Wei Yunxi remained highly alert. She quickly sent a secret message to Wei Zonghao, and the two met during lunch to quietly discuss the matter.
"Yunxi, you're sure someone's targeting us?" Zonghao asked.
"Yes. If it had only happened once, I could dismiss it as coincidence, but it's been three days in a row. Something's definitely wrong," Wei Yunxi said with certainty.
"Do you think they're after our spirit fields, or is it personal?"
She shook her head. "I don't know."
In truth, she had her suspicions. If it was someone connected to Chen Feng, things could get complicated.
Wei Zonghao rubbed his face. "The timing is awful. I'm just about to break through to the seventh layer of Qi Refining. If something happens now..."
Wei Yunxi had the same concern. After thinking it over, she leaned close and whispered something in his ear. Zonghao looked conflicted.
"Are you sure about this?"
"Even if I'm not, we have no choice. We can't let them keep leading us by the nose."
"Alright. I'll follow your lead."
They split up and made preparations for any sudden danger, quietly waiting for their unseen opponents to make a move.
The one tailing them, however, was none other than Chen Feng's former lover, Tang Ru.
Since becoming the concubine of a Golden Core cultivator, Tang Ru had advanced to the ninth level of Qi Refining. This was even after she'd shared half of her cultivation resources with Chen Feng. Without that burden, she might have reached Foundation Establishment already.
But two months had passed, and Chen Feng had never come to see her. Even the resources she had hidden for him remained untouched. Growing worried, she spent spirit stones to investigate his whereabouts.
Chen Feng had gone to the outer fifth peak to exact revenge on Wei Yunxi. His plan had been to steal her resources and then silence her. Convinced that his superior cultivation guaranteed success, he hadn't told anyone of his plans.
The sect strictly forbade internal killings. Chen Feng would never have given others leverage over him, so not even Tang Ru knew his intentions. As an outer disciple, he hadn't earned the right to light a soul lamp. So when he died, no one noticed. Only Tang Ru was still thinking of him.
Restless, she used a tracing spell with the jade hairpin Chen Feng had given her and confirmed that his last known location was the Grade B spirit fields on the outer fifth peak. Beyond that, the trail vanished.
Tang Ru guessed the worst. She hired people to gather more information, casting a wide net that eventually included the Wei siblings.
At first, she suspected them. But after tracking their movements, she ruled them out.
She had known Chen Feng well. He would never risk confronting someone of equal strength unless he was absolutely certain. Attacking Wei Yunxi alone was plausible, but her cultivation was two minor realms below his. There was no way she could have defeated him.
Satisfied, she shifted her attention to other suspects, unintentionally sparing Wei Yunxi from further trouble.
Still, neither Wei Yunxi nor Zonghao could tell whether the people lurking near their fields were after the rice or after them. So for the past two days, they halted their cultivation and kept constant watch over the spirit fields.
Elsewhere, Wei Yunqing was having a good time. She had been working on Pill Peak sorting medicinal herbs and gradually became acquainted with the Senior Brothers there.
Her diligent, obedient image earned her the favor of a Senior Brother named Ye, who gave her a long-term sect assignment. She was now officially in charge of herb sorting at Pill Peak, received spirit stones, and could even purchase pills at discounted prices. Her pride swelled.
Since her fellow Wei disciples had excluded her, she decided to rise on her own. She had also come to understand how beneficial it could be to become an alchemist. From then on, she resolved to pursue the path of pill cultivation.
With dual Water-Wood roots, she had a talent for nurturing spirit plants. Even before Foundation Establishment, she could use ground fire for alchemy. Once she advanced and acquired a strange flame, her progress would be unstoppable.
She still remembered that illusion. A patch of rare fire had appeared in it, and she intended to confirm its existence one day.
Of course, she was too weak now to search for it. So her priority was to build her strength.
She returned to the courtyard the next day with good news, but only Wei Yunying was there. From her, she learned that Yunxi had chosen to live at the spirit fields to cultivate rice. She scoffed at that decision and made a few mocking remarks.
Wei Yunying didn't bother responding. Tired of her constant passive-aggression, she excused herself and returned to her room to cultivate, leaving Wei Yunqing feeling snubbed.
When she went to vent to Zong Jin and Zong Yu next door, they brushed her off as well, claiming they had sect tasks to attend to and walking away without even a proper goodbye. Fuming, Wei Yunqing stomped back to Pill Peak.
