Upon entering the palace, one would find a very large hall.
Inside the hall, there were exquisite tables and chairs, with various spirit fruits and steaming spirit tea placed upon them.
Currently, two male cultivators in silver armor, at the late Foundation Establishment stage, were sitting on adjacent chairs, conversing in low voices.
Upon seeing Wu Tao enter, both of them could not help but stand up, their gazes towards him carrying a hint of wariness.
Seeing this, Wu Tao's brows twitched slightly. After sensing the powerful spiritual energy emanating from both of them, his expression became even more amused.
Not bothering to explain much, Wu Tao directly tossed his jade token to the two.
After receiving the jade token, the wariness on their faces vanished instantly.
However, out of caution, they both inspected it thoroughly to confirm its authenticity.
Once they confirmed the jade token was genuine, their faces were wreathed in smiles, and they eagerly began to host Wu Tao.
"Are you, Sir, the super prodigy Wu Tao, who defeated the Core Formation stage cultivator Hong Bai with your Foundation Establishment cultivation?"
Among the two, the slightly younger male cultivator asked.
"That's right, I am Wu Tao. I hope you two teammates will assist me, a newcomer, more in the future."
Wu Tao smiled slightly and took his jade token back from their hands.
In the cultivation world, the higher a cultivator's cultivation, the more eccentric their personality tends to be, especially for those who specialize in killing. Arrogance, bloodlust, and conceit are commonplace.
Wu Tao was at the great circle of the late Foundation Establishment stage, which meant his cultivation was no different from theirs. However, once these two confirmed Wu Tao's identity, they both showed reverence and were exceedingly polite.
Respect for the strong.
It's the same everywhere; whoever has the harder fist is the boss.
Wu Tao had almost killed Hong Bai, a Core Formation stage cultivator, to compete for the cave mansion...
This irrefutable and fierce battle record sent chills down the spines of all Foundation Establishment stage cultivators who heard the news.
To this day, Wu Tao was unaware that his fearsome reputation had spread throughout Tongguan City within a few days.
Even some Core Formation stage cultivators who were in seclusion emerged upon hearing this news, showing great interest in Wu Tao.
Some Nascent Soul stage cultivators had also noticed Wu Tao, observing him secretly for quite some time.
Defeating a Core Formation stage cultivator at the Foundation Establishment stage was truly a first in the thousand-year history of Tongguan City.
"Team Member of Grade A, Thirty-Six, Yu Mo. Hello, new teammate!"
"Team Member of Grade A, Thirty-Six, Yang Fan. Hello, new teammate!"
Following this, Yu Mo and Yang Fan introduced themselves and some basic information about the team.
Seeing this, Wu Tao exchanged pleasantries with them for a moment before finding a nearby chair and sinking into it.
After scanning his surroundings, Wu Tao calmly asked, "Are there only the two of you here now? Isn't the captain here today?"
"The captain hasn't arrived yet, but judging by the time, she should be here soon. The other teammates are meditating in the secret chamber. We two were just chatting and keeping an eye out!" Yu Mo replied.
"Very well, I will wait here. I've just arrived in Tongguan City and am not very familiar with everything here. I'd like to ask you two to introduce me to our team's situation," Wu Tao said with a faint smile, not in a hurry.
"No problem. Since we're teammates, I'll tell you anything you ask," Yu Mo said readily, patting his chest without much surprise.
Over the next while, Yu Mo gave Wu Tao a general introduction to the team members, their basic abilities, personalities, and the tasks they performed.
Only by the end did Wu Tao realize that the team was indeed a hidden dragon and crouching tiger, with each member being a formidable individual.
Not to mention those far away, Yu Mo himself possessed innate spiritual eyes that could see through fog and illusions, making him the team's scout.
Meanwhile, the taciturn Yang Fan was a rare Poison Cultivator, specializing in making and using poisons, serving as the team's assassin and finisher.
The team also had defenders, attackers, disruptors, controllers, support, and so on, making them extremely well-rounded.
Just as Wu Tao, Yu Mo, and Yang Fan were engrossed in their conversation, a white light suddenly flashed in from the main entrance and flew towards the three of them.
Upon seeing this white light, Yu Mo and Yang Fan exchanged glances, stood up in unison, and a look of reverence appeared on their faces.
Wu Tao, following suit, also stood up, though his expression remained neutral.
The white light transformed into a figure that descended rapidly, landing on the ground as a breathtakingly beautiful woman in white.
Upon closer inspection, it was indeed Lü Yuehua.
"Captain, this is our new teammate, Wu Tao."
Yu Mo, fearing Lü Yuehua might not recognize him, quickly greeted her and introduced Wu Tao.
