The next day, Ye Yuan rushed into the courtyard in a panic and said, "Miss, Ye Feng is missing."
Ye Lanshan lounged lazily on the imperial concubine's chair. "What's there to panic about? It was only a matter of time before he disappeared. Come on, let's head to the military camp now."
"What are we going to the military camp for?" Ye Yuan was a bit confused.
Ye Lanshan said, "There's likely a tough battle to fight in a few days. Right now, we need to step up training for those soldiers. The Ye family's three armies have been at ease for too long; it's time they weathered some storms."
Sure enough, within a few days, Prince An raised his troops in rebellion.
"Report~ Prince An has started a rebellion."
"Report~ Prince An is about to attack the capital."
Hearing the reports below, the emperor flew into a rage: "What have you all been doing? The enemy is almost at our doorstep, and you can't even come up with a countermeasure?"
At the Ye residence, Ye Lanshan listened to the servant's report, a faint smile curling at her lips: "It's time to have a meeting with Prince An."
Inside the palace, the emperor looked at Ye Lanshan standing below—her upright posture, her aura, her eyes—all so reminiscent of her father.
For a moment, the emperor felt as if he were seeing that spirited youth who once laughed and joked on the battlefield. If it were him, he wouldn't be so worried now.
"Ye Lanshan humbly requests Your Majesty's approval to appoint me as marshal, so I may confront Prince An."
The emperor said in a deep voice, "The battlefield is a place of life and death. Are you truly certain?"
Ye Lanshan replied with confidence, "I am certain."
She was his daughter, after all—born to fight, with an unyielding belief in never losing etched into her bones. Perhaps only she could save the Yue Kingdom.
"Very well. I now appoint you as the Nation-Securing General. Proceed to the front lines immediately."
"Yes, your subordinate accepts the decree." Ye Lanshan clasped her fists and slowly withdrew.
Ye Luotian wanted to stop her when he found out, but it was too late. Ye Lanshan had already gone to the front lines and clashed with Prince An.
"Report~ The enemy has 500,000 troops advancing toward us."
Ye Lanshan's hand, which was playing chess, paused. Her expression showed a hint of shock. Could Prince An have that many men? Was this rebellion not just Prince An's doing, but involving others as well?
"Commander, what do we do now?" a soldier asked.
Ye Lanshan quickly calmed down and smiled. "No rush. How are preparations going with the elite squad?"
"Reporting, Commander. The elite squad is ready, but the enemy is too numerous this time. Can they really pull it off?" The officer hesitated.
"Don't worry. This ambush will surely strip him of half his forces."
The elite squad members looked at the thick stack of purple paper in their hands, puzzled. "Commander, what is this? Can we really win with it?"
Ye Lanshan handed out talismans as she explained, "This is the Five Thunder Curse, a highly lethal talisman. Whether we win or not depends on it."
"How do we use it?" a soldier asked.
"Just bury it along the path the enemy will take."
"Yes, sir."
On a barren mountain, Ye Lanshan was leading the group in an ambush when a soldier ran up to report: "Commander, the Five Thunder Curses have all been buried. What's next?"
Ye Lanshan said sternly, "When the Five Thunder Curses have mostly detonated, everyone take your positions as I assigned. This time, I want his entire army annihilated."
Sure enough, the 500,000 troops marched confidently along the road, vowing to seize the capital. But halfway there, they were thrown into chaos by sudden explosions from underground.
What was under there? Why was it exploding?
No one answered their questions. Some barely escaped with their lives, but having survived the Five Thunder Curses, they stumbled into an even more terrifying place.
The "Seven Star Eight Trigram Formation" was an ancient Daoist array of immense lethality. Anyone trapped within it had no chance of survival.
Those who thought they had escaped were pitiful, for the place they fled to was the Seven Star Eight Trigram Formation.
Two days later, the direct confrontation between Ye Lanshan and Yue Jie'ao finally arrived.
Yue Jie'ao laughed scornfully. "A little girl like you thinks you can capture me? What a joke."
Ye Lanshan showed no fear of Yue Jie'ao, who was already at the Great Mystic General level. She immediately used "Wings of Carnage" as cover to hurl the Five Thunder Curses at him.
Though the Five Thunder Curses were powerful, Yue Jie'ao, as a Great Mystic General, had strong defenses. The curses only caused superficial injuries.
Yue Jie'ao snorted coldly. "With tricks like these, you think you can catch me? Are you dreaming?"
I never intended to catch you—just to distract you.
"Ten Thousand Spirits Locking Demon Formation, rise!" Several Mystic Generals surrounded him in a strange formation.
