Ye Tiancheng woke up feeling surprised. Why was he suddenly ejected? His true qi was very powerful, so why did such an unexpected situation occur?
"Master, everything happened too quickly. I really don't understand what happened that caused us both to be thrown out."
"It's alright. We can try again. Something must have gone wrong, but I believe that with our combined efforts, we can definitely solve it."
Ye Tiancheng felt unwilling to give up. He and Li Xue went to the entrance of the cave, preparing to enter the Su family ancestral hall again.
As they made their way, they saw the spectral soul of an old man suspended in mid-air.
"You dare to come back? You are truly bold. Don't you know what death is!"
"Who are you?" Ye Tiancheng regretted speaking immediately. In this ancestral hall, it must be an ancestor of the Su family. "I'm sorry, I accidentally intruded here. I just wanted to retrieve the Fuxi Golden Fragment. If I have disturbed you, I apologize. Do I need to fulfill any conditions?"
"You still know to apologize?" the old man cleared his throat. "If you want to take this Fuxi Qin fragment from the ancestral hall, it's very simple. You must become a member of our Su family. If you, an outsider, still want to steal our family's treasure, a cruel punishment awaits you."
The old man spoke quite sternly and seemed very unyielding. Ye Tiancheng figured that negotiating with him would be fruitless. In this situation, he could only brace himself and deal with it directly.
"I warn you, get out of the way immediately. I must obtain this Fuxi Qin fragment. If you try to stop me, I apologize, but I might shatter your residual soul as well."
With his increased power, Ye Tiancheng had become a bit arrogant. He could now stand tall and speak with authority, regaining his former imposing demeanor.
"You scoundrel, how dare you speak such arrogant words! With your meager abilities, I could have easily repelled you. Do you truly believe you have the capability to take the Fuxi Qin fragment from me? You are simply indulging in wishful thinking!"
It seemed this Su family ancestor indeed possessed some power. Since he was difficult to deal with, Ye Tiancheng could only place his hopes on the Nuwa Stone or the Great Green Snake's head.
"Aren't you two coming out yet? I'm about to be crushed. Can you two quickly come out and save me some face?"
Ye Tiancheng muttered for a long time, but it was all in vain. The Nuwa Stone and the Great Green Snake paid him no mind. They had occasionally supported him before, but now, no matter how Ye Tiancheng called, it was useless. Those two divine artifacts simply refused to appear, driving him to the brink of exasperation.
"I don't know what you're mumbling about, but even if you try your best, you won't be able to get the Fuxi Qin fragment from me. Just give up on that idea!"
As soon as the old man finished speaking, Ye Tiancheng and Lin Xue were once again ejected. They reappeared outside the forest. However, this time it was worse than the last. They felt pain all over their bodies, as if they had been severely beaten.
"Brother Ye, what should we do now?"
"In my opinion, the most important thing now is to find a way to deal with that Su family ancestor. Our abilities are far inferior to his. This fellow's obsession is extremely strong, and we can't do anything about him for the time being."
"Then what should we do? Are we just going to wait like this until the end of time?"
Ye Tiancheng was very anxious. The Su family ancestor was not easy to deal with. The Nuwa Stone and the Great Green Snake were still dormant, and no one was willing to help him. Even if he tried again soon, the outcome would be the same. Moreover, if he angered the old man further, the situation would only worsen, not improve.
"Xiao Xue, it seems we have to make a long-term plan."
Just as Ye Tiancheng finished speaking, he heard a very rough roar echoing through the forest. Perhaps the Su family ancestor was enraged. Ye Tiancheng suddenly felt a sense of fear. A tremendous pressure surged towards Ye Tiancheng and Lin Xue.
At this moment, even the trees were shaking violently, as if they could fall at any moment.
"Xiao Xue, it seems that Su family ancestor is truly angry. I don't think this wisp of residual soul should be underestimated. We should leave quickly."
The area was now filled with danger. Ye Tiancheng could sense many dark shadows lurking around. These were likely vengeful spirits summoned by the Su family ancestor.
Even if their true qi was powerful, these vengeful spirits would bring no good if touched. Therefore, Ye Tiancheng quickly fled with Lin Xue.
However, the vengeful spirits still attacked them. Ye Tiancheng and Lin Xue ran ahead, while the spirits chased them madly. httpδ:/m.kuAisugg.nět
Lin Xue had to deploy her umbrella behind them, allowing the light emitted from the umbrella to resist the pursuit of the vengeful spirits.
After the two successfully got into the car, the surrounding vengeful spirits missed their target, and the battle ended. Ye Tiancheng drove away with Lin Xue.
A mass of black mist quickly disappeared into the forest. This was the Su family ancestor's warning to Ye Tiancheng. Fortunately, Ye Tiancheng had brought a helper, his disciple. Otherwise, relying on Ye Tiancheng's own strength, it would have been difficult to escape the pursuit, and he might have had his head bitten off by the vengeful spirits.
"Master, you're injured."
After they had driven a considerable distance, Ye Tiancheng finally noticed some very fine scratches on his neck, which were slowly starting to bleed.
"Just some minor injuries."
