Chapter Seventy-One: The Heavens Reveal Golden Radiance

“So you want me to hand over the Crimson Blood Jade?”

Staring at Wu Ying and the Jade Flood Dragon King, who looked as though they had him cornered, Ye Haiyi suddenly burst into laughter. “You’re dreaming!”

“Hmph, you don’t know what’s good for you!” Wu Ying’s face darkened. In a flash, he slipped through the gray mist like a shadow, lunging straight at Ye Haiyi.

“Jade Flood Dragon King, assist me by keeping watch. I’ll take care of this Ye fellow myself!” Wu Ying’s voice echoed throughout the formation.

With a smile, the Jade Flood Dragon King nodded and took a casual stance that radiated an invisible but overwhelming aura of intimidation.

Swish! Swish! Swish!—

With a wave of Wu Ying’s hand, three arrows of ice formed, shooting toward Ye Haiyi like streaks of light. As a cultivator at the Golden Core stage, such low-level spells could be cast with a mere thought.

Ye Haiyi snorted coldly. A shimmering barrier of light rose around him. The ice arrows struck with a series of sharp thuds, but could not break through.

Suddenly, an enormous eagle’s talon emerged from the gray mist, its claws gleaming with a biting cold as it swooped down toward Ye Haiyi’s head.

Clang!

Ye Haiyi burst forth with golden radiance. He raised a palm and struck back the eagle’s talon without even moving from his spot, his face clouded with menace.

“Wu Ying, I’ve perfected my Golden Bell Body. You’re no match for me.”

Ye Haiyi strode forward, his body like a great golden bell, waves of force rippling visibly from him and dispersing the surrounding mist.

At the same time, a golden bell materialized above his head, merging man and bell into one. No spell could touch him, forcing Wu Ying to retreat again and again. Wu Ying was utterly outmatched.

...

“The Lord has been gone for half a day and still hasn’t returned.”

In Cloudwater City, the elders of the Ye clan had gathered, all eyes turning to the oldest among them, Ye Deyin.

“Brother Deyin, whatever else may be said, he is still our Lord. We can’t just watch him walk into the fire and do nothing!”

Hearing the unanimous plea from the elders to go to Sunset Mountain and rescue the Lord, Ye Deyin was well aware of the gravity of the situation.

“If the Lord is absent from Cloudwater City, and all of us elders leave for Sunset Mountain as well, our city will be left defenseless,” Ye Deyin said gravely.

As elders, their relationship with the Lord was always close—how could he not worry for Ye Haiyi’s safety? Yet compared to the fate of one man, the survival of the entire Ye clan was of far greater importance. Cloudwater City was the very heart and lifeblood of the Ye clan.

If Ye Peng had indeed colluded with the Wu clan, the Lord’s situation would be dire. Should the elders leave to mount a rescue, the Wu clan might have other plans—perhaps seizing the opportunity to take the now-vulnerable Cloudwater City for themselves.

...

Those who had become elders of the Ye clan were no fools; they knew well the clan’s survival was more important than any individual.

“Our Lord’s cultivation is formidable. Even if the Wu clan has set an ambush, with his strength he can surely handle it…” Ye Deyin’s brow furrowed deeper. “What worries me most is that the Wu clan has someone powerful backing them.”

At these words, the great hall fell into sudden silence. No one thought Ye Deyin was just being alarmist; all signs pointed to a real threat looming over the Ye clan.

For years, the Ye and Wu clans had stood on opposite sides of Sunset Mountain, evenly matched. The Wu clan’s sudden aggression, putting the Ye clan at a disadvantage, clearly hinted at something amiss.

“What should we do, then…” Every elder in the hall was grave, sighing inwardly as a heavy gloom seemed to press upon them, stifling their breath.

But just then, a surge of spiritual energy as vast as a tempest swept across the skies above Cloudwater City.

“The aura of a Golden Core cultivator!”

Ye Deyin and the other elders’ faces changed. In a flash, they exited the great hall together.

Looking up, they saw the clouds swirling as if stirred by some celestial hand. A beam of golden light shot up from the city, piercing the heavens, while a mysterious force moved from all directions.

