Chapter 76: Chapter 76: Soul Profound Steel
’It seems Father has some kind of unforgettable past, and it seems to be related to Mother...’
Ye Xuan had no impression of his mother. As far back as he could remember, his father had never once spoken of her.
He had only heard that back then, his father was already a First Layer Earth Martial Artist in his early twenties and had been designated by his grandfather as the family’s next Clan Leader.
However, his father’s heart was not in the small Cyan Mountain Town. He loved to travel, his journeys taking him across the entire Liuyun Kingdom and even the Thirteen Countries surrounding it.
At the time, his grandfather had high hopes for his father. Although he didn’t approve of him treating the world as his home, he knew that an eagle should not be kept in a cage, so he allowed his father to travel time and time again.
Finally, after one such journey, his father returned, limping, carrying him as an infant. He collapsed unconscious the moment he reached their doorstep.
When Ye Batian heard the news, he was both shocked and furious. A diagnosis revealed that his father’s meridians were completely severed and his cultivation was lost. Despite spending a fortune to hire many Alchemists from Blue Moon City, nothing could be done.
The foremost genius of the great Ye family had been turned into a cripple. That incident with his father was a huge blow to his grandfather.
As for his father, he never spoke a word about his injuries over the years. Although he managed some of the family businesses, he lived a rather dejected life, no longer taking interest in anything.
Perhaps the only thing he cared about now was Ye Xuan himself.
In the darkness, Ye Xuan smiled faintly. "Father, life is full of setbacks. Everyone faces obstacles they feel they can’t overcome. What’s important isn’t to wallow in the past, unable to break free, but to look up and move forward."
"The road of life is long, but it has an end. All we can do is keep moving forward, marching toward our own pursuits and dreams with no regrets."
"I believe that even in the darkest moments of life, as long as you hold on to hope, a turning point will surely appear."
"The heavens are merciful, and man can conquer fate!"
"Hold on to hope, and man can conquer fate?" Ye Zhanyun murmured. Luo Zhan and the others nearby all shuddered.
"Father, even though your meridians are severed, it’s not impossible to heal them," Ye Xuan said, suddenly dropping a bombshell.
"What?" Ye Zhanyun trembled, a sharp glint in his eyes. He asked, his voice shaking, "Xuan’Er, are you telling the truth?"
"Of course, it’s true. But I need you to hold on to hope and never admit defeat, no matter the circumstances. I don’t know what you went through back then, but a man shouldn’t just lie there after he’s fallen. Even if your legs are broken and you can’t stand, you have to crawl to the finish line."
"I believe you can do it. Because you’re my, Ye Xuan’s, old man."
Ye Xuan’s voice echoed in the dark night, its heroic spirit moving everyone present.
"Young Master Xuan, what is your pursuit then?" Luo Zhan couldn’t help but ask.
Ye Xuan smiled faintly. "My pursuit is to climb to the peak of the Martial Dao that no one has ever reached, to walk to the very end of this path and see just how small this world truly is!"
"Climb to the peak of the Martial Dao and see how small the world is?"
Everyone was stunned by Ye Xuan’s words. The Martial Dao was eternal, ethereal, and endless. Who could speak of its ultimate limit? On the path of the Martial Dao, everyone was utterly insignificant.
Life is finite, but the Martial Dao is boundless. Could anyone truly reach that stage?
Everyone suddenly had a feeling that this youth, who stared proudly at the heavens, possessed an aura that suggested he truly could walk to the end of the Martial Dao and look down upon all living things. They were immediately startled by their own thoughts.
Hoofbeats galloped through the silent night.
Half an hour later, Ye Xuan and his group finally returned to the Ye family estate.
Having received the news, Old Master Ye Batian and the others had already been waiting for a long time.
"Hahaha, Xuan’Er, your predictions were practically divine," Old Master Ye and the others said, overjoyed to see Ye Xuan.
They had been guarding the other manors, restless the entire night, afraid something might go wrong. Even after receiving the news, they had been worried sick. Only at the sight of Ye Xuan and his group could they finally breathe a sigh of relief.
What followed was the joyous occasion of sorting through the spoils of war.
Everything from the Storage Rings of Blood Saber and a man named Blood Tooth was poured out.
A casual glance was one thing, but a closer look was astounding. The amount of treasure in their two Storage Rings was shocking, and none of it was ordinary junk.
It made sense. As leaders of the Blood Saber Stronghold, they wouldn’t keep ordinary items in their Storage Rings. They would have either used them or gotten rid of them.
In Blood Saber’s Storage Ring, Old Master Ye and the others also found letters detailing communications between the Blood Saber Stronghold and the Wang, Li, and Liu families, as well as two partially used bottles of poison.
"I knew it! There’s no way the Blood Saber Stronghold would come to our Cyan Mountain Town for no reason. It’s definitely tied to the Wang family and the others," Ye Batian said, his face contorting with anger.
After a final tally, there were over a hundred stalks of medicinal herbs, all of which were Tier Two Spirit Medicines, valued at 80,000 Profound Coins. There were also seven stalks of Tier Three Spirit Medicines, valued at 40,000 Profound Coins. There wasn’t a single stalk of Tier One Spirit Medicine.
Over seventy Tier Two Demon Cores, valued at 70,000 Profound Coins.
Three Tier One Soul Crystals, valued at 60,000 Profound Coins.
