Xuanfeng City, Bai Family Village.
Most of the houses in the village used pounded loess walls and wooden beams, with sparse and dilapidated thatch on many roofs that exposed the blackened and rotting wooden beams underneath.
The land at the entrance of the village was still reasonably even, but the path leading inward was full of potholes.
A few children with clothes covered in layers of patches were playing at the village entrance. Seeing the two unfamiliar visitors, Ye Han and Dugu Bo, they immediately stopped playing and looked at them from afar with curiosity and vigilance.
Even Dugu Bo, upon seeing the sight of Bai Family Village with his own eyes, could not help but feel a stirring of emotion.
"Every single one of them has all their limbs and is able-bodied, so how can their days have fallen to such a state?" Dugu Bo's tone was full of incomprehension.
On the road, Ye Han had already briefly explained to him that their destination for this trip was this Bai Family Village outside Xuanfeng City, and the people living here were precisely one of the Four Single-Attribute Clans abandoned by the Clear Sky Sect back then.
The Speed Clan.
Ye Han's goal in coming this time was precisely the extremely precious immortal herb in the hands of the Speed Clan's patriarch Bai He: the Crystal Blood Dragon Ginseng.
Crystal Blood Dragon, naturally eighth-tier, evolved over ten thousand years!
Dugu Bo's gaze swept over the dilapidated houses and then toward the clansmen bending over to work in the distant fields, and he shook his head helplessly.
"Even if they were just ordinary commoners, they wouldn't end up living in such hardship... Not to mention there are quite a few Soul Masters here who possess soul power."
Anyone who possessed soul power, even if it were only a lowest-tier One-Ring Soul Master, could find a decent livelihood.
While it could not be called immensely wealthy, it was more than enough to feed a family.
Yet the poverty of the entire village before his eyes completely exceeded Dugu Bo's understanding; this was definitely not a plight caused by personal reasons.
Ye Han did not take up the conversation.
The reasons for the Speed Clan falling to such a state were complex and tangled, not something that could be made clear in just a few words.
The root lay in the arrogance deep in the bones of the clansmen, who were unwilling to submit to any other Soul Master sect while lacking a stable way to make a living themselves.
Coupled with their past origins in the Clear Sky Sect, they would rather endure hardship than go collect the Soul Master subsidies distributed by Spirit Hall.
Had the other three clans not frequently provided relief, the situation of the Speed Clan would only have been even more miserable.
Not long after, Ye Han and Dugu Bo entering the village caught the attention of the villagers.
A tall man in his early thirties walked out of a loess house and looked the two over with a vigilant gaze.
"What people are you? What is your purpose in coming to our Bai Family Village?"
Ye Han took half a step forward with a calm expression. "We have come to pay a visit to the patriarch of the Bai family, Senior Bai He. We have a piece of business we wish to discuss with your clan."
"Business?" The man's brow furrowed tightly, his gaze shifting back and forth between Ye Han and Dugu Bo.
He himself was also a Soul Master, with a cultivation of only a Soul Elder.
The Sharp-Tailed Swift Martial Soul was naturally adept at scouting, and he keenly captured the soul power fluctuations circulating around the two.
These two were definitely not beings he could contend against.
After a brief hesitation, he turned sideways to yield the path.
"Follow me, I will take you to see the patriarch."
His mind was full of bewilderment. Ever since breaking away from the Clear Sky Sect, the Speed Clan had chosen to live in seclusion from the world, and apart from interacting with the other three clans, they rarely had dealings with external Soul Masters.
Talking business?
The Speed Clan was already poor to this extent; what kind of transactions could they possibly make with outsiders?
However, since the other party directly named the patriarch's name, he was willing to lead the way.
In his mind, even if the two harbored malicious intentions, relying on the patriarch's strength as an Eight-Ring Soul Douluo, suppressing the two would be effortless.
Ye Han nodded slightly and, along with Dugu Bo, followed behind the man as they walked toward the center of the village.
Along the way, quite a few villagers poked their heads out from doors and windows, curiously sizing up the two outsiders.
The two figures in luxurious robes appeared completely out of place against the backdrop of the dilapidated village.
The man led the two to the gates of a relatively spacious courtyard in the center of the village.
The houses inside the courtyard were much neater than elsewhere, and a wooden board hung on the courtyard gate with the single character "Bai" carved upon it.
"Patriarch, we have guests visiting."
The man announced loudly outside the courtyard gate.
There was a moment of quiet inside the courtyard before a resonant voice rang out: "Come in."
The three pushed open the door and walked into the courtyard.
As soon as he stepped inside, Ye Han caught sight of Bai He, as well as a young girl standing at his side.
Bai He had a slender and well-proportioned figure with long snow-white hair draped down his back, yet his complexion was as ruddy as an infant's.
The young girl beside him was around Ye Han's age, with a tall, graceful figure and delicate, moving features.
The moment the two stepped into the courtyard, Bai He instantly sensed the soul power aura on them by virtue of his Sharp-Tailed Swift Martial Soul.
He looked at Dugu Bo first, his pupils shrinking abruptly: a Titled Douluo!
When his perception fell upon Ye Han, Bai He froze entirely.
A Five-Ring Soul King?
This youth looked to be around the same age as his granddaughter, yet his soul power fluctuation had actually reached the level of a Soul King!
