Xu Yi’s finger pointed at the heart of the Yu family ancestor, aiming to stimulate his heart meridians and bring him out of a state of suspended animation.
She had exerted her full strength with that finger. By the time she withdrew it from the Yu family ancestor’s chest, a purplish-blue finger mark remained.
Stimulated by both spiritual energy and pain, the Yu family ancestor actually let out a cry, wobbled, and opened his eyes.
“He’s awake! The ancestor is awake!”
The Yu family members holding the ancestor rejoiced, immediately spreading the good news.
In fact, they didn’t need to announce it; everyone around had witnessed the Yu family ancestor opening his eyes. A commotion erupted in the crowd, their gazes towards Xu Yi growing more fervent.
Xu Yi, seeing through their thoughts, rose and casually took out a piece of cloth, wiped her finger, and declared loudly, “The Yu family ancestor fell into a state of suspended animation due to a stagnant qi. I have now revived him. From this day forth, the grievances between the Yu and Zhang families are settled. If you dare to cause trouble for the Zhang family again, I will personally seek justice.”
Xu Yi’s words, amplified by spiritual energy, reached the entire荒城 (Huangcheng).
From now on, anyone seeking trouble with Zhang Tianbao would have to weigh the consequences carefully, considering if they could withstand Xu Yi’s wrath.
Zhang Tianbao was so moved that his eyes welled up. Despite his age, he wept like a young lad, which was quite amusing.
However, no one was in a mood to laugh. The Yu family members were both surprised and fearful, while others were envious and jealous.
They wondered where Zhang Tianbao had met such a senior, to be able to shelter under their wing; truly lucky beyond compare.
The Yu family ancestor, having just awakened, was disoriented. After the Yu family members whispered a few words to him, he finally understood what had transpired. Sensing his spiritual energy rapidly depleting, his face turned ashen.
He knew the tide had turned. To remain there any longer, he feared Xu Yi might expose the secret of his declining cultivation. He quickly instructed his people to escort him back to his residence.
Throughout the entire ordeal, he did not dare to look at Xu Yi, nor did he speak a word to her. His obvious avoidance further revealed Xu Yi’s capabilities to the onlookers.
Zhang Tianbao would no longer have to worry about the Yu family causing him trouble and could rest easy.
The Yu family ancestor left in haste, unaware of the grim look in Yu Datong’s eyes behind him, nor knowing that greater troubles awaited him upon his return to the Yu family.
Feeling that the matter was resolved, Xu Yi paid no further attention to the commotion behind her. She gave Zhang Tianbao a look, signaling him to follow, and led the way back to Qiwu斋 (Qi Wu Zhai).
Zhang Tianbao understood and quickly followed.
The moment Zhang Tianbao’s foot crossed the threshold of Qiwu Zhai, an exceedingly bright curtain of light descended from the sky, sealing Qiwu Zhai completely.
The cultivators of Huangcheng, who had intended to brazenly seek advice, were forced to stop outside, lingering indecisively.
Inside Qiwu Zhai, Zhang Tianbao was observing Xu Yi’s expression, ready to unleash a torrent of praise, but Xu Yi interrupted him.
“Shopkeeper Zhang, I have a presumptuous request. May I speak it?”
“Senior, you are too kind. Do not call me Shopkeeper Zhang; just call me Zhang Tianbao. My life was saved by Senior; even if you wished to take it back, I would not utter a word of complaint.”
Zhang Tianbao’s willingness to face death amused Xu Yi.
“Shopkeeper Zhang, this was merely a small effort on my part. However, what I am about to say concerns your ancestors. Perhaps you should hear me out before making a decision.”
“Senior, I do not need to consider. I know why you have come this time.”
Without hesitation, Zhang Tianbao retrieved the coffin from his storage bag and respectfully handed a jade slip to Xu Yi.
Xu Yi’s brow arched. She accepted the jade slip and probed it with her spiritual sense, a hint of seriousness appearing on her face.
Zhang Tianbao had indeed guessed her intentions correctly.
After reading the jade slip, she finally understood why Zhang Tianbao had anticipated her purpose.
It turned out he was not exceptionally astute; rather, the jade slip contained the insights of Zhang family ancestors on their experiences in the secret realm and their yearnings for it.
Judging by her own desires, it was not difficult to infer Xu Yi’s reason for a second visit to Huangcheng.
To be honest, although Zhang Tianbao had never been to the secret realm, he held a special sentiment towards it.
If others had tried to pry information about the secret realm from him, it would have been impossible.
But Xu Yi was different. Xu Yi had saved him and had provided him with much assistance before, never looking down on him due to his cultivation level.
Furthermore, Xu Yi was skilled in artifact refining and was generous with her guidance. Zhang Tianbao saw the shadow of his family ancestors in Xu Yi.
He admired his ancestors and also admired the powerful cultivation like that of his ancestors, thus he was willing to offer all the help he could to Xu Yi.
Puppet arts? Take them.
Information about the secret realm? Take it.
Ancestral notes? Take them all!
Zhang Tianbao’s sincerity also moved Xu Yi.
It was true that a large part of her reason for standing up for Zhang Tianbao was to use it as leverage to obtain some intelligence.
Zhang Tianbao did not hold this against her, which made Xu Yi feel somewhat ashamed.
Xu Yi decided that after her next trip to the secret realm, once she had learned more profound artifact refining techniques, she would definitely return to Huangcheng to personally guide Zhang Tianbao for a period.
After leaving the ancestral puppet and the jade slip, Zhang Tianbao wisely withdrew.
Qiwu Zhai was in disarray, and the backyard was severely dilapidated. He now had to tidy up and prepare for the reopening of Qiwu Zhai.
Xu Yi, while examining the contents of the jade slip, lifted the coffin lid and took out the puppet. Comparing the two, coupled with her extraordinary talent, she quickly gained some initial insights.
However, after a few more days, Xu Yi found herself unable to comprehend the content of the Zhang family ancestor’s jade slip.
For instance, the jade slip described the method for connecting puppet joints but did not specify what materials were needed or what shape they should be forged into.
After contemplating for a moment, Xu Yi realized that these missing pieces of information were likely within the secret realm.
The Zhang family ancestor’s records were his insights gleaned from the puppet arts learned in the secret realm.
Xu Yi directly learning from the Zhang family ancestor’s insights was akin to skipping literacy and directly studying poetry; naturally, she could not grasp its meaning.
Xu Yi knew it was time to explore the secret realm again.
When Xu Yi emerged from seclusion, Qiwu Zhai had been restored to its former glory. However, the treasure display shelf was empty, looking rather desolate.
“My artifacts were smashed by the Yu family. Fortunately, they weren’t worth much, so the loss wasn’t significant,” Zhang Tianbao explained with a forced smile.
Xu Yi smiled faintly. Artifacts? She lacked for nothing when it came to artifacts.
With a wave of her sleeve, the empty treasure display shelf instantly erupted with a dazzling array of spiritual light, displaying a dazzling array of artifacts.
“Oh, this… this…”
Zhang Tianbao’s eyes were blinded by the radiance.
Just as he was about to politely decline, Xu Yi tossed out a sentence, “I’m going out for cultivation,” and vanished without a trace. He could only express his profound gratitude by repeatedly bowing in the direction of Xu Yi’s previous seclusion, a look of joy on his face.