Ye Shisan

(A plea for Sanjiang votes)

"Tch! I never promised you anything!" Wang Yan said with a frown. By stepping in to save Black Youth, he had already done everything kindness and duty demanded. With wounds covering Black Youth's body, was Wang Yan supposed to supply healing pills too? He turned and walked away...

"Hey, hey! Fellow cultivator! Brother!" Black Youth hurried after him, calling out repeatedly.

"Hmph! Do you want me to deal with you the same way I dealt with those two?" Wang Yan snorted, feigning impatience.

"Well..." Black Youth's expression stiffened, and he hesitated. Wang Yan had just appeared and single-handedly killed two cultivators at Major Completion of the Cultivation Realm. That certainly made Black Youth wary. His awkward hesitation looked rather strange, especially with those thick eyebrows and large eyes.

"..." Wang Yan glared at Black Youth, then turned and walked away.

When he had gone forty or fifty feet...

"Hey!" Black Youth finally spoke again and chased after him, stammering, "Fellow... fellow cultivator, brother, I... my name is Ye Shisan. I'm a little lost. Sorry for the trouble, but could you lead me out...?"

"You...!" Seeing Black Youth follow him again, Wang Yan was about to speak, but the rest of his words infuriated him. He could not help snapping, "How old are you? And you still get lost?"

"I... I'm thirteen... Does getting lost have anything to do with how old you are?" Black Youth's expression shifted as he asked in surprise...

"What? You're thirteen?" Wang Yan froze, then looked Black Youth up and down. With all those muscles, his dark skin, thick eyebrows, and large eyes, he certainly did not look thirteen. Wang Yan had always assumed he was in his twenties... He could not help letting out a startled laugh. "You're really thirteen? You sure look old for your age!"

"Hey! I really am thirteen...!" Black Youth scratched the back of his head sheepishly, then quickly asked, "You look about my age, don't you, brother?"

"Uh..." Wang Yan had seen Black Youth rashly stand up for someone at the Lü Family Marketplace, and that really had not seemed like an adult's behavior. There was no need to keep arguing with this black young man... No, black boy... Uh! Ye Shisan. He could only say, "Fine! I'll take you out of the mountains. Once we reach the main road, you're on your own!"

"Ah! Thank you so much, big brother!" Ye Shisan exclaimed happily. Then he turned and sprinted toward where the Black Iron Rod had fallen, calling as he ran, "Wait a moment, big brother! Let me pick up my precious black lump!"

"Tch! Why are you calling me big brother? We barely know each other!" Wang Yan clicked his tongue and snapped.

"You saved me, so you're my big brother!" Ye Shisan declared. As he spoke, he reached the Black Iron Rod, forcibly pulled it free, and hoisted it onto his shoulder. Then he came pounding back toward Wang Yan, his footsteps plainly much heavier...

"..." Wang Yan was speechless. He could not be bothered to argue with Ye Shisan over every little thing; if he kept talking, there would be no end to it. But suddenly, he noticed that the Black Iron Rod on Ye Shisan's shoulder gleamed with an oily sheen, its surface brilliantly smooth. One glance was enough to tell that it was no ordinary material. In particular, Ye Shisan had used it to block the attacks of those three Lü Household cultivators' Magic Artifacts, yet it did not bear a single mark. That was truly astonishing...

After all.

Even a low-grade Magic Artifact used by a cultivator was far sharper and sturdier than the so-called divine weapons and keen blades of the mundane world. Yet this Black Iron Rod had taken so many direct blows from those three Lü Household cultivators without showing the slightest mark...

Just then...

"Hmm? That Black Iron Rod of his looks like something good!" Card Fairy said inside Wang Yan's mind. Clearly, she had noticed something too...

At that, an idea stirred in Wang Yan's mind, and he asked Ye Shisan, "Say, Ye Shisan, how about letting me take a look at that Black Iron Rod?"

"Huh? My precious black lump is really heavy. You might not be able to lift it, big brother!" A trace of reluctance flashed through Ye Shisan's eyes as he spoke, but he still held the Black Iron Rod out to Wang Yan...

"Is it that heavy?" Wang Yan murmured, his interest stirring as he reached for the Black Iron Rod with both hands...

"Hmm?" Ye Shisan let go...

With a muffled thud, Wang Yan actually failed to hold the Black Iron Rod. It slammed straight into the ground, leaving a pit...

"Good grief! This thing is way too heavy!" Wang Yan stared at his hands in astonishment and muttered. Though young, he was a cultivator, and he had practiced martial arts for quite some time. His strength surpassed that of an ordinary adult martial artist, with each hand capable of exerting at least a hundred jin of force. Yet when the Black Iron Rod was placed in his hands, he could not hold it, and it fell straight to the ground. Did that mean it weighed at least four or five hundred jin?

