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After listening attentively for a while, the long-robed middle-aged man led the body donkey into Nine Tripod City.
“With his Spiritual Manifestation Realm cultivation, he slew five allied Spiritual Revolution Realm cultivators. Not simple! Not simple at all!” The long-robed middle-aged man felt gratified, and he couldn’t help but feel inwardly shaken, “Such aptitude and foundations are far too rare
”
“But it’s strange. Before its spiritual energy started recovering, the Azure Continent was obviously extremely barren. How could he have taken the steps needed to reach his current heights?
“Did he obtain some unknown grand stroke of fortune? Or is there perhaps an expert guiding him? No matter what, the child’s future achievements are inestimable!”
“If he inherits the Ancestral Origin Divine Canon, becoming an Emperor is most likely well within the realm of possibility!”
As this thought occurred to him, the middle-aged man started to get excited, and he quickened his pace.
Fifteen minutes later.
When he reached Azure Dragon Lane and saw Azurecloud Court in the distance, the long-robed man couldn’t help but stroke his jaw. “There are so many scouts nearby! It seems no one can approach Azurecloud Court without alerting the Great Xia’s imperial family.”
“But they can’t stop me.” The long-robed man laughed, then said to the donkey, “Find a safe place to wait.”
Then, he put his hands behind his back and walked toward Azurecloud Court.
He drew no attention along the way.
Search bit.ly/3iBfjkV for the original.
When he reached the courtyard gates, he stretched out his hand and tapped the door.
“Who is it?” came a voice like the music of the heavens.
The long-robed middle-aged man said gently, “This humble one is called Ye Yunlan, and I’m here to see Su
 Fellow Daoist Su.”
Creak~
The doors opened, revealing a melon seed-shaped face radiant in both joy and anger.
The long-robed man was unwittingly stunned. She was like a lady immortal!
Her skin was fair as snow, and she wore a simple, elegant dress. Her features were bright and clear, and her eyes sparkled like stars. She had an ethereal air about her, like who’d transcended the masses.
“Might I ask what business you have with Young Lord Su?” asked Wen Xinzhao.
The middle-aged man clasped his fist and said warmly, “I’m his relative.”
“His relative?” Wen Xinzhao was stunned.
“That’s right. When I see him, you’ll naturally learn my identity too, miss.”
Wen Xinzhao thought it over, then said, “Young Lord Su went to Mount Heavenbristle several hours ago. Might you come back another day?”
“What’s he doing on Mount Heavenbristle?” asked the middle-aged man.
“It’s a secret,” said Wen Xinzhao.
The middle-aged man couldn’t help but laugh. He could tell this immortal beauty of a young woman was on guard against him.
He thought for a moment, then said, “Miss, please, continue what you were doing. I’ll just wait here for him to come back.”
With that, he placed his hands behind his back, stood beside the gate, and gazed at the distant Goldenscale Lake.
He looked tranquil, and extremely patient.
Wen Xinzhao hesitated, then said, “Sir
 Are you really Young Lord Su’s relative?”
The middle-aged man laughed. “I’m not in the habit of claiming fake familial relations at random. Miss, please return to your business. Don’t mind me.”
He had thin, clear features, with graying temples, and when his eyes moved, they shone with the vicissitudes of the years. Every movement and gesture seemed forthright and natural, making him easy to like.
“Sir, you’d best come in and wait inside,” said Wen Xinzhao.
“What made you change your mind, miss?” exclaimed the middle-aged man.
Wen Xinzhao smiled. “If you’re really Young Lord Su’s relative, refusing you at the door would be overly rude. Please, come in.”
As she spoke, she gestured for him to follow.
“Many thanks.” The middle-aged man smiled and followed her into the courtyard.
“I’ll just wait in the courtyard, then.” The middle-aged man walked up to the pond and sat casually on a boulder. “Please, return to whatever you were doing. Don’t mind me.”
As he spoke, he closed his eyes and rested.
Wen Xinzhao thought for a moment, then took it upon herself to brew a cup of tea and place it in front of him.
Only then did she turn and leave.
After she’d left, a faint smile appeared at the corners of the middle-aged man’s mouth. “She really is a good girl. If Ye Yufei were here to see her, she’d surely like her
”
However, when he thought of Ye Yufei, he couldn’t help but look grief-stricken.
Time slipped by.
The sunlight cast angular shadows as the skies gradually darkened.
The middle-aged man sat there, looking relaxed and at ease. It seemed he could sit there for the rest of his life if need be, and he showed no sign of impatience.
This was what Su Yi saw when he returned from Mount Heavenbristle.
He couldn’t help but feel a bit stunned.
It was then that Wen Xinzhao emerged from the pavilion and whispered, “Young Lord Su, his name is Ye Yunlan, and he says he’s your relative, and he’s been waiting for you to return.”
Ye Yunlan?
His relative?
Su Yi’s eyes filled with confusion.
At the same time, the middle-aged man rose from the boulder. When he saw Su Yi, he couldn’t help but look a bit dazed.
The young man in blue was handsome, and he stood out of the crowd. Furthermore, his features resembled Ye Yufei’s, especially his eyebrows and the bridge of his nose. They were practically identical!
Wordless joy and excitement welled within the middle-aged man’s heart.
