Chapter 20: Invitation

"No. Our Cold Flame Sect can't just take in a bunch of mortals. Your family can escape to the Creek Nation under the protection of the elders for refuge for now," Gu Yunyue said with a shake of her head.

The Creek Nation was situated to the northeast of the Prosperous Nation, and at the moment, it still belonged to the Cold Flame Sect.

The elders of the Yu Manor were quite disappointed to hear this, but they didn't dare to contest Gu Yunyue's decision.

The survivors of the Yu Family were very much alarmed by this turn of events, and they all turned to Yu Menghan with imploring looks in their eyes.

"We'll all be screwed if the Heavenly Ghost Sect hunts us down! You can't just abandon us now that you've managed to join an immortal sect..." the second young master of the Yu Family yelled in a panicked voice.

"Shut up!" Yu Menghan scolded with a stern expression.

The second young master shuddered, and he didn't dare to say anything further.

Even though Yu Menghan was putting on a stern display, she was also quite concerned about the safety of her family, and she turned to Gu Yunyue before asking, "Master, will it really be alright to send them to the Creek Nation? Surely it won't be very difficult for the Heavenly Ghost Sect to track them down."

"Rest assured, Menghan. According to the rules of the Spirit Domain Realm, as long as you can officially become an inner court disciple of the Cold Flame Sect, the Heavenly Ghost Sect will be prohibited from attacking your family. Otherwise, they'll be committing what's considered to be a cardinal sin in this realm.

“If they dare to hunt down your family, then once you become an established cultivator, you'll also have an excuse to attack the families of the Heavenly Ghost Sect's disciples. They attacked the Yu Manor because they didn't know that you had an acceptance badge from our sect.

“Now that I've made an official appearance, things are completely different. The most important thing now is to get you to the Cold Flame Sect safe and sound," Gu Yunyue said with a serious expression.

Yu Menghan was quite relieved to hear this, and everyone else from the Yu Family was also put at ease.

"Elders, I'll be counting on you to look after my family. Once I become an established cultivator in the future, I'll be sure to reward you handsomely," Yu Menghan said as she extended a curtsey toward Daoist Master White Stone and the other three elders.

"You're far too kind, Young Mistress. As elders of the Yu Manor, we've always been treated very well by Prime Minister Yu and yourself. Now that Yu Manor has gone through such a tragic catastrophe, it is our duty to protect your family," the elders hurriedly replied, vowing to protect the survivors of the Yu Family.

Even though they couldn't join the Cold Flame Sect, it would benefit them immensely to establish close ties with Yu Menghan, who was on track to become an inner court disciple of the Cold Flame Sect.

However, a reluctant look appeared on Daoist Master White Stone's face, and he stole a glance at Han Li.

Han Li was in the process of examining the storage bag in his hands, and he turned to Daoist Master White Stone with a hint of a smile on his face as he said, "Fellow Daoist White Stone, given how long you've been serving the Yu Manor, it should only be right that you accompany them on this trip as well."

Only then did Daoist Master White Stone force a smile onto his face and accept this arrangement.

Yu Menghan pretended not to have seen this exchange, and she extended another curtsey toward the elders. "You have my utmost gratitude."

Thus, with everything decided, the survivors of the Yu Family immediately began to prepare for the upcoming journey, gathering all of the treasures and valuable items in the manor.

Meanwhile, Han Li casually pocketed the storage bag in his hands, then made his way over to Qi Minghao's body before taking his storage bag as well.

As for the belongings of the black-suited cultivators, he couldn't even be bothered to pick them up.

Daoist Master White Stone and the others were ecstatic to see this, and they hurriedly gathered the scattered belongings of the black-suited cultivators.

"What are your plans for the future, Fellow Daoist Han?" Gu Yunyue asked as she approached him.

"It's a complete accident that I even came to Farbright City in the first place. Now that I've made an enemy out of the Heavenly Ghost Sect, I'll naturally have to get far away from here," Han Li replied in an indifferent voice.

"Not only have you gotten yourself involved in all of this, you've slain Qi Minghao as well, so I'm afraid it may not be a simple matter for you to get away. Given the power and reach of the Heavenly Ghost Sect, I'm sure they'll find out about you very soon," Gu Yunyue said.

Han Li's expression remained unchanged as he asked, "What are you trying to say, Celestial Maiden Gu?"

"If you're not opposed to the idea, how about you join our Cold Flame Sect? Our sect has always welcomed powerful vagrant cultivators. Given how you were able to slay those Core Formation cultivators so easily, you must possess Nascent Soul Stage power yourself, so it's not out of the question for you to become a guest elder of our sect. I would be honored to refer you to our sect's leaders," Gu Yunyue said.

Yu Menghan's eyes lit up at the proposal, and she chimed in, "Master's right. If you can join our Cold Flame Sect, I'm sure Sister Le'er will also benefit immensely."

