Inside a room.

A faint, icy mist filled the air, like a winter fog, chilling to the bone!

On the bed, Ye Xuan sat cross-legged, his eyebrows covered in frost. Wisps of cold air rose from his black hair like plumes of smoke. His brow and face twitched from time to time, as if he were enduring immense pain.

Behind Ye Xuan, Ye Wushuang also sat cross-legged. Two vortices swirled in his palms, resembling black holes in a starry sky, hovering half a millimeter from Ye Xuan’s back.

Streams of Cold Ice Power were being devoured by the black holes!

Standing to the side, Ye Rou watched fixedly, not daring to let her attention waver for a second. She no longer even cared about the so-called ranking tournament.

「A day passed in the blink of an eye.」

Ye Rou hadn’t slept a wink, and her lovely face had grown somewhat haggard.

Just then, Ye Wushuang, still on the bed, withdrew the two devouring vortices. His brow furrowed, his expression turning grave.

He had discovered that the Cold Ice Poison in Ye Xuan’s body had already seeped into his bone marrow.

’Looks like I need to treat this as soon as possible,’ Ye Wushuang thought as he rose from the bed.

A long breath escaped his lips.

Ye Xuan circulated his energy to regulate his breathing, opening his eyes a few moments later.

"Xiaoshuang, how are Dad’s injuries?" Ye Rou stepped forward and asked.

Ye Wushuang replied, "Don’t worry. A quick bath is all he needs to be fine."

"Don’t worry about me." Ye Xuan got up and smiled at Ye Rou. He knew the truth of his injuries—that there was fundamentally no hope of a cure. However, to keep Ye Rou from worrying, he could only play along with Ye Wushuang’s "well-intentioned lie."

Suddenly, Ye Xiao appeared at the door and walked in.

"Second Uncle!" Ye Rou greeted him politely.

Ye Xiao nodded and stepped forward. "Big Brother, how are your injuries?"

"With Shuang’er treating me, I’m much better," Ye Xuan said lightly. "By the way, what happened with the clan assembly?"

"The clan assembly?"

Ye Xiao fell silent for a moment before speaking. "The clan assembly is over. Ye Cheng took first place, and the rest of the top ten have been decided. They’re all preparing for the City Lord competition, but..."

"But what?" Ye Xuan’s gaze sharpened.

"But, with the support of the Elders, the Third Brother directly announced that he was stripping you of your position as Patriarch. And because Xiaoshuang killed the Fourth Elder, his eligibility for the City Lord competition has been revoked," Ye Xiao said.

’That bastard. He’d throw away all family ties for the sake of the Patriarch’s seat.’

Fury surged in Ye Xuan’s heart.

Seeing this, Ye Xiao sighed faintly and took out a Jade Box. "Inside is a stalk of Ninth-Grade Spiritual Medicine, a Fire Spirit Grass. Take it and see if it helps."

With that, he handed the Jade Box to Ye Rou.

Then, after giving Ye Wushuang a deep, meaningful look, Ye Xiao shook his head and left the room.

’My eligibility was revoked?’ Ye Wushuang knew exactly why. By killing the Fourth Elder, he had displayed a level of strength that made Ye Xiong wary, so he had been disqualified from the competition.

"Dad, don’t dwell on it. Let’s treat your internal injuries first," Ye Wushuang called out. Ye Xuan’s condition could not be delayed any longer.

Ye Xuan turned to look at Ye Wushuang and said, "We can talk about healing later."

"Dad, it won’t take long! It’s just a bath," Ye Wushuang insisted.

"A bath?" Hearing Ye Wushuang mention it a second time made Ye Xuan pause. He had exhausted all his Elixirs and consulted numerous people about his injury, yet nothing had worked. Could it really be cured with just a bath? Was it that easy?

Seeing the disbelief on his father’s face, Ye Wushuang knew what he was thinking. He immediately took out a drop of Earth-Fire Spirit Milk and handed it to him, smiling. "Your injury is from the Cold Ice Poison. It can be treated with a Fire Element Treasure. Take a look at this."

