Deep within Greenstone Valley stood the Guests Return Inn.
The inn was one of the larger establishments in the valley, consisting of several connected stone buildings, with private courtyards in the rear that offered a relatively peaceful setting. Its proprietor was a portly cultivator at the Foundation Establishment late stage. Seeing the extraordinary bearing of Ye Chen and his companions, especially Emperor Xuanwu's unfathomable aura, he dared not slight them. He personally led the group to the finest private courtyard in the rear and instructed his attendants to serve them with care.
The courtyard was clean and tidy, with several separate stone rooms and a small Spirit Plant Garden in the center, its vitality sustained by a formation. Though it was merely a patch of low-grade ornamental flowers and grasses, even this was a rare sight in the wasteland.
Once they had settled in, Shi Meng eagerly dragged the follower who handled the spirit beast off to the tavern out front, declaring that he wanted a taste of this realm's "fine wine." Ye Yun and Mo Yu took charge of keeping watch and gathering information. Ye Ling studied the otherworldly spirit plants in the courtyard with keen interest, while Ye Xiaoshan found a quiet corner and continued his "battle" with the Nameless Fragment.
Lin Qingxue and her two guards also returned to their respective rooms to regulate their breathing. They needed to recover as quickly as possible.
Ye Chen sat on a stone stool in the courtyard, with Emperor Xuanwu standing quietly beside him.
"Young master, there is more to this valley than meets the eye," Emperor Xuanwu said through voice transmission. "The formations here appear crude, yet they are subtly connected to the earth veins, drawing upon the scant power of the local spirit vein. Whoever laid them possesses considerable understanding of formations. That Old Man Greenstone is probably more than a mere cultivator at Nascent Soul great perfection. He may already have one foot in Spirit Transformation."
Ye Chen nodded slightly. He had naturally noticed a few clues himself. Greenstone Valley could not have secured its foothold in the Blood-Baleful Wasteland solely on the reputation of a single Nascent Soul cultivator.
"No matter. We are only stopping here briefly." Ye Chen was unconcerned. As long as no Immortal Emperor level existence appeared, his strength and Emperor Xuanwu's would suffice to handle any unexpected development.
Just then, Shi Meng's booming laughter and a faint hubbub drifted over from the front hall. He seemed to have already started drinking with the local cultivators. Ye Chen shook his head with a smile. Shi Meng's straightforward nature did make him good at gathering information.
A short while later, Ye Yun and Mo Yu returned, one after the other.
"Young master, we have learned a few things," Ye Yun reported. "Greenstone Valley has indeed been unsettled these past few days. The people from the Blood Skull Stronghold seem to be searching for something, and their inspections are strict. Also, an inspector from the Sacred Emperor Palace is reportedly due to arrive at the edge of the wasteland soon. Their purpose is unknown, and the various factions are all rather nervous."
Mo Yu added, "A rumor has been circulating in the valley recently. Three days from now, the Many Treasures Pavilion here will hold a small exchange gathering. Several rare ancient objects and materials are said to be appearing, drawing quite a few cultivators."
"An exchange gathering?" Ye Chen's interest stirred. What he lacked most at present was a deeper understanding of this realm, and an occasion where cultivators gathered was an excellent opportunity to obtain information.
"There is something else." Mo Yu paused, then lowered his voice. "I faintly sensed several concealed auras in the valley. They are quite powerful, at least at the Spirit Transformation stage, but all of them have deliberately hidden their cultivation and origins."
Ye Chen's gaze flickered. This little Greenstone Valley truly harbored hidden dragons and crouching tigers. The Blood Skull Stronghold's search, the arrival of the Sacred Emperor Palace's inspector, the mysterious Spirit Transformation cultivators, and the upcoming exchange gathering... with all these events converging, it was probably no coincidence.
He unconsciously touched the Nameless Fragment tucked inside his robes. Ever since he had entered Greenstone Valley, the faint, directional pulses it emitted had never ceased, as though something within the valley was drawing it.
Just then, Ye Xiaoshan, who had been studying in the corner all this time, suddenly let out a stifled cry.
"Young master! It... it's changing!"
Ye Chen and the others immediately turned their eyes toward him. Ye Xiaoshan held the Nameless Fragment in both hands, his face flushed with excitement. The fragment, which had always been cold and unresponsive, now bore twisted, incomprehensible symbols that flickered ever so faintly, like breathing, with an indescribable dull luster that resembled neither gold nor jade!
Although that luster was so faint it was almost imperceptible, and it fell dormant again after flickering a few times, this was the first time the fragment had shown such a clear change since Ye Chen acquired it!
"Is it because of Greenstone Valley? Or something within it?" Ye Chen rose and walked over to Ye Xiaoshan, taking the fragment to examine it carefully with his senses. The faint pulses remained, and their direction seemed a little clearer now, pointing toward the tallest stone building in the center of the valley—the Many Treasures Pavilion.
The Many Treasures Pavilion? The place holding the exchange gathering in three days?
An intrigued smile curved Ye Chen's lips.
It seemed he would have to attend this exchange gathering.
"Xiao Shan, well done." Ye Chen patted the excited Ye Xiaoshan on the shoulder. "Keep studying it. See whether you can discover anything else."
"Yes, young master!" As though injected with a shot of chicken blood, Ye Xiaoshan threw himself into studying the fragment with even greater focus.
Toward evening, Shi Meng returned reeking of wine, bringing plenty of scraps of information he had heard from the drinkers. Most concerned clashes and grudges between the wasteland's various factions, along with vague, elusive legends about dangerous places and treasures.
"Young master, guess what?" Shi Meng gulped down a large mouthful of spirit tea and chuckled. "Those bastards from the Blood Skull Stronghold seem to be looking for a group of outsiders who only recently entered the wasteland, dressed in luxurious clothes and possessed of formidable strength! Doesn't that describe us? But they seem to have taken us for fat sheep, thinking we're juicy meat that wandered out of some major faction. They're rubbing their hands together and itching to get started!"
Rather than growing nervous at his words, everyone wore a peculiar expression.
Taking the Ye Clan's young lord for a fat sheep they could handle however they pleased? This Blood Skull Stronghold really was... fearless in its ignorance.
"A pack of prancing clowns. Pay them no mind." Ye Chen waved a hand. "If they truly dare come knocking, we will simply wipe them out."
His tone was calm, yet carried unquestionable resolve.
Listening nearby, Lin Qingxue and her guards felt their hearts pound with alarm. The Blood Skull Stronghold was infamous for its viciousness in these parts, and its chief was an expert at the Spirit Transformation Late Stage. Yet in Ye Chen's mouth, they sounded like nothing more than mosquitoes and flies he could swat dead at will. Once again, they realized just how far beyond their imagination Young Master Ye's confidence likely reached.
As the night deepened, Greenstone Valley grew much quieter beneath the glow of its formations.
Ye Chen stood in the courtyard, gazing toward the brightly lit Many Treasures Pavilion in the center of the valley, light shifting within his Dual Pupils.
The Nameless Fragment's stirring, the imminent exchange gathering, the undercurrents surging among the various factions... all of it foretold that Greenstone Valley would be anything but peaceful.
And he eagerly awaited the moment this pool of water was stirred thoroughly muddy.
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