Chapter Twenty-One: The Flesh Becomes Wood

After stepping inside, there was no more seawater, and the pressure on Yang Ye's body vanished as well.

Long Xiaoqing left Yang Ye’s body and appeared on his shoulder, asking joyfully, “Husband, how do you like this home?”

Yang Ye praised, “This place is truly wonderful!”

“Greetings, Miss!”

An old man, who looked exactly like Yang Ye’s master, saw Long Xiaoqing and bowed deeply to her.

“Steward Mu, go prepare some food for my husband and me. We’re hungry,” Long Xiaoqing nodded and instructed the old man.

“Yes, Miss.” After bowing again, the old man promptly turned and left to make the preparations.

Long Xiaoqing then led Yang Ye on a tour around the Dragon Palace.

This was a space constructed from special materials, hidden within a mountain at the bottom of the ocean. The domed ceiling was actually a massive display, capable of showing the outside world in perfect clarity. At this moment, the sky outside was filled with bright stars, so the dome projected a brilliant starry night. Naturally, if one preferred daylight, it could be switched at will. The lighting felt a little dim, so Long Xiaoqing merely gave Steward Mu a simple instruction. Once he acknowledged, the starry sky on the dome shifted to blue sky and white clouds, and the entire space brightened considerably. The temperature inside rose as well.

The ground was covered with flowers and grass. Even though autumn reigned outside, within the Dragon Palace it was spring, with blossoms in full bloom. The air was fragrant with the scent of flowers. Between the flower beds, exotic stones were artfully arranged, and gentle streams of water meandered through. The resting area was a finely crafted small palace, built from white stone, elegant in design.

...

It took Yang Ye over an hour just to take a cursory tour of the Dragon Palace.

“Husband, let’s eat!” After showing Yang Ye around, Long Xiaoqing clutched her flat belly and called out.

Yang Ye nodded and entered the stone palace.

Inside, he found the space much larger than it appeared from outside. In the hall stood a long table, already laden with a feast. Most of the dishes were meats, especially seafood. There were clam shells larger than basins, with golden meat spilling from their edges. Huge platters of crabs, shrimp, and sea cucumber were arrayed alongside them.

Beyond seafood, there were also land delicacies, such as roast suckling pig and crispy roast duck, their skins glistening golden.

Fresh vegetables and fruits were, of course, plentiful and appeared as fresh as if just picked. The aroma of the dishes was mouthwatering, and Long Xiaoqing couldn’t help but drool at the sight.

Steward Mu stood beside the long table. When he saw Yang Ye and Long Xiaoqing, he bowed and said, “Young Master, Miss, your dinner is ready.”

Seeing the steward’s respectful demeanor, Yang Ye frowned and said, “Steward Mu, perhaps you could take on a different appearance? I’m not used to seeing you like this.”

“As you wish, Young Master!” Steward Mu replied, turning around to become a beautiful woman of about thirty.

Now Long Xiaoqing was dissatisfied. “Steward Mu, try another look.”

Steward Mu nodded and, with another turn, transformed into a plain-looking, middle-aged man in a tunic suit.

At last, both Yang Ye and Long Xiaoqing were satisfied.

Steward Mu was not a living being, but a marvelous wooden puppet, crafted from a most unusual material. Lacking true self-awareness, he was nevertheless cleverer than most people.

After more than twenty hours swimming in the sea, Yang Ye was famished. He sat down and immediately began to eat, picking up his chopsticks. Long Xiaoqing, meanwhile, was attended by Steward Mu, who served her whatever she wished, placing the dishes before her.

Despite the abundance of food, after half an hour, more than half had disappeared into Long Xiaoqing’s belly. Yang Ye soon felt he’d eaten his fill as well.

The food was simply delicious.

Yang Ye rubbed his own belly and gave Steward Mu a thumbs-up.

Seeing that both Yang Ye and Long Xiaoqing had eaten their fill, Steward Mu calmly said, “Young Master, before the master left, he instructed that, if Miss’s presence ever became inconvenient at your side, you could use the Fleshwood to fashion her a human body.”

“Hm?” Yang Ye looked at Steward Mu in surprise.

Long Xiaoqing asked curiously, “Steward Mu, do you mean I can use the Fleshwood to become human?”

Steward Mu nodded, “That is correct, Miss.”

“Take us there, quickly!” Long Xiaoqing urged impatiently.

“Please, Young Master, Miss,” Steward Mu said, making a gesture of invitation.

Yang Ye followed Steward Mu to the treasury beneath the palace.

The moment he stepped inside and glanced around, Yang Ye’s eyes widened in wonder.

The treasury was piled high with jewels, jade, and a great many weapons. Among them, a set of black armor caught and held Yang Ye’s gaze.

His first thought was that, if he wore that armor, he would look utterly formidable.

“Young Master, you are not yet able to wear this armor safely,” Steward Mu remarked, noticing Yang Ye’s interest.

“Why not?” Yang Ye asked, curious.

Steward Mu replied, “This is the Solar Armor. At your current level, if you put it on, it would drain all the star power from your body. The master has said, until you reach the Transcendent Star level, you mustn’t even touch it.”

So powerful!

Yang Ye’s eyes grew even wider.

Clearly, it would be a long time before he could don this armor.

Steward Mu continued, “Aside from the Solar Armor, Young Master may use anything else in the treasury as you wish.”

With that, Steward Mu took a dark red wooden box from a rack and handed it to Yang Ye.

Yang Ye accepted the box. It was astonishingly heavy—though only a foot long, it weighed several hundred pounds. He had to use his star power just to lift it.

Steward Mu explained, “Inside is the Fleshwood, nine pieces in all. When Young Master carves a body for Miss, you’ll need to go outside…”

He went on to give detailed instructions.

When he finished, Steward Mu excused himself, saying he needed to clear the table.

As Steward Mu explained the use of the Fleshwood, Long Xiaoqing’s attention had already been captured by the heaps of glittering gems. Cultivators did not value such pretty but mostly useless things, but it was obvious Long Xiaoqing’s grandfather had collected so many for her sake.

By the time Steward Mu left, Long Xiaoqing was already half-buried in the pile of jewels, laughing gleefully, thoroughly delighted.

Smiling and shaking his head, Yang Ye left the treasury with the wooden box.

He selected a spacious room in the stone palace.

Opening the box, Yang Ye withdrew a piece of Fleshwood, as thick as a finger and the color of human skin.

No sooner had it left the box than it began to expand rapidly.

In less than three minutes, it had become a massive log, over four meters long and half a meter in diameter.

Carving, then…

Yang Ye had never learned the art of carving, but Steward Mu had said that for a cultivator, it would be easy to master.

Yang Ye took out a short knife, sharp as if it could cut through iron as mud, and a set of finely forged throwing knives.

These would be his tools for carving.

With the short knife, he sliced off a small piece of the Fleshwood, and, holding the keen-edged throwing knife, began to carve.