Unable to Leave?

Chapter 46: Unable to Leave? (Second update)

"Enough! Someone take Shi Nu back to have his wounds treated!" The middle-aged man frowned slightly at the sight and spoke in a low voice.

"Yes!" Two burly men stepped forward and hurried to help Brother Shi, Shi Nu, up...

"I can walk myself!" Brother Shi said in a low voice. He stubbornly stood and walked forward, though his steps were still unsteady. The others quickly cleared a path...

Meanwhile.

"He actually defeated Shi Nu! Apart from the stockade chief, he's..."

"Shh...!"

"That's right!"

"...!"

Once Shi Nu had left.

"Fellow Daoist, what brings you to our Ye Family Stockade?" Only then did the middle-aged man address Wang Yan.

"Nothing much. I originally wanted to seek refuge in your Ye Family Stockade, but now it seems there's no need!" Wang Yan replied calmly, looking unconcerned, though his fingers had already reached his Storage Bag...

Clearly, he was not nearly as relaxed as he claimed... If this middle-aged man really attacked, Wang Yan might well be no match for him!

Just then.

"Oh? Refuge?" The middle-aged man frowned and murmured, then asked in a low voice, "What do you mean by that?"

Wang Yan's heart stirred at the question, but he looked toward Ye Shisan.

"Ah! Here's what happened...!" Ye Shisan hurried forward and began explaining every detail of how Wang Yan had offended the Lü Household while rescuing him...

But!

"Hmph! So you foolish brat caused trouble again!" Before Ye Shisan could finish, the middle-aged man snorted and glared at him. Ye Shisan immediately looked anxious and could not get another word out... Only then did the middle-aged man turn to Wang Yan. "My foolish son has caused you trouble, Fellow Daoist. I am Ye Mingtian. Since you're here, and this is no place to talk, why not come inside for a chat?" With that, he narrowed his eyes at Wang Yan, an odd, knowing look in his gaze.

"Well... all right!" Seeing the middle-aged man's gaze, Wang Yan hesitated instead. But judging by Ye Mingtian's manner, refusing would only bring greater trouble, so he agreed.

"Foolish Shisan! Take this fellow Daoist to our home! Treat him well!" Ye Mingtian instructed Ye Shisan in a low voice.

"Right away!" Ye Shisan answered hastily, clearly terrified of his father. He hurriedly said to Wang Yan, "Brother Wang! Follow me!" Then he turned and headed back.

"All right!" Wang Yan quickly followed...

Though the other villagers seemed somewhat unwilling, they all stepped aside. Clearly, Ye Shisan's father, Ye Mingtian, held absolute authority in this stockade.

However.

Wang Yan carefully studied the members of the Ye Family Stockade. Though they varied in height, every one of them was powerfully built, dressed in animal hides, and carried weapons in their hands or tucked somewhere on their bodies. There were even some female martial artists among them. Clearly, everyone in this mountain stockade's Ye family practiced martial arts.

Yet, from what he could sense, only Ye Mingtian and Ye Shisan seemed to have the aura of cultivators.

Before long, Ye Shisan led Wang Yan through the crowd...

As they watched Ye Shisan lead Wang Yan away...

"Stockade Chief! Is it wise to let an outsider into our stockade? Especially a cultivator!" An elderly man stepped forward and addressed Ye Mingtian, fixing his eyes on him as he waited for an answer.

"Though I haven't yet discerned this visiting cultivator's character, he was willing to rescue Shisan, so he shouldn't be too bad!" Ye Mingtian replied calmly. He paused, swept his gaze over the crowd, and continued, "Besides, this cultivator already knows where our Ye Family Stockade is. Letting him leave would cause even more trouble!" With that, he cast a meaningful glance at the sky.

"The Clan Chief speaks wisely!" Everyone voiced their agreement.

"All right! Shi Nu is injured. You and you, stay here and guard the entrance!" Ye Mingtian casually pointed at two sturdy young men and spoke in a low voice, then addressed the crowd. "That's enough! Everyone disperse! Stay alert!"

"Yes!"

Shi Nu had been injured by Wang Yan and naturally could no longer guard the gate, so two martial artists were assigned to replace him...

Meanwhile, Wang Yan followed Ye Shisan through the enormous gate, only to find another gate inside. The defenses were clearly formidable.

As soon as they passed through the second gate.

"Whew! That scared me to death!" Ye Shisan glanced back at some villagers who had followed them inside, then spoke to Wang Yan, still shaken. "Luckily, Father didn't say anything. Otherwise, I'd have had a hard time explaining myself!"

