First Encounter with Martial Artists

After a long silence, Ye Wuhen spoke. "Brother Ye, have you ever heard of martial artists?"

Ye Feng shook his head, but great waves were surging in his heart. It was as though a door had opened, and what lay beyond it was overturning the worldview he had held for twenty years.

"Brother Ye, do martial artists really exist? Why have I never heard of them?"

"Just because you haven't heard of them doesn't mean they don't exist. Families with lineages stretching back hundreds of years generally have martial artists among them; people simply don't know about them. Suppose that several hundred years from now, parrots and tigers have gone extinct, leaving only a passage in a book: 'In Huaxia there is a bird, seven-colored in plumage, that speaks the words of men. In the mountains there is a great beast, shaped like a cat, with the character for king upon its brow and a body as large as an ox. It is the lord of ten thousand beasts.' Wouldn't people also think that what the book described was false?"

Ye Feng nodded in agreement. In their place, he wouldn't have believed it either.

"Niuniu's mother and I were both martial artists. She was gravely injured in a conflict and left us forever. Later, I withdrew from the martial arts world and have been raising Niuniu on my own ever since."

As Ye Feng felt saddened by his misfortune, he was also drawn to the words "martial artist." Ever since he was little, he had dreamed of roaming the world with a three-foot sword in hand.

"Brother Ye, could you tell me about the levels of martial artists? If it's inconvenient, never mind."

Ye Wuhen looked at him solemnly. He had already said so much today that he didn't mind saying a little more.

"Simply put, martial artists are divided into four major realms: External Force, Internal Force, Houtian, and Xiantian. Those at the Houtian realm are also called Grandmasters, while those at the Xiantian realm are called Great Grandmasters. The world of martial artists is far more cruel than the ordinary world. Brother Ye, I advise you not to get too involved with it."

Ye Feng calmed down as well. He was an ordinary person; if he got involved in the martial arts world, even eight hundred lives wouldn't be enough. He was better off earning cashback.

"Brother Ye, what do you do for a living now?"

"Ah, I'm an investment manager at an investment company, but I was just told today that I'd been laid off. Otherwise, I wouldn't have failed to notice that Niuniu had gone missing."

Ye Feng immediately perked up. Ye Wuhen was a martial artist, and since he had become an investment manager, he had to be quite capable too. Talent like that was hard to come by!

"Brother Ye, would you be interested in working for me? I can give you two choices. The first is to be my full-time bodyguard, with an annual salary of five million Huaxia Currency. The second is that I'm planning to establish an investment company and put you fully in charge, also with an annual salary of five million Huaxia Currency. You can think it over. Don't worry about Niuniu, either. I like her a lot, and I can have my parents help look after her, or hire someone to take care of her."

Ye Wuhen was tempted. Niuniu was his soft spot. Taking care of her had previously consumed so much of his energy that his boss had grown dissatisfied and laid him off. But he didn't regret it, because his daughter was the person he placed all his hopes in.

"Brother Ye, I'd like to work at the investment company, but I have one condition. I hope I can bring Niuniu to work with me. I don't want to miss her growing up. Otherwise, I can only turn the offer down."

Ye Feng had wondered what condition he would propose, but that was all it was. He immediately agreed, then waved his hand and transferred twenty billion Huaxia Currency to Ye Wuhen.

"Brother Ye, take this money and use it to set up the company and invest in projects. But I hope you can acquire full ownership of as many companies as possible." Before the system was upgraded, investments wouldn't earn cashback, but acquisitions were different. They could bring in generous cashback and speed up the system's upgrade.

When Ye Wuhen saw the transfer notification, he was shocked beyond words. A full twenty billion Huaxia Currency had been transferred to him just like that? Wasn't Ye Feng afraid he would run off with the money? He composed himself and said earnestly, "Thank you for trusting me, Brother Ye. I won't let you down."

"Brother Ye, I'll leave the arrangements for setting up the company to you. Don't worry about funding. This twenty billion is only the first batch; more capital will be provided later."

After the two discussed some details, they saw that Niuniu was getting a little sleepy, so they stopped talking and brought the meal to an end.

Ye Feng had originally planned to have the two of them stay at the East Lake Hotel, but when his parents refused, he didn't insist. He booked a room each for himself and Ye Lin, then went to rest. Since the academic celebration banquet was being held there tomorrow anyway, he wouldn't go home.

Lying in bed, Ye Feng stared at the ceiling and spoke softly. "System, since martial artists exist, do the legendary gods and Buddhas filling the heavens exist too?"

[Host, no beings with strength exceeding the limits of this plane have been detected so far.]

"After the system is upgraded, will items related to martial artists or immortal cultivators appear in the mall?"

[Host, the System Mall encompasses everything. There is nothing it lacks, only things you can't imagine. The mall contains countless planes' finest items. Please upgrade the system as soon as possible.]

Hearing this, Ye Feng grew even more curious about the System Mall that would open after the upgrade. It looked like he needed to work hard at earning cashback.

The next day, Ye Feng was puzzled when he woke up. The academic celebration banquet was today, so why hadn't Ye Lin come to wake him? That wasn't like her. After washing up, he left his room, still puzzled. A server outside saw him come out and immediately approached him. "Mr. Ye, Manager Chen asked me to inform you that the academic celebration banquet has been arranged in Morning Sun Hall. Miss Ye has already gone over. Would you like to go there now?"

So Ye Lin had already gone. No wonder she hadn't disturbed him that morning. He nodded to the server, who led him to Morning Sun Hall.

Inside the banquet hall, soft lighting illuminated the carefully arranged surroundings. Ribbons and balloons hung on the walls, creating a festive atmosphere. There were four tables on each side, set with exquisite tableware. At the very front was a huge display screen, showing a bright red couplet.

Upper line: A scholarly household nurtures outstanding talent

Lower line: Success in the imperial examinations brings honor to the family

Horizontal inscription: Success in one's studies

Ye Feng nodded in satisfaction. It seemed Chen Tai really knew how to get things done.

Just then, his phone rang. He took it out and answered, and Ye Lin's voice came through.

"Brother, now that you're up, come down quickly. The relatives will be here soon, and Mom and Dad are already downstairs. You're the only one missing."

"Got it. I'll be right down."

By the time he came downstairs, two buses had just arrived at the hotel entrance. Ye Feng and his parents went to greet them.

Friends and relatives got off the buses one after another, and the family of four greeted them warmly. Then a sharp voice rang out.

"Oh, Meijuan! Who would have thought your family could hold an academic celebration banquet at the East Lake Hotel? How much must that cost? People should keep their feet on the ground. If you slap your face swollen to look fat, you'll be the one crying afterward."

Ye Feng's mother was named Wang Meijuan. She was the youngest of her siblings, with two older brothers and three older sisters. The person speaking now was her eldest sister-in-law, Li Fengxia.

Wang Meijuan's expression was extremely unpleasant, but she held back her anger and invited them upstairs.