Chapter 974, You Don’t Have to Work So Hard

Translator: Jon

Translation Checker: Silavin

 

When Lu Ye arrived at the Summit of Bamboos, he saw Yi Yi glancing at his bamboo house. Amber had transformed into its original form as it crouched down and growled at the building.

 

Upon closer look, Lu Ye furrowed his brows. That was because the bamboo house was surrounded by Wards, which showed that someone was inside the building.

 

The traces of the Wards were exposed because Yi Yi had wanted to enter the bamboo house and do a cleanup, but she triggered the Wards and was driven off.

 

Something wasn’t right. Shui Yuan was a Divine Ocean Realm Master. She would’ve discovered it if anyone had barged into this place. Since the person was staying there, Shui Yuan must’ve approved it.

 

However, this was Lu Ye’s bamboo house on his Spirit Peak. Who could make Shui Yuan give in?

 

Just as Lu Ye was doubtful, a beautiful face appeared at the window on the second floor. The person must’ve noticed the noise outside, so she decided to have a look.

 

As their eyes met, Lu Ye was astounded. “Madam?”

 

The person who stayed there was none other than Nian Yuexian, who had said she needed to go on a retreat.

 

Amber immediately shrank to the size of a cat and appeared obedient. The tiger was no longer as ferocious as earlier.

 

“Why are you here, Madam?”

 

Nian Yuexian glanced at him and replied, “I’m here to cultivate my power in seclusion. I had told Shui Yuan that I wanted to stay in your place.”

 

Upon hearing that, Lu Ye cupped his fists. “I’m sorry, Madam. I didn’t know that. We’ll take our leave now.”

 

Then, he beckoned to Yi Yi and Amber before leaving in a hurry.

 

Soon, he figured out that since Nian Yuexian wanted to go on a retreat, she had to look for somewhere safe and tranquil. She was an independent cultivator. Although Bing Zhou was expansive, she had nowhere else to go other than Grand Sky City.

 

However, it was apparent that Grand Sky City wasn’t a suitable place. The Crimson Blood Sect was her best option.

 

Apart from Shui Yuan, rarely any disciple would stay here. Also, no one would dare to disturb Nian Yuexian with Shui Yuan around. She didn’t expect to be interrupted by Yi Yi and Lu Ye.

 

Anyway, it seemed that she loved snatching Lu Ye’s bamboo houses away.

 

That was what happened in Blue Flame Mountain Pass. The first bamboo house Lu Ye built was occupied by the woman, and now, she did the same thing again.

 

The territory of Mount Ao was vast with many Spirit Peaks, but she deliberately chose the Summit of Bamboos and went on a retreat.

 

It wasn’t like there was anything Lu Ye could do about it.

 

When he returned to the Summit of Fortitude, he saw Shui Yuan preparing a meal in the kitchen while Lin Yinxiu assisted her. It was obvious that Lin Yinxiu had never done such a thing before as it was a mess, but she seemed to enjoy doing it.

 

Xiao Xinghe was nowhere in sight, though.

 

“Where’s the Third Senior Brother?” Lu Ye asked.

 

“He went to Lunarmere to catch some fish,” Shui Yuan replied. Disciples of the Crimson Blood Sect loved eating Blood Sturgeons from Lunarmere. It was the same case for Li Baxian and Xiao Xinghe. They hadn’t returned to the Sect in years, so when they did, they would catch some Blood Sturgeons.

 

“I need some resources, Second Senior Sister,” Lu Ye said.

 

He didn’t return to Mount Ao only for a visit. The reason he made a detour was for this matter.

 

Lu Ye could earn a fixed amount of battle points every month. The battle points were sufficient for him as long as he wasn’t wasteful, but he had few Contribution points left.

 

Although he didn’t badly need Contribution points, he would have to use it sometimes.

 

For example, it cost him quite some Contribution points to purchase a new Spirit Boat from the Vault of Providence from his team. It also required Contribution points when he made use of the Amulets to steal from the Heavens.

