39: Breakthrough to the late stage of the second tier

The night was deep as water, an aura of killing intent shrouding the entire Ye Family Manor.

Inside the grand hall, lanterns blazed brightly, yet the atmosphere was suffocatingly oppressive.

The Ye Family Patriarch sat rigidly in the main seat, his face ashen.

Below him were the Ye Family's only remaining Elders besides himself, both at the Foundation Establishment Realm. At this moment, their faces were etched with the same heavy gravity of an impending storm.

"That is the situation,"

the Ye Family Patriarch slowly began, his voice hoarse and filled with exhaustion. "The juniors of the Liu and Wang Families within the Secret Realm were completely annihilated.

This blood debt, they will only settle on our Ye Family's head. Reconciliation is utterly impossible."

Hearing this, one Elder spoke with deep concern, "Clan Chief, the Liu and Wang Families harbor wolfish ambitions. Their combined force this time is unstoppable.

Those two families alone boast as many as six Cultivators at the Foundation Establishment Realm! Their two Family Heads are both Late-Stage Foundation Establishment Experts on par with you! As for us..."

His words trailed off, filled with bitterness.

There was a time when their Ye Family was the undisputed hegemon of Qingyang City.

But now, with the Grand Elder's unexpected 'demise,' the Ye Family's high-end combat power was instantly reduced by nearly one-third!

"Currently, our Ye Family, counting every last one, only has the three of us at the Foundation Establishment Realm," another Elder chimed in, a flash of unyielding Battle Intent in his eyes. "Fortunately, each of us three is assisted by a Second Stage contracted Yao Beast, making a total of six Foundation Establishment-level combatants. We may not be without the strength to fight!"

The Ye Family Patriarch slowly nodded, a flash of ruthless determination in his eyes.

"Correct!" He slammed the table decisively, his voice iron-clad. "This battle cannot be avoided! There is only one path... a fight to the death!"

"Relay my order! Summon all clan members to assemble at the Training Ground!"

...

At the hour of Zi, the Training Ground was ablaze with torchlight, illuminating the night as if it were day.

Nearly a thousand Ye Family Disciples, regardless of age or cultivation level, had gathered here. Each face bore a trace of bewilderment and unease.

The Ye Family Patriarch, clad in the blue battle armor symbolizing the Family's honor, ascended the high platform step by step.

His gaze swept like lightning over the familiar, young faces below. His powerful voice resonated across the entire Training Ground!

"My clansmen!"

"Just today, the Liu and Wang Families have bared their most hideous fangs against our Ye Family! A great battle, one that will decide the very survival of our Ye Family, is imminent!"

"After this battle, there can only be two outcomes!"

He raised his arm high, his voice filled with boundless iron resolve!

"Either our Ye Family is completely eradicated, leaving no place for us to stand in Qingyang City from this day forth!"

"Or the Liu and Wang Families are reduced to ashes! From then on, Qingyang City will be dominated by our Ye Family alone!"

"Tell me! Which one do you choose?!"

After a brief, deathly silence, a soaring Battle Intent erupted from every corner of the Training Ground!

"Fight! Fight! Fight!"

"Fight to the death without retreat! Protect the Family!"

"Live or die with the Family!"

Nearly a thousand Ye Family Disciples, men and women, young and old, raised their arms and roared. The shouts, filled with desperate resolve and fearless courage, merged into a torrent that shot towards the heavens, even scattering some of the dark clouds on the horizon!

...

After the assembly dispersed, Ye Feiyan returned to that secluded Small Courtyard with Mysterious Ink.

Instead of resting, she began setting up some defensive and warning Formations in the courtyard. Though not overwhelmingly powerful, they were knowledge from her past life that could prove unexpectedly effective at critical moments.

"Mysterious Ink."

While deftly embedding Spirit Stones into the ground, she spoke softly without turning her head.

"Once the great battle begins, no matter the situation outside, your task is one and only.

"That is, to protect the safety of my Father and Mother at all costs."

Her voice, though still cool, carried a tone of unquestionable gravity.

Mysterious Ink's massive head nodded heavily in agreement.

Protecting that kind-hearted couple was its duty to begin with.

Seeing Ye Feiyan fully immersed in her pre-battle preparations, a glint of sharp light flashed in Mysterious Ink's deep serpentine pupils.

It silently slid out of the Small Courtyard and made its way to a hidden cave in the back mountains—a place it had long ago chosen, absolutely free from any disturbance.

"System, Breakthrough!"

It focused its mind completely on the System panel within its consciousness.

The 200,000 experience points, long since filled to the brim, ignited and burned away in that instant!

Boom——!!!

A torrent of energy, more vast and violent than any previous Breakthrough, exploded within its body! Its already indestructible Physical Body underwent another earth-shattering qualitative transformation under the tempering of this energy!

Its scales grew even darker and more profound, as if capable of devouring all light!

Its bones and sinews became even more resilient and formidable, brimming with explosive power!

A terrifying aura, belonging to the Second Stage Late-Phase and filled with primordial savagery and dominance, flashed from its body for a moment before being perfectly restrained and withdrawn, not a single trace leaking out.

[Ding! Congratulations, host, on a successful Breakthrough. Current Realm: Second Stage Late-Phase!]

A mechanical prompt, audible only to it, sounded in its mind.

With a thought from Mysterious Ink, a brand new System panel materialized.

[host: Mysterious Ink]

[Race: Black Water Profound Python (profound grade)]

[Realm: Second Stage Late-Phase]

[experience points required for Breakthrough to Second Tier Peak: 0 / 300,000]

[experience points automatically gained per second: 1 point]

[Current experience points: 12,540]

"Three hundred thousand experience points to reach Second Tier Peak..."

Mysterious Ink calculated silently.

One day yielded eighty-six thousand four hundred experience points.

Three hundred thousand experience points would take roughly three and a half days, close to four.

Then, it shifted its gaze to the Bloodline section, which had remained unchanged.

[experience points required for next Bloodline Evolution: 1,000,000]

[After Bloodline Evolution, the host will Awaken the first Innate Divine Ability.]

"One million experience points? And it will Awaken an Innate Divine Ability?"

Seeing this number, even Mysterious Ink couldn't help but draw a sharp breath.

It felt increasingly that its initial decision—to secretly instigate war among the Three Great Families and support the Ye Family's dominance, thereby allowing Ye Feiyan to obtain more resources and Breakthrough faster—was absolutely correct!

And this was only for Second Stage cultivation, requiring such a staggering amount of experience points.

What terrifying astronomical figures would be needed for future Third Stage, Fourth Stage, and even higher Realms?

It seemed it must exhaust all means to make this 'Empress Wife's' cultivation soar like a rocket!

After the successful Breakthrough, Mysterious Ink did not linger for a moment. Its massive python body shrank at a visible rate, transforming in the blink of an eye back into that seemingly harmless little black snake. It silently slipped back into Ye Feiyan's home.