"Hmph, just a few Mystic Generals? You underestimate me, Yue Jie'ao." One moment he was smug, the next he was in disbelief: "How is this possible? Why has my mystic power been weakened so much?"
Ye Lanshan stood nearby and said indifferently, "What's impossible about it? Anyone who enters this formation has their strength reduced to the same level as the array setter."
"I didn't expect you to know formations," Yue Jie'ao said, somewhat shocked. Formation masters were rare in this world, as learning formations required someone with all five mystic powers—metal, wood, water, fire, and earth. Most people had only one mystic power, and even those with three were rare, let alone five.
Knowing he was utterly defeated, a mad gleam filled Yue Jie'ao's eyes. "Hahaha, even if I can't live, I won't let you live either!"
"Damn it, he's going to self-destruct! Stop him!" The Mystic Generals lunged at him, but it was too late. With a thunderous blast, they vanished along with Yue Jie'ao.
At that moment, Ye Yuan threw himself at Ye Lanshan, sacrificing his life to save hers.
Ye Lanshan stood frozen, staring blankly. She hadn't expected Yue Jie'ao to self-destruct, nor had she anticipated being so powerless when he did, forced to watch them march toward death.
They had won this battle, but at a devastating cost. If not for her negligence, they wouldn't have died.
Thinking back on her journey with Ye Yuan from Chaoyang City to now, Ye Lanshan couldn't help but shed two streams of tears.
Of the two people she had brought from Chaoyang City, one had betrayed her, and the other had died for her. How could the word "sorrow" alone describe what she felt?
"Commander, please accept my condolences. The dead cannot be brought back. No matter how many pills you feed him, it's useless," the deputy commander came to console her.
Ye Lanshan said mournfully, "Yes, he's already dead. What am I still hoping for?"
Chapter 28: The Final War Song
The sky was gray, and soon a fine drizzle began to fall.
Was even heaven weeping for him? Ye Lanshan suppressed her grief and buried Ye Yuan in a quiet spot nearby.
The other soldiers said nothing, merely following her to bury the clothes of the other Mystic Generals, since their bodies had been blown to nothing. They could only erect cenotaphs.
The atmosphere was heavy, but no one had the heart to break the silence.
As night fell, the drizzle turned into a torrential downpour.
Ye Lanshan still stood there, motionless, an endless sorrow radiating from her, touching everyone present.
Mu Ziming rushed from the distant capital to this place. Seeing the blood-soaked earth, the soldiers' resolute and solemn stances, the thunder and lightning and pouring rain—all seemed to amplify the grief.
Though he didn't know how many had died in this battle, he knew one thing: the fallen warriors would not want the living to neglect their own health out of sorrow.
He walked quickly to the front, holding an umbrella over Ye Lanshan's head, and said only, "If they were still alive, they wouldn't let you treat yourself like this. They traded their lives for yours. You should live more diligently and joyfully, because you live not only for yourselves, but for them as well."
After a long pause, Ye Lanshan said hoarsely, "I understand." She turned around. "Soldiers, let us sing the war song for them one last time."
"Who says we have no clothes? I share your robe. The king raises his army, we sharpen our spears, united in foe. Who says we have no clothes? I share your tunic. The king raises his army, we sharpen our halberds, united in action. Who says we have no clothes? I share your skirt. The king raises his army, we sharpen our armor, united in march. Who says we have no clothes? In love and sincerity. The king raises his army, we sharpen our bows, united in purpose. Our chariots are strong, our horses matched. Four steeds mighty, driving eastward. Four bays harnessed, the side horses steady. No loss in pace, arrows fly true. Horses neigh, banners flutter. Riders calm, the feast not over. These men on campaign, heard but silent. Truly noble, they achieve greatness."
The mournful, solemn voices rose, and even heaven was moved. The rain gradually stopped.
At the Ye residence, after several days of recuperation, Ye Lanshan finally emerged from her grief. Now she strolled leisurely through the streets, as if regaining her former vitality.
Suddenly, she heard a commotion ahead and went to see. It was a group of burly men surrounding a ragged child.
One of the men said, "A little beggar like you dares to come to the Treasure Pavilion? Do you think you can afford anything here?"
The child clutched something tightly and said, "I'm not a beggar. I'm here to pawn something."
The men sneered, "You, in those rags? What good could you possibly have? I'm telling you, if you set foot in the Treasure Pavilion again, I'll beat you to death and feed you to the dogs."
The child, dejected, walked away slowly, clutching his item. What could he do? Today was the deadline. If he couldn't raise the money, his sister would be sold to Boss Li. Was there really no way out?