"What is this?" Ye Xuan asked in confusion as he took it. 𝗳𝚛𝗲𝕖𝕨𝕖𝗯𝚗𝚘𝕧𝕖𝗹.𝗰𝗼𝕞

The next moment, a bright light flashed in his eyes.

"Shuang’er, is this Earth-Fire Spirit Milk?" Ye Xuan exclaimed, whirling to face Ye Wushuang with a look of shock and inquiry. He had read about this substance in the clan’s records.

He had searched for it constantly to treat his injuries, but after a long and fruitless search, he had given up. He never expected Ye Wushuang to have such a treasure.

"Mhm!" Ye Wushuang nodded.

"Xiaoshuang, can the Earth-Fire Spirit Milk cure Dad’s injuries?" Ye Rou asked, looking at the precious drop.

"It can!" Ye Xuan was overjoyed. Earth-Fire Spirit Milk was the absolute best thing to treat the Cold Ice Poison in his body.

However, looking at the single drop of Earth-Fire Spirit Milk wrapped in True Qi, he sighed again. "Unfortunately, it’s only one drop. It can treat the symptoms, but not the root cause."

Ye Wushuang just smiled faintly and turned to Ye Rou. "Sister, go get a wooden tub."

"Okay!" Ye Rou nodded, left the room, and returned a moment later with a wooden tub, which she placed in the center of the room.

"Rou’er, prepare some hot water. I’ll dissolve this drop of Earth-Fire Spirit Milk in it," Ye Xuan called to Ye Rou, thinking he understood Ye Wushuang’s plan.

"Why prepare hot water?" Ye Wushuang said, taken aback. "There’s no need. One drop of Earth-Fire Spirit Milk isn’t enough to completely heal Dad’s injuries."

"Shuang’er, are you saying you have more Earth-Fire Spirit Milk?" A gleam appeared in Ye Xuan’s eyes as a sliver of hope rose within him. ’If I just had a bottle—no, even just ten drops—I could expend some of my Cultivation to completely heal my injuries.’

"I have some," Ye Wushuang nodded.

"It’s fine, even a small amount is fine," Ye Xuan said.

Ye Wushuang said nothing more. He walked to the wooden tub, and with a thought, his Divine Sense reached into the True Dragon Space and drew out the Earth-Fire Spirit Milk, filling the entire tub to the brim.

But Ye Xuan, who was watching from the side, was completely stunned on the spot.

A bottle? Ten drops?

Before him was an entire tub of Earth-Fire Spirit Milk!

"Shuang’er, you..." Ye Xuan was so shocked he was speechless.

Even Ye Rou’s beautiful eyes went wide. She could feel the incredibly pure and dense energy emanating from the tub of Earth-Fire Spirit Milk!

"Dad, just take a bath in here. Your injuries will heal quickly," Ye Wushuang said.

"Shuang’er, you mustn’t!" Ye Xuan snapped back to his senses and immediately tried to stop him. ’Are you kidding me? Earth-Fire Spirit Milk is a peerless treasure! It should be cherished, not used for a bath!’

"Shuang’er, this is immensely helpful for Cultivation! These are your Cultivation Resources, don’t waste them," Ye Xuan said hurriedly.

"Dad, don’t worry about that. I have more," Ye Wushuang said with a smile. ’It’s just one tub. That fat cat drinks this stuff like water!’

When it came to his own father, he wouldn’t even blink at using ten tubs, let alone one.

Hearing this, Ye Xuan fell silent and did not refuse. With the help of these treasures, his Cultivation was bound to improve significantly. And once his strength was restored, who would dare to strip him of his position as Patriarch?

’It seems I must achieve a breakthrough before the City Lord competition. That’s the only way I can get justice for Shuang’er.’

Ye Xuan thought to himself.

Seeing that Ye Xuan no longer objected, Ye Wushuang called to Ye Rou, "Sister, let’s step outside for now."

With that, he glanced back at his father, Ye Xuan, with a smile, then walked out of the room.

Ye Rou followed him out and closed the door.

"Sister, you’ve been watching over him for a whole day; you must be exhausted. You should take a bath later, too." Outside the room, Ye Wushuang looked at Ye Rou’s haggard face, his heart aching with sympathy.