Here is a direct translation of Chapter 104 – Ye Xun Arrives at the Imperial Capital, maintaining the original structure
Chapter 104 – Ye Xun Arrives at the Imperial Capital
"Shitou." Mu Chen crossed his arms and stood on the stone steps below, looking at Lan Ruofeng and Ye Shi with a smile in his eyes.
Seeing Mu Chen, Ye Shi immediately shook off Lan Ruofeng, quickly walked over to Mu Chen, and held Mu Chen's arm tightly.
Lan Ruofeng stood on the high steps, looking at Mu Chen below, and his heart tightened.
Lan Ruofeng narrowed his eyes. Logically, he was in the higher position and should have the advantage in every aspect, but for some reason, he always felt he was being overwhelmed by Mu Chen's presence.
Mu Chen looked up at Lan Ruofeng with a playful expression, his eyes full of disdain.
Lan Ruofeng's eyes narrowed for a while — Mu Chen's expression was clearly provocative! This guy Mu Chen actually dared to look down on him.
Ye Shi clung to Mu Chen's arm, his expression constantly changing, unsure what he was thinking.
Looking at Ye Shi's pale face, Mu Chen couldn't help but feel a little strange. Ye Shi's grip on his arm was so tight that it began to hurt.
"Let's go." Mu Chen smiled and said.
Ye Shi nodded and followed Mu Chen to leave.
"What did Lan Ruofeng say to you?" Mu Chen asked.
Ye Shi frowned and said, "He spoke vaguely, just rambling nonsense."
Mu Chen smiled and said, "Perhaps it wasn't that he wasn't clear — maybe he has other intentions."
Ye Shi suddenly said, "I understand now. He sent people to kill me before and failed, so now he's trying to come at me himself. That guy is really shameless!" That guy, Lan Ruofeng, is so twisted, always trying to sow discord. Truly disgusting.
"Don't think about him. That guy's brain has problems." Mu Chen said coldly.
Ye Shi nodded. "Got it."
Ye Shi followed Mu Chen to the secluded courtyard where Mu Chen lived.
The Inscription Academy had arranged an individual room for Mu Chen. However, Mu Chen liked peace and didn't want others poking into his secrets, so he spent a large amount of resources to rent a separate courtyard.
Ye Shi placed the box on the table and said, "Uncle Chen said the password is my parents' birthdays."
"You know your parents' birthdays?" Mu Chen asked.
Ye Shi nodded. "I know. They asked me about it from time to time. I used to find it strange, but now I finally understand."
"Your parents really had foresight." Mu Chen smiled.
Ye Shi entered the numbers, and the box clicked open.
Ye Shi looked at the various items inside and couldn't help blinking.
"This is a medicinal pill?" Ye Shi picked up a bottle and examined it.
"This is a fourth-grade pill, Qianlian Bone Tempering Pill. It can improve your physique. Taking this pill might push you to a seven-star martial artist." Mu Chen commented.
Ye Shi narrowed his eyes. "It's that effective?"
"I'll keep it for you for now. Wait two days before taking it. This Qianlian Bone Tempering Pill, combined with a Nine Transformation Body Refining Liquid I recently found, will have miraculous effects. I'll prepare it for you in the next couple of days." Mu Chen said.
Ye Shi nodded. "Okay."
"There's also the pill recipe for the Qianlian Bone Tempering Pill. This is a fourth-grade pill recipe!" Mu Chen said excitedly.
A fourth-grade recipe — that's an incredible treasure! Third-grade pills could still be bought with enough resources, but fourth-grade pills were extremely rare, even with money.
Mu Chen told Ye Shi the pill wasn't effective for him, but in truth, he was lying. There was only one pill, so he let Ye Shi have it. As long as he had the recipe, he could refine more in the future once he had the right herbs.
Mu Chen lowered his head. If he hadn't appeared, the things in this box would have fallen into Lan Ruofeng's hands. In the original story, Lan Ruofeng used this very pill to refine thousands of bone-tempering pills and upgrade his foundation.
"What's this!" Ye Shi picked up a crystal bottle. "Looks like ordinary lake water!"
"Careful, that should be Soul Condensation Water. It can increase soul power." Mu Chen said seriously.
Ye Shi's eyes widened. "Isn't that useful for your soul cultivation?"
Mu Chen nodded. "Yes."
"Then keep it," Ye Shi said.
Mu Chen looked at Ye Shi, nodded, and said, "Alright."
There was a protective robe in the box, along with third- and fourth-grade talisman records.
"There's a Yuan Stone card!" Ye Shi said in surprise.
Mu Chen picked it up and checked it. "There are 20 million Yuan Stones in it."
"Only 20 million!"
Mu Chen looked at Ye Shi's expression, smiled helplessly, and said, "Alright, be content. 20 million is a lot. You could buy a mountain of roasted chicken with it."
Ye Shi nodded seriously. "That's true."
