Chapter 89: Xuanhuan Cultivation BL (V)

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Chapter 89: Xuanhuan Cultivation BL (V)

Bai Yingqi’s residence was comparable to that of an elder, with spiritual energy so dense it was almost tangible. As the Sect Master’s only daughter, she naturally enjoyed privileges that now extended to both of them. The moment they entered, Bai Yingqi skillfully instructed the servants to prepare a selection of pastries. Once they were served, she watched Miao Lichen eat.

A beauty was a beauty. Even something as ordinary as eating could become a feast for the eyes. Bai Yingqi casually tossed a small pastry into her mouth. It had been cut into bite-sized pieces, and the childish way she caught it with her mouth gave her an innocent, endearing charm.

“Qiqi, where have all the manners Master taught you gone? Have you forgotten even the proper way to eat?” The cold voice carried no warmth, and even the words themselves sounded rigid and old-fashioned. “Cultivators may not care as much about etiquette as mortals do, but you’ve been alone in a room with an unfamiliar man for so long. What will others think? Where does that leave Master’s reputation?”

A man dressed in white stepped inside. His gaze toward Bai Yingqi held carefully concealed affection. Then he turned toward Miao Lichen, his sharp glare falling on him. His lips pressed into a thin line, radiating an overwhelming sense of pressure. Had Miao Lichen truly been nothing more than a cultivator who had joined the sect less than a year ago, that aura alone would have been enough to leave him frozen in place.

∇ Side Mission: Capture the Supporting Character , Yan Yangxi (Favorability 100%).

∇ Rewards based on completion rate.

∇ Capture Target Yan Yangxi Favorability: -20.

Instead of reacting, Miao Lichen calmly finished his pastry, took out a white handkerchief to wipe his lips, and only then looked up at one of the novel’s supporting characters, the Heavenly Sword Sect’s greatest prodigy, Yan Yangxi, who had yet to reach a hundred years of age yet was already on the verge of forming his Golden Core.

Not having encountered the protagonist yet, Yan Yangxi was every bit worthy of his reputation as a genius. Calm and self-disciplined, he could sometimes seem somewhat rigid, but he was undoubtedly deserving of his status as the Sect Master’s senior disciple. Yet once someone shattered that composure, the calmer he had once been, the more frenzied he became. Yan Yangxi would later become one of the Ten Great Powerhouses of Demonic Cultivation. Originally a sword immortal with boundless potential, he ultimately abandoned the righteous path for a blood-soaked demonic one. Whether that transformation was a blessing or a tragedy was difficult to say.

“Senior Brother Yan.” Unlike Yan Yangxi’s icy voice, which made one feel as though they had been cast into a frozen wasteland, Miao Lichen’s tone was no gentler. Yan Yangxi studied him carefully. For a brief moment, he had to admit his junior sister had excellent taste. Though the youth still carried traces of immaturity, his composed eyes and dignified bearing were far beyond those of an ordinary person.

Even if his junior sister ultimately chose a woman who would care for her for the rest of her life, it had to be someone capable of protecting her, not someone who needed her protection. The tiny bit of goodwill Yan Yangxi had just developed immediately vanished, and his voice turned even colder. “Not just anyone is qualified to call me Senior Brother.” An outer disciple was required to address all inner disciples as Martial Uncles, let alone him, the Sect Master’s eldest disciple.

∇ Capture Target Yan Yangxi Favorability: -5.

“Senior Brother Yan, A’chen really should call you Senior Brother. He is a personal disciple of an elder.” Bai Yingqi hurriedly stepped in front of Miao Lichen in a protective stance, looking at Yan Yangxi with obvious vigilance. As the heir to a ghost hunter’s lineage, she was exceptionally sensitive to souls.

