Translator: EndlessFantasy Translation Editor: EndlessFantasy Translation
“Do you remember me, Junior Brother?”
Yang Yi had just arrived at the Harmony Court when he was stopped by someone.
Although the other person walked out from the inner sect, he was wearing light blue uniform. His face was thin and his eyes were deep.
“Uh, I do. I am Yang Yi. Thank you for helping me out on Sky Light Mountain.” Yang Yi recognized the other disciple. It was one of the two disciples who had followed Zhuang Chenglu to kill the scaled python.
“My name is Yao Lang.” Yao Lang waved his hand.
“Greetings, senior brother Yao..” Yang Yi bowed.
“Junior Brother Yang, are you here to look for Senior Sister Zhuang?” Yao Lang’s gaze flickered.
“Yes.” Yang Yi did not deny it.
Yao Lang nodded as if to say that he expected as much.
He looked around and pulled Yang Yi to the side. He said softly, “Look, you’re a newcomer, so I’ll tell you this, don’t get too deep into this!”
“Huh?” Yang Yi did not understand what he was referring to.
“Heh! Not admitting it, are we? I saw you running errands for Senior Sister Zhuang last time.” Yao Lang smiled. “You’re infatuated with Senior Sister Zhuang, aren’t you?”
“That’s not what is was, Senior Brother. Senior Sister Zhuang was cultivating some pills for me, and it’s only right for me to run errands for her. I have no other motives,” Yang Yi hurriedly explained.
From his words, Yang Yi guessed that Yao Lang had some feelings toward Zhuang Chenglu.
If he were to misunderstand things, it would be another troublesome matter.
“Don’t worry, you don’t have to be afraid. I’ve already told Senior Sister Zhuang how I feel just now.” Yao Lang’s face was covered in a bitter smile.
Yang Yi did not need to guess to know that he had been politely rejected.
“Cheer up, Senior Brother Yao.” At this moment, Yang Yi did not know what to say to comfort him.
Furthermore, they were not close at all. He was caught off guard when Yao Lang surprised him with this news.
“It’s alright. I am finally awake now. Senior Sister Zhuang is perfect. She’s as beautiful as a celestial, as graceful as a spirit moth, and has a very kind heart. However, she’s untouchable by the likes of us. Her approachable personality gave me the illusion that I had a chance.” Yao Lang sighed and looked at Yang Yi again.
“Junior Brother Yang, you’ve seen it yourself. I’m handsome and talented. In the secular world, I can charm a lot of women. In terms of strength, I’m now at the Bone Refining stage. I estimate that in another year, I’ll have the chance to break through to the Spiral Force realm. I’m almost as powerful as Senior Sister Zhuang. Besides, my family is well-known in Feixiao City.”
The more Yao Lang spoke, the more excited he became. In the end, his expression dimmed again.
“But even so, I was still rejected. Tell me, how high can her standards be?”
“Uh…” Yang Yi was flustered.
“I couldn’t agree more, Senior Brother Yao.” He did not know what to say and could only chime in.
“That wasn’t the most terrifying part.”
Yao Lang’s gloomy expression had a hint of a smile on it.
“The scariest part is that even though Senior Sister Zhuang rejected me, I didn’t feel any resentment at all. It felt as though this was how it was supposed to be.”
“This means that she didn’t take advantage of your feelings. But, a relationship has to be mutual, after all. You can’t force things.” Yang Yi wanted to quickly end the topic and leave.
“Yes, and I’m not the first person to have experienced this.”
Yao Lang patted Yang Yi’s shoulder and said solemnly, “You won’t be the last either. Don’t get too deep into this. Let me serve as a lesson for you.”
“Senior Brother, you’ve really misunderstood me. I’m just here to ask Senior Sister Zhuang for some medicine.” Yang Yi did not know whether he should laugh or cry. It seemed impossible to clear his name now.
“I’m just reminding you while I vent my frustrations. If it’s a misunderstanding, just forget what I just said.”
Yao Lang left in a daze.
Seeing him leave, Yang Yi withdrew his complicated gaze and walked into the Harmony Court.
“Eh, why are you here again? How are the effects of the pills? You didn’t waste them, did you?”
