Chapter 56: Chapter 56: Departing for the Clan
Yun Aoxue was speechless. She stared intently at Ye Xuan, realizing that this once-unremarkable "trash" student was becoming more and more of an enigma. If it were just some small secrets, she would have used her authority as a teacher to demand answers. But since Ye Xuan denied knowing anything about Alchemists and Soul Refiners, it wasn’t appropriate for her to press the matter.
"Fine, don’t tell me," Yun Aoxue’s voice softened. "But I must remind you, even with the headmaster’s warning, the Wang and Zhou families won’t take such a huge loss lying down. You need to be careful when you’re not at the academy. Also, I know you must have had some sort of fortunate encounter, but the Martial Dao is best cultivated one step at a time. You mustn’t get greedy for speed and take Pills with severe side effects. Otherwise, it will do more harm than good for your future."
Yun Aoxue thought Ye Xuan’s progress was simply too fast—he had broken through to the Tier One Spirit Martial Realm in just two short months after starting from practically nothing. She mistakenly believed he had taken a large number of strength-enhancing Pills, which was why she had deliberately warned him.
A warmth spread through Ye Xuan’s heart. He knew Teacher Yun Aoxue genuinely cared for him. He immediately adopted a serious expression and said, "Don’t worry, Teacher. I absolutely haven’t taken any Pills. I’m destined to become a Tier Nine Martial Emperor and rule the world. How could I possibly let Pills ruin my foundation?"
Seeing his earnest expression, Yun Aoxue let out a chuckle that was as breathtakingly beautiful as a hundred flowers blooming at once. "You smooth-talker. ’Rule the world,’ really? A Tier Nine Martial Emperor is a truly great figure on our Celestial Profound Continent. Do you think that’s so easy to achieve? In our Liuyun Kingdom, we haven’t even produced a single Tier Seven Martial King in thousands of years."
Ye Xuan just smiled and offered no explanation.
While Ye Xuan felt a sense of relief, the Wang and Zhou families were thrown into utter chaos.
After Lin Xiong dragged Wang Xuan and the others back to the City Guard Office, he didn’t even bother with an interrogation. He simply detained them all, filling the office’s holding cells to near capacity.
When word reached the two families, their Clan Leaders were dumbfounded. They clearly hadn’t expected their attempt to "seek justice" to end like this. Shocked and furious, they learned the details and immediately scrambled to action. On one hand, they sent people to the City Guard Office to try and get their men released; on the other, they began pulling strings to get an audience at the City Lord’s Mansion.
However, the word that came back from the City Lord’s Mansion sent a cold sweat down their spines.
The City Lord himself had spoken on the matter. He praised Vice Commander Lin Xiong’s actions and insinuated that public order in Blue Moon City had indeed grown chaotic. He added that certain families didn’t know restraint and showed a blatant disregard for the law.
This message clearly meant that the City Lord was displeased with the two families.
In fact, regardless of who was right or wrong in the whole affair, the fact that Martial Artists from the two families had openly resisted the City Guard on a public street was, in itself, a very serious political incident.
The City Guard was under the direct control of the City Lord’s Mansion. If the two families dared to resist the City Guard, what was that if not a blatant disregard for the City Lord’s authority? Today, they resist the City Guard. Tomorrow, would they resist the City Lord’s personal guards? The day after that, would they dare to storm the City Lord’s Mansion itself?
It was simply too outrageous.
Even if Lin Xiong had handled the matter incorrectly, the City Lord’s Mansion would not utter a single word against him at a time like this. Besides, apart from his initial rashness, he hadn’t actually done anything wrong from the perspective of the City Lord’s Mansion.
The ones at fault were the two arrogant families.
Once the City Lord’s Mansion’s stance became clear, the two families grew frantic. They scrambled to find connections to explain themselves, which in turn took all the pressure off Ye Xuan.
Meanwhile, news that City Guard Vice Commander Lin Xiong had broken through to the Second Layer Earth Martial Artist realm also began to spread.
This news even alarmed the Soul Master Tower. Jiang Xun stared at the report in his hands, shaken, and muttered to himself, ’That Ye Xuan... he actually healed Lin Xiong’s martial soul? Is... is that really possible?’
His heart pounded with shock. He immediately canceled the punitive actions they had been preparing to take against Lin Xiong for his prior disrespect toward the Soul Master Tower and simultaneously began a secret investigation into Ye Xuan.
The investigation yielded a slightly surprising result.
Because during the half-month or so that Lin Xiong had been missing, he and Ye Xuan had apparently been with President Hua Luoxuan of the Alchemist Association the entire time.
’Could this Ye Xuan be one of President Hua Luoxuan’s people?’
Jiang Xun’s brows furrowed deeply. As the president of Blue Moon City’s Soul Master Tower, his status was no lower than that of President Hua Luoxuan of the Alchemist Association. The two were even considered friends, but he had never heard of Hua Luoxuan having any connection to this Ye Xuan from the Ye family.
Moreover, he knew perfectly well that while Hua Luoxuan possessed profound skill in Alchemy, healing Lin Xiong’s martial soul was absolutely beyond his capabilities.
So, he tried to get some information from his old friend.
Unexpectedly, President Hua Luoxuan was completely tight-lipped on the subject, simply repeating, "I can’t say, I can’t say."
This left President Jiang Xun completely baffled. In the end, he could only decide to find an opportunity to meet this Ye Xuan in the future and inquire further about how Lin Xiong’s martial soul had been healed.
