History's Strongest Senior Brother c1-1474
Page 23
Yan Xu stared at Yan Zhaoge coldly, “Ye Jing not returning; what have you to say about that?”
The Disciplinary Elder asked instead, “The seed of Li Flame True Fire; it was struck by the huge tide in the Dragon Sealing Abyss, and dropped down in front of you on its own?”
Yan Zhaoge answered, “Precisely so.”
The three bigwigs gazed at Yan Zhaoge, not saying a word.
Yan Zhaoge said quietly, “From the start, it was only Ye Jing himself who one-sidedly thought differently of me. If he does not provoke me on his own accord, to me, he is no different than any of my other junior apprentice-brothers.”
“As for the seed of Li Flame True Fire, I believe that the clan will prioritize it for the production of Internal Crystal Furnaces; for me to get it, would be very easy.”
‘Even if junior apprentice-brother Ye is still immature and lacks understanding, thus fighting over the fire seed with me, I would at most teach him a bit of a lesson, definitely not going so far as to kill him.”
“Moreover, there’s no need for me to stain my own hands; if I wanted to, there’re lots of ways I could make life difficult for him.”
Yan Zhaoge said in a peaceful tone, “I wrote this in my report, and I’m sure that this was also mentioned in the information that you received earlier.”
“Junior apprentice-brother Ye, was acquainted with the Ghost Hatchet Elder, Han Sheng.”
The Disciplinary Elder frowned, “What does that have to do with this matter?”
Yan Xu said calmly, “There is indeed enmity between Old Monster Han and I, but that is a private affair, not affecting the clan in the slightest.”
“Ye Jing being acquainted with him is not a problem; even this old man, would not bear a grudge because of such a thing.”
“If Old Monster Han were willing to drop our previous grievances, and resolve the long-standing grudge between us, why not? I would be willing.”
Yan Zhaoge smiled, “That’s, you gained the upper hand in both of your previous exchanges; Han Sheng lost out.”
But next, the smile on Yan Zhaoge’s face gradually faded, “But this matter did not simply have to do with mere grudges; the Ghost Hatchet Elder Han Sheng, was related to the abnormalities within the Sealing Dragon Abyss that we encountered there!”
The moment the words left his mouth, the entire hall was stunned.
The Disciplinary Elder, the King of the Eastern Tang Kingdom and Yan Xu straightened their backs, their gazes all coming to fall on Yan Zhaoge.
“How did you come to this conclusion?”
The pressure exuded by three Martial Grandmasters caused the atmosphere in the entire Great Hall to resemble that of a furnace.
Yan Zhaoge laughed, “Those who were present can all testify; when the Ghost Hatchet Elder first appeared, he did not discover junior apprentice-brother Ye. Rather, what he first said was, Who was it who wrecked this old man’s good plans’. So now we have to think about that; the Ghost Hatchet Elder’s good plans, what sort of plans they were.”
Saying thus, Yan Zhaoge presented them with two crystals, in one of which was sealed the red light which had reappeared within the black fog that had been present in the Dragon Sealing Abyss.
Within the other crystal, though, was sealed a blurry figure, the sinister figure whom Yan Zhaoge had forsaken the seed of Li Flame True Fire to chase down at the time.
Yan Zhaoge looked straight at Yan Xu, “Elder Yan, you are the most familiar with the Ghost Hatchet Elder, from this, can you discover anything?”
Yan Xu received the crystal, scrutinising it carefully, as the gazes of the Disciplinary Elder as well as the King of the Eastern Tang Kingdom also fell on him.
After a while, Yan Xu let out a long breath, before saying in a low voice, “I don’t know exactly what kind of sinister art this is…but it is indeed the handiwork of Old Monster Han.”
Yan Zhaoge serenely narrated his encounter with the sinister figure as well as the details of his pursuit, as the three Martial Grandmasters present all fell into deep thought.
What had happened inside the Sealing Dragon Abyss was not a minor thing, because it was related to the Earth Territory of days long past, what was known today as ‘Hell’!
After a long time, the Disciplinary Elder raised his head, asking, “What you’re saying is, Ye Jing was in collusion with Han Sheng?”
Yan Zhaoge shook his head, “I meant no such thing.”
