Chapter 314: Give It a Try, Don't Be Afraid
Chapter 314: Give It a Try, Don't Be Afraid
The seven elders remained silent.
The many members of the Xu family outside the wooden house were even more perplexed.
Aqin and Xu Wanyun weren't good enough for their choice, and they still had to put themselves and others at stake?
Ignoring the myriad of gazes fixed upon him, Shen Yi approached the old woman, his steps unhurried. "As the temple priest, I invite all of you to join me in Da Qian to help the Nine Provinces construct an array."
Before anyone else could respond, the old woman laughed, "Those words sound familiar. The Xuan Guang Cave wanted to do the same thing before, but they weren't as polite as you, Shen. Is this your so-called compensation?"
Anger began to smolder in the eyes of many of the Xu family members.
Xu Hongde, as the clan leader, finally took a step forward and said, "If Shen isn't deliberately trying to anger us, then say everything at once. Asking us to work for Da Qian can hardly be considered compensation. What can we gain from this?"
His tone seemed subdued, but in reality, he was helping Shen Yi out because he had entered the cave earlier without their permission.
"You can gain my promise." Shen Yi glanced sideways at them. "As long as you're in this world, I'll do my best to protect you."
"Hmph." The old woman laughed again, this time with a hint of anger that was barely perceptible. "May I ask who you are?"
This young whippersnapper was going too far in his arrogance.
"Oh no!" Xu Wanyun realized the gravity of the old woman's displeasure.
Don't be fooled by the fact that Wu Zu was just a woman. In reality, her word carried the most weight among the seven elders.
Offending her was almost equivalent to offending the entire Xu family.
Xu Wanyun couldn't understand why Shen Yi suddenly seemed like a completely different person. Could it be that after overcoming his tribulation, he simply turned his back on them? That seemed impossible.
But she knew that with his temperament, he would never back down.
After all, this was the same person who had taken the tailbone of the Youyi Demon Emperor without a second thought.
"Well..."
Aqin, too, was taken aback by the sudden tension in the air.
For a moment, he didn't know what to do.
However, Shen Yi became even more calm and his voice remained steady. "Please choose three people to come with me. I will show the Xu family who I am."
"If you feel that my promise is still useful then," he continued.
"Please bring your spiritual roots and your clansmen to forge an alliance with my Da Qian."
Upon hearing this, everyone except the old woman fell silent for a moment.
A broader smile spread across the old woman's face. "Are you planning to let us test it out first? Aren't you afraid that we might discover that Da Qian is all show and has already declined?"
The other elders had already raised similar doubts earlier.
Now, with her sudden interjection, she was trying to trick Shen Yi into revealing more.
"..."
Unexpectedly, Shen Yi showed no signs of being affected and merely said in a calm voice, "Give it a try, don't be afraid."
The old woman was stunned for a moment before realizing the implication of his words. "Do you think I would be afraid to go out?"
"Then choose the people quickly. I'm in a hurry," Shen Yi said as he started walking towards the door.
He left the elders standing there, looking at each other. They were not fooled by such a simple ploy, but the confidence this young man exuded seemed genuine and not feigned.
"Stop!"
The old woman suddenly called out to him, and when Shen Yi turned to look at her, she continued, "Give me some proof, and I will give you a generous gift."
Before she could finish her sentence, Shen Yi waved his hand, and a straight spear appeared, coiling like a dragon leaving the sea. It spun in the air within the house before returning to his storage artifact.
Like a startling glimpse of a swan, his action silenced everyone.
In just a short time, not only had he healed his injuries, but he had also tamed this divine spear.
Just what kind of methods did he possess!
Xu Hongde swallowed dryly, feeling that someone who could own such a treasure would likely not place much value on a perfect spirit root that had been tainted.
But... the situation with the Xu family's spirit root was different.
"Good, good!"
The old woman suddenly stood up, walked past Shen Yi towards the door, and then made a hand seal. "Please observe the great gift the Xu family has prepared for you."
In an instant, the entire sky dimmed.
A massive, pitch-black tree loomed in the distance, its boundless canopy filling the horizon. Black branches hung low, their intertwining forming this expanse of sky.
It gave off an extremely oppressive feeling.
"This is the Xu family's perfect spirit root."
"Are you going to refine it and absorb it?"
After countless years, it had long since grown into a unique existence and was no longer a spirit root that could be absorbed by cultivators.
To be precise, it was because the Xu family had discovered it that they were able to remain in seclusion until now.
The old woman's smile faded as she took out a plain box from her storage artifact, inside which lay a round, black fog-like sphere.
"This is the fruit it bore. There's only this one."
"I've always considered it worthless."
"Clearly, it's the essence condensed by a perfect spirit root, yet it's also a yao-corrupting object, what a pity... Don't you want to form an alliance with my Xu family through marriage?"
The old woman shook the box.
Shen Yi casually took the box from her and stored it away. "I don't plan to."
He had risked his life to cultivate and fight yao beasts, and he wasn't about to use himself as a bargaining chip for marriage; it would be too shameful.
"If you don't plan to, why did you take it?" The old woman glared at him, clearly not truly angry. "Fine, it's time for the younger generation to go out and experience the world."
In fact, she had quite a bit of trust in Shen Yi.
The reason was simple.
That little fool, Aqing, had practically exposed all of the Xu family's secrets, not to mention her own abilities.
Any power would covet such a treasure trove of formations.
Yet Shen Yi had brought this little fool back to the Xu family safe and sound.
While it was impossible to entrust the lives of their clan members to him, sending a few people out to travel with him wasn't a big deal.
"I'll have them wait for you outside the village tomorrow," the old woman agreed with a nod.
As soon as her words were out, the surrounding Xu family members became noisy, pushing and shoving to get a better view of the Fifth Patriarch.
Apparently, confining a group of people but providing them with an abundance of books to broaden their horizons wasn't limited to just the aunt and niece pair.
After Shen Yi left.
Xu Hongde said calmly, "I'll go too. I don't feel at ease sending those young ones out by themselves."
"..." Xu Wanyun looked at her brother, bewildered and skeptical.
"I want to go too!" Aqing raised her hand eagerly.
The old woman pressed down on her hand, mocking, "With your level of insight, what can you possibly discern? When you come back, can you even tell us the truth?"
She turned away, but then noticed the silent stares of the other elders, their silence speaking volumes.
"..."
"Alright, I'll make the arrangements," the old woman said, waving her hand to stop the discussion.
(End of Chapter)
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