He smiled and walked up to Su Yi. “My name is Ye Yunlan, and I’m your mother’s older brother. In other words, I’m your uncle.”
He looked incomparably delighted.
“.....” This caught Su Yi entirely off guard. An uncle had appeared out of nowhere! Despite his 108,000 years of experience, he was a bit dumbstruck.
“How can you prove your identity?” Su Yi took a moment to calm himself, then frowned.
Ye Yunlan fell briefly silent. “When your mother left for the Azure Continent, she carried a treasure with her, the Netherworld Thunder Punishment Bell. Furthermore, there was a green, leaf-shaped birthmark on her left wrist. Every member of the main branch of the Ye Family bears that mark.”
As he spoke, he rolled up his left sleeve, revealing a leaf-shaped green birthmark. It was only about the size of a copper coin, and there were numerous intricate lines on the mark’s surface, each as fine as an ox hair. They were like the veins on a leaf!
When Su Yi saw the birthmark, he finally dared believe that this stranger was most likely telling the truth. Ye Yufei really had had a mark like that on her left wrist!
For a moment, Su Yi felt rather strange.
He was naturally well aware that Ye Yufei was from another world, and that she had an extraordinary background. Otherwise, she couldn’t have carried that Netherworld Thunder Punishment Bell engraved with the text, “The origins of the azure, the emperor controls the secrets of the nine extremes.”
But he wouldn’t have guessed that after all these years, his mother’s older brother would appear before him!
“Sit.” Su Yi pointed at one of the chairs in the courtyard. He then took out his wicker chair and sprawled out in it.
Ye Yunlan smiled and sat casually. He didn’t seem at all upset with Su Yi’s aloof attitude.
“Why are you here?” asked Su Yi.
Ye Yunlang’s smile faded, and he sighed. “I came to the Azure Continent to bring your mother home. I would never have guessed that she’d passed away over ten years ago.”
“So you came looking for me instead?”
Ye Yunlan nodded. “That’s right. Yufei’s blood flows through your veins. I want to take you back in her stead and have you inherit the good fortune that was rightfully hers.”
Su Yi froze, then shook his head. “I’m not at all interested, nor am I interested in the Ye Family you speak of.”
In this lifetime, there was only one person he saw as his relative: his mother, Ye Yufei.
As for his other blood relatives, Su Hongli included? He didn’t care about any of them.
Never mind some Ye Family that had popped up out of nowhere!
A guilty look appeared on Ye Yunlan’s face. “I know you cannot accept all of this, much less a complete stranger of an uncle. It’s to be expected. But no matter what, you’re Ye Yufei’s son.”
He took a deep breath. “Your mother’s passing pains me deeply. I cannot allow her only child to drift about the Azure Continent aimlessly, but rest assured. I’ll do everything I can to pave your path of cultivation!”
Su Yi couldn’t help but rub the spot between his eyes. “To tell the truth, you needn’t have a guilty conscience over this. I already avenged my mother. As for my cultivation? I don’t need anyone’s help.”
Ye Yunlan paused, stunned, then said, “Do you know why your mother came to the Azure Continent?”
Su Yi furrowed his brow. “Is there a story there?”
“There is indeed. She was forced into it!” Ye Yunlan’s eyes shone with hatred. “The family’s old-timers saw her as a chess piece and used an extremely dangerous method to send her to the Azure Continent.
“On the surface, they said it was so that she could seek out the Origins of the Azure. In truth, they just didn’t want your mother to inherit a certain grand stroke of fortune our ancestors left behind!”
Su Yi was unwittingly stunned.
He’d once wondered just what kind of faction Ye Yufei once belonged to, and why they’d send her to the Azure Continent on her own.
Now, it seemed there really was a story there!
Su Yi thought for a moment, then asked, “Why was her cultivation so
 weak?”
“Weak?” Ye Yunlan shook his head. “Your mother wasn’t weak at all. On the contrary, she was the most dazzling genius of cultivation in the entire clan. She stepped into the Spiritual Manifestation Realm at just seventeen, and furthermore, she condensed a top-class Grand Dao Spirit Palace and broke numerous long-established family records. We saw her as an Empress in the making.”
Su Yi couldn’t help but feel stunned. His mother achieved Spiritual Manifestation at just seventeen, and she’d condensed a first-rate Grand Dao Spirit Palace!
If that were true, his mother was indeed an incredible genius at cultivation!
Ye Yunlan continued in a low voice, “The problem was that when the old bastards sent her to the Azure Continent, they used an extremely dangerous method. They sealed her within a Dao Cocoon and had her cross the spatial currents within the barrier between worlds
”
When he heard this, Su Yi understood. “While crossing the spatial currents, she must have suffered an irrecoverable blow to her cultivation base. It’s likely that even her foundations in the Grand Dao were destroyed.”
“That’s right.” Ye Yunlan nodded, his thin face filled with hatred and indignation. “I even suspect that the old-timers never thought she’d made it out of the spatial currents alive!”
Su Yi was instantly silent.
In his memories of his early years, Ye Yufei had never discussed any of this with them.
However, when he thought about it, that made sense. Ye Yufei passed away when he was just four years old. How could she possibly have discussed such things with a child so small?
If it were truly as Ye Yunlan said, everything his mother had suffered was the result of her clansmen scheming against her!