Blood Python Grass and Assassin

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  Ye Chen, Wei Zhen and Zou Yi, three sixth-layer martial artists of the Refining Body stage, set out together from Beimu Academy to search for the Grey Wolf's tracks in the depths of the northern mountains.

  A journey of over a hundred miles is just a day's work for warriors like them.

  "Ye Chen, my junior brother, yesterday you really made us commoner kids proud, snatching the title of fastest to pass the strength assessment. From now on, who dares say that we commoner kids are not talented? Didn't you see Ma Ruyuan's face turn green with rage, wishing he could crawl into a crack in the ground? I've been stuck in the upper academy for four whole years, and at the age of twenty, I'll be kicked out without achieving anything. I've suffered countless condescending looks from those aristocratic kids, but yesterday was finally a happy moment."

  Wei Zhen's eyebrows opened and he smiled with his right hand holding a dagger, walking in front of the three people.

  He is short and agile, with a nimble body, scouting ahead to gather information. If he encounters wild beasts, he can react quickly. Generally, for ordinary wild beasts, snakes, and scorpions, he can easily take care of them. However, when encountering those large and ferocious wild beasts, it's somewhat troublesome, as the short dagger is not lethal enough. When the fierce beast struggles in its death throes, he may even get injured.

  "Wei Shixiong overpraised me, I just happened to meet him, if I promoted to the Upper Court a few months earlier or he was late for a few months, the result would be completely different."

  Ye Chen just smiled and shook his head, without paying attention to this title.

  He walks in the middle with a steel knife at his waist, is the real combat power. In the deep mountains, when encountering large ferocious beasts such as tigers and leopards, Wei Zhen must quickly retreat, only he can rush up to fight hard. With "Tiger Leap Double Slash", his frontal killing power is absolutely fierce.

  However, this time Ye Shidi has thoroughly offended Ma Ruyuan. The Ma family, one of the five great aristocratic families in Wuguo, has children and younger generations all over the court, especially in the military, where their power is even greater. Ma Ruyuan is also the eldest son of General Ma Bo, the Great Protector of the Country. In the future, if you serve the imperial court and join the army, you may be ostracized by the Ma family's children and younger generations.

  Zou Yi's expression was somewhat worried, following behind Ye Chen, at the back, holding a long bow, ready to quickly support Wei Zhen and Ye Chen from behind at any time.

  In fact, the warriors who can be verified by Beifeng Academy are not weak. With Ye Chen's addition as a strong middle force, their three-man team is also an elite squad that can contend with small groups of gray wolves.

  "What's there to be afraid of? The imperial court of Wu State, it's not like the Ma family has a say in anything! Besides, we don't necessarily have to spend our whole lives in Wu State. There are countless countries in Yunzhou, and Wu State is just a small one. Can't we find opportunities in other countries too?"

  Wei Zhen was very carefree and didn't mind at all.

  "Elder Wei said it right, when we reach the mountain, there will be a way, no need to worry so much."

  Ye Chen couldn't help but feel a little amused and moved, as the two senior brothers seemed to be more anxious than he was. In fact, the reason he wanted to graduate from Beifeng Academy as soon as possible was that he couldn't find any treasures within the academy that could supplement his '田力' (farmland energy), which had caused his cultivation to stagnate.

  If he can't graduate smoothly this time, he will have to stay here for another half a year, which is too much of a waste of time.

  Ye Chen planned to travel abroad after graduating from the academy, whether in Wu Guo or other countries around it. He did not plan to serve the Wu State court as an official, nor did he want to join the army and become a general, so he didn't need to consider Ma Ruyuan's noble family background at all.

  Ye Chen didn't express this idea.

  The three of them said, after several days, they gradually entered the deep mountains on the north slope. In order to find the gray wolf's footprints, their pace was not fast, walking and stopping, climbing mountains and wading rivers, often taking treacherous paths.

  "Hmm, there are several piles of gray wolf dung here... A gray wolf passed through this thicket three to five days ago, leaving unclear footprints and an unknown number. They may still be active in this area!"

  Wei Zhen searched very carefully and found the gray wolf's dung left on the leaves on the ground, pinched it, and found that it had gradually dried up. He sniffed it, and his expression began to tense up.

  Zou Yi was shocked by what he heard and had already drawn an arrow from his quiver on his back.

  "It's okay, this isn't the gray wolves' territory, they're just passing by."

  Ye Chen looked towards the cluster of trees, still relaxed.

  "Ye Chen, it seems like you're very familiar with this place, have you been here before?"

  Wei Zhen turned back and said in surprise.

