Chapter 9: 009

After telling herself that silence meant non-refusal, Wei Mingyi quickly shook off the negligible guilt of bullying an ailing beauty and moved Wu Chongyun into her own room. Although the Assistant Master had said everything was fine, the earlier incident had sounded an alarm for Wei Mingyi. She dared not leave Wu Chongyun alone, even bringing her along just to boil water. Afraid Shizun might wander off, she even wedged a bundle of firewood under the wheelchair to weigh it down.

Wu Chongyun: “…”

Having not been at Chongyuan Sect long and still at a low realm, Wei Mingyi knew few spells and still maintained the mortal habit of bathing. Chongyuan Sect was so impoverished that besides the Sword Stele, there were no buildings beneficial to cultivation, let alone any pool for cleansing marrow and sinews. While waiting for the water to boil, Wei Mingyi resumed studying her golden finger’s manual.

She had chosen Chongyuan Sect as her foundation. In the future, she would use it as a center point and expand outward. The plots purchased with Achievement Points were in the Wild Domain, having nothing to do with her current self. Even if acquired, they would probably be isolated enclaves, manageable to ignore for now. So was her expansion method going to be just conquering territories along the way? Would she have to build structures herself? If so, wasn’t this golden finger a bit too shabby? Those games always had fancy buildings and decoration systems.

“System, where’s the shop?” Wei Mingyi asked silently in her heart.

The System Panel displayed no reaction.

“Do you want me to hit you? Tell me, aren’t you just asking for a slap?” Wei Mingyi complained again.

A moment later, a loading icon finally appeared on the System. It finished loading roughly when the water boiled. Wei Mingyi scanned it; a building shop had indeed appeared. However, most of it was blacked out. Pay-to-win wasn’t possible; purchases could only be made with Achievement Points. Things like Gravity Chambers, Alchemy Rooms, Artifact Refining Rooms… With her current funds, she could only afford the Yellow Tier “Meridian Opening Pool” for marrow and sinew cleansing. Buildings could also be upgraded; aside from differing initial prices, the costs and progression were similar to upgrading soil.

The Yellow Tier Meridian Opening Pool came with a “Meridian Opening” efficiency boost effect, which was quite useful for Wei Mingyi, considering she had only opened two Qi Meridians so far. If she could progress through her own effort, she could save some Talent Points. Moreover, the future Chongyuan Sect wouldn’t just be the few of them; new recruits would also be able to use it.

Wei Mingyi quickly made up her mind and spent her remaining Achievement Points outright on the Yellow Tier Meridian Opening Pool. Similar to a game, she dragged the “Pool” around within Chongyuan Sect’s boundaries, able to place it on any land that belonged to her. Wei Mingyi ultimately placed it near the small courtyard she shared with Wu Chongyun, convenient for herself.

“Wei Mingyi.”

While her mind wandered, Wei Mingyi suddenly heard someone call her name with deliberate enunciation.

Confused, she looked at Wu Chongyun before her. Seeing her resting with closed eyes, she certainly didn’t appear to be the one speaking.

“Can Shizun bathe by herself?” Wei Mingyi moved the firewood aside and crouched down, bringing her gaze level with Wu Chongyun’s.

This time, Wu Chongyun didn’t play dead, answering extremely quickly: “Yes.”

Wei Mingyi: “…” What kind of expression was that? On guard against fire, theft, and disciples?

Most of the night had been chaotic, but as long as dawn hadn’t broken, the ritualistic feeling of sleeping had to be maintained.

After carrying Wu Chongyun to the bed, Wei Mingyi climbed onto the bed herself under Wu Chongyun’s puzzled gaze.

She didn’t trust Wu Chongyun to be left alone, but she also didn’t want to sleep on the floor or sit vigil by her side. Covering her mouth, she let out a yawn, then reached out and patted Wu Chongyun’s back, using a coaxing tone to softly say, “Shizun, go to sleep now.”

