Chapter 631: Grade Three Noble

Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio

After the banquet ended, the crowd left. Ye Futian’s group also returned to their inn, Xue Ye and Luo Fan following them back. Along the way, Xue Ye appeared to be depressed and Ye Futian naturally understood why.

It was already late at night. In the yard, under the moonlight, Ye Futian told Xue Ye, “Brother, there are still three days, the situation can still change for the better.”

“You’ve already seen Gongsun Ye’s attitude. He isn’t going to give up. The tradition of the Alchemy Conference has continued for many years. Moreover, You Chi has personally promised him that as long as Gongsun Ye doesn’t give up, nothing will change.” Xue Ye could not think of any means to overcome the situation. In today’s Alchemy Conference, he had already tried his best but was unfortunately unable to come in first.

“During the feast, You Chi took Gongsun Ye aside for a period of time and gave him three days to consider afterward. City Lord You must be wavering as well, and brother should know the reason better than me. You sacrificed everything when participating in the Alchemy Conference and came in second. You Chi must be considering brother as well,” Ye Futian said.

Xue Ye looked at Ye Futian. Previously, he had nearly died at the hands of the people from the City Lord Office. It was You Xi who had protected him without caring about the repercussions and asked him to escape to somewhere far away.

“Brother, what happened between you and You Xi? How could you be this foolish?” Ye Futian asked, speechless.

“Luo Fan and I went to the Fire Mountain to cultivate. She was there as well, so we ran into each other. You know your fifth brother and me, we were only messing around with her, but we did not expect her to be so passionate. After some time, I fell in love with her, but at that time, I did not know her identity. When she gave herself to me, I swore that I would take care of her for life. For that period of time, we were very happy and freely cultivating together until we were found by the Alchemy City City Lord Office’s experts. It was then that I discovered she was the daughter of the eighth on the Barren Sky Ranking, You Chi.”

Xue Ye’s expression was pained as he continued, “I know that she lied to me, but I am not a fool. I naturally understood that she really loved me or she would not have given herself to me. In that time, I could feel her joy and cheerfulness. Although we did not interact for long, I understand her character. She is headstrong and dedicated. If she marries Gongsun Ye, I don’t know what the outcome will be.”

Ye Futian nodded. Even though You Xi knew that she would be engaged to the first in the Alchemy Conference, she still had relations with Xue Ye, evidently because she was unhappy about having an arranged marriage. From this, one could see how headstrong her nature was. She was defying her father.

“You Xi is the daughter of the Alchemy City Lord, the eighth on the Barren Sky Ranking. There is nobody who can help me. Even Second Sister is powerless to change the situation, so I could only take part in the Alchemy Conference.” Xue Ye sighed as he said, “However, nothing has changed.”

“A lot has changed. From my perspective, if brother did not participate in the Alchemy Conference, there would truly be no hope. You Chi might even not let brother off the hook then. The situation now already has hope for reversal. Let us continue thinking, there will definitely be a way out,” Ye Futian said. There were still three days. As long as the situation was not set in stone, there would be hope for change.

“Mm.” Xue Ye nodded, but he still felt despair that it was impossible to change anything.

“Little brother, rest early,” Xue Ye said as he left with Luo Fan. In the courtyard, only Ye Futian and Hua Jieyu remained. He raised his head and looked at the moon in the sky, his hands behind his back as he thought. How should he resolve the current situation? As he continued thinking, he felt irritated. If Gongsun Ye was unwilling to give way, it would be a dead end.

He sat on the floor and took out his Soul Guqin and started playing. The Guqin melody was harmonic and calmed him down. He knew how well the brothers in the Cottage treated him. Back then, when he entered the Cottage, he was only 18 and rash. At that time, everyone treated him like their own little brother and doted on him, especially second sister. His other brothers also protected him when he was surrounded by strong enemies and never allowed him to suffer.

However, that day in the Holy Zhi Palace, he wanted to tell his second sister that he was growing and becoming stronger. Now that fourth brother had such a situation on his hand, he naturally wanted to do his part, but there was no room for him to interfere. His fourth brother was willing to risk his life for it. Would he really have to personally witness the tragedy unfold?

The Guqin melody appeared insufficient to calm him down. Hua Jieyu walked to his side and leaned silently on his shoulder. She knew that he was in no state of mind to play the Guqin right now.

The Guqin strings quivered gently and Ye Futian stopped playing, stretching out his arm to hug the beauty beside him.

“Fox, we are actually very lucky.” Ye Futian said.

“Mm.” Hua Jieyu nodded gently, her head sliding down to Ye Futian’s lap, where she laid quietly. She said in a tender voice, “Although we’ve been through a lot, we are now together. However, I don’t know if fourth brother can make it through this turmoil.”

“He will,” Ye Futian replied softly.

“Two years ago, at the end-of-year sparring session, you wrote your entire life story in a tune. Can you play that tune for me again?” Hua Jieyu looked at Ye Futian and asked gently.

Ye Futian looked at the beauty before him and lowered his head, kissing her on the lips. He smiled and replied, “Sure.” After saying that, he crossed his legs, bringing Hua Jieyu higher into his chest. Ye Futian strummed the Guqin’s strings with his fingers and the Guqin melody started again, from Qingzhou Academy where it all started…

That one tune was all that mattered that night.

