109: Chapter 109 Establishing the Manor

"Greetings, Clan Chief." Upon recognizing the newcomer, the three of them stood up and saluted.

"Roasted well." Clan Leader Ye Tuanhui ate a few pieces to replenish some of his energy, then shared the rest with Ye Jietie, Array Master Ye Jieguo, and Ye Xiaowu, who had accompanied him.

"Where is the Crimson Sand Crystal Rock? Take me to see it quickly." Ye Jietie, unable to wait any longer, loudly demanded to see the location of the Ore vein.

Having developed for thousands of years, the Great Wei Imperial Court already possessed a mature system. Every year, the government would dispatch detection teams of a certain scale to conduct targeted surveys of the various mountains and lakes within Great Wei. Once new Ore veins, Spiritual Veins, or strange locations were discovered, they would establish a Formation and build a royal stronghold to support the imperial Family.

An ownerless Ore vein like this was truly rare. The key was that it was also so close to the Family's main base. As long as the existence of the Ore vein was confirmed, the Ye Family would gain a huge amount of income, which would be extremely beneficial to the Family's development.

"Yes, yes, yes, let's look at the Crimson Sand Crystal Rock first."

Array Master Ye Jieguo and Ye Xiaowu were no longer in the mood to eat the roasted meat in their hands; they also wanted to determine the scale of the Ore vein as soon as possible.

"Then let's survey the Ore vein first, so everyone doesn't have to worry, hahaha." Clan Leader Ye Tuanhui said, "Jietie, get to work!"

"Alright then." Ye Jietie first went to investigate the Fire Cloud Crocodile's cave to determine the general direction and layout of the Ore vein. However, because it extended outward from a single cave, it was difficult to determine the approximate coverage area. Therefore, after a while, he brought his brothers back to the surface.

"There seems to be some special field inside the cave; my Divine Soul cannot probe too far. Now, let's split into four directions to detect the extent of the Ore vein. Jiefeng, you probe to the east; Xiaosan, you go south; Xiaowu, you go west; and I will go north. Jieguo, you prepare to set up a Formation. I estimate this is a small Ore vein covering a radius of ten kilometers. Everyone, move out." Ye Jietie assigned a direction to each of them and, before leaving, urged, "Make sure to probe to a depth of seven hundred meters."

"Yes." General Affairs Elder Ye Jiefeng and the other two flew off in three different directions.

"Grandfather Clan Chief, why did you come here personally?" Ye Yisong asked, sitting obediently beside Clan Leader Ye Tuanhui.

"Oh, what, can I not come?" Clan Leader Ye Tuanhui looked at Ye Yisong with a chuckle. This grandson had brought him too many surprises over the past few months.

"That's not it. Of course, you can come, Grandfather Clan Chief. It's just that Yisong didn't expect you to be so busy normally, yet still have the time to personally confirm the authenticity of a small Ore vein," Ye Yisong said.

"Heh, you brat, you have a big mouth. A Fourth Grade Spiritual Vein, the way you say it, makes it sound like a trivial matter." Clan Leader Ye Tuanhui tapped Ye Yisong on the head and continued, "If it really covers ten kilometers, it could be worth tens of millions of Spirit Stones!"

"That much?" Ye Yisong asked in surprise. This was his first time dealing with anything related to Ore veins. He knew its value was high, but he hadn't expected it to be this high.

"Of course. If our Ye Family had our own Fourth Grade Artifact Refiner, then the value of this Ore vein would be even higher!" Array Master Ye Jieguo, who was preparing the Formation Materials nearby, chimed in.

"Uncle Jieguo, what kind of Formation are you preparing?" Ye Yisong had been wanting to ask for a long time after watching him tinker for so long. However, Array Master Ye Jieguo had been holding a booklet and calculating something with a serious expression, so Ye Yisong really couldn't disturb him. Now that there was an opportunity, he immediately threw out the question in his heart.

"It is the Fourth Grade Low Grade Eight Gates Golden Lock Formation. This Formation combines the principles of the Five Elements and Eight Trigrams, integrating both offense and defense. If a Martial Ancestor personally presides over this Formation, resisting the attacks of several Martial Ancestors for half a day is not a problem." Array Master Ye Jieguo explained to Ye Yisong, "If an enemy accidentally enters the Gate of Death, the person holding the Formation can use it to have a thirty percent chance of killing the invading enemy."

"Uncle Jieguo, you've made a Breakthrough to become a Fourth Grade Formation Master?" Ye Yisong asked pleasantly surprised.

"..." Array Master Ye Jieguo's words came to an abrupt halt. He looked at Ye Yisong with black lines on his face. This child clearly hadn't been beaten enough by his fifth brother!

"Your Uncle Jieguo is about to make a Breakthrough." Clan Leader Ye Tuanhui smiled and smoothed things over, "A Third Grade Formation Master can also set up a Fourth Grade Formation by utilizing a Fourth Grade Formation Plate made by a Fourth Grade Formation Master."