  "I previously stayed on the outskirts of Beifeng Mountain for three months, searching for herbs and cultivating. I've been to this area before to search for herbs. This is a striped tiger's hunting ground, as long as it doesn't die, the gray wolf pack won't stay here for long."

  Ye Chen nodded slightly and said.

  "Oh, then let's keep going!"

  Wei Zhen only then realized he had been too tense, relaxed and got up to move forward. Although the spotted tiger was extremely powerful, it often acted alone, making it easier to deal with in some ways. Unfortunately, the goal of the academy's graduation assessment wasn't to hunt down the spotted tiger.

  "Wait!"

  Ye Chen's gaze swept over a patch of rocks on the mountain ridge and suddenly stopped.

  "What's wrong?"

  Wei Zhen and Zou Yi suddenly tensed up, each holding their weapons, looking around in shock and uncertainty.

  Ye Chen had already rushed out, nimbly climbing up the several-zhang-high rock, his eyes scanning the top of a crack in the rock to see if there were any snakes, scorpions or insects inside, then reached in and pulled out a plant that looked like a python, about one foot long, with a light red color.

  "Is this Blood Python Grass? I've seen it in a medical book, it's a rare herb used by 9th layer Body Refining cultivators to enhance their Qi and blood. Without a hundred taels of gold, don't even think about buying it. By the time you reach the 9th layer of Body Refining, ordinary herbs are useless, only this rare herb can continue to temper the body."

  Wei Zhen was startled and looked at Ye Chen's hand, swallowing a mouthful of saliva.

  "This Blood Python Grass is still too young, only a fifth-grade product, its medicinal properties are far from sufficient, at most it can be sold for a hundred taels of silver. If it's allowed to grow for another one or two hundred years, it will become a ninth-grade rare herb, that's when it'll be worth a hundred taels of gold."

  Ye Chen picked down the Blood Python Grass, looked at it for a moment, then flipped over from the rock and jumped down. He put the herb into his bosom with a regretful expression. His face didn't reveal anything, but he was ecstatic in his heart. Having stayed on Beimu Mountain for so long, such rare herbs were extremely hard to come by. If he could upgrade its grade, it would be greatly beneficial to his cultivation.

  "Your luck is already incredibly good! One hundred taels of silver can buy a pretty decent weapon."

  "Alas, how did I miss it?"

  Wei Zhen shook his head and sighed.

  Wei Zhen and Zou Yi only admired it, they then carefully searched around the rock but did not find any other Blood Python Grass.

  But luck is something that relies on vision and opportunity, it can't be envied into existence.

  Otherwise, Wei Zhen walked in front and did not find out.

  Ye Chen's sharp eyes spotted the rare herb hidden in the rock crevice.

  "Hey, I've been in the mountains for three months, and I'm used to finding herbs. At a glance, I can tell where there might be herbs and where there aren't. If both of you brothers were to stay in the mountains for half a year, I'm afraid you'd find herbs even faster than me."

  Ye Chen smiled and said.

  "This northern mountain is so deep, who dares to stay here for so long!"

  Wei Zhen shook his head.

  A small mountain ridge in a deep mountain hundreds of miles away from the northern foot.

  Under the sunset, Ma Ruyu and four young scholars from Beilu Academy stood on a high mountain ridge, gazing at the movements in the distant forest.

  Those young scholars were also younger generations of a large family, but not as prominent as the Ma family. They followed Ma Ruyuan closely because of their family ties.

  "Where is Ye Chen?"

  Ma Ruyuan pressed the hilt of his waist knife with one hand, feeling anxious and uneasy.

  "Master Ma, no need to rush. This is an important place in the deep mountains of Beifeng. Once we pass this mountain, it will be one of the areas where the gray wolf often roams. If he wants to hunt down the gray wolf as soon as possible, there's a high chance he'll come here. If he doesn't come here, then he'll have to go even further away, and we can still intercept him when he returns!"

  One of the young men spoke up, somewhat worried, "But what does Master Ma plan to do with him? Are we really going to take action and kill him here? ... If this matter gets out, the crime of killing a fellow disciple will be severe. The headmaster will be furious and probably won't let us off lightly."

  "Hmph, every year at the Academy's graduation assessment, in order to kill Gray Wolf, a few disciples will inevitably die unexpectedly! At that time, they'll just say that this guy died in Gray Wolf's mouth, who dares to say it was me, Ma Ruyuan, who did it?! To make things clean and clear is my goal. I, Ma Ruyuan, suffered such humiliation at the Academy, yet didn't take revenge, how can I go back to Wang City to see my father?! His life must be left here, to wash away the stains on me!"

  Ma Ruyuan's voice and expression were both stern, and he said with a deep hatred in his eyes, "A strong murderous intent."