Chapter 629: Zhang Yaqian is practicing, and Queen Zhong is mysterious!
"There's something I need to tell him?"
Shen Anyu looked at Zhong Lingyin's mysterious demeanor, a bit curious, but didn't press further. He then took Zhang Yaqian to impart the Martial God Art and guide her onto the Dao.
Inside the room, Zhang Yaqian blinked her clear, bright eyes, gazing intently at Shen Anyu. Her voice was a mixture of anticipation and nervousness. "Husband, how will you guide me to Cultivate?"
"Simple." Shen Anyu's lips curved into a meaningful smile as he produced several jade vials from thin air. "First, take a few Essence Nourishing Pills and Qi Nourishing Pills. Oh, and a Dingyan Pill. Then, I will assist you in your Cultivation."
"A Dingyan Pill?" The moment she heard those words, Zhang Yaqian's eyes lit up, curving into beautiful crescents of pure delight. Her attention, which had been divided, now locked onto the single, pearlescent pill that promised eternal youth. The Essence Nourishing and Qi Nourishing Pills, meant to build her very foundation as a cultivator, were momentarily forgotten, completely overshadowed by the allure of preserving her beauty forever.
Shen Anyu found it deeply amusing. It was a consistent pattern he'd observed. These women, particularly the ones blessed with extraordinary beauty, held an almost fanatical reverence for the Dingyan Pill. He had no doubt that if one were ever put up for auction, its price would soar to astronomical heights, commanding dozens, if not hundreds, of times the value of an Essence Nourishing Pill, despite its singular, non-combat function. It was a proof of how much they valued their appearance.
Without further delay, he guided her. "Swallow them."
Zhang Yaqian obediently took the pills. The moment they passed her lips, they dissolved into a current of pure, potent energy. Shen Anyu placed a palm on her back, channeling his own refined inner force to help her digest the incredible medicinal power.
Instantly, Zhang Yaqian felt a tidal wave of warmth erupt from her dantian, a roaring current of energy that surged through her body with astonishing speed. It was an overwhelming sensation, flooding every meridian, every vessel, saturating her limbs and bones, permeating her internal organs, and awakening every dormant acupoint in her body. It felt as if she had been plunged into a furnace, but instead of burning, she was being reforged.
Crack! Pop! Pop!
A cascade of sharp, distinct sounds, like a string of firecrackers or popping soybeans, erupted from deep within Zhang Yaqian's delicate frame. Her bones were being crushed and reformed, strengthened and purified. Her tendons stretched and toughened, and her flesh grew denser. Simultaneously, a thin, dark, and greasy film began to seep from her pores. A faint, acrid odor filled the air as years of accumulated toxins and metabolic waste were violently expelled from her system. Her skin, already as flawless and white as a peeled, boiled egg, was now covered in these faint impurities.
"Is this… the legendary rebirth?" Zhang Yaqian felt the first nascent wisp of Qi coalesce within her, a faint but obvious sensation of inner power. Her eyes widened in shock, but that shock was immediately replaced by sheer horror as she looked down at her own body. "Oh, Husband, I'm so dirty! Don't look!"
Seeing the grime seeping from her skin, she let out a panicked cry, her reaction more frantic than if she had just seen a ghost. Without a second thought, she scrambled to her feet and bolted straight for the bathroom, slamming the door shut behind her. The thought of her beloved seeing her in such a filthy, undignified state was unbearable.
Shen Anyu was left standing there, a little amused by her dramatic exit. He certainly didn't mind. How could he? It was a natural, essential part of the process.
Every mortal body was a vessel of countless impurities and latent filth. This was especially true for modern people, whose systems were constantly assailed by processed foods, chemical additives, and polluted air. Cultivation was the path to transcending that mortal frailty. The first step was always this brutal, thorough cleansing, expelling the dross to evolve towards a more perfect state of being.
He was suddenly reminded of a story his maternal grandfather had once told him. With a mischievous glint in his eye, the old man had mentioned a friend who, during his first cultivation and rebirth, had unceremoniously defecated three full catties of impurities.
A young Shen Anyu, ever curious, had asked if that "friend" was perhaps his grandfather himself. In response, his grandfather had puffed out his chest with immense pride, slapped it soundly, and declared that it most certainly wasn't him. When he first cultivated and underwent his own rebirth, he had defecated a grand total of five catties. He was, in his own words, truly outstanding.
Shen Anyu chuckled at the memory. Cultivation, at its core, was an evolution of life itself, a journey toward perfection. This was why powerful cultivators, unless they harbored some truly peculiar aesthetic preferences, were never ugly. The beautiful only became more transcendently so. Their skin, in particular, would take on an ethereal, radiant glow, a visible sign of their purified life force.
When the bathroom door finally opened, Zhang Yaqian emerged, having changed into a fresh set of clothes. She seemed to float rather than walk, her entire being bathed in a soft, internal luminescence. The woman who entered the room had been a stunning mortal beauty. The woman who came out was something more. Her purity and moving beauty had been elevated to an almost divine level. She was a peerless beauty, a fairy who had descended to the mortal world.
The title of Elf Princess was no longer just a descriptor; it was an obvious truth.
"So beautiful!" Shen Anyu clapped his hands lightly, his praise genuine and unreserved.
