3: Yan Kui

"Can Fatty Bao and Xiao Feng Cultivate with me?" Jiang Ye asked, blinking his eyes with a look of anticipation.

"Those two brats? Then let them come along! But remember, you must never tell anyone about this. If this secret gets out, you'll die even sooner!"

Jiang Ye's small frame shuddered, and he hurriedly nodded like a chicken pecking at grain. "I know, I know! I won't tell anyone! By the way, my name is Jiang Ye. What's your name, Uncle?"

"Yan Kui!" the middle-aged man uttered coldly.

"Oh, why did your father give you such an ugly name?" Jiang Ye scratched his head and asked with an innocent expression.

Yan Kui was nearly pushed to a rage, the veins on his forehead throbbing. "Is your name any better? Just call me Uncle Yan from now on!"

"Oh, Uncle Yan, how do we get back up?" Jiang Ye pointed at the cliff above, looking a bit worried.

"I'll send you up. Remember, you must come here to Cultivate tomorrow, or else no one will be able to save you." Yan Kui's tone was serious, and a complex look flickered in his eyes.

Jiang Ye nodded his small head and said seriously, "I understand! Uncle Yan, are you very powerful? Are you as powerful as Brother Tianyang's master?"

Yan Kui's veins bulged again as he roared, "Don't compare me to those ants! I could blow them into oblivion with a single fart!"

"Hahaha! Uncle Yan, so your farts are that powerful! But won't they be really smelly? I want to learn your Fart Technique too." Jiang Ye laughed so hard he doubled over, completely failing to notice that Yan Kui's face had turned as black as the bottom of a pot.

"Go up and catch your wild boar!" Fearing he wouldn't be able to resist striking the boy, Yan Kui simply waved his hand and sent him up to the edge of the cliff.

Yan Kui continued to sit cross-legged within the Magic Array, looking somewhat weak. He looked up at the sky in silence for a long time, an indescribable emotion flashing in his eyes.

"Little brat, if I ever die trapped here, you shall defy the heavens in my stead! Avenge me and slaughter them all." Yan Kui murmured softly, his voice filled with endless hatred and resentment.

---

At the edge of the cliff, Jiang Ye saw that Shi Bao and Shi Feng hadn't woken up yet. His heart tightened; afraid of being mocked for wetting his pants, he quickly ran to the trap to catch the wild boar.

Amidst the wild boar's squeals, the restraints Yan Kui had placed on Shi Bao and Shi Feng were released, and the two woke up in a daze. Seeing that Jiang Ye wasn't there, they immediately ran toward the trap.

"Ye Zai, is it dead?" Shi Bao asked, panting. He saw Jiang Ye holding a rock, with the wild boar lying at the bottom of the trap, on the verge of death.

"Yeah, hurry over and help pull it up. This boar isn't small; our families can have a grand feast tonight." Jiang Ye wiped the sweat from his forehead and said with a smile.

Shi Feng took the rope they had brought and threw one end into the trap. "Ye Zai, tie its legs. The three of us will pull it up together."

An hour later, the three finally dragged the wild boar back to Jiang Ye's house. It was already dark by then. Jiang Ye called over Shi Bao's father—a large, stout man who walked over with a butcher knife in hand.

The three of them were next-door neighbors, their houses connected, so they often ate together.

Shi Bao's father asked while sharpening his knife, "You brats, why are you back so late today? If you were another half hour, we would have gone out looking for you."

Jiang Ye scratched his head and made up an excuse on the fly. "We were waiting for the wild boar to fall into the trap and then fell asleep. Mom, I'm going to take a shower first!"

Lin Min, Jiang Ye's mother, was a bit surprised to hear this. "This wild child, how is he so proactive about showering today? Usually, he won't go even if I chase him with a stick." She turned to Shi Bao's father and said, "Shi Bao's father, you clean the boar first, I'll go boil some water."

"Alright, Sister-in-law, leave this boar to me!" Shi Bao's father replied readily.

Lin Min was about to go to the kitchen to boil water when she accidentally glanced at Jiang Ye showering nearby. When she saw the two strange marks on his arm, her body couldn't help but tremble, and her face instantly turned pale. She hurriedly took a piece of jade from her bosom and crushed it without hesitation!

---

In a distant place, inside a spacious Assembly Hall, seven or eight people were seated. A young man suddenly sensed an emergency summons and stood up from his seat in a panic.

"Ling Yi, what's wrong?" an old man asked with a frown.

"It's nothing! I have something to take care of. You guys continue the discussion and just tell me the result later." After saying that, the young man prepared to leave the Assembly Hall, his face filled with anxiety.