Thirty bottles of First-Grade Pills, valued at 60,000 Profound Coins, and ten bottles of Second-Grade Pills, valued at 200,000 Profound Coins.
560,000 in Profound Tickets.
There were also some miscellaneous materials, worth about 100,000 in total.
Including the Profound Tickets from the ordinary bandits earlier, they had obtained treasures worth a total of 1.3 to 1.4 million Profound Coins.
This was almost equivalent to the Ye family’s entire income for more than a year.
Most crucially, there were also the two Storage Rings. If auctioned in Blue Moon City, each one could fetch nearly 100,000 Profound Coins.
"Xuan’Er, if there’s anything here you need, just take it," Old Master Ye Batian and the others said, grinning from ear to ear at the sight of so much loot.
Ye Xuan didn’t stand on ceremony. He swept all the Tier Two and Tier Three Spirit Medicines into his own Storage Ring. In addition, he pocketed the three Soul Crystals and then picked out a drab, gray-black piece of steel from the pile of materials.
"Is this... Soul-Profound Steel?" For the first time, a look of delighted surprise appeared on Ye Xuan’s face. He hadn’t been this excited even when he saw the three Soul Crystals.
"Xuan’Er, what kind of treasure is this drab piece of iron that’s gotten you so excited?" the Old Master asked, his curiosity piqued.
"Grandfather, this is Soul-Profound Steel. I’ve been needing a Profound Soldier, and with this, I can finally forge one," Ye Xuan said with a smile.
Although this piece of Soul-Profound Steel was only palm-sized, its value to Ye Xuan was greater than anything else there.
This was because weapons forged from Soul-Profound Steel could not only channel Profound Qi but also be controlled by Soul Power, and they possessed the ability to pierce through profound defenses.
Therefore, the moment Ye Xuan saw the Soul-Profound Steel, he planned to forge it into several thin throwing knives. Controlled by his Soul Power, they would be unpredictable and deadly, giving his currently weak self a way to survive if he encountered danger.
"So it’s a material for forging a Profound Soldier," the Old Master said, immediately losing interest.
"Grandfather, don’t just stare at the treasures. Isn’t it time we put our plan into action?" After packing away the spoils, Ye Xuan smiled coldly.
After wiping out the Blood Saber Stronghold, the Ye family’s operation for the night was not yet over. There was another plan.
"Hehe, this old man can’t wait either. Zhanxiong, is everyone in the clan ready?" the Old Master chuckled, his expression excited and incredibly sly.
"Father, they are all ready. The horses are outside of town, and everyone is waiting for you."
"Good. Xuan’Er, you stay and watch the house. This time, I’m going to make the Li and Liu families pay their blood debt in blood!" The Old Master flicked his sleeves and strode heroically out of the estate.
On a patch of barren land outside Cyan Mountain Town, tall horses stood ready. A hundred burly men dressed in blood-red robes with blood-red scarves covering their faces radiated killing intent.
This group of people was none other than the supposedly dead ’bandits of the Blood Saber Stronghold’.
"Has everyone gotten their weapons?" a deep, powerful voice boomed from the leader. It was surprisingly Old Master Ye.
"Yes!"
"Good! The people of the Li and Liu families dared to collude with the Blood Saber Stronghold and strike at my Ye family. I, Ye Batian, may not be a ruthless man, but I am no soft-hearted fool either! Anyone who dares to cross my Ye family, I will ensure not even their bones remain!"
"This time, everyone will follow Instructor Luo Zhan’s command. Do not get bogged down in fighting. Our objective is to destroy the Li and Liu family manors. Do not harm the ordinary medicine farmers, but show no mercy to anyone from the Li and Liu families."
"Yes, Father!"
"Yes, Old Master!"
The group shouted in unison.
The masked Luo Zhan shook his head and shouted sternly, "You’re using the wrong titles! Remember, he is the First Chieftain, and I am the Second Chieftain! Understood?"
"Understood, Second Chieftain!"
"Good. Move out!"
The Li family estate was also brightly lit tonight.
Wang Tian, Li Haoran, Liu Tianjie, Li Yue, and others were sitting in the main hall, drinking tea and excitedly waiting for news.
"It’s already the middle of the night. How come there’s still no word from the Blood Saber Stronghold? They should have succeeded by now, right?" Liu Tianjie said coldly, his eyes narrowed.
"Brother Liu, don’t worry. The Blood Saber Stronghold may have a bad reputation, but the strength of their leader, Blood Saber, is not to be underestimated. With Old Man Ye and his people scattered across multiple manors, it should be a simple task for the Blood Saber Stronghold to wipe out one of the Ye family’s properties."
"Haoran, you’re right," Wang Tian said with a sinister smile. "This time, our Wang family and the Zhou family paid a hefty price to hire the Blood Saber Stronghold. If they couldn’t even handle the Ye family, we wouldn’t have spent so much to bring them in."
"With the Blood Saber Stronghold’s power, as long as they don’t run into Old Master Ye himself, they can retreat unscathed. This time, the Ye family is in for some bad luck."
"Hehe, attacked twice in one day. I wonder if the Ye family will be hopping mad? As long as we destroy a few of their main manors, the Ye family is doomed, no matter how much they cooperate with the Alchemist Association."
Li Haoran’s face was covered in a treacherous smirk.
