Chapter 38: Ye Chen's Strength

  The raccoon dog jumped up from Ye Chen's arms and stood on his shoulders, seeing Ye Huan smiling sweetly, but actually pouting.

  Ye Chen and Ye Lian walked together towards the family hall, chatting as they went.

  "Brother Ye Chen, the day after tomorrow is the Lianyun Eighteen Fort martial arts competition, are you going?" Ye Xi raised her head and looked at Ye Chen with a worried expression.

  "Uh-huh." Ye Chen nodded and said, after calculating the time, he suddenly realized that the day after tomorrow was the Liyun Eighteen Fort Martial Arts Competition.

  "Can Brother Ye Chen not go?" Ye Dai asked with her head lowered.

  "I must go." Ye Chen said firmly with a smile, patting Ye Xuan's head, "Don't worry, I'll be fine."

  "If Brother Ye Chen is going, can I come along? I'm already mid-7th rank now, I won't hold everyone back." Ye Xi looked at Ye Chen with hopeful eyes.

  "Then you have to ask my father." Ye Chen said, definitely can't bring Xiao Er to Yunjia Fortress, just looking at Xiao Er's eyes, he couldn't bear to refuse, could only shift the responsibility to his father, because he knew that his father would not let Xiao Er go.

  "Now that Brother Ye Chen is the clan leader, as long as Brother Ye Chen agrees, I can go, right?" Leaf Hui suddenly thought of something and said.

  Tribe leader? Ye Chen only then realized that he had actually forgotten about this, a few days ago, his father had already announced within the tribe that Ye Chen was now the new tribe leader, but Ye Chen still hadn't adapted to this change in identity.

  Ye Chen smiled wryly and said: "Although I am now the clan leader, it's still better to ask my father for this kind of thing."

  "Oh." Ye Xuan's eyes dimmed, she knew that Uncle Zhan Tian would absolutely not let her go.

  As they spoke, Ye Chen and Ye Xuan walked together across the square in front of the family hall.

  "Tribe leader."

  "Tribe leader." Upon seeing Ye Chen, a group of tribe members stood up on both sides and respectfully said.

  When he suddenly heard a group of people calling him that, Ye Chen felt uncomfortable all over and looked at Huan'er with a bitter smile. He saw Huan'er pursing her lips to stifle a laugh, the corners of her mouth revealing shallow dimples, tender enough to squeeze out water.

  Ye Chen still felt a sense of respect from the people of his ethnic group, and he also felt a greater sense of responsibility in his heart.

  "Tribe leader." Ye Mong, who was also cultivating nearby, stopped and said respectfully.

  "Yè Méng, from now on, just call me Yè Chén Gē, okay?" Yè Chén said, looking at Yè Méng.

  "No way, this is what our elders have passed down, it's the family rules, can't be changed." Ye Meng said with a serious expression on his small face.

  Yechen also felt helpless when he heard Yemong's answer.

  In the eyes of the clansmen, the clan leader is a very sacred existence, leading them to survive stubbornly in this world and allowing the clan to continue. The clan leader is like a father, regardless of age!

  His father and uncle handed over the position of head of the clan to him so early, which is also a sign that they want him to gain more experience.

  Three people entered the family hall together, where there were already sixty or seventy people. Father and Uncle Ye sat at the top of the hall, and Ye Chen's divine soul instantly sensed the changes in the strength of the crowd in the hall. His father was only one line away from the mid-term of the 9th rank, and his second uncle, Ye Zhanlong, who had been stuck in the middle term of the 8th rank, had also reached the peak of the 8th rank. Three uncles, Ye Zhanxiong, and three other seniors of the Zhan generation entered the 8th rank. Two 9th ranks and five 8th ranks!

  Apart from the 9th and 8th ranks, there are also 17 people at the 7th rank and 31 people at the 6th rank.

  Ye Chen's two older brothers, Ye Peng and Ye Mu, had both advanced to the mid-sixth rank, which made Ye Chen feel quite relieved.

  Since obtaining the Lei Emperor's decree, the strength of Yejia Fortress has increased by more than two times!

  Ye Chen was astonished, as a Seventh-Order peak cultivator, he could actually discern the strength of everyone in the great hall within such a short period of time. This made him feel quite surprised, and it seemed that the Soul Spirit was indeed incredibly useful.

  "Chen Er, you're here." Ye Zhan Tian had checked the strength of all the people in the tribe one by one, and his face was filled with joy. In just a few short days, the strength of the Ye family village had actually risen so quickly, making him feel quite excited.

  "Father, Uncle, Second Uncle..." Ye Chen greeted the elders with respect.

  "Clan leader." The clansmen on both sides of the hall said in unison, standing solemnly on either side.

