Chapter 158: Passing By Each Other

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"Mu, my hands—they’re almost swollen!" Ye Zhong’s tone was filled with lament, nearly on the verge of tears. It had taken him a full thirty-five days to complete all the bone components. Without any instruments, Ye Zhong had to resort to the most primitive handmade methods, which directly led to his hands becoming overworked. Yet, this had its benefits: after countless days and nights of relentless labor, his craftsmanship had improved significantly. Looking at the numerous high-quality bone materials he had gathered, Ye Zhong felt as if he possessed a mountain of gold—a wealth he had never known before. He even crafted a few pieces for the family, just in case. The rest, along with a pile of strange and exotic items he had purchased, were taken back to his subspace by Mu. Without Mu Shang’s presence, Ye Zhong wouldn’t have been able to enjoy such convenience. Only a highly intelligent, quasi-sentient light-being like Mu Shang could manage this entire series of operations within the subspace. For example, the iron python scales from before had always been in Mu’s collection.

“Hmm, judging by the design, this will attract more attention!” Mu said seriously.

“It’s all that damn Shang’s fault. Hmph, wait till he comes out…” Ye Zhong gritted his teeth and hissed darkly.

“Ye, I have to remind you, you lack effective means of attack!” Mu put on a concerned expression.

Ye Zhong was instantly speechless.

In Jiukai City, after the mysterious individual abruptly announced the suspension of the demand notice just three days after its release, more and more people who had sent in bone materials kept receiving bone components. Every day, the most lively topic of conversation became which person received what kind of component.

Martis’s hard work paid off; he received a bone component made from red shrimp bone—a shoulder guard—which thrilled him to no end. He cherished it dearly and immediately began studying the rare bone component.

Ye Zhong finally completed all the bone components three days before the Level Four assessment, letting out a long sigh of relief.

Soon, people in Jiukai City discovered that no one was receiving bone components anymore. Everyone guessed that all the bone components had been distributed. The day after it was confirmed no more components would arrive, the market value of bone components flipped and tumbled several times. Yet, despite this, no one sold the bone components they had on hand.

In this whole operation, Ye Zhong and the Sect Institute were the biggest beneficiaries.

Ye Zhong obtained a vast amount of rare bone materials, many from species he had never seen before, so he wouldn’t need to worry about shortages for quite some time. Of course, most of these came from the Sect Institute’s contributions.

Likewise, the Sect Institute reaped the largest benefits, acquiring roughly eighty percent of the bone components, paying only with some of their stockpile of bone materials.

However, none of this concerned Ye Zhong now; his mind was fixed on the Level Four assessment three days away. After finishing all his tasks, the first thing Ye Zhong did was rest. After days of nonstop work crafting bone components, he was utterly exhausted and desperately needed a break.

Two days later, restored and vigorous, Ye Zhong was ready once more.

Before long, the time for the Level Four assessment arrived.

Ye Zhong’s guide was still Vici. Upon seeing Ye Zhong, a respectful expression crossed her face. As his guide, she naturally knew who was behind the recent bone component upheaval. Wherever one went, those with strength earned the respect of others—especially in Jiukai City, where strength reigned supreme.

Ye Zhong followed behind Vici, passing through the hall.

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A masked woman dressed in purple approached. Vici immediately stopped and bowed to her. The purple-clad woman nodded to Vici, then cast a glance at Ye Zhong and asked in a sweet, somewhat enigmatic tone, “And who might this gentleman be?”

Vici quickly replied, “This is Mr. Ye, about to take the Level Four assessment!”

“Oh, I didn’t expect Mr. Ye to be so young and already have passed the Level Three assessment. Truly a genius!” The purple-masked woman expressed surprise.

“Just average,” Ye Zhong answered flatly and coldly.

“Yes, Mr. Ye is indeed impressive; he’s the first applicant to pass the Level Three assessment this time!” Vici chimed in.

“Mr. Ye, you’re truly young and accomplished! Well, I won’t keep you. Best of luck on your assessment. I have matters to attend to—farewell!” The purple-clad woman nodded slightly to Ye Zhong and Vici before turning away.

As she turned and walked forward, the woman looked back with some puzzlement, gazing at the figure of this Mr. Ye. She wondered silently who he really was, why his silhouette felt so familiar, as if she had seen him somewhere before. Yet, she couldn’t recall. His face was unremarkable, which confirmed she had never met him.

