C33 Interrogation
C33 Interrogation
After a while, the old shopkeeper finally returned and handed the neatly-packed spirit herbs over to Ye Lan.
"Thank you so much! Farewell!"
After paying for the spirit herbs with his silver notes, Ye Lan cupped his hands and bowed to the Seventh Guardian before taking his leave.
"Take care, I hope you will eventually come back to visit my Myriad Medicines Pavilion again in the future!"
The Seventh Guardian said with a gentle smile.
"Of course."
Ye Lan replied before turning around and returning directly to his Ye Family residence.
"Seventh Guardian, didn't we lose money by selling those three sets of spirit herbs for two hundred thousand silvers?"
As soon as Ye Lan disappeared from their vision, the old shopkeeper looked at the Seventh Guardian and asked with a pained expression.
After all, those sets of spirit herbs that they had just sold were worth at least four hundred thousand taels of silver.
However, they had just sold it to Ye Lan for half that original price. Thus, he naturally felt his heart aching.
"While spirit herbs may be labeled with firm prices, a favor from someone else, on the otehr hand, is certainly priceless.
The Seventh Guardian smiled in response, not caring one bit about the losses that occurred.
"Seventh Guardian, this subordinate truly is an ignorant one, for I do not understand the meaning behind your words."
The old shopkeeper laughed bitterly.
A favor?
What kind of favor could that trash, Ye Lan, possibly pay him back with?
"That Ye Lan is not simple."
The Seventh Guardian responded.
"He... Isn't he just a useless piece of trash who can't cultivate?"
The old shopkeeper was naturally stunned and even suspected that he had heard wrongly.
Why did the Seventh Guardian praise this particular youth so highly?
"A piece of trash? That's nothing but a mere false rumor. According to the reliable information that I obtained a while ago, Ye Lan had defeated a cultivator called Zhou Nan in the fourth stage of the Body Tempering Realm with a single punch and even severely injured Ye Xuan, who was in the seventh stage of the Body Tempering Realm, during his clan's banquet."
"How could a youth who achieved such feats be the infamous rumored piece of trash in Lucid Aqua Town?"
The Seventh Guardian shook his head and burst into gales of laughter.
Upon receiving such information, the old shopkeeper was quite shocked. Having busied himself with the shop every single day, he did not have the time to ask about the affairs of the outside world.
Thus, everything he knew about Ye Lan in Lucid Aqua Town was aready outdated.
Hearing how the supposed useless trash had recently defeated both Zhou Nan and Ye Xuan with a single punch, how could he not be shocked?
This situation was just like witnessing a pig climbing up a tree — truly unbelievable!
If it wasn't for the fact that he heard this information from the Seventh Guardian, the old shopkeeper would have thought it was fake all along.
"To be able to heavily injure Ye Xuan, that Ye Lan must have, at the very least, broken through the eighth stage of the Body Tempering Realm. But even then, there were still plenty of cultivators around his age in Lucid Aqua Town who possessed talent far more outstanding than his."
"Why did the Seventh Guardian settle for Ye Lan and even decided to do him a favor?"
After a long time, the old shopkeeper asked out of curiosity.
"The eighth stage of the Body Tempering Realm? Old Sunn, since you don't know martial arts, you naturally couldn't see the depth of his cultivation either."
The Seventh Guardian replied with a grin.
"That Ye Lan isn't at the eighth stage of the Body Tempering Realm, but instead, the first stage of the Qi Gathering Realm!"
"From the information that I gathered of when Ye Lan defeated Ye Xuan at the Ye Family Banquet, his cultivation was only at the peak seventh level of the Body Tempering Realm then."
"However, in just less than two weeks, he had already stepped into the first stage of the Qi Gathering Realm!"
"How could that youth possibly be a piece of trash? On the contrary, he's more like an unparalleled martial genius!"
The Seventh Guardian spoke with a solemn expression.