  Hearing this title, Ye Chen couldn't help but smile bitterly.

  "Haha, Chen'er may still be a bit unaccustomed." Ye Zhantian burst out laughing when he saw Ye Chen's expression, then thought for a moment and said in a serious tone, "In chaotic times, survival is not easy. Since you are already the head of the Ye family clan, you should plan for the well-being of your people and the survival of the clan. Remember not to slack off."

  Ye Chen looked around and saw the eager and hopeful eyes of his people, and suddenly a feeling that was hard to put into words surged up in his heart. He said solemnly: "I understand!"

  Ye Cangxuan smiled and waved his hand, signaling Ye Zhantian to stop lecturing Ye Chen: "Alright, let's not talk about these heavy topics anymore. Earlier, I tested your uncles' and brothers' abilities with your father, now it's your turn."

  Ye Zhan's expression eased slightly, and he said kindly: "Chen Er must have also advanced to the sixth rank, right? Has he reached mid-sixth rank yet?"

  Should he tell his father that he had already reached the seventh stage? If he said it out loud, all the elders would probably be shocked. Ye Chen was still hesitating whether to say it or not, and casually responded with a "yes".

  "You and your brothers, Ye Meng, Ye Ming, etc., many have already entered the sixth stage. Even your two older brothers, Ye Peng and Ye Mu, who didn't show much talent before the age of 18 and couldn't enter the sixth stage, made progress again in their cultivation after practicing the Lei Di Secret Art, which makes me extremely happy."

  "Congratulations, Big Brother and Second Brother." Ye Chen looked at Ye Peng and Ye Mu beside him, smiling.

  Ye Peng and Ye Mu looked at Ye Chen with gratitude. If it weren't for Ye Chen, their Xuanqi wouldn't have made such great progress.

  "It's up to you now." Ye Zhantian looked at Ye Chen.

  "Big brother, let me test Chen Er," Ye Zhanxiong said with a smile.

  "Uh-huh." Ye Zhan Tian nodded and looked at Ye Chen, "Now it's your Third Uncle's turn to test you!"

  Ye Zhan Xiong walked to the center of the hall, while everyone else stood on both sides of the hall at a relatively distant position. Their eyes all fell on Ye Chen alone, and they didn't know how Ye Chen's strength was now. The crowd also had expectations in their hearts. Ye Chen was already the head of the family, and if Ye Zhan Tian were to step down, the Ye family would be led by Ye Chen. They still hoped to know whether Ye Chen had enough strength and talent to take on the position of head!

  Under the gaze of numerous uncles and brothers in the clan, Ye Chen also felt a great deal of pressure, he deeply felt the weight of responsibility on his shoulders.

  Ye Zhanxiong exuded an aura of majesty, like a towering mountain, standing in the center of the hall. His entire body was covered with a thin layer of Lingqi, and after reaching the 8th stage, the quality of his Xuanqi had greatly improved, allowing him to condense it into Lingqi. The Lingqi flowed continuously around his body. He raised his head and looked at Ye Chen: "Chen'er, come on, use all your might to strike a palm and let the elders see what level your Xuanqi has reached." A powerful oppressive force pressed forward.

  The powerful aura of a mid-8th stage expert caused many younger members of the various families to retreat back a bit.

  Ye Zhan Tian and Ye Cang Xuan's gazes were fixed on Ye Chen, who remained calm and composed under such pressure, causing them to smile inwardly.

  "Chen Er's strength should be able to contend with the peak of sixth rank now." Ye Cangxuan stroked his white beard, smiling slightly.

  "Big brother is still worried about Chen Er's cultivation, with Chen Er's talent and intelligence, the progress of his cultivation will definitely not be worse than that of other family juniors." Ye Zhan Long looked at Ye Zhan Tian.

  Ye Zhan Tian looked extremely satisfied, with a hint of a smile at the corner of his mouth.

  Ye Chen circulated the Xuan Qi inside his body, offsetting Third Uncle's Xuan Qi pressure, and slowly condensed the Xuan Qi into his right palm.

  Suddenly, Ye Chen's body emitted a unique and mysterious aura, as if he had merged with everything around him. The aura in the bodies of all the people around him was being drawn by some kind of special energy mechanism.

  "Huh." Ye Cangxuan exclaimed in surprise, exchanging a glance with Ye Zhantian, both seeing the shocked expression in each other's eyes.

  Eight-stage and nine-stage masters, their auras are actually being drawn in. Chen Er's cultivation of Xuan Qi is indeed somewhat unusual. They can feel it out, Ye Chen's body has very strong Xuan Qi, possibly already beyond the sixth stage!