Suddenly recalling her urgent schedule and tasks, she couldn’t afford to linger on such thoughts. Letting out a soft laugh, she wondered what had come over her and promptly dismissed all distractions.

Ye Zhong, however, was far from as relaxed. From the moment he first saw the purple-clad woman, his heart nearly stopped!

It was Feng Su! Without a doubt, it was her!

Almost simultaneously, Ye Zhong received Mu’s reminder: “Ye, be careful—this is Feng Su!” Mu added, “Shang has scanned her full body curvature features before.”

Though his heart was stormy, Ye Zhong forced his expression to remain neutral. If Feng Su recognized him now, it would spell disaster!

Feng Su was unmistakable—always clad in purple, masked, with her unique voice. Ye Zhong had a deep impression of her. He had once clashed with Feng Su in the small forest near that Mr. Yin’s residence, and he knew this seemingly fragile woman possessed formidable strength. The injury he sustained then still haunted him. Fortunately, he had worn his black-horned mask at that time, so she never saw his true face—otherwise, just thinking about the consequences chilled him to the bone!

Judging by Vici’s demeanor toward Feng Su, Ye Zhong guessed the woman held a high status in the Sect Institute. She seemed to pay considerable attention to him, which made him shudder.

After Feng Su’s footsteps faded outside the hall, Ye Zhong casually asked Vici, “Who was that? Her outfit’s quite unusual.”

Vici smiled, “Lord Feng is always like that. We’re all curious about her appearance, but it’s said that no one but the elders knows what she truly looks like! Lord Feng is amazing—the Sect Institute’s ace master, and very kind to others. We all like her!” Vici’s eyes sparkled with admiration, making Ye Zhong feel a chill run down his spine.

No wonder she was so formidable. Losing to her last time wasn’t unjust. He just wondered what her light armor looked like. An ace master’s light armor must be impressive. What kind of armor would she pilot? Ye Zhong’s mind wandered.

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He never considered that he might have already seen Feng Su’s light armor.

“Lord Feng seems to hold you in high regard!” Vici’s big, bright eyes looked at Ye Zhong with interest.

“Oh, really?” Ye Zhong replied casually.

Vici led Ye Zhong through a maze of corridors to a door. She gestured for him to place his wristband for identity verification. With a soft beep, the door silently rotated open.

Ye Zhong stepped inside; Vici stayed outside. The door quietly closed behind him.

At the far end of the room sat a row of seven or eight elderly men, all very old in appearance. Opposite them stood a group of people, seemingly tense. They were likely applicants for the Level Four assessment, just like Ye Zhong.

Ye Zhong’s entrance immediately drew all eyes.

“Ah!” came many exclamations, even from those usually composed, revealing their surprise. Glancing around, Ye Zhong quickly understood why: except for himself, everyone else was middle-aged or older. A young man under twenty suddenly appearing among them was certainly conspicuous.

Ye Zhong’s expression remained calm and fearless as he walked to one end of the standing group.

“Cough, cough!” An elderly man seated in the center cleared his throat, unable to tolerate the continuous stares.

All eyes turned to the elderly man. Dressed in a blue cloth shirt, he looked vigorous despite his age, with a few strands of white beard under his chin, exuding authority.

Blue cloth! Ye Zhong’s heart skipped a beat. He knew that in this place, only the Art Inheritors wore blue cloth. This old man was an Art Inheritor! Ye Zhong’s caution surged. Though not as strong in combat, Art Inheritors possessed profound mastery of mental cultivation and many unfathomable techniques. Ye Zhong himself practiced meditative breathing, ever wary of being discovered by this old man, which would spell huge trouble!

The old man slowly scanned the group with eyes as sharp as swords. Everyone lowered their heads to avoid his gaze.

When his gaze landed on Ye Zhong, Ye Zhong felt as if the old man had seen through every fiber of his being, causing his body hair to stand on end.

Following the others, Ye Zhong hurriedly bowed his head, but his heart remained resolute. Mental pressure! The technique was among the information he’d obtained from Mr. Yin, but it demanded very high spiritual cultivation. This old man was clearly a master among Art Inheritors. Though bowed, Ye Zhong sensed the old man’s gaze lingered on him for a few seconds longer.

“Hmm, first, congratulations on passing the Level Three assessment. But ahead lies a far harsher trial. Now, I shall explain the rules of the Level Four assessment!” The old man began slowly, causing all the applicants to raise their heads.