After consulting the map repeatedly, Yue Qingshan confirmed his destination beyond doubt.
Though the surroundings had withered into desolation, the map's markings aligned perfectly with this location.
According to the inscriptions, accessing the Ancient Ruins required a corresponding key—one his master had entrusted to him before falling into slumber.
Yue Qingshan's eyes darted nervously across the dead landscape, scanning for observers. Only after his third sweep did he withdraw the key.
The object resembled white jade, its surface carved with arcane characters that defied comprehension.
He began the incantation his master had drilled into him, enunciating each syllable of the strange, guttural language with precision.
From her concealed position, Yun Lan strained to parse meaning from the foreign words.
Her brow furrowed as she studied Yue Qingshan's intense focus. Whatever language this was, it predated anything in her experience.
The moment the final syllable left his lips, the jade stone pulsed with pale luminescence.
It lifted from his palm, ascending slowly as brilliant white light erupted from its core.
The radiance intensified until even Yun Lan, positioned at considerable distance, had to shield her eyes against the searing brightness.
When the light finally dimmed and she looked again, the clearing stood empty.
"What?!"
Yun Lan stared at the vacant space in disbelief. She had lost him—lost him despite maintaining perfect surveillance, despite every precaution.
One momentary loss of visual contact, and Yue Qingshan had vanished as though reality itself had swallowed him whole.
The jade stone. That white light.
He had clearly triggered some kind of access key—and then vanished without a trace, erased from the physical world in an instant.
He had entered. The Ancient Ruins had claimed him.
But she possessed no knowledge of the mechanism, no understanding of where that threshold had deposited him.
With no alternatives available, Yun Lan transmitted the development to Ye Qian through her communication artifact.
Ye Qian absorbed the report with serene calculation.
Yue Qingshan had indeed entered Ancient Ruins, and that jade key served as the sole means of passage.
Unfortunate that entry required physical possession of the key.
Still, this setback wouldn't derail his plans. He instructed Yun Lan to maintain her position and await Yue Qingshan's inevitable return.
The protagonist wouldn't remain inside forever.
...
A cold smile curved Ye Qian's lips as he severed the connection.
Yue Qingshan couldn't escape him. The very notion was laughable.
Let the protagonist brave whatever lethal trials awaited within those ruins. Let him risk his life claiming treasures and inheritance.
When he finally crawled back into the light, exhausted and triumphant, Ye Qian would simply relieve him of his hard-won prizes.
The mantis stalks the cicada, unaware of the oriole behind.
Who decreed otherwise? Yue Qingshan was the Child of Destiny, after all.
If Ye Qian didn't plunder the protagonist, who else deserved such treatment?
"Young Master, it's time for us to go to the reception hall.
Many people have already arrived."
Qiu Lan's voice filtered through the door, pulling him from his scheming.
Ye Qian remembered his mother Yun Yao's instructions from that morning.
Guests had arrived—numerous guests—and he was expected to make an appearance, to allow the assembled powers to acquaint themselves with the Ye Family's heir.
Not merely a handful of visitors, but a veritable flood of representatives.
Delegations had converged on the Ye Family estate from across their territorial jurisdiction, each bearing congratulatory gifts.
They came to celebrate Ye Qian's miraculous recovery from Qi Deviation and his subsequent breakthrough in cultivation.
Qi Deviation represented every cultivator's nightmare—a potentially fatal cultivation accident that could cripple one's potential permanently or extinguish life entirely.
That Ye Qian had not only survived but emerged stronger was worthy of grand celebration.
This spectacle served Ye Changkong's deliberate purpose: to broadcast his son's exceptional nature to every corner of their influence.
To demonstrate that even catastrophic Qi Deviation couldn't defeat Ye Qian, that curses transformed into blessings in his hands.
Every significant power within the Ye Family's sphere of influence had sent representatives—dynastic courts, cultivation sects, mercantile guilds.
These forces had long sheltered beneath the Ye Family's protection, and under such circumstances, attendance was less invitation than obligation.
They had received formal summons from the Ye Family. Failure to appear with appropriate gifts would make future operations within Ye territory... difficult.
The leaders of these factions understood the implicit threat perfectly and dared not show disrespect.
Each had selected precious treasures and arrived with practiced deference.
The Ye Family had prepared a magnificent banquet to receive this tide of supplicants.
The feast sprawled across the massive platform adjoining the reception hall—a space capable of accommodating tens of thousands.
The scale alone inspired awe, a demonstration of power that required no verbal emphasis.
Every table groaned beneath platters of immortal fruits, rare specimens that could accelerate cultivation breakthroughs.
The dishes themselves contained spiritual energy; each bite enriched one's immortal power, nourishing meridians and expanding reserves.
Only the Ye Family commanded resources sufficient for such extravagance—hosting thousands to celebrate what lesser families would mark with private ceremony.
Of course, entry required proper credentials. Invitations underwent rigorous verification at multiple checkpoints.
Anyone attempting to infiltrate using fraudulent documentation or borrowed identity faced severe penalties.
Despite the thousands already assembled, the atmosphere remained subdued. Conversations occurred in hushed tones, careful murmurs that never rose above respectful volume.
No one dared create disturbance here.
Drawing negative attention within the Ye Family estate could prove fatal.
In Ye territory, one obeyed Ye rules. This was not negotiable.
"I heard that Ye Qian, the Young Master of the Ye Family, actually withstood the effects of Qi Deviation... I wonder if it's true?"
"How could it be false? It must be true."
"Exactly. The Ye Family has no need to lie about such matters. Deception serves no purpose for them."
"How can the Ye Family be compared to small forces like us? Deceiving us would be completely beneath them."