Ye Tiancheng used his true qi to heal the wounds. Lin Xue slowly recovered from her fright. "It seems this fragment is not easy to obtain. We need to make more preparations, otherwise, everything will be in vain."
After Lin Xue finished speaking, she closed her eyes to rest. Ye Tiancheng said nothing more. Both of them were filled with worry and dejection at that moment.
Ye Tiancheng brought Lin Xue back home. Hou Mingzhu didn't ask many questions. Seeing their dejected expressions, she knew that the matter had not been accomplished.
"Oh, the nanny is on leave today. Let's go out and find a nice restaurant to eat. I haven't indulged myself in a long time. Eating at home all the time makes my taste buds feel dull."
Hou Mingzhu merely wanted to lighten the mood, and it proved to be quite successful.
The three of them went to a well-known seafood restaurant in the city. They enjoyed a delicious meal in a private room on the second floor, with dishes like spicy stir-fried crab, steamed mantis shrimp, and garlic buttered king prawns.
These delicacies had a healing effect to a certain extent. They were quite happy while eating, but after finishing, Ye Tiancheng developed several red spots on his body.
"Brother Ye, are you alright? I remember you weren't allergic to seafood before. Should we go to the hospital to get some ointment? It might help you recover faster."
It was his own carelessness, Ye Tiancheng cursed himself fiercely in his heart. He had been too arrogant and had offended the Su family ancestor. Now, his body, tainted by vengeful spirits, was experiencing some strange phenomena.
For example, when Ye Tiancheng tried to heal the red bumps on his body with his true qi, as they were quite itchy and he wanted to get rid of them quickly, he found it unsuccessful. Instead, the red bumps grew larger under the treatment of his true qi and did not disappear.
There was nothing he could do about it. These were the negative effects brought by the vengeful spirits. Therefore, even going to the hospital wouldn't help. Ye Tiancheng simply gave up struggling.
"It doesn't matter. Am I, a grown man, afraid of these little bumps? They should heal soon. Don't worry, Mingzhu."
That night, when Ye Tiancheng went to bed, he couldn't sleep due to the intense itching. Suddenly, a voice echoed in his spiritual consciousness space.
"You brat, obtaining all the fragments is not that easy. You should calm down and cultivate slowly. Your alchemy furnace is still there. Practice making more elixirs to strengthen your body. Otherwise, your body, having been cursed before, is still slightly weaker than before."
The sudden appearance of the Nuwa Stone reminded Ye Tiancheng of the time he had called for it and it hadn't appeared, filling him with a sense of bitterness.
"Why didn't you come out when I called you then? Now that I've barely managed to survive, you finally show up."
The Nuwa Stone chuckled, "Brat, you can't blame me for that. It would have been useless for us to come out then. We could sense the power of that Su family ancestor. Both of us were injured saving you before. Even if we had come out then, we couldn't have helped you, and might have even lost our lives."
"You say that so easily. You were probably trembling and hiding, weren't you? In my opinion, you're just a coward."
Ye Tiancheng's words successfully angered the Nuwa Stone. The main reason was that Ye Tiancheng had never spoken so harshly before. It was only because he was unhappy that he uttered such hurtful words.
"I know you think I'm useless. That's why I was just a farmer who wielded a hoe. It's already good that I've reached this point."
"However, your magnanimity is not broad enough, and your ambition is even less. It's a pity that you found me. Unless you die, I cannot change masters. I can only temporarily stay by your side."
Ye Tiancheng realized that the Nuwa Stone was here to argue today. He suppressed his anger.
"If you're injured, just hide in the space properly. Don't wander out blindly, or no one will be able to save you if you encounter danger."
The Nuwa Stone instantly disappeared. Ye Tiancheng couldn't be bothered to deal with it anymore. He didn't care how long it and the Great Green Snake wanted to be lazy. Before, he was very eager to find the fragments, but now he realized that it wasn't something to rush. He would take it slow.
Ye Tiancheng stayed at home for a week. Later, he felt that cultivation wasn't something to rush either and decided to take it slow. The Nuwa Stone had also given him a hint to use the large cauldron to refine elixirs, which could increase his cultivation after consumption.
Ye Tiancheng went to the back mountain again. He gathered spirit-infused herbs on the spot and then refined elixirs in the alchemy furnace.
However, he had never done such a thing before. The elixirs he refined made him feel unwell after consumption. His true qi did not increase; instead, it slightly decreased.
Ye Tiancheng became even more cautious afterwards. After all, he was not an alchemist and had no experience. He had to proceed slowly, and this might be a long process.
"Mingzhu, I want to go back to work at the company. I've been on leave for so long. Do I need any procedures now, or can I just inform them and return to work?"
As Ye Tiancheng spent less time refining elixirs, he had more free time and wanted to do something at the company. Otherwise, if he just stayed at home, Ye Tiancheng suspected he might develop dementia.
"Alright, then I'll inform them for you. I hope you work hard and start a new journey at the company. Brother Ye, I believe in you. You can do anything well."
Ye Tiancheng hugged Hou Mingzhu. Hou Mingzhu shyly lowered her head and smiled, her face blushing like a red apple. The two of them had been getting along very well recently and had never had any conflicts.