Wu Chongyun’s body stiffened slightly. She fixed her unblinking gaze on Wei Mingyi, seemingly trying to gauge her true feelings from her expression. But Wei Mingyi’s eyelids closed, and she quickly fell into dreamland. Wu Chongyun pressed her lips together tightly. She also tried to even out her breathing and dispel the bizarre, chaotic images in her mind, along with the bone-deep pain, slowly closing her eyes.

The brief night was prolonged as sleep extended until the sun was high in the sky.

When Wei Mingyi opened her eyes, Wu Chongyun still hadn’t woken. As soon as she moved slightly, the unconscious Wu Chongyun instinctively snuggled closer into her embrace, displaying a clingy demeanor.

Wei Mingyi: “…” Did she have a fever? The chaos of the previous night didn’t rule out that possibility. Frowning, she reached out to feel Wu Chongyun’s forehead.

Cold.

Right, fevers were mortal afflictions.

Thinking Wu Chongyun had a fever made her seem like the one who was ill.

Before Wei Mingyi could pull her hand back, Wu Chongyun’s cheek rubbed softly against her palm.

Wei Mingyi drew in a sharp breath. A rosy glow immediately rose on her face, as if trying to compete for brilliance with the great sun outside.

This awkwardness persisted until Wu Chongyun opened her eyes. Her long lashes fluttered like butterfly wings; her gaze was sleepy and vacant. Her pale cheeks inevitably displayed a trace of fragile vulnerability, but in an instant, her spiritual altar cleared. Leaning in Wei Mingyi’s embrace, she tilted her head up slightly, revealing the elegant curve of her neck, and said flatly, but not gently: “Move.”

Wei Mingyi’s expression remained unchanged. She had fully anticipated this behavior of Wu Chongyun flipping the table now. Blinking, she smiled and said, “Then can Shizun move her hand away?”

Wu Chongyun: “…” She silently moved her hand away, her face betraying no emotion. The rustling sound of clothes accompanied her turning over, displaying only the back of her head to Wei Mingyi.

By the time Mo Xuanxiao arrived to deliver medicine for her Esteemed Teacher, Wu Chongyun was still lying in bed.

Wei Mingyi let her be, as long as Shizun wasn’t thinking of doing something drastic.

“Are you going to the Second Peak to farm again today?” Wei Mingyi asked after receiving the medicine.

“The seeds are already planted. I’m not very skilled at the growth-accelerating technique yet; I’ll need to reach Foundation Establishment before I can properly help Shizun with that,” Mo Xuanxiao replied. Pausing, she raised an eyebrow at Wei Mingyi and said, “Does Junior Sister need something?”

“I wanted to ask Senior Sister to look after Shizun for me,” Wei Mingyi said with a sincere expression. “There’s a Meridian Opening Pool in the peak that can improve the odds of opening meridians. I’d like to go and try it out.”

Mo Xuanxiao was dazed for a moment. Where had a Meridian Opening Pool come from? But since Wei Mingyi said so, she didn’t question it, agreeing readily: “Alright.”

Wei Mingyi sighed in relief. Although Senior Sister Mo looked like she might hit someone with that pipe, she was actually a kind-hearted person. Chongyuan Sect was a haven for good people in this wicked cultivation world. After a moment’s thought, she asked again, “How many Qi meridians has Senior Sister opened now?”

Mo Xuanxiao casually replied, “Twenty-eight.”

Wei Mingyi: “Is Senior Sister preparing for Foundation Establishment?”

Mo Xuanxiao: “I’ll establish my foundation once I’ve gathered enough external medicine.”

“You’re not planning to keep pushing for more?” Wei Mingyi showed a look of surprise. “Shizun said that if you can’t open to the extreme number, you can’t enter the Grotto-Heaven.”

Mo Xuanxiao couldn’t help but laugh out loud. “Junior Sister, how many Grotto-Heaven Daoists have there ever been since ancient times? Opening meridians to the extreme limit isn’t so easily achieved. I’ll be satisfied as long as I can cultivate to the Nascent Soul realm and gain a thousand-year lifespan.”

