In Ye Ao's courtyard, the family of three sat together. On the table were displayed over a dozen medicine bottles.
These were the medicinal liquids Ye Chen had hurriedly refined in recent days. There were healing liquids, liquids that assisted cultivation, and liquids that nourished the body. Due to his cultivation level and the materials available, he could only refine these few types for now, specifically left for his parents.
Naturally, he couldn't say he had refined them himself. He claimed they were personally refined by his fictitious alchemist teacher and left for his family.
Ye Ao marveled at this. As expected of a Two-Star Alchemist, his actions were grand. He guessed that just these medicinal liquids before him were worth over thirty thousand gold coins. To give them away so casually, only such an alchemist could do that.
However, upon hearing the news that Ye Chen was leaving, his parents couldn't help but be shocked.
Ye Ao looked at Ye Chen and said, "Have you decided?"
"I'm prepared. Teacher said that Luo Feng City is ultimately just a small place and can't provide a real training effect. He wants to take me to a broader world for cultivation," Ye Chen said, bringing out his fictitious teacher.
In truth, he had long planned this. Having stayed in the Ye family for five months, his cultivation had reached a bottleneck. Staying in Luo Feng City wouldn't be very beneficial for his cultivation.
Only by leaving the Ye family and venturing out into the world would be the best choice.
For him, the real stage was far from just the small stage of Luo Feng City, but the vast world—that was the stage of his former supreme self.
Ye Ao sighed lightly. "Since you've chosen, as your father, I won't stop you. As your teacher said, Luo Feng City is ultimately just a small place. To become a true powerhouse, one must venture into the world. On this point, I support you."
"Thank you, Father."
On the other side, Xia Wei pulled Ye Chen over. Her gentle hand lightly stroked her son's resolute and handsome face, overflowing with maternal love. Although she felt his departure was somewhat sudden and worried about the outside world, in the end, like Ye Ao, she believed in his choice.
After a moment of silence, Xia Wei said, "Chen'er, if you want to go out and train, Mother won't stop you. I just hope that no matter where you go, you remember one thing: Father and Mother will still be in the Ye family waiting for your return. You mustn't get into trouble and make us worry."
Ye Chen nodded heavily. "Mother, don't worry. The person in this world who can take your son hasn't been born yet."
"When are you leaving?"
"Tomorrow morning," Ye Chen said.
"So soon?" Ye Ao frowned. Xia Wei also said, "Why not stay a few more days? Your coming-of-age ceremony is in ten days. Why not leave after the ceremony?"
Ye Chen shook his head. "No need. The sooner, the better. Teacher doesn't like to wait. And the so-called coming-of-age ceremony is just a formality. I doubt those three old fellows dare to strip me of my status as the family heir now."
Bringing out the fictitious teacher, Ye Ao and Xia Wei could only nod helplessly. Alchemists' tempers were often peculiar; they didn't like waiting for others.
Ye Chen had finally gained the favor of an alchemist, allowing him to shed his identity as a cripple and cultivate again. They naturally didn't want Ye Chen to revert to his former depressed and unfulfilled self.
Returning to his own courtyard, he simply packed a few things. For him, apart from some necessary items, there was no burden.
Only the little maid Huan'er was very reluctant to see the young master leave. With teary eyes, she looked at Ye Chen. "Young Master, are you really leaving the Ye family? And so soon tomorrow? Can't you stay a little longer?"
Ye Chen was both amused and exasperated. He reached out and wiped the tears from the corner of the little girl's eyes. "Listen to you, little girl. It's not like your young master won't come back. I'm just going out to train. Wasn't I like this three years ago?"
"Oh, that's true." Distracted by Ye Chen, the sorrow of parting faded somewhat. The little maid quietly packed some changes of clothes for the young master.
As for Huan'er, Ye Chen wasn't worried. After he left, Huan'er would return to serve his parents in their courtyard. Moreover, his lingering prestige remained; he doubted anyone would dare bully Huan'er.
As for the precious medicinal herbs Li Yun had brought a few days ago, Ye Chen directly threw them into the black ancient ring. This was the ring where Elder Yan hid, naturally containing space inside. Currently, Ye Chen didn't have the ability to open a space within his body. Once he reached the Martial God realm, he could open a space within his body to store items.
