On the way back, Ye Cangtian had already memorized the Chaos Seven Kill Sword technique by heart.
While this sword technique might not be of much use to him, a single sentence from the Lord of Chaos had deeply stirred him.
For any martial artist, inheriting another's skills always meant being a step behind.
Only the techniques created by oneself were the most suitable and the strongest.
Therefore, Ye Cangtian still kept the Chaos Seven Kill Sword in mind, intending to gain some enlightenment from it in the future and create his own martial techniques.
The next moment, Ye Cangtian pushed the secret manual in his hand towards Dongfang Mingyue and Qiangwei, saying, "I believe this secret manual is more suitable for you two to cultivate!"
All along the way, Ye Cangtian had been weighing the pros and cons, contemplating the issue of inheritance.
Dongfang Mingyue's talent was undeniable. Leading the Hidden Group, she deserved more trump cards to face the relentless stream of powerful enemies.
As for Qiangwei, she also needed a powerful technique to protect herself.
Thus, Ye Cangtian decided to directly hand over the cultivation technique to the two of them, letting them inherit it themselves. As for the extent of their attainment, it would depend on their comprehension.
Looking at the secret manual on the table, Dongfang Mingyue and Qiangwei's eyes immediately lit up; it was evident they were tempted.
However, neither of them reached out to take it.
Seeing their mutual deference, Ye Cangtian smiled slightly and said, "Don't be so polite, you two. This secret manual has multiple inheritance slots, so you can both inherit it."
Ye Cangtian understood that the two women were worried that if one of them got the inheritance first, the other would lose the opportunity, hence his explanation.
Hearing this, the two women breathed a sigh of relief.
Then, Dongfang Mingyue took the secret manual and turned to Qiangwei, saying, "Qiangwei, Sister is busy with affairs. You inherit it first, and after you're done, I'll come."
Hearing Dongfang Mingyue's words, Qiangwei wanted to refuse, but before she could speak, Dongfang Mingyue thrust the secret manual into her hand.
Seeing this, Qiangwei had no choice but to accept it and say, "Thank you, Sister Mingyue."
Dongfang Mingyue waved her hand and then looked at Ye Cangtian, asking, "Brat, do you have any other good stuff?"
"Yes!"
Ye Cangtian replied and then took out a golden long sword from his Qiankun bag, pushing it towards Dongfang Mingyue.
"Sister Mingyue, this sword was obtained by Dracula after defeating the Hall Master in the Central Hall of Chaos City. This sword is quite excellent, so please keep it!" Ye Cangtian said slowly.
Upon hearing this, Dongfang Mingyue looked at Qiangwei, about to say something, when suddenly Qiangwei's small hand trembled, and a fiery red long sword appeared in her hand.
She said slowly, "Earlier, Cangtian already gave me a long sword, and I'm quite used to it..."
Hearing Qiangwei's words, Dongfang Mingyue accepted without further politeness, directly putting the sword into her Qiankun bag.
"Whew!"
With everything distributed, Ye Cangtian breathed a sigh of relief and casually tossed the Qiankun bag to Dongfang Mingyue. The rest were ancient books and armor.
As for the ancient books, they could be left for the Hidden Group to study slowly.
As for the armor, although it was good, it was only one or two grades higher than ordinary goods, but it was still suitable for equipping other members of the Hidden Group.
"By the way, Sister Mingyue, how has the Hidden Group been doing during my absence?"
Upon hearing Ye Cangtian's question, Dongfang Mingyue's cheerful expression turned gloomy.
She was silent for a moment, then said grimly, "It's all your fault, brat. You caused a lot of trouble, and now I have to clean up your mess!"
Huh?
Ye Cangtian was immediately stunned. He had been exploring for the past year; what trouble could he have caused?
Sensing Ye Cangtian's look of being wronged, Dongfang Mingyue gave him an exasperated glare, saying, "The other factions from your exploration team have recently united and are demanding people from the Hidden Group!"
Dongfang Mingyue explained that these people had notified their respective backing factions before setting out.
After more than a year passed and none of them had returned, they had approached the Hidden Group.
Initially, they appeared one by one, but recently, they had mostly banded together to demand an explanation from the Hidden Group.
Heh.
Upon hearing this, Ye Cangtian's face showed a cold smile, and he said faintly, "I'm afraid they want more than just an explanation!"
Ye Cangtian knew the ugly nature of these factions too well.
Their coming to the Hidden Group was merely to inquire about the status of the treasure-hunting team.
