"It's indeed extremely unlucky for Senior Brother Qinghe and you lowly people to stay in the same courtyard. Guards, get them all out!"
With the sound, at the entrance, came in a young woman with a ponytail, wearing a tight-fitting swordsman's attire and looking full of vitality. She was accompanied by a kind-looking old man as she strolled in.
"Yingying."
"Senior Sister Yi Yingying."
"Senior Sister Yi Yingying is here, and also, Dean Yu Xiao is here."
"The protagonist of today's birthday banquet has finally arrived."
With Yi Yingying's arrival, everyone's attention shifted from the enmity between Lei Xiao and Lü Wuque to Yi Yingying.
After all, Yi Yingying was the focus of this birthday banquet.
"Yingying."
Seeing Yi Yingying's arrival, Lü Wuque hurriedly went up to greet her.
Wang Chao and the others frowned, unsure if they had misheard, but still followed Yi Yingying's figure.
"Where are the guards?"
However, Yi Yingying completely ignored Lu Wuchai and directly shouted again outside.
Then, two guards with a cultivation level of True Refinement Sixth entered, "Miss Yi, what are your orders?"
"Get these two out of here!"
Yi Yingying's gaze fell directly on the man who had spoken with Wang Chao.
The two guards hesitated slightly.
Wang Chao and the young man beside him looked extremely ugly.
They held some status in the Ancient City, with high-level cultivators in their respective families who enjoyed great reputation. If they were driven out by Yi Yingying, how could they maintain their prestige? How could they establish themselves in the Ancient City in the future?
"What? Do I need to repeat myself?"
Seeing the indifferent guards, Yi Yingying repeated.
Hua Ruoyan spoke at this point, "Do as she says!"
Two simple words clearly indicated her position.
Today, Yi Yingying was in charge.
Then, they obeyed Hua Ruoyan's command, and the two guards quickly approached Wang Chao and the young man, saying, "Please leave, you are not welcome here."
Wang Chao and the young man looked at the guards with dark faces, then finally set their gaze on Lei Xue and Lu Qinghe.
Especially Lu Qinghe.
After Wang Chao glared fiercely at him, he left.
As for Yi Yingying and Lu Wuchai, they were not to be offended.
"Hum!"
Seeing that they still dared to glare at her, Lei Jian spoke, "Lei Xue, go back and investigate their identities right away."
"Yes, cousin."
Lei Xue hurriedly responded.
"Huh!?"
Wang Chao, who was walking away, and the young man heard Lei Jian's tenacious tone and sneered.
They saw Lei Jian and Lu Qinghe chatting happily and estimated that although their status was high, it wasn't that high. They likely were only a senior in Lei Xue's family. Therefore, Wang Chao said, "You don't need to investigate. I am Wang Chao from the Wang Trading Company in Dongcheng."
"I am Mo Feng, of the Mo Family in Dongcheng."
They might not want to offend Lu Wuchai, Yi Yingying, and Hua Ruoyan, but a boy who had just reached True Refinement Third a year ago and his friend...
What was there to fear?
"Very good! So domineering! Positively leaking arrogance!"
Lei Jian couldn't help but laugh, extended his hand, and gave the two a thumbs up.
Lu Xue, again glancing at the two, was filled with compassion.
The slightly arrogant appearance of Mo Feng and Wang Chao was so laughable in his eyes.
Lei Jian!
What was his status!?
A servant of the Blue Moon Lake, equivalent to the twenty-four major servants. Even if the powerhouse behind Hua Ruoyan came, Lei Jian had the right to sit on an equal footing with him.
The Wang Trading Company and the Mo Family only had some high-level cultivators. The guards around Lei Jian had the power to destroy their families, let alone the power of the Blue Moon Lake that he could summon?
"Don't waste words. I will wait for you outside. Don't leave too soon."
Wang Chao stared coldly at Lei Jian, continuing to arrogantly declare his own death.