“Heavenly golden radiance?”

The elders glanced at one another. At first, they thought the spiritual disturbance signaled an attack on Cloudwater City during the Lord’s absence. But at the sight before them, their faces filled with astonishment and confusion.

A golden glow suffused the sky above Cloudwater City for miles around—a rare phenomenon that signified someone had broken through to the Golden Core stage.

When the Lord, Ye Haiyi, had achieved this breakthrough years ago, these very elders had witnessed it.

“Hahaha… At last, I have broken through!”

A thunderous roar shook the city, startling both cultivators and ordinary folk alike. All gazed upward to see a figure soaring from the Ye family’s main compound, bathed in resplendent golden light.

To fly through the air unaided—this was a divine ability reserved for Golden Core cultivators.

“It’s old Ye Min!”

“He’s achieved the Golden Core stage!”

The elders, well acquainted with one another, instantly recognized the figure. It was Elder Ye Min.

Meanwhile, in the Rain Pavilion, Ye Yun and Lu Suxue also stepped out of their rooms, gazing at Ye Min’s majestic figure in the sky.

A faint smile played at Ye Yun’s lips. Elder Ye Min’s long seclusion had clearly paid off—he must have successfully refined the Dao Profound Pill and, aided by the spiritual essence, broken through to the Golden Core stage in one leap.

...

Lu Suxue, on the other hand, was visibly excited. She knew that with her grandfather now a Golden Core cultivator, she finally had a pillar strong enough to withstand the pressure from the Lu and Xu families. She was truly happy, both for herself and for her grandfather.

Suspended in mid-air, Elder Ye Min threw his head back and laughed wildly, his heart full of emotion.

He recalled how, years ago, when his soul mirror was tested, he was found to have only the most ordinary of aptitudes—bright as a lamp, nothing more. Achieving the peak of Foundation Establishment was already due to his talent in alchemy. Compared to the other elders, his cultivation aptitude was average at best.

He had always believed that reaching the pinnacle of Foundation Establishment and becoming a top-tier alchemy master was the limit of his life.

But the three drops of spiritual essence that Ye Yun had given him had suddenly changed his fate.

To become a Golden Core cultivator and an alchemy grandmaster—these had been his lifelong dreams…

High above, gazing down at the city, he felt as if he were truly immortal, while all the mortals below seemed like mere ants. A sense of transcendence surged within him.

“No wonder Ye Haiyi, after breaking through to the Golden Core stage, remained approachable but clearly grew more confident and forceful than before.”

He shook his head, marveling at the sense of elevation such cultivation brought. He knew all of this was thanks to Ye Yun.

“Haha! Congratulations, Brother Ye Min!”

From the family compound below, several elders who were on good terms with him waved and shouted their congratulations.

Though they were far apart, the eyesight of a Golden Core cultivator was keen. He could see their eyes, full of envy, excitement, and curiosity.

He did not descend to exchange pleasantries. Instead, his gaze turned to a corner of Cloudwater City—the Rain Pavilion.

In his left eye was reflected the image of Ye Yun; in his right, the figure of his granddaughter, Lu Suxue.

In a flash, Ye Min vanished from the sky, reappearing in the Rain Pavilion the next instant.

“Congratulations, elder, on achieving your wish!” Ye Yun stepped forward with a smile.

“Heh, without you, I would never have broken through,” Ye Min replied, smiling as well.

“Grandfather, you did it? That’s wonderful!” Lu Suxue ran over and clung to his arm, shaking it excitedly. But then she asked, puzzled, “Grandfather, how did you break through? And why did you say you couldn’t have done it without Ye Yun?”

“Well…” Elder Ye Min glanced at Ye Yun, who shook his head. So Ye Min pinched Lu Suxue’s delicate nose and laughed. “That’s your grandfather’s secret. I’ll tell you another time…”

(Thank you, Lazy Brother, for your third reward, and thanks to all friends for your generous support. Though updates are slow and I cannot promise a certain number of chapters per day, I won’t allow this novel to go a single day without an update!)