A carriage was traveling down the official road, but when it reached a checkpoint, it was stopped.
"Two thousand stones for the toll."
"Toll?
"Who do you think you are?!" a city guard barked coldly.
"I am Ye Shi's father! Do you know Ye Shi? He's a freshman at Sacred Star Academy, the personal disciple of a Martial King. My son is the Martial King's disciple!" Ye Xun said proudly.
"Oh, you're Ye Shi's father? And I'm Ye Shi's grandfather then. Two thousand stones — not a single one less." the guard responded coldly.
"You… you people! You don't know what's good for you!" Ye Xun glared angrily.
"Watch your mouth, fatty. Show some respect." the city guard captain barked.
Ye Xun's face turned red. "If you treat me like this, my son won't let you go!"
The captain snorted coldly. "Three thousand Yuan Stones now."
Ye Xun gritted his teeth. "Wasn't it two thousand earlier?"
"It was two thousand. Now it's three. If you argue more, it'll be five." The guard smirked.
Ye Xun's face turned blue and then white.
No matter how angry he was, in the end, he still handed over three thousand Yuan Stones.
"Husband, stop using Ye Shi's name to bully others!" A charming woman in the carriage said helplessly.
She was Wang Li, mother of Ye Rong. Along the journey, Ye Xun kept using Ye Shi's name to intimidate others, but this time the guards didn't care.
Ye Xun gnashed his teeth in frustration. "That brat who couldn't be helped actually became the disciple of a Martial King and still acts so useless."
Wang Li smoothed Ye Xun's hair. "Alright, don't get angry."
After a while, Ye Xun calmed down. "How many Yuan Stones do we have?"
"Two hundred thousand," Wang Li replied.
"Only two hundred thousand?! Ye Ming said it costs millions just to live in the imperial capital for a day!" Ye Xun said bitterly.
"Husband, did Ye Shi reply to your letter?" Wang Li asked.
Ye Xun angrily shook his head. "No! That ungrateful brat dares ignore me — after I raised him all those years!"
Wang Li was also disappointed. Ye Rong had written back and said that Ye Shi was now extremely wealthy, spending money like water and collecting storage rings one after another.
After hearing that, Ye Xun had immediately written a letter to Ye Shi, asking for a million Yuan Stones.
He originally wanted to ask for ten million but didn't dare.
But the letter never got a reply — it sank like a stone.
Ye Xun clenched his teeth. "Damn it, just one million is nothing to him. How stingy!"
"Husband, I heard last month that Mu Chen spent hundreds of thousands to send back a broken pill to his father, and that helped him break through to the Martial Spirit Realm. Now his father has also arrived in the imperial capital." Wang Li leaned on Ye Xun as she spoke.
Mu Yuanfeng's case had caused a huge stir.
Even though Mu Chen had entered Sacred Star Academy, he still cared deeply for his father, becoming a model of filial piety.
When Ye Xun heard that, he couldn't sleep for nights, overcome with jealousy.
Wang Li continued, "Ye Rong said Ye Shi is constantly making things difficult for her at the academy. Poor Rong'er worked so hard to get in, but now she has to suffer under Ye Shi."
She began to sob.
When she saw Ye Rong's letter, Wang Li was heartbroken. She had expected her daughter to prosper after joining the academy, but competition was fierce and Ye Rong struggled — while Ye Shi thrived.
"Captain, do you think that guy is really Ye Shi's father?" a city guard asked, watching Ye Xun's carriage disappear.
"How could that be? Ye Shi has eighth-level talent. A dragon gives birth to a dragon, a phoenix to a phoenix. Look at that fat man. How could he produce a son like that?" the captain said with disdain.
"Well said, Captain." one praised.
"Anyone dares pretend to be the Martial King's disciple's father nowadays. Isn't he afraid of getting beaten?" another sneered.
"If we had known he was a fraud, we should've charged him even more — that would've been justice from the heavens."
Ye Shi said goodbye to Mu Chen and walked toward his room.
As he walked, Ye Rong suddenly jumped out.
Ye Shi's expression darkened.
"Ye Rong, what do you want?" Ye Shi asked unhappily.
Ye Shi narrowed his eyes, thinking: That dean must be senile from old age. Mu Chen clearly wasn't at fault last time, yet he got punished — while Ye Rong, the real culprit, remained fine.
"I came to ask, did my father send you a letter? Did you read it?" Ye Rong asked.
Ye Shi crossed his arms and lazily replied, "Ye Xun sent me a letter? I didn't see it."
Ye Rong frowned. "You're calling your father by name?"
"He's your father, not mine," Ye Shi said coldly.
Ye Rong frowned. "Anyway, go back and take a look."
"Alright, I got it. You can go now." Ye Shi said casually.
Seeing Ye Shi's indifferent attitude, Ye Rong clenched her fists. Now that Ye Shi has grown wings, even his father can be ignored.
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