Chapter 415 - 413: Golden Willow Crown

"Whatever," Li Qiye said, unconcerned. "It’s not that your Qianli River’s ancestors didn’t know about this place. Even if they did, they couldn’t get in."

The key to entering this place wasn’t the Heavenly Destiny Secret Skill, River of Fate Celestial Return. It was his Golden Law. Without the Golden Law in his Sea of Consciousness, knowing the secrets within was useless; entry was still impossible.

"How do you know about this place?" Lan Yunzhu asked softly, looking at Li Qiye’s nonchalant expression. He seemed to have been absent-minded ever since they left the Golden Divine Hall, and she couldn’t help but worry about him.

"A simple divination," Li Qiye said with a smile.

"You can just drop dead!" Lan Yunzhu was so angry she was gritting her teeth. She was only trying to be nice, and this Little Ghost didn’t appreciate it one bit! ’He’s completely ungrateful!’

Li Qiye shot her a sideways glance. "Are you going to stay here and keep flirting with me, or should we hurry back before your master and the others start to worry?"

"Pfft! You narcissist! Who wants to flirt with you? Stop being so conceited," Lan Yunzhu hissed, her face flushed red with anger.

Back at the edge of the Yin Yang Pool, a long time had passed since Li Qiye and Lan Yunzhu descended, yet there was still no sign of them. As her master, the Treasure Turtle Daoist couldn’t help but start to worry.

"Can they really have gone this deep?" the Treasure Turtle Daoist murmured worriedly, his old eyes fixed on the Yin Yang Pool. ’Although Lan Yunzhu’s Dao Practice is profound, as the Sect Leader, I know better than anyone how terrifying this Yin Yang Pool can be.’

"Hmph! If that Little Ghost Li wants to get himself killed, he shouldn’t drag anyone else down with him!" By now, it wasn’t just the Treasure Turtle Daoist; the other elders were starting to worry as well.

"If anything happens to Yunzhu, I swear we won’t let that Little Ghost off the hook," one of the elders said bitterly.

At this point, everyone’s anger was directed at the perceived culprit, Li Qiye. Even the Qianli River disciples couldn’t help but curse his name, all of them worried for Lan Yunzhu’s safety.

As for Li Qiye’s safety, only Lu Baiqiu was worried. She stood by the edge of the pool, staring anxiously at the water and praying silently in her heart. ’I hope nothing happens to Li Qiye.’

"Sect Leader, I’m afraid this is bad. We should go down and take a look," an elder said worriedly, seeing as Li Qiye and Lan Yunzhu had yet to emerge after so much time.

The Treasure Turtle Daoist was also worried. He nodded and said, "Pause the Catching the Immortal Sunflower for now. We’ll go down and check on them. It would be terrible if something happened to those two."

SPLASH—! Just as the Treasure Turtle Daoist and the others decided to go down and investigate, two figures suddenly shot up from the pool and landed on the bank.

"They’re out!" Seeing the two figures emerge from the pool, everyone from the Qianli River disciples to the elders was overjoyed. "They’re out!" someone cried out.

Seeing Li Qiye emerge from the pool unharmed, Lu Baiqiu, who had been so worried, finally let out a sigh of relief, her face breaking into a smile.

"Reckless!" Seeing the two of them return safely, the Treasure Turtle Daoist, in his role as Sect Leader, let out a sigh of relief but immediately chided them. "The Yin Yang Pool is incredibly dangerous! How could you descend so carelessly?"

"Don’t worry, Sect Leader. A mere Yin Yang Pool isn’t enough to take our lives," Li Qiye said with a laugh. He then produced the Yin Yang Immortal Sunflower Emperor and said with a grin, "We only managed to catch one Yin Yang Immortal Sunflower. I wonder how many the two Guardians from Qianli River caught?"

"The Yin Yang Immortal Sunflower Emperor!" The Treasure Turtle Daoist was stunned the moment he saw what was in Li Qiye’s hand.

The other Guardian Elders present all crowded around, including the two Guardians who had been tasked with catching the Yin Yang Immortal Sunflowers. As they looked closely at the Yin Yang Immortal Sunflower Emperor in Li Qiye’s hand, their expressions changed dramatically.

"It really is the Yin Yang Immortal Sunflower Emperor!" one of the Guardians tasked with catching them exclaimed, his face paling in shock.

"Our Qianli River hasn’t caught a Yin Yang Immortal Sunflower Emperor in three thousand years," one elder said, clearly stunned. "How did you manage to catch one today? This is unbelievable!"

Seeing the Yin Yang Immortal Sunflower Emperor, Elder Lin’s expression turned exceedingly grim. He let out a cold snort. With an Emperor, Li Qiye’s victory was guaranteed. It didn’t matter how many regular Yin Yang Immortal Sunflowers they caught now; they couldn’t compare to a single Emperor.

"So, who won this round?" Li Qiye asked the elders with a wide grin.

The elders present exchanged glances. Although they were reluctant, as elders of an Emperor Immortal Gate, they had to admit that Li Qiye had won this round.

"Li Qiye has passed the second trial," the Treasure Turtle Daoist finally announced.