Zhuang Chenglu was sitting on a branch of a banyan tree while nibbling on a fragrant pear.
“They didn’t go to waste. I’m here to thank you. It’s all thanks to those pills that I managed to successfully achieve a breakthrough to the Bone Refining stage!” Yang Yi did not hide the fact that he had achieved a breakthrough.
In any case, there would be an assessment in a few days, so he could not hide it even if he wanted to.
“Oh? You broke through?”
Every pill cultivator hoped that their pills would bring about an effect, and Zhuang Chenglu was no exception.
She jumped down from the branch and pinched Yang Yi’s arm. She nodded and said, “Yes, your Qi and blood are abundant. The Crimson Afterglow Technique has begun to temper your bones. Not bad, not bad.”
With this simple act, a cultivator could gauge another person’s current cultivation realm, but that was about it.
Yet, Yang Yi immediately pulled his arms back and offered his praises, “Originally, I estimated that I would need another two to three months to break through. In the end, after consuming the pills, I immediately had an opportunity. I have to say, your pill cultivating skills are on a godly level.”
“You flatter me.” Zhuang Chenglu’s pretty face came closer. There was half a smile on her face.
After that, she moved away and said softly, “I’m still happy that you broke through after consuming my pills.”
“What about Zhang Xiaohu? Is he feeling better now?” Sensing that the atmosphere was not right, Yang Yi changed the topic.
“He has already recovered. I chased him down the mountain.”
Zhuang Chenglu took another bite of the fragrant pears.
This was a grassy slope. The beautiful forest could be seen in the distance.
Occasionally, a breeze blew past, and the bamboo forest played a rustling concerto.
“Didn’t you want to keep him here to test pills for you?” Yang Yi was puzzled.
“His constitution is too weak. Using him would only be a waste of my precious pills.” Zhuang Chenglu’s expression was indifferent.
She should have known from the start that his constitution was weak. He was even poisoned.
Even so, she brought Zhang Xiaohu back here to be treated. This meant that Zhuang Chenglu did not plan to ask for anything in return from the start.
As for the task of testing the pills, she either had a tough mouth but a soft heart, or she wanted to prevent other sick people from asking for help from her if word about this got round.
Moreover, it was also possible that she was protecting Zhang Xiaohu from being disturbed by the other disciples. There was no lack of people like Yao Lang in the sect. If Zhuang Chenglu was too nice to Zhang Xiaohu, it was inevitable that some of the other disciples would have some wicked ideas.
“The scene of the reuniting grandfather and grandson must be very touching.” Yang Yi was not sure what the reason was behind Zhuang Chenglu’s actions, so he did not ask further and just smiled.
“What does that have to do with me?” Zhuang Chenglu turned her head and glared at Yang Yi.
She threw away the core of the pear that she had finished eating and clapped her hands. She walked over and sized him up. “Aren’t you leaving after saying your thanks?”
“Uh, to be honest, I have another request,” Yang Yi said sheepishly. “I just broke through to the Bone Refining stage and my cultivation base is a little unstable. I wanted to ask for some pills to consolidate my cultivation base.”
“Do I look like a full-time pill cultivator to you?” Zhuang Chenglu was displeased.
Although the Harmony Court was responsible for the Qixia sect’s supply of pills, the main task of the disciples was still to cultivate.
“Oh, I forgot. This is for the cost of cultivating pills. If it’s not enough, I’ll write home and get some more.” Yang Yi took out a stack of gold certificates from his pocket.
If converted into silver, these certificates would be worth at least 20,000 taels.
“Who do you take me for? Not all pills can be valued using money!” Zhuang Chenglu’s expression was cold and stern as she took the certificates. After carefully counting them, a smile gradually appeared on her face.
“Actually, there are many pills that can be valued using money.” She raised her head and looked at Yang Yi with a grin.
“Junior Brother Yang, do you have any pills you have in mind? Or would you like to listen to my suggestion?”
“…” Yang Yi expected as much.
Zhuang Chenglu was willing to swindle 80 taels of silver. She might not be short of funds, but she was still a money grubber.
However, he did not expect her to switch her stance so quickly!
This made him wonder if he had given her too much.