"The long-term task has been completed; it seems it's related to the fame."
"System, claim the reward."
"Congratulations player, you have won the rewards: Family Talents, Branch Capacity: Increase Family's All-Around Ability by 100 (Green)."
With the All-Around Ability of the family improved, does that mean I can pass down my alchemy skills?
If I could elevate my alchemy skills to the second level, it would significantly enhance Ye Fan's abilities.
This round wasn't a loss.
...
The next day, Ye Fan called Ye Xiaoxiao over.
"Xiao Xiao, you will stay in the family from now on, and you can do whatever you like."
Upon hearing Ye Fan's words, Ye Xiaoxiao suddenly raised her head: "Brother, I want to learn martial arts."
"You want to learn martial arts?"
Ye Fan had not expected that his seemingly frail little sister would want to train in martial arts.
Ye Xiaoxiao had now left, and, having been brought back by Ye Fan, was naturally a member of the Ye family, able to enjoy the bonus from the family talents.
If she wants to learn martial arts, then there's no problem at all.
"If you wish to learn martial arts, then I, your brother, will support you with everything."
"Mm."
Ye Xiaoxiao nodded her head, deciding that from now on, she would be living not for any man's sake, but for the Ye family.
She wanted to learn martial arts, and to practice with a blade.
A wave of killing intent was emitted from Ye Xiaoxiao, causing Ye Fan to shudder.
The aura from Ye Xiaoxiao gave Ye Fan a familiar feeling.
Such a temperament!
Ye Fan was suddenly looking forward to seeing what kind of martial artist Ye Xiaoxiao would become in the future.
Since Ye Xiaoxiao joined the Ye family, Zhou Long and Zhou Feng also officially changed their names.
Ye Jinlong, Ye Jinfeng.
Little Dragon and Little Phoenix were quite fond of these two names.
Detaching from the Zhou Family was something they couldn't wait to do.
Ye Fan and his wife, Ye Jintian and his wife, Ye Jinhai, Ye Jinqiu, and the family of three: Ye Xiaoxiao.
Without realising, the Ye family's household has reached nine people.
According to Ye Fan's estimation, the second stage of the long-term mission: Family Population, will be to hit a number of ten family members.
Just one member short, Ye Fan was itching to complete this task.
Work harder, work harder!
...
Ye Xiaoxiao's family also started training in martial arts, following the Body Cultivation Technique they obtained from the Liu Family, the pure elemental Body Cultivation Skill.
And Ye Fan, able to synthesise elixirs, officially began producing a new elixir, the Body Forging Elixir.
The recipe for the Body Forging Elixir didn't differ much from the Body Building Powder, Ye Fan very quickly calculated it.
It's just that one of the precious medicinal herbs, Ten-Year Body Forging Grass, was required in quantities ten times more than bodies of the Body Building Powder.
This Body Forging Grass could only be purchased from the Duobao Pavilion, at fifty silver taels per root.
Fortunately, the Pavilion knew that Ye Fan could create the Body Building Powder, so there was no suspicion of him.
Summing up, a furnace load of Body Forging Elixir required medicinal ingredients worth a hundred silver taels in full.
Without True Qi, Ye Fan could only refine it manually.
There was likely to be only around five elixirs per furnace load, each worth close to twenty silver taels.
Though it seemed cheaper, the effects of the Body Forging Elixir could only last three days, necessitating ten in a month.
Apart from Ye Fan and Ye Xiaoxiao, the rest of the Ye Family required Elixirs for their training.
So the resources required for a month of cultivation equaled a whopping six hundred silver taels.
Adding other costs, martial artists were conventionally good eaters, so the Ye Family's monthly consumption would total around eight hundred silver taels.
And that equals ten thousand silver taels per year.
The entire assets of the Ye family only equaled more than six thousand silver taels currently.
Ye Fan rubbed his eyebrows, knowing he would have to think of more ways to earn money.
Now, revealing his alchemy abilities was not an option, as the foundation of the Ye family remained very shallow.
The choice to switch back to powder instead of elixirs, Ye Fan did not even want to think of it.
Elixirs can enhance cultivation advancements by over twice as much as ordinary medicinal mixtures.
According to Ye Fan's estimation, if they consistently consume Body Forging Elixirs and similar types of elixirs, at least one person in the Ye Family would reach the Peak of Body Forging within three years.
The stronger the Ye Family, the stronger Ye Fan would become.
