Chapter 4

Regardless of Lu Mingyi’s own attitude, Ming Xuan accepted Jiang Liuzhao’s commission. She set up a layer of formation arrays and talisman protections around Jin Ji Pavilion, gave Lu Mingyi several high-grade protective artifacts, communication talismans, and—as always—a bulk supply of pills, telling her to speak up if she needed anything.

Though she knew pill cultivators were generally wealthy, Ming Xuan’s generosity was extravagant. Among the people Lu Mingyi had met, probably only the Shen Family could match it.

Speaking of the Shen Family, Lu Mingyi took out the Azure Blue Treasure Box that Shen Mingzheng had given her from her Storage Ring. The box was inlaid with gold and jade, its entire body a translucent azure blue—the box alone was worth a fortune, fitting Shen Mingzheng’s usual tastes.

Opening it confirmed Lu Mingyi’s initial guess: a full box of high-quality Spirit Gathering Pills and Spirit Replenishing Pills. The pills were of exceptional quality, clearly from Shen Mingzheng’s hand at a glance.

Moreover, even stored in the box, Lu Mingyi could sense the extremely faint spiritual fluctuations emanating from them—proof that they had left the pill furnace no more than five days ago.

Yet Spirit Gathering Pills and Spirit Replenishing Pills were all for nourishing and supplementing meridians, expanding dantian spiritual power. They were typically used by low-grade cultivators to replenish spiritual energy or for the injured.

Shen Mingzheng certainly had no need for them, so why had she refined such a batch within five days?

Lu Mingyi pondered for a moment but couldn’t figure it out, so she pushed the question aside, planning to ask Shen Mingzheng directly next time she saw her.

Another flash of that voice from her visit to Jin Que Pavilion two days ago crossed Lu Mingyi’s mind. Even though she believed the voice’s source harbored ill intent, just imagining Shen Mingzheng saying to her, “You’re destined to be a cripple,” was enough to make her heart feel stifled.

After all, Lu Mingyi knew Shen Mingzheng only seemed hot-tempered on the surface—deep down, the woman had a soft heart.

The priority now was uncovering the cause of those voices. Lu Mingyi didn’t know the trigger conditions, but Ming Xuan had sat with her for quite a while earlier, and no new voices had appeared.

She planned to cultivate briefly in her room, then head down to Taiqing City for a stroll and hunt for other clues.

Swallowing a Spirit Gathering Pill, Lu Mingyi sat cross-legged on the bed and began drawing in ambient spiritual energy to cycle through a full revolution in her dantian.

But just like every day for the past three years, the spiritual energy that reached her dantian dissipated like grains of sand poured into the ocean the moment it made contact.

Even knowing the outcome, Lu Mingyi repeated the process over and over until she clearly felt the faint pain from her meridians—her body’s limit.

When she opened her eyes again, Lu Mingyi was still at Foundation Establishment Third Layer, her cultivation unchanged.

A typical Foundation Establishment cultivator, given one of Shen Mingzheng’s high-quality Spirit Gathering Pills and some time to cultivate, would have made at least some progress.

Lu Mingyi exhaled a breath of turbid qi and first thumped her legs, which had grown somewhat sore and weak from the prolonged sitting.

She knew it was futile, but after so many years on Sword Peak, she had formed the habit of cultivating whenever she had time. Besides, she still harbored a sliver of hope that maybe one day her body would recover and she could cultivate normally again.

Hope was just hope, though. Lu Mingyi was accustomed to cultivating and equally accustomed to seeing no progress afterward.

She straightened her robes and headed out without pause toward the mountain base.

Taiqing Sect sat atop a range of mountains, and the town below it shared its name. Over centuries, as the sect grew stronger, Taiqing City had flourished, rumored to rival even the famously prosperous Jinling City of the mortal world.

It was high noon now, and the streets were a sea of carriages and throngs of people.

Lu Mingyi was tall and slender, her steps light as she wove through the crowd. Her bright, lively demeanor stood out strikingly amid the masses.

