Wei Lingtao hesitated. "This might not be appropriate, don't you think?"
Yun Xi responded casually, as if it were nothing worth fretting over. "There's nothing inappropriate about it. Father was injured during his Golden Core breakthrough attempt. His meridians are damaged, and he won't be able to advance anytime soon. Since that's the case, there's no point wasting time.
As long as Patriarch can successfully form a Golden Core, I believe everyone will be glad to see it happen."
Her words were so direct that Wei Lingtao could no longer pretend to be oblivious. Of course, he now understood. It was nothing more than the consequences of the eldest brother's actions having chilled the child's heart. Now, she was turning her back on him.
But this was good news for him. As long as Yun Xi remained firm, Wei Lingyue would stay just the eldest master of the Wei family—without the right to covet anything further.
So Wei Lingtao didn't put on airs. He nodded. "Alright, Second Uncle understands. Leave the rest to me. Since you've returned to the clan, take these days to rest."
Wei Lingtao had clearly come out ahead in this situation, and he knew better than to push his luck. After chatting a while longer with Yun Xi about the Wei family's future development, he brought up attending the Feng family's celebration together the next day.
"Patriarch Feng just advanced to Golden Core. He'll likely invite other families from Kunyu City to celebrate. I'll go with you to offer congratulations. You can also stay at the Feng residence for a couple of days to strengthen ties."
"That works. I was planning to visit Uncle and retrieve my mother's keepsakes that he's been holding for me. I'll go with Patriarch to the Feng estate."
"Good. It's settled, then."
With the next day's schedule confirmed, Yun Xi returned to Zhuohua Courtyard.
Not long after she got back, the Flying Mist Butterfly relayed every word of the conversation between Wei Lingyue and Du Ruolan without missing a syllable.
Yun Xi's eyes flashed with disdain. That man who was supposedly her father was incredibly self-serving. No one was allowed to touch his interests. If anyone got in his way—even family—he could cast them aside without a second thought.
In the novel, Wei Lingyue had only shown interest in Wei Yunxi early on because she had a rare single-element lightning spiritual root. Later, when Yun Xi made a mistake and was brutally killed, he hadn't said a single word in her defense. So his behavior now came as no surprise.
"I see. Keep watching them and see what nonsense they try next."
She gave the command offhandedly.
The Flying Mist Butterfly felt that her talents were being underused, but she didn't mind the easy work. With a flutter of her wings, she flew off.
After the butterfly left, Dian Dian padded up to Yun Xi and said, "Master, I kept forgetting to tell you. Back when we were separated in the inner valley of Xiafei Valley I snuck into the Flying Mist Butterfly's old nest and found some untainted butterfly eggs for you."
Yun Xi raised her brows in surprise and tapped Dian Dian lightly on the forehead. "Didn't think you had a hidden card up your sleeve. Why didn't you tell me sooner?"
Dian Dian scratched at one of his dark ears with a hind paw. "Hehe! I was always with the Flying Mist Butterfly on the journey, and those are her babies. I didn't dare take them out. Then we got transported to the mortal realm and went through all that chaos. The spiritual energy there was so thin, it wasn't suitable for the eggs to hatch. I just... forgot."
"So why are you remembering it now?"
Yun Xi asked with a smile.
"Master needs more eyes. One Fei Xia isn't enough. For tasks like spying on Du Ruolan, a first-rank butterfly is plenty. We don't need a third-rank one for that. I thought I'd hatch the rest so they can help you in the future."
"You're thinking long-term. How many eggs did you get? You're sure they haven't been tainted by evil cultivators?"
"I found ten eggs, all tucked away in crevices. Probably overlooked by those evil cultivators. Guess I got lucky."
"You did well. Give me the eggs. I'll have Xiao Xian help. It should speed up the hatching."
"Yes, Master!"
