Not long after, Ye Yunfei finally inquired about the specific time the Void Secret Realm would open—approximately in ten days.
It was not exactly a secret; many powerful factions' expert prophecy masters had already come to the Tiange World Cluster and conducted detailed divinations about the Void Secret Realm's opening time. The results had long since spread.
"Young Master Ye, we still have ten days. How about we spend that time wandering around and exploring the Tiange World Cluster?"
Xiao Yueyue suggested to Ye Yunfei.
She had run away from home precisely to escape her family's strict supervision and seek some relaxation outside. She loved sightseeing and spectacles above all else.
"Alright then, we can wander about, but we should keep a low profile and be careful to conceal our auras. Members of the Black Wind Group must have already chased us into the Tiange World Cluster."
Ye Yunfei nodded.
"Yueyue, we still need to find our family members," Xiao Huanhuan said.
She knew it wasn't wise for her and her sister to rely on Ye Yunfei's protection forever. The most sensible course was to find their own clan and stay with them.
"There's no need to rush. It will be much more fun touring around with Young Master Ye. If those stuffy old fogies from the family come here, they won't let us go out and have fun. It'd be so boring."
Xiao Yueyue stuck out her tongue in reply.
"Yueyue, we're being pursued! We can't just keep thinking about fun! The Black Wind Group and Zhan Yuan are both after us. If we run into them, things will be troublesome."
Xiao Huanhuan glared at her sister.
For the following days, Ye Yunfei took the two sisters on a journey through the Tiange World Cluster. When they saw a world that interested them, they would venture in for a visit.
Most worlds within the Tiange World Cluster were open, allowing outside beings to freely enter and exit. Only a small number of special worlds or secret realms were sealed off.
Ye Yunfei thought to himself.
In truth, during these past few days, Ye Yunfei had been keeping an eye out for the whereabouts of that man surnamed Meng, but so far, he had found nothing.
Although Ye Yunfei had spent only a short time with that man surnamed Meng, he quite admired his bearing and demeanor. Back then, when the two had no prior relationship, that Meng man had generously brought out precious Xiantai Wine, which allowed Ye Yunfei to obtain large amounts of precious energy and even slightly increased his combat power.
Thus, Ye Yunfei held a favorable impression of the man surnamed Meng.
On this day, Ye Yunfei took the two sisters into a rather large world and began strolling about.
"Look! That seems to be Li Shengfeng of the Celestial Hall! He's also come to join the expedition into the Void Secret Realm this time!"
Suddenly, someone exclaimed in astonishment, immediately drawing the attention of many beings nearby.
"Li Shengfeng! Huanhuan, sister, do you hear! It's Li Shengfeng of the Celestial Hall! I've long heard of his prestige. Let's go quickly and see his magnificent bearing!"
Xiao Yueyue, hearing this, grew somewhat excited and pulled at Xiao Huanhuan's hand.
"We don't need to go over. Look, it seems that's him. He's coming this way and is already very close to us."
Xiao Huanhuan remained very calm. Pointing toward a distant young man surrounded by many others, she spoke.
That young man possessed an imposing appearance—high-browed, with eyes like stars—clearly indicating he was no ordinary individual.
A large group of young beings fawned and followed around Li Shengfeng, as though stars worshiping the moon. Yet, Li Shengfeng's face was icy and aloof; it seemed he didn't put the beings around him in his eyes, exuding an air of a crane among chickens, inherently superior.
"This fellow isn't weak at all. So young, yet already a Heavenly Immortal-level expert. He's just too full of himself."
Watching Li Shengfeng from afar, Hun Lao offered his evaluation.
"To reach Heavenly Immortal at such a young age, he certainly qualifies as a true expert."
Nodding lightly, Ye Yunfei watched the distant Li Shengfeng.
"Master, in just these few days, I have seen at least over a dozen young Heavenly Immortal-level talents. Compared to the Three Thousand Major and Minor Worlds, the young talent in the outer worlds is indeed far superior."
Hu Miao sighed with emotion.
"Indeed. It goes to show that only by continuously stepping onto broader stages do we get the chance to encounter so many outstanding geniuses."
Nodding, Ye Yunfei replied.
At that moment, Li Shengfeng, accompanied by his entourage, walked right past Ye Yunfei and the two sisters, gradually moving further away.
As for Ye Yunfei and his two companions, they were utterly ignored; no one even noticed them. Li Shengfeng had captured everyone's attention, and naturally, the others beside him drew little notice.
