Remembering You For Eternity

2.19 Ominous Journey (2)

"I-i-is that a storage ring?" Xiao Zi's face was bright with awe.

"Which part of it looks like a ring?" YuLan blinked.

Cao Lu nodded, "There's not many of these in the whole world. The Sages entrusted this to me for this mission."

The other girls nodded and also noticed that Shen Wei and Ao Xiang also had these storage rings when the crystals that the other groups had harvested also disappeared into obscure looking jade-pebbles they were holding.

"It's time to head back," Ao Xiang stretched his body and started to herd his group towards the way they had come from. But soon his steps halted when he saw a silhouette of a person almost hidden behind a rock wall. A wave of his strong qi pressure was soon unleashed, sending a message to the other Enlighteneds amongst his friends behind him, as well as a warning to the hiding person in front of him.

If he had not seen the silhouette before, he would not have noticed that the stranger had been  there all along. Which meant the person likely had a higher cultivation base than he did. Ao Xiang himself was already a top-ranked Enlightened. If this stranger possessed ill will... . Ao Xiang was not sure if all of them could hold a candle to a Sage ranked cultivator. Of course the other explanation was that the person might just be a normal commoner, but which non-cultivator would have the ability to reach the land of Yanshi?

Everyone was already in battle stances and were vigilant, then the person spoke, "Ao Xiang, BingTan, Qing Lian. Shidis, shimei. It's me."

The owner of the voice stepped out. A face of a young male, not looking anywhere past thirty, with a kind and amiable appearance was soon clear for everyone to see.

Ao Xiang and Zuo BingTan were still dumbfounded – the male's face was familiar and he was wearing a green-colored robe – the uniform of Hui Lin sect.

Qing Lian, however, was the first one to react and happily dashed forward to reach the man,

"Liu Yan DaShixiong!!!"

"DaShixiong?" Xiao Zi whispered, "Isn't Ao Xiang the DaShixiong in Hui Lin sect?"

"Liu Yan... ," Cao Lu muttered, "Liu Yan... the name sounds familiar."

"Liu Yan?" Ao Xiang relaxed his stance after hearing Qing Lian exclaiming the person's name.

Liu Yan used to be the oldest disciple before his disappearance from Hui Lin sect almost a decade ago. He had embarked on a mission, but he never returned. The Sages of Hui Lin sect finally came into a conclusion that Liu Yan had chosen to abandon the sect and would not return. Nonetheless, regardless of the real reason, Liu Yan was always on good terms with other disciples and was well-loved by everyone, including Qing Lian. Back in the days, he was also one of the strongest amongst his peers. At the time, he was also stronger than Ao Xiang who had been admitted around the same time as he was.

As the Hui Lin sect's disciples started to walk forward to greet their long-lost senior, the person called Liu Yan also stepped forward, completely revealing his previously obscured physique due to the insufficient light source inside the cave.

There was a small opening on the ceiling, straight above the spot he had just stepped into. That was how YuLan noticed.

She darted forward and grabbed the sleeves of the people closest to her – Ao Xiang and Zuo BingTan. Qing Lian was already way out of her reach. 

Liu Yan noticed her action and tilted his head slightly, mirth dancing in his eyes. YuLan did not like it one bit.

"What's the matter, Lan-mei?" BingTan was perplexed at the other's action and was somewhat conflicted. However, he definitely did not dislike this second instance that his sleeve had been held onto by this person.