Even if he had to resort to robbery, Ye Fan would not slow down the cultivation speed of his clan members.
A week quickly passed, and a group of people arrived at the Ye Family residence.
"Clan Leader Ye, these items are part of the Zhou Family's assets. We have brought them over for you," a martial artist told Ye Fan with a smile.
Ye Fan was somewhat surprised. They were actually delivering the Zhou Family's assets to him? It looks like they realized his strength.
If it wasn't for Ye Fan showcasing his strength at the Peak of Body Forging, getting these wolves to spit out the meat in their mouths wouldn't be an easy task.
Since they had delivered it, Ye Fan naturally wouldn't refuse.
Ye Fan took a quick look and, although it was only a portion of the assets, there were more than 3,000 silver Taels alone.
Adding in other gold and silver treasures, as well as five secret books, the total value reached not less than a thousand Taels.
What Ye Fan was most interested in, however, was the knife these people had brought.
The long, blood-red knife was seven feet long, with a blade length of three feet and handle length of four feet, similar to the Zhan Ma Knife from his previous life.
As Ye Fan touched the blade, he felt a cold sensation, indicating it was a good weapon.
"Xiao Xiao, you'll use this knife from now on," Ye Fan ignored the pleading look in Ye Jinhai's eyes and directly tossed the knife to Ye Xiaoxiao.
Ye Xiaoxiao hugged the long knife tightly, overjoyed.
This knife would be specifically used to slash despicable men in the future!
"From now on, you'll be called Zhan Nan," she decreed.
Zhan Nan, to destroy men!
The men of the Ye Family suddenly felt a shiver run down their spine. How terrifying.
In the following days, Ye Fan continued to refine medicinal mixtures for sale in the Ye Family's pharmacy.
As Ye Fan's strength increased, the speed at which Boiling Blood elixirs could be produced also quickened, and the market of Changhe Town gradually became saturated.
Ye Fan discussed with Li Qian and decided to sell some of his Boiling Blood elixirs through Duobao Pavillion.
In reality it was sold through Li Qian's own network, as the Boiling Blood elixirs were most effective for martial artists in the 7th or 8th stages of Body Forging, meaning they were not highly sought after by Duobao Pavilion.
Just like that, a year and a half passed in the blink of an eye.
In his room, Ye Fan continually practiced the Jiu Niu Body Refining Technique, trying to awaken the innate energy and blood in his body and open his Dantian.
However, no matter how hard he tried, he could not open the Dantian to allow True Qi to flow, as if a barrier was blocking him.
Ye Fan had been at the peak of the twelfth stage of Body Forging for over two months
This year, the rate at which the Ye Family members improved their cultivation level was faster than Ye Fan's estimation, thanks to his unlimited supply of Body Forging Elixirs.
Both Ye Jintian and Ye Jinhai's cultivation level had reached the tenth Body Forging Realm, becoming Peak Body Forging existences.
Su Yan's cultivation level had also reached the eighth Body Forging Realm.
The cultivation level of Ye Xiaoxiao and the others had reached the sixth Body Forging Realm, about to step into the latter stage of Body Forging.
The cultivation level of the entire Ye Family had made significant progress.
Everything was moving in a positive direction, but Ye Fan was very frustrated that he could not break through to the Postnatal realm.
There is a huge difference between the Body Forging Realm and Postnatal realm.
Even though Ye Fan had reached the peak of the twelfth stage of Body Forging and mastered several powerful martial techniques, he could not guarantee victory against a martial artist in the early stage of the Postnatal realm.
How can he break through to the Postnatal realm?
Actually, Ye Fan had a vague answer to this question.
It was through cultivating Cultivation Techniques.
Generally speaking, after a martial artist reaches Peak Body Forging, they would begin to cultivate Postnatal cultivation techniques, allowing their Qi and blood to open the Dantian.
But knowing the reason, Ye Fan was still helpless.
He could still learn Body Forging techniques somewhere.
But as for the cultivation techniques of the Postnatal realm, Ye Fan had no means of learning them at all.
Ye Fan even asked Li Qian, hoping to purchase a Postnatal cultivation technique through Duobao Pavilion's network.
But Li Qian also had no solution, unless Ye Fan joined Duobao Pavilion and became a formal member.
Even after becoming a formal member, it would take at least a few years, and passing a series of tests, to learn a Postnatal Cultivation Technique.