Ye Shu cleared away all the intricate maze formations in the mountains, then retrieved the six jade bottles that had never been filled with Hunyuan Water, smashing them all into pieces of roughly equal size. Immediately afterward, he consumed half a drop of Hunyuan Water, striving to regain some spiritual power. He swiftly placed these fragments near his hut, then buried a stout peach wood branch, a bowl of diluted Hunyuan Water, an oil lamp sealed with magic flame, and the commonly used kitchen knife in different directions. In this way, he set up what he considered to be a rather crude “Five Elements Concealing Formation.”
Subsequently, his spiritual power depleted once again.
This crude little formation was not entirely satisfactory to Ye Shu, but it was the most suitable formation he could set up at present.
After completing these tasks, he finally breathed a sigh of relief.
Normally, surrounded by ordinary people, Ye Shu would only use stones or similar items for his formations, considering it merely a disguise. But now, it seemed that practitioners were coming here, so he naturally couldn’t be so casual.
The jade bottles were useful to him, but in times of urgency, he had no choice but to smash them to use as the triggering mechanism for the formation—after all, jade was much more suitable than stones.
When the formation was set up, it seemed as if a gentle breeze blew by.
At this moment, if someone were to look down from above, they would not even see the hut. The surroundings were the same in all directions.
After completing these tasks, Ye Shu walked back into the house and looked at Yan Changlan on the bed, sighing softly.
He must have encountered difficulties. I wonder how Lord Yan is doing? And why would that cultivator target Yan Changlan? With Lord Yan’s temperament, he shouldn’t offend cultivators, and cultivators usually act with self-interest. If there’s nothing to gain, they probably wouldn’t lower themselves to deal with ordinary people.
So, either someone hired the cultivator to deal with Lord Yan, or there’s something coveted by the cultivator in Lord Yan’s possession.
After pondering for a while, Ye Shu couldn’t figure it out, so he didn’t dwell on it.
The urgent matter at hand was to first stabilize Yan Changlan’s condition. Otherwise, if he woke up and realized the severity of his injuries, it would be unbearable.
With a slight hesitation, Ye Shu brushed his finger along Yan Changlan’s neck.
Yan Changlan was already unconscious, and now that he was touched in this spot, he wouldn’t wake up unless this technique was undone.
Without further hesitation, Ye Shu fetched the bathtub he usually soaked in, cleaned it, filled it with water, and then took out the only remaining white jade bottle.
In just over ten days, he had accumulated six drops of Hunyuan Water. Yan Changlan’s meridians were all severed now. With Ye Shu’s cultivation level barely at the Qi Refining stage, he couldn’t reconnect them with his spiritual power. The only way was to rely on the life-nourishing power of this Hunyuan Water.
So, Ye Shu dripped a drop into the water, then stripped Yan Changlan’s clothes clean and sat him down in the bathtub.
Yan Changlan remained unaware, completely submerged in the water, until his head. Meanwhile, Ye Shu pressed his fingers on him, briefly opening acupoints to ensure he could still breathe.
After about half an hour, the grayness in the bathtub faded slightly, indicating that Yan Changlan’s body had been nourished. Thus, it confirmed that the severed meridians could also be restored.
Ye Shu held Yan Changlan’s pulse and saw that it had indeed improved significantly, causing his furrowed brows to relax slightly.
Perhaps because Yan Changlan was seriously injured, or perhaps because his constitution was excellent to begin with, or perhaps because he had consumed a considerable amount of big leafy greens and wild rabbits and chickens containing Hunyuan Water for some time, his body was quite compatible with Hunyuan Water. Even though he was just a mortal, his skin absorbed the Hunyuan Water quite efficiently through his countless pores.
After about an hour, the water in the tub had become clear, with all the Hunyuan Water completely absorbed by Yan Changlan!
Ye Shu was slightly astonished.
Everyone’s physique is different.
If Yan Changlan could absorb more, Ye Shu didn’t mind giving him more Hunyuan Water.
Then, Ye Shu dripped another drop into the tub.
About an hour later, Yan Changlan absorbed it clean again, a bit faster than before.
Next, Ye Shu dripped a third drop.
At this moment, Ye Shu sensed a faint sense of scrutiny coming from a distance. He paused slightly, concealing his breath even deeper, while casting a concealing spell over the bathtub.
This sense of scrutiny lingered for only a few breaths before disappearing, but Ye Shu could discern that it wasn’t from spiritual sense but rather from visual observation and spells. Thus, the skills of the observer were not particularly advanced.
After enduring for about half an hour without the sense of scrutiny returning, Ye Shu removed the spell. When he looked at Yan Changlan again, he noticed that he was absorbing the Hunyuan Water even faster this time, leaving only a very faint layer in the tub.
Ye Shu dripped in the fourth drop, which Yan Changlan absorbed clean in half the time; he dripped in the fifth drop, which Yan Changlan took the time of a tea lamp to absorb… and he didn’t absorb it all, leaving a trace behind.
Therefore, Ye Shu knew that absorbing five drops of Hunyuan Water was Yan Changlan’s limit.
Ye Shu reached out to feel Yan Changlan’s pulse and sensed that his body was now in great condition. The restored meridians were wider than before, his flesh and blood were purer and stronger, and even his stature had grown slightly, with his once somewhat childish face now gradually taking on a more determined contour.
