Earth-Grade Treasure

When Ye An was summoned to the Main Hall, he immediately felt more than a dozen gazes fall on him upon entering.

The four hall masters, several powerful elders at the Late Qi Condensation, and Zhao Xuanji, who sat in the main seat.

These gazes held scrutiny, scrutiny, and an unspeakable meaning.

Ye An walked to the center of the hall and bowed to Zhao Xuanji, saying, "Disciple Ye An greets the Sect Master, the four Hall Masters, and all the Elders."

This scene looks familiar.

Zhao Xuanji cut to the chase, asking, "Do you know Greenrock Mountain?"

Ye An nodded. He spent most of his time practicing martial arts, but that didn't mean he knew nothing.

Moreover, Ye An was going to Greenrock Mountain anyway.

"This medicinal herb mountain is currently unmanaged. I just discussed it with the elders and we've decided to hand it over to the Liu Lineage to manage."

"I've also heard that you've already made acquaintances with the Liu Lineage and are now Liu Family Guest Elder, so I've sent you to inform them."

"Go to the Liu Lineage and inform Liu Lineage Liu Ruyan, the current manager, about this matter. Tell her to assign someone to handle it properly. Also, see which family is dissatisfied and resolve any issues that need resolving."

At this point, Zhao Xuanji reiterated, "The rules remain the same: the Liu Lineage can take two-thirds, and the remaining eight-tenths will go to the Four Symbols Sect."

"Those who disobey the rules will suffer the same fate as the Song Family."

Ye An accepted the Sect Master's Order: "Disciple obeys."

After Ye An accepted the order, he left.

A chorus of congratulations erupted inside the hall.

"Hall Master Shi, congratulations! The Black Tortoise Hall has produced a promising talent!"

An elder smiled and said, "Junior Nephew Ye has made solid progress along the way, and he will surely lead the Black Tortoise Hall to even greater heights in the future!"

"..."

The voices fell into Zhu Qingli's ears one after another.

Every word seemed to be telling her something.

The young man who had just walked out of the Main Hall should have been standing in the Vermilion Bird Hall.

Zhu Qingli's gaze fell on the direction where Ye An had disappeared at the entrance of the Main Hall.

Suddenly, she thought—if she had chosen Ye An back then, the one standing here today receiving the Sect Master's Order would not be "Ye An of the Black Tortoise Hall," but "Ye An of the Vermilion Bird Hall."

Unfortunately, she closed that door too soon.

Cangwu Prefectural City.

In the front courtyard of the Liu Lineage, a woman stood under the pavilion.

Her name is Su Ruolan, and she is the one who broke into the Liu Lineage's backyard some time ago.

She had recovered well by this time, and her complexion had improved considerably.

She had witnessed the Liu Lineage's situation these past few days. When she heard the name "Guest Ye," she knew that the Liu Lineage's smooth sailing was largely due to his presence.

Just then, footsteps came from outside the courtyard gate, and someone quickly walked in.

After news of Ye An's arrival at the Liu Lineage reached them, Liu Ruyan waited at the door. "Master Ye, what brings you here today?"

Ye An didn't beat around the bush. "The Four Symbols Sect has decided to hand over the management of Greenrock Mountain to the Liu Lineage."

"Of the resources obtained, the Liu Lineage will take 20%, and the Four Symbols Sect will take 80%."

Liu Ruyan was stunned, completely unable to believe that such fortuitous opportunity would fall upon the Liu Lineage: "Greenrock Mountain... the Liu Lineage has come to manage it..."

Liu Ruyan took a deep breath. How could she not know that the Liu Lineage's relationship with the Four Symbols Sect was not deep?

The Four Symbols Sect entrusted Ye An with such an important task because he was their guest elder, which is why the Four Symbols Sect entrusted Greenrock Mountain to the Liu Lineage for management.

Liu Ruyan bowed respectfully to Ye An, saying, "On behalf of the Liu Lineage, I thank Master Ye and the Four Symbols Sect."

"Cuiwei, go and call Uncle Hou. We need to arrange for people to take over Greenrock Mountain as soon as possible." Liu Ruyan turned to Cuiwei, who was standing to the side behind her, and gave the order.

"Qi Condensation Martial Artist?"

Ye An looked ahead and saw a woman standing there. She was slender and dressed in the clothes of a servant of the Liu Lineage. She looked rather quiet.

After practicing three Martial Arts, Ye An Ye An experienced a tremendous improvement. Even from a distance of more than ten meters, Ye An could sense the faint aura of a martial artist emanating from the other party.

Liu Ruyan noticed Ye An's unusual behavior, followed his gaze, and explained.

"This person's name is Su Ruolan. She was lying in the courtyard with some injuries, so I had someone revive her. Does Master Ye think this is inappropriate?"

Ye An realized that Su Ruolan harbored no hostility, so he stopped paying attention.

So he changed the subject. "By the way, I'm going to Greenrock Mountain."

"I will go with Master Ye."

Greenrock Mountain is located a dozen or so miles northwest of Cangwu Prefectural City. It is not a high mountain, but the soil is fertile.

Ye An took out the markings on the Sheepskin Scroll given to him by Song Yuanshan and headed towards it.

Liu Ruyan followed behind Ye An for a while before speaking, "What is Master Ye looking for? Should Ruyan leave for a moment?"

"Need not."

