Today, Yunxi's task was to clear a meridian path in her lungs. It was slow and meticulous work, and by the time she finished her cultivation, the sky had already turned to dusk.
She took a deep breath, instantly feeling how smooth and easy it was to inhale. Satisfied, she prepared to store the Xianling Grass into her spatial pouch.
But before she could do so, Xianling Grass transmitted a message directly into her mind.
"Master, the spiritual energy I stored before is almost depleted. You'll need to find a new spiritual vein."
Yunxi froze. That kind of goal felt far too ambitious. With her current cultivation level, was she even qualified to dream of acquiring a spiritual vein? Wouldn't she just get herself killed?
She softened her tone, trying to reason. "Xiao Xian, your standards are a bit too high. I'm not strong enough for that. Last time, we only succeeded because the sect was caught off guard. If we try again, we'll definitely be targeted."
"Ugh, small places are so annoying. They guard even the tiniest things like treasures," Xiao Xian grumbled.
Yunxi didn't bother arguing. After all, their environments had shaped them differently.
The Xianling Grass rustled its leaves. "Fine, if we can't do anything inside the sect, we'll go find an ownerless spiritual vein outside. That way, we can absorb it freely, right?"
Yunxi thought the suggestion was actually quite good. Besides, she could barely suppress her cultivation any longer. She was just a breath away from breaking through to the Foundation Establishment stage. Once she did, lightning tribulation would follow. If that happened inside the sect, it would be impossible to hide her true cultivation level or the nature of her spiritual roots. Leaving the sect had become necessary.
"Xiao Xian, your idea's not bad. Give me a little time to prepare. I still need to take on a mission that lets me leave the sect, or else I won't have a proper reason to go."
"Alright. Make your plans carefully. Once we're in the outer mountains, let me out. I can sense where the spiritual veins are."
"Got it."
Yunxi agreed readily this time, then stowed the Xianling Grass away. She cast a pair of Dust-Cleansing Arts on herself, then left the alchemy room.
"Senior Brother Chu, these are the pills I made today. They'll cover the cost of renting the room."
She handed over a porcelain bottle with a bright smile.
Senior Brother Chu uncorked it, took a sniff, and smiled back. "Junior Sister Wei, your alchemy is quite stable. Always mid-grade quality."
There was a slight probing tone in his words.
Yunxi scratched her head in embarrassment. "Senior Brother Chu, I've been trying to reach high-grade lately. I've spent all my spirit stones on herbs, but I'm still not there yet. I'm planning to take on a few more missions to earn more stones, then come back."
"Well, you're always welcome here. But if you keep failing to break through, there might be some other issue. If you want, I can watch you next time and help check."
Senior Brother Chu offered with a kindly smile.
Yunxi's eyes lit up. "Really, Senior Brother?"
"Of course. We're from the same sect. Helping you is no trouble at all."
"It may be no trouble to you, but for me, it's a huge help! If I'd known you were this easy to talk to, I would've shamelessly asked ages ago. I wasted an entire batch of herbs today for nothing."
She looked genuinely regretful.
Senior Brother Chu looked rather pleased, though he tried to keep his tone calm. "No worries. Just come back next time and we'll see."
Yunxi latched onto the offer immediately. "Then it's a deal, Senior Brother Chu. Next time, I'll count on your guidance. For now, I'll go take on some missions and earn more spirit stones for herbs."
She cupped her hands and quickly left, afraid he might take back his offer.
Senior Brother Chu watched her retreating figure with a small smile, then raised a hand to release a message talisman before returning to his meditation.
But Yunxi wasn't nearly as cheerful as she appeared. Her expression turned dark the moment she stepped away. Did they think she was easy to bully because she was young? The scheming in that man's eyes had been practically spilling out. Did he really think she hadn't noticed?
Whether he acted on his own or was manipulated by someone else, one thing was certain—his target was her. And the first person she suspected was Wei Yunqing. That supposed female lead had been quiet for a while, but now she was starting to stir up trouble again.
Not that this surprised Yunxi. She'd been expecting it ever since a run-in at the Alchemy Hall a month ago.
At the time, Wei Yunqing had spotted her, still carrying the scent of freshly refined pills, and had stared at her in shock.
"You can make pills?"
Yunxi rolled her eyes internally but kept her expression mild. "Just started learning."
Then she walked away without another word. She had no interest in talking.
Wei Yunqing hadn't tried to stop her, but had stared at her back thoughtfully. After Yunxi left, she approached a disciple on duty and used Senior Brother Ye from Pill Peak as an excuse to look up Yunxi's room rentals.
She quickly discovered that her "little sister" had been renting alchemy rooms off and on for the past three years, usually paying with completed pills instead of spirit stones. That very day, she had even purchased one of Yunxi's pills—a mid-grade Yangling Pill—for identification.
When the pill's quality was confirmed, Wei Yunqing's expression turned sour. She'd heard from Wei Yunting that Yunxi only refined Bigu dan to save money. She never imagined her sister could make something as valuable as a mid-grade Nourishing Spirit Pill.
Her own alchemy still lingered in the low-grade level. Sometimes, she even blew up the furnace. Compared to Yunxi, the difference was glaring, and the jealousy in her heart flared up once more.
She paid spirit stones to have a disciple keep watch over Yunxi, and discovered that her sister had earned quite a lot over the past three years by selling pills. Though Yunxi used most of the money to buy herbs, Wei Yunqing refused to believe she hadn't kept some for her own cultivation.
So she set her sights on that stash.
Typical Wei Yunqing logic—rather than earn her own spirit stones, she felt entitled to what her sister had painstakingly earned, as if it naturally belonged to her.
If Yunxi ever found out, she'd probably spit in her face.
After returning to her newly assigned residence at Outer Peak Three, Yunxi sent a message to Hua Xuānzi. A short while later, she received a reply.
The next day, they met inside a training chamber.
Hua Xuānzi greeted her with a laugh. "Junior Sister Yunxi, what's with all the mystery? Do you need my help with something?"
"I do, actually," Yunxi said with a smile. "I need you to help me take on a mission that allows me to leave the sect. Someone's been watching me, so it's inconvenient to visit the outer mission hall right now."
Hua Xuānzi frowned. "Who's being that blatant?"
Disciples from the Wei clan generally had a good reputation in the outer sect.
"Oh, it's just a family matter. No need to air dirty laundry," Yunxi said lightly, keeping things vague.
Hua Xuānzi nodded in understanding. She pulled out a jade slip and handed it over. "Take a look. Let me know once you've chosen."
Yunxi didn't hesitate. She scanned the contents with her divine sense, reviewed all the missions, and quickly locked onto her target.
"Senior Sister Hua, I'll take this one."
Hua Xuānzi glanced at the mission and frowned. "This is a search mission for a missing sect member. You'll have to go all the way to the Baohua Mountain Range, ten thousand li from the sect. It's your first mission outside, and you're heading that far? I'm a little worried."
"Don't worry, Senior Sister. There's a first time for everything. I'll be cautious. Besides, I know one of the missing disciples—a younger junior sister."