As the Ye Family members were busy transporting the spiritual arts, Ye Chen was also leafing through the scrolls, wondering if there were any high-tier spiritual arts among them.
However, to his slight disappointment, most of these spiritual arts were of low tier.
The highest-tier one he found was merely a sixth-tier spiritual art, which naturally failed to catch his eye.
"Huh?"
Just as Ye Chen was about to turn and leave the stone chamber, his gaze suddenly landed on a vermilion wooden rack.
Tucked away in an extremely secluded corner of the wooden shelf was a golden iron scroll covered in dust.
What attracted him was that this scroll was cast from metal.
Out of curiosity, Ye Chen took out the golden iron scroll and wiped away the dust, revealing several vague characters.
Clearly inscribed on the scroll were the words:
*Five Elements Heavenly Strength Scripture*
Guided by intuition, Ye Chen vaguely felt that this spiritual art was somewhat unusual, so he hurriedly opened the iron scroll and read it carefully.
"Huh? There is a spiritual art like this?"
After contemplating for a moment, Ye Chen slowly closed the scripture, ripples stirring in his eyes as he let out an involuntary exclamation.
This spiritual art was somewhat special; it required the Five Elements Supreme Treasure to assist in its cultivation.
The *Five Elements Heavenly Strength Scripture* consisted of five spiritual arts, and the cultivation of each required the assistance of a corresponding treasure representing one of the five elements: metal, wood, water, fire, or earth.
For instance, to cultivate a spiritual art named the King Kong Floating Slaughter Hand, one needed the assistance of a metal-attribute treasure from the Five Elements.
However, this *Five Elements Heavenly Strength Scripture* did not specify a grade, so Ye Chen had no idea what tier this composite spiritual art of five parts actually belonged to.
"Since the cultivation method of this *Five Elements Heavenly Strength Scripture* is so special, it is certainly no ordinary spiritual art. It was left here gathering dust, which shows that the members of the Liu Family didn't notice it either. I might as well try cultivating it; who knows, it might bring me some unexpected pleasant surprises."
Thinking this to himself, Ye Chen put away the iron scroll, clearly intending to try cultivating this spiritual art when the opportunity arose.
Soon, the stone chamber was emptied out.
There were two stone chambers left: one used for storing medicinal herbs, and the other containing a large amount of spiritual stones and other cultivation supplies.
The Ye Family naturally did not let these pass, sweeping them clean like a tempest passing through.
Having annexed so much of the Liu Family's resources, it was easy to imagine that the Ye Family's strength would rapidly grow as a result...
Chapter 27: City Lord of Yancheng
The next day, the news that the Liu Family had been annihilated by the Ye Family swept through the entire Yancheng, causing a massive sensation.
Especially the Wu Family and the Su Family among the four major families—they seemed to catch a whiff of an ominous atmosphere.
In the past, the four major families kept each other in check, and their strengths were roughly on par.
Now that the Ye Family had annexed the Liu Family, their strength would inevitably swell, and they already assumed the posture of becoming the leader of the three major families of Yancheng.
With this balance broken, the Wu and Su families were naturally worried that the Ye Family's expansion would threaten both of their clans.
Therefore, over the past few days, meetings had been held between the two clans of the Wu and Su families to secretly discuss forming an alliance.
What puzzled everyone, however, was that the Liu Family's strength was not weak; for the Ye Family to annihilate them overnight seemed almost impossible.
Yet, this very thing had truly happened.
Moreover, the Ye Family's annexation of the Liu Family seemed to have come with very few casualties. This couldn't help but make people wonder: how did the Ye Family manage it?
Only the members of the Ye Family understood that the reason they were able to destroy the Liu Family was entirely because of Ye Chen.
Without Ye Chen, it would likely have been the Ye Family facing annihilation instead.
Ye Chen had become the undisputed primary contributor to the destruction of the Liu Family and the object of admiration for the entire Ye clan.