If the treasure-hunting team returned, it would be evident to them that the Hidden Group had monopolized all the benefits along the way.
In that case, the next step would be to shamelessly demand compensation.
"You're right."
Dongfang Mingyue nodded and continued, "If they had no other motives, they wouldn't have united to demand an explanation! Little brother, what should we do this time?"
"Simple! Blame it all on the Guangming Hall."
A faint smile appeared on Ye Cangtian's face. This wasn't because he wanted to frame the Guangming Hall, but because what he said was the truth.
Originally, people from other factions still had a chance to survive, but they were ultimately killed by the Guangming team in the formation.
"It might be hard to explain!"
Hearing Ye Cangtian's suggestion, Dongfang Mingyue shook her head and said, "The people from Guangming Hall are not here now, making it difficult to confront them! They might not believe us!"
Ye Cangtian's brow furrowed. If he had known this earlier, he should have asked Brandon and the others to come along; at least they could have confronted them!
However, even if Brandon had returned, those factions might not have believed them either.
After all, since the Hidden Group had cooperated with the Guangming Hall this time, they would assume that the Hidden Group and the Guangming Hall were colluding to hoard all the treasures obtained along the way.
Thinking this, Ye Cangtian spoke slowly, "It's fine, leave it to me to handle."
Dongfang Mingyue glanced at him and warned, "Brat, don't cause any more trouble for your sister!"
"Don't worry."
Ye Cangtian said with conviction.
Seeing this, Dongfang Mingyue said, "Alright, since Sister and Qiangwei need to inherit the cultivation technique, the Hidden Group will be temporarily managed by you for these two days!"
After responding, Ye Cangtian chatted with the two women for a while longer before leaving the headquarters.
...
As soon as he returned to his villa, Ye Cangtian saw a figure rushing towards him in a flurry.
Yao Bao'er, seeing Ye Cangtian return, immediately rushed forward and gave him a big hug.
"Boss, I love you to death!"
"You're the best to Bao'er, giving me so many exotic flowers and herbs all at once..."
Yao Bao'er was practically dancing with excitement. Her supply of medicinal herbs was nearly depleted, and she was contemplating whether to lead a team herself to find some in the deep mountains and old forests.
Or perhaps she would have to buy some from Dongfang Mingyue.
But when Lan Yue returned, she brought her a mountain-sized pile of exotic flowers and herbs.
Moreover, all of them were definitely top-grade. This instantly made her feel as if she were dreaming.
"Bao'er, don't be so extravagant!"
"Before your refining skills are sufficiently proficient, use ordinary herbs. Once your refining skills are no longer an issue, then use these superior herbs."
"Also, I need to tell you that this might be the last batch of herbs I bring for you in large quantities. It's unlikely I'll have the opportunity in the future..."
Ye Cangtian glanced at the incredibly excited Yao Bao'er and couldn't help but pour a bucket of cold water on her.
There was no helping it. He had emptied out both Dark City and Chaos City, and he genuinely didn't know where else he could find such herbs.
"Boss, I'll say it again, I'm not being extravagant! I've been very economical..."
Yao Bao'er pouted and said to Ye Cangtian with displeasure.
When it came to herbs, she was helpless. Those were consumables.
She wanted to be economical, but she couldn't!
Seeing Yao Bao'er's displeased expression, Ye Cangtian sighed helplessly. In other aspects, he could find solutions.
But when it came to herbs, he was truly at a loss.
Yao Bao'er needed to refine pills to improve her refining skills, and this inevitably involved the consumption of herbs.
It wasn't as if he could ask Yao Bao'er to stop refining pills, right?
If that were the case, the Hidden Group would lose a significant source of elixirs.
Currently, even though the Hidden Group was well-stocked with Nine Revolutions Golden Pills and Enlightenment Pills, the demand for other elixirs was still very high.
It wasn't as if these elixirs could all be obtained from ruins, right? Pills obtained purely by luck like that might take who knows how long to acquire even one.
Thinking this, he couldn't help but look at Yao Bao'er and say helplessly, "If there are no extraordinary encounters, it will be difficult to find so many medicinal herbs for a long time, so you'd best have a plan!"
Ye Cangtian didn't want to exploit Yao Bao'er, but he had no other choice now; he could only ask Yao Bao'er to control her consumption as much as possible.
Hearing Ye Cangtian's words, Yao Bao'er pouted and said, "I know, Boss..."
She also knew that finding these medicinal herbs was not easy, so she had nothing to say at the moment.