Volume 1, Chapter 33 – The Peerless Fairy Causes Trouble (Part 2)

“It was that little girl.”

Elder Ruan turned around, glaring at Huang Qi’s body with righteous indignation.

“What do we do now? The Golden Life Flower seed was eaten by that child—how are we supposed to answer to its owner?”

“If they could produce such a seed in the first place, their strength must be immense. They’ll never let us off lightly. We might even face annihilation over a single seed!”

“And this Elder Ruan is utterly useless! The Sect Leader repeatedly warned him to protect that seed—how could he let someone eat it?”

The great hall erupted into chaos. Everyone fixed hostile stares upon Huang Qi’s body.

‘So the Golden Life Flower seed doesn’t actually belong to the Honghua Sect?’

Huang Qi caught the implications—and the seed’s owner seemed terrifyingly powerful. This is bad. Really bad.

Sect Leader Qin’s expression darkened at these words. His sharp gaze swept toward Cheng Hongling like a barrage of blades, raising the hairs on everyone’s necks.

Even in his dream state, Huang Qi’s soul trembled. His loli body shivered uncontrollably.

Jiang Linian sensed her daughter’s fear and immediately pulled Huang Qi’s body into her arms.

“Sect Leader Qin, let’s discuss this calmly. What exactly is this Golden Life Flower seed? I’ll do everything in my power to compensate for it.”

Cheng Yuan, meanwhile, spread his arms and fearlessly shielded his wife and daughter.

“Compensate? Do you even have the means?”

Elder Wu’s voice suddenly cut in from the corner. Having been publicly humiliated by Cheng Yuan earlier, he wasn’t about to pass up this chance to kick them while they were down.

But just then, Sect Leader Qin’s expression softened slightly. Instead, he turned his ire toward Elder Ruan.

“Elder Ruan, the Golden Life Flower seed was in your possession. I emphasized repeatedly how crucial it was to safeguard it—how did it end up in that child’s mouth?”

“Ah… this is shameful to admit, but I was careless. My foolish granddaughter, Lingyu, stole it from me.”

Elder Ruan deflated, his explanation laced with embarrassment.

“Lingyu stole it? Is that true?”

Sect Leader Qin’s gaze shifted toward Ruan Lingyu.

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“Sect Leader… I’m sorry!”

Ruan Lingyu bowed her head meekly, her voice barely above a whisper.

“Children make mistakes. I won’t hold it against you.”

Sect Leader Qin delivered his verdict just like that.

“What?!”

The entire hall was stunned. The Golden Life Flower seed was unimaginably precious—and it belonged to someone else! How could they let this slide so easily?

Huang Qi was equally caught off guard. Sect Leader Qin had just acted like the sky was falling, yet now he was backing down? The shift was too abrupt—had someone secretly taken over his body?

“Sect Leader, you know full well that seed wasn’t ours. When its owner comes demanding it, how will we explain ourselves?”

Elder Ruan’s voice carried a trace of panic.

“Of course I know. If anyone else had eaten it, I would’ve made them pay dearly. But this child… her talent is extraordinary. She represents the future of the Honghua Sect.”

Sect Leader Qin sighed.

“How extraordinary?”

Elder Wu seized the moment to interject again.

“She’s only cultivated for a year, yet she’s already reached the third layer of the Spirit Gathering Realm.”

Sect Leader Qin gazed at Cheng Hongling , a hint of pride flashing across his fair face.

‘Third layer? My body is clearly at the fourth layer—why is Sect Leader Qin lying?’

Huang Qi was baffled. Is he deliberately hiding the truth?

“What? Seriously? Sect Leader, you’re not joking, are you?”

“If this is true, her talent might rival even those prodigies the Tiger Roar Sect in the prefecture is grooming!”

“Where is this girl from? Our Huangtian County has never produced such a genius!”

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The elders murmured in awe, their hostility gradually fading.

“But Sect Leader, no matter how talented she is, what good does it do us? If the seed’s owner loses their temper, even ten of her won’t be enough to secure our sect’s future.”

Elder Wu remained the voice of pessimism.

“Just who is this seed’s owner? Are they really that terrifying?”

Huang Qi’s heart grew heavier.

“I’m well aware, and I’m not expecting her to confront them. But we must be flexible—brute force solves nothing.”

Sect Leader Qin replied calmly.

“So you already have a solution?”

Elder Wu pressed.

“Indeed. If anyone else had eaten the seed, we’d be doomed. But since it was this exceptionally talented girl, there might still be a way out.”

Sect Leader Qin smiled faintly before continuing.

“The Golden Life Flower is an incredibly rare spiritual herb. If consumed by a child under six, it can fundamentally reshape their bone structure—making boys grow tall and robust, and girls slender and graceful. If the child is already naturally tall, the effect is doubled. This makes it highly sought-after, especially in Huangtian County. After all, who doesn’t want to be tall? Who wants to be mocked as part of the ‘rat’s nest’ like us?”

