Chapter 241: Chapter 241: Soul Destiny Fruit

In the dilapidated City Lord’s Mansion, the people of the Ye family were ecstatic. As they sat in the main hall, members of the Imperial Guard continuously ran in, stacking chest after chest of seized valuables on the floor. Soon, the entire hall was crammed full of a vast amount of Profound Coins, rare treasures, low-tier Pills, materials, and Profound Soldiers.

A rough estimate put the value at nearly a billion Profound Coins, a figure that left the Ye family members dazzled and even their companions, Ouyang Xiaoshan and his men, completely dumbfounded.

As commanders of the kingdom’s Imperial Guard, it wasn’t that they were inexperienced, but they were still shocked that a provincial Governor had managed to amass so much wealth—even more than some of the dukes and marquises in the Royal City.

General Li Yifeng was also dumbstruck, his face a mask of disbelief.

He said in astonishment, "Wei Hong was a provincial Governor. Though he was in charge of a province, most of the tax revenue is supposed to be submitted to the kingdom. For him to have accumulated this much wealth is simply outrageous. My Li family is one of the kingdom’s decorated military families, and after so many generations, our family’s total wealth is only about this much."

Ye Xuan gave a cold smile. "It just goes to show how much this Wei Hong extorted from the common people. Even if we hadn’t killed him, this alone would have been enough to warrant the execution of his entire clan."

With a grand wave of his hand, he said, "General Li Yifeng, I am grateful for your timely rescue. I’ve decided that you should take this portion of the wealth and distribute it among your subordinates. Consider it compensation for their trouble."

The portion Ye Xuan indicated was about a tenth of the riches in the room, worth approximately a hundred million Profound Coins.

"I can’t possibly accept this." Li Yifeng waved his hands in refusal. "I didn’t do much this time. I’m certain that even without me, you would have been perfectly fine, Master Ye Xuan. I feel I haven’t earned it. Besides, for those of us who lead soldiers, marching into battle to ensure the kingdom’s security is our duty. How could I accept your property, Master Ye Xuan?"

Ye Xuan smiled faintly. "You’re being too modest, General Li Yifeng. A man of your noble character naturally wouldn’t care for such a paltry sum, but your soldiers need to eat and clothe themselves. They’ve made a long journey and deserve to be rewarded. If you refuse to accept, does that mean you look down on me? Or perhaps you find the amount too small?"

’This wealth was vast, but Ye Xuan didn’t think much of it. Governor Wei Hong’s true treasures had all been in his Storage Ring. The least valuable items in there were Tier Four materials and Spirit Medicines; those were the things that were most important to him. As for Profound Coins and low-tier materials, he couldn’t care less.’

’Besides, the Ye family wasn’t large. This much wealth was more than enough to foster their growth; keeping any more would just be a waste.’

’And since he would be leaving Liuyun Kingdom soon, if he could foster a good relationship between the Ye family and Li Yifeng, then Li Yifeng would be able to help out if the Ye family ever ran into trouble.’

Seeing Ye Xuan’s insistence and since he’d put it that way, Li Yifeng could only accept. He pondered for a moment before saying, "Master Ye Xuan, how about this? I’ll accept these items, but as payment for helping the Ye family train a private army. Give me one year, and I guarantee I can train a force for the Ye family that is no weaker than our Golden Lion Corps."

"Haha, then I’ll be counting on you, General Li Yifeng."

The turmoil quickly subsided. At the same time, the news that Tianxu Province had changed hands and become the territory of the Ye family spread like wildfire, reaching every city in the province and sending major shockwaves through the region.

For the next few days, there was a constant stream of visitors to the City Lord’s Mansion, as the heads of various major families rushed to pay their respects. A few days after that, the various City Lords from across the province, having heard the news, also came one after another to pledge their allegiance. After all, they were now under the Ye family’s jurisdiction, and their appointments hinged on a single word from them.

Ye Xuan left all these matters to his grandfather, Ye Batian, and the others. He, meanwhile, began to sift through the Storage Rings he had acquired from Wei Hong, Fang Tianhong, and Zhu Jun. They were filled with a large quantity of Tier Four materials and even a small amount of Tier Five materials, which thrilled Ye Xuan. With so much, he wouldn’t have to worry about running out of materials before he broke through to become a Tier Four Celestial Martial Artist.

Finally, Ye Xuan inspected Lv Hao’s Storage Ring. The materials inside were even more astonishing—there were even one or two Tier Six Spirit Medicines, leaving Ye Xuan overjoyed.

Within Lv Hao’s Storage Ring, Ye Xuan also found a large number of Soul Crystals, some Soul Refining materials, and even a few secret manuals containing a great deal of knowledge on the subject of Soul Refining.

He also found some records about the Profound Mystery Sect. The sect was located on the Dream Realm Plain, which lay outside the Thirteen Nations Alliance. The Dream Realm Plain was a renowned, vast expanse on the Celestial Profound Continent, famous for producing powerful experts and being home to numerous sects and empires. The Profound Mystery Sect was a highly secretive and rather powerful sect within this region.

Ye Xuan merely glanced at these items before setting them aside. The only thing that truly caught his eye was a black fruit. It was about the size of a fist and radiated a misty black aura.

