Forgive My Rudeness, but I Cannot Accept This Gift

Noticing the strange expression that flashed across Dai Mobai's face, Yang Wudi's heart gave a slight jolt.

This thing was indeed rather peculiar.

He had held it and examined it for quite some time, yet he still could not make heads or tails of it.

If he could not explain it properly, this Crown Prince might inevitably look down on the Breaking Clan's foundations.

Yang Wudi had lived more than half his life. He had never lost to anyone in spear techniques, and he certainly could not let some junior look down on his knowledge of medicinal principles.

Yang Wudi had misunderstood Dai Mobai's look, and a little urgency arose in his heart.

He focused his mind and poured all his attention into the strange Blue Silver Grass in his hand.

He combed through the vast store of medicinal knowledge in his mind from beginning to end.

Strangely enough, Yang Wudi had been proficient in medicinal principles for half his life. He knew at least several thousand herbs, if not tens of thousands, and could name more than a thousand varieties alone.

Yet no matter how hard he racked his brains, not a single herb that came to mind matched the one in his hand.

Its appearance was that of Blue Silver Grass, that much was true.

But that dense, terrifying aura of life was something he had never sensed from any plant, even after decades devoted to alchemy.

Even the eighth-grade spirit ganoderma he had painstakingly acquired back then was far inferior to the plant before him in terms of the purity of its life force.

This was what one called a blind spot in knowledge.

No matter how hard Yang Wudi thought, he could never have imagined that what he held was not some medicinal herb at all, but the seed of a hundred-thousand-year Blue Silver Emperor.

Yang Wudi took a deep breath and raised his head.

"Your Highness, forgive this old man's poor eyesight, but I truly cannot identify what kind of herb this is."

His tone was open and frank, without the slightest intention of making something up.

If he could not recognize it, then he could not recognize it. Yang Wudi had principles of his own.

Hearing this, the curve of Dai Mobai's lips widened instead.

He pointed at the Blue Silver Emperor seed in Yang Wudi's hand and said with a smile,

"Actually, Clan Head Yang was not wrong at the start. This really is a Blue Silver Grass."

"It really is Blue Silver Grass?"

Yang Wudi looked astonished, his brows drawing together.

His gaze fell once more upon the entirely azure plant in his hand, and he examined it carefully again.

The same held true: the life force contained within this Blue Silver Grass was so dense that it defied imagination. Those vigorous waves of vitality were absolutely not something ordinary Blue Silver Grass could possess.

"If it is merely Blue Silver Grass, why does it possess such powerful life force?"

Yang Wudi raised his head and stared intently at Dai Mobai.

"That is because..."

Dai Mobai paused. His voice was not loud, but every word was clear.

"It is not the Blue Silver Grass commonly found by the roadside, but a seed left behind after a hundred-thousand-year Blue Silver Emperor died."

"A hundred-thousand-year Blue Silver Emperor?!"

The expression on Yang Wudi's face froze for an instant.

Those words were like a heavy hammer smashing into the depths of his memories.

He narrowed his eyes slightly as a long-sealed corner of his mind was pried open by a crack.

He remembered that name.

Back then, the matter of Tang Hao severely injuring Spirit Hall's previous Pope, Qian Xunji, had caused an uproar across the continent. Everyone knew of it.

That battle had been too brutal. Spirit Hall's Pope had been gravely wounded and ultimately died from his injuries, while Tang Hao became Spirit Hall's most wanted criminal and fled for his life.

But few knew what had truly caused that life-and-death battle between the mighty Clear Sky Douluo and Spirit Hall's Pope.

Yang Wudi happened to be one of those who knew the truth.

If he remembered correctly, Tang Hao's wife, who had taken human form from a soul beast, had originally been a hundred-thousand-year Blue Silver Emperor.

Yang Wudi's breathing stalled slightly.

His eyes fell on the Blue Silver Grass seed in his hand, and his pupils slowly contracted.

A bold thought surfaced in his heart—

Could this be that one?

But he quickly suppressed the thought.

It probably was not the same one. Tang Hao had been willing to abandon his own sect without hesitation for that hundred-thousand-year Blue Silver Emperor. He valued her so highly—how could he possibly allow others the chance to approach her?

Though that was what he thought, Yang Wudi still felt somewhat disappointed.

If this truly was the original body of Tang Hao's wife, Ah Yin, he really wanted to study it thoroughly.

The Breaking Clan had fallen to its current state not only because of Spirit Hall's deliberate suppression, but also because of the Clear Sky Sect's inaction.

Yang Wudi even hated Tang Hao and the Clear Sky Sect more than Spirit Hall.

If he could use the original body of Tang Hao's deceased wife for some medicinal experiments, then even if he could not take revenge on Tang Hao himself, he could at least disgust the man and vent the resentment he had bottled up for more than half his life.

Just as he was thinking this, Dai Mobai's voice rang out again.

"More importantly—"

Dai Mobai added unhurriedly,

"It is the seed that Tang Hao's wife, Ah Yin, became after her death."

Yang Wudi's hand abruptly froze.

"It really is?"

He raised his head. There was uncertainty in his voice, but a glimmer of light he could not suppress had already ignited in his eyes.

He asked one more question, his voice lower than before.

"Of course."

Dai Mobai nodded, his tone certain.

"There is only one Blue Silver Emperor in the world at any given time. Only when the previous one has completely died can a new Blue Silver Emperor be born. Tang Hao's wife, Ah Yin, was the sole Blue Silver Emperor of this generation."

Yang Wudi fell silent for a moment.

He did not speak immediately. His fingers lightly tapped twice against the edge of the jade box, producing two dull, soft sounds.

Seeing this, Dai Mobai smiled faintly and continued.

"Strictly speaking, it is a soul beast rather than a medicinal herb. But the life force it contains is no less than that of an ordinary ninth-grade herb. After giving it some thought, I believed that using this as a gift when visiting the Breaking Clan should not disgrace Clan Head Yang's status."

His words were polite, but also candid.

He was not here to give charity. He was here to offer a gift, and one that was uniquely precious in all the world.

Yang Wudi lifted his eyelids and gave Dai Mobai a deep look.

Having lived to such an age, he had met plenty of shrewd people. Yet there were truly few like this Crown Prince, who could make his words sound pleasant without coming across as insincere.

"It seems Your Highness has indeed put considerable thought into recruiting my Breaking Clan."

Yang Wudi spoke slowly, with a trace of emotion in his voice.

"To even obtain the original body of Tang Hao's wife... this old man admires such methods."

Dai Mobai said nothing and simply waited quietly.

Yang Wudi placed the Blue Silver Emperor seed back into the jade box, pressed his five fingers against the lid, and gently pushed it toward Dai Mobai.

The jade box slid across the Eight Immortals Table with a low scraping sound before coming to a steady stop in front of Dai Mobai.

"But forgive this old man's rudeness."

Yang Wudi straightened his back and looked directly at Dai Mobai, his gaze as straight as a spear tip.

"I cannot accept this gift."

The moment those words were spoken, the atmosphere in the reception hall abruptly grew heavier.

Li Yue stood behind Dai Mobai. Her brows furrowed almost imperceptibly, and her fingers instinctively shifted half an inch toward the hilt of the sword at her waist.

Yet Dai Mobai's expression did not change, and even the smile at the corners of his lips did not fade.