Mother Liu wasn’t a cultivator, so she had no idea that the things Ye Shaohua had given her—even the lowest-level ones—were defensive magical treasures.
Only this one item was an offensive, top-grade spiritual weapon.
Ye Shaohua had carved an attack-oriented formation into it. When the owner came under attack, this spiritual weapon would unleash a strike equivalent to a tribulation-crossing cultivator’s full-force blow. However, it also required top-grade spirit stones to activate.
For Mother Liu, it was a life-saving piece of gear.
The gifts before had all been defensive treasures, and Father Liu hadn’t sensed anything unusual about them. But this time, Ye Shaohua had given her a spiritual weapon with top-grade offensive power!
Father Liu was a cultivator at the second level of Qi Refining. The moment Liu Yunchen took it out, he could feel that this short blade gave off a pressure that made him uneasy.
This was not an ordinary dagger!
“Let me take a look at that blade.” Mother Liu hadn’t bonded with it yet, so the spiritual weapon was still ownerless. Father Liu took the dagger and channeled his own spiritual energy into it.
An aura of sheer terror immediately emanated from the blade.
And he was only a second-level Qi Refiner! If someone more powerful were to wield it…
He didn’t know exactly what rank this spiritual weapon was, but he did own a magical artifact himself.
This short blade far surpassed the artifact in his possession.
It could possibly be… a top-grade magical treasure!
With that thought, he turned directly to Liu Yunchen. “Are you telling me Shaohua forged this?”
He’d heard before that Ye Shaohua had a peculiar habit—after her spiritual roots were ruined, she spent all her time cooped up in the Ye household hammering away at iron.
Somehow, word had gotten out, and it made her stand out completely from all the other noble ladies in the city.
At the time, Father Liu hadn’t thought much of it. So what if she liked forging? His own son preferred gambling, after all.
He had no objections to Ye Shaohua’s odd hobby of playing blacksmith—after all, the fact that she could even take a liking to his foolish son was already enough to get him excited.
But he never expected…
Wasn’t she just an ordinary blacksmith? How on earth did she forge a magical treasure?!
“Of course she did,” Mother Liu cut in before Liu Yunchen could even answer, snatching the blade right out of Father Liu’s hand. “If Shaohua didn’t make it, then did you?”
With that, she slid the dagger back into its sheath and tucked it into her waistband.
And honestly? The blade wasn’t just good-looking—it was adorned with rubies that matched her belt perfectly.
“Listen, don’t even think about taking it,” she said. “I’m going to show off my new dagger to the girls.” She had absolutely no idea what the spiritual weapon really was. To her, it was just a pretty accessory, and she was off to meet her friends for a game of dominoes.
Never mind Father Liu—even Liu Yunchen had never seen anyone so boldly wear a top-grade spiritual weapon on their hip like it was nothing.
But Liu Yunchen didn’t say a word to warn her.
The reason he hadn’t told his parents the full truth was because he wanted them to keep living their comfortable, ordinary lives, just as they always had.
The Liu family wasn’t like the Ye family, who carried a heavy burden of revenge. Theirs was a simpler story.
“Yunchen, you…” Father Liu still had no idea who his son really was now, but seeing Liu Yunchen’s completely calm expression, he assumed his son knew just as little as Mother Liu. “What kind of dumb luck did you stumble into, exactly?”
Liu Yunchen: “…”
Father Liu was too stunned to bother with his son any further. He quickly had someone tidy things up and set off for the Ye residence.
His son and wife—those two fools—had no clue, but he knew this was a top-grade magical treasure.
Since he knew, he couldn’t just pretend nothing had happened. He had to go to the Ye household and check—what if Shaohua had made a mistake?
——-
By the time Father Liu arrived at the Ye residence, Ye Shaohua was already in the middle of a conversation with the Grand Elder.
They were discussing the Four-Nine Heavenly Tribulation.
Though the Second Elder had briefly mentioned that Ye Yuan had returned, neither of them paid it much mind.
That was when Father Liu rushed in.
“You may step out for now. I’ll speak with Master Liu.” The Grand Elder assumed Father Liu had come to discuss the marriage, so he sent Ye Shaohua off to see her mother and Ye Xuan.
He poured Father Liu a cup of tea.
As soon as Ye Shaohua was gone, Father Liu wasted no time. “Grand Elder,” he began, “just now, Yunchen brought my wife a magical treasure. Our Liu family…”
He clutched his teacup, trying to steady his racing heart.
He had expected the Grand Elder’s expression to change—perhaps even erupt in anger at Ye Shaohua’s recklessness.
But to his surprise, the Grand Elder’s face remained neutral. He simply smiled. “Oh, that. Don’t worry, I’ve known about it for a while. Let your wife enjoy it. Shaohua has her reasons for doing what she does.”
“But this is a magical treasure!” Father Liu shot up from his seat.
Three years ago, Ye Yuan had placed first in the Xuan Yue Sect’s examination and was awarded a magical treasure. The news had shaken the entire city, and countless cultivators were green with envy.
After all, even some Golden Core and Nascent Soul cultivators weren’t that lucky.
“A magical treasure, you say?” The Grand Elder chuckled at that. “Master Liu, actually, the teacup in your hand is also a defensive magical treasure. Try channeling some spiritual energy into it and see.”
Father Liu did as he was told and fed a wisp of spiritual energy into the cup.
For a long moment, he sat frozen in his chair, completely dumbfounded.
“You’d better go back and have Lady Liu bond with that weapon,” the Grand Elder said casually, as if it were no big deal. “Our Ye family may not have much else, but we have plenty of magical treasures. Oh, and here—this is for you.”
He handed Father Liu a bottle of Foundation Establishment Pills.
Father Liu had come in a flurry and left in a daze.
As he passed the main gate, Er Gouzi, the gatekeeper, was fiddling with a long brush in his hands.
Noticing Father Liu’s intense stare, Er Gouzi said, “Master Liu, I got lucky this time! I broke into the formation and finally got a magical treasure. It’s only a mid-grade one, but I’m more than happy with it.”
Er Gouzi didn’t entirely trust Father Liu, but over the past two years, he’d seen Liu Yunchen wandering around the formation grounds more than a few times.
Those formations—deadly and terrifying to them, supposedly second-tier dangers—were like a public market to Liu Yunchen.
Er Gouzi and the others at the Ye residence had come to understand just how terrifying Liu Yunchen truly was. At the very least, he was above the Nascent Soul stage.
Though none of them knew why Liu Yunchen was still seen as a good-for-nothing playboy around town.
Er Gouzi and his ilk had no idea about Ye Yuan, but the younger members of the Ye family knew perfectly well that Liu Yunchen had originally been betrothed to her. That was before she made something of herself.
She’d set her sights on the outstanding Xuan Yuan Che and cast Liu Yunchen aside.
