Chapter 7

Outside the Ye Residence. Ye Yu clasped his fists towards the elder and the two middle-aged men before him. "City Lord Jiang, Master Li, Master Zhang, I sincerely apologise. The Great Elder is currently resting and is unable to receive guests for now. However, the three of you may wait for half an hour. By then, the Great Elder should be awake." The head of the Li family, Li Yu, narrowed his eyes slightly. "You want us to wait for half an hour?" Ye Yu nodded slightly and smiled. "Of course, if the three of you are unwilling to wait, you are free to leave!" With that, he turned and walked away. The Ye family no longer needed to concern themselves with the opinions of these three families. Though the Ye family's overall strength was still inferior to theirs, every member of the Ye family firmly believed that in the near future, these families would have no choice but to look up to them. Watching Ye Yu leave, the expressions of Li Yu and the other two darkened instantly. Li Yu spoke coldly. "The Great Elder of the Ye Residence certainly puts on quite the airs!" Qingcheng’s City Lord, Jiang Nian, said indifferently, "With Ye Lang in their ranks, they naturally no longer need to concern themselves with us." Beside him, the head of the Zhang family, Zhang Lie, chuckled. "This is truly a case of one man's rise elevating his entire family. However, for the Great Elder to act so arrogantly and without restraint is not necessarily a good thing for the Ye family." As he spoke, he glanced at Li Yu and Jiang Nian. "Gentlemen, we were hesitant before about whether to join forces. But now, it seems we have no choice." Jiang Nian and Li Yu exchanged glances before nodding in agreement. Clearly, the Ye family’s attitude had left them with no alternative but to unite. Half an hour later, the three men entered the Ye Residence's guest hall. The Great Elder greeted them with a clasped fist. "I sincerely apologise. I have been indulging in sleep lately and have neglected the three of you. I ask for your understanding!" Jiang Nian smiled. "Not at all, Great Elder. You have been quite busy recently—we completely understand!" The Great Elder laughed heartily. "Come, come, please have a seat." Once they were seated, the Great Elder glanced at them and smiled. "The three of you have come together today. I assume you must have some business to discuss?" Li Yu smiled. "Of course, we have come to congratulate the Ye family on producing a heaven-chosen individual. This is a joyous occasion for all of Qingcheng! Congratulations!" The Great Elder smiled. "Ye Lang has awakened and even triggered a celestial phenomenon. This is heaven’s blessing upon our Ye family." As he spoke, he lifted his teacup and took a light sip before continuing with a smile. "I appreciate the three of you coming to congratulate Ye Lang." At this moment, the head of the Li family, Li Nian, stood up and clasped his fists. "Great Elder, there have been many past grievances between my Li family and the Ye family. I hope the Ye family can be magnanimous." The head of the Zhang family, Zhang Lie, also rose and clasped his fists. "Great Elder, my Zhang family, too, has offended you in the past. I ask for the Ye family's forgiveness." The Zhang and Li families had once been mortal enemies of the Ye family—especially the Zhang family, as the previous heir of the Ye family had died at their hands. But now, the Zhang and Li families had no choice but to lower their heads, for the Ye family had produced a heaven-chosen individual—one capable of triggering celestial anomalies. If they did not submit now, they might have to bow even lower in the future. The Great Elder took a sip of tea without saying a word. With his silence, the atmosphere in the hall grew heavy. Zhang Lie glanced towards City Lord Jiang Nian, who was seated nearby. Jiang Nian smiled faintly. "Great Elder, we are all residents of Qingcheng, and Qingcheng is but a small place. Here, we constantly cross paths, and conflicts are inevitable. Now that the Ye family is destined to rise, your rivals will undoubtedly be some of the great clans of this era. Don’t you agree?" The Great Elder smiled faintly. "Brother Jiang has spoken, so what else can I say? How about this—our Ye family has not had the best of times in recent years. For the next ten years, the mining rights of the gold mines surrounding Qingcheng shall belong to us. What do you say?" Upon hearing this, the expressions of those present instantly darkened, or rather, turned furious. Gold mines! How did the noble families of Qingcheng survive? Naturally, through the gold mines. Their long-standing disputes also stemmed from these very mines. Around Qingcheng, there were several mineral-rich mountains, and every time a new one was discovered, deadly conflicts would erupt. No family wished to relinquish control, for gold mines meant resources—without resources, the upper echelons could not cultivate, and the lower ranks could not be nurtured. Without these, extinction was only a matter of time. Yet now, the Ye family was demanding exclusive mining rights for ten years. This meant that for the next decade, the other noble families of Qingcheng would be left without income! Though this would not lead to their immediate destruction, they would be forced to live in hardship. Not far away, City Lord Jiang Nian took a deep look at the Great Elder, then silently sipped his tea. However, his gaze was ice-cold. Not just Jiang Nian—the expressions of the other two were equally grim. Before arriving, they had been prepared to be extorted. But they had not expected the Ye family to be this ruthless. The Great Elder glanced at those in the hall and smiled. "No need to worry, gentlemen. In ten years, Ye Lang will likely have become one of those people from the mountain. And by then... hehe..." Upon hearing this, Jiang Nian and the others’ expressions changed drastically! People from the mountain! That was a reference to the hidden sects and powerful forces beyond the mundane world. The Great Elder’s words were clearly a threat—an undisguised one at that! If Ye Lang were to join one of those forces, wiping them out would be as simple as snapping his fingers. Realising this, Jiang Nian and the others exchanged glances before finally, Jiang Nian rose and clasped his fists. "Since the Ye family is facing difficulties, the mining rights for the next ten years around Qingcheng shall belong