A method capable of healing even a shattered martial soul was something that even he, the president of the Soul Master Tower, found himself yearning to understand.
Having made his decision, President Jiang Xun watched the unfolding drama with a faint smile. Among all the high-ranking figures in Blue Moon City who had received news of the incident, he was one of the few who best understood Lin Xiong’s motivations.
「Early the next morning」
While the two families were still trying to smooth things over, Ye Xuan, the instigator of the whole affair, had already packed his bags and was preparing to head home.
He had just reached the academy gates when Lin Xiong popped out from somewhere.
"Young Master Xuan, I hear you’re returning to Cyan Mountain Town?"
Ye Xuan glanced at him. "What is it? Have you dealt with the Wang and Zhou families?"
"Haha, what’s there to deal with?" Lin Xiong waved his hand, projecting the authority of a commander. "Those bastards like Wang Xuan are locked up in the City Guard Office’s cells. As a commander of the City Guard, I have the unconditional right to detain them for a day. But that’s as much as I can do. I’ll probably have to release them tonight."
A look of shame crossed Lin Xiong’s face, as if he felt he had failed to handle things properly and had let Ye Xuan down.
"By the way, Young Master Xuan," Lin Xiong said gravely, "I’ve made some inquiries. The Ye family’s situation in Cyan Mountain Town isn’t looking good. It seems the Wang family has colluded with Cyan Mountain Town’s Li family, leading to several clashes. I really can’t get away myself, so I’ve called a few of my trusted men to escort you back. The Wang and Zhou families won’t let this go. My men are only at the level of Tier Two, Third Layer Martial Artists, but they are all active-duty captains in the City Guard. With them as your escort, I doubt the Wang and Zhou families would dare to make a move openly."
Lin Xiong waved his hand, and several imposing, armor-clad guards stepped out from a nearby corner. They bowed and said, "Your subordinates greet Young Master Xuan."
These were Lin Xiong’s trusted subordinates, Ji Ling and two others. Lin Xiong had clearly briefed them, as all three were extremely respectful toward Ye Xuan, showing no sign of awkwardness.
"Young Master Xuan, Ji Ling and the others may have only average strength, but as City Guard captains, they carry a certain status. Plus, they can run errands for you. I truly can’t get away, otherwise I would have personally escorted you," Lin Xiong said, pledging his loyalty, afraid that Ye Xuan might be displeased.
Ye Xuan waved his hand. "Your sentiment is enough. Hmm, these three... I’m very satisfied. I’ll even help you train them a little."
’Even if Lin Xiong had insisted on coming, I wouldn’t have allowed it,’ Ye Xuan thought. This was a sensitive time. A City Guard Vice Commander like Lin Xiong was far more useful in Blue Moon City; it would be a waste for him to come along. If trouble really arose in a place like Cyan Mountain Town, a few City Guard captains like Ji Ling were more than enough to intimidate anyone.
After giving some instructions, Ye Xuan prepared to set off.
Just then—
"Wait!"
A sharp shout suddenly rang out. Instructor Luo Zhan rushed out of the academy, a travel pack slung over his back.
Luo Zhan was startled for a moment upon seeing Lin Xiong and his men, but he quickly adopted a very serious expression. "Ye Xuan, you offended the Wang and Zhou families yesterday. It will certainly be dangerous for you to travel back now. As your teacher, I can’t just stand by and watch you walk into the lion’s den. How about this? I have nothing to do during the upcoming break, so I’ll just accompany you to Cyan Mountain Town."
Luo Zhan spoke with righteous conviction, but inwardly he was ecstatic.
Yesterday, he had eagerly gone to the Alchemist Association to have the medicinal liquid prepared. Last night at midnight, following Ye Xuan’s instructions, he had applied the liquid to the old injury on his right leg and performed a Profound Qi Circulation. To his astonishment, his right leg, which usually ached intensely in the middle of the night, had only felt a pleasant, tingling numbness. After just one night, the flow of Profound Qi in that leg was incomparably smoother than before.
This development had made Luo Zhan ecstatic, and he barely slept a wink all night.
Although Ye Xuan had said he would perform the Golden Needle acupuncture in half a month, the journey from Blue Moon City to Cyan Mountain Town was not short. Furthermore, the Wang and Zhou families were watching Ye Xuan like tigers stalking their prey. Luo Zhan had also heard that Ye Xuan’s standing within his own family was not high, and the Ye family’s current situation seemed somewhat perilous.
After suffering for seven or eight years, Luo Zhan had finally seen a glimmer of hope for his right leg to be healed. He absolutely could not allow any harm to come to Ye Xuan.
Finally, after tossing and turning for most of the night, he had made a decision: he would follow Ye Xuan back today and ensure his safety.
How could Ye Xuan not see through Instructor Luo Zhan’s intentions? Amused, he didn’t refuse and readily agreed.
This also saved him the trouble of having to look for Luo Zhan later.
After all the commotion, Ye Xuan, who was not one to procrastinate, set off. Originally intending to travel alone, he now led a party of four—Luo Zhan, Ji Ling, and the two other guards. They immediately rented a horse-drawn carriage, and an hour later, they had already passed through the gates of Blue Moon City.
Although the Wang and Zhou families were overwhelmed by the matter with the City Lord’s Mansion, they had indeed placed scouts at the gates of Blue Moon City, planning to strike in secret as soon as Ye Xuan left.
But when the two families’ scouts at the gates saw Ye Xuan’s entourage, they were completely dumbfounded. They immediately scrambled to send word back to their respective families.