"Master, you are right. I have already seen many young freaks of talent during this time; they are indeed extremely strong."
Hu Miao spoke again.
"Actually, your talent isn't inferior to theirs at all. If you possessed the same conditions as them—equivalent cultivation resources, cultivation environment, and teaching quality—I believe your current achievements would certainly surpass theirs. In that backward world cluster, solely through your own diligence and talent, you have cultivated to such heights. That's already astonishing in itself. Therefore, you absolutely shouldn't envy them. Continue working hard. I believe in not too long, you will definitely catch up to them, even surpass them."
The Remnant Soul spoke to Ye Yunfei.
"Thank you for your encouragement, Senior."
"I am only speaking the truth. In fact, many young geniuses from major factions are cultivated by those major factions pooling resources to push them forward. Superpowers like the Celestial Hall have immense wealth and influence; nurturing a few young talents is extremely easy. Furthermore, young prodigies like that Li Shengfeng just now—even for a major power, there are only a handful, never many."
The Remnant Soul said.
"And these so-called young prodigies—if in the future they have no chance of becoming Deities, then they amount to nothing at all. You must remember one phrase: All beneath Deity are ants. As long as one cannot become a Deity, everything is ultimately in vain."
Then, the Remnant Soul softly added with a sigh.
"All beneath Deity are ants…"
Repeating the phrase, Ye Yunfei felt somewhat shaken in his heart.
However, remembering that this Remnant Soul was once a Demigod-level master, such a sentiment wasn't surprising.
"Young man, you don't need to envy these so-called young geniuses. All this is temporary, as unreal and fleeting as flowers reflected in a mirror or the moon’s reflection upon water. Only cultivating and attaining Deity in the future is enduring; only then can you truly transcend this world."
The Remnant Soul spoke again.
"Thank you for your guidance, Senior."
Ye Yunfei answered.
"Yueyue, my family's token seems to be reacting! It looks like our Xiao family members have indeed arrived!"
Just at that moment, Xiao Huanhuan suddenly revealed a delighted expression.
Ye Yunfei thought inwardly.
"Young Master Ye, I know you cannot protect us sisters forever by our side. Sooner or later, we must go find our family members."
Xiao Huanhuan said to Ye Yunfei.
Much more rational than Xiao Yueyue, she knew that staying with Ye Yunfei essentially meant being two burdens for him, as Ye Yunfei's power far surpassed theirs. When facing strong enemies, Ye Yunfei would need to spare the effort to protect them.
"Finding your family members is indeed a good thing. Staying with your people should guarantee your safety. After all, your Xiao Family should be a powerful major clan, and it's likely senior experts from the older generation would have come. In comparison, staying by my side would be far more dangerous."
Ye Yunfei nodded.
"Young Master Ye, talking in circles—you just don't want to be with us two, don't you? If you don't want to, just say so clearly."
Upon hearing Ye Yunfei's words, Xiao Yueyue displayed some displeasure.
"Yueyue, don't talk nonsense!"
Xiao Huanhuan immediately scolded her.
With a light, faint smile, Ye Yunfei didn't blame her. By now, he understood Xiao Yueyue's character relatively well; despite her beauty, her personality was rather blunt. Sometimes she spoke without thinking, saying whatever came to mind.
"Yueyue, can't you rein in your temperament a little? Luckily Young Master Ye doesn't mind. If it were someone else, you speaking like that to them would probably invite trouble."
Frowning, Xiao Huanhuan chided.
"If it were anyone else, I naturally wouldn't speak like that. I know Young Master Ye won't hold it against me."
Sticking out her tongue again, Xiao Yueyue chuckled.
It was at that moment that expressions of delight appeared simultaneously on the sisters' faces. They each took out a token. Both tokens were engraved with an ancient-looking character for 'Xiao'.
Both tokens now shimmered faintly, emitting light.
"Could it be your family members are nearby?"
Seeing the tokens, a thought struck Ye Yunfei.
"Yes, Young Master Ye. These tokens are emblems of our Xiao Family. Every member carries one, allowing mutual sensing among each other. A reaction like this means our Xiao family members are indeed near."
Xiao Huanhuan answered.
"Huanhuan, look! It seems to be our family's people!"
Xiao Yueyue suddenly pointed excitedly into the distance and shouted.
Indeed, a group of around a hundred people was swiftly approaching their location.
"It's our Xiao family people! It seems they've sensed our identity tokens and hurried over immediately."