That night, Ye Chen practiced meditation as usual. However, a series of knocks came from the courtyard gate. His mind stirred; he immediately knew who had come. Opening the gate, he looked at the beautiful young woman standing before it. "Zimei, you've come. Is something the matter?"
Ye Zimei lightly bit her red lips, as if intentionally or unintentionally saying, "Brother Ye Chen, I heard you're leaving. Is that true?"
Ye Chen wasn't surprised at all that Ye Zimei knew about this. He sighed lightly. "That's right. I'm leaving early tomorrow morning. I originally wanted to tell you when I left, but I didn't expect you to already know."
"Why are you leaving? Zimei sees that your strength is almost there. Being able to defeat Ye Zhengyang, you definitely qualify for Tian Du Academy's recruitment trial. Why not stay at the residence and go to the royal capital in four months to participate in the trial?" she couldn't help but ask.
Ye Chen shook his head. He looked up at the starry sky, his gaze becoming somewhat distant. He spoke softly, "Zimei, you must understand that this world is vast, so vast you can't imagine it, boundless and endless. My strength might allow me to dominate in Luo Feng City, but Luo Feng City is ultimately just a small town."
"To become a true powerhouse, one must go to a broader world, to train in this vast land, and not just stay in one Luo Feng City."
"There are some things on my body that I must do. There are some people I must find. Do you understand?"
Do I understand?
The young woman looked at Ye Chen's figure and suddenly felt that at this moment, Ye Chen seemed inexplicably unfamiliar, as if he was no longer the Ye Chen she knew, but someone else, having grown taller and more heroic many times over.
"Zimei, before I leave, I have some things I don't need, but they might be useful to you." With a flip of his hand, several small jade bottles magically appeared in Ye Chen's palm, which he handed over.
Ye Zimei took these medicine bottles. Seeing Ye Chen smile without speaking and not offering an explanation, she proactively opened one. She felt a strange fragrance overflowing, and her cultivation seemed to become slightly more joyful. She couldn't help but ask in surprise, "Brother Ye Chen, what is this?"
Ye Chen said, "This is a type of auxiliary cultivation liquid my teacher refined for me. It can speed up cultivation. Just prepare a bucket of clean water every day, pour a few drops of this liquid into the water, and it can increase cultivation speed to a certain extent."
Ye Zimei suddenly understood. No wonder Ye Chen's cultivation had advanced by leaps and bounds in just a few months. It was probably largely due to the effects of this liquid. But after understanding, she hurriedly refused. "Brother Ye Chen, this absolutely won't do. This liquid must be very precious, right? Zimei can't use it."
"Just use it with peace of mind. Although this liquid is quite valuable, for Teacher, it's nothing at all. And I've used it too many times; my body has developed resistance. Using it further won't have much effect," Ye Chen explained.
Finally, Ye Zimei agreed to accept it. But when she looked at Ye Chen, there was a bit more shy affection in her eyes, because this was a gift Ye Chen had personally given her.
Only when she thought of Ye Chen's imminent departure did her expression turn gloomy.
The next morning, when the maid came to the courtyard, she found it empty. Master Ye Chen had already left at some unknown time, without informing anyone in advance, without disturbing anyone...
Outside Luo Feng City, on a wide road, a young man walked on foot. Beside him, a faint, illusory figure of an old man in white robes floated out. "Ye Chen, what are your plans next?"
Ye Chen smiled. "I plan to go to Xia Feng Academy."
"Xia Feng Academy? What kind of broken place is that? With your experience, why go to such a small place? Wouldn't that be a waste of time?" Elder Yan said.
Ye Chen replied, "Although Xia Feng Academy is just a small place, it's not useless. There are some cultivation resources suitable for my current self there. I don't want to miss them. Moreover, Li Yun is in the royal capital, which makes things convenient. But before that, I need to do one thing first."
"What thing?"
The young man looked into the distance at the wild and mysterious Demonic Beast Mountain Range. "Enter this Demonic Beast Mountain Range and cultivate the Human Yuan Body Art to the minor achievement stage..."