Ye Yuan watched the envy and regret on everyone else’s faces and sneered inwardly.
She especially shot a glance at Ye Shaohua.
Don’t rush. Once I’ve cultivated my golden core, you’ll all be even more sorry!
Beside her, Xuan Yuanche gave a slight nod toward the Second Elder and Ye Shaohua, a faint smile playing on his lips. In truth, he hadn’t even recognized that the person next to the Second Elder was Ye Shaohua.
When they’d briefly met last time, his mind had been completely occupied with Ye Yuan. He’d only caught a fleeting glimpse of Ye Shaohua and hadn’t formed any real impression of her.
Ye Shaohua didn’t look at him either. Hearing the chatter around her, her composure didn’t waver in the slightest.
Xuan Yuanche also had his family’s guards with him.
They’d long known that Xuan Yuanche had fallen out with the Ye family over Ye Yuan.
But right now, they felt nothing but admiration—as expected of someone their young master had set his sights on. She was different from ordinary people, taking first place the moment she made her move.
Ye Yuan and her entourage left under the envious gazes of the remaining Ye family members.
Ye Shaohua glanced at Ye Xuan and suddenly spoke, “Dad, do you really like treasure-grade artifacts?”
Ye Xuan shot her a look. “Isn’t that obvious? Who in this world doesn’t like treasure-grade artifacts? Even cultivators at the Golden Core stage use them. But they’re way too rare. I can only dream of having one.”
“Got it.” Ye Shaohua snapped her fingers.
And then she headed straight to the Grand Elder’s place.
No one else paid her any attention; they were all huddled together, still talking about what had just happened with Ye Yuan.
The Grand Elder was sitting in his private chamber.
As soon as Ye Shaohua walked in, she plopped down on a stone stool, grabbed an apple from the table, and started munching.
She’d been in secluded cultivation for a long time and hadn’t eaten anything. But given her current level of attainment, eating or not eating didn’t really matter anymore.
Still, she was used to eating, so every time she visited, she’d sit here and snack on some fruit.
The Grand Elder knew her habits well. Every time before summoning her, he’d make sure to lay out a plate of snacks in the chamber.
“Shaohua, the reason I called you here this time is about Liu Yunchen,” the Grand Elder said, his eyes darkening at the mention of the name. “That man is unfathomably deep. In all my years, I’ve met quite a few high-level cultivators, but none of them have ever made me feel as terrifying as he does. That’s why I haven’t agreed to meet with him these past few days, even though he’s come looking for you and me.”
Their ancestors had suffered too many losses. The Grand Elder had no choice but to be on guard.
He didn’t understand why Liu Yunchen had taken an interest in the Ye family. Was it because he knew about their ancestors’ secret? Was he targeting the Ye family?
“Don’t worry about him,” Ye Shaohua said with a smile. “That guy’s basically a bug. But he won’t do anything to harm the Ye family—you can rest assured on that.”
The Grand Elder was about to ask what a “bug” meant, when Ye Shaohua’s expression suddenly turned serious.
“Grand Elder, I’ve fully comprehended the first-level formations,” Ye Shaohua announced, pulling a flying sword out of her pocket and casually tossing it to him. “This is a first-level formation I’ve engraved. Even though the material is only fit for a magical artifact, it’s already reached the level of a treasure-grade artifact. Use it for now, and next year I’ll get you a new one.”
“What?! You’ve already comprehended first-level formations in just two months?! And you can even engrave formations into weapons?!” The Grand Elder channeled his spiritual energy into the flying sword and could immediately feel the power of the treasure-grade artifact.
Though the material was average, the first-level offensive formation engraved into it packed a serious punch. With this flying sword, he could take on a Foundation Establishment cultivator!
He knew this just from feeling it.
And precisely because of that, he stared at Ye Shaohua, utterly stunned.
In all his long years of life, this was the first time he had to force himself not to completely lose it.
Back in the day, that ancestor of theirs had also been a forging genius. But it had taken him two years to deduce the first-level formation, and thirty years to deduce the second-level.
And Ye Shaohua had done it in just two months?
Ye Shaohua finished her apple and tossed the core into a plate on the side.
Hearing the Grand Elder’s words, she looked a little sheepish.
“Actually, it wasn’t just two months,” she sighed. “I saw a time-accelerating formation in one of the formation manuals, so I borrowed some spirit stones from Liu Yunchen and set one up. The time ratio is ten to one. So while it’s only been two months out here, I’ve actually spent about twenty months in there—close to two years.”
If she hadn’t said anything, it might’ve been fine. But after that explanation, the Grand Elder’s expression grew even more dazed.
He clutched his teacup, stared at Ye Shaohua, and completely forgot how to respond or what to say.
Sensing something off about the Grand Elder, Ye Shaohua froze for a moment, then carefully asked, “Grand Elder, is there… something wrong with what I did?”
“Wrong? There’s plenty wrong,” the Grand Elder said. No matter what happened, he rarely let his surprise show too clearly. But now, even his fingers were trembling. His eyes shone as he looked at Ye Shaohua. “Never mind the fact that you comprehended a formation in just two years—do you have any idea how advanced the time-accelerating formation you set up is?! It took our ancestor two thousand years to figure out the time-accelerating formation. The ratio recorded in the manuals is one to seven. And time acceleration is the first and most essential element in forging immortal-grade artifacts!”
He’d handed over his notes to Ye Shaohua purely because of her spiritual power.
To be honest, he hadn’t expected much.
But now…
This mid-grade treasure-grade artifact in his hand, and the terrifying speed at which Ye Shaohua had comprehended formations—
His heart raced with excitement. Was their Ye family… about to return to its former glory?
Ye Shaohua honestly didn’t think any of this was that difficult. Back when she was in the mecha world, she’d studied four-dimensional spacetime. Applying that knowledge to this world and understanding the time-accelerating formation was actually easier for her than grasping the first-level formation.
In fact, although she could now set up sixth-level formations, she hadn’t fully deduced the second-level yet.
Still, hearing that time acceleration was the number one requirement for forging immortal artifacts did catch her off guard.
While the Grand Elder was still reeling from shock, someone outside announced that the Second Elder and the others were requesting an audience.
Seeing the Second Elder enter, Ye Shaohua slipped out.
She was thinking of trading another treasure-grade artifact to Liu Yunchen for more spirit stones.
She wanted to set up a larger time-accelerating formation so that the Ye family members could cultivate inside. After all, once they started mass-producing treasure and spirit-grade artifacts, they wouldn’t be able to protect them without real strength.
The Second Elder watched her leave, then turned to the Grand Elder, his expression troubled. “Grand Elder, Ye Yuan got first place in the Xuan Yue Sect’s test and even received a magical spirit treasure. Ye Shuang has followed her and left too. Did we make a mistake?”
Hearing this, the Grand Elder didn’t reply. Instead, he handed the precious treasure-grade flying sword—as if it were his own child—to the Second Elder. “Take a look at this.”
