Chapter 2200: Chopping Wood

The wind blows bleakly over the Yi River, the hero leaves never to return!

To save his beloved, Ye Yuan ventured alone into the Black Flame, and the news spread like wildfire.

A prodigy like Ye Yuan naturally attracted the attention of the major powers who had entered the Black Flame Cave, and they began to inquire about his background.

Walls have ears; Ye Yuan had already revealed his identity when he entered the Falling Maple Dojo, so it couldn't be hidden.

Only then did everyone suddenly realize that this was the Sub-Saint who had been the talk of the town in recent years.

Shocked, they also felt deep regret.

Such a brilliant talent, falling in the Black Flame Cave—what a pity!

The Black Flame Cave had completely collapsed, the entrance vanished, the space returned to normal, and the Angry Nether River once again surged endlessly.

Everyone knew that Ye Yuan was most likely dead inside.

The only uncertainty was that at the moment of the passage's collapse, a flash of golden light had flickered and disappeared.

At first, some speculated whether the golden light had anything to do with Ye Yuan.

But as time passed, no one saw Ye Yuan again, and their doubts gradually faded away.

Because the Sub-Saint's maidservant was still in the Falling Maple Dojo.

After that, Ye Yuan never came to see Lü'er again.

“Young master, they all say you're dead, but I refuse to believe it! Even if I have to go to the ends of the earth, I will find you.” On Falling Sunset Peak, Lü'er wept silently.

Three years passed in a flash.

A hundred thousand li from Cloud River County City stood Mount Jingning.

The sun rose over the eastern mountain, and the slanting rays passed over the peak, shining on a peaceful and tranquil little village.

In the village, cooking smoke curled upward, and people worked at sunrise.

The villagers were all mortals.

“A'Dai, go chop all this firewood! Our Chen Family Village doesn't keep idle hands,” said a burly young man discontentedly.

Standing opposite him was a young man in coarse linen clothes, his face pale.

A'Dai said nothing, turned to the woodpile, and began chopping.

Crack!

Crack!

Crack!

One by one, the green oak logs lay neatly beside Ye Yuan, gradually piling up.

The burly young man looked shocked, then his face filled with frustration.

Green oak burns easily and at high temperature, making it excellent fuel.

But it is extremely hard; even the strongest hunter in the village needed three or four blows to split it.

Chopping wood was actually a laborious task.

A'Yong had told him to chop wood deliberately to embarrass him.

But this guy split it with one blow, and the cut was extremely smooth, as if polished.

Strange!

Very strange!

This kid looked half-dead, where did he get such strength?

“A'Yong, you're bullying A'Ning again!” A girl rushed over angrily, pulled A'Dai behind her, and shouted at the burly young man.

The burly young man's jealousy flared.

A'Xiu was the prettiest girl in Chen Family Village, and he was the most promising hunter!

He and A'Xiu had grown up together, childhood sweethearts, seen by everyone as a perfect match.

As they grew older, A'Yong developed feelings for A'Xiu and regarded her as his own.

He worked hard to become the best hunter in the surrounding villages.

Everything seemed to fall into place.

Until this A'Dai appeared, everything went wrong!

A'Xiu and her grandfather had found A'Dai by the stream.

When they first brought him back, A'Dai was covered in blood, barely distinguishable from a dead man.

Everyone thought he was done for, but somehow he clung to life.

A'Xiu was kind-hearted and took meticulous care of A'Dai every day.

Just two days ago, A'Dai was finally able to walk.

But over these three years, A'Xiu had clearly grown distant from A'Yong, all because of A'Dai.

Consumed by jealousy, A'Yong had been picking fights these past few days.

“I'm not bullying him. No man in the village is idle. Since A'Dai is better, he should work,” said A'Yong.

A'Xiu said, “He hasn't fully recovered yet; he's still very weak and unfit for work! And he's just lost his memory, not an idiot. Don't call him A'Dai!”

The A'Ning in A'Xiu's mouth, the A'Dai in A'Yong's, was naturally Ye Yuan, gravely wounded in the Black Flame battle.

At this moment, Ye Yuan couldn't remember anything, so A'Xiu's grandfather had given him the name Chen Ning.

Thus, A'Xiu usually called Ye Yuan A'Ning.

But now, Ye Yuan's breath was faint, his divine essence scattered, and even his memory was lost, no different from a mortal.

The battle with Yuan Jiu had created a terrifying energy vortex.

Yuan Jiu's realm had plummeted, and Ye Yuan was naturally even more severely injured.

In that battle, Ye Yuan's essence, energy, and spirit had nearly completely collapsed.

He was only a hair's breadth away from death.

A'Xiu turned and pulled A'Ning, saying, “A'Ning, let's go!”

But Ye Yuan didn't leave; he smiled and said, “A'Yong is right. Since I'm a member of the village, I should contribute something. Over these three years, A'Xiu, Grandpa, and everyone else have taken good care of me, allowing me to survive. I can't just laze around and wait for death; it wouldn't sit well with me.”

With that, Ye Yuan walked back to the woodpile and continued chopping.

One blow.

Another blow.

The heavy axe felt weightless in Ye Yuan's hands.

A'Xiu's mouth fell open, staring at Ye Yuan in shock.

This guy had only been on his feet for a few days; where did he get such strength?

In less than half an hour, the pile of firewood as high as a small hill was all chopped and neatly stacked.

After finishing, Ye Yuan turned and found the two staring at him with their mouths agape. He asked in confusion, “What's wrong? Why are you looking at me like that?”

A'Yong's face darkened. “You weren't faking it for three years, were you? You must have pretended to be dead to get close to A'Xiu!”

A'Xiu shot him a glare. When she and her grandfather had found Ye Yuan, he hadn't even had a breath left, and his body was battered beyond recognition.

How could that be faked?

But then she looked at Ye Yuan and said, “This is green oak. Even Uncle Lie would take a whole day to chop all this firewood, and you finished it in less than half an hour! Don't you think we should be surprised?”

Ye Yuan scratched the tip of his nose and said doubtfully, “Really? But I found it very easy to split. A light tap, without much effort, and it breaks.”

The two were speechless, looking at him as if he were a monster.

How could they know that Ye Yuan's physical body was a perfect Sevenfold Golden Body?

At his peak, a flick of his finger could level the entire Mount Jingning.

Even now, with severely depleted blood and qi, chopping wood was a piece of cake.

Just then, a commotion arose at the village entrance.

A'Yong's eyebrows lifted, and he said joyfully, “It's Dad and the others! Dad must have caught plenty of good game this time. A'Xiu, let's go take a look.”

A'Xiu took Ye Yuan's hand and said with a smile, “A'Ning, let's go see too.”

Ye Yuan nodded and was pulled toward the village entrance.