Chapter 2597: Chapter 2597
Ling Xiao and his rebel forces remained vigilant, closely monitoring the movements of Ye Liuyun’s group.
Having witnessed their formidable strength firsthand, they knew full well that any hostile action from these individuals would spell certain doom for them.
"Who are you people?" Ling Xiao took the initiative to address Ye Liuyun.
"We’re from the League of the Sunlit South. I’m Qin Peng," Ye Liuyun introduced himself, using the alias of Qin Peng.
"Ling Xiao. We’re the rebel forces of the Jin Clan Tribe. When the Zhou Clan Tribe allied with the Evil Creature and forcibly absorbed us, we refused to submit..." Ling Xiao briefly explained their origins.
"I’m concerned the Zhou Clan might send more powerful forces after us. Let’s relocate first and find a safe place before we talk further. If possible, I’d also like to propose an alliance between our groups," Ye Liuyun suggested cautiously.
"Agreed!" Ling Xiao immediately ordered his scattered forces to move out, ensuring they wouldn’t be detected by the tribe.
As they traveled, Ye Liuyun and Ling Xiao continued their conversation. "Our alliance also believes we were deceived by the Zhou Clan last time. That’s why I was sent to investigate," Ye Liuyun shared.
"We’re aware of that incident. Zhou Qiang is nothing but a despicable villain. I heard you lost five to six million troops?" Ling Xiao responded, delving into the conversation.
He went on to reveal many well-kept secrets about the destruction of the Jin Clan Tribe—details even Luan Feng’an hadn’t known.
Ye Liuyun nodded grimly. "Yes, our losses were devastating. But at least we took down some Evil Creature in the process—our soldiers didn’t die in vain. Still, from what you’ve said, it seems there are many spies among the tribes."
Ling Xiao confirmed, "Absolutely. And these are just the ones we know about—many more remain hidden. I suspect the leadership of the Zhou Clan Tribe has already fallen into the hands of the Evil Creature. That’s why we refuse to acknowledge their forced merger or accept their authority."
Internally, Ye Liuyun pondered, *With so many Outsider spies, it’s unlikely Zhou Qiang, as the clan leader, hasn’t noticed. Yet he tolerates this situation... which suggests he might be one of them.*
The thought prompted him to have his avatar perform a soul search on the Outsider-corrupted human cultivator they had captured.
Though the captive didn’t know whether Zhou Qiang was an Outsider, he did reveal that one of the elders—despite lacking any trace of Outsider energy—was secretly working for them.
Moreover, they had received orders from the alien race to obey the commands of the elder.
Ye Liuyun immediately released the martial cultivator and had him reveal all the information he knew.
"It seems the chieftain or elders of the Zhou Clan may have colluded with the alien race," Ling Xiao concluded.
But this revelation also unsettled the rebels, as they lacked the strength to overthrow the Zhou Clan on their own. Even if they spread the truth, no one would believe them—accusing the tribal elders would only be seen as slander.
Thus, Ling Xiao realized that forming an alliance with Ye Liuyun was their only hope to save their people. Ye Liuyun agreed without hesitation, and the two sides signed a soul-bound pact of equal alliance.
With this, Ye Liuyun gained three thousand powerful martial cultivators in his fight against the alien race. Upon arriving at their new base, he discussed the next steps with Ling Xiao and other key figures.
Eventually, they all agreed to Ye Liuyun’s plan: once the heat died down, they would begin assassinating alien spies. Ye Liuyun would target the elders and those above the Dominator realm, extracting more intelligence through soul-searching, while the rebels would dispatch Dominator-level experts to eliminate weaker martial cultivators.
Ye Liuyun also took the time to familiarize himself with some of the rebels. Resources were scarce for them, so he generously supplied them with beast meat, elixirs, and divine crystals.
A few days later, Ye Liuyun returned to check on Luan Feng’an and Luan Ping. To his surprise, Luan Ping had truly fulfilled his task—he had practiced a thousand cuts daily, devoting hours to honing his strikes.
When Ye Liuyun arrived, Luan Ping was still training. After over ten days of relentless practice, his arm strength had improved significantly. His cuts were now deeper, and pulling the blade free required far less effort.
"That boy’s obsessed! He trains like a madman every day and barely helps me with chores anymore," Luan Feng’an complained to Ye Liuyun.
Ye Liuyun handed Luan Feng’an some seeds for planting, then called Luan Ping over.
"What does practicing saber strikes feel like?" he asked Luan Ping.
"My strength has grown! I feel like as long as I keep working hard, I’ll become even stronger," Luan Ping replied to Ye Liuyun.
Ye Liuyun nodded. "This is the process every martial cultivator must go through. If you want to grow stronger, you have to endure this tedious training day after day. If you’re serious about walking this path, you need to be mentally prepared."
"Without the determination to become stronger, you’d be better off not cultivating at all. Ordinary people who’ve never trained are far safer than martial cultivators. Once you step onto this path, you’ll face all kinds of dangers and life-or-death battles. Are you afraid?"
"I’m not afraid! I won’t let my grandfather suffer the same fate as my parents—killed by those evil men!" Luan Ping declared firmly.
Ye Liuyun gave an approving nod, then spoke solemnly. "Since you’ve made up your mind, I’ll take you as my first disciple."
Thus, under Ye Liuyun’s guidance, Luan Ping formally became his alchemy alchemy apprentice.
Ye Liuyun also revealed his name to Luan Ping but instructed him to keep it a secret for now.
Now that he had become a master himself, it was only natural to pass on some foundational techniques. Ye Liuyun carefully selected a variety of cultivation methods for Luan Ping, including the *Tyrant Saber Art*, *Soul Secret Technique*, and *Ten Thousand Poisons Scripture*.
He then helped Luan Ping awaken his nascent spiritual sense and had Lin Luoyi refine a series of elixirs tailored to each stage of his cultivation.
Qiong Qi assisted by forging a battle saber for Luan Ping, which he would later temper with his own spiritual energy.
Tong Xin crafted a set of gilded armor that could adjust to his growing body, ensuring it would fit him well into adulthood.
Truth be told, Luan Ping’s cultivation resources far surpassed what Ye Liuyun had when he first started.
Still, Ye Liuyun made it clear to Luan Ping that these were all the resources he would receive—the rest would depend on his own fortune and efforts.
He wouldn’t keep supplying him endlessly, as that would only breed dependency and dull his fighting spirit.
Afterward, Ye Liuyun gave Luan Ping a Interspatial Ring, placing all the prepared resources inside, along with the preserved beast meat meant for him and Luan Feng’an.
Luan Ping was overjoyed—he had finally become a martial cultivator.
From then on, he threw himself into rigorous training. With such abundant resources, his progress was astonishingly swift—so much so that even Ye Liuyun couldn’t help but feel a twinge of envy. He wasn’t sure if he had advanced this quickly in his own early days.
