Chapter Seventeen: The Death of the Grand Elder (Part One)

The Grand Elder was baffled by Ye Feng’s utter lack of fear. Even a fool knew that a group of Spirit Summoners would be no match for a practitioner at the peak of the Postnatal Realm, especially if the supposed opponent was merely a wastrel.

“But how can he dare to have me come here? Is he truly arrogant enough to believe he can contend with a master of the Postnatal Realm?” He swept his spiritual awareness over every inch of the surroundings. Aside from a powerful beast prowling in the distance, nothing seemed amiss. The Grand Elder stared at Ye Feng in bewilderment, muttering to himself.

“Could it be that he’s counting on Ye Tianya to rescue him?” He pondered this, and once again unleashed a crushing aura upon Ye Feng. “If your confidence rests with Tianya, then today will be your death day!”

Yet, the overwhelming pressure seemed to have little effect—Ye Feng remained standing nonchalantly where he was, as carefree as ever. “I’m curious,” Ye Feng said, “why do you insist on killing me?”

The Grand Elder’s expression grew stranger. Did he dare to be any bolder? “You… you allowed Ye Li to summon me just for this? Don’t you know you’re going to die?”

Ye Feng shrugged, unconcerned. “I’m just a useless person. Is the Ye Family so stingy that they begrudge me even a mouthful of food?”

The Grand Elder was furious, truly enraged. He’d known people who could provoke him—but never one who could infuriate him like this. He pointed at the two corpses on the ground and shouted, “You call yourself useless? Then what are they? What am I?”

“Ye Feng, since you’re so ignorant of death, I’ll make your wish come true today. And let me tell you, if your backup is Tianya, you’ll be sorely disappointed…” Without another word, the Grand Elder shot toward Ye Feng like lightning, keeping his eyes fixed on Ye Feng’s face, hoping to see some trace of fear or panic.

But again, he was disappointed. Even after being told that Ye Tianya wouldn’t save him, Ye Feng’s expression remained calm, without the slightest hint of panic.

“Hmph! Enough pretense. Go to hell!” Seeing Ye Feng so unmoved, the Grand Elder no longer hesitated and launched his attack.

He was confident. With his aura locked onto Ye Feng, not even the finest movement technique could allow Ye Feng to dodge his full-strength blow.

Suddenly—a bear’s roar echoed.

The Grand Elder felt a fierce wind at his back. The powerful force penetrated even his protective spiritual energy, burning his back like fire.

If he didn’t immediately withdraw and defend, he might kill Ye Feng, but would surely be crushed to death by the beast behind him.

To the Grand Elder, even the king of heaven’s life was less precious than his own. Why lose his life over Ye Feng?

He withdrew his power to defend. It must be said, a Postnatal Spiritualist was indeed powerful; in an instant, he erected five spiritual barriers before him.

But could the strike of a fifth-tier brute beast—a Savage Wilderness Bear, the equivalent of a human Spirit King—be easily blocked by a Postnatal practitioner?

The answer was no.

The bear’s paw smashed through the five barriers as if they were nothing, striking the Grand Elder’s chest with brutal force.

A sickening crack sounded.

Like a train hitting a motorcycle, the Grand Elder was sent flying. The bear had torn a chunk of flesh from his chest, leaving him bleeding profusely.

“Now, can you tell me why?” Ye Feng squatted before the Grand Elder, looking down at him calmly.

Facing the unnervingly calm youth, the Grand Elder felt fear. He couldn’t understand how Ye Feng, a human, could subdue a fifth-tier beast and command it to attack him.

“Hahaha… You truly are a step ahead! Patriarch, I concede.” Suddenly, as if realizing something, the Grand Elder, wounded and in pain, addressed the empty air.

“Does the Patriarch believe that a single fifth-tier beast can withstand the united forces of the Yuan and Zhou Families? If I die today, those families will surely attack the Ye Family in force.”

Clearly, the old man attributed everything to Ye Tianya, thinking he was working behind the scenes.

“I asked why you can’t tolerate me?” Ye Feng stared coldly at the Grand Elder, amused by his guessing, but with no intention to explain.

“Hmph! Even wounded, I am not someone a junior can interrogate. Let the Patriarch speak to me.” Proud as always, the Grand Elder refused to show weakness even now.

He had allied himself with the Yuan and Zhou Families, both major clans. If he died here, the other two families would think their plot exposed and would have to strike at the Ye Family first, no matter how reluctant. This was his leverage.

Having reasoned this out, the Grand Elder regained his bravado.

“You old fool, do you really think I won’t kill you?” Ye Feng kicked the Grand Elder’s chest, right at his wound, and cursed loudly.

At this moment, Ye Feng truly wanted to say four words: You think too much.

With a monster king’s core in his possession, not just fifth-tier beasts—even ninth-tier beasts would submit to Ye Feng. This was why he chose the Falling Wild Goose Mountains as the battleground.

“Ow… Ye Feng… how dare you humiliate me… One day… One day I’ll grind your bones to dust.” Rolling in agony, his chest a mess of blood and flesh, the Grand Elder cursed.

Seeing the old man still refusing to accept reality, Ye Feng beckoned to the nearby Savage Wilderness Bear: One of his legs is yours.

The bear roared.

As a fifth-tier beast, the Savage Wilderness Bear was not without intelligence. Excited, it stood upright, slapped its chest with its forepaws, and lumbered toward the Grand Elder, its plump hind legs shifting with anticipation.

Though the meat was a bit tough, the spiritual energy in the blood would benefit the old bear.

“You… Ye Feng… you can’t… ahhh…” Seeing the giant bear, over two meters tall, approaching, the Grand Elder stammered in terror. Soon, he fainted.

Anyone who saw their own leg torn off before their eyes would faint from terror, even if not from pain.

“Well done.” Ye Feng patted the bear’s back, then returned to the Grand Elder.

With a surge of spiritual energy, the Grand Elder slowly regained consciousness. “Ye… Ye Feng… you…” His leg severed at the root, sweat poured from his brow in pain, yet he still clung to his dignity.

“Answer my question. One more word of nonsense, and he’ll eat you whole.” Ye Feng’s words were simple, but his tone was serious.

“Why can’t you tolerate me?”

“I… I… you… you monster… ah… no… no… I’ll tell… I’ll tell.” Seeing Ye Feng gesture to the bear again, the Grand Elder finally broke. Stammering, he said, “The… the Patriarch’s position.”

Perhaps from excessive fright, blood loss, or severe injury—whatever the cause, after uttering those words, the Grand Elder’s eyes rolled back, and he died.

PS: Many thanks today—to Editor Autumn Mirror, Pig in Tiger’s Clothing, thank you for the VIP support. And to Mu Qiuxue, Fox Xue’er, Xiao Jun Sprite, zhftin, thank you for the flowers. Also, to all readers who have added this book to their collections, thank you. Finally, as always, let me shout: asking for collections, for flowers, for all support…