Chapter 17

Inside the Ling family hall.

As Ling Fu took out the spirit pills, spirit stones, and other items from the cloth bag one by one and placed them on the wooden box lid, the unique and rich medicinal aroma of the spirit pills gradually spread throughout the hall.

At this moment, all the Ling family members were boiling with excitement. Many of them had flushed faces, their eyes emitting a frightening light, all greedily staring at the spirit stones and spirit pills on the wooden box lid.

"These, these things, the Ling family absolutely cannot possess!" The voice of the elder, Ling Kang'an, trembled at this moment.

Everyone could see that the cultivation materials taken out from the cloth bag were definitely something the Ling family could not obtain, there was no doubt about it!

Several pieces of Sixth Rank Mortal spirit stones, over ten Rejuvenation Pills, one Fifth Rank Mortal Hundred Meridians Pill, one Sixth Rank Mortal Sea Splitting Pill... The items taken out from the cloth bag completely stunned the Ling family members.

The martial artists of the Ice Shattering Manor that Qin Lie had killed were all core figures around the young master Yan Ziqian. Among them, a few were even spoiled children, whose fathers held important positions in the Ice Shattering Manor. Especially the last two martial artists at the Seventh and Eighth Levels of the Body Tempering Realm, their elders were all high-ranking officials in the Ice Shattering Manor.

The cultivation materials these people carried were rare even in the Ice Shattering Manor. The Hundred Meridians Pill and the Sea Splitting Pill from the last two people were obtained by their elders with great effort, hoping to help them break through to the Origin Opening Realm.

Spirit pills that were rare even in the Ice Shattering Manor suddenly appearing in a small force like the Ling family naturally caused a huge stir.

"These spirit stones and spirit pills combined should be enough to cultivate a martial artist to the Origin Opening Realm!" Ling Kang'an took a deep breath and said excitedly under the burning gazes of everyone: "Chengye! Xiao Shi's talent was originally not too good, and I thought it would be very difficult for her to break through to the Origin Opening Realm before the age of twenty. Now, with these spirit stones and spirit pills, it's different! If there are no unexpected events, she should be able to use these cultivation materials to break through to the Origin Opening Realm before the age of twenty!"

Many Ling family members, upon hearing this, had their eyes brighten, and their expressions towards Ling Yushi changed completely, filled with envy, jealousy, and admiration.

Ling Chengye's mood soared from the depths of hell to the heights of bliss. His face was flushed with excitement, and he nodded continuously, momentarily at a loss for words.

Du Jiaolan and the Du family members, on the other hand, stared wide-eyed, their gazes still fixed on the spirit stones and spirit pills on the wooden box, unable to accept the reality they saw.

"Can a dowry that can cultivate a martial artist to the Origin Opening Realm be afforded by our Ling family? Does anyone have anything to say? Do you still think Chengye's actions are problematic?" Ling Kang'an's voice rose, his gaze burning as he looked at everyone, noticing that the Ling family members were nodding slightly, seemingly acknowledging the engagement ceremony.

"Stupid is stupid, but to get such a large amount of cultivation materials through a marriage contract, well, I think it's worth it."

"If it were me, I would also agree. It's just an engagement with a fool, right? Sister Yushi, if you don't want to, I can take your place! As long as I can get those things and break through to the Origin Opening Realm before the age of twenty, I wouldn't mind getting married immediately!" someone declared loudly.

"Qin Lie is only fifteen, and you are almost nineteen, don't you have any shame? Sister Yushi, I'm only sixteen, if you feel wronged, let me take the burden!" a younger girl called out.

"..."

Listening to the calls of those young girls, Ling Yushi's beautiful eyes revealed a captivating light. She turned her head and looked seriously at Qin Lie beside her, her previously gloomy face now radiating a charming glow.

She was clear that the spirit pills and spirit stones that mysteriously appeared from the cloth bag not only slapped the Du family in the face but also solved her father's two major troubles at once.

Firstly, the generous dowry was enough to dispel the doubts of many Ling family members and resolve the trust crisis towards her father. Secondly, those spirit stones could replace the spirit herbs and grasses from the Medicine Mountain, preventing the Star Cloud Pavilion from questioning her father's abilities.

"Drip!"

The sound of a drop of blood hitting the ground caught Ling Yushi's attention. She looked down and suddenly realized that the drop of blood came from the left hand she was holding with Qin Lie.

She also had the cultivation of the Seventh Level of the Body Tempering Realm, and the spirit technique she had been practicing recently involved sharp nails. The palm of the hand was one of the softest parts of the human body...

Ling Yushi was stunned for a moment, then quickly realized that she had been so tense and desperate earlier that she had gripped Qin Lie's hand too hard, not even noticing that her nails had pierced his palm.

"Drip!"

Another drop of blood fell to the ground. She looked up at Qin Lie and found that he remained expressionless, showing no signs of pain, not even a hint of struggle.

Qin Lie's eyes, which always seemed lifeless, suddenly seemed to be filled with boundless magic in her eyes at this moment.

Her heart was pierced as if by a sharp object, and a shadow seemed to be quietly imprinted in her mind...

"I think... these dowries were already prepared when Senior Qin Shan and I arranged the marriage contract. Senior Qin Shan chose to stay with our Ling family and select the Medicine Mountain to treat Qin Lie, as he told me."

