“No, matters of the heart are the most difficult to resolve. If he and I were mutually in love and another woman came to snatch him away, I would certainly kill her. But that woman is merely in a normal relationship with him.”
Mu Qingyu turned to look at her as they both stopped on a mountainside. She shook her head. “Even if I am ruthless enough to kill someone without a qualm, I cannot harbor hatred for a woman I’ve never even met just because of a man.”
“Female cultivators already have a hard enough time surviving on their own in the cultivation world. I, for one, simply cannot stand seeing women suffer.”
Mu Qingyu swayed her hips and leaned in toward Yao Dai. Her posture was flirtatious but not vulgar, her eyes were bold, and her red lips were vivid. She reached out and playfully flicked Yao Dai’s chin. Her revealing outfit flashed before Yao Dai’s eyes, causing the girl’s face to flush as she quickly looked away.
She didn’t care for the company of men, but she enjoyed being affectionate with a young girl like Yao Dai.
“What I want is a man who loves me openly and honestly, not to fight someone else for a man. I need someone who loves me more than I love them. I will never let myself be driven to the brink of life and death over a man. Cultivation is an act of defying the heavens, and my time is precious. How could I waste my youth and energy on a man, wondering if he truly loves me? I only want someone who proactively loves me with everything they have. If they won’t, then I don’t want them.”
Every word and sentence Mu Qingyu spoke was crystal clear. To Yao Dai, who had never seriously considered such things, it was as if a new world had opened before her.
Though these words ultimately reached the same destination as Wen Li’s teachings on putting oneself first, it was a specific insight into romantic relationships that provided her with significant enlightenment.
Especially with Wen Li’s philosophy of “self-first” already ingrained in her, Yao Dai frowned and slowly chewed over each word. Gradually, her brow relaxed as she realized something.
It was indeed true. Even when applied to the principles her Master had taught her, matters of the heart should be as Mu Qingyu described. She couldn’t forget that cultivation was the top priority for the sake of a man; it was the thing she had to choose steadfastly.
“Hey, stop thinking about it. Thinking isn’t as good as trying it out yourself. Come on, I’ll take you to the mortal world to have some fun with a few male consorts.”
Seeing her lost in thought, Mu Qingyu couldn’t help but reach out and drape an arm over her shoulder again to tease her.
“I’m not interested in men. I still need to find more medicine humans. I’m leaving now,” Yao Dai said as she calmly pushed her away. She had to hurry and cultivate; she absolutely could not be inferior to her Master’s other disciples, and she certainly couldn't let her Master down.
“Tsk, how boring.”
Mu Qingyu couldn't help but complain seeing how obsessed Yao Dai was with cultivation, but deep down, she admired the girl’s refusal to let male beauty distract her.
“Cultivate, cultivate. You spend all day refining those damn poisons, only for your poisons to act as antidotes while your antidotes end up poisoning people! Hahaha! I’ve heard all about it from the senior sisters in the Xuandu Sect whom you ‘cured.’ If they didn’t see you were sincerely trying to save them, they would’ve thought they’d offended you somehow, and that you were using the guise of detoxification to try and poison them to death.”
Yao Dai’s face darkened as her flaws were exposed. She crossed her arms and glared ominously.
“If you say one more word, I won’t bring any more durians back for you next time.”
The Xuandu Sect was primarily composed of pill cultivators, and they were situated in the Far Cold Lands because the low temperatures were ideal for preserving various medicinal research. Although they had low-temperature magical artifacts specifically for storage, allowing disciples to travel throughout the Western Province for materials, powerful disciples like Mu Qingyu rarely went personally. Most of the searching was left to the junior brothers and sisters.
Like Yao Dai.
Mu Qingyu would occasionally ask her to bring things back. If she was going south, she would ask for durians.
Of course, plenty of male cultivators were willing to buy them for her, but Mu Qingyu only liked the ones Yao Dai gave her. Apparently, it was because…
Yao Dai had a keen nose, and the durians she bought were always perfectly pungent and each segment was so plump it was as if the fruit were trying to repay a debt of gratitude.