Dian Dian opened his mouth and spat out ten butterfly eggs, each about the size of a baby's fingernail. Yun Xi waved her sleeve and stored them in her wooden talisman space. She then used sound transmission to instruct Xiao Xian to infuse the eggs with spiritual energy to hasten their transformation.
As a reward, she casually tossed Dian Dian a mid-grade spirit stone. Dian Dian squealed in delight, swallowed it whole, and trotted off merrily to inspect his new territory.
Just then, the defensive formation outside Zhuohua Courtyard was activated. Yun Xi swept it with her divine sense and saw that it was Wei Lingyue. With a flick of her hand, she let him into the courtyard.
Wei Lingyue had clearly done some mental preparation. He didn't show the slightest embarrassment. After sitting down across from Yun Xi, he pushed a storage pouch across the table to her.
Yun Xi glanced at it with her divine sense, accepted it without a word, then tossed him a pill bottle—the healing medicine she'd mentioned many times.
Wei Lingyue uncorked the bottle and gave it a sniff. Confirming that it was a top-grade second-tier healing pill, he smiled and slipped it into his own storage pouch.
Before he could speak, Yun Xi said, "Father, your injuries can't be delayed any longer. If you keep putting off treatment, it could jeopardize your advancement to Golden Core. You should go into closed-door cultivation and heal as soon as possible."
Wei Lingyue hesitated. "But you just returned two days ago, and now I'm going to shut myself away..."
"Father, it's not like I'm never coming back again. Your injuries are more important. They affect your entire cultivation path."
Wei Lingyue looked like he'd been persuaded. In the end, he nodded. "Alright. I'll listen to you. I'll go into seclusion tomorrow and heal. Once I'm recovered, we'll have plenty of time to catch up as father and daughter.
If anything happens while I'm away, go find Patriarch. He'll take care of it for you."
Yun Xi rolled her eyes inwardly. This guy had never once been there for her before. Now he wanted to act like a doting father? Still, she nodded. "Understood. I'll remember."
With that, she picked up her teacup. Wei Lingyue, understanding the cue, said he had arrangements to make before going into seclusion. He left the courtyard with a light step.
The next day, Yun Xi and Wei Lingtao represented the Wei family at the Feng family's celebration.
Yun Xi's appearance made waves. Every influential group in Kunyu City quickly learned that the Wei family had gained a new Golden Core cultivator—and a young one at that. On top of that, she had become a disciple of Yu Ling Zhēnjūn from the Haoran Sect. Her future was full of promise.
Suddenly, countless people came to network, curry favor, or introduce their talented heirs. Wei Lingtao kept everything under control with a cheerful smile, while Yun Xi just had to nod and smile. Only after half a day did she finally get the chance to sit with Feng Jiaqing.
Feng Jiaqing was now a true Golden Core cultivator. Though his aura hadn't completely settled, his foundation was solid, and his energy was stable. His advancement had clearly been natural. He had lingered at the peak of Foundation Establishment for ten years, so no one suspected anything unusual about his breakthrough.
Yun Xi told him how Wei Lingyue had returned her storage pouch, looking humiliated. Feng Jiaqing burst out laughing in satisfaction.
"Only you, his real daughter, could pull this off. If the Feng family had acted, it would've turned into a power struggle between two clans. You handled it well."
"Don't worry, Uncle. With Wei Lingyue's talent, forming a Golden Core is a pipe dream. I'm not looking down on him, but even if he managed to force his cultivation to the brink with pills, the Golden Core lightning tribulation won't go easy on him. If he doesn't want to turn into ash, he'd best stay put."
"As long as you know where you stand. Your father has ambition, but no strength to match it. That kind of person tends to act recklessly. Best keep him right where he is."
"Don't worry. As long as Wei Lingtao is around, that embroidered pillow of a father won't get what he wants."
That very day, while the Feng family celebrated, Wei Yunqing returned to Kunyu City. The moment she entered the city, she heard that the Feng family head had advanced to Golden Core.