Han Li turned to Liu Le'er, and a contemplative look appeared on his face.

Liu Le'er looked back at him with a pair of wide and innocent eyes, seemingly unsure of exactly what was happening.

"If I'm not mistaken, your aura seems to be rather unstable, which indicates that you're carrying some sort of injury, Fellow Daoist Han. I just so happen to have a Sharp Watch Pill with me, a vastly renowned healing medicine in the Spirit Domain Realm," Gu Yunyue continued in a meaningful voice.

Given that two of the Heavenly Ghost Sect's Core Formation cultivators had been slain here, one of which was the descendant of a Deity Transformation cultivator, there was a very good chance that they would be intercepted by powerful foes from the Heavenly Ghost Sect on the way back to the Cold Flame Sect.

Han Li was a complete mystery to her, but she was certain that he would be a strong ally if he were willing to accompany them.

Han Li stroked his chin in contemplation for a moment, then suddenly turned to Liu Le'er. "What do you say, Le'er? Are you willing to come to the Cold Flame Sect with me?"

Given Gu Yunyue's cultivation base, Liu Le'er's identity as a demonic fox was naturally no secret to her.

However, by searching Daoist Master White Stone's soul earlier, Han Li had learned that even though there was some severe segregation that existed between humans and demons in the Spirit Domain Realm, it was quite common to see some powerful cultivators in large sects with demons by their side, so there shouldn't be any issues taking Liu Le'er to the Cold Flame Sect.

Liu Le'er took a glance at Gu Yunyue, then looked at Yu Menghan before replying in a timid voice, "I'll do whatever you say."

"Don't worry, no one will dare to pick on you as long as I'm around," Han Li reassured with a smile as he gently patted her head.

"I know you'll protect me," Liu Le'er replied as a wide smile appeared on her face.

"Then I'll have to trouble you to refer me to your sect, Celestial Maiden Gu. Would you be able to give me the Sharp Watch Pill now?" Han Li asked as he turned to Gu Yunyue.

"Of course!" Gu Yunyue was elated, and she flipped a hand over to produce a white jade vial without any hesitation before handing it over to Han Li.

Han Li accepted the jade vial, then removed the lid before taking a slight whiff and giving a nod.

A faint smile appeared on Gu Yunyue's face upon seeing this.

𝑓𝘳𝘦𝑒𝑤𝑒𝘣𝘯ℴ𝘷𝘦𝓁.𝑐𝑜𝑚

At this point, the survivors of the Yu Family were already done packing, and aside from all of the manor's valuable items, they had also brought out several horse-drawn carriages.

Daoist Master White Stone and the others also made their way over to Han Li.

"Senior Han, I..." Daoist Master White Stone seemed to want to say something, but was rather hesitant about how to proceed.

"Just focus on protecting the Yu Family, and don't worry about anything else. Also, I have something that I need you to do for me..." Han Li's voice trailed off here, but his lips were still moving, and he communicated something to Daoist Master White Stone through voice transmission.

Daoist Master White Stone faltered slightly upon hearing what Han Li had to say, then nodded in response.

Meanwhile, Yu Menghan made her way over to Gu Yunyue's side, then said, "Master, the city gates have all been locked, so I'll have to trouble you to take them out of the city."

Gu Yunyue nodded in response, then swept a sleeve through the air to conjure up a large cloud of white mist that carried everyone into the sky.

The survivors of the Yu Family had never experienced something so ethereal, and they hurriedly grabbed onto the carriages beside them, while some of them cried out in surprise and alarm.

The white cloud flew out of the city in the blink of an eye, then landed gently on the official road outside the city.

"Mother, Auntie..." Even though Yu Menghan was already prepared for this separation, she was still overcome by emotions and embraced her family tightly.

Her mother and her other close relatives also had tears in their eyes as they told Yu Menghan to look after herself.

Only after a long while did they reluctantly part with one another.

Under the protection of the four elders, the survivors of the Yu Family headed east, and they quickly disappeared into the night.

Yu Menghan looked on with a blank expression as her family faded into the distance, and only after a long while did she withdraw her gaze.

After giving Yu Menghan a moment to collect herself, Gu Yunyue swept a hand through the air to summon a white spirit ark. "We need to set off as well."

The spirit ark was around 40 to 50 feet in length, and it had a rather interesting design, with a body that resembled a crescent moon. Its surface was riddled with azure spirit patterns that were giving off faint spiritual power fluctuations, and it was clearly no ordinary ark.

Han Li held onto Liu Le'er's hand as he stepped onto the spirit ark, and Yu Menghan took a deep breath before also following suit.

Gu Yunyue released an incantation seal onto the spirit ark, and it immediately began to glow with white spiritual light before rising up into the air and flying away into the distance as a streak of white light.