leave the Lord's Manor's territory. The pills he refines will all go to the Lord's Manor, and who knows how many will end up in the hands of external cultivators. They will use it to buy fame, and all the benefits will go to the Lord's Manor. How many people will remember Master Gu Yao, who keeps refining pills without rest, inside the Lord's Manor?"
"Yes, everyone understands this logic, but who let the Lord's Manor have such power? Once they understand that Master Gu Yao has offended the Lord's Manor, some people will definitely not speak up for him and will instead fan the flames behind the scenes. Give the order, I will personally bring a group of alchemists to sort things out and leave immediately."
The subordinates hesitated for a moment, but immediately carried out the order to prepare for the journey. If the Valley Lord personally went to Tian Shui Market, they wouldn't dare to treat Gu Yao harshly. The people from the Lord's Manor wouldn't dare to behave that way towards the Valley Lord.
However, the Valley Lord's attitude towards Master Gu Yao is a bit too good, right? As soon as he heard that Master Gu Yao was being wronged, he wanted to go immediately. As long as the Valley Lord shows up, it's obvious that Master Gu Yao will immediately escape from his predicament.