"Arrogance has no benefits. I will be waiting too."
Mo Feng also said indifferently, then left with Wang Chao.
However, their words did not seem inappropriate to the others. Instead, they made the others pay attention to them again. These two people, although driven away by Yi Yingying, still had an identity that no one dared to underestimate, beyond the reach of ordinary people.
"Wang Chao, Mo Feng..."
Yi Yingying frowned.
"Don't worry. If they are really your friends, within the sphere of influence of the Changkong Academy, they will be safe for sure!"
Hua Ruoyan said calmly.
In her tone, there was an undeniable confidence.
She may have been dissatisfied with Lu Qinghe and Lei Jian earlier, but upon learning that Lu Qinghe was indeed Yi Yingying's friend, her attitude improved significantly.
"Thank you, Sister Ruoyan."
Yi Yingying bowed slightly and then approached Lu Qinghe. "Senior Qinghe, I didn't expect it to be you. It's been over a year, and to be able to meet you again is the greatest surprise of my day."
"I didn't know today was your birthday, and I forgot to bring a gift. Next time, I'll definitely make it up to you."
Lu Qinghe looked at the graceful woman in front of him and responded with a faint smile.
"I don't need your gift. I just need your swordsmanship not to disappoint me."
"Haha, little sister, you've got that right. When it comes to swordsmanship, Qinghe will definitely satisfy you," interjected Lei Jian from the side.
From just one glance, he could tell that Yi Yingying had only recently broken through to the seventh level of Qi Refinement. With Lu Qinghe's record of slaying Huang Tianfeng, he was more than capable of guiding Yi Yingying.
"Is that so?"
A gleam of light flashed in Yi Yingying's eyes. If it weren't for the fact that they were at a birthday banquet, she would have been unable to resist challenging Lu Qinghe to a fight.
Upon seeing that Lu Qinghe and Yi Yingying did indeed know each other, and that Yi Yingying had disregarded Lu Wuque's face and driven away Mo Feng and Wang Chao for him, the onlookers couldn't help but feel amazed. Lei Xiao had played a winning card in the ongoing competition between Lei Xiao and Lu Wuque.
"Sister, I didn't know you had such a relationship with Qinghe. I wasn't prepared in advance, but this jade in my hand is not bad. I'll give it to you. I believe it will have a good effect on nourishing your true qi."
Lei Jian took out a piece of jade as he spoke.
This piece of jade, once green, seemed to absorb the ubiquitous vitality of the void as soon as it appeared, indicating its extraordinary quality.
Before others could recognize the origin of this piece of jade, the knowledgeable Hua Ruoyan contemplated for a moment and then exclaimed, "This is... Green Wood Cultivation Jade."
"Green Wood Cultivation Jade!?"
As Hua Ruoyan identified the jade, a stir rose among the crowd.
"Green Wood Cultivation Jade is a rare treasure, and it's extremely difficult to acquire, with a market value of no less than six thousand gold!"
"A top-grade treasure, even if someone is rich, they may not necessarily be able to buy it, let alone a Green Wood Cultivation Jade that triggers internal vitality!"
"A top-grade treasure, and someone actually gave it as a birthday gift!?"
Various discussions continuously spread through the crowd, becoming incessant.
Even Lü Wuque, when he looked at the Green Wood Cultivation Jade brought out by Lei Jian, had a look of shock in his eyes.
A jade worth six thousand gold!
This genius of the Lü family wasn't even qualified to enjoy such a treasure.
"This piece of jade is too precious; I cannot accept it."
Yi Yingying didn’t know about Green Wood Cultivation Jade, but she knew about top-grade treasures. She shook her head.
"Since Senior Lei Jian has presented it as a birthday gift, you should accept it," Lu Qinghe said, thinking ahead about potential trouble that might arise at Yi Yingying's birthday banquet.
"Accept it!?"