“Junior apprentice-brother Ye and the Ghost Hatchet Elder were well-acquainted, to the point of even addressing each other as brothers. That is a fact.”
“How junior apprentice-brother Ye met the Ghost Hatchet Elder; how much he knew about the Dragon Sealing Abyss; how much he knew about that old man; whether he had any other intentions in joining our clan; these are all things that I
am unsure of, which require verification.”
Yan Zhaoge said, “In saying all this, I am only trying to prove that if I wanted to make things difficult for junior apprentice-brother Ye, making a move on him myself would be totally unnecessary.”
The trio simultaneously fell silent.
As Yan Zhaoge had said, this sort of thing having happened, while the clan would not take extreme measures against Ye Jing, carrying out a large number of interrogations and checks against him would be unavoidable. Just this alone, would be a lot for Ye Jing to bear.
Even Yan Zhaoge’s senior apprentice-uncle would have to reconsider taking in Ye Jing as a disciple, at least before the investigation had satisfactorily concluded.
“As I’ve said, junior apprentice-brother Ye is not actually dead. That treasure of his seems somewhat unique; and may perhaps help him to reforge a new fleshly body.”
“The next time he shows up, a lot of things would be known by just simply asking him; at the time, I wouldn’t mind standing witness against him in person.”
As Yan Zhaoge said that final part, he laughed lightly, “When that happens, we can perform a Blood Soul Recollection, showing the scene of what happened at the time; neither of us could be scared of the other trying to cover up their guilt then.”
Yan Xu asked gruffly, “Still the same sentence; what if Ye Jing doesn’t show up?”
“Three years, two years…a year? Or maybe even shorter,” Yan Zhaoge said mildly, “As long as no one deliberately wants him gone from the face of this earth forever.”
Yan Xu’s face was as sunken as water.
As he reclined on his chair, the King of the Eastern Tang Kingdom nodded slightly at Yan Zhaoge.
The Disciplinary Elder spoke slowly, as he considered Yan Zhaoge’s words, “I will relay the full contents of today’s questioning to our clan.”
“Personally, I believe your, junior apprentice-nephew Yan’s words, but, as you have said, it is time that will hopefully prove your innocence beyond the shadow of a doubt. If Ye Jing still lives, it would indeed be a cause for rejoice. The clan will continue searching for his whereabouts.”
At the end of the day, there was still no definite evidence which could point at Yan Zhaoge having deliberately caused Ye Jing’s death; not even convicting him of having caused it by accident was possible.
“Since we have finished discussing my matter, let’s talk about something else now.”
Yan Zhaoge abruptly questioned, “The one who reported on me, sending the news back to the clan beforehand, was the Spirit Wind Canyon’s Acting Elder, Wen Ningzhi, yes?”
History's Strongest Senior Brother Chapter 25: Counterattack
HSSB25: Counterattack
The clan had reacted so quickly this time, and it was such a huge reaction too. There surely must have been someone adding fuel to the fire from the side.
Outside of the Sealing Dragon Abyss, other than those from the Eastern Tang Kingdom, the only Broad Creed Mountain martial practitioners they had come into contact with were those from Overlooking Abyss City, as well as those from the Spirit Wind Canyon.
Between Xu Chuan and Wen Ningzhi, the l
atter was obviously more suspicious.
Over the past few days, Yan Zhaoge had also sent Ah Hu to do a check on Wen Ningzhi. The relationship between him and the former elder of the Assignment Hall, Elder Cui, was naturally revealed.
Yan Xu glanced at Yan Zhaoge indifferently, “Wen Ningzhi reported it to me, and I reported it to the clan in turn. As the Principal Elder of the land of the Eastern Tang, as well as the superior of the Acting Elder of the Spirit Wind Canyon, with this kind of thing happening in the territory of the Eastern Tang Kingdom, I naturally reported it to the clan; do you have a problem with that?”
Yan Zhaoge laughed, “Oh, the problem’s not big; it’s just that I suspect Wen Ningzhi of having betrayed the clan, and colluded with some outside enemies.”
“Therefore, for this time’s incident, I couldn’t help but relate it to him; perhaps him telling on me to the clan might not only have merely been because of the clan’s internal problems.”