"Oh." Ye Yisong replied embarrassedly. He couldn't ask any further; he had accidentally touched upon Array Master Ye Jieguo's sore spot.

What Ye Yisong didn't know was that buying a Fourth Grade Formation Plate cost even more Spirit Stones than hiring a Fourth Grade Formation Master.

It was not easy for even a Fourth Grade Formation Master to craft a Fourth Grade Formation Plate, especially the kind that could guide a Third Grade Formation Master to set up a Fourth Grade Formation. Each one required several months of a Fourth Grade Formation Master's precious time.

The Ye Family only had three such Fourth Grade Formation Plates in total, and they were bought by the Old Ancestor at a high price when he attended a Martial King auction.

Ancestor Ye Rongming bought these three Fourth Grade Formation Plates back specifically to help Array Master Ye Jieguo, to see if he could gain some inspiration and successfully make a Breakthrough to become a Fourth Grade Formation Master.

"Sigh." Clan Leader Ye Tuanhui let out a long sigh in his heart and patted Array Master Ye Jieguo on the shoulder, "Don't put so much pressure on yourself. The Family believes in you. Even if it doesn't work out this time, there will be opportunities in the future."

Array Master Ye Jieguo looked at the last Fourth Grade Formation Plate in his hand, his eyes gradually becoming firm, and his wavering heart slowly calmed down.

The four of them returned to the campfire one after another. General Affairs Elder Ye Jiefeng returned first; the Ore vein extended three kilometers to the east.

Then came Ye Xiaosan and Ye Jietie, who returned at about the same time. The Ore vein extended five kilometers to the south and six kilometers to the north. The last to return was Ye Xiaowu; he was the dirtiest, his face pitch-black, and he hadn't even wiped it.

Everyone had been in a slightly low mood, but after hearing his detection results, their spirits rose again. This Ore vein extended a full thirteen kilometers to the west.

"Excellent! Jieguo, extend another five kilometers in each direction based on the results of the four-way survey and set up the Formation!" Clan Leader Ye Tuanhui said happily.

"Yes, Clan Chief."

"Formation, rise!"

Array Master Ye Jieguo activated the Fourth Grade Formation Plate in his hand, muttering incantations, babbling something unintelligible. The Formation Plate gradually began to emit eight beams of yellow light, each carrying a Formation-Fixing Stone as they flew off in eight different directions.

"Formation, fall!"

With a point of his finger, the eight Formation-Fixing Stones sank deep into the ground with a "boom" and disappeared from sight.

Array Master Ye Jieguo swiped his finger, and blood from his fingertip dripped into the Formation Plate, establishing a mysterious connection. He sat cross-legged on the ground, his complexion turning red, then white, then green, as if he were suffering from Qi Deviation.

"Gather!"

Everyone waited quietly for half an hour. Array Master Ye Jieguo shouted loudly and pointed at the Formation Plate. The Formation Plate shook slightly, receiving the yellow light converging from the eight directions, and finally stabilized.

At this moment, the yellow light emitted by the eight stone pillars finally merged into a complete spherical shape. The Eight Gates Golden Lock Formation was complete!

Afterward, Array Master Ye Jieguo took out a dozen or so Third Grade Formation Plates and layered them around the Fourth Grade Formation Plate to increase the Formation's offensive and defensive power. After all, one couldn't use the Eight Gates Golden Lock Formation to deal with every single enemy!

"Very good, Jieguo, thank you for your hard work." Seeing that the Formation had been set up, Clan Leader Ye Tuanhui did not linger any longer. The next step was to return to the Family and mobilize manpower to mine the Ore.

"Jiefeng, Xiaowu, you two stay here to guard the Ore vein, one in the open and one in secret. Jietie, you also stay here and be responsible for the mining operations. The Family Affairs Hall will later mobilize three hundred Martial Masters to come here to mine. Let's start by mining one thousand catties of Ore a month, with deliveries once a year." Clan Leader Ye Tuanhui arranged, "Jieguo, you stay here too, and take the time to contemplate the newly set up Fourth Grade Formation."

"Yes, Clan Chief." The three of them saluted.

Clan Leader Ye Tuanhui nodded with satisfaction and handed the prepared Cultivation resources to General Affairs Elder Ye Jiefeng, Ye Xiaowu, and Array Master Ye Jieguo.

"Xiaosan, Yisong, let's return to Luomu Mountain." As Clan Leader Ye Tuanhui said this, he was about to grab Ye Yisong, but was stopped by Ye Yisong.

"Grandfather Clan Chief, I still have one mountain stronghold left to clear out. Your grandson would like to clear this last stronghold before returning to Luomu Mountain. May I?" Ye Yisong said, pointing to a mountain stronghold on the map.