And so, the eight siblings of the Wei family had all begun to walk their separate cultivation paths. Some looked out for each other along the way. Others only sought to trip up their kin. Some would fall behind, fading into obscurity. Others would strive forward and one day forge a brilliant future.
Back in the present, Wei Yunxi and Zonghao had made all necessary preparations. Now, they simply waited for their pursuers to show their hand.
Before that happened, however, they met the cultivator who owned field 59, the one between theirs. His name was Fan Si, a cultivator at the eighth level of Qi Refining.
Seeing that his field's protective array had been deactivated, the two went to greet him.
Fan Si looked at the siblings, both barely reaching his chest, and chuckled. "I was planning to take the surrounding fields too. Didn't expect you two to beat me to it."
Wei Yunxi smiled politely. "Senior Brother Fan, the steward Brother Wang assigned us these plots. He was kind enough to give us fertile fields since this is our first time planting spirit rice. If you want the fields to be connected, we'd be happy to exchange them next season."
Fan Si's expression relaxed. This little junior sister was clearly tactful and easy to talk to. He smiled back.
"Brother Wang and I are close. When the time comes, I'll arrange a field swap for you two. I'll make sure it's a fair deal."
"Many thanks, Senior Brother Fan."
The conversation went smoothly. Once the groundwork was laid, Wei Yunxi gave Zonghao a look. He stepped forward and spoke in a low voice.
"Senior Brother Fan, you may not have heard since you just came out of seclusion, but someone's been lurking near our fields the past few days. We don't know if they're eyeing the soon-to-mature rice or something else. We were hoping for your advice."
Fan Si frowned. He had dealt with troublemakers before. These were Grade B fields, after all. Once the rice matured, cultivators only had to hand in a portion to the sect. The rest was theirs. With some effort, one could easily earn a hundred low-grade spirit stones.
He spoke gravely.
"It's normal for newcomers with low cultivation to be targeted. My advice: spend a few spirit stones to accelerate your rice's growth. Harvest early and submit your quota. Better that than losing everything."
Zonghao blinked. "There are people like that even inside the sect?"
===
Hi everyone~ Just dropping by with a little update ⸜(｡˃ ᵕ ˂ )⸝♡
One of my other translation projects, titled My Daughter is the Empire's Lucky Charm, is now fully translated!
Yup, I've completed the whole thing! ٩(｡•́‿•̀｡)۶
It's still updating on the site, but you can look forward to daily releases until the end.
As for my next project, I'll be diving into a post-apocalyptic rebirth story. The female lead is a mother who survived two years after the world ended, only to be reborn before the apocalypse began. In her first life, she was mistreated and used by her husband and his mistress. But in this second life, she's determined to protect her daughter and live for herself. Revenge? Oh, absolutely. But her child comes first.
Like most apocalypse+rebirth stories, she has a space with still-time storage. Alongside her daughter, she forms a small survival team: a male gym instructor, a college student, a women (I forgot her exact pre-apocalypse jobs) with her grandmother. Oh, and if I remember right... there's a dog too!
This isn't a zombie apocalypse, by the way—it's a full-blown natural disaster apocalypse.
What left the deepest impression on me was the twist near the end. I honestly didn't see it coming. Without spoiling too much, let's just say that by the final chapters, most of humanity is wiped out by a disaster so bizarre and illogical... it actually works as a narrative gut punch.
After that novel, I plan to return to ancient Chinese historical fiction, specifically set during the Qin Dynasty and though it shares some vibes with Lucky Charm, but it's at least twice as long. Expect more intense kingdom-building, politics, and national development!
I'm also eyeing a novel where the female MC is the daughter of Wu Zetian, the first Female Emperor in Chinese history. I haven't read it yet, but the premise sounds fascinating, so I've added it to my list of upcoming translations. Both are fairly long works, but I think you'll enjoy them!
On the flip side, I've decided not to pick up that popular novel about a female police officer transmigrating to ancient times, fleeing danger, and becoming an empress. While the story has its strong points, the heroine's core beliefs just don't align with mine. I enjoy kingdom-building and strategic development, but one of her major principles really grated on me. And since translation is more than just a one-time read, forcing myself to work on something I clash with would feel like mental torture (´-﹏-`). I wouldn't be able to bring my best to the table that way.
I might also start working on a yuri-themed ancient historical novel—daily updates, maybe one chapter per day. That one's still in the planning stages though, so no promises yet!
Thank you for reading my ramblings and for supporting my work! Stay tuned for more exciting stories ahead~ (≧▽≦)💕