After such a big event where everyone who survived was physically and mentally exhausted, although they knew that the Metal Devouring Beasts that were buried below wouldnât die so easily, whether it was Yun Xuan or Ruan Xin Yu, neither of them had any desire to dig them out right now.
Instead, Ruan Xin Yu took out a small Universe Bag and handed it to Yang Kai.
âWhatâs this?â Yang Kai asked, somewhat confused.
âYour spoils,â Ruan Xin Yu grinned, âWhile you were resting, I took it off of the Charm Monster, guess what was inside?â
Yang Kai paused for a moment before offhandedly saying, âProbably a bunch of valuable refined metals.â
âHow did you know?â Ruan Xin Yu immediately felt like something was caught in her throat.
Yang Kai simply grinned, âThe Charm Monster previous said that those Metal Devouring Beasts were hers. Since that was the case, then these Monster Beasts showing up here wasnât an accident but the deliberate actions of the Charm Monster. She let them devour the Sun Tin Ore and then collected their refined products. Moreover, when we were exploring the mine, we never found any traces of refined minerals excreted by the Metal Devouring Beasts. Everything must have been collected by the Charm Monster and stored inside her Universe Bag.â
Yang Kaiâs sudden analysis made Yun Xuanâs beautiful eyes shine brilliantly.
Ruan Xin Yu also began seeing him in a better light, âYou... Iâd never have guessed it but it seems your wit is also quite sharp.â
Smiling as she followed up, âThereâs a lot of refined Sun Tin inside that bag, if you take it and sell it all, you can earn a lot of Crystal Stones.â
Yang Kai thought about it for a while before throwing the Universe Bag back to Ruan Xin Yu and shaking his head, âYou lost so much this time, after returning, youâll need to offer Bold Independent Union some kind of explanation, so you should hold on to these things.â
Ruan Xin Yu smiled happily and accepted. She had also thought of this point but seeing how the Charm Monster was basically killed by Yang Kai single-handedly, she had still offered the battleâs spoils to him first.
Yun Xuan opened her mouth as if she wanted to say something, but eventually chose not to.
âWe should leave here now, Iâll escort you two to a nearby town,â Yang Kai got up first. This sentence made Yun Xuan somewhat confused as she turned a slightly suspicious look towards him.
This place was on the border of Bold Independent Unionâs territory. Two or three dayâs journey was a small city that the group had passed on their way here.
Half a day later, the group of three left the forest and in a small nearby village, Yang Kai rented a carriage and let Yun Xuan and Ruan Xin Yu sit inside while he acted as the driver and proceeded towards the city.
This bit of gentle consideration improved Ruan Xin Yuâs impression of him and even caused Yun Xuan to smile softly.
After the two women chatted idly for a while, Yun Xuan succumbed to her fatigue and fell asleep. Ruan Xin Yu, now bored, hopped out of the carriage and sat side by side with Yang Kai, resting her head on her delicate hand as she stared fixedly at Yang Kai who was himself concentrating on waving the whip.
âWhy are you staring at me?â Being observed in such a manner made Yang Kai feel somewhat uncomfortable.
âIâm just thinking about who or what you are,â Ruan Xin Yu grinned, âYou were injured so heavily, yet now youâre basically bursting with energy?â
âMy resilience is just a bit better than ordinary people.â
âI noticed,â Ruan Xin Yu gently nodded, âBeing young is good.â
âYou consider yourself old?â Yang Kai laughed as he glanced over at her.
âCompared to you at least. Iâm almost thirty years old, the same as Yun Xuan,â Ruan Xin Yu laughed somewhat self-deprecatingly.
âBetween you and Yun Xuan, what happened? Previously you two couldnât stand being together, but now youâre practically acting like family. Are all women so fickle?â
When Yang Kai asked this, Ruan Xin Yu fell silent, her pretty face flashing a trace of sadness.
Seeing this unexpected reaction, Yang Kai knew he had asked something he shouldnât have and quickly shrugged, âIf you donât want to say it, just pretend I never asked.â
However, Ruan Xin Yu shook her head and muttered, âWe really should have been one whole family... Do you know what Yun Xuanâs real status is?â
âI only know that her identity is not simple,â Yang Kai replied casually. Whether it was Grandmaster Ma from the Artifact Hall or the former Transcendent Realm master Sun Ying, both of their attitudes towards Yun Xuan were quite polite and accommodating, even somewhat respectful. If she was just an ordinary Bold Independent Union disciple, such a display would have been impossible.
âItâs really not simple,â Ruan Xin Yu quietly glanced back and upon seeing Yun Xuan still asleep, she quietly said, âYun Xuan is actually the daughter of the Unionâs current master!â
Yang Kai couldnât help stared at her blankly.
âThatâs right, Bold Independent Unionâs Union Master.â
âThen why is she...â
With such an identity, Yun Xuan shouldnât be out here in the forest completing missions, but instead be occupying some important position. On top of that, she didnât have the demeanor that the young lady of a big force should have.
âShe has her reasons,â Ruan Xin Yu took a soft breath, âI can tell you, but you have to promise not to spread it around.â
âDo I look like someone who likes to gossip?â Yang Kai gave her a blank look.
Ruan Xin Yu looked at him seriously for a moment before nodding, âYun Xuan had a younger brother with extraordinary aptitude. Even at a very young age, he displayed talent comparable to any core disciple of a first-class Sect, but because of our Bold Independent Unionâs special system, the Union Lord intentionally let him start from the bottom of the ladder, making him go out and participate in missions as part of a team just like any other ordinary disciple. He performed quite well, and from his initial position, he quickly rose to become a team captain who was highly respected by his team members.â
Seemingly remembering this sweet past, Ruan Xin Yuâs face overflowed with smiles as she rambled on about a few random anecdotes.