Xiao Huanhuan nodded.
"Huanhuan, if we're found by our family members now, we'll probably lose our freedom afterward. I'd rather stay with Young Master Ye and keep traveling around for fun. If those old fogies from the clan also came, it'd be even less amusing. They'd keep a very tight watch on us both."
Seeing the Xiao family members swiftly rushing over, Xiao Yueyue actually displayed an unhappy expression, pouting slightly.
Upon hearing Xiao Yueyue's words, Ye Yunfei couldn't help but shake his head and smile inwardly.
One could say if the Xiao sisters hadn't met Ye Yunfei, the Black Wind Group would have long captured them and handed them over to Zhan Yuan. Truly falling into Zhan Yuan's grasp, the sisters' fate would be pitifully miserable.
"Yueyue, Huanhuan! It truly is you two! Such nerve you have, sneaking away from the family and staying outside for so long without returning! Before I left, the elders instructed me—if I saw you two, I must apprehend you and bring you back immediately! Prepare yourselves to face the punishments from our clan's elders!"
At that moment, those Xiao family members arrived. At the forefront was an elderly woman. Although she appeared of considerable age, her eyes shone with piercing brilliance whenever she swept her gaze, radiating an intimidating aura.
The old woman's movement techniques were incredibly fast. Spotting the two sisters, her face showed delight, her figure flashed, and she stood right before them, speaking in a stern voice.
Ye Yunfei could see this old woman held genuine concern for the sisters.
"Be careful. This old woman is a Heavenly Immortal," Hun Lao transmitted to Ye Yunfei.
"I'm not provoking her; there's nothing to worry about," Ye Yunfei replied.
"People from these major clans are hard to predict, their thoughts very complex. These two sisters sneaked away. Now you're with them; others might suspect you of trying to deceive or abduct them."
Hun Lao transmitted.
"Grandma Liu, don't be so scary! I don't believe you'd have the heart to watch those old fogies punish me. I know you've always cherished me the most."
Immediately, Xiao Yueyue rushed forward, wrapped her arms around the old woman's neck, and whined coyly.
"Hmph! Though I cherish you two, this trouble you caused by not knowing the limits of your power is too big. Once we return to the clan, even if I want to protect you, I fear I won't be able to. Just wait to be punished."
Faced with Xiao Yueyue's coaxing, Grandma Liu's expression visibly softened a great deal, yet she still spoke threateningly.
"Grandma Liu, we know we were wrong! You must speak kindly for us. I promise I'll obediently listen to you from now on."
Xiao Yueyue hugged Grandma Liu's neck and continued whining.
"Xiao Yueyue, you two actually dared to sneak away from the family and stay outside for several years! What immense audacity! It’s as if you completely disregarded the Xiao Family’s clan rules! Now you actually dare to ask Grandma Liu to speak in your favor? Are the rules of our Xiao Family meant to be trampled so casually? How then can we other Xiao family members accept this?"
Suddenly, one young female member of the Xiao Family spoke accusingly to Xiao Yueyue.
"Exactly! Xiao Yueyue, Xiao Huanhuan, do you two realize how many times in these years the clan’s Patriarch and Elders have grown furious because of you two? Yet here you two behave as if nothing’s happened. Do you truly disregard the Xiao Family’s rules?"
Immediately, several other Xiao Family juniors chimed in, all reproaching Xiao Yueyue and Xiao Huanhuan.
"What our sisters do has nothing to do with you! Xiao Qinglian, don’t pretend—I know you’ve long disliked us sisters. Seeing this rare opportunity, you’re determined to hit us while we're down and cause trouble for us!"
Xiao Yueyue glared angrily at the young woman who had spoken first.
"Oh! Xiao Yueyue, you’re still feisty! After doing such things, you won’t allow others to speak? You’ve truly been accustomed to dominating."
The young woman named Xiao Qinglian immediately retorted.
"Yueyue, don’t argue with her. This time, we indeed are in the wrong."
Xiao Huanhuan stopped Xiao Yueyue at once.
"Yueyue, who is this? Why are you two with him?"
It was then that Grandma Liu, her eyes sharp and scrutinizing, looked toward Ye Yunfei.
"Grandma Liu, need you even ask? This must be some paramour they met on the outside. Look how close the three of them stand. It's obvious what the relationship is."
Before Xiao Huanhuan or Xiao Yueyue could answer, Xiao Qinglian spoke again in a mocking tone.