After beating around the bush for what felt like forever, Elder He finally asked with a chuckle, "Brother Shao Yuan, with your abilities, being a wandering independent cultivator is truly a waste. It's rare for you and Yan Qingsang to hit it off so well. We'd like to invite you to join the Yan family. With our family's platform to support you, it would be beneficial for your development."
They had been circling around the topic for so long, and finally they got to the point.
"If it's something like a household servant or menial slave, then I'm afraid I wouldn't be interested. But if it were a guest elder position or something similar, I might consider it."
In truth, it was a strategic retreat to advance.
The two elders exchanged a glance, both feeling that this young man, who appeared simple and honest on the surface, was actually not easy to fool. Their original plan had been to sweet-talk him and coax him into becoming a household servant of the Yan family.
But the young man's mind was perfectly clear, and he hadn't lost sight of his bottom line simply because of the prestige of the ten great divine kingdoms.
"Heh heh, Brother Shao Yuan, if you truly have exceptional talent, then after joining our Yan family, as long as you continue to demonstrate your abilities, there would be no harm at all in granting you a guest elder position."
The great powers of the ten great divine kingdoms did not casually appoint guest elders. To serve as a guest elder of one of these powers, one generally needed to possess unique expertise in a particular domain.
"Heh heh, if I could obtain a guest elder position, I would be willing to pledge myself to the Yan family and take shelter under its wings."
Just as they were speaking, a commotion erupted from outside the gate.
"Yan He! Yan Quan! Get your asses out here right now!" That thunderous voice belonged to Elder Geng of the Xiahou family — the very same one who had caused a scene at Huanglong Ridge without success.
"Why is he here?" Elder He and Elder Quan exchanged a look, a flash of wariness crossing their eyes. It was evident that even as elders of the Yan family, they had developed something of a conditioned fear when it came to the Xiahou family.
"Let's go take a look."
Regardless, Xiahou Geng had shown up at their doorstep, calling them out by name and demanding they come out. There was no way to avoid this.
"Elder Geng, what's put you in such a foul mood? Come, come — please, come inside and have a seat." Elder He ignored Xiahou Geng's hostile attitude entirely and greeted him with an amiable smile.
"Save the fake pleasantries. I'm not interested." Xiahou Geng's face was dark. "Bring out your family's Yan Qingsang."
"What happened with Qingsang?" Elder He couldn't help but ask.
"Hmph! I suspect that Yan Qingsang is the mastermind behind the ambush on Xiahou Xi. I've already conducted an investigation — this time, Yan Qingsang excavated a large number of ancient jade rough stones and struck it rich. I'm rather curious. Did he obtain those ancient jade rough stones through legitimate harvesting?"
It had to be acknowledged that Xiahou Geng's intelligence-gathering capabilities were formidable. To have uncovered so many details in such a short period of time was truly no small feat.
Elder Quan and Elder He exchanged another look before Elder He said with a bitter smile, "Elder Geng, Qingsang's strength is nowhere near enough to threaten your nephew Xiahou Xi. You must have been misled by rumors."
"Nonsense. Our investigation found that we asked a great many people. They all confirmed that in the area where Xiahou Xi vanished, your family's Yan Qingsang had been spotted previously."
The logic was, to put it mildly, absurd.
So someone passed through the area, and that made them the culprit? This was nothing short of tyrannical reasoning.
Yan Qingsang was summoned over promptly. Upon hearing the accusation, he cried out in exaggerated grievance. "Esteemed Elders, you think far too highly of me, Yan Qingsang. Xiahou Xi's cultivation — you think I could ambush him? If I could handle Xiahou Xi, would I still be called Yan Qingsang?"
Yan Qingsang's strength was, in fact, considerably lower than Xiahou Xi's.
"Hmph, then why were you in that area?" Xiahou Geng asked coldly.
"Which area is Elder Geng referring to? I've been all over the place this past month. Before I came out, I didn't linger in any one location for long. Besides, I left very early — the timeline shouldn't match up at all. I never even laid eyes on Xiahou Xi."
Yan Qingsang flatly denied everything, and his reasoning was sound.
These statements, even Xiahou Geng could not refute them on the spot.
Though he seethed with frustration, Xiahou Geng had no additional evidence to bring forward and therefore could do nothing to Yan Qingsang. After pressing the interrogation for some time, he finally departed in a rage.
The Yan family's people could do nothing about Xiahou Geng's arrogance.
Elder He and Elder Quan were thoroughly exasperated as well. They had been called out and berated by name, yet they couldn't so much as push back. They could only seethe in silent resentment.
…
The ancient jade mining activities had concluded, but the frenzied atmosphere surrounding ancient jade in the City of Miracles within the Blue Smoke Island Domain had by no means subsided.
Throughout the entire City of Miracles, the shops had been extraordinarily bustling these past days. Shocking news kept breaking — so-and-so had unearthed a superior-grade wasteland jade, or even a supreme-grade wasteland jade.
So-and-so had obtained an ancient wasteland inheritance.
It could be said that the entire City of Miracles had been engulfed in this feverish atmosphere. All manner of auctions and massive trades were playing out in a frenzy.
Even the Yan family's people had inevitably been swept up in the wild energy, joining in on the excitement on more than one occasion.