Although these things seemed irrelevant to Yang Kai, he didnât interrupt her reminiscence.
âHowever, if you often walk next to the river, how can your shoes not get wet?â Ruan Xin Yuâs voice suddenly fell a lot, âOn what was supposed to be a routine mission, the Young Lord unfortunately died, and his team was almost completely annihilated, with only one member barely managing to survive.â
âYun Xuan loved her younger brother very much, so when he died, she blamed the Union Lord, saying that if it werenât for his stubborn insistence that the Young Lord work his way up from the bottom of the Union, he wouldnât have suffered such a fate. After that, Yun Xuan announced that she would discard her identity as the First Young Lady and like her young brother work her way up from the grassroots level of Bold Independent Union...â Ruan Xin Yuâs eyes were a little red as her voice gradually began to choke up.
Yang Kai remained silent and indifferent, not showing any outward changes in expression.
âShe obviously made that choice in protest against the Union Lord and also to complete the task the Young Lord had failed to finish,â Ruan Xin Yu sighed, âDo you know why Yun Xuan doesnât hate you for taking her innocence, even not showing any meaning of trying to hold you responsible?â
âWhy?â
âBecause when her brother died, he just happened to be twenty years old at the Immortal Ascension Boundary Seventh Stage!â Ruan Xin Yu smiled miserably and added, âSeeing you now, like this, alive and well, she simply canât bring herself to hate you!â
Yang Kai gently took a breath and thought for a moment before asking, âThe only survivor from her younger brotherâs team was you, right?â
Ruan Xin Yu was dumbfounded, but soon nodded gently, âYour head is really quite good. En, I was a member of the Young Lordâs team and the only reason I survived was because he saved me, thatâs why Yun Xuan and I were at odds. However, I know she wasnât trying to blame me, she just couldnât bear to face me, because every time she sees me, she canât help thinking about him.â
âWere you in love with him?â Yang Kai grinned.
Ruan Xin Yu glanced at him and blushed, âWhy would you ask that? Itâs all in the past now.â
âFine, then why are you telling me all this,â Yang Kai shook his head.
âYouâre so smart, how can you not understand after everything I just said?â Ruan Xin Yu glared at Yang Kai hatefully, silently criticizing this little bastard for still trying to play dumb at this point.
Yang Kai put away his wry grin and wore a serious expression, only shaking his head and speaking after a long silence, âI wonât join Bold Independent Union. Nothing you say could persuade me otherwise. Although I sympathize with Yun Xuanâs experience, and I admire her persistence, I have my own things I need to do.â
âYou bastard!â Ruan Xin Yu shouted, âAfter gaining such a big advantage you want to just walk away?â
âWhat kind of advantage did I get?â
âYou have the gall to ask that? You and Yun Xuan... you...â
âWhat?â
âYou know in your own heart,â Ruan Xin Yu was incredibly angry, not understanding how this young man could act so shamelessly, clearly knowing what she wanted to say yet pretending otherwise just to embarrass her.
âIn any case, you need to take responsibility!â Ruan Xin Yu immediately played rouge, âIf you donât join Bold Independent Union, Iâll report everything that happened to the Unionâs leadership and have them chase you down!â
Yang Kai suddenly turned to look at her and smiled grimly.
Ruan Xin Yu felt a cold chill run up her spine and couldnât help clenching her fists, trembling as she asked, âWhat do you want to say?â
Yang Kai looked up at the sky and slowly muttered, âThe moon is hidden, and itâs a good night!â
Ruan Xin Yuâs beautiful face went pale as she quickly recalled everything that had happened earlier. If this youth really wanted to silence her here, she wouldnât be able to resist.
If he were to silence her here, in this vast wilderness, no one would be able to find her body.
Just as she was feeling afraid, Yun Xuanâs gentle voice rang out behind her, âYou two... donât make such terrible jokes.â
Ruan Xin Yu was stunned for a moment, and then quickly spat out her tongue towards Yang Kai before hopping back into the carriage.
A moment later, she emerged again, supporting Yun Xuan as the two of them sat together beside Yang Kai, breathing in the crisp night air.
âDo you really want to leave?â Yun Xuan asked Yang Kai, a trace of melancholy upon her face.
âEn,â Yang Kai nodded sternly.
âFine, Bold Independent Union is too small to accommodate someone like you, itâs for the best that you go out and see the rest of the world,â Yun Xuan tightly gripped her clothes, feeling slightly cold as she muttered, âRegardless, I should still thank you for this time.â
âAre you stupid?â Ruan Xin Yu stared at her incredulously.
âIf it werenât for him, Uncle Sun and Ji Hongâs deaths would have gone un-avenged and we would both be dead. Naturally, we should thank him.â
Ruan Xin Yuâs brow furrowed and had to admit Yun Xuan had a point. If there was no Yang Kai this time, everyone from Bold Independent Union would have been wiped out with no one ever knowing the truth.
âNo need for thanks, I was just protecting myself,â Yang Kai shook his head.
Yun Xuan smiled and said no more, a while later whispering, âXin Yu, help me back inside. Itâs a little cold tonight.â
âEn,â Ruan Xin Yu nodded and helped Yun Xuan get back into the carriage. Soon, a soft breathing could be heard coming from inside and Yang Kai looked back to see the two women sleeping in each otherâs embracing, a look of calm upon their faces.