Chu Xingchen finished speaking and fixed his gaze on Wu Kong.
Wu Kong, jade slip already in hand, rose directly to his feet.
"This humble monk understands. Thank you, Sect Master Chu. If I obtain any news, I will notify you. I won't take up any more of your time."
Chu Xingchen gave a small nod. Wu Kong was proving to be quite sensible, so he dropped his aggressive tone.
"Since you've come all this way, at least have a cup of tea before you go. Yingling, stop standing outside — come on in."
Li Yingling, who had been waiting in the corridor outside the hall, picked up the tea tray and walked in.
She had actually arrived some time ago. But sensing that the atmosphere inside was tense, she had refrained from entering abruptly, knowing it might disrupt her master's flow of conversation.
Instead, she had simply stood outside, letting just enough of her aura seep through so that her master would know of her presence without having to divert his attention.
Chu Xingchen didn't ask Li Yingling to pour the tea.
She was his disciple, not a teahouse servant. Among their own people, there was no need for rigid formalities.
Li Yingling was already a Nascent Soul cultivator — she had earned some reputation of her own out in the world.
For all his love of projecting authority, Chu Xingchen cared far more about his own disciples' dignity.
Chu Xingchen took the teapot from Li Yingling's hands, walked over to Wu Kong personally, and poured him a cup using the tea set on the table.
Wu Kong pressed his palms together in gratitude, then lifted the cup and downed it in a single swallow.
The moment the tea passed his throat, a wave of warmth and deep comfort began to spread slowly throughout his entire body.
Wu Kong froze for an instant. He had initially assumed the tea would be nothing special — even if it wasn't poisoned, he hadn't expected it to be anything worth savoring.
That was why he had simply gulped it down.
He hadn't expected this.
Moreover, he could tell that this was absolutely not premium spiritual tea. It was almost certainly ordinary mortal tea.
How was this possible?
Wu Kong looked at Chu Xingchen with evident astonishment.
But regardless... he hadn't savored it properly just now. As a Buddhist Son, he was bound by the precepts of his faith.
He abstained from meat and wine, naturally, but tea was still permitted.
He found himself wanting another cup — to carefully analyze whether the tea itself was extraordinary, or whether the brewing technique had simply reached the pinnacle of perfection.
Chu Xingchen observed Wu Kong's expression and chuckled in amusement.
"Drank it too fast, didn't you? Pity there isn't much of this tea — you only get the one cup."
People can endure tenfold the suffering, yet cannot bear even the slightest departure of happiness.
Beating this monk black and blue would be forgotten after a brief rest beyond the mountain gate.
But this single cup of tea would be enough to haunt his thoughts for years to come.
Wu Kong stared at the teapot in Chu Xingchen's hands, still brimming with tea. He pressed his lips together but said nothing, rising to his feet instead.
"Thank you for the tea. Wu Kong takes his leave."
Chu Xingchen nodded lightly, gesturing for Wu Kong to see himself out.
Wu Kong turned and departed. Though Chu Xingchen's gaze had left him, the formation's pressure had not relented in the slightest — it still clamped down on him tightly.
Only when Wu Kong stepped completely beyond the sect's grand formation did that sensation of suppression finally vanish.
Wu Kong stopped walking and gazed back at the array's endlessly flowing patterns, his fingers brushing lightly over the jade slip in his hand.
Chu Xingchen was no easy opponent.
During the entire conversation, Chu Xingchen had been the sole speaker. Neither Xu Jin nor Yu Yang Daozi had said a word.
Even Chu Xingchen's decisions went unchallenged — neither of the two showed the slightest displeasure.
To command such submission from two prodigies of that caliber... what manner of person was he?
It was just a pity his words carried a venomous edge.
Listening to him left one feeling shortchanged, yet utterly unable to argue back.
Wu Kong withdrew his gaze and looked toward the Eastern Victorious Divine Continent.
This trip hadn't been entirely without reward. As for whether Chu Xingchen's claims were true, he had his own ways to verify.