One had to remember that just a few days ago, he was still regarded as a disgrace and good-for-nothing, but now he had transformed into a dragon, undergoing a complete rebirth.
Ye Chen's status within the Ye clan was no longer what it used to be.
...
Yancheng, City Lord's Mansion.
Located in the center of Yancheng, a majestic white jade palace stood here.
Under the blazing sun, the entire white jade palace cast a faint halo.
This was the City Lord's Mansion!
While the four major families were merely powerful family factions within Yancheng, the City Lord's Mansion was the true ruler of the city.
From this towering palace, one could overlook the entire Yancheng. At this moment, several figures stood directly in front of the palace.
At the head stood a middle-aged man in white robes, his hands clasped behind his back as he gazed out at the city.
He had a tall and upright figure, sword-like eyebrows, and starry eyes. His gaze was as deep as a whirlpool, as if anyone who met his eyes would sink into them.
Those pitch-black eyes were filled with wisdom, strategy, fortitude, and dominance.
This middle-aged man was none other than the master of the City Lord's Mansion and the strongest expert in Yancheng—Dugu Xiong!
Dugu Xiong was not only the current strongest expert in Yancheng, but also the only expert in the entire city to have stepped into the Purple Palace Realm.
A closer look would reveal that his physical body actually emitted a faint halo, his skin resembling jade and stone.
Upon entering the Purple Palace Realm, one internally tempered the heart, liver, spleen, lungs, and kidneys to make them as hard as iron, while externally refining the physical body to make it like fine steel, impervious to blades and spears.
With Dugu Xiong's physical body, even a full-strength strike from a Spirit Soul Realm expert could not injure him in the slightest.
Not only that, after entering the Purple Palace Realm, physical strength would also correspondingly increase, with a single punch yielding a minimum of the strength of ten tigers and ten elephants.
With his strength, a flick of his hand would be enough to easily annihilate the four major families.
At this moment, he stood like an overlord, coldly overlooking the entire Yancheng.
Behind him, a figure in a black robe stepped forward, cupping his fists as he said,
"City Lord, the Liu Family was annihilated by the Ye Family overnight. According to the information we gathered, the mastermind turned out to be a junior of the Ye Family. And that person appears to be none of other than Ye Chen, who was born with a superior spiritual vein a few years ago and hailed as the number one genius of Yancheng."
"I didn't expect the Liu Family to fall at the hands of a mere punk; how ridiculous. Still, the Liu Family had no shortage of trump cards and a formidable foundation. I'm just curious what method the Ye Family used to deal with that late-stage Spirit Soul Realm fierce beast kept by the Liu Family."
Dugu Xiong frowned, his voice as deep as a bell.
"This... this subordinate does not know."
The elderly man in black pondered for a moment and shook his head.
"City Lord, should this old servant send someone to deal with that Ye brat? Three months from now will be when the elders of the three major super sects arrive in Yancheng for the preliminary trials. Our Yancheng only has one quota, and this kid is likely to become a stumbling block for the Young City Lord."
Behind him, a white-haired elder spoke in an aged voice.
Hearing mention of the three major super sects, even Dugu Xiong revealed a trace of solemnity.
The Eight Desolations Ancient Domain had eighteen provinces in total, and Qingzhou was one of them. Yancheng was merely one of the hundreds of unremarkable cities under Qingzhou.
As for the three major super sects—the Sea of Clouds Sect, the Star God Palace, and the Wuji Sect—they were the true overlords of Qingzhou with resounding reputations.
Countless talented youths broke their heads trying to join the gates of the three major sects.
Every three years, the three major sects would hold disciple recruitment selections.
Elders from these sects would come to various cities to scout for talent, and Yancheng only had one advancement quota this year.
Talents from these small cities who passed the preliminary selection would be gathered in Qingzhou for the final selection.
Once chosen by the three major sects, it would be equivalent to leaping through the dragon gate, with limitless prospects ahead.
With only a single advancement quota for Yancheng, the competition naturally promised to be extremely fierce.
"Father, it's merely a tiny Ye Family. Does it require you to expend so much effort?"
