101: Chapter 101 A Small Gathering of Five

"What's the rush!" Ye Jiexin interrupted impatiently. "Make another one, let me see."

Ye Yisong knew that Ye Jiexin was testing him on the spot and, incidentally, guiding him on some key points of Talisman Making. This was a rare opportunity!

Without further ado, he took out another Tier 3 Withered Vine, first carefully observing its texture to avoid any mistakes that would make the effort not worth the gain.

Watching Ye Yisong clumsily carve the Talisman plate for the Explosive Flame Talisman, Ye Jiexin gained a preliminary understanding of his Talisman Making level; Ye Yisong probably hadn't broken through to Tier 3 High-grade Talisman Master for long.

Otherwise, he wouldn't be carving so slowly.

Smelling the Yao Beast meat stewing in the food cauldron nearby, Ye Jiexin didn't stand on ceremony. He picked up a bowl, served himself a large portion, and while eating, didn't forget to observe Ye Yisong's Talisman Making process so he could offer guidance afterward.

"Hey, old man, leave some for me!" Ye Yisong noticed Ye Jiexin bowl after bowl without any intention of stopping, and he grew anxious.

Even a landlord doesn't have much surplus grain. He had only been allotted fifty jin of Grade 4 Demonic Beast meat, and with Qinglian's consumption, whether he could finally reach the Tier 3 Great Perfection was still an unknown.

"Seal."

Ye Yisong took twenty minutes to finally finish making the Explosive Flame Talisman. After handing the Talisman to Ye Jiexin for inspection, he immediately grabbed a large bowl and rushed toward the food cauldron, eager to get the meat into his stomach.

"Old man, you're too much of a glutton! Is this all that's left?" Ye Yisong dug at the few remaining pieces of meat at the bottom of the cauldron with a spoon, saying with heartache.

"Kid, eating a meal of yours is giving you Face. If others invited this old man to eat, I wouldn't even go!" Ye Jiexin picked his teeth while looking at the Talisman in his hand. "Besides, how many meals have you eaten of this old man's since you were little? What's wrong with you treating me to one for a change?"

"Guess I'm unlucky to have run into an old glutton like you." Ye Yisong finished the two or three pieces of meat in his bowl, didn't bother cleaning the cauldron, and immediately threw in another fifty portions of Grade 4 Demonic Beast meat to stew.

"Oh, you kid are quite wealthy, aren't you?" Ye Jiexin teased when he saw this.

"Can't compare to you big shots." On the day of the small gathering of Elders at Luanshi Peak, Ye Yisong had overheard the Elders chatting privately and knew that the Old Ancestor had distributed three hundred jin of Yao Beast meat to every Tier 4 Martial Ancestor in the Family.

"Hehe, I reckon you're not far off, kid. A fifteen-year-old Martial Ancestor—you're in for it." Ye Jiexin teased, his meaning very clear: Ye Yisong would certainly become a primary target of attention for the other two families.

Ye Yisong clearly understood the hidden meaning in Ye Jiexin's words. Worrying! Having too much talent isn't necessarily a good thing!

"How did I do on this Talisman?" Ye Yisong asked.

"Barely passable!" Ye Jiexin commented. He didn't continue to disparage Ye Yisong's Talisman Making level; a Tier 3 High-grade Talisman Master under fifteen couldn't have their arrogance curbed by a few mocking words.

"Kid, how did you figure out that starting from the seventh inscription, it was laying the groundwork for the final inscription?" Ye Jiexin asked curiously. Back in the day, he had ruined over a hundred Talismans before finding a clue.

This kid found the way after failing only a few dozen; he was a natural for Talisman Making.

"Just by making more of them. After failing a lot, summarizing the reason for each failure, you naturally figure it out." Ye Yisong brought out the excuse he had already prepared to brush him off.

Could I possibly tell you that I'm cheating!

If I said I figured it out after making only six Talismans, you'd have to check my brain!

No one would believe that explanation.

"Hmm." Ye Jiexin nodded affirmatively. It was just as he thought, only a little faster than himself.

