That kid, Du Yuxi, had a good disposition. He was decisive, resilient, and quite intelligent.
He could carry out a bloody slaughter, but also stop to smell the roses.
Unfortunately, he didn’t have a Spirit Root.
Otherwise, Du Youqian wouldn’t have minded guiding him onto the path of the Dao.
His physical aptitude was also only average. Although Du Youqian had taught him some Mortal Martial Arts, and he studied them diligently and painstakingly, his natural talent was simply too ordinary.
Even with the help of Du Youqian’s Immortal Elixirs and Marvelous Medicines, he couldn’t hope to even approach the level of an Innate Grandmaster without at least ten or twenty years of work.
As for Du Yuhuan, the less said, the better. She hid her sinister cruelty and cunning beneath the guise of a timid little white rabbit. Her physical aptitude was poor, and she also lacked a Spirit Root.
’If they want to revive the Du Family, there’s likely little hope with just the two of them.’
’Wait a minute...’ Du Youqian slapped his forehead.
’Why am I getting so hung up on this?’
’Why bother reviving the Du Family?’
’What does the Du Family have to do with me?’
’I’m Qiu Yuanqing now, and who knows who I’ll be in my next life.’
’The Du Family, just like any other clan of kings or nobles, is only temporary.
’Sooner or later, they’ll be mercilessly ravaged and eliminated by time.
’It’s not worth worrying too much about.
’Only the Immortal Dao is eternal.’
Having composed himself, Du Youqian strolled out of his seclusion chamber and into the guest room, where his gaze immediately fell upon Chen Yingzhi in her openwork long dress.
"Fellow Daoist Chen," Du Youqian said, cupping his hands in a salute devoid of any sincerity. "Long time no see. You’re looking well."
Chen Yingzhi offered a charming, fake smile. "It has indeed been a long time. A year and a half has passed since we parted ways in Wenzhe City. Fellow Daoist Qiu, you are as dashing as ever. No, I should say you are far more impressive than you were back then."
Du Youqian frowned. "Fellow Daoist Chen, let’s get straight to the point. I know you don’t enjoy talking to me. It’s fine, really, because I don’t enjoy talking to you either."
Chen Yingzhi’s expression shifted several times, and she couldn’t help but turn her head away to prevent him from seeing her pretty face twist in anger.
Only after a long moment did she turn back and say calmly, "I have brought a letter from my senior sister, as well as some items she asked me to deliver."
Taking the wax-sealed letter, Du Youqian didn’t rush to open it. Instead, he first examined the items Lin Sha had sent.
There were four items in total: a Flying Sword of the Spiritual Artifact Level, a cloak-style Top Grade Defensive Spiritual Artifact, a Jade Scroll, and a small box.
Du Youqian picked up the Jade Scroll, pressed it to his forehead, and briefly scanned its contents.
Inside was a Secret Technique, "Thousand Miles in One Line."
From the name, one might mistake it for a technique to control a Flying Sword, but upon closer inspection, he discovered it was actually a Secret Technique for rapid escape that involved Burning Essence Blood.
It could allow an ordinary Foundation Establishment Cultivator to, for a short period, burst forth with an Escape Speed rivaling that of a Core Formation Great Power. It was truly a life-burning... ahem, a Top Grade life-saving technique.
This Secret Technique alone revealed Lin Sha’s conflicted state of mind.
She wanted him to help her, yet she didn’t want him to face life-threatening danger.
Setting down the Jade scroll, Du Youqian picked up the box. He opened it just a crack, and a peculiar fragrance wafted into his nostrils.
He immediately shut the box tight.
After a moment of thought, he looked up at Chen Yingzhi. "The fruit of a Large-leafed Cyan Dragon Tree? It must be at least a hundred years old."
Chen Yingzhi laughed coquettishly. "Fellow Daoist Qiu is truly an Alchemy Genius. Correct, this is the fruit of a Large-leafed Cyan Dragon Tree, and it is 120 years old. I assume you know its purpose?"
Du Youqian lowered his head in brief contemplation. "It can be used as a substitute for the main ingredient of the Celestial Demon Sacrifice Pill. In the Pill Formula you gave me, that Dragon’s Tooth Grass tuber is now very hard to find, but the fruit of the Large-leafed Cyan Dragon Tree has a similar effect."
