A Thousand Beauties and a Hundred Beauties

Before long, a voice of surprise and delight rang out from the side: "Master Yang!"

Yang Kai turned to see Li Yuntian waving energetically at him, his face beaming with enthusiasm. Li Yuntian had set up a small stall in front of him, displaying an assortment of items, including some herbs and a few bottles that presumably contained elixirs.

"What brings you here to set up a stall?" Yang Kai inquired as he approached, recalling that Su Mu had issued a stern order for them to focus on their training.

"I've just had a breakthrough. Su Shao said I should come out to relax and stabilize my realm. Since my fellow brothers need some items to aid their training, I decided to try my luck here," Li Yuntian explained.

"I see," Yang Kai observed Li Yuntian more closely and noted that he appeared stronger than a few days ago, likely having advanced to the eighth layer of Body Refinement.

"What are you doing here, Senior Brother?" Li Yuntian asked curiously.

"I'm here to buy something."

"What are you looking for? If I have it, feel free to take it," Li Yuntian offered grandly, gesturing to the items on his stall.

"I'm looking for seeds of Yang-attributed spirit herbs or medicines. Do you have any?"

Li Yuntian shook his head. "I don't have such items. Moreover, there are rarely any sellers of seeds at this market."

Seeds are generally not highly valued but are still quite rare.

"I'm just trying my luck as well," Yang Kai chuckled.

"How about this: I'll put up a notice and see if anyone responds. I'll be here for the next couple of days, so if luck is on our side, someone might have them for sale," Li Yuntian suggested.

"That would be helpful. Thank you, Junior Li."

Li Yuntian promptly made a sign, wrote a message, and placed it nearby.

After chatting with Li Yuntian for a while, Yang Kai learned that Su Mu and the others had been greatly impacted by the previous setback and had taken Su Yan's harsh words to heart. The once notorious young master had indeed become more restrained, having dedicated himself to intensive training and recently breaking through to the Open Yuan Realm.

Bidding farewell to Li Yuntian, Yang Kai proceeded to the stall where he had previously purchased Yang Flames Stones.

Upon spotting the familiar stall owner, Yang Kai let out a sigh of relief, as he had feared not finding him.

"Ah, young man, you're back!" The Blood Battle Gang disciple, having seen Yang Kai with Hu Mei'er before, now addressed him with a respectful tone.

"What can I help you with today?" the stall owner inquired.

"I'm looking for the seeds of the Three Yang Fruit you sold me last time. Do you have any left?" Yang Kai asked directly.

The stall owner shook his head. "I only had that one seed, which I gave to you as a bonus."

"I see," Yang Kai said, visibly disappointed. "I'll take my leave then."

As he turned to leave, he heard the stall owner call out, "Wait a moment, young man!"

Yang Kai turned back. "What is it?"

"In fact, there were more seeds of the Three Yang Fruit Tree, but I only obtained one," the stall owner revealed.

Yang Kai's face lit up with joy. "Where are the other seeds?"

"They were taken by a few other individuals. If you truly want them, you'll need to find them."

"Where are they now?" Yang Kai asked urgently.

The stall owner hesitated before responding, "They are in our gang's mining area, where they are extracting Yang Flames Stones and other minerals. Even our own disciples can't easily enter, let alone an outsider like you."

"When will they come out?" Yang Kai pressed.

"They probably won't come out soon. You might need to wait a month or two."

Yang Kai frowned; waiting that long would be impractical.

"Do you have any way for me to get in to find them? Rest assured, I only wish to buy the seeds."

"I have no means to assist. I'm just an ordinary member of the gang," the stall owner said with a rueful smile. "But someone in the gang might help."

Yang Kai's eyes widened. "Who?"

The stall owner looked at him with a somewhat ambiguous expression. "You could seek the help of Miss Hu. With her guiding you, the miners won't obstruct you."

Yang Kai's expression grew awkward at this suggestion. He stammered, "My relationship with your young lady is rather strained."

"Yes, yes," the stall owner nodded repeatedly, clearly skeptical of Yang Kai's words. He pointed to a wooden house nearby and said, "As luck would have it, Miss Hu is currently in the market and resting inside that house. If you urgently need the seeds, you might consider asking her."

Yang Kai hesitated. Given the unpleasant events between him and Hu Mei'er, he was reluctant to seek her aid. However, with no better options available, he reluctantly decided to approach her.

Despite his reservations, Yang Kai carefully searched the Blackwind Trading Market, finding some seeds but none with Yang attributes, rendering them useless to him.

Resigned, Yang Kai decided to swallow his pride and seek Hu Mei'er's help. After all, he had nothing to lose and had not wronged her.

The wooden houses were generally guarded by top disciples from the three factions, and though Hu Mei'er was the young daughter of the Blood Battle Gang's leader, her lower cultivation level didn't affect her significant status. It was entirely reasonable for her to rest there.

With no one within thirty yards of the wooden house, the surrounding warriors showed great respect for the occupants, ensuring that stalls were not set up nearby.

Standing before the indicated wooden house, Yang Kai was about to speak when a voice from inside sharply called out, "Who is outside?"

The voice, somewhat resembling Hu Mei'er's but with an unusual tone, made Yang Kai hesitate. Not backing down now, he called out, "Miss Mei'er, it's Yang Kai. I hope you'll come out to meet me."

Inside, two women sat, their appearances almost indistinguishable, with similar expressions and figures. At first glance, one might mistake them for reflections of each other.

Hearing Yang Kai's voice, one of the women showed surprise and turned to the other. "Sister, is this the Yang Kai you mentioned?"

The woman being addressed was Hu Mei'er, who nodded. "Yes, why has he come to see me?"

She had thought their paths would not cross again after their last encounter.

The other woman scoffed. "It seems he is not the aloof man you described. Some men pretend to be aloof to lure young women like you and then ensnare their hearts and minds, leading them to ruin."

Hu Mei'er's face reddened in anger. "Sister, he is not as you think."

Hu Jiao'er chuckled. "If he's not, then why would he seek you out after such a long time? He must be aware of your lingering feelings and has come to take advantage."

Hu Mei'er retorted, "Sister, you always think the worst of people."

If Yang Kai were truly that type, Hu Mei'er believed she would have already lost her virtue by the lake. No man could resist such temptation.