"Stay here and consolidate well; don't go around causing trouble." After saying this, Ye Jiexin rubbed his round belly and left the silent chamber.

"Hey, old man, you let me..." Ye Yisong's shout came to an abrupt end because the Restriction of the silent chamber had already been opened.

Ye Yisong could finally move freely, no longer confined within this small silent chamber.

Having just become a Tier 3 High-grade Talisman Master, Ye Yisong wasn't in a hurry to leave. He decided to first consolidate his Tier 3 High Grade Talisman Making level, and while he was at it, try making a few of the other types of Tier 3 High Grade Talismans for future needs.

Ye Yisong stayed in the silent chamber for another five days, making ten of each of the five types of Talismans: Explosive Flame Talisman, Vajra Talisman, Rejuvenation Talisman, Godspeed Talisman, and Immobilization Talisman, before replying to the messages from Ye Yitian and the others, arranging to meet at his residence.

"Still able to keep his cool," Ye Jiexin glanced outside and said indifferently.

...

"Thirteenth Brother, you've finally come out of seclusion. If you hadn't, I would have gone to Lingmu Peak to pay a visit." Ye Yiguang spouted nonsense.

Even if he were given several times the courage, Ye Yiguang wouldn't dare go to Lingmu Peak to cause trouble. Ye Jiexin looked amiable, but when he got ruthless, among the many Elders, no one except the Clan Chief could stop him.

"It's just that having experienced life and death, I felt my strength was insufficient, so I went into seclusion at Lingmu Peak for a while." Ye Yisong explained, then immediately asked, "How did you perform in the Martial Examination?"

"Can't compare to you. Uncle Jiefu and I barely made it into the top ten." Ye Yitian said gloomily. "Yifan and Yiguang only made it into the top thirty; don't even mention it!"

"You're going too far now. What do you mean 'don't even mention it'? Are the top thirty not people? If it weren't for a mistake in the final wave, I would definitely have entered the top ten." Ye Yiguang protested unconvinced.

Uncle Jiefu greeted them with a smile. Ever since they met again in the city of Cangjiang Prefecture last time, he had rejoined this small group of five.

During Ye Yisong's seclusion, whenever Ye Yitian and the other two gathered, they would call Uncle Jiefu along. Over time, they became familiar with each other again.

After Ye Yifan arrived, he remained silent. His performance in the Martial Examination was truly too embarrassing. During the Alchemy process of the Martial Examination's craftsmanship assessment, Ye Yifan blew up his Pill Furnace three times and failed to successfully refine a single Medicinal Pill. He was the only one out of the seven participants in the Weinan County craftsmanship assessment to get a score of 0.

"Uncle Jiefu and Yitian, your strength has improved significantly during this period. However, Yifan, Yiguang, you two need to Cultivate diligently for the next month. With the Prefecture Examination imminent, you cannot let your cultivation fall behind." Ye Yisong sensed the Spiritual Qi fluctuations on them and encouraged them a few times.

In the few months he hadn't seen him, Ye Yitian had already become an Eight-Star Martial Warrior, the greatest improvement in strength among them; it must be that his Family had provided some support. Uncle Jiefu's cultivation had also broken through to a Six-Star Martial Warrior; the Medicinal Pills he bought last time in the city of Cangjiang Prefecture for Cultivation seemed to have had remarkable effects.

But Ye Yiguang and Ye Yifan's cultivation had only just reached Three-Star Martial Warrior, which really shouldn't be the case. He heard that the Family had increased the stipends for clan members during this period, and even for those who had already received their stipends, the increased portion would be reissued.

Logically speaking, their strength shouldn't be like this!

"Yifan, for this period, focus primarily on Cultivation!" Ye Yisong advised. Seeing the smell of medicinal herbs all over Ye Yifan, he knew he hadn't spent little effort on Alchemy during this time.

"Thirteenth Brother, I understand." Ye Yifan said with his head lowered.

Hearing Ye Yifan's answer, he knew this kid was not reconciled, but Ye Yisong didn't advise further. Everyone has their own path to walk.

"What's going on with you?" Ye Yisong asked, looking at Ye Yiguang in confusion.