Yi Yingying looked at Lu Qinghe in astonishment.
Could Lu Qinghe decide about such a top-grade treasure?
Not just her, everyone else had the same look in their eyes.
"Haha, little sister, just take it. It’s just a piece of jade, no need to be so surprised."
Yi Yingying glanced at Lu Qinghe and finally, Hua Ruoyan spoke, "Yingying, since this gentleman has shown such goodwill, there's no harm in accepting it. With this top-grade treasure, the time to consolidate your seventh level of Qi Refinement will be greatly reduced."
Having made her decision when Lei Jian presented the jade as a gift, she intended to repay his kindness by ensuring the safety of Lei Jian and Lu Qinghe and handling any potential threat from the Wang and Mo families.
However, could the Wang and Mo families handle the person who could present such a top-grade treasure?
"Yunqi, did you just say that this Lu Qinghe, who was only at the third level of Qi Refinement a year ago, had his cultivation abolished? He's not worth mentioning?"
Lü Wuque also felt that Lu Qinghe and Lei Jian might not be as simple as they seemed.
A simple person wouldn't casually give away a top-grade treasure.
"I'm just stating the facts... Lu Qinghe, a year ago, was indeed extremely miserable, and he was just a nobody, unworthy of even talking to me."
Yunqi was also a bit puzzled by the current situation.
A top-grade treasure!
It was worth six thousand gold! Could Lu Qinghe's friend really produce such a treasure?
"Yunqi!?"
Yi Yingying noticed Yunqi, who was standing beside Lü Wuque, during the conversation between Yunqi and Lü Wuque.
Thinking back to their past conflicts, she didn't have a good expression on her face as she questioned, "Yunqi, it seems I didn't invite you to my birthday banquet."
After Yi Yingying's questioning words, Yunqi's face flushed red, and she hesitantly said, "Didn't you invite all your friends from your graduating class in Qingyuan City?"
"I invited my friends from the graduating class, but as for you, Yunqi, I'm sorry, but I don't have friends like you from the same class."
The candid words made everyone look at her with different eyes, making Yunqi wish she could find a hole to hide in.
Earlier, Zhao Qi and Fang Ruoxue, who had been standing by her side, couldn't help but separate from her.
At a critical moment, Lü Wuque spoke up.
This can only happen once.
The Wang Dynasty and Mo Feng have been driven away. If Yunqi is driven away as well, it would be a great blow to his dignity and reputation, and in the future, who would be willing to stand by his side.
"These are all small matters. Today is your birthday celebration, don't worry about these trivial matters. For your birthday, I have specially invited my elder brother Qiankun, although he did not come in person, he sent two bodyguards to congratulate you."
"Qiankun's Elder Brother!"
This name indeed carried an extraordinary deterrent force.
For a moment, not only Yi Yingying, but even Hua Ruoyan felt a chill in her heart.
"Why is everyone crowding near the door? Lü Young Master, where are your people?"
Just then, a voice emanated from outside.
Although the owner of this voice addressed Lü Young Master, there was not a trace of respect in those three words.
Despite this, after hearing the voice, Lü Wuque's face still lit up with joy, "He's here, he's here, my cousin sent his bodyguards to congratulate me. Make way, make way, let them in."
As he spoke, he hurried towards the direction from which the voice had come.
Even Yi Yingying, and even Hua Ruoyan, daunted by the reputation of Qiankun's Elder Brother, made way for the two figures walking in from outside.
Needless to say, these two middle-aged men with cold expressions were Qiankun's Elder Brother Lü Qiankun's two bodyguards.
Seeing these two individuals, everyone showed a look of awe in their eyes.
And Land Qinghe, who had been sitting quietly all along, had a hint of coldness in his eyes at this moment.
These two are indeed Qiankun's bodyguards because Land Qinghe recognized one of the middle-aged men.
It was the sharpshooter who had escaped while guarding Qiankun in the Great Hall.