Chapter 10: Self-Sealing

After hastily dealing with the scene, Yan Yu finally emerged from the Mysterious Realm, surfacing from the water. Soon a patrol boat came over to confirm his identity.

When they learned he was not one of the cherry blossom tourists who had fallen into the water, the patrollers seemed somewhat disappointed, but still they pulled him onto the boat and arranged for someone to take him to shore for care.

Every year, there are accidents where tourists fall into the Qiantang River tide-watching area, so everyone is used to it.

Seeing how dedicated the patrollers were, Yan Yu didn't have the heart to tell them that the two international friends had already been laid to rest at the bottom of the Qiantang River, so as not to make them feel bad and blame themselves.

Sigh, when can I change my gentle nature?

Drenched like a drowned rat, Yan Yu retrieved his phone from a locker in a nearby supermarket and then silently boarded a bus, transferred to the subway, and then to another subway, completely ignoring the surprised looks of the other passengers.

He returned to the residential complex, went upstairs, unlocked the door, and entered his home to find Zhao Yuanzhen had released her Invisibility Technique, clearly relieved to see him.

"You're finally back," she said with a smile that was trying to please, tentatively asking, "Was everything smooth on your trip?"

"Hmph," Yan Yu said, locking the door from the inside with a cold laugh, "What do you think?"

He fumbled in his pocket for a moment, pulled out a silver-white stone the size of an egg, and casually tossed it to Zhao Yuanzhen.

"What is this?" Zhao Yuanzhen asked, puzzled.

"Tianhe Anchoring Divine Treasure Iron," Yan Yu replied.

Zhao Yuanzhen's hands shook, almost dropping the object, and she asked with a trembling voice:

"Is this the Tianhe Anchoring Divine Treasure Iron that the ancient Yu the Great used for controlling water?"

"Yes," Yan Yu nodded and said, "There were two petty characters plotting to get their hands on this thing. On the command of my esteemed master, I eliminated them, and I picked this up as spare material from the Mysterious Realm."

Zhao Yuanzhen: ......

Esteemed Master! Where did your disciple pick this up, can I also go for a stroll there?

In the Cultivation World from which she hails, the Tianhe Anchoring Divine Treasure Iron is one of the rarest heavenly materials and earthly treasures.

Most of them are used to suppress water veins and springs. If removed, they could trigger floods and thereby create extremely terrifying karmic backlashes, which is why everyone is somewhat reluctant to touch them.

The very few that circulate among Cultivators are mainly "spare materials" left in some water vein Mysterious Realms, specifically preserved by the ancient Yu the Great for unforeseen needs—the likelihood of finding these are not high. Zhao Yuanzhen had never seen such items in marketplaces, likely because they skipped the public sale stage and were secretly purchased by prestigious sects.

Gazing raptly at the divine iron in her hand, she heard Yan Yu asking:

"Would this be enough to craft a golem each for us?"

"Enough, more than enough!" Zhao Yuanzhen eagerly nodded, "This Tianhe Anchoring Divine Treasure Iron is a wondrous item, it can be as large or as small, as light or as heavy as we wish. Just two ounces used as the core of the golem's intellect would grant it the mighty strength of a thousand jun, comparable to the might of a Body Cultivating Cultivator."

"The excess Tianhe Anchoring Divine Treasure Iron can be fused into common iron using a secret method. This will fortify the golem's skeleton against any water-based techniques..."

"Enough!" Yan Yu finally couldn't restrain himself and exclaimed, "You spendthrift woman! To use such heavenly materials for a golem, they ought to be paired with other heavenly materials, not mixed with your ordinary iron—I can't fathom what you were thinking. Don't ever mention such foolishness again!"

Zhao Yuanzhen was taken aback, struggling for words:

"Where would we get enough heavenly materials to make a complete golem?"

"Just because you can't obtain them doesn't mean I can't," Yan Yu said, arms crossed and speaking arrogantly, "For now, use it as the core and make do with mortal materials for the other parts to finish the golem.

"Once we have new heavenly materials, we can replace the mortal parts. As for this 'grind into powder and mix with common iron', truly unthinkable—let's not speak of this again!"

Zhao Yuanzhen was also shocked—such grandiose claims from this young thief!

Even the Supreme Elders of the Qiansi Sect, who controlled golems, only had about ten percent of their golems' materials that could be considered heavenly materials. Mostly, they were mixed with common substances to maximize strength.