It was hardly surprising that a man already surrounded by vengeful spirits while walking the righteous path would eventually join the demonic path. One could even say the demonic path suited him better than the righteous one. That was why Bai Yingqi had never once considered helping her senior brother escape the protagonist’s influence and remain a sword immortal forever. Some things truly seemed destined, especially in a cultivation world like this one. Anything connected to karma naturally carried an air of profound inevitability.

Yan Yangxi turned his gaze back to Miao Lichen. Seeing the boy meet his gaze without the slightest hint of fear, he unconsciously intensified the pressure radiating from his aura. Those pale, tranquil eyes remained completely unchanged until a faint muffled groan broke the silence. Only then did he abruptly withdraw his aura and hurry to Bai Yingqi’s side. One hand steadied her shoulder while the other placed a medicinal pill against her lips.

“I’ll be going now.” Miao Lichen studied Bai Yingqi’s face for a moment. Once he confirmed she was unharmed, he guessed that groan had merely been a deliberate act to prevent him from suffering under the pressure. The corner of his lips lifted in a fleeting smile, but even that brief expression was enough to blind them.

If she hadn’t been pretending to be the injured party, Bai Yingqi would probably have thrown herself at him immediately. After spending so long caring for Miao Lichen, this was the first time she had ever seen him smile. A warmth spread through her heart. Her efforts had not been in vain. In the eyes of this aloof child, she was no longer just another passerby who could disappear at any moment. At the very least… she could now be considered a friend.

Children with unhappy childhoods were always emotionally fragile. Although Bai Yingqi had never asked about Miao Lichen’s past, she had never forgotten the first time she saw him, when he had been so emaciated that he was little more than a skeleton. Sometimes she felt fortunate that she had met him. Helping him had given her purpose as well.

∇ Capture Target Bai Yingqi Favorability: 85.

“Senior Brother Yan, why aren’t you focusing on breaking through to the Golden Core stage instead of coming here? Father has high hopes for you. He’s always wanted one of his disciples to become a Golden Core elder.” Only after making sure Miao Lichen had safely left did Bai Yingqi give Yan Yangxi a push. Yan Yangxi tactfully stepped farther away, displaying impeccable gentlemanly manners.

But to Bai Yingqi, who had read the original novel, he was far more than the cold and aloof chief disciple of the Heavenly Sword Sect. He was also the future demonic cultivator who would one day slaughter an entire city, leaving no living creature behind. Fortunately, he would soon have no time to wander around in front of her. The farther she and Miao Lichen stayed from someone this dangerous, the better.

“In one year’s time, the Dankou Secret Realm will open. Every Golden Core cultivator will have the chance to enter and explore it. Junior Sister, you’ve already reached the peak of Foundation Establishment. Master hopes you’ll break through before the secret realm opens so we can look after each other inside. The realm only opens once every twenty years. If you miss this chance, no one knows what the next twenty years will bring.” Yan Yangxi took out a bottle of pills from his storage ring. Though he had yet to remove the stopper, the rich medicinal fragrance had already filled the room, instantly refreshing anyone who inhaled it.

Although Bai Yingqi had originally come from the modern world, no cultivator lacked the desire for greater strength, especially when there were people they wished to protect. But she absolutely could not enter the Dankou Secret Realm this time. Only Golden Core cultivators were allowed inside, and the protagonist was already at the Nascent Soul stage, so under normal circumstances he shouldn’t have been able to enter. But who was the protagonist? Wherever great opportunities existed, he would inevitably find a way in.

Jiang Lingwen was the leader of this expedition and one of the people swept into the Dankou Secret Realm by the once-in-a-century storm during the event. That so-called storm was merely a cover. In truth, the Dankou Secret Realm itself was part of the inheritance Jiang Lingwen would obtain. A portion of the legacy left behind by that senior of the Heavenly Sword Sect was hidden within it.

