A master of both medicine and martial arts, he recruits a beautiful CEO to cultivate immortality tog

"Why did you do this?" he asked.

"Because your father begged me," Xuanming said, "and also because I wanted to see what a child raised as a key would become."

"Now you see."

"I saw it." Xuanming looked at him. "It's more interesting than I thought."

He raised his sword.

"Alright, enough of this small talk. Give me the Heavenly Mark Blade, and I'll release your master."

Ye Heng did not move.

His mind was in turmoil, but his hand gripping the knife remained steady. He knew Xuan Ming was stalling for time, and he knew he couldn't stall any longer. Ling Hanyue was still bleeding, and Feng Tianyin was nearing her limit.

He took a deep breath.

"Senior Uncle," he suddenly spoke, "how long are you going to keep watching?"

A sigh came from the shadows at the entrance to the ice cave.

My senior uncle emerged from the shadows, still twirling the copper coin in his hand.

"I wanted to hear more," he said. "He told you about your father's past more clearly than I could."

Xuanming's expression finally changed.

"Old Zhou."

"Don't call me Old Zhou." His senior apprentice looked at him. "We're not that close."

He raised his hand, and the copper coin flew out, hitting a red dot on the ceiling of the ice cave. One of the red lanterns shattered, the nine chains trembled simultaneously, and the light on Ling Hanyue's body dimmed for a moment.

"Ye Heng, now!" Uncle-Master shouted.

Ye Heng did not hesitate.

He leaped up, his Heavenly Mark Blade slashing at the nearest chain. He held nothing back, pouring all his Yin energy into the strike; the blade cut into the chain like a hot knife through butter.

The chain broke.

Ling Hanyue's body sank down, and Ye Beiyuan rushed out from the side and caught her.

"The second one!" Ye Heng shouted.

Ye Beiyuan handed Ling Hanyue to Feng Tianyin, then turned and drew her sword, Cheng Ying Sword, slashing at the second chain. Her sword was not as sharp as Tianhen Blade, but the chain had already been loosened by Ye Heng's sword intent, and it broke after two strikes.

Two of the nine chains were broken.

The light at the center of the array became disordered.

Xuanming's sword was turned towards his senior master, but Ye Heng intercepted it from the side.

The two clashed fiercely inside the ice cave. Ye Heng took two steps back, blood trickling from the corner of his mouth. Xuan Ming also took a step back, his eyes narrowing beneath his iron mask.

"You won't last long," Xuanming said.

"Enough to last until you leave," Ye Heng said.

Footsteps could be heard outside the ice cave.

Canglang led the Spirit Group members in, followed by Bailu, whose ice needles were already condensed. Xuanming glanced at the cave entrance, knowing he couldn't take Ye Heng away today.

He did not linger in the fight.

The sword tip touched the ground, and a dark purple light exploded, shaking the entire ice cave. By the time Ye Heng could see clearly again, Xuan Ming had already retreated to the cave entrance, holding two small glass tubes in his hands.

One tube contained Ling Hanyue's blood.

The other tube contained the blood that Ye Heng had left on the sword when he was cut earlier.

"See you next time, young master," Xuanming said.

His figure disappeared into the wind and snow.

Ye Heng did not pursue.

He turned around and ran to Ling Hanyue's side.

Ling Hanyue leaned against Feng Tianyin's chest, her face as white as paper, and blood was still flowing from the wound on her wrist. She looked at Ye Heng, her lips moving slightly.

"You...are injured?"

"It's just a minor injury." Ye Heng squatted down, grasped her wrist, and channeled his inner energy into her. "Don't speak."

Ye Heng paused for a moment.

"Master," he whispered, "who exactly is my father?"

Ling Hanyue did not answer immediately.

She raised her hand and patted his head, just like she did when he was a child.

"When you see him, ask him yourself," she said. "But there's one thing I need to tell you first."

"What?"

"Your father signed the document back then not just to save you," Ling Hanyue said, looking at him. "He did it to save your mother."

……

The safe house in Beiyan is located in an abandoned weather station outside the city.

The house wasn't big, with two bedrooms and a living room. In the living room, there was an old sofa and an old-fashioned radiator. The radiator was glowing red, but the house was still cold, and a thin layer of frost covered the windows.

Ling Hanyue lay on the bed in the inner room, her wrist wrapped in gauze, her face paler than snow. Feng Tianyin leaned against another bed; the wound on her left shoulder had been treated, and she was in better spirits than her senior sister, at least she could still curse.

"You, of all things to do, come along with two people." Feng Tianyin looked at Ye Heng with disdain, but her eyes kept scanning him up and down. "Where are you hurt?"

"jaws of death."

"Anything else?"

"The meridian is slightly cracked."

"A little cracked?" Feng Tianyin glared at him. "Do you think I can't see it? You were dragging your left leg when you were walking just now. Thirty percent of your meridians are cracked, and you still dared to fight Xuanming head-on. You really are..."

"Second Master," Ye Heng interrupted her, "you had quite a strong voice when you were cursing, so it seems you're not seriously injured."

Feng Tianyin choked for a moment, then laughed: "You brat, you've learned to talk back."

"I learned it from you."

Ling Hanyue coughed softly on the bed.

Ye Heng immediately turned his head away.

"Master."

"I'm fine." Ling Hanyue looked at him. "Sit down, I have something to tell you."

Ye Heng sat down on the edge of the bed.

Ling Hanyue stared at his face for a long time before finally speaking, "How much do you know about your father?"

"I knew he was in the cradle, I knew he was the heart of the first cradle." Ye Heng paused for a moment, "and I also knew that the list of those who wiped out the Ye family was signed by him."

Ling Hanyue was not surprised.

"Did Xuanming tell you that?"

"Um."

"Most of what he said is true," Ling Hanyue said. "Your father did sign the document, but not for himself; it was for your mother."

Ye Heng frowned.

He had never heard of his mother. Su Changhong didn't mention it, his master didn't mention it, and he was used to not asking.

Now that Ling Hanyue had suddenly brought it up, he was momentarily at a loss for what to ask.

"Who is my mother?"

"Her name is Shen Qingwu," Ling Hanyue said. "She's from the Shen family of Jiangnan. The Shen family used to be a family of cultivators, but they declined, and only one branch remained, doing business in the secular world. Your mother was the most talented in that branch, born with a 'pure body'."

"Immaculate Body?" Ye Heng felt that the term sounded familiar.

"Shen Ning is also a Pure Body." Ling Hanyue glanced at him. "The Shen Ning you know is a distant relative of hers."

Ye Heng was stunned for a moment.

He thought of Shen Ning, of that timid girl, and of her saying that her sister had been taken away by people from the "Ten Thousand Mountains." He suddenly had a bad feeling.

"My mother...was she also captured by Cradle?"

"No," Ling Hanyue said. "She went in by herself."

"What?"

"When your mother was pregnant with you, she had health problems. It's already difficult to raise someone with a pure body, and pregnancy is even more dangerous. Fang Boheng approached your father and said there was a way to save your mother in the cradle, on the condition that your father cooperate with them on one thing."

Ye Heng remained silent.