Soon, she reached her first stop: Falling Jade Pavilion, Taiqing City’s largest jewelry shop.

Lu Mingyi still had in mind asking Shen Mingzheng to refine pills for her.

Gifting Fire Spirit Pills to her master had been planned long ago, and enlisting Shen Mingzheng’s help was also premeditated. Thus, even before departing for the Secret Realm, Lu Mingyi had come to Falling Jade Pavilion to custom-order a jade pendant and a jade plaque from the owner.

No matter artifacts or pills, Jiang Liuzhao as lord of a peak and Shen Mingzheng as the Shen Family’s young mistress would never lack for them. So Lu Mingyi figured a gift with her personal touch would be more fitting.

And jade ornaments were perfect for gifts—they could even serve as storage artifacts.

“Fellow Daoist Lu.” The shopkeeper’s eyes lit up at the sight of the incoming customer and greeted her warmly.

Lu Mingyi smiled faintly. “Shopkeeper, I’m here to pick up the two jade pieces I commissioned earlier.”

She wore the Taiqing Sect Sword Peak uniform with its gold-trimmed collar, the edges neat and precise—crisp and tidy. Her brows and eyes curved in a gentle smile, her jet-black hair simply tied back with a cord, adding a touch of casual elegance.

The shopkeeper dealt mostly with cultivators, but such a striking beauty was rare, especially a big spender. He beamed. “They’re ready, Fellow Daoist. Please wait a moment; I’ll fetch them right away.”

The two jade pieces Lu Mingyi had commissioned were of materials and carved patterns she had personally selected and designed.

Jiang Liuzhao favored the warm luster of Warm Jade and disliked ostentation, so Lu Mingyi had only a simple landscape etched onto the jade plaque.

Shen Mingzheng was the opposite—she loved striking imperial jade. Beyond that, Lu Mingyi had peonies in Luoyang Red carved onto it, making the small ornament exude refined luxury.

“Here you are, Fellow Daoist. Please inspect them.” The shopkeeper handed over two exquisite gift boxes. “Both have identical storage spaces.”

Lu Mingyi nodded, picked them up for a look, and inwardly praised Falling Jade Pavilion’s craftsmanship. Her smile brightened. “Thank you, Shopkeeper.” With that, she took a smaller ring from her Storage Ring and handed it over. “Here’s two hundred high-grade spirit stones.”

Nearby shoppers who heard the price gawked at Lu Mingyi, including some in Taiqing Sect uniforms like hers.

“My heavens, did I hear that right? Two hundred high-grade spirit stones!”

“My senior sister only gets 10 mid-grade spirit stones a month. Who is this?”

“Look at her collar—nine cloud scrolls. That’s a Sword Peak core disciple!”

“What? Sword Peak? Then she must be…”

“Ha, it’s gotta be that cripple! Lu Mingyi!”

“Now that you mention it, yeah—she dropped from Golden Core Great Perfection to Foundation Establishment, right?”

“Yeah, and who knows if she’s even still there or back to Qi Refining? Hahaha!”

“Even like this, how does she have the face to stay as Sword Peak’s core disciple?”

“What’s there to fear? She not only clings to Long Rainbow Sword Venerable’s tutelage but keeps sucking blood from the Shen Family!”

“What…”

The noisy voices reached Lu Mingyi’s ears. She furrowed her brows slightly, her downcast gaze sweeping the room. Those who had spoken fell silent, though their eyes lingered on her.

Lu Mingyi let out a light chuckle, storing the gift boxes in her ring. She turned. “And which ones among you are from Beast Peak and Talisman Peak? If you have such strong opinions about someone from Sword Peak, why not report it to Long Rainbow Sword Venerable or your own masters and request my expulsion from the sect?”

They likely hadn’t expected Lu Mingyi to clap back so directly. They were mere outer disciples—how could they challenge a core disciple, especially Taiqing Sect’s former prodigy?

Even without knowing her cultivation, she stood tall against the light, smiling yet her sweeping gaze utterly cold. Just that eye contact and the aura emanating from her left them speechless.