"Hehe, it's all thanks to Husband." A brilliant, unrestrained joy bloomed across Zhang Yaqian's delicate, melon-seed-shaped face. Her excitement was infectious. Earlier, standing in the bathroom and staring at her reflection in the mirror, she had been utterly speechless. She simply couldn't believe the woman staring back was her.
She was too beautiful!
It wasn't narcissism. Zhang Yaqian had always known she was beautiful, but this was different. After Shen Anyu's guidance and the profound effects of the medicinal pills, she had shed her mortal shell. Her beauty had not just been enhanced; it had ascended to an entirely new plane.
"Husband, are these the benefits of Cultivation?" she asked, her voice filled with wonder.
Listening to her question, Shen Anyu chuckled warmly. "The benefits of Cultivation are not limited to this. Cultivate diligently, and Husband will reward you."
"Mmm, I will definitely work hard," Zhang Yaqian pursed her pink lips, a new determination solidifying in her heart. 'I must become the most outstanding woman by his side,' she vowed silently. 'Hmph, even better than that tea-like Heavenly Queen, Zhong Lingyin.'
Subsequently, Shen Anyu sat with her and formally imparted the complete techniques of the Martial God Art. The profound knowledge flowed from his mind into hers—a torrent of diagrams, incantations, and Qi circulation pathways that settled into her consciousness as if they had always belonged there.
Zhang Yaqian proved to be exceptionally intelligent and perceptive. Despite never having cultivated before, her innate talent was astounding. She quickly grasped the fundamental principles and, with Shen Anyu's direct guidance, began to circulate the first wisp of Qi through the complex meridians of the Martial God Art. She was on the verge of breaking through to the first level.
[Ding! Detected that the host has invested in imparting the Martial God Art to the Destined Heroine, Zhang Yaqian. Expected rebate: Martial God Art cultivation!]
"Cultivate well. If you don't understand anything, ask me, or ask Bai Bing and Wu Shenyun." Shen Anyu gave a few final instructions. After confirming that Zhang Yaqian had entered a stable meditative state and was on the right track, he quietly left the room and went to the living room to find Zhong Lingyin.
She had said she had something to tell him.
"Husband, do I look pretty in today's outfit? I just came back from a period drama set and haven't removed my makeup or changed yet."
Seeing Shen Anyu emerge, Zhong Lingyin spun around in a graceful pirouette, her lips blooming into a sweet smile. Her makeup was exquisite, accentuating her already stunning features with the classic elegance of a bygone era. She wore a light blue cheongsam, its silk fabric clinging to her figure, outlining a graceful and elegant silhouette that was captivating to all.
"You dress so sensually for filming?" Shen Anyu's brow furrowed, his expression deliberately displeased.
"Hehe." Seeing the flicker of possessiveness in his eyes, Heavenly Queen Zhong felt a sweet warmth blossom in her heart. She glided over to him, her movements fluid and mesmerizing.
"Don't worry, I wore a thick fox fur coat over it on set. It's so hot, I was practically dying. But what can I do?" She sighed dramatically. "I have a petty, grumpy husband who gets jealous easily."
At this point, Zhong Lingyin paused, wrapping her fair, lotus-like arms around Shen Anyu's neck. She leaned in close, her red lips curving into a mischievous smile, her breath like the fragrant scent of orchids. "I only dress like this for Husband to see. No matter how much others crave a look, I won't let them see a thing~"
Shen Anyu's stern expression softened, melting away as a smile played on his handsome face. In reality, his displeasure had been entirely feigned. Zhong Lingyin's public reputation for being a pure and flawless ice queen was not just an act. She never took on overly provocative roles, and even her high-fashion magazine covers were remarkably conservative by industry standards.
After getting together with him, she had become even more reserved in public, saving this side of herself exclusively for him. The Heavenly Queen, a superstar with countless adoring fans both domestically and internationally, opened her heart and unveiled her true self only for him.
After a while of intimate teasing and soft kisses, Shen Anyu pulled back slightly, his curiosity returning. "Lingyin, what did you want to tell me? You were being so mysterious about it."
"Guess?" Zhong Lingyin hooked her jade arm more tightly around his neck, her beautiful, delicate face tilted up to his. Her eyes sparkled with playful light as she smiled sweetly, daring him.
'I guess?' Shen Anyu murmured in his heart. While maintaining a thoughtful expression, he silently accessed the feed from the nanometer monitoring robots assigned to her. A stream of data flowed into his mind: conversations, locations, schedules. What could possibly be so mysterious?
Could she be pregnant? He immediately dismissed the thought. It was impossible. He would have sensed a second life aura at such a close range, not to mention the fact that he always maintained perfect control.
Was it some great joyous event? A massive career opportunity? That didn't seem quite right either; she would have just told him directly.
"Husband, can you really not guess?" Zhong Lingyin's beautiful eyes gradually narrowed, her smile becoming even sweeter, tinged with a hint of challenge.
Shen Anyu's mind raced, sifting through the data, connecting disparate pieces of information. A snippet of a phone call. A clandestine meeting. A hushed conversation. Then, a flash of inspiration struck him, and all the pieces clicked into place. He immediately guessed it~
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