One had to understand that he possessed a special type of Fighting Soul that allowed him to see through the cultivation of anyone cultivators weaker than him.
When he was talking business with Ye Lan previously, he noticed that his cultivation base had already reached the first stage of the Qi Gathering Realm.
It had not even been two whole weeks since the Ye Family Banquet, yet he had already reached the first stage of the Qi Gathering Realm?!
This kind of ridiculous feat was an accomplishment that even the former unparalleled genius of the Dragon Abyss Empire, Yin Shaoge, was unable to achieve.
This was the main reason why the Seventh Guardian decide to do Ye Lan a favor.
He fully understood that Ye Lan will definitely not be an ordinary figure in the future. Perhaps by doing him a favor and befriending him now, he would return the favor by bringing unimaginable benefits for his Myriad Medicines Pavilion later on.
Losing out on a measly two hundred thousand taels of silver to befriend a martial genius like Ye Lan was most definitely worth the price!
Hearing such words from the Seventh Guardian, the old shopkeeper was once again stunned as great waves of shock surged in his heart.
For a while, the room was filled with nothing but utter silence.
After more than a dozen years, the infamous piece of trash known throughout Lucid Aqua Town had flipped the tables on everyone and turned into an outstanding martial genius in a single leap.
This sudden change brought about a shocking impact that was far too intense for the old shopkeeper to handle!
He did not dare to believe that someone could accomplish such ridiculous feats at such a young age. However, since even the Seventh Guardian had showered Ye Lan in praises, he simply had not choice but to believe it!
"Keep in mind that the information I have just told you must never be said to anyone else."
The Seventh Guardian suddenly instructed.
"Yes, sir."
Jolting awake, the old shopkeeper replied carefully.
"Ye Lan... what an interesting young man. I wonder if he really can defeat Qin Yijun?"
"That is something that I will definitely look forward to!"
The Seventh Guardian mutterd to himself with a face full of smiles.
Recently, there had been news going around town that Ye Lan had challenged Yin Qijun to a fight in the center arena of Lucid Aqua Town.
The Seventh Guardian had long since received information about their duel.
Initially, he did not have a good impression of Ye Lan upon receiving the news of this matter.
Having just negotiated with Ye Lan, on the other hand, there had been a subtle change in his mind, for he truly believes the Ye Lan might actually be able to create a miracle in Lucid Aqua Town on the promised day of the duel!
Back at the Ye Family.
Ye Lan carried three bags of spirit herbs in his hands as he headed back to his residence.
Along the way back, he also recevied gazes of reverence from the passing Ye Family disciples.
Ever since he heavily injured Ye Xuan at the family banquet a few days ago, the entire hierarchy within the Ye Family had already begun to tremble.
Those Ye Family disciples who had always looked down on Ye Lan before were no treating him with the utmost respect. They no longer dared to re-enact their past actions when they would ridicule Ye Lan whenever they saw him.
"Brother Ye Lan, where have you been all this time? Why did you only come back home now?"
As soon as he returned to his residence, Ye Lan noticed Ye Yu running towards him with an expression filled with anxiety and worry.
"Oh! I went to take a stroll in Sky Peak Valley for a few days."
Ye Lan laughed.
"......"
Ye Yu was rendered speechless.
Amidst Lucid Aqua Town, was there anyone who would dare to wander around that valley at night, let alone for several days?
"Sky Peak Valley is a really dangerous place! If you wanted to take a stroll around there, why didn't you call me to go with you?"
"If something were to happen to you, how do you think our father would react?"
"Did you even know how worried I was about you? I thought you had..."
Ye Yu said with a hint of anger in her voice.
"Don't be angry... You can clearly see that I'm fine!"
Ye Lan gently patted Ye Yu on her head and revealed an embarrassed smile.
"You're not allowed to go to Sky Peak Valley alone next time! If you really have to go, then you must call me to go with you, do you understand?"
Ye Yu warned Ye Lan as she glared daggers at him.