“If you have any grievances, confront me face-to-face next time instead of gossiping behind my back.”

When Lu Mingyi reached the door of Falling Jade Pavilion, she was still smiling, as if merely offering advice—yet it left those few trembling in fear.

Outside, her smile faded.

She had originally planned to pretend she hadn’t heard, but they had dragged her master and the Shen Family into it—she couldn’t ignore that.

Of course, it wasn’t the words themselves that bothered her. She’d heard worse and more over the past three years; her heart had long grown indifferent.

And at this moment, Lu Mingyi hadn’t heard that voice from another space again.

Two days straight with no signs—she was almost convinced it had been her imagination.

Deciding to observe further, she headed to her second destination: Qiankun Pavilion.

Qiankun Pavilion stood at the heart of Taiqing City, a true feng shui treasure spot. Shaped like a cylinder, it covered a vast area. Only the Shen Family could claim such prime real estate in the city center.

Though storage artifacts abounded today, most had severely limited space.

For larger spaces, one could only try their luck in Secret Realms—such items were exceedingly rare. Wealthy cultivators might need storage artifacts from fingertips to every body part.

Sensing the opportunity, the Shen Family recruited numerous formation cultivators to create a system for item teleportation and storage.

After opening an account at Qiankun Pavilion, cultivators received their own storage compartment. Anything could be stored and retrieved from any branch. Accounts were graded earth, black, profound, and heaven tiers—the higher the grade, the larger the space.

Even the most basic compartments far exceeded typical storage artifacts, so nearly all cultivators now had accounts there.

Lu Mingyi, of course, had one—and hers was a special-grade account, beyond the standard tiers.

“Miss Lu, this way please.” The moment Lu Mingyi stepped into Qiankun Pavilion, an attendant approached to escort her to the upstairs private room.

“No need. I’m just here to retrieve some things.”

Lu Mingyi raised her hand slightly in refusal. She rarely visited Qiankun Pavilion because it was too much hassle—every time with Shen Mingzheng, they’d end up in the private room sipping tea.

This time, she wanted some immortal herbs and talismans she’d brought back from Secret Realms before.

Returning injured from the Secret Realm this time, Lu Mingyi felt she owed a pile of favors.

Her senior sister had cared for her for days—she must gift thanks. Her junior sister had been punished because of her—she needed compensation. And her senior sister’s friend He Ming, who had healed her multiple times, deserved a visit too.

Lu Mingyi mentally tallied what to retrieve, unaware of the people approaching from behind.

“Hey, Junior Sister Lu, out alone today?”

A sharp, slightly trembling female voice rang out. Lu Mingyi didn’t turn immediately. First, she handed her Qiankun Pavilion token to the attendant for retrieval, then pivoted lightly, lifting her gaze to the newcomer.

“Senior Sister Chen, what a coincidence. Here for things too?”

The woman was a few inches shorter than Lu Mingyi, her face pale but now flushed unnaturally. Her fox-like eyes fixed on Lu Mingyi. “Here for things? What, the Shen Family young miss tired of playing house with you and sent you on errands?”

“Exactly. She’s busy, and Senior Sister Chen should focus on cultivation too.” Lu Mingyi stood unmoved as the woman closed in.

The words stung the woman; her eyes bulged in fury. “Lu Mingyi, you have the nerve to say that to me? Look at what you’ve become!”

She switched to a mocking laugh, eyes brimming with malice. “Who are you trying to latch onto now? Shen young miss done with you? Planning to cozy up to that fallen Xiao Family young lord? Or the new inner sect top disciple? Or maybe…the revered Long Rainbow Sword Venerable?”

At those words, Lu Mingyi’s faint smile vanished, her usually curved brows now icy cold.

The sword “Gu Li” at her back unsheathed with a flash, its brilliant golden edge dimming even the treasure-laden Qiankun Pavilion.

“You…” Facing the woman’s inexplicably agitated expression, Lu Mingyi parted her lips.

But before she could speak, an explosive roar laced with fury interrupted from the side:

“You’re truly courting death!”