to the Ye family." The Great Elder smiled and cupped his fists. “Thank you very much for this.” Jiang Nian nodded. “Then, we shall take our leave.” After saying this, the four of them turned around and left. At that moment, Ye Yu walked into the great hall and said in a deep voice, “Great Elder, you’ve completely offended them all!” “Offended?” The Great Elder sneered coldly. “Do you think the Ye family fears offending them now? Once Ye Lang becomes one of the people from the mountain, wiping them out will be a matter of minutes! Asking for just ten years of mining rights is already an act of great mercy from our Ye family.” After saying this, he flicked his sleeves and turned to leave. … Outside the Ye Residence. Jiang Nian and the other two had just stepped out when their expressions instantly turned ferocious. “This is outrageous!” Zhang Lie growled, “The Ye family has gained power overnight and now wants to wipe us all out!” Li Yu said coldly, “That Ye Lang is a chosen one who can attract celestial phenomena. Now that the Ye family has Ye Lang, they no longer care about us—let alone the City Lord’s Mansion.” Jiang Nian shook his head. “Enough, say no more. We have no choice but to endure this for now. Go back to your residences for now, and we’ll see how things develop. Don’t be impatient. No flower blooms for a hundred days straight. The Ye family is acting so arrogant and overbearing—there will come a day when they fall from grace!” After saying this, the group turned and disappeared at the gates of the Ye Residence. … With the Li family, Zhang family, and the City Lord’s Mansion all choosing to compromise, the Ye family swelled with arrogance! In the past, the Ye family had been somewhat submissive to these factions, but now, thanks to Ye Lang, everyone in the Ye family felt emboldened—completely confident! Many Ye family members had already begun calling themselves the number-one family in Qingcheng. It wasn’t just the younger generation that believed this—even the elders thought so too. Now, almost everyone held Ye Lang in the highest regard. At this moment, many people also began to think of Ye Fan. “Have you heard? That Ye Fan hasn’t stepped out of his courtyard in ages.” “Would he dare? Among the younger generation in Qingcheng, who could possibly stand against Ye Lang? No—among the entire younger generation of Jiang Country, Ye Lang is one of the very best! As for Ye Fan, he’s not even fit to carry Ye Lang’s shoes.” “That’s true. If only he had just bowed his head and admitted his mistake back then—at least he could have kept his life.” “Who cares whether he lives or dies? Do you know how much respect our Ye family members command outside now? Yesterday, I ran into a young master from the Zhang family. I slapped him across the face, and he didn’t even dare to make a sound!” “Haha! Yesterday, I bumped into the heir of the Li family at Yichun Courtyard. He used to only have eyes for Ye Fan, but yesterday, I told him to get lost—and he did, without even daring to speak back. It felt amazing!” “Of course! Now in Qingcheng, we, the Ye family, call the shots. And it’s all thanks to Ye Lang. Come on, let’s go pay him a visit…” … Inside the Hell Suppression Tower. Ye Fan gripped the Lingxiao Sword and slashed relentlessly. Training like a madman! For Ye Fan, his sole focus now was to become a swordsman. Having grown up depending on his sister, he understood the importance of strength. After this recent experience, he realised it even more: If a person loses power, they are worth less than a dog! Despite all he had done for the Ye family, despite all he had given, they discarded him without hesitation. A man can only rely on himself! Inside the tower, Ye Fan had lost count of how many times he had swung his sword. By now, he could cut a single strand of hair with a single strike. He could be considered a sword cultivator now. But it still wasn’t enough! His control over speed and power was still at the level of an ordinary sword cultivator—he was still a step away from becoming a true sword master! Time passed unnoticed during cultivation. Soon, less than three days remained until his life-or-death duel! That day, Ye Fan stepped out of the Hell Suppression Tower. The moment he emerged, his brows furrowed—because Ye Ling hadn’t come to deliver food! Something had happened! Ye Fan rushed straight to Ye Ling’s room. Inside, she lay shivering on the bed, her hair covered in white frost! Seeing this, Ye Fan’s face changed drastically. He hurried over and took out a white jade bottle—only to find it empty! The medicine was gone! Ye Fan slapped himself hard. “Damn it! I forgot there was no more medicine! Damn it, damn it!” He slapped himself again, then quickly stroked Ye Ling’s cheek and said in a trembling voice, “Hold on, wait for me—I’ll be right back!” With that, he dashed out of the room like a madman, heading straight for the Ye family’s medicine hall. “Ye Fan has come out!” As soon as some Ye family members saw him, word spread quickly. Many troublemakers even rushed over to block his way. In the past, they wouldn’t have dared. But now, with Ye Lang’s rise, these Ye family members had lost all fear of Ye Fan. On the road, a group of Ye family members suddenly stopped Ye Fan. The leader was Ye Feng, the grandson of the Great Elder and Ye Lang’s direct cousin. Ye Feng looked Ye Fan up and down and smirked. “Ye Fan, after hiding for so many days, what brings you out today?” Ye Fan ignored him and kept walking towards the medicine hall. But Ye Feng flashed forward again, blocking his path once more. He sneered, “Ye Fan, you look like you’re in a hurry. Could it be that your sickly little sister is dying? If so, I should congratulate you in advance. At least you’ll be rid of that burden—” Before he could finish, Ye Fan suddenly lunged forward. Ye Feng didn’t even have time to react before Ye Fan’s fist struck him directly in the throat. Crack! The sound of breaking bones echoed. Everyone present was stunned! Ye Feng’s eyes widened, and blood vessels burst in his pupils. At that moment, Ye Fan drew a dagger from his waist and slashed it across Ye Feng’s throat. Slash! Ye Feng’s head fell to the ground! Ye Fan put away his dagger and glared at the surrounding Ye family members with a savage expression. “If anyone dares say a single bad word about my sister, I’ll make sure you never speak again—for the rest of your miserable life!”