A look of admiration crossed Chen Yingzhi’s face. "Fellow Daoist Qiu, you are truly knowledgeable!"
Du Youqian didn’t even bother to give her a glance. "This couldn’t have been from Lin Sha. Given her personality, she would never have me refine the Celestial Demon Sacrifice Pill."
Chen Yingzhi said timidly, "It... It was my own idea. I thought Fellow Daoist Qiu might want to risk everything to help Senior Sister Lin. This fruit is enough to refine four batches of the Celestial Demon Sacrifice Pill. With your success rate, Fellow Daoist, you should be able to produce at least one, shouldn’t you?"
’You couldn’t trust a single word that came out of this Demoness’s mouth. As for her expression, anyone who believed it was a complete moron.’
Du Youqian didn’t beat around the bush, cutting straight to the chase. "You’re backed by Ancestor Cai’s faction, aren’t you? Or perhaps a third party. I don’t care. In any case, you want me to consume a Celestial Demon Sacrifice Pill, sever my own Dao path, and go kill a former prodigy from a Second-class Sect who is now a Great Cultivator with a Foundation Establishment Third Layer Cultivation. A suicidal task like that? I won’t do it without sufficient benefits."
"A Spiritual Artifact and a Top Grade Defensive Spiritual Artifact, and you expect to sever my Dao path, or even buy my life? As a True Inheritor of the Zhongxuan Sect, my life isn’t that cheap. I could get all of these things just by refining pills for the Sect for a few years. Why would I trade my entire future on the Dao for them?"
He sneered as he spoke, his contempt and disdain so palpable that even a blind man could have felt it.
A little indignant that her Charm Skill was consistently failing, Chen Yingzhi adopted a pitiful and moving expression. "Fellow Daoist Qiu..."
Du Youqian couldn’t be bothered with her and simply turned to leave. "If you don’t have the authority to make a decision, then go back and ask someone who does. Take your time leaving; I won’t see you out!"
Only after his figure disappeared did Chen Yingzhi dejectedly admit to herself that he wasn’t playing hard to get.
He was genuinely, completely unmoved by her charms—utterly impervious.
’What kind of man like that exists in this world?’
’What man alive wasn’t captivated by her charms?’
’This guy isn’t a man. He must be a eunuch!’
’A damned eunuch, for sure!’
~~~~~~~~~
The next day, Du Yuxi came to report that the beautiful "Immortal Sister" from yesterday had returned.
Du Youqian nodded and started walking out, then suddenly said, "Don’t call her ’Immortal Sister’ anymore. Just call her ’Divine Maiden’."
Du Yuxi’s face instantly flushed red.
Du Youqian paused, sizing him up with great interest. "So you understood what ’Divine Maiden’ implies? Seems you’ve been running around town quite a bit lately, learning all sorts of things."
Du Yuxi deliberately put on a cold, hard expression, but with his handsome, boyish face, he looked more like a puppy and failed to give off a tough impression at all.
"I don’t know what the Ancestor is talking about."
Du Youqian, of course, didn’t want to make things too difficult for him and said with a smile, "When you encounter women like her in the future, you must be careful, careful, and then be careful again. ’For a young man, the vice to guard against is lust.’ Understand?"
Du Yuxi said with a straight face, "I don’t understand. I don’t like women."
"I know. You only like your Sister Minmin."
His secret crush suddenly exposed by Du Youqian, Du Yuxi showed a rare look of panic. "I don’t! I don’t know what you’re talking about! Ancestor, stop teasing me!"
"Hahahaha!"
’So the divination I cast wasn’t wrong. This kid really is fated to be with Liao Minmin.’
In high spirits, Du Youqian walked into the parlor, where Chen Yingzhi was looking at him with a resentful expression.
"Fellow Daoist Chen, if you’re going to keep this up, we have nothing to talk about." Du Youqian postured as if to leave.
Chen Yingzhi was about to go insane.
’What did I do? I haven’t even said a word yet!’
She desperately wanted to just storm out.
But the thought of her master, on the rare occasions she dropped her flirtatious facade, casting a cold glance in her direction made her shudder involuntarily.
"Fellow Daoist Qiu, please wait!"