’It’s a Soul Destiny Fruit!’ A flash of delight appeared in Ye Xuan’s eyes.

The Soul Destiny Fruit was a magical fruit capable of increasing the endurance of a Martial Artist’s martial soul. It was a Tier Six item. It also had a significant strengthening effect on a Soul Refiner’s Soul Power, making their Soul Sea much more resilient.

The Formless Soul Skill that Ye Xuan cultivated was incredibly powerful. With his talent and experience, he should have been able to attempt a breakthrough to Fourth Grade Soul Refiner long ago. The only reason he remained at the Peak of Third Grade was that his Soul Sea wasn’t resilient enough to bear such a massive load. To prevent any accidents, Ye Xuan had held off on advancing.

After all, most Soul Refiners could only increase their Soul Power in tandem with their Martial Dao cultivation. An ordinary Soul Refiner at Ye Xuan’s level—Earth Martial Artist Second Layer—would only be able to reach Mid-Third Grade. Only someone like Ye Xuan had surpassed the limits of their Martial Artist rank, but advancing to Fourth Grade still posed a significant challenge.

But with the Soul Destiny Fruit, he could finally overcome this limitation and advance his Soul Power to the Fourth Grade.

After giving a few instructions, Ye Xuan immediately went into closed-door cultivation.

A day later, Ye Xuan had pushed his Soul Power to its limit and brought his physical condition to its absolute peak. Then, he took out the Soul Destiny Fruit and consumed it.

Upon entering his body, the Soul Destiny Fruit instantly transformed into a warm, black current. After circulating once through his entire body, it finally converged in his mind, forming a misty energy that gently nourished his Soul Sea.

The entire process lasted for three full days and nights.

Under the nourishing effect of the Soul Destiny Fruit, Ye Xuan’s Soul Sea grew steadily, and its walls became more fortified. By the time the fruit’s effects completely dissipated, the strength of his Soul Sea had more than doubled.

Ye Xuan mobilized his Peak of Third Grade Soul Power and began circulating the Formless Soul Skill, pushing himself to the next level.

An unknown amount of time passed.

Ye Xuan felt a RUMBLE in his mind as an invisible wave of Soul Thought surged outward. The world around him instantly sharpened, every minute fluctuation in the air appearing in his perception with crystal clarity, as if the world had been washed clean.

A hint of joy touched his face. His Soul Power had finally broken through from the Peak of Third Grade to the Fourth Grade.

Though it was just a single-grade improvement, the leap from Third Grade to Fourth Grade marked a Soul Refiner’s transition from apprentice to adept, from the early stages to the intermediate. In every respect, Fourth Grade Soul Power was vastly superior to Third Grade.

It was safe to say that while his Martial Artist rank remained unchanged, his true combat strength had more than doubled. If he were to face Lv Hao again, even without a Profound Treasure like the Zhenyuan Stone, Ye Xuan was confident he could suppress and kill him with his own power.

After his Soul Power reached the Fourth Grade, Ye Xuan didn’t stop. He took out the Six-Colored Flower he had previously obtained from the king and resumed his cultivation.

The Six-Colored Flower, a Tier Six Spirit Medicine, was an incredibly potent material for Body Refining. Ye Xuan planned to use the momentum from his recent breakthrough to advance his Nine Transformations Saintly Body from the First Transformation to the Second Transformation.

Under Ye Xuan’s skilled hands, the six spirit flowers of different colors were quickly refined into a bottle of multi-colored liquid medicine. A rich, sweet fragrance wafted from the vial. He swallowed it in one gulp. Instantly, a current of heat like scorching magma spread through his internal organs.

Ye Xuan felt as if his body was on fire. Intense pain washed over him, and thin streams of blood began to seep from the pores all over his skin.

Despite this, Ye Xuan remained perfectly calm. He closed his eyes, centered himself, and focused his entire being on cultivating the Nine Transformations Saintly Body.

Time trickled by. After an unknown number of days, a series of sharp cracks suddenly echoed from within Ye Xuan’s body, sounding like a string of firecrackers going off.

The sound grew louder and louder until it resembled the thunderous roar of great beasts echoing within him. Then, it gradually subsided. A layer of black grime seeped from his skin, emitting a foul stench—impurities expelled from his body by the combined refining power of the Nine Transformations Saintly Body and the Six-Colored Flower.

At the same time, Ye Xuan’s Profound Sea suddenly swelled, forming a powerful vortex before returning to a state of calm.

Ye Xuan opened his eyes, a glimmer of joy within them.

He hadn’t expected that as his Nine Transformations Saintly Body broke through to the Second Transformation, his Martial Dao cultivation would also advance from the Second Layer of the Earth Martial Artist realm to the Third Layer. It was a natural progression, completely without obstruction.

When Ye Xuan emerged from his cultivation chamber, the entire City Lord’s Mansion was a scene of bustling activity. The original mansion, which had belonged to the Wei family, had been heavily damaged in the battle. His grandfather Ye Batian and the others had decided to tear it down completely and build a new manor in its place: the Mansion of King Ye.

Of course, Ye Xuan had long since marked the location of the Tier Six Mist Array’s core, giving strict orders that it was not to be disturbed in the slightest.

The new estate of the Ye family would be constructed with this Mist Array as its foundation.