…

The second day at dawn, a huge commotion started in the largest city in the southwest, the Alchemy City. The news from yesterday’s Alchemy Conference had spread across the entire city. Everyone was discussing it; not just about the Alchemy Ranking, but also about Xue Ye and You Xi.

There were countless people who were there yesterday. The person who had left the deepest impression on them was not the first on the Alchemy Ranking, Gongsun Ye, but the second, Xue Ye. The impact that he gave them was too strong, from the first impression of just playing around to sacrificing his Life Spirit to create a ritual implement and coming in second. Moreover, he had a relationship with You Xi. This kind of story was the kind that most people liked, so it had been spread by countless people. Many people were wondering if Gongsun Ye would give up and give Xue Ye and You Xi his blessings.

At dawn, another piece of news started circulating. Today, the Emperor Family was organizing a banquet and had invited all the experts on the Alchemy Ranking. As the two strongest factions in the Alchemy City, the City Lord Office and the Emperor Family both wanted these experts. Since the City Lord Office had given them three days to consider, the Emperor Family naturally wanted to win them over as well.

In the inn, Ye Futian was practicing his punches in the courtyard. Hua Jieyu sat beside him, her head on her knees with a mellow beauty. Her eyes had a tender look in them as she silently watched his figure.

At that moment, Ye Futian was filled with vigor. Yesterday, when he played the Guqin tune, he unknowingly broke through his Spiritual Energy and entered the Grade Three Noble in his sorcery, which was an unexpected surprise. Practicing his fists at dawn was a habit that he had long developed. He hoped that his martial arts could also break through together with his sorcery.

“Futian,” at that moment, Yi Xiaoshi walked over and called out to him. Ye Futian looked at him and replied, “Good morning, Seventh Brother.”

Yi Xiaoshi stared at Ye Futian, feeling as though something was different today.

“The Emperor Family has organized a banquet today and invited those on the Alchemy Ranking. Not long ago, there were people who came to invite Fourth and Fifth Brother. The two of them have made their way there,” Yi Xiaoshi said.

A glint appeared in Ye Futian’s eyes, the Emperor Family also wanted to win over the top 100 in the Alchemy Conference.

He suddenly thought though the Emperor Family and City Lord Office both resided in the Alchemy City and their ancestors had good relations, over the years, even though they still protected the reputation of the Alchemy City, competition was inevitable.

If that was so, the Emperor Family would probably try means and ways to win over Gongsun Ye. Gongsun Ye would naturally be unhappy about Fourth Brother and You Xi’s matters. It was possible that he would involve the City Lord Office in his rage. If he joined the Emperor Family, what would happen then?

As he thought about the possibilities, Ye Futian’s mind became more active and he said, “Since they’re inviting the people on the Alchemy Ranking, it’s only natural for Brother to go.”

“Di Zhou from the Emperor Family said some unfriendly things yesterday, moreover…” Yi Xiaoshi paused, evidently worried.

“Seventh Brother, it’s not like you can stop Fourth Brother from going to the banquet,” Ye Futian replied. Yi Xiaoshi’s gaze wandered over as Ye Futian continued, “Fourth Brother is the second in the Alchemy Conference, nothing will happen to him, let’s just wait and see how it goes.”

“Mm.” Yi Xiaoshi could only nod.

“I’m going out for a walk,” Ye Futian said as he left the courtyard, walking over to where Xu Que resided.

“Is anything the matter?” Xu Que saw Ye Futian and asked, smiling.

“Does the Tingxue House have informants in Alchemy City?” Ye Futian asked. He had heard that the Tingxue House’s underground faction was all around the entire Barren State.

“Yes.” Xu Que nodded.

“In today’s Emperor Family banquet, can they monitor what is happening?” Ye Futian asked Xu Que again.

Xu Que stared at Ye Futian, then smiled casually and said, “Sure.”

“Do me a favor,” Ye Futian requested.

Afterward, Ye Futian left Xu Que and invited everyone to go to Alchemy City for a walk. They weren’t sure if he did it intentionally, but he selected an area near the Emperor Family’s residence.

At that moment, it was exceptionally lively in the residence as all the geniuses had come to the residence. In name, the Emperor Family had only invited the experts on the Alchemy Ranking, but in reality, they had also sent people to invite many other geniuses in all regions of the Alchemy City. The teenage geniuses from the southwest region of the Barren State had all gathered in the Emperor Family’s residence. It was a sight to behold.

At that moment, outside the glorious Emperor Family residence, Xue Ye and Luo Fan had arrived.

“Brother, it’s not a good idea for us to be here,” Luo Fan said.

“I know,” Xue Ye nodded and continued, “but I still want to try.”

“Why go through all this pain.” Luo Fan sighed. They had already avoided a calamity on the Alchemy Conference.

Gongsun Ye evidently did not want to give in, as seen from yesterday’s banquet. However, the guy was really a b*stard, since he had already gotten first in the Alchemy Conference, there was no need for him to be so fixated on it. Was it just because he did not want to lose face?