The crowd nodded silently. Huangtian County had long been derided as the “rat’s nest”, its people looked down upon by outsiders. Consuming this herb would erase that stigma. Moreover, height conferred advantages in marriage prospects—who wouldn’t desire it?

“As the Honghua Sect’s leader, I’ve always wanted to obtain the Golden Life Flower to help our people. Unfortunately, it only grows in the far southern Cottonwood Valley, a territory controlled by the Immortal Alliance. Outsiders can’t enter.”

Sect Leader Qin sighed.

“Then where did this seed come from?”

Cheng Yuan asked curiously.

“About three years ago, a stranger suddenly arrived at our sect and entrusted this seed to me. He asked me to safeguard it for twenty years and offered generous compensation. I couldn’t refuse, so I agreed.”

Sect Leader Qin explained the seed’s origin.

“A stranger? How could he trust you with something so valuable?”

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Cheng Yuan was shocked.

“There’s only one explanation—he wasn’t afraid of me trying anything. And truthfully, anyone capable of obtaining such a treasure is beyond our ability to oppose.”

Sect Leader Qin laughed self-deprecatingly.

“So all that talk about the seed’s owner being terrifying was just speculation?”

Huang Qi finally understood.

“Sect Leader, now that my daughter has eaten the seed, how will you explain things when its owner comes?”

Cheng Yuan grasped the severity of the situation.

“As I said, if anyone else had eaten it, we’d be doomed. Fortunately, it was your daughter.”

Sect Leader Qin reiterated before elaborating. “The stranger visited a few more times afterward, and we grew somewhat acquainted. Though I never learned his identity, I did uncover some details.”

Everyone leaned in, eager for the crucial revelation.

“Years ago, his faction produced a peerless genius who ranked within the top twenty of the Immortal Alliance’s ‘Seedling Ranking’. One of the rewards was this Golden Life Flower seed.”

Sect Leader Qin revealed the seed’s background.

“What? Top twenty in the Seedling Ranking? That’s monstrous!”

“Exactly! Just that genius alone might be more than our sect can handle!”

“We’re finished. Any faction capable of nurturing such a genius must be a hegemon in the cultivation world!”

The elders paled, their earlier confidence shattered. They had guessed the owner was powerful, but never imagined their faction housed such a prodigy.

Huang Qi’s heart pounded. The “Seedling Ranking” was a power list issued by the Immortal Alliance, ranking the top one hundred cultivators under thirty in the Western Radiance Dynasty. The rankings were determined every three years at the “Evergreen Assembly”.

From what Huang Qi knew, even the lowest-ranked cultivator needed at least the seventh layer of the Body Refining Realm—a level only Sect Leader Qin could match in the entire Honghua Sect. And the top twenty? Those were true freaks of nature.

“Sect Leader, you can’t possibly expect this girl to reach the top twenty like that monster, can you? Her talent might be impressive in Huangtian County, but compared to that freak, she’s nothing.”

Elder Wu sneered, his words dripping with scorn.

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“Master, didn’t you already prove your shortsightedness during the aptitude test? And now you dare spout more nonsense?”

Cheng Yuan wouldn’t tolerate anyone belittling his daughter and fired back without hesitation.

“You—you ungrateful wretch! How dare you defy your master!”

Elder Wu roared in fury.

“Master? Insult my daughter, and even the heavens themselves will taste my wrath—just like you’re about to.”

Cheng Yuan stood his ground.

“Hah! Brave words mean nothing. Let’s see how your daughter cracks the top twenty. When she fails, she can serve as that faction’s slave!”

Elder Wu’s face twisted with malice.

“Again—what makes you so sure she can’t?”

Cheng Yuan scoffed.

“She definitely can’t reach the top twenty.”

Sect Leader Qin unexpectedly poured cold water on the argument before explaining further. “I know better than any of you what kind of monsters occupy those ranks. Cheng Hongling may be our sect’s rarest genius in a century, but she’s still a step below them.”

“Sect Leader, then I don’t understand—if she can’t reach the top twenty, what’s the point of participating in the Evergreen Assembly?”

Elder Wu pressed.

“The top twenty is impossible, but she might make the top one hundred.”

Sect Leader Qin’s eyes gleamed with anticipation as he gazed at Huang Qi’s body.

“But didn’t you say only the top twenty receive Golden Life Flower seeds? What’s the use of just making the top one hundred?”

Elder Wu was exasperated.

“Who said anything about compensating them with another seed?”

Sect Leader Qin countered before continuing. “If she reaches the top one hundred, it won’t be for the seed—but for something else entirely.”