The next moment, a strong wind suddenly swept through the bathtub, causing all the utensils in the thatched house to shake and clatter to the ground, followed by a burst of thunder and a loud explosion!
Ye Shu’s pupils contracted suddenly.
The wind sings and the thunder roars, these are the signs of the manifestation of a variant spirit root of wind and thunder!
At this moment, Ye Shu’s gaze towards Yan Changlan carried a hint of complexity.
Clearly, Yan Changlan had spiritual roots in the past. Now, as the Hunyuan Water stimulated his potential and reshaped his meridians, the spiritual root path that had been unknown for some reason mutated and transformed into a dual wind and thunder spiritual root… Judging from the manifestation of the wind and thunder, his spiritual root was quite pure, perhaps at least seven or eight points.
In terms of talent alone, this could be considered a blessing in disguise.
However, now that the City Lord’s Mansion must be facing great difficulties, resources in the mortal realm are limited, and cultivation progresses slowly. Whether Yan Changlan is willing to cultivate with resentment or not remains to be unknown.
The path of cultivation is fraught with difficulties, requiring great perseverance. Therefore, although Yan Changlan has the potential to achieve great things with his talent, it is still necessary for him to be willing to do so.
At this moment, Ye Shu also remembered Tian Lang.
Tian Lang… his life was full of hardships.
Yan Changlan encountered such calamities at a young age, which seemed to have something in common with Tian Lang’s experiences.
After a brief hesitation, Ye Shu fetched a piece of silk cloth and spread it out.
Yan Changlan had gifted this silk along with other clothes and belongings. Now, he was writing a copy of the “Wind and Thunder Heaven-Shaking Technique” on it, hastily leaving a few lines.
The “Wind and Thunder Heaven-Shaking Technique” was obtained by the Ye family from a relic in the previous life. Only those with the dual wind and thunder spiritual roots could cultivate it, and one’s spiritual root had to be at least seven points pure to practice it.
The Ye family had its own secret methods passed down through generations. Unless someone happened to have these dual spiritual roots, they wouldn’t learn it. Therefore, this technique had been kept in the attic, available for Ye family members to read and freely taught.
Now it seemed that this technique was tailored for Yan Changlan. Yielding to this realization, Ye Shu left him a copy.
If Yan Changlan decided to cultivate in the future, he could practice this technique. If he only wished to pursue martial arts, that was fine too.
After finishing writing, Ye Shu sighed lightly, rolled up the silk cloth, placed it aside, then lifted Yan Changlan from the bathtub, dried him off, and laid him on the bed. Then, he focused on recovering his energy, restoring his mana completely, before descending the mountain.
This departure was to gather information about the City Lord’s Mansion.
A night and a half had passed, nearing noon when Ye Shu arrived at the city gate. He found that the area was still under martial law, and the soldiers guarding the gate seemed uneasy, as if something extraordinary had happened in the city.
Using invisibility once again, Ye Shu entered through the city gate.
During the daytime, there were occasional passersby on the streets, but the number of patrolling soldiers had increased several times, and the sound of armor clashing echoed every few hundred steps. He hurried towards the City Lord’s Mansion, encountering no venomous creatures along the way. However, when he arrived at the front of the City Lord’s Mansion, he found the gates wide open, with many soldiers coming in and out, and several bodies being carried out.
Ye Shu’s heart skipped a beat, and he swiftly entered the mansion.
Soon, he saw some familiar faces, both men and women, old and young. Among them, one person dressed distinctly differently, with the emblem of the City Lord’s Mansion… Is it Yan Bei, City Lord Yan?
No, that’s not right.
Yan Bei is extremely skilled in martial arts, even if he were a corpse, he shouldn’t look like this. So… is it Yan Xi, the younger brother of the City Lord? Yan Xi also has martial skills, but not as advanced as his older brother’s. Why is he dressed in the City Lord’s attire? If something happened to Yan Bei last night, and Yan Xi could dress like this, there must be something fishy going on.
Before long, Ye Shu saw another body laid inside a coffin. He was handsome, with features very similar to Yan Changlan’s, and exuded an aura of majesty. This one, he presumed, was the real City Lord, Yan Bei.
…Indeed, he passed away.
Yan Bei’s abdomen had a large hole, with charred edges indicating that he had been killed by a cultivator using their spiritual powers, which belonged to the fire element, extremely ruthless. A top expert in the mortal realm like Yan Bei surprisingly wasn’t his opponent.
Ye Shu carefully sensed the faint aura of the fire element, identified the opponent’s realm, and felt relieved.
The cultivation level of that cultivator was only at the second level of Qi Refining, slightly stronger than him. However, his own mental state was far superior, and he knew many secret techniques. In a battle, he was sure to come out victorious.
Looking at the empty space in the mansion, there were many bodies lying in rows, mostly servants and stewards of the City Lord’s mansion. Most of their bodies were blackened, showing signs of poisoning, without any signs of being killed by any martial arts techniques. However, there were many bite marks in subtle places, and some flesh and blood had been consumed… This was clearly the result of an attack by poisonous insects.
There was no residual aura of spiritual power on these wounds, just like the poisonous insects themselves. This made Ye Shu certain that the person who controlled the poisonous insects was probably not yet on the path of cultivation.