“After all, Elder Yan Xu, as you also know, in the Sealing Dragon Abyss, I just beat up the disciple of some particular clan and left him half-dead.”
Yan Xu’s gaze abruptly turned cold, as he glared at Yan Zhaoge, “Yan Zhaoge, watch what you’re saying!”
Yan Zhaoge said calmly, “I have been watching it. That’s why I only used the word suspect; it’s just suspicion.”
The Disciplinary Elder looked first at Yan Zhaoge, then at Yan Xu.
Sighing, he first said to Sikong Qing, “Junior apprentice-niece, you may take your leave.”
Sikong Qing looked silently at Yan Zhaoge, before leaving as asked.
The Disciplinary Elder waited for her to leave before asking, “Junior apprentice-nephew, what do you mean, exactly?”
Yan Zhaoge took out an object. As his held out his palm, the gazes of the other people in the Great Hall looked towards it. What they saw was a pale yellow crystal with veins painting its exterior, their shape somewhat resembling white clouds.
Upon seeing the crystal, the eyebrows of the Acting Elder of Overlooking Abyss City, Xu Chuan, twitched involuntarily as he exclaimed, “Cloud-Veined Crystal!’
Yan Xu took a look at it, then asked, “Cloud-Veined Crystal; what have you taken this thing out for?”
Yan Zhaoge laughed, but did not speak. He took out a stalk of spirit grass, saying to Xu Chuan by the side, “I’ll be bothering Elder Xu to boil this Enchanting Spirit Grass into medicinal fluid.”
Elder Xu’s gaze flickered. The spirit grass before him was known as the Enchanting Spirit Grass. After being burned to ashes, it had the ability to guide the medicinal properties characteristic of other precious medicines along to their intended destination; when boiled till it turned into a fluid, while it was not poisonous, it was also not beneficial to the body, not serving any purpose whatsoever. What Yan Zhaoge was suggesting now would be a total waste of some perfectly good material.
Still, he did not disagree, immediately doing as Yan Zhaoge had said.
Yan Xu stared coldly at Yan Zhaoge. The Disciplinary Elder and the King of the Eastern Tang Kingdom did not speak; both only choosing to watch on silently by the sidelines.
The medicinal fluid was ready in a flash. Yan Zhaoge smiled lightly as he held out the Cloud-Veined Crystal, beginning to infuse it with his aura qi.
The Disciplinary Elder frowned, “Junior apprentice-nephew Yan, the Cloud-Veined Crystal cannot be directly infused with a martial practitioner’s aura qi; otherwise, it will shatter and explode!”
Yan Zhaoge laughed, “Be at ease, Elder. This I know; it’s also the reason why other than being used to keep the mind active and the spirit calm, the Cloud-Veined Crystal is sometimes also used as a weapon. Still, even when it shatters and explodes, its power is still very limited.”
“But at this point in time, the Cloud-Veined Crystal within my hand, cannot explode.”
As he said this, Yan Zhaoge dipped the lower half of the Cloud-Veined Crystal in the medicinal fluid of the Enchanting Spirit Grass, its upper half still grasped firmly within his palm.
And his aura qi, was still flowing into it in a steady, uninterrupted stream.
Contrary to their expectations, the Cloud-Veined Crystal did not shatter apart, remaining stable throughout.
Xu Chuan stared closely at Yan Zhaoge’s palm. He did not believe that the latter had done so much simply to prove this kind of insignificant phenomenon.
The next moment, his eyes abruptly widened.
The King of the Eastern Tang Kingdom, originally reclining on the back of his chair, sat back up straight again.
The Disciplinary Elder and Yan Xu, observing Yan Zhaoge’s, gaze, were also momentarily stunned.
Right in front of their eyes, the Cloud-Veined Crystal in Yan Zhaoge’s hand, its exterior covered in cloudlike veins, suddenly became softer, a milky-white substance flowing out from within, interacting with the medicinal fluid of the Enchanting Spirit Grass as it eventually came to form a new mixture, that looked as though there was a layer of milk floating on its surface.
The resulting fragrance instantly overwhelmed the pungent smell of medicine as it spread to pervade the entire Great Hall.