"Ah! I told you... My precious lump is really heavy!" Ye Shisan hurriedly said. He reached down and pulled the Black Iron Rod out of the ground as he spoke...

"Wait! Let me take another look!" Wang Yan quickly said. Red light surged over his hands as he reached for the Black Iron Rod...

"Uh! All right!" Ye Shisan could only agree.

With a hum, Wang Yan gripped the Black Iron Rod in both hands and lifted it. It felt immensely heavy, and even swinging it looked exceedingly difficult. That showed just how astonishing Ye Shisan's strength was... Could Ye Shisan have a thousand jin of strength in each hand? At the thought, he could not help glancing at Ye Shisan. Despite his young age, Ye Shisan was as sturdily built as an adult, and his muscles were far more solid than most people's. That did seem plausible... Huh? As though noticing something else, Wang Yan asked in surprise, "Hmm? Ye Shisan! How did your wounds heal so quickly?"

Indeed!

Though Ye Shisan's Body-Refining Technique was astonishing, the Lü Household cultivators had cut his flesh with their flying swords, leaving quite a few wounds. Earlier, he had been covered in blood, with injuries all over him. Now, most of those wounds had closed. He was clearly much better and no longer bleeding. Wang Yan had not seen Ye Shisan do anything to stop the bleeding or apply any medicine, so naturally, he was surprised...

"Me?" Ye Shisan scratched the back of his head and said rather sheepishly, "That's the result of practicing my Body-Refining Technique. And my constitution has been a little different since birth...!"

"Is that so?" Wang Yan nodded and paid Ye Shisan no further attention.

Just then...

"It really is good! The material of this Black Iron Rod really is something valuable!" Card Fairy's voice rang out in Wang Yan's mind. She hurriedly spoke, as though she had discovered something.

"Hmm? What is it?" Wang Yan quickly asked.

"What is what?" Ye Shisan thought Wang Yan was asking him and hurriedly answered, "My precious lump was made from black ore we found on the Back Mountain behind our mountain stronghold. It took several years to refine this whole chunk!"

"Hmm?" Wang Yan knew Ye Shisan had misunderstood, but he nodded anyway...

"This is black mother iron!" Card Fairy said. "It's an excellent material for refining magical treasures. If you add some when refining Spirit Artifacts or Magic Artifacts, their power will increase tremendously! You can even make higher-grade Magic Artifacts and Spirit Artifacts with it! You brat! You have to get your hands on this. Letting this big black fellow use it as a weapon is such a waste!"

"It's that good?!" Wang Yan's interest stirred at her words, and he was tempted. I have to get my hands on this! As that thought crossed his mind, his eyes shifted. Looking at Ye Shisan, he suddenly said, "Ye Shisan! I just saved your life, didn't I?"

"Yes! I still don't know how to repay you, big brother!" Suspecting nothing, Ye Shisan nodded repeatedly and hurriedly answered.

"Oh! You don't have to do anything special to repay me! Just give... No! How about selling me your Black Iron Rod?" Wang Yan nodded and shamelessly proposed. But seeing Ye Shisan's honest, guileless face, he hurriedly changed tack. "How about a hundred Spirit Stones?"

"Well..." Ye Shisan seemed unable to make up his mind, his eyes lingering reluctantly on the Black Iron Rod. Suddenly, he gritted his teeth and said, "Ah! Big brother! You saved my life, so there's no harm in giving you this precious lump. At worst, I'll go back and refine another one!" Even as he said it, his face was full of anguish...

"Hey! I won't take it for nothing!" Wang Yan quickly said. Taking someone else's belongings without paying was not his style. Of course, if he had not saved Ye Shisan-or even if he killed him now-this treasure would undoubtedly be his... But he was not that black-hearted yet... With that, he patted his Storage Bag and took out a hundred Spirit Stones...

"Wait! You brat!" Card Fairy hurriedly said. "Did you hear what this kid just said?"

"What?" Wang Yan asked, his thoughts stirring.

"This kid seems to know where there's black iron mother ore!" Card Fairy said.

"!" Wang Yan immediately caught on, and an idea sprang to mind. He quickly said to Ye Shisan, "Ye Shisan! You said your Black Iron Rod was refined from ore found on the Back Mountain? Take me there for a look, and I won't take your Black Iron Rod. How about it?" As he spoke, he handed the Black Iron Rod back to Ye Shisan...

But!

"Well..." Ye Shisan looked troubled...