 

Anyway, it was easy for him to get Contribution points. He just had to sell some things to the Vault of Providence.

 

Previously, Lu Ye had blackmailed the major Sects of Thousand Demon Ridge twice on the Spirit Creek Battlefield. The resources he had acquired were worth several ten million Contribution points, and they were all stored in the treasure vault of the Crimson Blood Sect. Now that Lu Ye wanted to use them, Shui Yuan naturally wouldn’t stop him.

 

After getting the Control Gem that could unlock the treasure vault, Lu Ye headed straight to the place. He was familiar with the area.

 

The treasure vault was located right on the Summit of Fortitude. With the Control Gem in his hand, he unlocked many enchantments and entered the treasure vault, which was a cave that stored all sorts of cultivation resources and Spirit Artifacts.

 

After getting a lot of items, Lu Ye stepped out of the treasure vault and arrived at the Sanctum of Providence where he sold the items he had collected. His Contribution points were increasing fast. It wasn’t until he had nearly a million Contribution points that it stopped increasing.

 

The amount of Contribution points could last him a long time.

 

When darkness descended, the four of them were seated outside the kitchen as they had a taste of Shui Yuan’s dishes.

 

Lu Ye and Xiao Xinghe proposed a toast to each other. Even Shui Yuan, who usually disliked her Junior Brothers drinking wine, gulped down several cups of wine as well.

 

Lin Yinxiu had no idea how intoxicating wine could be, so her face soon turned red. If not for the fact that she was a Real Lake Realm Master, she would’ve collapsed.

 

The atmosphere around the table was harmonious. On the other hand, Zhou Wang and the others, who were confined to the Spirit Boat, could only watch from afar with envious gazes. As they thought about what awaited them, they felt bitter.

 

It wasn’t until the middle of the night that they returned to their rooms and got some rest.

 

The next day, Lu Ye and the others were ready to set off. Shui Yuan advised, “Don’t make a reckless move when you come across any trouble. Old Man is in Grand Sky City now. Go and look for him if anyone makes things difficult for you.”

 

“Yes, Second Senior Sister,” Lu Ye and Xiao Xinghe replied in unison.

 

“Go now. Come back again when you have time.” Shui Yuan waved her hand.

 

“Take care, Second Senior Sister.” Lu Ye and Xiao Xinghe saluted her.

 

A moment later, the Spirit Boat turned into a ray of light and shot into the sky.

 

On the Summit of Bamboos, Nian Yuexian watched silently on the second floor of the bamboo house. It wasn’t until the Spirit Boat was out of sight that she waved her hand and activated the enchantments around the building to resume her retreat.

 

In the Ministry of Laws in Grand Sky City, Qian Wudang had some free time as he didn’t have much work to deal with. Given how rare it was for him to be able to spend his time freely, he naturally wouldn’t want to stay in his office.

 

He stepped out of the hall and was ready to head to the Ministry of Orders. He needed to tell Fan Xiangyi how miserable his life had been.

 

After Lin Yinxiu was gone, he would frequently send her messages, but she would rarely reply to him. As such, he was always worried that she might run into trouble or come across enemies that were too powerful.

 

When he passed by the Hunting Pavilion, he stopped in his tracks and entered the place. The chubby old man was asleep with his head on the table and snoring loudly. The veins on Qian Wudang’s forehead bobbed as he stepped forward and knocked on the table.

 

Only then did the old man lift his head with sleepy eyes. When he made out Qian Wudang’s face, he was furious. “Why did you disturb me when I was asleep? Is this what a Commander is supposed to do?”

 

Qian Wudang was so exasperated that he laughed. “Is this how you take charge of the Hunting Pavilion?”

 

The old man straightened up. “I’ve been working hard all my life. Considering my old age, I just want to spend the rest of my life peacefully. I no longer have any aspirations. What’s wrong? Are you going to punish me for not doing my work properly? Come on. Send me to jail right away so that I can have some peaceful time there.”