"Captain... Captain... Hello..."
Seeing Lü Yuehua again, the shock Wu Tao felt at their first meeting had not diminished with time but had instead become even more deeply etched in his heart.
At this moment, his mind was a blank slate, his eyes filled only with Lü Yuehua's image, nothing else.
The thumping of his heart grew faster and faster, and in his nervousness, he stammered, unable to even finish his words.
Seeing him as dazed as before, staring at her, Lü Yuehua did not get angry as she had the first time. Instead, she smiled slightly, appearing to be in good spirits.
This scene was like ice melting and spring blooming. Wu Tao, who was directly facing it, felt his legs go weak, nearly collapsing.
Realizing his indiscretion, he took a few deep breaths in a flustered manner, repeatedly telling himself, "Stay calm, absolutely stay calm. Think of Xu Sheng in Qingzhou, think of Xu Sheng. I can't act like a lustful scoundrel anymore."
Straightening his chest and standing firm, Wu Tao gazed at Lü Yuehua with bright eyes.
Seeing that Wu Tao had regained his senses, Lü Yuehua let out a soft "hmm," and her beautiful eyes suddenly became hazy as she slowly said, "We've already fought, so we don't need any more introductions, do we?"
Hearing this, Wu Tao strode forward and immediately caught a faint scent of her body.
This fragrance was captivating, making one feel infatuated.
After a moment's thought, Wu Tao said, "What Captain said is true, we indeed know each other through combat."
Yu Mo and Yang Fan, observing the tone and expressions of Wu Tao and Lü Yuehua as they spoke, clearly sensed that there were many secrets between them.
While they were quite curious, they dared not speculate too much. Even if Wu Tao and Lü Yuehua were romantically involved, they wouldn't dare to spread rumors.
This was because Lü Yuehua was their superior, and Wu Tao, based on his battle record alone, was clearly a formidable individual.
If any gossip were to spread outside, Wu Tao and Lü Yuehua might be fine, but their corpses would very likely end up in the Graveyard Harbor.
The woman in white pondered in silence. She folded the blood-written letter and returned it to Tuoba Ye, saying, "Young Master, even if this blood letter is given to the Azure Emperor, I'm afraid he won't go with you to Mirage City."
Lü Yuehua nodded and continued, "Did you get injured fighting that good-for-nothing Hong Bai?"
Seeing her concern for him, Wu Tao felt as if he had eaten honey. He patted his chest and boasted, "For a Core Formation stage cultivator like Hong Bai, I can kill several of them!"
Glancing at the brimming-with-confidence Wu Tao, Lü Yuehua was amused and bent over, laughing heartily.
If anyone else dared to laugh at him like this, Wu Tao would have drawn his sword and fought to the death, regardless of the odds. A common man's fury could spill three feet of blood.
However, when it came to Lü Yuehua, Wu Tao felt utterly embarrassed and wished he could find a crack in the floor to crawl into.
Meanwhile, Yu Mo and Yang Fan found the conversation increasingly awkward and wished they could disappear immediately.
The new teammate, Wu Tao, dared to pursue Captain Lü Yuehua, and it seemed the captain also had some feelings for the new teammate.
To dare to pursue a beautiful Core Formation stage female cultivator with only Foundation Establishment cultivation was indeed impressive and powerful.
And to even covet the body of a Core Formation stage beauty, and most importantly, to actually have a chance of succeeding, this was truly awe-inspiring to the two of them.
Besides admiration, they had no other thoughts, as a prodigy who could defeat a Core Formation stage cultivator at the Foundation Establishment stage would surely reach Core Formation in no time.
It was not shameful to pursue a girl with one's own abilities; it was shameful to bully others by relying on the power of one's elders.
When they themselves had first broken through to the Foundation Establishment stage, they had only dared to covet female cultivators at the Qi Refining stage.
Regardless, Yu Mo and Yang Fan still felt their situation was precarious.
Staying here and being the third wheel was both awkward and dangerous.
As time passed, Wu Tao and Lü Yuehua's conversation grew more enthusiastic, and their connection deepened.
Although they didn't utter cheesy lines like "You were the man who made my heart flutter the moment I saw you, and I can't live without you after you leave," the atmosphere between Wu Tao and Lü Yuehua was indeed intense.
As for Xu Sheng, in the cultivation world, from ancient times to the present, monogamy has never been the norm.
Polygyny and polyandry exist.
It all depended on who had the bigger fist; if your fist was bigger, you were the boss. If your fist was smaller, you had to listen to the one with the bigger fist.
Until a communication jade slip, transmitted through a small teleportation array within the palace, flew rapidly to Lü Yuehua's side.