Just as he was in despair, a clear, melodious voice sounded above him—as lively as a cuckoo, as crisp as a pearl.
"Can I take a look at what you're holding?" Ye Lanshan saw the child staring blankly and waved her hand worriedly. "Hey, are you okay?"
Qiu Tong snapped back to reality and quickly handed over the item, saying timidly, "Sister, this is our family heirloom, the Purple Gold Dagger. Do you want it?"
Ye Lanshan examined the dagger, which was entirely black and covered in rust. Though it looked ordinary and rusty, she felt it was no ordinary item.
She unsheathed the dagger and carefully ran her fingers along the blade. With a "hiss," her hand was cut, but her blood didn't fall to the ground—it was absorbed by the dagger.
What was this? The dagger was drinking blood. As Ye Lanshan stood in shock, the dagger suddenly emitted a flash of light. With a "hum," it transformed completely. The black blade now bore a mysterious, ancient totem, and the blade itself was covered in strange patterns.
Qiu Tong stared in amazement. Ye Lanshan sighed helplessly. "Since the dagger has already chosen me, I suppose I have no choice but to buy it. How much is it?"
Afraid she might change her mind, Qiu Tong quickly held up five fingers. "Five hundred taels of gold."
Ye Lanshan looked at the earnest child and smiled. "That cheap? Little one, this dagger is worth far more than that. Here, this is a thousand taels of gold. Take it."
Qiu Tong clutched the heavy bag of gold, stunned for a moment, then immediately kowtowed in the direction Ye Lanshan had walked. Afterward, he hurried home.
As soon as Ye Lanshan returned to the Ye residence, she rushed into her space to find Huntian.
"Huntian, Huntian! Where are you? Come out quickly. I want to show you something."
Huntian rubbed his sleepy eyes and emerged from the only small hut in the space, grumbling, "What is it? Don't you know it's rude to disturb someone's sleep?"
Ye Lanshan blinked at Huntian, who had grown into a youth. "How did you grow so much?"
Huntian rolled his eyes impatiently. "The higher your mystic power, the faster I grow and the more complete my memories become. You know this."
Ye Lanshan said "Oh" and suddenly remembered her purpose. She pulled out the dagger and asked, "Do you know where this dagger comes from?"
Huntian took the dagger excitedly. "How did you get this?"
Ye Lanshan asked curiously, "So you do know its origin?"
Huntian racked his brains for a long time before saying, "I... I forgot."
Ye Lanshan was dumbfounded. She had thought Huntian's excitement meant he knew the dagger's history.
Huntian grumbled, "It's your fault for not training your mystic power properly. Now my memory is still incomplete."
Ye Lanshan quickly appeased him. "I'll work hard on training my mystic power, okay?" With that, she immediately left the space.
No sooner had she exited than a servant ran over in a panic. "Miss, miss! Something terrible has happened! The old master has collapsed."
"What? Take me to see him at once." Ye Lanshan followed the servant to the old master's bedside.
Ye Jinlin saw Ye Lanshan arrive and said, "The old master is gravely ill. I'm afraid he won't make it."
Ye Lanshan said, "Move aside," and immediately knelt by the old master's bedside to take his pulse.
Chapter 29: Leaving the Ye Family, Heading to the Mystic Spirit Academy
The pulse was strange, but not entirely incurable. Ye Lanshan took out a pill from her space—the Life-Saving Pill she had spent ninety-nine days refining, nearly dying in the process—and fed it to the old master.
Ye Jinlin saw her give the old master an unknown pill and quickly tried to stop her. "Miss, you can't just give him any pill!"
Before he could finish, the old master coughed a few times and slowly woke up. Ye Jinlin was shocked. How was this possible? The old master had been at death's door. Even with pills from the Medicine Valley, he couldn't have recovered so quickly.
"May I ask, miss, where did this pill come from?" Ye Jinlin stared at the pill bottle excitedly.
"Well, a reclusive master gave it to me. He said this pill is the only one of its kind in the world. As long as you take it, even if you have only one breath left, it can save you." Ye Lanshan naturally wouldn't admit she had refined it herself, so she made up a reclusive master to take the blame.
Someone would give away such a precious pill? Truly, reclusive masters were eccentric. Ye Jinlin marveled at how fortunate the young miss was to have such a pill.
"What pill?" Ye Luotian woke up just in time to hear Ye Lanshan and Ye Jinlin talking about a pill.
Ye Lanshan quickly said, "Oh, it's like this. I once met a reclusive master who said I was a once-in-a-millennium genius. He took me as his disciple and gave me a pill that cures all ailments."