Ye An not only didn't hide this fact, but instead handed the Sheepskin Scroll to Liu Ruyan, saying, "Could you take a look and see if the location marked here is this way?"

The moment Liu Ruyan touched the Sheepskin Scroll, her fingertips tightened slightly.

She hadn't expected Ye An to hand the item over so directly; it was clear that Master Ye trusted her completely.

As Liu Ruyan carefully examined the Sheepskin Scroll, the corners of her mouth involuntarily curved slightly, but she immediately suppressed it after realizing something was amiss. "It should be it. That stone wall is somewhat suspicious."

The two walked up to the stone wall and found that it was covered by vines and pebbles.

Ye An cleared away the weeds, revealing a stone door with a few simple patterns carved on it.

Ye An followed the markings on the Sheepskin Scroll and pressed his hand on a raised area on the left side of the stone wall.

Click--

The stone door slid inward, revealing a passageway large enough for two people to pass through at the same time.

"Master Ye, this?"

"I'll go in first. You can check if it's dangerous before you go in."

Seeing Ye An through the passage smoothly, Liu Ruyan followed closely behind.

At the end of the passage is a naturally formed cave, and in the center of the cave is a shallow pool. The water is crystal clear, with a faint white glow on the surface, and carries a subtle herbal fragrance.

"Spirit Spring?" The moment Ye An's fingers touched the water's surface, a gentle force traveled along his fingertips to the meridians in his arm.

The ground around the pool is covered with many rare medicinal herbs, some of which look quite old.

Liu Ruyan has been running the Liu Lineage business for the past few years and has been involved in the medicinal herb business quite a bit, but it is rare to see so many high-quality and aged medicinal herbs.

There was another passage deep inside the cave, and the two of them discovered a hidden world after they walked through it.

The Spirit Spring we just tasted was merely an appetizer.

Here are several wooden boxes containing a considerable amount of silver, and even a few weapons and armors that are very close to the Mystic Grade!

Ye An's gaze was drawn to an exquisite wooden box in the corner.

Upon opening the wooden box, two rings lay inside, simple in design and entirely dark gray.

Ye An couldn't discern the material, but he could sense a subtle energy emanating from it when he held it in his hand.

Ye An put one of the rings on his hand, and a comfortable warmth slowly spread through his fingers. This ring was actually nourishing his Root Bone!

Ye An carefully sensed it again and finally confirmed his thoughts.

This unnamed ring can slowly improve Root Bone attributes; although the improvement is not significant, its advantage lies in its continuous nurturing effect.

Even though Ye An is already at the Mid-Grade B Root Bone, wearing this ring for a long time can still raise his Root Bone by one small grade.

Even more miraculously, after Ye An put it on, the ring began to slowly change its shape.

Just like how it will become more fitted to the wearer's body after being worn for a long time, to outsiders it will just look like an ordinary silver-gray ring, with nothing unusual about it!

Ye An guessed that this was an Earth Grade treasure!

Not only can wearing it for a long time improve one's Root Bone attributes (Grade A), but it can also conceal itself, making it look like an ordinary ring.

Are these treasures related to the Four Symbols? Or perhaps to the Song Family, with its centuries-old lineage?

Ye An looked at Liu Ruyan and pondered for a moment.

Previously, Liu Ruyan had no martial arts cultivation whatsoever; she was just an ordinary person.

She is now not far from completing her Third Body Tempering.

Ye An remembered that Liu Ruyan didn't seem to care much about martial arts cultivation, so why did she suddenly start practicing martial arts?

Ye An didn't ask any further questions. Practicing martial arts was a good thing, even if one didn't reach a high level and break through to a higher level of life.

Even at a lower level, there are benefits to improving one's physical constitution, not to mention the ability to protect oneself.

It is estimated that Liu Ruyan practices the introductory Cultivation Method "Women's Tendon-Transformation Classic," unlike Ye An who used to need to rub against a stone slab.

Although this ring is of little use to those with Grade A Bone Aptitude, it should be of considerable help to Liu Ruyan.

If trouble arises in the future, having higher cultivation levels will always provide more protection.

Ye An handed over the ring. "Keep this one."

Ye An didn't want to say much; Liu Ruyan was a smart person.

Once she wears this ring, she will understand its meaning.

Liu Ruyan looked at the ring Ye An handed her, then glanced at the one Ye An was wearing on his hand—they were exactly the same style.

Her ears burned slightly, and her soft voice faltered a little as she said, "Ye... Ye An, this isn't right."

Ye An assumed that Liu Ruyan knew the value of the item and was reluctant to accept it.

Ye An didn't insist; if they didn't want it, so be it, he would save it for the next person who was meant to have it.

The next second, Liu Ruyan's hand reached out and her fingertips gently touched Ye An's wrist.

Like a pebble falling into water, the moment the two come into contact, invisible ripples spread out, the pebble carrying a cautious, tentative tenderness.

Liu Ruyan did not take the ring immediately. Instead, she waited a moment before gently sliding her hand across Ye An's wrist and accepting the ring.

The warm sensation on Ye An's wrist did not dissipate immediately, but rather spread outwards in concentric circles like ripples on water.

The two rings looked exactly alike under the light that shone through at a special angle, as if they were the only two things in the world that matched.

Liu Ruyan's movements were hesitant and awkward; her actions just now were clearly intentional.

Liu Ruyan lowered her eyes and didn't say anything more, but the hand wearing the ring slightly tightened at her side.