Chapter 247: The Yan Siblings
Perhaps their impatience had an effect, as a black dot suddenly appeared in the western sky above the mountain peak. Then two enormous two-headed monstrous eagles gradually flew closer. They were exactly the Twin-Headed Eagles that Han Li had seen at the Southern Gathering. Riding atop the monstrous eagles were a man and a woman.
As soon as outsiders appeared, the previously languid Dong Xuan'er immediately perked up, straightened her posture, and curiously stared at the approaching "Twin-Headed Eagles."
"My sincerest apologies for keeping you two waiting! I am Yan Yu, and this is my younger sister Yan Ling. We've come to escort you to Yan Ling Castle." As soon as the Twin-Headed Eagles flew to the mountaintop, the man and woman immediately jumped down. As soon as the young man steadied himself, he said apologetically.
"No matter, we only arrived not long ago!" Before Han Li could speak, Dong Xuan'er beside him, upon seeing that Yan Yu was an exceptionally handsome and valiant young man, immediately brightened and said sweetly, her voice tender and melodious to an extreme degree, causing Han Li to glance sideways in surprise.
If he hadn't witnessed this woman's domineering and willful behavior over the past few days, Han Li, hearing only Dong Xuan'er's voice at this moment, might have truly believed her to be a refined lady from a distinguished family!
Yan Yu naturally knew none of this. Seeing the beautiful young woman before him and hearing her gentle words directed at him, he felt a stir in his heart and a peculiar sensation rising within him. He straightened his posture and said clearly:
"In fact, there were Yan family disciples stationed here to receive honored guests. However, the disciples originally waiting encountered an unexpected incident, so there was momentarily no one here to receive you, nearly causing us to neglect you two! On behalf of the Yan family, I offer my apologies. I hope you won't hold it against us."
Dong Xuan'er listened, pursed her lips in a smile, a hint of charm flashing in her eyes. Just as she was about to say something more, Han Li's faint voice transmission suddenly reached her ears:
"Sister Dong's demeanor like this—aren't you afraid that Aunt Hongfu will blame you?"
Hearing this, Dong Xuan'er's expression changed drastically. Her lips moved several times, but no words came out. This strange situation left the Yan siblings somewhat puzzled!
Yan Ling was a girl of fifteen or sixteen, appearing lively and charming from her appearance, with a pair of dark, sparkling eyes that kept shifting between Han Li and Dong Xuan'er, giving her an extremely perceptive air.
"As Sister Dong said, a slight delay is nothing. I trust that the Yan family would never intentionally slight us invited guests! However, I'm still somewhat curious—what kind of unexpected incident could the disciples waiting have encountered? Could it be they clashed with some guest?" Having stopped Dong Xuan'er from recklessly using her Spring Transformation art's bewitching techniques, Han Li coughed lightly twice, said a polite remark, and then inquired half-jokingly about the so-called "incident."
"This?" Upon hearing Han Li's words, a look of difficulty appeared on Yan Yu's face, as if there were concerns that made it inconvenient to speak openly!
"Han Li, since Brother Yu has something inconvenient to discuss, why don't we just stop causing trouble for him? Let's head to Yan Ling Castle first. Quite a few people should have arrived already, right?"
"Yes, let's go to Yan Ling Castle! Many other guests have indeed arrived and are discussing cultivation insights and exchanging techniques. When you two arrive, you can join right in."
When Dong Xuan'er saw Yan Yu hesitating, she suddenly spoke up on his behalf. This brought great relief to the Yan family disciple, who agreed repeatedly, his favorable impression of Dong Xuan'er increasing greatly. Meanwhile, Yan Ling beside him vaguely sensed Dong Xuan'er's "ill intentions" and pouted her small lips in displeasure.
This time, however, Han Li didn't react to Dong Xuan'er. He simply smiled faintly and nodded in agreement:
"Then please lead the way, Brother Yan and Miss Yan! My Sister Dong and I will follow behind you two."
When Yan Yu heard that Han Li was not pressing the question, a look of joy crossed his face. But then, as if remembering something, he said apologetically:
"Before leading you there, I still need to perform the routine check of the invitation. Please don't mind!"
Though Yan Yu spoke politely, Han Li could clearly sense that most of this tone was directed at Dong Xuan'er. It seemed this Yan family disciple was already falling into her web of charm.