"A pill that cures all ailments? Does such a miraculous pill really exist? Can it cure anything?" Ye Luotian was skeptical.
Ye Lanshan immediately grew displeased at having her pill doubted. "If it weren't for that pill, Grandfather, how could you have woken up?"
Ye Luotian secretly used his mystic power to check his body. Sure enough, his mystic power flowed smoothly, without the usual heaviness. It seemed Lanshan was telling the truth. Such a miraculous pill really did exist in this world.
"Grandfather, do you know how to become a student at the Mystic Spirit Academy?" Ye Lanshan's clear voice interrupted Ye Luotian's thoughts.
"You want to go to the Mystic Spirit Academy?" Ye Luotian found it strange. "You refused to go before. Why the sudden change of heart?"
Ye Lanshan's gaze grew distant, and she said coldly, "I have my reasons for going."
Ye Luotian sighed. "Well, children grow up and have their own ideas. But it's good that you're going. After all, it's a place that nurtures the strong."
"Your father left you a letter of recommendation for the Mystic Spirit Academy. Even though the academy's enrollment competition is over, you can still become a student with this letter."
"Where is the letter?" Ye Lanshan hadn't expected her original father to have left her such a thing.
"Go back and pack your things. I'll get the letter for you tomorrow morning."
Ye Lanshan lowered her eyes. "Then rest well, Grandfather. I'll come back tomorrow."
Early the next morning, Ye Luotian gave her earnest advice. "Lanshan, that place is different from here. There are many geniuses there. You must be careful in everything."
Ye Lanshan took the letter of recommendation from Ye Luotian. "I understand. I'll be going now. Take care." With that, she set off on her journey to find the Mystic Spirit Academy.
"Sigh, so boring." Ye Lanshan lay weakly on the back of the Flame Tiger, groaning.
"Hmph, you think you can kill me? How foolish." A cold, clear voice reached Ye Lanshan's ears.
Ye Lanshan perked up immediately and urged the Flame Tiger. "Quick, let's go see what's over there."
"So it's just a murder-for-treasure scene. Boring." Ye Lanshan rode the Flame Tiger over excitedly, only to see a group of black-clad men surrounding a man in white, who looked like an immortal, demanding he hand something over. She immediately lost interest.
The black-clad men were startled by the sudden appearance of this woman and eyed her warily, only to realize she was just a passerby.
"How dull. Let's go, let's go." Ye Lanshan turned to leave, but the black-clad men had no intention of letting her go.
They exchanged glances, nodded, and attacked her. Ye Lanshan quickly rolled on the ground to dodge their claws.
"Hey, do you have any sense? I'm just a passerby! Why are you trying to kill me? Even if you do, it won't do you any good. I don't have any treasures on me."
The black-clad men ignored her explanation. Seeing their first strike fail, they unleashed a powerful move—"Withered Wood Reborn." Suddenly, strange vines grew around Ye Lanshan, binding her and rendering her immobile. Ye Lanshan, however, let out a chilling smile. "Do you really think these vines can kill me?" Her cold, eerie voice echoed softly.
The black-clad men were not intimidated by her. They merely watched coldly as the vines slowly tightened around Ye Lanshan's skin. Suddenly, flames erupted from her body, burning the vines to ashes.
The black-clad men's eyes widened slightly. "How is this possible?"
"You were the ones who provoked me first. Since you did, don't expect to leave alive." She pulled out a purple-gold dagger and lunged at them with ghostly speed.
Before they could react, Ye Lanshan slit their throats. The black-clad men had intended to dodge, but for some reason, their bodies froze in place, leaving them helpless as the dagger came for them.
"Hey, young master, I just saved your life. Don't you think you owe me something?" Xuan Yuanfeng was leaning casually against a tree when a voice suddenly came from beside him.
"And what would you have me do, miss?" Xuan Yuanfeng narrowed his eyes, masking the murderous intent within.
Ye Lanshan said, "It's like this—I'm lost. Take me to the Xuanling Academy, and that'll settle the debt."
Xuan Yuanfeng was stunned. "That's it?"
Ye Lanshan looked puzzled. "What else? What did you think? That I'd ask you to marry me?"
Xuan Yuanfeng asked, "Do you know who I am?"
"No idea. Oh, right, I haven't even asked your name yet." Ye Lanshan slapped her forehead.
So that's why she's so calm—she doesn't know who I am. I thought she might be different from those worldly women.
"My name is Xuan Yuanfeng," he said, his cool voice ringing in Ye Lanshan's ears.
"Ah, Brother Xuan Yuan. Let's talk as we walk." Ye Lanshan showed no particular reaction to his name, her calm demeanor as if she had never heard of him before.