Family Banquet

In the days that followed, Ye An's life settled back into its routine.

He flipped through the meridian chart given by Su Yuanshan dozens of times, burning every single line into his brain and chewing on every annotation before swallowing it whole.

He could trace the path of the meridians on the chart in his mind the moment he closed his eyes, but the hurdle of channeling internal energy all the way to his fingertips always fell just a layer of window paper short.

[Azure Cloud Finger (Level 4): 1/800]

[Azure Cloud Finger (Level 4): 16/800]

[Azure Cloud Finger (Level 4): 31/800]

His progress was neither fast nor slow. He calculated that at this rate, it would take around half a year to reach eight hundred, and by then, his internal energy should finally be able to extend past his fingertips.

The newly arrived junior martial brothers crouched in the corner to practice horse stance, occasionally raising their heads to glance at that iron plate.

"Senior Brother An has already reached Third Body Tempering, and he's still practicing like this."

"He was just like this the day he first arrived at the martial arts hall—earliest to arrive, latest to leave. Did you think his Third Body Tempering fell out of the sky?"

"I didn't mean that. I just meant... he's already so powerful, yet he's still in the corner striking the iron plate just like before."

"That's why he's so formidable."

In the corner, the sound of the iron plate remained just as before—steady and unhurried.

Zhao Tieshan stood before the wooden dummy, listening to that sound.

His injuries had not fully healed yet, but he was already capable of cultivation.

His movements were much slower than before, and even his force was considerably lighter than in the past.

Some people had their confidence shattered and could never stand back up again.

As for him? Every single time, Zhao Tieshan picked his confidence back up on his own, then pieced it back together fragment by fragment.

Even though it lacked the completeness of when he first practiced martial arts, this courage to dare pick up his confidence once more was well worth studying.

Su Qing sat beneath the covered walkway, making no movement at all. She gazed blankly at Ye An's back, then went to the back courtyard to fetch a bowl of soup, placing it on the stone stool beside Ye An.

Ye An heard the commotion and caught the scent of spices and shredded meat floating on the surface of the soup, yet he still did not stop practicing the Azure Cloud Finger.

Qian Duoduo crouched atop a stone lock, watching the white mark on the iron plate grow deeper day by day, then looked at that washed-out, pale back that had maintained virtually the same posture from morning till night.

He slid a hand into his sleeve, touching the loose silver coins hidden within.

He suddenly recalled a few months ago, when Ye An had just broken through to the First Body Tempering. He had stood at the entrance of the martial arts hall, similarly touching the silver in his sleeve, wanting to win him over yet afraid of misjudging his mark.

Later on, he decided to gamble! Reality told him he had won the bet!

By dusk, Ye An finished his cultivation, returned the iron plate to the corner of the wall, tucked the iron sand gloves into his tunic, and walked toward home.

Ye An pushed open the door and entered the courtyard.

The lights in the main room were on, and several dishes sat upon the table: braised pork belly, stir-fried seasonal vegetables, a basin of stewed chicken soup, and a large plate of peanuts.

His eldest brother, Ye Ping, was setting out the bowls and chopsticks, while his father, Ye Shouzhuo, carried the final dish out from the kitchen.

Ye Ning sat beside the table.

His right leg was still wrapped in bandages, though it had improved a great deal.

The color in his face was much richer than the past few days, and his eye sockets were no longer sunken.

The medicinal efficacy of the Tianyuan Vein-Continuing Pill was even better than he had anticipated.

"Second Brother, you can sit up?"

"The doctor said I can get out of bed in another half a month." Ye Ning's voice was still soft, but it carried a bit more weight than before, no longer sounding as thread-thin as a needle and line.

Ye An sat opposite him, Ye Ping set down the final bowl, and Ye Shouzhuo took his seat at the head of the table.

A family of four, it had been a very long time since they had sat together like this for a meal.

Ye Ping picked up a piece of braised pork belly, chewed it twice in his mouth, swallowed, and picked up his wine cup for a sip.

However, Ye Ping could not hold his liquor well, so what was in his cup was actually tea.

"Ye An, that spar of yours today..." Ye Ping lowered his cup and looked at Ye An. "I heard about it."

Ye An didn't speak.

"Shi Yong is crippled?"

"Mn."

Ye Ping fell silent for a good while, the hand reaching out to pick up a piece of braised pork belly trembling slightly. His second younger brother's enmity had been avenged by his third younger brother, and this pent-up gloom that had weighed on him for so long melted away at this moment.

Ye Shouzhuo held his bowl, his chopsticks suspended in mid-air, remaining motionless for a long time.

