My disciple, you are now invincible. Go down the mountain and wreak havoc on the world!

Chu Xiaotian's voice, imbued with internal energy, crashed into the ward, causing the windowpanes to vibrate and hum.

Two of the clan elders kneeling on the ground collapsed on the spot, their faces as white as paper.

"Chu, Chu Xiaotian! The head of the most prestigious family in the capital! Why would he come to our Ye family?"

"It's all over! The Chu family has always been close to Youge; they're here to back up Ye Hongtu!"

"Young Master, why don't we lay low for a while? Chu Xiaotian is a peak Earth-rank Grandmaster; he could crush us with one hand..."

Ye Zhong gripped the sword at his waist, his knuckles turning white, and his Adam's apple bobbed.

"Young Master, the Chu family has been operating in the capital for a century, with deep roots. Chu Xiaotian himself is notoriously protective and domineering. We are currently short-handed, and a head-on confrontation might be..."

"What's there to be afraid of?"

Ye Xunhuan, with an orange-flavored lollipop dangling from his lips, puffed out his cheeks and peered down from the windowsill. Far from panicking, his eyes shone brighter and brighter as he looked down, as if he had spotted a new toy.

He crunched the candy stick in his mouth and waved his hand casually.

"He's just a peak Earth Rank cultivator. It's good that he's hanging out with Chen Xuanfeng downstairs, saving me the trouble of beating them all up."

Before he finished speaking, he had already tucked half a pocket of lollipops into his pocket and sauntered out the door to go downstairs.

Su Qingyuan frowned, quickly followed beside him, and secretly tapped the scissors in her sleeve with her fingertips.

The night breeze was cool in the courtyard.

Chu Xiaotian stood with his hands behind his back in the center of the courtyard. The wind lifted a corner of his dark-patterned Tang suit. Behind him stood two rows of black-clad bodyguards, each with a calm demeanor, clearly martial arts masters.

The assassins from Youge and members of the Ye family guards lay scattered on the ground, the stench of blood mixed with the smell of dust wafting through the air, yet he didn't even flinch, as if he were stepping on pebbles rather than human lives.

Hearing footsteps, Chu Xiaotian slowly raised his eyes, his gaze sweeping over Ye Xunhuan, who was walking down with a nonchalant air. A hint of contempt flashed in his eyes, but he quickly adopted a righteous and impartial demeanor and said in a deep voice, "You are Ye Xunhuan?"

"What else?" Ye Xunhuan stopped and tilted his head, a candy still in his mouth.

"You barged into my Ye family home in the middle of the night with your men, banging on my door, just to ask who I am?"

"Insolence!" a follower behind Chu Xiaotian shouted sternly, "How dare a mere junior speak to the family head like that!"

Ye Xunhuan didn't even lift his eyelids, flicking the lollipop stick he had just pulled out between his fingertips.

"call out--"

The thin stick flew past the attendant's ear like a bullet, and with a "thud," it embedded itself in the courtyard wall behind him, half of the stick sinking into the blue brick.

The attendant froze on the spot, a cold sweat breaking out on his back, and he swallowed back the curse that was on the tip of his tongue.

"Woof woof woof, what's all the noise about?"

Ye Xunhuan licked the sugar crumbs from the corner of his mouth, then slowly took out a new lollipop, unwrapped it, and put it in his mouth.

"Speak your mind, or shut up."

"Stop spouting this nonsense about 'upholding justice.' Who in the capital doesn't know who you, Chu Xiaotian, are?"

"If you're going to take advantage of someone's misfortune, then take advantage of it. Why pretend to be a big shot?"

Chu Xiaotian's face darkened layer by layer.

He originally thought Ye Xunhuan was just a wild boy from Jiangcheng who managed to defeat Ye Hongtu using some unorthodox skills.

I never expected them to be so bold, daring to be so arrogant right in front of him.

He stared at Ye Xunhuan for a few seconds, then suddenly sneered, "You certainly have a sharp tongue."

"The Ye family is embroiled in internal strife, with brothers killing each other and even colluding with gangsters, resulting in deaths and breaking the centuries-old rules of the capital."

"As the leader of the alliance of aristocratic families in the capital, it is only right that I should take charge of this matter."

He stood with his hands behind his back, his tone arrogant, "Considering you are a junior member of the Ye family, young and ignorant, I, the patriarch, will give you a way out."

"Hand over the Medicine King's Key, and the Ye family will henceforth submit to the Chu family and obey my commands."