Mu Qingyu’s arrogance immediately vanished as she pouted, though she still spoke stubbornly. “Hmph, it’s just durian. I’ll go buy some myself one of these days.”
“Then I’ll be back at the Xuandu Sect in seven days. Don’t come looking for durians then; acting spoiled won’t work.” Yao Dai turned to fly off on her sword.
Hearing this, it was obvious she was heading south again.
“Wait, don’t!”
Mu Qingyu’s eyes widened. “Hey! Darling, please, I’m begging you! Bring some back for me! Ahhh! I’ll guard your cave dwelling and medicine field for you! I promise I won’t let anyone pluck those weeds and affect your assessment!”
Just a moment ago she was stubborn, but now her voice was so sultry it practically wound like a snake.
Yao Dai couldn't bear to watch and corrected her with a frown, “They aren't weeds. Those are spiritual flowers and herbs I meticulously transplanted.”
“Right, right, right! I remembered wrong. They’re immortal herbs and immortal flowers! You can rest easy with me here!” Mu Qingyu smiled flatteringly.
Immortal herbs and flowers, my foot. Compared to the neatly arranged, beautifully growing immortal herbs and flowers in the other inner disciples’ fields, hers looked like a messy patch of wild grass.
Several times, people had mistaken them for weeds that had grown from seeds found in animal droppings and tried to weed them out.
If Mu Qingyu hadn't been watching, they would have been gone long ago.
She wondered who this brat had learned her blind self-perception from; it was so far removed from reality. Her Master, the Seventh Elder, certainly wasn't like that.
“Come to my cave dwelling in seven days to get them,” Yao Dai said as she flew away.
“Will do!”
...
Western Province.
Beside a clear pool within the Fuxian Sect.
A youth with a bare upper body sat upright beneath a waterfall. His mermaid lines and abdominal muscles were defined and aesthetically pleasing, and his skin was a healthy tan rather than pale. He allowed the fresh water to wash away the scent of blood from his body. His aura was restrained and steady, and his long hair was tied back neatly in a crown.
When the youth opened his eyes, they were red vertical pupils—eerie and cold.
A dwarf old man appeared on the bank, his hands behind his back, nodding in satisfaction.
“Not bad. Your cultivation has reached Golden Core Great Perfection. If you can break through to the Nascent Soul realm before the Qingyun Gathering, you will be number one.”
Xie Tinglan’s red eyes flicked over to him coldly. Having already learned to endure and practice deceit, he suppressed the killing intent in his heart and replied indifferently.
“Didn't you say you had the ability to let me cultivate to the Nascent Soul realm? If I can’t reach it, then participating in the Qingyun Gathering is just a formality. I heard the Lingjian Sect is also concentrating resources to cultivate a genius, and they are quite confident they will make a stunning debut.”
This damn old geezer. Back then, when he had fought back and injured someone, this old man had suppressed him and thrown him into a secret realm with a one-to-one-hundred time dilation. He had spent a hundred years alone there, with the old man intending to break his pride. Unfortunately for the elder, his pride remained unbroken. Instead, he had broken through from the Late-Stage Golden Core to Golden Core Great Perfection in that secret realm, and he was now at the bottleneck of the Nascent Soul realm.
The old geezer was quick to change his tune; he no longer cared about breaking Xie Tinglan’s spirit. He had hurriedly pulled him out to heal his wounds and was now negotiating with him in a friendly manner, claiming that everything was for the glory of the Fuxian Sect and for his own good, promising that in the future, he could kill whoever he wanted and no one would ever step on him again.
If he hadn't met Wen Li, he might have believed some of this. But having been taught by her about the various evils of the human heart, he saw it for what it was: a lowered stance born purely out of self-interest.
Fine. Since they wanted to use his talent to fight for the Fuxian Sect’s glory at the Qingyun Gathering, then he would drain the Fuxian Sect of all its resources.
Rate on N.U.