Ye Ning's expression was very calm, and the movement of his chopsticks picking up food betrayed nothing out of the ordinary, yet his heart was far from calm.

He had known for a long time that Ye An had reached Third Body Tempering, but he hadn't expected Ye An to directly cripple Shi Yong.

One had to bear in mind that this was a martial arts hall sparring match.

Lei Meng had been right there under the stage, which meant he hadn't even managed to block Ye An in time.

Ye Ning glanced at Ye An, wanting to see what kind of expression Ye An wore, only to discover that Ye An merely kept his head down and shoveled his food, showing no superfluous emotions.

"Ye An," Ye Ning put down his chopsticks.

"That medicinal pill..." He paused, not quite knowing how to voice it.

"After I took it, not only did my injuries heal by more than half, but the moment my body recovered, I vaguely felt as though I had touched the threshold of Third Body Tempering. Furthermore, my innate constitution also seemed to undergo a massive transformation."

"Although it hasn't been tested, I always feel it has reached the first grade."

"Even among the first grades, it shouldn't be considered weak."

The table fell quiet for an instant.

"What on earth is the background of that Tianyuan Vein-Continuing Pill?" Ye Ning's voice dropped half a decibel. "Such a rare treasure, yet Grandfather actually pulled it out."

Ye Ning lowered his eyes, gazing at his bandage-wrapped right leg.

He remembered the day Ye An brought the pill to him and said nothing at all, merely instructing him, "Don't think too much, just focus on healing your injuries first."

Then he thought back to when he took the pill and hadn't even managed to let out a word of thanks.

It wasn't that he didn't want to say those two words, but rather that he felt those two words were far too light.

And right now, he felt they were even lighter.

Ye Shouzhuo put down his bowl and looked at the dishes on the table, the gazes of his three sons falling upon him.

"Your grandfather..." Ye Shouzhuo finally spoke, his voice carrying a bitter tinge. "As for his affairs, we'll talk about them when you're a bit older."

After finishing these words, he choked up once more.

"Grandfather is a wretched man. All these years... he indeed has his issues, but you must not harbor resentment toward him."

Ye Ping was the first to speak. "Dad, we haven't even seen Grandfather's face a few times over all these years. What is there to resent?"

Ye Ning didn't speak, merely nodding in agreement.

Ye Ping turned his head to look at Ye An, smiling as he spoke. "Come to think of it, our third younger brother is the most impressive. With heaven-defying comprehension, he broke through to Third Body Tempering early on and even crippled Shi Yong. And that medicinal pill was something Xiao An went to find Grandfather to obtain in the first place."

Ye Ping raised his cup, lifting it toward Ye An. "Third Brother, a toast to you."

Ye An looked at his eldest brother's cup of tea, the corners of his mouth lifting slightly. To say he felt nothing would be a lie, but he still feigned modesty.

"Luck, it's all just luck."

Ye Ping smiled and shook his head, downing the tea in one gulp.

Ye Ning watched Ye An, remaining silent for a moment before ultimately feeling that while some words were a bit too light and inferior to actual deeds, if he didn't speak them now, would he still fail to speak them the next time he encountered such a situation?

Ye Ning raised his wine cup in a toast.

"Third Brother, thank you."

Ye An raised his cup and clinked it against Ye Ning's, producing a crisp, clear sound.

Ye Shouzhuo looked at his three sons, his eye sockets somewhat red and moist. He didn't say much, merely raising his cup to take a sip by himself.

Ye An set his cup down and gazed at the dishes on the table. "Grandfather perhaps has some unspeakable difficulties. We don't understand the past, so we won't pass judgment. But the day I went to the old house, the moment Grandfather took out that pill, I felt... Grandfather isn't all that cold-blooded."

Ye An looked at Ye Shouzhuo, only to discover that Ye Shouzhuo's previously damp eye sockets had grown even redder.

He lowered his head, picked up a single peanut, popped it into his mouth, and chewed for a very long time.

Ye Ping raised his cup, shattering the silence. "Come, Dad, Second Brother, Third Brother, let's have a drink. Our family hasn't been this complete in a long time."

The cups collided together, once again emitting a crisp, resonant sound.

Ye An downed his drink in a single gulp, then immediately looked out the window.

Moonlight shone into the courtyard, casting the shadow of the old locust tree upon the ground.

Ye Ping voiced out the school assembly's discussions regarding the exchange convention, then went on to mention Lei Meng's expression when Shi Yong was carried away. Listening along, Ye Ning occasionally chimed in with a sentence. Ye Shouzhuo held his wine cup, looking at his three sons with an imperceptible smile of gratification hanging at the corners of his mouth.