Han Li laughed coldly to himself but couldn't be bothered with Dong Xuan'er's ridiculous affairs. He pretended not to notice as he took out Li Huayuan's invitation and handed it to Yan Yu. Dong Xuan'er also produced Hongfu Xiangu's invitation, her delicate jade-like hand extending it forward, the alluring fragrance and luster so dazzling that Yan Yu momentarily lost his wits, forgetting to reach out and take it.
His sister beside him could no longer watch this and angrily grabbed the invitation on Yan Yu's behalf. Only then did her brother snap out of his daze. Under Dong Xuan'er's soft laughter, his face flushed red.
"So it's Senior Brother Han and Sister Dong. The invitations are in order. Shall we go then?"
After returning the examined invitations to Han Li and Dong Xuan'er, Yan Yu seemed somewhat preoccupied. Throughout the process, he kept stealing glances at Dong Xuan'er. But now this willful woman had assumed a composed and dignified demeanor, which only made the Yan family elite think all the more!
The four of them left the location one after another, heading in the direction from which the Yan siblings had come.
After flying for several dozen miles, they arrived at a location between two small mountain peaks and stopped.
At this point, Yan Yu produced something resembling a token from his body, gripped it tightly with both hands, and frantically channeled his spiritual power into it. Immediately, a vast expanse of yellowish light shot from the token toward the void ahead.
Where the originally empty air was swept by the yellow light, a multicolored radiance suddenly appeared! Then, once the five-colored radiance dissipated, Han Li and the others' vision brightened as a magnificent ancient castle materialized between the originally barren mountain ridges.
Looking at the massive city walls, towering thirty to forty zhang high, and the countless tall, ancient-style buildings visible within, both Han Li and Dong Xuan'er felt extremely curious, their eyes barely able to take it all in!
"This is one of our Yan family's key locations, Yan Ling Castle. Welcome, Senior Brother Han and Sister Dong!" Yan Yu's expression suddenly became solemn as he said this gravely.
Han Li smiled and was about to say something when Dong Xuan'er beside him suddenly let out a surprised "Huh!" Her gaze fixed on a spot within the great castle, filled with astonishment.
Seeing her expression, Han Li naturally followed her gaze.
On a platform resembling a dueling arena at the edge of the castle, two men with different attire floated in confrontation. One wore the brown attire of the Yan family—a burly, fierce-looking man. The other had a face framed by curly whiskers, gray eyes and yellow hair, dark skin, and wore a green robe, looking extremely strange!
Around them, a giant white light barrier flickered faintly, almost ethereal. Outside the light barrier, people stood in scattered groups. Most conspicuous were two groups of people dressed entirely in uniform. One group stood in orderly formation, completely silent, appearing highly disciplined—they were the Yan family members. The other group all wore the same green robes as the curly-whiskered stranger in the air. Most shared his gray eyes and yellow hair, though among them were also some with ordinary features.
After seeing clearly, Han Li's face showed similar surprise, and he couldn't help but glance at the Yan siblings beside him to see if they had any explanation.
But before Han Li could ask, upon seeing this scene, Yan Yu's expression immediately became somewhat unnatural. Yan Ling beside him clenched her fists and said furiously:
"They've started challenging again, and so ruthlessly too! How outrageous!"
Hearing this, Han Li felt a stir and probed with a question:
"Are these people not guests of the Yan family?"
"Of course not! These fellows showed up uninvited. When they arrived at the reception point outside the castle, they forced their way in without invitations and injured the two disciples, Xiao Shiliu and Xiao Shiwu, who were receiving guests. When other disciples arrived after receiving the distress call, they originally intended to teach these people a severe lesson. But unexpectedly, these people produced some letters and tokens, which caused several leading elders to look solemn and swallow their anger, inviting them into the castle."
"But even after entering Yan Ling Castle, these people remained completely unruly and immediately proposed a cultivation exchange to the Yan family. After deliberation, the elders seemed to want to show these people a thing or two and agreed. It's a full ten matches, all fought by Foundation Establishment disciples! Before I went to pick you two up, several matches had already been fought, but the results..." Yan Yu shook his head lightly, his expression somewhat somber. Clearly, without needing to ask, one could tell the Yan family was at a disadvantage.