Li Qiye said leisurely, "Since I’ve passed two of the three trials, there’s no need for a third, is there? Of course, if the Qianli River insists on testing its future son-in-law, I’d be happy to oblige. I’m confident that no one can keep the two of us apart. Right, Yunzhu?"

Lan Yunzhu was both furious and flustered. She knew this Little Ghost was provoking her deliberately, which made her shoot Li Qiye a venomous glare.

As for the Qianli River elders and disciples, they were all incredibly bitter, but there was nothing they could do. They had given their word beforehand; they couldn’t go back on it now!

Li Qiye returned to his residence with Lu Baiqiu, while Lan Yunzhu went to report to her master, the Treasure Turtle Daoist.

After returning to their private courtyard, Li Qiye called Lu Baiqiu to his side. He handed her the Golden Willow Crown and said, "You have been diligent and dedicated during your time with me. Take this Treasure Crown today as your reward."

"What kind of treasure is this?" Lu Baiqiu asked, deeply moved as she looked at the Golden Willow Crown in her hands. Even if she wasn’t an expert on treasures, seeing the minuscule Laws, as fine as Golden Threads, swirling around the crown, she knew this was an extraordinary item.

Li Qiye smiled. "It’s called the Golden Willow Crown, formed from the most precious branches of the Golden Divine Willow. It’s a natural creation, not something woven by mortal hands—truly a work of divine craftsmanship. If you treat it as a weapon, it is a weapon. If you treat it as a scripture, it is a scripture. And if you use it to comprehend a Supreme Chapter Method, then it is a Supreme Chapter Method."

"This... It’s that amazing?" Lu Baiqiu was stunned for a moment. ’If that’s true,’ she thought, ’then this is truly an incredible Divine Object.’

Li Qiye nodded. "Exactly. You could say this Golden Willow Crown is one of a kind. Consider it a Creation I am gifting you. As for what benefits and insights you gain from it, that will depend on your own personal Creation. Remember, you only have one chance to comprehend the Supreme Chapter within it."

"This..." Lu Baiqiu hesitated, holding the Golden Willow Crown. A treasure like this was simply too valuable for her; it could be called a Divine Object. She was just a Hall Master from Jingxi Country. A treasure of this level was completely beyond her reach.

"Take it," Li Qiye said with a relaxed smile. "You’ve earned it. I said I would grant you a Creation, and I don’t go back on my promises."

Lu Baiqiu snapped back to her senses. She gave Li Qiye a deep bow and said, "Thank you, Young Master." Beyond the gratitude in her heart, any more words of thanks would have seemed pale and insufficient.

"The bottom of the Yin Yang Pool... The secret of the Yin Yang Pool," the Treasure Turtle Daoist murmured, visibly shaken after hearing Lan Yunzhu’s report. "The legendary Golden Divine Willow!"

Lan Yunzhu looked at her master. "Master, the Golden Divine Willow... what exactly is this Divine Tree?" She had seen the Golden Divine Tree with her own eyes but had been completely unable to comprehend its mysteries.

It was important to remember that she possessed a dual saint aptitude. In terms of talent, she was considered a prodigy not just in Nanyao Yun, but across the entire Ghost Sacred Realm. She was by no means inferior to any other genius.

Yet, standing beneath the Golden Divine Willow, she had been equally unable to fathom its secrets.

The Treasure Turtle Daoist pondered for a moment before speaking. "The Golden Divine Willow... I’m not entirely sure of the specifics myself. The sect’s records on it are fragmented at best. Legend says this Divine Tree possesses a heaven-piercing Creation, but as for its actual secrets, no one knows. It is said that the most powerful and incredible Divine Tree in the Ghost Sacred Realm is the legendary Ghost Ancestor Tree. Rumor has it that the Golden Divine Willow is second only to the Ghost Ancestor Tree."

"The Ghost Ancestor Tree?" Lan Yunzhu recalled that Li Qiye had said something similar.

The Treasure Turtle Daoist shook his head. "The Ghost Ancestor Tree is just a legend. No one truly believes such a Divine Tree exists. Many of the Ghost Races throughout the Ghost Sacred Realm deny its existence; even the Ancestral Realm denies it. Later generations have come to believe the Ghost Ancestor Tree is a complete fabrication, a rumor passed down and distorted over time."

"Is the Ghost Ancestor Tree really that important?" Lan Yunzhu asked, startled to hear that even the Ancestral Realm denied it.

"That will likely remain a mystery forever," the Treasure Turtle Daoist said gravely. "There are only rumors that the Ghost Ancestor Tree is connected to the very origin of the Ghost Race. If that’s true, some speculate that it is the very root of the Ghost Sacred Realm. Of course, this is all just hearsay. No one has ever actually seen this so-called Ghost Ancestor Tree."

"However," the Treasure Turtle Daoist continued, "if that’s the case, the Golden Divine Willow and Golden Divine Hall you mentioned are likely tied to the very foundation of our Qianli River. The fact that our Thousand Carp Lake is a paradise, a land of Seizing Heaven’s Creation, is probably deeply connected to them."

Lan Yunzhu opened her mouth to speak, then closed it. She decided not to mention that Li Qiye had planned to take something from within the Golden Divine Hall. After a moment’s hesitation, she buried the secret deep in her heart. ’If I say anything,’ she thought, ’it could be disastrous for Li Qiye.’