Chapter 1409: A Grudge

At Ye Yuan's residence, Lei Ming's face showed a hint of embarrassment.

Back in the secret realm, he had furiously demanded that the Qin family give an explanation to Qin Tian.

Who would have thought that now it would be much ado about nothing, with no follow-up?

"Ye Yuan, you have rendered great service to the Wumeng Academy and the royal city. This is the reward from the City Lord's Mansion!" Lei Ming said.

The academy's reward was indeed generous: 150,000 points, fifty second-grade lower-tier divine pills, and a Xuan Divine Artifact battle armor!

The previous reward of 100,000 points had already been nearly exhausted by him.

These 150,000 points were still a timely help for Ye Yuan.

And a Xuan Divine Artifact battle armor could even provide protection against attacks from a Kui Tian Divine Realm expert.

However, Ye Yuan was not so easily fooled. He said with a faint smile, "I didn't expect the Qin family to have such influence. After doing something like this, they still managed to make Teacher Lei hit a wall."

Lei Ming hadn't expected Ye Yuan to be so sharp, seeing through the whole matter so quickly.

He had originally planned to make a quick trip, hand over the rewards to Ye Yuan, and then slip away.

Now it seemed he couldn't avoid it.

Since Ye Yuan had brought it up, Lei Ming had nothing left to hide. He sighed and said, "The Qin family is one of the oldest families in Wumeng Royal City, and they once produced a city lord of Wumeng Royal City! The Qin family's influence extends to every corner of Wumeng Royal City. Even the City Lord has to think twice before moving against them."

Ye Yuan smiled and said, "I see. Thank you for making the trip, Teacher Lei!"

Lei Ming was taken aback. He had expected Ye Yuan to fly into a rage and accuse him of inaction.

Unexpectedly, Ye Yuan only lightly touched on the matter and let it go.

This Ye Yuan was truly different.

Lei Ming breathed a long sigh of relief. If Ye Yuan had kept pressing, he wouldn't have known how to respond.

"Hehe, you're too kind! I hope you won't take it to heart and will cultivate well. After all, in this Wumeng Royal City, the City Lord has the final say!" Lei Ming said with an awkward laugh.

Ye Yuan smiled and nodded, "Ye Yuan understands! In a few days, I plan to go out and train, and I won't let Teacher Lei down."

Lei Ming's expression changed at these words. "Go out and train? You've only just broken through to the Dongxuan Great Perfection. It wouldn't be too late to go out and train after breaking through to the Kui Tian Divine Realm! Going out now is too dangerous!"

Ye Yuan smiled and said, "Teacher Lei, rest assured. Ye Yuan knows what he's doing."

Seeing that Ye Yuan had made up his mind, and recalling his extraordinary strength, Lei Ming had no choice but to nod. "Alright, then take care. These are three Heavenly Thunder Swift Movement Talismans I've crafted. They are much faster than your sword flight and might be of help to you."

Lei Ming took out three yellow talismans and handed them to Ye Yuan. A powerful aura of thunder law rushed toward him.

Ye Yuan was slightly surprised, but he still took the Heavenly Thunder Swift Movement Talismans and cupped his hands, "Then thank you very much, Teacher Lei!"

After Lei Ming left, Ye Yuan's face darkened.

He felt that this matter was probably not that simple!

Ye Yuan admitted that the Qin family's influence in Wumeng Royal City was deeply entrenched.

But could such deep entrenchment make a Divine Lord realm expert compromise?

Ye Yuan felt that the Wumeng City Lord probably hadn't compromised with the Qin family but was unwilling to punish them.

It seemed that there was quite a connection between City Lord Wumeng and the Qin family!

"He sent these over, probably to appease you and keep you from clashing with the Qin family. It seems he doesn't want to offend either side," Wuchen said.

Ye Yuan said, "The Qin family is not easy to offend, but what about me? I helped him obtain a Four-Star Divine Pill, yet he didn't even show his face. In his eyes, I'm probably just an insignificant student. Sending these things seems fair, but he's actually leaning toward the Qin family."

Wuchen was taken aback and said, "You're right! If City Lord Wumeng targets you, your situation will be dangerous."

Ye Yuan sneered, "This City Lord Wumeng really disappoints me! Now, I have mixed feelings about Wumeng Royal City—both love and hate!"

After all, Ye Yuan had comprehended Star-Severing at Wumeng Academy, so he owed Wumeng Royal City a debt of gratitude.

But the City Lord's actions chilled Ye Yuan's heart.

Ye Yuan had comprehended Star-Severing and contributed it to Wumeng Academy without reservation, and he had shone brilliantly in the Hundred Cities Trial.

It could be said that his return to Wumeng Academy far exceeded what he had taken.

Even a single Four-Star Divine Pill was priceless!

Yet in the end, this was what he got.

Wuchen said, "You should be more careful from now on and avoid conflict with the Qin family. Otherwise, it's hard to say what City Lord Wumeng's attitude will be."

Ye Yuan sneered, "It's fine if they don't provoke me. But if they do, I, Ye Yuan, have never been afraid of anyone!"

...

Ye Yuan stayed on the fifth floor of the Sword Tomb for five years.

Five years later, Star-Severing was finally perfected!

After nearly twenty years in total, Ye Yuan had finally completed the first sword move of the Chaos Heaven-Opening Sword Art.

Now, with the Chaos Heaven-Penetrating True Scripture fully powering the Star-Severing move, Ye Yuan was confident he could contend with experts who had just entered the Insight Heaven realm!

Although there was a huge gap between Insight Heaven experts and Cave Profound martial artists, Ye Yuan's strength had already swept through his peers when he was at the late Cave Profound stage.

Now, both his realm and martial skills had improved comprehensively, enough to bridge that huge gap.

At the very least, he had the power to fight.

Leaving the Sword Tomb, Ye Yuan went directly to the Merit Hall, where Wumeng Academy students received missions.

It was Ye Yuan's first time there. The inner academy student in charge of missions clearly recognized him and smiled, "Oh, what brings the number one of the Hundred Cities here? Brother Ye hasn't entered the inner academy yet, but are you already planning to take on a mission?"

Ye Yuan smiled and said, "Senior Brother, I plan to go out and train. Do you have a list of missions for me to look at?"

The student's expression changed, and he said seriously, "Brother Ye plans to go out and train? Such missions are extremely dangerous. Even inner academy students have a high casualty rate! I know you're strong, but... wouldn't it be better to wait until you've advanced to the inner academy before going out?"

Ye Yuan felt a surge of gratitude, seeing that the other's concern seemed genuine.

Ye Yuan now enjoyed high prestige not only in the outer academy but also in the inner academy.

After all, he had single-handedly helped Wumeng Royal City win the championship and had shut out their archrival Zuoxiang Royal City, bringing honor to everyone.

Before long, Ye Yuan would shine in the inner academy as well.

Such a promising junior brother naturally made everyone willing to get close to him.

Ye Yuan smiled and said, "Thank you for your concern, Senior Brother. But after cultivating in the academy for so long, I feel I've hit a bottleneck. I'll be careful during my training."