40: Chapter 40 Ye Hei's Unyielding Spirit! Brewing Tea to Welcome Guests!

As those words fell, the pressure became even heavier.

Pang Bo let out a muffled grunt, a trickle of blood spilling from the corner of his mouth, his legs bending further until they were almost touching the ground.

"Yezi..." Pang Bo turned his head with difficulty to look at Ye Fan, his eyes bloodshot, "I... I can't hold on much longer..."

Ye Fan did not speak.

He stared fixedly at the figure in white upon the divine throne.

In that moment, he forgot fear, he forgot life and death.

In his mind, there was only one thought—do not kneel!

He was Ye Fan.

He was the Ye Fan who dared to gaze at the starry sky even from the peak of Mount Tai.

If he knelt here today, even if he survived, his spine would be broken.

From then on, he could only be a humble ant.

That burning sensation in his bitter sea grew increasingly intense, finally transforming into a golden warm current that washed over his limbs and bones.

Ye Fan suddenly raised his head.

The veins on his neck bulged, his eyes were bloodshot, and he stared directly into Ye Xuan's eyes, which were as deep as the starry sky.

"We..."

Ye Fan's voice was hoarse and intermittent, yet it carried a hardness like metal and stone.

"We are merely lost travelers!"

He took a deep breath, used all his strength, and roared the second half:

"Not your followers! Why should we kneel?"

This roar echoed on the peak of the Holy Mountain, drowning out the whistling wind.

Liu Yunzhi, who was kneeling nearby, heard this and was so terrified he was on the verge of Soul Flying Away and Spirit Scattering.

He suddenly raised his head, looking at Ye Fan in terror, wishing he could rush up and cover his mouth.

"This madman!"

"Daring to speak like this in front of an immortal? Does he want to get us all killed?"

"Ye Fan! Shut up!" Liu Yunzhi screamed, "If you want to die, don't drag us down with you! Hurry and kowtow to the immortal to apologize!"

However, Ye Fan didn't even glance at him, still staring fixedly at Ye Xuan, his eyes as stubborn as a piece of bedrock.

The air seemed to freeze.

Just when everyone thought the deity on the divine throne would unleash thunderous rage and wipe out these two ignorant Mortals...

"Hahaha!"

A burst of hearty laughter suddenly rang out.

Ye Xuan clapped his hands and laughed.

Following his laughter, the suffocating, terrifying pressure looming over everyone's heads instantly dissipated without a trace.

The world returned to clarity.

"Good! What a 'not your followers'!"

Ye Xuan stood up from the divine throne, looking at Ye Fan with burning eyes.

"If one cannot even straighten their spine and kneels to beg for mercy upon meeting a strong person, such a person is not qualified to step onto this path of Cultivate."

He looked at Ye Fan, his eyes showing undisguised appreciation.

"You are quite good."

Ye Xuan diverted a wisp of his consciousness to glance at the chat group.

At this moment, the group was full of praise.

[Han Li of Seven Mysteries Sect]: "This child's Heart-Nature is resilient; he dares to unsheathe his sword when facing an invincible powerhouse. He is a good seedling for Cultivate. Although I, Han, act cautiously, I also know that to Cultivate is to engage in Heaven-Defying actions. If one loses this spirit, the road has reached its end."

[Old Heavenly Master of Longhu Mountain]: "Indeed, not bad. To remain clear-headed and dare to resist in such a situation is truly rare. Furthermore, the big guy next to him has abundant Qi and blood in his body; he does not seem to be an ordinary person either."

[Ruthless Empresss Brother]: "Of course. This is someone from our Sacred Body lineage. If he knelt so easily, I would look down on him. The person I have my eye on must naturally possess the spirit to suppress the current age."

On the Holy Mountain.

The pressure suddenly vanished.

"Hu... hu..."

Pang Bo sat on the ground, gasping for breath, wiping the cold sweat from his face with no regard for his image.

"Damn... I almost thought I was going to lose my life here."

He glanced at Ye Fan beside him, grinned, and revealed a mouthful of white teeth.

"Yezi, you're still the best. I was almost scared to the point of wetting myself just now, and you actually dared to snap back."

Ye Fan was also completely exhausted, but he did not sit down, remaining standing, though his body swayed slightly.

He looked at that man in white, his heart filled with confusion.

Who exactly was this?

A moment ago he wanted to kill them, so why was he suddenly smiling and welcoming them?

Ye Xuan slowly walked down from the divine throne and came before the crowd.

He looked at this group of shaken young people, spoke calmly, and revealed a fact that shocked them.

"The peak of Mount Tai, Nine Dragons Pulling the Coffin."

Ye Xuan's voice was calm, yet it clearly reached everyone's ears.

"You come from that azure planet—Earth."

These two words exploded in everyone's minds like a thunderclap.

