Yang Kai was filled with suspicion. According to what Wu Yi had told him, Dai Yuan had kept to herself ever since arriving here, never stepping out. Even when Wu Yi had visited her several times, their conversations seemed to remain superficial. Yet the moment Yang Kai returned, Yang Yan was already asking about his answer — clearly, she was taking this matter quite seriously.
Yang Kai couldn't help but wonder whether she wanted him to go to the Glazed Glass Gate. The two women before him had no friendship with Dai Yuan, so there was no reason for them to put in a good word on her behalf.
Upon hearing this, Yang Yan nodded without the slightest hesitation. "If it were possible, naturally I'd want you to agree to her request."
Yang Kai narrowed his eyes, gazing at Yang Yan in silence. After a long while, he said evenly, "Give me your reasoning. You're not the type to let your sympathies run wild. What are you scheming?"
Yang Yan gave a mysterious smile. "Calling it scheming wouldn't be far off. But let's first discuss the gains and losses of agreeing to her request. She said the thing she needs you to do will take at most three days, and it's well within your capabilities. If what she says is true — regardless of what the task actually is — it shouldn't be difficult for you. The only hassle is that you'd need to make a trip to the Glazed Glass Gate."
Yang Kai gave a slight nod, offering no interruption, and gestured for her to continue.
Seeing that Yang Kai showed no sign of displeasure, Yang Yan perked up and pressed on. "Let's set aside her promise of a generous reward for now. With your current wealth, I doubt you'd even care about whatever she offers."
"That's right. So doing this favor brings me no benefit. Moreover, rushing off to someone else's sect so recklessly isn't very proper. If Dai Yuan held the same standing as that Yin Sudie, it would be one thing, but from what I can see, she doesn't seem to be very favored at the Glazed Glass Gate." Yang Kai furrowed his brows slightly.
Yang Yan pressed her lips together with a smile. "About her — I was curious, so Wu Yi and I did some digging. Want to guess what we found?"
"What?" Yang Kai looked up at them.
This time, it was Wu Yi who spoke. "Dai Yuan is just as you guessed — she really isn't favored at the Glazed Glass Gate. But that's only been the case in the last decade or so. Do you know who used to be the most outstanding and famous disciple at the Glazed Glass Gate?"
"Dai Yuan?"
"That's right! Back in the day, Dai Yuan overshadowed Yin Sudie at the Glazed Glass Gate. But for some reason, Dai Yuan suddenly faded from the higher-ups' view, and Yin Sudie took her place. That's how Yin Sudie was able to represent the younger generation of the Glazed Glass Gate, travel everywhere, and build up her impressive reputation. We don't know exactly what happened, but the Glazed Glass Gate's higher-ups seem to have mixed feelings about Dai Yuan. The cultivation resources and living quarters they provide her are on par with Yin Sudie's, yet they don't deliberately nurture or train her. It's quite strange."
"It really is strange!" Yang Kai was equally puzzled. He hadn't fought Yin Sudie himself, but he had seen Dai Yuan in action, and he felt she was already quite impressive at the Saint King Realm. True, she had been bullied by a Battle Heaven Alliance warrior in the Flowing Flame Sandy Land, but that was only because she had let her anger get the better of her and fought without discipline. If she had been fighting seriously, Dai Yuan wouldn't have feared that person.
Still, there was a clear gap between her and Qu Changfeng, Fang Tianzhong, and Wei Guchang — something Yang Kai could see as well.
"If I help her, what would I stand to gain or lose? It seems I won't gain much, though I suppose I wouldn't lose anything either." Yang Kai gave Yang Yan a curious glance.
Wu Yi giggled. "Not losing anything is enough. As for what you'd gain... heh heh, doing her a favor would count as part of the payoff. After all, she used to be highly favored years ago — who knows, she might make a comeback someday. Having a connection with a woman like that could help our future plans. Besides, Big Sister Yang Yan seems to have something else in mind."
Yang Kai couldn't help but turn his gaze to Yang Yan.
Yang Yan gave a light nod and asked, "Have you heard of the Glazed Glass Gate's Thousand Illusion Glazed Glass Mountain?"
Yang Kai honestly shook his head. He still wasn't very familiar with the major powers on the Dark Star, much less what treasures they possessed. However, the fact that Yang Yan had specifically brought up this Thousand Illusion Glazed Glass Mountain suggested it was something extraordinary.
"The Thousand Illusion Glazed Glass Mountain is a naturally formed mountain made entirely of Thousand Illusion Glazed Glass, situated within the territory of the Glazed Glass Gate. It was because of this mountain that the Glazed Glass Gate chose to establish their sect there. And Thousand Illusion Glazed Glass is a treasure for artifact refining — it possesses numerous transformative and self-repairing properties. I need this material, and I need a great deal of it!" Yang Yan said with a solemn expression.
Yang Kai laughed in surprise. "Even if you say that, there's nothing I can do about it. Since the Glazed Glass Gate established their sect because of this Glazed Glass Mountain, their higher-ups would never just give me the Thousand Illusion Glazed Glass."
"Of course they wouldn't, and we can't afford it either!" Yang Yan snorted. "You don't know — the Thousand Illusion Glazed Glass Mountain is a famous landmark across the entire Dark Star. The Glazed Glass Gate used this mountain as the eye of their grand formation, which can unleash Glazed Glass Divine Light with the power to bind bodies and restrain souls. I've heard that once, a great crisis at the Glazed Glass Gate was resolved thanks to this mountain. Moreover, the mountain is a single massive whole — cutting off even a piece of Thousand Illusion Glazed Glass from it is extraordinarily difficult. Even the Glazed Glass Gate itself can only obtain a tiny amount every few decades. Most of it they keep for themselves, and the small remainder they sell. Every time, the various major powers scramble to buy it, and the prices are astronomically high. We're completely broke right now — how could we ever afford such a thing!"
"Broke again?!" Yang Kai's face drained of color. He remembered that the last time he'd come out, he'd heard warriors from the Haik Family mention that Yang Yan and Wu Yi had attended an auction and consigned some artifacts for sale. Although Yang Kai didn't know exactly how many Holy Crystals they'd gotten, the amount must have been substantial. How could they have spent all of them already?