Everyone who was present here possessed a great wealth of knowledge; even a single whiff would let them roughly understand what that milky-white substance was.
That was not a drink; nor was it a medicine. Rather, it was a precious treasure known as Jade Essence.
The uses of this expensive treasure were many; whether it was added in during the forging of artifacts or the refining of medicine, the success rate would be greatly increased, at the same time improving the quality of the final product, and reducing the original amount of materials required.
In the Eight Extremities World, the amount of Jade Essence produced was extremely limited. It was only produced in a few places within the Wind Domain as well as the Mountain Domain, but with the demand for it so shockingly great, it was almost never satisfied each year; sometimes, none would be available for sale regardless of price.
Whether it was Broad Creed Mountain or the Eastern Tang Kingdom, they had to spend a large amount of resources or money each year, just to purchase some of this Jade Essence.
Even so, it was still difficult to really get ahold of the amount of Jade Essence they desired. They had to plan and use it sparingly, not daring to be too open with it.
But looking at Yan Zhaoge’s performance now, within this tiny little Cloud-Veined Crystal was actually a bit of Jade Essence, and the method of extraction was extremely simple as well.
Whether it was the Cloud-Veined Crystal or the Enchanting Spirit Grass, their prices were much lower when compared to that of Jade Essence, and their production rate was much higher as well.
How much Jade Essence did this entail?
There was more than enough of it for them to use; even putting it up for sale would definitely not be a problem!
The three Martial Grandmasters all could not sit still. They all rose from their seats, instantly going in front of Yan Zhaoge, extending their fingers to touch a little of that whitish substance.
Very quickly, they all confirmed beyond the shadow of a doubt-this was indeed that very Jade Essence.
This having happened right before their very eyes, it could not have been produced through Yan Zhaoge’s trickery or sleight of hand. This was truly Jade Essence birthed from the stalk of Enchanting Spirit Grass’s interaction with the Cloud-Veined Crystal.
The Disciplinary Elder took in a deep breath, then, suppressing his agitated feelings, exclaimed, “Junior apprentice-nephew Yan, you have performed a huge merit!”
“It’s definitely no worse than your Internal Crystal Furnace having achieved its current state; in fact, it might even be better!”
Elder Xu’s cold face had also turned much more peaceful than before; but immediately after, his expression changed.
In the next instant, Yan Zhaoge’s slow, leisurely voice drifted into his ears, “Elder overpraises me, it was only through an accidental d
iscovery that I now know this hidden secret.”
“Still, according to my knowledge, the Spirit Wind Canyon produced a large quantity of Cloud-Veined Crystal this year, and the bulk of it seems to have been sold to the Fire Domain where the Sacred Sun Clan is located.”
Yan Xu’s expression turned dark, “This is the first time I’ve come to know of such a method. I’ve never heard of it before; it seems to have never been spread within the Eight Extremities World previously.”
“Since we have come to know of this, we will naturally have to restrict the outflow of Cloud-Veined Crystals in the future. However, about Wen Ningzhi’s previous selling of the crystals; while it is regrettable, the ignorant are not guilty. We should not blame him as a result.”
“O–” Yan Zhaoge dragged out a long cry.
“How can Elder Yan be so sure that he was, really, only ignorant?”
Yan Xu opened his mouth, wanting to say something, but stopped as he discovered that within the depths of Yan Zhaoge’s slightly playful gaze obviously resided a hint of sharp coldness.
“Was it just that he failed to be aware of the matter, or that he deliberately hid the information rather than reporting it back to our clan, instead making some hidden dealings in the dark and colluding with the Sacred Sun Clan?”
Yan Zhaoge exercised his neck a little, revealing a mouth full of white teeth as he smiled, “This I can’t say for sure, but since Disciplinary Elder has come to Eastern Tang, and Uncle as well as you, Elder Yan, all just happen to be here today as well, meh, why not just check it out a little.”
History's Strongest Senior Brother Chapter 26: The Final Verdict
HSSB26: The Final Verdict
Yan Xu stared at Yan Zhaoge. Yan Zhaoge smiled slightly, quietly waiting, not saying anything else.
The Disciplinary Elder looked at the two of them, sighing, “This underlying secret is something that I too was unaware of; they were not mentioned within the clan’s precious records.”