From what the young thief implied, it seemed he intended to create a golem made entirely of heavenly materials—such audacity! How could his tongue not be twisted from such grand claims!

Although she had the urge to mock a few words, thinking of the powerful master backing that little thief, she could only swallow her anger for the time being and silently noted in her heart:

"Today, the little thief went searching for treasures to make my puppet and humiliated me by calling me a spendthrift. I'll remember this grudge for now, and if the day comes when I rise to power, I'll be sure to humiliate him in return, making him weep and wail with regret!"

Uh, why does that sound a bit off...

Never mind, the fact that he humiliated me still stands! If I don't avenge this insult, my name isn't Zhao!

Seeing Zhao Yuanzhen's changing expressions, Yan Yu knew all too well that she had started her "fickleness" again and said with a cold sneer:

"What inappropriate thought are you entertaining now?"

Zhao Yuanzhen was startled and quickly tried to sweet-talk her way out with a flattering smile,

"You and I are partners in cultivation; we should support each other naturally. This time, you brought back divine iron from the Heavenly River for the foundation, I haven't even had the chance to thank you yet, how could I possibly resent or hate you?"

"I never said you resented or hated me, you just confessed without being pressed!" Yan Yu instantly became furious yet laughed instead, reaching out to grab both sides of Zhao Yuanzhen's cheeks and roughly pinched them like putty, "What a Demonic Sect Enchantress that can't be tamed! I bring you heavenly treasures, become your partner in cultivation, help you in dual cultivation, provide you shelter; which of the wealth, spouse, law, and land has ever been lacking for you? And you dare bear a grudge against me!"

"No, no! I didn't! I am wronged!" Zhao Yuanzhen, with her cheeks grabbed, could not speak clearly; she could only whimper and murmur indistinctly, pleading for mercy with tears in the corners of her eyes, her neck to earlobes all turning red.

The skin of this Demonic Sect Enchantress felt really good to the touch—so delicate it seemed it could break with a puff. Press just a bit harder and it would turn from white to red. This made Yan Yu, who initially had no intention of punishing her excessively, unable to resist pinching her a few more times.

Zhao Yuanzhen finally broke free from his devilish clutches, feeling angry, resentful, and annoyed inside, but knowing that this guy could guess her thoughts, she did not dare to continue cursing him in her belly. She simply wiped away her tears vigorously, turned around, kicked off her slippers, and climbed into bed, burying herself under the covers.

You bully me all you want because you have a master supporting you. I can't handle you, but can't I just hide away?

Seeing Empress Yuanzhen choosing to withdraw, Yan Yu laughed heartily for a while before going to the bathroom to take a shower.

After his shower, dressed in fresh clothes, he came out to find the TV on, with Zhao Yuanzhen huddled under the covers like a turtle, leaving only a small opening to sneakily watch the TV.

When she saw the bathroom door open, she quickly zipped herself back into the covers with a whoosh and stayed hidden inside again.

Self-sealing technique, Xuanwu Secret Method!

Yan Yu was naturally not fooled by the enchantress's little movements, for he knew all too well that Empress Yuanzhen was a bully to the weak and feared the strong, and was only pretending to be pitiful because she considered herself at a disadvantage.

If she finds out the truth, this Demonic Sect Enchantress will surely bare her fangs, reveal her fierce nature, and not leave even a bone of her prey... In the end, act as weak and innocent as you want, the moment I feel soft-hearted, I'll consider it my loss!

Yan Yu turned off the TV, then sat on the bed and pulled out his phone, wanting to see if "the Cherry Blossom tourist who fell into the Qiantang River tide" made the news.

He didn't find any news, but someone sent him a friend request. The profile picture was a lively and cute cartoon puppy with the note "Chen Lingyun."

Yan Yu's eyebrows furrowed—what was this annoying woman up to?

He firmly tapped to decline.

After a moment, a new friend request arrived.

Decline!

Decline, decline, decline!

Yan Yu declined them all, but Chen Lingyun was persistent, sending him over twenty friend requests, enough to test his patience.

Forget it, I'll accept for now.

[Chen Lingyun]: It's really hard to add Yan Yu as a friend!

[Yi De Fu Ren]: Sorry, I installed an anti-harassment plugin, it might have mistaken you for a tea seller and automatically declined the request.

[Chen Lingyun]: Is there really such a plugin? Could you send me the installation package as well?

On the other side of the phone, Chen Lingyun was laughing so hard that her whole body was shaking, and even her eyes curved into crescent moons.