In Guan Qi's eyes, Yang Kai was the type who was absolutely governed by lust — the kind of man whose knees would go weak at the sight of a beautiful woman. His fawning over the woman across from him was clearly motivated by her looks. And she was no better — when they had encountered each other here earlier, she had been preening and striking poses, trying to get him to hand over the Origin Essence in this place. After he refused, they had come to blows. And now she had turned around and was batting her eyelashes at Yang Kai. Absolutely shameless, with not a shred of decency or self-respect.
Yu Ying smiled and said, "Senior Brother, do you have some connection to my Yellow Spring Sect?"
Though she posed the question as if it were casual, it betrayed her meticulous mind. She knew that in the Shattered Star Sea, one could not trust anyone lightly. Yang Kai's claim that the Yellow Spring Sect's name "thundered in his ears" — how could that alone convince her he harbored no ill intentions?
She needed to probe further before she could determine whether he truly meant her no harm. After all, she was no match for a Third-Order Dao Source Realm cultivator.
"A connection, of course there is." Yang Kai smiled faintly, seeing through her little scheme. He paused for a moment before saying, "I come from the Great Desolation Star Domain — I wonder if you've heard of it?"
At these words, Yu Ying's beautiful eyes lit up and she exclaimed, "The Great Desolation Star Domain?"
Yang Kai laughed heartily. "Since this junior sister has heard of the Great Desolation Star Domain, you must be quite familiar with Senior Brother Yin Lesheng, then?"
That Yin Lesheng hailed from the Great Desolation Star Domain — much like Liu Qianyun, the two of them had once been overlords in that very star domain.
Yang Kai had not expected to run into people from the Eastern Territory's Yellow Spring Sect here in the Shattered Star Sea. Or rather, he had considered the possibility, but had never imagined it would be so straightforward.
Previously, when he had departed from the Thousand Leaves Sect, he had originally planned to make a trip to the Eastern Territory's Yellow Spring Sect to ask Yin Lesheng about Xiao Xiao's whereabouts. Unfortunately, life rarely went according to plan — before he even reached the Eastern Territory, he had been swept into the Void Secret Realm, and later teleported to the Northern Territory, derailing his plans entirely.
And now, quite out of the blue, he had encountered someone from the Yellow Spring Sect. Yang Kai was naturally overjoyed.
He had no idea whether that fellow Yin Lesheng had come to the Shattered Star Sea as well. If he was here, Yang Kai thought he could very well use Yu Ying to learn something of Yin Lesheng's whereabouts.
If he wanted to find Xiao Xiao, Yin Lesheng was his only lead.
In that moment, the way Yang Kai looked at Yu Ying shifted in meaning, filling with a burning intensity.
Yu Ying clearly noticed this, and at just the right moment let a trace of shy coyness show on her face, lowering her voice. "Brother Yin, he treats me very well."
"Senior Brother?" Yang Kai raised an eyebrow, somewhat surprised.
That fellow Yin Lesheng had come from the Great Desolation Star Domain to the Star Realm only six or seven years ago. Even if he had joined the Eastern Territory's Yellow Spring Sect, he couldn't have risen so quickly to the rank of senior brother.
This Yu Ying was at the Second-Order Dao Source Realm. If she called Yin Lesheng "senior brother," didn't that mean Yin Lesheng's cultivation was even higher than hers?
"Of course he's senior brother!" Yu Ying pursed her lips in a smile. "Although Brother Yin hasn't been with our sect for long, his talent is absolutely first-rate. He was personally taken in as a direct disciple by our Sect Master, and just before the Shattered Star Sea opened, he advanced to the Third-Order Dao Source Realm!"
At this, Yang Kai drew in a sharp breath.
Yin Lesheng had actually advanced to the Third-Order Dao Source Realm? How much time had even passed? He had always thought his own cultivation speed was plenty fast, but this Yin Lesheng was no slouch either — essentially keeping pace with him.
Comparing that to Ao Ou and Chi Yue's current cultivation levels, Yin Lesheng's progress was nothing short of terrifying.
Yu Ying smiled. "Brother Yin is a Star Lord, and on top of that, he came from a lower star domain and was personally taken in by our Sect Master, so he has access to a massive amount of cultivation resources. But even so, advancing to the Third-Order Dao Source Realm in such a short time is nothing short of a miracle. When he first joined our sect, I too was at the First-Order Dao Source Realm, but now..." She trailed off with a soft laugh.
As she spoke, her expression dimmed slightly — compared to Yin Lesheng's progress, she seemed to feel a measure of inadequacy.
"Brother Yin's talent has always been extraordinary. He is the person I admire most in this life. To learn now that he has advanced to the Third-Order Dao Source Realm — truly a cause for celebration!" Yang Kai swallowed down his inner disgust and launched into a string of flattery.
Yu Ying seemed to have finally let go of her suspicions and wariness, because the fact that he knew about the Great Desolation Star Domain and Yin Lesheng already proved that his relationship with Yin Lesheng ran deep. Otherwise, he would never have known such confidential information.
"But isn't this senior brother also at the Third-Order Dao Source Realm?" Yu Ying smiled. "Looking at you, I'd say you're not one bit inferior to Brother Yin."
"I wouldn't dare compare myself to Senior Brother Yin. The fact that I've cultivated to where I am today is entirely due to one extraordinary stroke of fortune. If I had relied solely on steady, methodical practice, how could I possibly match Senior Brother Yin's heaven-defying talent? Back in the Great Desolation Star Domain, I received a great deal of his guidance and kindness — it was following him that I came to this Star Realm in the first place. I had originally planned to join your esteemed sect together with him, but unfortunately the Star Path collapsed and I was teleported to the Southern Territory. I never had the opportunity to pay respects to your sect's magnificence."
"You were originally going to join our sect too?" Yu Ying looked at Yang Kai in surprise. "How come Brother Yin never mentioned this?"
From her tone, she really did seem to be on very familiar terms with Yin Lesheng.
Yang Kai smiled. "Senior Brother Yin probably assumed I was dead. After all, I was gravely injured at the time. But as it turned out, disaster became a blessing — not only did I survive, but I stumbled upon an incredible opportunity."
"I see!" Yu Ying harbored no suspicions, nodding at his explanation.