Bai He even suspected his perception was mistaken and concentrated to scan him carefully once more.
That's right, it was truly and certainly a Five-Ring Soul King.
"The two of you..."
Bai He opened his mouth, for a moment not knowing how to begin.
Having managed the Speed Clan for many years, he had seen plenty of great storms and waves, yet this scene before him still subverted his understanding.
A twelve or thirteen-year-old Soul King?
Without waiting for Bai He to question, Ye Han stepped forward and directly stated his identity.
"This junior, Ye Han, pays respects to Patriarch Bai He."
Ye Han bowed slightly. "This is Senior Dugu Bo."
Hearing the name, Bai He's pupils constricted once more.
Dugu Bo, the Jade Phosphorus Poison Douluo!
He hurriedly stood up and solemnly bowed to Dugu Bo. "This junior Bai He greets Your Excellency Jade Phosphorus."
Dugu Bo waved a hand dismissively, his tone nonchalant: "No need for formalities, this old man is merely accompanying this kid here to handle a matter."
Not beating around the bush, Ye Han directly stated his purpose: "Patriarch Bai He, this junior belongs to the Ye Family Medical Hall of Heaven Dou City."
"This junior heard through the medical hall's medicinal herb acquisition channels that the Patriarch once intended to part with a ginseng of exceptional quality, only for the transaction to be shelved later. Judging by the descriptions passed down, that is precisely the item this junior has been searching for painstakingly."
Saying this, a trace of eager anticipation tinted Ye Han's tone: "I wonder if Patriarch Bai He might be willing to part with it? This junior is willing to offer a price that will satisfy the Patriarch."
Bai He was stunned.
What surprised him was not the fact that Ye Han wanted to buy the ginseng, but rather the name "Ye Han".
Even away on the borders of Xuanfeng City, he had heard of this moniker.
Recently, rumors of a young Soul King had been spreading like wildfire across the continent-only twelve years old, with a fourth soul ring that was ten thousand years old... Various tales were flying about, making it hard to tell truth from falsehood.
Bai He had originally just taken it as worldly exaggeration and boasting, as a twelve-year-old Soul King was simply too unimaginable.
Only upon seeing him with his own eyes did he realize that the rumors might not be false.
Bai He swallowed hard and asked tentatively, "Little Friend Ye Han, could it be that you are that legendary..."
Ye Han nodded and readily acknowledged: "If the patriarch is speaking of the twelve-year-old Soul King with a ten-thousand-year fourth soul ring, then that is indeed I."
As his voice fell, a thought stirred in Ye Han's mind, and a crimson radiance erupted from within his body.
The Fire Qilin appeared in response, letting out a low roar. A pair of qilin eyes swept over those in the courtyard and finally landed on Bai He.
Five soul rings rose and circulated smoothly beneath his feet: yellow, yellow, purple, black, black.
Soul King cultivation, external beast martial soul-looking across the current continent, this was the only instance.
Gazing at the Fire Qilin and then looking back at Ye Han, Bai He finally fully confirmed the youth's identity.
At the side, the young girl and Bai He's granddaughter, Bai Chenxiang, was already dumbstruck.
She stared blankly at the Fire Qilin and then at Ye Han, her bright eyes filled with disbelief.
Among the younger generation of the Speed Clan, her talent was already top-tier.
At twelve years old, she was already a Two-Ring Soul Grandmaster.
That could be considered outstanding even in the history of the Speed Clan, and her grandfather had once said she possessed the potential to break through to a Titled Douluo.
Yet compared to Ye Han of the same age before her, the gap was stark.
Between a Soul King and a Soul Grandmaster lay a full three major realms.
This chasm could definitely not be bridged merely by relying on hard work.
Bai Chenxiang gently bit her lower lip, a storm of mixed emotions swirling in her heart-shock, envy, and a trace of lingering unwillingness.
Confirming Ye Han's identity, Bai He took a deep breath and once more bowed to Dugu Bo: "With Your Excellency Jade Phosphorus visiting in person, this junior failed to welcome you from afar. I hope you will forgive me."
Dugu Bo nodded slightly. "It's fine."
Ye Han recalled the Fire Qilin into his body and looked back at Bai He. "Patriarch, that ginseng... I wonder if you would be willing to part with it?"
He added: "This junior guarantees that the price offered will certainly not disappoint the Patriarch."
Without hesitation, Bai He nodded slightly.
With a flick of his wrist, he retrieved from his Storage Soul Tool a jade box one foot five inches long, half a foot wide, and pure, lustrous white throughout.
Carefully, Bai He placed the jade box on the table and slowly lifted the lid.
The instant the lid opened, a strange, rich medicinal fragrance instantly permeated the entire courtyard.
Lying quietly inside the jade box was a ginseng about a foot long.
The entire stalk was blood-red, its skin warm and smooth as if carved from top-grade red jade.
The most wondrous part was the raised patterns winding across the surface of the ginseng, interconnecting to form a five-clawed giant dragon soaring through the air.
Dragon head, dragon body, dragon claws, dragon tail-every single detail was lifelike.
A dense surge of vital blood emanated continuously from the ginseng, and merely inhaling a breath of it made one feel the blood within their body stir into active life.
Even Dugu Bo at the side, catching a whiff of this medicinal fragrance, could not help but lean forward to look closer.
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