At that moment, a clear and pleasant laugh rang out from behind.
A tall and handsome long-haired youth dressed in purple robes was seen walking slowly toward Dugu Xiong.
This extraordinary and handsome youth was none other than the current Young City Lord of the City Lord's Mansion—Dugu Qianxing!
Dugu Qianxing's gaze was extremely arrogant. With a curl of his lips, he said,
"Father, I have successfully refined that Northern Region Golden Eagle and successfully stepped into the Spirit Soul Realm. Looking across the entire Yancheng, there is none to rival me. Ye Chen of the Ye Family is no longer a match for me. Even if I encounter him on the recruitment stage, he will surely die without a doubt."
"Oh? You succeeded?"
Hearing this, a trace of praise flashed across Dugu Xiong's face. Stroking his beard, he couldn't help but nod repeatedly with a smile.
"Good! A tiger father breeds no dogs; as expected of my, Dugu Xiong's, son."
Behind them, the black-robed man and the white-haired elder were also filled with shock.
Not only had Dugu Qianxing stepped into the Spirit Soul Realm, but he had also refined the spirit essence of the powerful Northern Region Golden Eagle!
The Northern Region Golden Eagle was a profound-tier fierce beast spirit essence that Dugu Xiong had spent a huge price to acquire.
Moreover, this Northern Region Golden Eagle was a fierce beast listed on the Earthly Ranking of the Myriad Beast Codex—extremely ferocious and powerful.
The Myriad Beast Codex was a record listing various powerful fierce beasts, divided into the Heavenly Ranking and the Earthly Ranking.
Only fierce beasts with noble bloodlines and powerful strength on the Vast Expanse Continent were qualified to rank in the Myriad Beast Codex.
And the Northern Region Golden Eagle was ranked eighty-seventh on the Earthly Ranking of the Myriad Beast Codex!
Having refined its spirit essence, even though Dugu Qianxing was only at the early Spirit Soul Realm, not even a mid-stage Spirit Soul Realm expert was necessarily his match.
This was the deterrent power of a high-tier spirit essence.
The trace of murderous intent that Dugu Xiong had originally harbored slowly subsided.
A tiny Ye Family—when it came to resources and talent, how could they compare to the Dugu Family?
"Ye Chen..."
Dugu Qianxing's lips curved into a sneer, his gaze filled with playfulness and mockery.
Three months from now, he would personally defeat this fellow and let him understand who the true number one genius of Yancheng was.
As for the single preliminary selection quota of the three major super sects, he was also determined to win it!
Chapter 28: Blood Spirit Lotus
Over the past few days, the entire Ye Family had been calm and peaceful, bathed in a harmonious atmosphere.
Although the Ye Family's strength had expanded and grown dramatically after annexing the Liu Family, far surpassing any other clan, their demeanor was no different than usual, and perhaps even more low-profile than before. They understood that only when the roots were planted deep enough could the tree grow lush and tall.
The same was true for a family.
Following the annihilation of the Liu Family, the Ye Family obtained a good deal of resources and benefits from them.
They secured a large quantity of weapons, spiritual arts, and medicinal herbs, while also acquiring many of the Liu Family's territories.
As for the previous Tianyang Mineral Vein, it was now completely and exclusively occupied by the Ye Family faction.
With their current strength, the Ye Family was at least three times stronger than before.
As the Ye clan grew, the power landscape of the entire Yancheng naturally shifted.
The remaining two major families—the Wu Family and the Su Family—announced an alliance in order to counter the Ye Family...
...
Ye Family estate, backyard.
By the lake, on top of a boulder, a figure sat cross-legged like a meditating monk.
At this moment, Ye Chen placed both palms against his Dantian, operating the Dragon Breathing Art. In an instant, his entire body was enveloped in golden spiritual power, and his flesh shone with a dazzling radiance.
Roar!
After a long while, he suddenly opened his eyes, and the moment he opened his mouth, a deep dragon roar seemed to echo from his Dantian.