"I can let bygones be bygones regarding what happened today, and I can even ensure that your Ye family can maintain a stable foothold in the capital."

Upon hearing this, the clan elders who had followed him down the steps gasped in shock.

The Secret Key to Medicine King!

That was a treasure passed down through the Ye family for over a hundred years, said to contain the legacy and treasures of an ancient medicine king.

Chu Xiaotian's actions are not upholding justice; they're outright robbery!

Ye Xun was happy.

He was chewing on a lollipop, his shoulders shaking with laughter, as if he had heard the biggest joke in the world.

"Hey you old bastard from the Chu family, how can you be so shameless?"

"Why should I give you anything belonging to the Ye family? Can you eat for me or sleep for me?"

"Besides, submit to the Chu family?" He scoffed, his eyes suddenly turning cold.

"Who does your Chu family think you are? Your Chu family is secretly colluding with Youge, do you really think nobody knows?"

"Isn't the 'Qianji Zui' in Ye Hongtu's hands and the 30 million silver notes for the artificial hill in the backyard all backed by your Chu family?"

Chu Xiaotian's pupils contracted slightly.

These things were done in an extremely secretive manner, and even few people inside Youge knew about them. How could Ye Xunhuan know?

He was inwardly surprised and suspicious, but showed no sign of it on his face. Instead, he sneered, "Young man, don't spout nonsense! You can eat whatever you want, but you can't say whatever you want!"

"Don't you know whether you're talking nonsense or not?" Ye Xunhuan casually twirled the candy stick in his hand.

"Tell me, how do you want to play? Draw up the rules, and I'll play along."

Chu Xiaotian stared at him for a long time, then suddenly laughed: "Good, you have guts."

"Since you're not satisfied, then let's do it the rules."

"Three days later, my Chu family will hold a Divine Physician Conference in the capital, inviting renowned doctors from all over the world. The winner will receive an ancient Medicine King Cauldron."

He paused, a confident smile playing on his lips.

"Don't you pride yourself on your superb medical skills?"

"If you can win first place in the Divine Physician Competition, the Medicine King Cauldron will be yours, and my Chu family will never interfere in the affairs of the Ye family again. How about it?"

"What if you don't get first place..."

Chu Xiaotian's eyes flashed with a sharp light. "Then obediently go back to your Jiangcheng, hand over the Medicine King Key, and the entire Ye family will be at the command of the Chu family!"

"Are you willing to accept this bet or not?"

Medicine King's Cauldron!

Ye Xunhuan stopped eating the lollipop.

When he was on the mountain, his third master told him that the ancient Medicine King Cauldron was a supreme treasure of medicine. It could enhance the efficacy of medicines several times over when used to brew medicines and refine pills. Combined with his Medicine King Acupuncture Technique, it was like adding wings to a tiger.

Before he went down the mountain, his master was still lamenting that the cauldron had been lost, but he never expected it to be in the hands of the Chu family.

"interesting."

Ye Xunhuan's eyes shone brightly. He licked his lips and nodded on the spot, saying, "Alright, I accept the bet."

Chu Xiaotian was secretly delighted, thinking to himself that this kid was indeed young and impetuous, and had taken the bait with just a few words.

The Chu family has invited several reclusive medical masters to oversee the competition, as well as core disciples from Medicine King Valley. How can Ye Xunhuan, a country doctor from Jiangcheng, possibly win?

"Great!" Chu Xiaotian cupped his hands in a perfunctory gesture. "We'll meet at the Divine Physician Conference in three days."

"I'd like to see just how capable you are, young man from the Ye family."

After saying that, he gave Ye Xunhuan a deep look, then turned and led his men away in a grand procession.

Before leaving, he glanced at Ye Hongtu on the ground out of the corner of his eye, a cold glint flashing in his eyes, clearly indicating that he intended to sacrifice Ye Hongtu to save Ye Hongtu.

Once everyone had left, the clan elders in the courtyard breathed a sigh of relief and scrambled to Ye Xunhuan's side, showering him with flattery once more.

"Young Master is wise! He even dared to accept the bet with Patriarch Chu; he's truly a young hero!"

"Young Master's medical skills are unparalleled; that Medicine King Cauldron is definitely ours for the taking!"

Ye Xunhuan ignored these opportunists, patted his stomach, and frowned: "Stop talking nonsense, is the braised pork knuckle ready in the kitchen? It'll get cold if we don't eat it soon."

Ye Zhong quickly replied, "It's ready! I'll have the maid bring it up right away!"