Chapter 7 - The Ocean of Celestial Chi (2/2)
He stood up, smoothed the wrinkles on his clothes and left his cabin.
The training ground of the Ye Castle was already filled with thousands, all of them who were Ye family members. Despite the numbers, they lined up in neat orders, quickly filling up the position that had long marked for each individual.
Before the space where the crowd had gathered were a few chairs meant for Ye Zhantian, Ye Zhanlong, Ye Moyang and others of similar standing. On the left was a clearing where hundreds of the Ye family’s elites – ranging from age eighteen to forty years old, all at least Fifth Stage and above – gathered, rendering themselves as the backbone of the family. On the right, an approximate total of two to three hundred youngsters who showed promise in martial arts— each of them aged eighteen years and below— stood attentively. Flanked by these two groups and standing in the middle, was the rest of the clan— those who either showed no acumen for martial arts, feeble or old.
Ye Chen looked to the right, his eyes catching Ye Rou just as she cast her eyes to his side. The little damsel was wearing a clean white silk dress today, looking like a delicate fairy that stood out from the otherwise predominantly male assembly. When her eyes met Ye Chen’s, she flashed him a tantalizing smile, prompting the boys around them to stare uncontrollably.
Not far from Ye Rou was Ye Xuan, who was scanning the crowd as well. Upon finding Ye Chen, she too broke into a smile albeit serenely. From that gesture alone, even Ye Chen knew that this reserved cousin of his cared for him deeply.
‘I wonder what this clan meeting is all about,’ Ye Chen thought.
Nearby, Ye Kongyan’s eyes followed the direction of Ye Xuan’s gaze. When he saw that it was Ye Chen she had been looking at, an expression of scorn rose immediately.
Every year, there were at most three Ye clan meetings being hosted, made only to publicize important announcements.
Ye Zhantian stood at the forefront, no longer appearing to be decrepit and aged but instead filled with unmistakable readiness.
Previously, the Chief had not looked the part as a master pugilist who had attained the peak of the Eighth Stage purely because he was always bogged down by the stress and burden on his shoulders, which ultimately made him age prematurely. However, since the biggest knot in his mind had finally been released, he had found the eagerness to train and resume his cultivation; this time even aided by the Thunder Emperor Discourse that Ye Chen had taught him before. As a result, Ye Zhantian had now returned to his former powerful self again, with the added bonus of almost breaking through his current stage. With this good news, it was no wonder he was beaming.
Ye Zhantian strode in with a vivacious gait toward a high-rising dais and declared. “I had summoned all of you to this clan meeting to make a few announcements.”
His voice rung clear and strong, akin to the sound of an old bell, strong enough for all of the thousands present in the training ground to have heard him. As soon as his voice tore through the commotion, the hubbub died out instantly— it was normal to see that the other clan members looked up to their Chief with utmost respect.
Seeing Ye Zhantian with such vigor had pleased everyone tremendously.
“It’s been three years since we’d closed up much of our business ventures. Now, however, I had decided to resume investing in all of our family business and at the same time, halve our purchase of Chi-amassing pills.”
The crowd burst into waves of murmurs. However, most of them shot glances of different emotions at Ye Chen — some of them were regret, some were sympathy. After all, the Chief’s son used to be the peerless prodigy who doubled as the hope and role model of the clan. He was supposed to take up the mantle of the guardian deity for his people so that any Ye member would always feel safe and protected in this jungle of a society. Yet, it seemed now that the Chief himself had given up on healing Ye Chen, had he not?
“Please reconsider, Chief!”
“Chief, we should not give up on healing Chen’s meridian channels.”
“I have my own plans regarding Chen’s health,” Ye Zhantian replied with stoicism as he looked at Ye Chen. Deep inside, he was feeling the total opposite. He was quaking with happiness.
“Brother Ye Chen, please don’t be upset. I firmly believe that your meridian channels will recover one day,” Ye Zhanlong’s third son, a young lad named Ye Meng said nearby.
“I agree! Don’t worry, Brother Ye Chen. All of your uncles are looking out for you in any way they can to help you.” Another one who stood at Ye Meng’s side, Ye Ming— the son of Ye Chen’s sixth uncle— helpfully chimed in.
Ye Chen turned to the crowd and saw many pairs of eyes filled with sincere concern staring back at him. Being the receiver of their genuine care, Ye Chen realized that he had now truly felt the warmth of a family, even though he had been looked down by some of his own clansmen since that unfortunate incident. The ones who had mocked him were the exceptions; all of them goaded and were led by Ye Kongyan. However, most of his clan-brothers had remained by his side steadfastly and helped him in any way they could during his lowest point in life. These cousins had all saved up every penny they could just so they could contribute some money to the family’s purchase of Chi-amassing pills for Ye Chen. How could the young man ever forget these tremendous gestures?
‘From now on, these cousins of mine are brothers to me!’ Ye Chen made a solemn oath in his heart.
“Now, onward to the second announcement. The daughter of my third brother Ye Zhanxiong, Ye Xuan, had passed the entrance exam of the Emerald Cloud Sect. She will embark on her training with the Sect two months from now. This is one of the greatest tidings this clan had ever received in recent years! I urge all of the younger generations of this family to take Xuan as their inspiration and be even more earnest and driven in their training so that they too, can make the family great!”
The crowd let out an even more galvanized response right after the moment Ye Zhantian finished his speech. To be accepted by Emerald Cloud Sect was to attain the Sixth Stage before turning eighteen as well as passing their prestigious entrance exam. For decades, no one from the House of Ye had managed to even pass it!
Ye Chen almost had a shot at it back then but the incident had thwarted their hopes before he could enter for this exam. Now, it turned out that it was Ye Xuan who had become the first of their generation to succeed!
“Whoa. Who would have thought a young lady such as Ye Xuan could achieve so much! This is incredible!”
“Looks like the future of our family falls onto Ye Xuan’s shoulders now.”
Meanwhile, the younger generations of acolytes turned to look at Ye Xuan, all of them looking positively jealous. After all, this marvelous young damsel had also been the girl of their many dreams…