 

Qian Wudang felt helpless at that. “You were already like this when you were young. Why are you getting worse as you age?” He wasn’t in the mood to bicker with him, so he changed the topic. “By the way, has Lu Yi Ye completed the task?”

 

The old man was surprised. “Yinxiu is in his team. Why are you not aware of what’s going on with them?”

 

Qian Wudang felt his heart aching at the mention of this.

 

He had been strict with Lin Yinxiu over the years, so the moment she had her freedom, she no longer wanted to be restrained. She even rarely replied to Qian Wudang’s messages.

 

“I’m asking you a question!” Qian Wudang acted sternly as the Commander of the Ministry of Laws.

 

Still, the old man decided to tease him by saying with a smile, “Yinxiu doesn’t want to contact you, does she? I told you it’s not easy raising a girl. It’s not a good thing to be overly protective, but you never listened to me. Although Yinxiu looks meek and obedient, she’s just like her Mother.”

 

The next instant, Qian Wudang turned around to leave. The old man took his arm and asked, “Why are you leaving in a hurry?”

 

Qian Wudang snapped. “I have nothing to say to you, Old Man. Let go of me!”

 

“I haven’t finished my words yet. Don’t you want to know what’s going on with Lu Yi Ye?”

 

Qian Wudang stopped struggling. “Go ahead.”

 

“Nothing’s happening. I haven’t seen him for quite a while.”

 

Qian Wudang said meditatively, “In other words, he hasn’t completed the most recent task. Was he merely lucky that he was able to finish the last two tasks quickly?”

 

“I think so.” The old man nodded.

 

Qian Wudang was relieved. “It’s only normal. No one can be lucky for a long time.”

 

As soon as he finished speaking, he turned around and saw a familiar figure entering the place with a saber.

 

“Senior, I’m here to return the jade slip.” Lu Ye was shocked the moment he entered the Hunting Pavilion. “You’re here as well, Commander.”

 

Qian Wudang flashed a smile at him. “Have you completed the task?”

 

“Yes.” As Lu Ye spoke, he fished out the jade slip and passed it to the chubby old man.

 

“You’ve done a great job.” Qian Wudang praised him. It only took Lu Ye several days to complete each task for the first two times, but it took him half a month this time, which was how fast a team could normally achieve. After giving it some thought, Qian Wudang said, “You don’t have to work so hard as you have to focus on increasing your power. Only when you become more powerful will you be able to finish your tasks more efficiently.”

 

“Yes,” Lu Ye replied nonchalantly before saying to the old man, “Where are the jade slips you’ve shown me before?”

 

“Here they are.” The old man fished out the jade slips again. These jade slips had been with him for a long time as no one was willing to take them on.

 

Qian Wudang furrowed his brows. He had just told Lu Ye not to work so hard, but the latter was ready to accept a new task. [How dare he ignore my advice?]

 

Just as he was ready to persuade Lu Ye to let Lin Yinxiu get some rest, Lu Ye took those jade slips and returned them to the old man. “I’ve completed these tasks.”

 

The old man and Lu Ye stared at each other for quite a while.

 

“What do you mean?” The old man was puzzled.

 

“Didn’t you tell me I could capture the targets first and go through the process of accepting the tasks later? Doesn’t it work like this?”

 

The old man came to his senses and asked in disbelief, “Are you saying that you’ve captured all of these targets?”

 

“They’re waiting for punishments at the prison.” Lu Ye lifted his thumb and pointed behind him.

 

The old man turned to look at Qian Wudang, who was reading a message sent to him by those from the prison. Upon noticing the old man’s gaze, he nodded with a doubtful expression.

 

He was just thinking that completing a task in half a month was how fast a law enforcement team could usually achieve.

 

However, it wasn’t normal when Lu Ye managed to complete six tasks in just half a month.

 

[How did he achieve this?]