The Heavenly Sword Sect’s supreme inheritance was extraordinarily powerful, but it came with one restriction. Every time the cultivator advanced to a new major stage, they had to refine a corresponding flying sword to strengthen their Sword Heart. By the time they reached the end of their cultivation path, their body would become as durable as a divine weapon, even surpassing cultivators who specialized in body refinement through unorthodox means. The greatest inheritance within the Dankou Secret Realm was not the countless magical artifacts and spirit treasures, nor the immortal herbs growing everywhere, nor the beasts that yielded valuable beast cores. It was the legacy of alchemy and artifact forging.

That Heavenly Sword Sect senior had been a rare genius. He had not only cultivated at an astonishing pace and created his own cultivation technique, but also achieved unparalleled mastery in both alchemy and artifact forging. Unfortunately, heaven envied genius. After forging an immortal artifact while only at the early Tribulation stage, he was hunted down and killed by the righteous path, the demonic path, and even the still-flourishing spirits. The immortal sword he had forged vanished without a trace.

In the end, that genius existed solely to hand everything over to the protagonist. Although this would be the final opening of the Dankou Secret Realm, Bai Yingqi still had no intention of going. The original Bai Yingqi had never been meant to enter, and neither would she.

“Senior Brother Yan, I can’t rely on your protection forever. Even if I enter the Dankou Secret Realm, I won’t depend on you.” Bai Yingqi took the bottle of pills from Yan Yangxi’s hand. Once something was in her hands, it was hers. Whether or not she used it was entirely her decision. In a way, she was contributing to the righteous path. Before long, her senior brother would be contributing all his strength to the demonic path instead.

“Very well. My little junior sister has grown up.” Yan Yangxi glanced in the direction Miao Lichen had disappeared, seemingly thinking of something as a cold glint flashed through his eyes. His expressionless face darkened slightly, and he clenched his fist. An elder’s disciple? Aside from Feng Yingruo, the disciple Elder Jiang had recently accepted, there wasn’t another junior disciple who favored wearing red. Moreover, after losing a Heavenly Spiritual Root genius, none of the other elders had accepted new disciples. That left only one possibility: one of the attendants Elder Jiang had accepted under the title of disciple. That youth called A’chen also matched the poor aptitude perfectly.

“Let Senior Brother help you this one last time. If you truly dislike it afterward, I won’t interfere in your affairs again.” Yan Yangxi spoke quietly. Once he did this, she probably wouldn’t forgive him for a very long time. But one day, after she truly saw the darkness hidden beneath the cultivation world, she would understand that everything he had done was for her own good. A young girl’s first love might be beautiful and romantic, but it could not be allowed to continue unchecked.

Bai Yingqi nodded and put away the pills with a bright smile. This would indeed be the last time he meddled in her affairs. After this, even if he wanted to, he wouldn’t be able to. One of them would cultivate the righteous path, the other the demonic path. The two factions were destined to stand in direct opposition. The Heavenly Sword Sect’s greatest genius would become the sect’s greatest disgrace.

Watching Yan Yangxi’s figure disappear from her sight, Bai Yingqi silently looked away. There were too many unfortunate people in the world for her to save them all. At present, the only person in this world she truly acknowledged was Miao Lichen. She could neither care for nor save everyone else. Besides, the little junior sister in Yan Yangxi’s heart had always been the innocent Bai Yingqi, not Bai Yingqi the ghost hunter. What he saw in her was someone else’s shadow. Only in Miao Lichen’s eyes did she see her true self.

∇ Capture Target Bai Yingqi Favorability: 90.

‘Mm… Later I’ll give a few of these pills to A’chen. Even if he doesn’t need them now, they’ll come in handy someday.’ This was the Golden Core Pill, famous for increasing a cultivator’s chances of forming a Golden Core. The name might sound ordinary, but its effects were anything but. After all, the nine major cultivation realms were Qi Refinement, Foundation Establishment, Inedia, Golden Core, Nascent Soul, Soul Formation, Fusion, Tribulation, and Mahayana. Every breakthrough represented a tremendous leap in strength.

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