Accompanied by that dragon roar, the Dantian in his lower abdomen erupted with a suction force, acting like a whirlpool crazily devouring the surrounding spiritual power.
Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh—
That sensation felt as if the spiritual power of heaven and earth was returning to the sea through a hundred rivers, continuously pouring into his Dantian.
As the spiritual power surged into his limbs and bones, the spiritual power around Ye Chen grew increasingly robust, as if a powerful force was about to burst out from within his body.
After cultivating like this for a full three hours, Ye Chen finally opened his eyes and slowly stood up.
"As expected of a ninth-tier spiritual art; with this Dragon Breathing Art, my cultivation speed has improved by at least several times over. Cultivating at this rate, it shouldn't be long before I can break through to the mid Spirit Sea Realm."
Ye Chen sensed the abundant power within his body and rejoiced inwardly.
"Young Patriarch."
At that moment, several black-robed figures suddenly appeared like ghosts, bowing respectfully.
"What is it?"
Ye Chen adjusted his breathing and glanced indifferently behind him.
"First Elder asked me to deliver this treasure to you, saying it was found in the Liu Family's treasury and will be helpful to your cultivation."
A black-robed guard handed over a red wooden box carved with exquisite floral decorations.
"Oh?"
Ye Chen curiously took the wooden box and immediately opened it to see what kind of treasure it contained.
Hum—
Unexpectedly, the moment the box was opened, a wisp of red light blossomed.
Immediately following it, a strange fragrance rushed to his nose.
"This is..."
Ye Chen looked closely, his gaze suddenly erupting with a sharp glint as he said in slight surprise,
"Top-grade Blood Spirit Lotus?!"
Placed inside this wooden box was a blood-red lotus flower attached to a jade-green stem.
The petals of the lotus looked as though they were condensed from blood, radiating a glowing light.
Ye Chen was somewhat surprised; he hadn't expected the Liu Family to harbor such a precious spiritual treasure in their collection.
This top-grade Blood Spirit Lotus was at least a quasi-profound-tier spiritual treasure.
If swallowed, it could not only strengthen the body, but also elevate one's cultivation!
"Such a precious treasure, yet that old man didn't hide it away..."
Ye Chen took out the blood lotus and examined it closely.
The fact that Ye Baili was willing to hand over such a precious Blood Spirit Lotus to him showed that he had thoroughly acknowledged him as the future helmsman of the Ye Family.
"Step back."
Ye Chen said indifferently. Seeing the servant behind him leave the courtyard, he pulled a cauldron out from his universe bag.
A wisp of divine soul surged forth, lifting the furnace to suspend it in mid-air.
Swallowing the Blood Spirit Lotus came with a certain probability of assisting in a breakthrough of realm.
However, that probability wasn't very high.
If it could be refined into a Blood Spirit Pill, there would be at least a fifty-percent chance of elevating a minor realm.
"This Blood Spirit Lotus counts as a fourth-tier medicinal pill. With my current conditions, I can pretty much be considered a fourth-tier alchemist, so I can indeed refine it."
Ye Chen frowned and muttered to himself.
Although he was a Pill Saint in his past life, in this lifetime everything had to be cultivated anew.
Including alchemy!
Puff—
With that thought, a green flame as verdant as jade rose from the palm of his hand.
This was a third-tier flame, the Verdant Earth-Heart Flame!
Controlled by Ye Chen, this flame nimbly leaped into the furnace.
Afterward, the Blood Spirit Lotus was placed into the alchemy furnace, which was then sealed to begin the refinement process.
Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh!
Under the burning of the flames, it didn't take long for the Blood Spirit Lotus to melt into a pool of "blood water."
Boom—
Then, formidable divine soul power surged out, continuously extracting the medicinal efficacy from the spiritual lotus.
"My soul power right now should barely count as the Spirit Realm Great Circle; I am only a step away from the Heaven Realm."
Ye Chen muttered inwardly in a deep voice.