The people who had been slumped on the ground instantly seemed to be injected with adrenaline, their eyes bursting with intense light.

"Earth?! You know about Earth?"

"Immortal! Since you know about Earth, you must be able to send us back, right?"

"I want to go home! Please, send me back! I don't want to stay in this hellhole!"

For a time, cries and pleas for help rang out in unison.

After experiencing the journey of the Nine Dragons Pulling the Coffin, hearing the name of their hometown now caused their psychological defenses to completely collapse.

Liu Yunzhi was the quickest to react.

He scrambled on his hands and knees, crawling toward Ye Xuan.

"Immortal! I am from Earth! I am different from them; my family is wealthy. As long as you send me back, I can build a temple and mold a golden statue for you! Please, save me!"

As he shouted, he reached out his hand, wanting to hug Ye Xuan's thigh.

In his view, this was his only lifeline, and he had to grasp it tightly.

However, before he could get within three feet of Ye Xuan...

"Scram."

A cold voice rang out.

An Miaoyi, standing beside Ye Xuan, frowned slightly, a flash of disgust in her beautiful eyes.

She merely glanced at Liu Yunzhi casually.

The aura of a Four Poles Secret Realm Cultivator leaked out just a little.

"Bang!"

Liu Yunzhi flew backward, crashing heavily into a pile of rocks more than ten meters away, dazed and disoriented, unable to crawl up for a long time.

"What kind of thing are you, daring to touch the Young Master?"

An Miaoyi said coldly.

Although she was as gentle as water in front of Ye Xuan, in front of outsiders, she remained that high-and-mighty successor of Miaoyu Nunnery.

She felt that even looking at such a groveling, petty person dirtied her eyes.

The others around who had originally wanted to rush up were instantly frozen in place by this scene, not daring to move another step forward.

Ye Xuan didn't even look at Liu Yunzhi.

He had no interest whatsoever in such small fry.

He looked at this group of people before him and waved his large sleeve.

"Since we have met, it is fate. But this fate also has its depths."

As his arm waved.

A surge of Divine Power swept up everyone except Ye Fan and Pang Bo.

"This is not a place where you should stay. Leave."

As the words fell.

A golden wind wrapped around Lin Jia, Li Xiaoman, Zhou Yi, and the others, instantly turning into a stream of light that vanished into the depths of the Ancient Forbidden Land.

Ye Xuan did not kill them; he simply used the means of a powerful expert to send them out of the core area of the Ancient Forbidden Land, throwing them into a relatively safe area on the outskirts of the Forbidden Ground.

As for whether they could walk out of this Forbidden Ground afterward, that was their own fortune.

In the blink of an eye.

The originally crowded and noisy peak of the Holy Mountain was left with only Ye Xuan's group and Ye Fan and Pang Bo standing there.

The world became quiet all of a sudden.

Ye Fan and Pang Bo looked at each other, both seeing the shock in each other's eyes.

With a wave of his hand, he made dozens of living people disappear?

Was this the method of an immortal?

Ye Xuan turned around and looked at the two.

He brushed his hand, and a light flashed.

A set of exquisite tea ware appeared on the bluestone.

Spiritual spring water was boiling on a small red clay stove, steaming hot, and the fragrance of tea overflowed.

It was Enlightenment Tea; even just smelling it could make one feel refreshed.

Ye Xuan sat cross-legged and poured three cups of tea.

He raised his head, looked at the two who were still standing there, somewhat at a loss, and pointed to the position opposite him.

"Why are you standing there?"

Ye Xuan said with a smile.

"Sit down and have a cup of tea."

Ye Fan was stunned for a moment.

He looked at the mysterious man before him; although his heart was still filled with countless questions, he knew that one must adapt to the situation as it comes.

Moreover, if the other party wanted to harm them, they would have been gone with that wave of the hand just now.

"Pang Bo, sit."

Ye Fan took a deep breath and pulled Pang Bo, who was still dazed.

The two walked to the bluestone and sat down opposite Ye Xuan.

"Thank you."

Ye Fan said neither humbly nor arrogantly, then picked up the teacup in front of him.

The tea was clear and emerald green, with a few leaves sinking and floating in the water, emitting an alluring fragrance.

He did not hesitate and drank it all in one gulp.

As the tea entered his stomach, a warm current instantly spread, and the Meridians and bones that had been damaged by resisting the pressure...

Under the nourishment of this warm current, they actually recovered to their original state instantly, and were even tougher than before.

"Good tea!"

Pang Bo also took a sip, his eyes instantly widening.

"This tea is truly divine! I feel like I have strength all over my body!"

Ye Xuan looked at the two, picked up his teacup and took a sip, his eyes carrying a smile.

"This is the Big Dipper Astral Region."

Ye Xuan put down the teacup, spoke slowly, and cleared up the confusion for these two newcomers from his hometown.

"Welcome to... the world of Cultivator."