Everyone had witnessed how powerful those treasured weapons were.
No one had been able to stop the general. After all, he hadn't even made any efforts to kill those elders in the Mental Wander State. The Universal Darkfire Lamp could even outburn the universe, and the Eight Groups of Spiritual Beings had overwhelmed more than eleven elders in the Mental Wander State.
They were precious and priceless artifacts.
Ning Haotian had acted like a deity. He smashed the statue with one palm, crumbled the Darkfire Lamp in his fingers, and broke the Eight Groups of Spiritual Beings by simply pointing at it. Everyone present had also witnessed this.
When they saw Ning Haotian's pale face, the situation became more dramatic.
What Su Xiuyi had said was, of course, true. No one would question it. Ning Haotian had no choice but to pay the compensation.
"Jiang Chen, how much do you want?" Ning Haotian asked coldly.
"Thirty million low-grade yuan stones."
Jiang Chen hadn't asked for panaceas or rose gold or contributions of the Natural Law School, but the most valuable thing in the continent, yuan stones.
They were more expensive than gold and highly valued because they were so useful. They could be used as an energy source for tactical formations and other things.
For instance, if a spiritual weapon was out of power, yuan stones could charge them with energy.
They were also the most common energy sources for puppets and machine-operated beasts.
They could even be used to deploy a certain practicing tactical formation, which people could use to practice and progress rapidly.
They were in high demand, so their price soared every year. They were the most heavily protected resources within powerful groups.
During a battle, huge amounts of yuan stones would be consumed.
After achieving a high state, practitioners didn't value gold or silver so much anymore. They would make transactions with yuan stones or panaceas instead.
Many disciples were shocked to hear the number of yuan stones Jiang Chen had asked for, but those powerful men nearby thought it was a proper amount.
However, Ning Haotian didn't agree. He was a powerful man in the Reaching Heaven State who could achieve many things, but 30 million yuan stones would require him to do hard labor relentlessly for six months straight.
"That's too many!" Ning Haotian's arrogance had disappeared. He intended to bargain with Jiang Chen.
"Or, release my father from the Black Dragon City. Otherwise, there is no room for negotiation," Jiang Chen said again.
The atmosphere was charged with tension again.
"Leader, the Black Dragon City deprived me of my holy pulse and kidnapped my father. It's intolerable!" Jiang Chen was trying to take advantage of the Natural Law School to save his father.
Su Xiuyi was silent for a while. When he didn't speak, no one could tell by his expression what he was thinking or how he was feeling.
"No, it's not. The loss the Black Dragon City suffered because of your father was worth more than 30 million low-grade yuan stones. More importantly, he inflicted heavy losses on the Dragon Guard in Golden Armor led by the dynasty's general, Xue Jingtian. He cut off the general's right arm. It wasn't only my family's decision to keep him at the Black Dragon Pool," Ning Haotian finally wised up. He used the Xia Dynasty as an excuse.
"Thirty million low-grade yuan stones. In addition, I'll take Jiang Chen to the Black Dragon Pool to visit his father. Prepared your family for that," Su Xiuyi said.
"Yes, leader," Ning Haotian said.
Jiang Chen curled his lips, disappointed, but he was relieved that he would have the chance to see his father.
"Leader, 30 million isn't a small number. I don't have them now. I'll need three months to get this amount," Ning Haotian said again.
Everyone knew what he was calculating.
Jiang Chen would fight with Li Qin in three months. It would surely be a fight to the death.
If Jiang Chen died, of course Ning Haotian wouldn't have to pay the compensation.
"Fine." However, Jiang Chen agreed immediately.
"All right, guys. Please continue the discussion regarding the panaceas with the Medicine Elder."
Su Xiuyi looked over to Feng Shaoyu and the others and smiled at them.
It was precisely because the people from other sects and schools were there that Su Xiuyi had disciplined the Natural Law School in such a rigid way.
Ning Haotian had done something wrong. He had deprived Jiang Chen of his holy pulse and cracked down on him in front of the entire Natural Law School. Even considering the other things he had done, nothing was honorable.
But Ning Haotian was influential and powerful. No one had dared reproach him. Instead, everyone had laughed at Jiang Chen.
If Su Xiuyi hadn't processed the affair appropriately in the presence of figures from other sects and schools, not only would the Natural Law School have a bad reputation, the downward trends in the school would continue.
As a result, more disciples, like Li Qin, would throw their weight around and pay no regard to the school's rules just because their masters were influential, and they were talented disciples.
"Leader Su, you've made order out of chaos in a few sweeping mandates, for which I admire you. You're worth your name," Feng Shaoyu said with respect.
"Leader Su, you're a man of great talent and bold vision. The Natural Law School will have a bright future under your leadership."
Su Xiuyi didn't put on any airs when listening to these compliments. He laughed aloud and said, "Ha, thank you. I still have some affairs to deal with. Please allow me to excuse myself."
Then, he and Jiang Chen disappeared from the air without leaving any trace.
Feng Shaoyu and the others were shocked. They were unable to detect where he had gone. They hadn't respected the leader of the Natural Law School from the bottoms of their hearts until that moment.
Jiang Chen felt dizzy. Instantly, he was at the Redcloud Peak.
"Take me to see your mother," Su Xiuyi said.
Jiang Chen took the leader to his room.
Cher was standing beside the door. She hushed them when she saw them coming in.
It had never occurred to her that the man who looked to be the same age as Jiang Chen was the leader of the Natural Law School.
Gao Yue was sound asleep. Jiang Chen felt sad to see that there was no peace on his mother's face. Instead, she frowned in pain from time to time.
Su Xiuyi sized Gao Yue up and suddenly took out a jade bottle. He uncorked the bottle and poured the liquid into Gao Yue's lips.
The dew fell on her lips and was rapidly absorbed.
Then, a wonderful change occurred in Gao Yue's body. Her gray hair returned to black. Her dry skin rejuvenated; she was young again. The wrinkles on her face disappeared.
Soon, her old appearance disappeared completely. She looked even younger than she had before.
Gao Yue opened her eyes slightly and raised her arm to her face. She murmured, "Am I dreaming?"
"This is the essence of rain and dew that I've spent hundreds of years collecting. It has rejuvenated your mother's body. Her life span has also extended," Su Xiuyi said.
"Thank you, Leader the Venerable!"
Jiang Chen was excited. This had brought him even more joy than frustrating Ning Haotian had.
"But the poison your mother suffers from is getting more severe. One day for her is like ten days for a normal person. She will look old again in less than ten years," Su Xiuyi said.
"Ten years? That will be enough!"
Jiang Chen became cheery and sat down on the bed. He grasped Gao Yue's hand and said, "Mother, I'll definitely find a remedy for you, even if I have to go up to heaven or down to hell."
"If this is a dream, I hope I never wake up from it." Gao Yue didn't know what had happened. She didn't understand why she had experienced such a great change in her body.
"Jiang Chen, come with me. I have something to ask you." Su Xiuyi had become absent-minded for a short while at the warm scene between the mother and son. Suddenly, he turned around to walk out of the room as he spoke to Jiang Chen.
Jiang Chen asked Cher to take good care of Gao Yue and walked out. He saw the leader standing not far away.
"Jiang Chen, I need to ask you, how many holy pulses have you recovered?"