Chapter 143: Palace Master's Deal

"Seeing our Palace Master, why aren't you kneeling!" a disciple of the Five Absolutes Palace scolded Yan Shan Hai.

Yan Shan Hai neither answered nor knelt.

The Palace Master flicked her finger, and Yan Shan Hai immediately knelt, with no chance to resist. "You didn't need to kneel, but it's a pity you're now a thief who broke into the manor and stole."

Yan Shan Hai tried to rise, but an invisible force enveloped him, making it hard to move.

"You haven't disappointed me." When the Palace Master received the Absolute Killing Order from the Junior Palace Master, she said to the Junior Palace Master,

Not disappointing her is a form of praise; this has been the rule of the Five Absolutes Palace for a thousand years.

After completing the Palace Master's task, returning the Absolute Killing Order to her is also a thousand‑year rule of the Five Absolutes Palace. If it is not returned, it means the task is unfinished and the actor is dead, but since the founding of the Five Absolutes Palace, such a thing has never happened.

The Junior Palace Master dared not say another word or glance at the Palace Master, and silently stepped aside.

The Palace Master asked Yan Shan Hai, "Yan Shan Hai, successor of the Song Mountain Sect, Five Peaks' future hope, you need not feel discouraged; to be defeated by the Junior Palace Master is an honor for you! No matter how strong you may be before others, before the Five Absolutes Palace you will always be merely a weakling!"

Yan Shan Hai, unable to stand even with all his strength, gave up struggling and exclaimed excitedly, "Kill or cut, just do it! Why say so much?"

The Palace Master paused, then smiled, "It seems I'm getting old and talkative." She approached Yan Shan Hai, stared at him for a moment, then asked, "Why did you come to steal the thousand‑year ginseng? You know this path offers no return."

Yan Shan Hai originally did not want to answer.

Then a disciple of the Five Absolutes Palace urged, "Our Palace Master is asking you! Stop pretending to be stupid! If you don't want to die without a whole body, I advise you to answer quickly!"

"My mother is critically ill, past the point of cure; only thousand‑year ginseng can save her life." Yan Shan Hai said sadly, having been raised by his mother since childhood, their bond deep. Now he is grown, but his mother is aging and near death.

The Palace Master pondered, then spoke a line Yan Shan Hai would never forget: "Thousand‑year ginseng, I can give it to you."

Since the Five Absolutes Palace obtained the thousand‑year ginseng, it has never changed hands for a thousand years; countless have tried to steal, seize, or exchange it, all to no avail—Yan Shan Hai never expected the Palace Master to say such a thing!

……

It was a warm scene, with martial arts masters sitting together, blowing in the sea wind, draped in autumn's lingering glow, eagerly listening to one of them recount martial world anecdotes.

Just like listening to a storyteller, the audience were all equal, no distinctions, listening to Yan Shan Hai tell a story from twenty years ago.

Yan Shan Hai was also willing to speak; aside from some embarrassment, he could accept everything else. The only thing he could not speak of was his deal with the Palace Master.

Even though the previous Palace Master has passed, the current Palace Master will carry on her legacy and cooperate with him.

No one expected the Palace Master to actually be willing to give the thousand‑year ginseng to Yan Shan Hai.

"Back when you stormed the Five Absolutes Palace and stole the thousand‑year ginseng, your deed spread throughout the martial world!" Linghu Leng said.

"Sect Master Yan, you must be joking—the thousand‑year ginseng is comparable to a divine weapon, yet they're willing to hand it over!" Ximo Jianmo asked Yan Shan Hai.

"Yeah! The previous Palace Master was utterly heartless—how could she be moved by your mother's illness?" Duan Sheng also raised his doubt.

Ye Wuming said, "No wonder there's been no news of thousand‑year ginseng in the martial world for over twenty years—it must have been consumed. If that's the case, the Eastern Miss's life is surely doomed."

Yan Shan Hai let out a deep breath, relieved that nobody was making a fuss about his defeat at the hands of the then Junior Palace Master, now the Palace Master; otherwise he couldn't have endured it.

But none of this concerns Chen Yi He!

"Thou... thousand‑year ginseng... did your mother eat it?" Chen Yi He asked Yan Shan Hai despondently; the faint hope he still held shattered, and he felt like he was about to cry.

"No... I haven't been telling you that if it had been consumed, I would have discouraged you earlier!" Yan Shan Hai found it somewhat funny, being amused by Chen Yi He's comical expression.

Chen Yi He then breathed a sigh of relief, sat down on the ground, and listened to Yan Shan Hai's leisurely narration.

"After I obtained the thousand‑year ginseng, I rushed back to Song Mountain as fast as I could, but alas, I was still a step late—my mother passed away the night before. The thousand‑year ginseng I painstakingly acquired ultimately went unused." Yan Shan Hai shook his head helplessly, giving a bitter laugh, "Heh... truly a pity..."

"Is the thousand‑year ginseng with you on Song Mountain?" Chen Yi He asked.

"Little brother, you're thinking too simply."

"Where did it go then?" Hu Bao eagerly asked.

Yan Shan Hai paused, then looked at everyone and said with an embarrassed tone, "I actually sent it back to the Five Absolutes Palace overnight again."

"What!" everyone exclaimed in unison.

"I wouldn't believe it even if you beat me to death!" Duan Sheng rose, his towering figure like a mountain about to crush everyone.

"Why would you send it back?" Nun Shang Rong asked, puzzled.

Yan Shan Hai replied, adding, "Um, is this really strange…? Don't look at me like that."

Everyone knows the thousand‑year ginseng not only has the god‑like effect of raising the dead, but also greatly enhances one's cultivation. Yet Yan Shan Hai gave up this opportunity and actively returned the ginseng.

If there's nothing fishy about this, then Yan Shan Hai's character deserves admiration from everyone present.

"I would have eaten it myself!" Ximo Jianmo felt it a pity for Yan Shan Hai.

Yan Shan Hai pursed his lips and said with a smile, "I think it's better to cultivate power and strength through one's own practice; relying on external aids ultimately isn't truly one's own."

Everyone nodded in agreement; masters at their level undoubtedly understand this.

Chen Yi He eagerly asked Yan Shan Hai, "You mean the thousand‑year ginseng is still in the Five Absolutes Palace?"

"Hmm, in the hands of the Junior Palace Master back then." Yan Shan Hai nodded.

Chen Yi He's fighting spirit and hope were awakened.

"But she would hardly be willing now to bring out the thousand‑year ginseng for a trade." Yan Shan Hai reminded.

No one pressed Yan Shan Hai for details of his past deal with the Palace Master; it's their private matter, and prying would be inappropriate.