Soul power was the key to becoming an alchemist, and most people's soul power remained in the Mortal Realm.
Only those born with powerful souls could break through the Mortal Realm and enter the Spirit Realm.
The Spirit Realm was divided into the Minor Spirit Realm, Greater Spirit Realm, and Spirit Realm Great Circle. Beyond the Spirit Realm lay the Heaven Realm, Soul Transformation Realm, Transcendence Realm, Rebirth Realm, and so on.
In his previous life, Ye Chen's soul power had entered the Soul Transformation Realm the moment he was born, and by the age of sixteen, his soul power had even broken into the Saint Realm!
The owner of this physical body also possessed quite extraordinary soul talent; being able to reach the Spirit Realm Great Circle at seventeen years old was already extremely rare.
Ye Chen was not worried. With a miraculous physique like the Vault Pill Body, his soul power would grow alongside it.
And if the owner of this physical body had awakened the Vault Pill Body from the very beginning, his current soul power would be even more terrifying.
As the massive soul power poured in, a round medicinal pill took shape inside the furnace.
Hum!
Ye Chen flicked his sleeve, the furnace lid slowly opened, and billowing hot steam vented out.
A red pill floated upward and fell into Ye Chen's palm, exuding a rich medicinal fragrance while still remaining warm.
He looked down and saw dense patterns crisscrossing the surface of the pill.
As expected, possessing the Vault Pill Body meant his alchemy talent was extraordinary.
Even when refining a fourth-tier Blood Spirit Pill with a third-tier pill fire, he was still able to make the pill condense medicinal patterns.
Without further ado, Ye Chen sat down cross-legged once more, swallowed the Blood Spirit Pill into his stomach, and began to cultivate.
...
Half an hour later, a soft, muffled explosion echoed from within his body, and formidable spiritual power spread outward like waves.
"The efficacy of the Blood Spirit Pill isn't bad..."
Ye Chen slowly opened his eyes and clenched his fists. At this moment, an ocean of spiritual power seemed to exist inside his body, full of a sense of power.
His realm had successfully broken through to the mid Spirit Sea Realm!
And aided by the Dragon Breathing Art, the robustness of his spiritual power was already no less than that of the late Spirit Sea Realm.
He might even be able to go toe-to-toe with a Spirit Soul Realm expert for a while.
"This third-tier pill fire is still somewhat lacking. It seems I need to find a more handy pill fire as a replacement."
Ye Chen stared intently at the verdant flame in his palm with his pitch-black eyes, murmuring to himself.
Chapter 29: Beast-Hunting Mercenary Corps
As an alchemist, pill fire was an absolutely indispensable item.
For an alchemist, being able to possess a high-tier pill fire of superior quality was an even more coveted dream.
After all, a top-tier pill fire had far too much of an assistive effect on alchemy.
Different grades of pill fire would yield pills of different quality even when refining the exact same pill.
There was a Pill Fire Ranking in this world, which recorded the top-tier pill fires dreamed of by all alchemists across the continent.
Yet the Chaotic Divine Fire that Ye Chen possessed in his past life was enough to rank in the top three of this Pill Fire Ranking!
However, as Ye Chen played with the Verdant Earth-Heart Flame in his hand at present, he felt somewhat unsatisfied.
Although everything had returned to square one, Ye Chen had now re-entered the ranks of fourth-tier alchemists, and at the very least, he needed a fifth-tier pill fire to justify his status.
This inevitably gave birth to the thought of finding a superior pill fire.
One of the ways to acquire pill fire was to hunt fire-attribute fierce beasts and obtain their fire seeds.
The more intense the fire attribute of the fierce beast and the higher its grade, the better the quality of the pill fire.
Such flames were also called beast fires.
Ye Chen frowned slightly, pondering in his mind for a moment before a sharp glint flashed in his eyes, and he muttered,
"There is a Spirit Beast Valley in the northern part of Yancheng. I heard that fierce beasts run rampant there; perhaps there are high-tier fire-attribute fierce beasts to be found..."