Ling Chengye, as the head of the Ling family, quickly regained his composure after a brief moment of shock.

He pointed to his head, indicating that Senior Qin Shan's work in the Medicine Mountain mine was all for treating Qin Lie.

"Before Senior Qin Shan passed away, I had a conversation with him. He said that Qin Lie's current mental issues would gradually improve, and it was not impossible for him to fully recover in the future!" Ling Chengye's thoughts became more active, and his lies became smoother, "I just didn't expect Senior Qin Shan to be so powerful. It was only recently when I entered the inner part of the Medicine Mountain that I was shocked by his grand project! I think Senior Qin Shan must have been of extremely high cultivation, otherwise, he couldn't have excavated so many stone paths or created such a strange array!"

"I won't hide it from everyone. I also entered the inner part of the mine for the first time a few days ago and was stunned by the stone paths. I tried to enter the depths of the mountain but was disoriented by the strange array and had to retreat."

Ling Chengye looked at everyone, mixing truth with lies, "As for whether there are spirit stones in the depths of the mountain, I personally don't think so. If anyone still has doubts, they can try to go deeper in the future. The strange array won't harm anyone, it will only block them. If someone can enter and find something, it will be a blessing for all the Ling family members."

He shifted all the questions to the missing Qin Shan, guiding everyone to focus their doubts on the Medicine Mountain, then said seriously, "I have already arranged for my third brother and Xuanxuan to go to the Star Cloud Pavilion. They didn't participate in this ceremony to handle this matter. Please don't worry, I will handle it well and won't bring trouble to the Ling family."

As he explained, the doubts of the Ling family members gradually dissipated, and they turned their attention to Du Jiaolan, criticizing and mocking the elders Ling Xiang and Ling Bo for being greedy and unreasonable, saying they had become more foolish with age.

Du Jiaolan and her two sons had pale faces, listening to the cold words of the crowd. She knew that their carefully planned coup had ended in failure.

"Since the elder brother doesn't welcome us, we won't be a nuisance. Let's go!" Du Jiaolan said coldly, giving Qin Lie a cold, dark look before leaving with the Du family members in anger.

"The plan to seize the position of the family head was ruined by a fool. This damned thing!" She was so angry that her teeth ached, and she finally began to take Qin Lie seriously.

Ling Xiang and Ling Bo, knowing they were in the wrong, also dared not stay and were pushed away in their wheelchairs by the Du family members, leaving in shame.

"Continue the ceremony!"

Ling Chengye looked deeply at Qin Lie, his eyes somewhat enigmatic, then suddenly shouted.

Under the arrangement of the old woman, and amidst the strange gazes of everyone, the interrupted engagement ceremony continued. When the firecrackers sounded again, the engagement ceremony between Qin Lie and Ling Yushi was officially concluded.

The crowd gradually dispersed.

When only the core members of the Ling family, including Ling Yushi's father and daughter, remained, Qin Lie, who had let go of Ling Yushi's hand, ignored the Ling family's surprise and Ling Yushi's cries, and without even bandaging his palm, walked out as usual.

"Qin Lie! No matter what's going on with you, and no matter if you can hear me, I want to thank you this time!" Before he left the hall, the head of the Ling family suddenly raised his voice and solemnly thanked him.

Qin Lie's figure did not stop, and he continued toward the Medicine Mountain, quickly disappearing from sight.

"Chengye, do you think Qin Lie is faking his stupidity?" Elder Ling Kang'an was moved, his face full of surprise, "Faking it for five years? Why? I don't really believe it." He shook his head.

"Father, do you think, do you think Qin Lie is...?" Ling Yushi suddenly became agitated, her body trembling slightly, "He, he isn't really stupid?"

"I don't know." Ling Chengye smiled bitterly, "I'm increasingly unable to see through him. I really can't understand where he got these spirit pills and spirit stones from. It's strange, really strange..."

"Didn't Qin Shan leave them to him?" Ling Kang'an was stunned.

Ling Chengye shook his head, "What I said just now was to calm the family members. I never had any real interaction with Qin Shan and know nothing about him. However, Qin Shan is not simple, that's for sure. As for how high his cultivation is, I can't speculate..."

"Without those spirit pills and spirit stones, we couldn't have dealt with Du Jiaolan's coup. I didn't expect Ling Xiang and Ling Bo to be bought by her. This time was really dangerous." Ling Kang'an, thinking back, was still filled with fear, "No matter what, Qin Lie has done us a great favor this time, solving two major problems for us. It seems we really have to temporarily burden Xiao Shi for two years to repay this favor."

"Not a burden..."

Ling Yushi's heart rippled, looking at the blood on her right hand, thinking about how Qin Lie had not made a sound when her nails pierced his palm, she suddenly felt a pang of pain and no longer felt any burden.

"Shi'er, whether he is really stupid or faking it, take good care of him for two years. This is what our Ling family owes him." Ling Chengye sighed.

"Okay." Ling Yushi nodded obediently, her beautiful eyes showing a hint of joy, seeming to be very willing to accept this arrangement.

...

PS: On Monday, I humbly request everyone's support with recommendations. Thank you!

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