"Mm!" Wang Yan nodded and also glanced back at the villagers. Seeing their unfriendly expressions, he quietly asked Ye Shisan, "Brother Ye, is there anything I should watch out for in your Ye Family Stockade?"

"Huh?" Ye Shisan looked at Wang Yan in confusion.

"I mean, what's the situation in your Ye Family Stockade? You seem very hostile toward cultivators." Wang Yan was speechless at his reaction. He knew that although Ye Shisan looked old beyond his years, he was actually about the same age as himself, so he could only ask directly. After a pause, he explained, "I'm not trying to pry. I just want to know if there's anything I should be careful about so I don't stir up more trouble!"

"Oh! Actually, I'm not very sure myself! This is the first time I've brought a friend back!" Ye Shisan said, frowning. He hesitated, then hurriedly added, "I don't know why Brother Shi Nu attacked, either...!"

A friend...! At Ye Shisan's words, an inexplicable feeling stirred in Wang Yan's heart. Ever since something had happened to her, he no longer knew how long it had been since anyone had said that word to him. He had originally intended to draw some information about the stockade out of Ye Shisan, making his later movements easier so he could get some of that black mother iron ore...

But seeing Ye Shisan's honest, earnest manner, Wang Yan felt a trace of uncertainty...

Just then.

"Hmm? The spiritual energy here is quite good!" Card Fairy's voice suddenly rang out in Wang Yan's mind, low and serious.

Spiritual energy? At those words, Wang Yan's heart stirred, and he hurriedly looked ahead. As they talked, the two of them had almost emerged from the narrow gorge, and he could vaguely make out what lay beyond it. Wisps of breeze brushed past, carrying what felt like a substantial amount of spiritual energy. It was actually a little denser than at the Wang Household on Azure Spirit Mountain. No wonder Card Fairy had said that...

Still, Wang Yan had always been very curious about exactly where inside his body Card Fairy was, and what method she used to sense the world outside.

Before long, the two emerged from the cleft in the gorge.

There before them!

They stood halfway up a cliff, with several peaks below them. Numerous wooden houses stood on those peaks, housing dozens of families. Looking upward was even more astonishing: above the entire cliff was only a small opening. The whole place lay within a hollow mountain, its top concealed by countless trees. Threads of sunlight filtered down, giving it a very distinctive feel. It truly was a fine place.

Along the edges of the stockade surrounding the bases of the peaks, fruit and other crops had been planted...

On one side of the stockade, some children were practicing martial arts.

Everything seemed like a peach-blossom paradise beyond the mortal world, and the entire open valley held a fair amount of the spiritual energy of heaven and earth.

Just then!

"Let's head down!" Ye Mingtian had already caught up with Wang Yan and Ye Shisan, and spoke to Wang Yan.

"Brother Wang! This way, please!" Ye Shisan was exceptionally afraid of Ye Mingtian and hurriedly said to Wang Yan, "Let's go down!" With that, he actually leaped straight off the cliff...

"Mm!" Wang Yan saw clearly that numerous wooden stakes had been driven into the cliff face to serve as footholds. Ye Shisan moved nimbly, swiftly making his way down...

Wang Yan was even more skilled and agile than Ye Shisan, so naturally he was unafraid and followed him down...

Inside a wooden hall some forty or fifty feet across, with animal-hide rugs covering parts of the floor, Wang Yan was drinking a specially made fruit wine. Some fruit had been set out before him.

Aside from Wang Yan himself, there was no one else in the hall.

Two young men stood guard outside the hall.

"Card Fairy! What do you think Ye Mingtian's cultivation level is? I can't tell at all. Could he be a Core Condensation Realm cultivator?" Wang Yan asked quietly as he ate a green fruit.

"I couldn't tell, either. If you got a little closer, I might be able to, but I'm afraid he might notice..." Card Fairy quickly replied.

"Mm! With someone that dangerous here, do you think we should abandon our plan?" Wang Yan asked worriedly. "Still, there's something I find strange. Ye Shisan cultivates in a place with such dense spiritual energy, so why has he only reached minor completion of the cultivation realm?"

"Well, let's see how things go first. You wouldn't give up that easily, would you?!" Card Fairy said. "As for Ye Shisan, I think there may be a problem with his cultivation itself. It might be like what happened to you back then!"

"Of course not. I was only saying!" Wang Yan shook his head. "That black mother iron is so valuable. Naturally, we can't go back empty-handed...!"

"That's right! But I think you're in trouble...!" Card Fairy said instead.

"What do you mean?" Wang Yan's heart stirred, and he hurriedly asked.

"I'm afraid you can no longer leave this Ye Family Stockade so easily!" Card Fairy's words were startling.