“More is always better than less,” Wei Mingyi muttered to herself. Fixing her gaze on Mo Xuanxiao, she offered a bright smile and said, “It’ll take a while to gather all the external medicine for Foundation Establishment anyway. Why doesn’t Senior Sister also soak in the Meridian Opening Pool and try to raise her upper limit?”

Mo Xuanxiao stared at Wei Mingyi, exhaled a smoke ring, and said sincerely, “Junior Sister, you could have omitted that first half of the sentence.”

When Chongyuan Sect was first established, there were only two people. Perhaps their Ancestor, realizing she made too many enemies and that future disciples might have difficulty traveling the world to gather herbs, had prepared the external medicines needed for realm advancements for her disciple. Over the years, however, the Sect Leader, in order to sustain Chongyuan Sect, had mostly exhausted the precious materials left by the Ancestor. Now, anyone wanting to advance could only seek external medicine from outside.

Foundation Establishment cultivators weren’t rare, and the external medicine wasn’t particularly hard to find. But because the Lu Clan viewed Chongyuan Sect as a thorn in their eye, the process of gathering the ingredients had become incredibly difficult.

“Maybe we can just grow them ourselves,” Mo Xuanxiao muttered again.

—

Cangwu City, Lu Clan.

After suffering the humiliation at Chongyuan Sect, Lu Ba had frantically fled back to his family to report. With the June Review looming and Heavenly Dao Alliance envoys about to arrive, it was likely someone from the Feng Clan would be the Deacon in charge of the evaluation. Below the Feng Clan, fourth-rate families like their Lu Clan included the Wang and Zheng Clans. The Lu Clan didn’t know which family had crossed them by meddling with Chongyuan Sect. Maybe it was even the Feng Clan acting? After all, Su Xuanjing, the Sect Leader of Chongyuan Sect, was exceptionally talented—a Golden Core Daoist.

The unknown made the Lu Clan cautious. They stopped openly targeting Chongyuan Sect, instead sending people discreetly to investigate the spirit vein transactions of the Wang and Zheng Clans. Based on the aura, Chongyuan Sect’s spirit vein was only Yellow Tier, but it couldn’t have appeared out of thin air. After Cangwu City stopped supplying spirit veins to Chongyuan Sect, only the Wang and Zheng Clans had the authority to trade in spirit veins. Investigating these two families’ accounts would take some time, but the Lu Clan could afford to wait.

The Feng Clan always demanded harmony among their subordinate families. If they could catch evidence of the Wang or Zheng Clan overstepping boundaries, it might influence the results of this June Review and secure more benefits for the Lu Clan.

“If it was the Wang or Zheng Clan, such an obvious overstep—how could they let us find out?” A Lu Clan Elder raised a dissenting voice. Yet, he couldn’t account for the origin of Chongyuan Sect’s spirit vein, nor the powerful force Lu Ba described. “There are two possibilities: one, they found a strong enough backer and aren’t afraid of reprisal. The other is that the Feng Clan is acting—that the Feng Clan looks down on us and intends to eliminate our Lu Family.”

Although the Heavenly Dao Alliance was adept at whitewashing, incidents of a patron family swallowing a subordinate family happened from time to time—often without needing a reason. But Cangwu City wasn’t some prosperous place, possessing no resources worthy of the Feng Clan’s attention.

“Where is Cangcang?” The Lu Clan Patriarch, who had been silent until now, spoke up.

“The Eldest Miss sent word earlier, saying she has obtained her Esteemed Teacher’s permission to return with the Deacon responsible for the Lu Clan’s June Review,” the Lu Clan Elder replied.

“Let’s ask again once Cangcang returns,” the Lu Clan Patriarch said.

The ‘Cangcang’ he referred to was his eldest daughter, Lu Cangcang. But because her talent had caught the eye of someone in the Feng Clan, she had been sent there and renamed Feng Cangcang. She was the sharp tool bringing the Lu Clan closer to the Feng Clan. The more Feng Cangcang was valued by the Feng Clan, the greater the Lu Clan’s prestige. Unfortunately, they weren’t the only ones doing this; the Wang and Zheng families also had outstanding youths within the Feng Clan.