"O-Of course, I will definitely tell you next time."
Ye Lan replied.
"Ye Lan, will you admit to your crime?!"
In the midst of their conversation, a shout suddenly resounded through the air and interrupted them.
At that moment, Ye Zhenfeng entered Ye Lan's courtyard abruptly while bringing along several of the other higher-ups with him.
All of them stared menacingly at Ye Lan with ashen expressions.
Ye Lan revealed a waning frown and asked coldly, "If I may ask, exactly what crime did I, Ye Lan, commit?"
Never in his life had he met someone as preposterous as Ye Zhengfeng, for he had suddenly accused him of some kind of crime the moment he barged into his courtyard!
"You're still wanting to play dumb? Tell me, were you the one responsible for the death of Ye Xuan, Ye Kuang, Ye Tao, Ye Ran, and the other Ye Family disciples?"
Ye Zhenfeng shouted coldly.
"I don't quite understand what you're saying?"
"You still don't understand? A few days ago, according to the words of the other Ye Family disciples, they saw you following Ye Tao and the others when you entered Sky Peak Valley with them."
"However, Ye Tao and the others did not return even after a whole week had passed!"
"It wasn't until yesterday when we sent some experts of the family to investigate Sky Peak Valley. And guess what they discovered? The corpses of the missing individuals!"
"Even then, you still dare say that their death has nothing to do with you?"
Ye Zhenfeng explained slowly.
Having found out that Ye Xuan and the other disciples had entered Sky Peak Valley and did not return for a whole week, the higher-ups of the Ye Family sent out a few experts to investigate the situation, only to discover the rotting corpses of Ye Xuan and the other missing individuals.
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On the other hand, Ye Lan, who had followed Ye Tao and the others into Sky Peak Valley was nowhere to be seen.
Originally, Ye Zhenfeng thought that Ye Lan might have died in Sky Peak Valley and was beyond elated.
After all, if Ye Lan died now, his son would naturally be next-in-line to become the next patriarch of the Ye Family.
However, Ye Lan had actually returned home safely, which caught him off guard.
Unwilling to give up just yet, Ye Zhenfeng immediately brought over some of the higher-ups to Ye Lan's residence and prepared to interrogate him. He wanted to find a way to convict Ye Lan and either expel him from the Ye Family or execute him.
"Don't you know that Sky Peak Valley is widely known to be a dangerous place filled with various kinds of Demonic Beasts? Every year, there would at least be several thousand cultivators who meet their ends at that infamous valley."
"So how does their deaths have any relation to me?"
Ye Lan retorted.
"In that case, why did everyone else die while you were the only one who came back safely from Sky Peak Valley alone?"
"You still dare to argue that their death has nothing to do with you?"
Suddenly, another questioning voice sounded from behind the group of higher-ups.
At that moment, a youth who looked somewhat similar to Ye Zhenfeng stepped forward and stared coldly at Ye Lan with an indifferent expression.
Ye Lan lifted his head and met his gaze, his eyes filled with menace.
That particular youth was called Ye Fei, Ye Zhenfeng's son. At sixteen years of age, he possessed outstanding martial talent and had already broken through to the first stage of the Qi Gathering Realm, giving him the title of martial genius in Lucid Aqua Town.
Speaking of which, he was also Ye Lan's cousin.
In spit of that, Ye Lan clearly recalled how Ye Fei would often bully him and had even beaten him up quite a few times.
At the same time, Ye Lan was also clear that Ye Fei had always coveted the position of the patriarch. Just like his father, Ye Zhenfeng, he was also eager to see Ye Lan dead or kicked out of the Ye Family!
Naturally, there wasn't even the slightest bit of brotherhood between him Ye Lan and Ye Fei.
"Huh? According to what you, Ye Fei, said, wouldn't the only way that I'm not the killer would be to end up dead with Ye Xuan and the others in Sky Peak Valley?"
"Aren't your words far too baffling?"