First, he would seek out this Dong Gua and see what he was made of.
By the deep pool.
"How can you call that taking a loss? You've known Master this long — do you still not understand him?"
Cui Hao gazed at Qinghe with an expression of exaggerated envy, continuing before the Jiaolong could respond.
"Master only takes advantage of outsiders. When has he ever truly haggle over gains and losses with us?"
"If he actually took advantage of you, then congratulations are in order. Whatever good thing comes next, Master will definitely think of you first."
"Just wait — that's all you need to do. I'll stake my reputation on it: if Master doesn't come to you with something good later, I'll hand over my title as the sect's smartest disciple."
Qinghe looked at Cui Hao with suspicion.
"You're making all of this up to trick me, aren't you?"
Cui Hao's face was a portrait of righteous confidence. "And what if I'm right?"
Qinghe thought it over for a moment, then replied.
"Fine. If there really is a benefit, I'll split it with you. Half and half."
"Deal. Just you wait." Cui Hao agreed without a moment's hesitation.
Chen Bai Qing sat on a stone bench, silently listening to the exchange between Cui Hao and Qinghe.
Though she had only arrived recently, those few words were enough to confirm that Qinghe had been thoroughly played by Cui Hao once again.
Just wait?
Even the lowest-probability event can eventually happen if you wait long enough. Waiting a century or two isn't out of the question.
And Cui Hao would get half the benefit for free.
If Cui Hao had tried that line on her, she would have made him understand that Third Martial Sister was a woman of action, not patience.
She knew full well that Cui Hao was tricking Qinghe, and such behavior deserved to be called out.
But from the context of their conversation, it seemed her master had been the one taking advantage of Qinghe.
She could reprimand Cui Hao, but doing so might inadvertently implicate her master. Since Cui Hao was essentially doing her master's bidding this time, she decided to look the other way.
Qinghe, reassured by the guarantee, felt considerably better.
Say what you will, but Cui Hao's silver tongue had its uses.
He couldn't offer anything tangible, but he did manage to create the genuine sensation that suffering a loss was actually a blessing.
The loss had been swallowed. The blessing hadn't materialized in the slightest — yet after Cui Hao's words, it almost felt as though it had.
It was a peculiar sort of feeling.
Cui Hao nodded with deep satisfaction. Going out to gain experience really did pay off.
In the past, Qinghe would occasionally catch on and see through the trick once or twice. But since returning from his training journey, Cui Hao hadn't missed a single time.
Cui Hao was thoroughly pleased with himself and was about to get up to check on his master — to claim credit, if the timing was right.
But the moment he turned around, he met Chen Bai Qing's calm, level gaze.
Cui Hao's face instantly broke into a smile.
"Third Martial Sister, when did you get here?"
To Chen Bai Qing's ears, that question translated roughly to: Third Martial Sister, when did you arrive at the scene of the crime?
Chen Bai Qing answered plainly.
"From the moment you said, 'How can you call that taking a loss.'"
Cui Hao studied his third martial sister's placid tone and thoroughly unremarkable answer, and understood that she wasn't planning to give him a hard time about it.
Otherwise, her response would have been far less benign.
Qinghe looked at Bai Qing, considered for a moment, and decided to recoup some of his losses from the younger girl. His tone carried a hint of pity.
"Bai Qing, I've run to the gate twice for your master today. I'm parched — why don't you brew me a cup of tea?"
Chen Bai Qing's face showed the faintest trace of a smile as she gave a gentle nod.
"Of course. You've worked hard. The sect relies heavily on Lord Qinghe's efforts these days — without you, we wouldn't be nearly as prosperous."
Qinghe beamed at the praise and thumped his chest proudly.
"No problem at all — leave it to Qinghe! I could open this gate five times a day if needed."
Chen Bai Qing nodded again. Just as she was about to go brew the tea, her eyes happened to catch Cui Hao's gaze.
Cui Hao's expression was hard to describe, but the meaning in his eyes was unmistakable.
Third Martial Sister — you're tricking Qinghe for fun too.
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