"Father!"
Heaven Dou City, Heaven Dou Empire, Dugu Residence.
An excited shout traveled from the main gate all the way to the backyard, as a green-haired figure swiftly rushed toward Dugu Bo's usual cultivation spot.
Bang—!
A dull thud echoed from the garden door.
A tall, straight figure clad in green emerged, accompanied by a young girl with long, jade-colored hair.
From afar, they spotted the spiky green-haired man.
"Father, Yan Yan, Daddy's back!"
Dugu Xin, seeing the grandfather and granddaughter pair before him, spread his arms wide and cheered.
He was about to rush toward his beloved daughter...
but nearly got kicked away by Dugu Bo.
"Bastard! You're over thirty years old—can't you be a bit more serious?"
Dugu Yan covered her small nose, looking at Dugu Xin with a disgusted expression as she complained, "Daddy, Grandpa sent you to deliver a letter. Why do you reek of alcohol?"
"Alcohol?"
Dugu Xin, confused, lifted his sleeve to his nose and began inspecting it. "Impossible~ I washed up before coming back."
"And it's not just alcohol."
Dugu Yan said, then quickly trotted over to Dugu Xin, sniffed lightly, and immediately covered her mouth and nose as she took two steps back.
"There's also a strong smell of rouge and powder."
"Ah?!"
Upon hearing this, Dugu Xin's face instantly paled with shock, his eyes filled with guilt.
Dugu Bo's expression darkened immediately.
"Hmph! You brat, I sent you to deliver a letter, not to drink or visit brothels! Coming back so late—people might think I sent you off to enjoy yourself!"
Hearing Dugu Bo's scolding, Dugu Xin hurriedly cried out in defense, "Father, I swear on my conscience, I really didn't go to enjoy myself! I didn't want to go, but Prince Xue insisted on dragging me along. How could I just abandon Prince Xue Xing and the others and leave on my own? The Soul Master Realm is full of hidden dragons and crouching tigers—what if something happened?"
"That's no excuse for your indulgence!"
Dugu Bo flicked his sleeve,
and a bamboo whip materialized out of thin air, swinging toward Dugu Xin.
Crack!
It struck the air with a sharp snap!
"Damn it!"
Dugu Xin howled as he dodged.
"Father, I was just a little late coming back. Is it really necessary to bring out the Family Law?"
"Hmph! If you had done your job properly, I wouldn't have said a word! But His Highness's letter left later than you and arrived three days ago! And you—still dawdling with women!"
As he spoke,
Dugu Bo pulled a letter from Spirit Hall City out of his sleeve.
He wore the expression of someone demanding an explanation.
The bamboo whip in his hand was about to swing toward Dugu Xin's forehead again.
"What? That can't be right!"
Seeing the letter in Dugu Bo's hand, Dugu Xin was utterly astonished.
He quickly retrieved Ye Tian's reply from his chest,
waving it at Dugu Bo.
"Father, where did that letter in your hand come from? His Highness's reply has been with me all along!"
"Ouch!"
Before Dugu Xin could finish speaking, a sharp pain shot through the back of his hand.
Dugu Bo's Family Law had already struck his hand, and the letter he was holding fluttered to the ground, swiftly snatched up by Dugu Bo.
Glaring at Dugu Xin, Dugu Bo let out a cold snort.
Dugu Bo clutched the two letters in his hand and explained, "Of course I know the prince's reply is in your hands. What you hold concerns the fate of the Nine-Hearted Begonia Ye family. What I hold concerns the prince's arrangements in Heaven Dou City."
"Heh~ So that's how it is."
Dugu Xin covered the back of his hand and smiled awkwardly.
"Yan Yan, go apply medicine to your useless old man."
Dugu Bo lowered his head, instructed Dugu Yan, and said no more, quickly unfolding the letter Dugu Xin had brought back.
"Understood, Grandfather!"
Dugu Yan nodded obediently.
She swiftly retrieved a small bottle from her Soul Guidance Device and approached Dugu Xin.
"Father, wipe it yourself~ It really stinks!"
"Uh, hehe~"
Seeing his obedient daughter's look of disgust, Dugu Xin dared not say anything more.
He took the wound medicine and applied it himself.
Suddenly, his ears caught the rare, hearty laughter of his old man.
"Hahaha!"
"Excellent! Patriarch Ye can be saved!"
Dugu Bo quickly put away the letter in his hand and looked at Dugu Xin.
"You brat, you didn't lose the Pill the prince gave you, did you? If you lost it, I'd have to personally take your head to Spirit Hall City to apologize!"
"!!"
Hearing this, Dugu Yan's face immediately showed anxiety.
She stared intently at Dugu Xin.
"Father, do you really think I'm a fool? How could I be careless with something that saves lives? Don't worry, I've kept it safe."
Dugu Xin said irritably.
He immediately took out the Fairy Tulip Pill, Eternal Night Frostbloom, and other Pills Ye Tian had given him from his waist.
"Good!"
Seeing those items.
Dugu Bo couldn't help but exclaim softly, waved his sleeve, and all the items were drawn into it.
"Xin'er, you and Yan Yan stay home properly. I'm going to the Ye family."
"Understood, Father."
Before Dugu Xin finished speaking.
Dugu Bo's figure had already vanished from the spot.
Dugu Yan realized belatedly and shouted toward the empty ground, "Grandfather, don't drink so much again!"
"..."
There was no response.
At such a time, even if Dugu Bo heard, he wouldn't choose to respond.
His good friend Ye Renxin had found hope in a desperate situation.
How could they resist celebrating with a drink?
—————
Dugu Bo swiftly dashed out from the back door of the Dugu residence. Passing by the Ye family clinic, he paused briefly to confirm that his old friend's obedient daughter was in charge, then continued his rapid rush.
He headed directly to the old residence of the Nine-Hearted Begonia Ye family!
The flash of dark green outside the clinic.
Made the palace-attired woman inside, stealing a moment of leisure, slightly lift her beautiful eyes.
"An illusion?"
A gentle, soft voice spoke.
The speaker wore a beige palace dress, with similarly apricot-colored long hair. She appeared to be around thirty years old, with a voluptuous figure and a dignified, elegant face.
She was Ye Renxin's daughter, Ye Qinshui.
At this moment, Ye Qinshui sat by the counter, idly sorting medicinal herbs.
Disturbed by the dark green at the door,
Perceiving nothing unusual,
Her slightly raised beautiful eyes fell back on the unsorted gardenias on the table.
Clearly, her brows carried worry and sorrow.
"What's the use of doing good and accumulating virtue? Those who must leave will still leave..."
Ye Qinshui put down the bamboo ruler in her hand.
Rubbing his temples, lost in sorrow, as the time for Ye Lingling's Martial Soul awakening drew ever closer, Ye Qinshui truly understood the helplessness of a healer who cannot heal themselves, a feeling that kept her awake through the night, often in tears.
Heaven Dou City, the ancestral home of the Nine-Hearted Begonia Ye Family.
Dugu Bo stood alone outside the walls of the Ye Family estate. After a brief pause, he could already catch the serene, elegant fragrance of begonia blossoms in the air.
Within the walls, spring permeated every corner.
A scene brimming with vitality.
In a quiet, refined room, high-quality sandalwood incense burned slowly in a censer, wisps of smoke curling upward, filling the space with an ancient charm.
Ye Renxin, dressed in white with long apricot-colored hair, sat cross-legged on a meditation cushion. His breathing was even and deep, not in cultivation, but in quiet contemplation, nurturing his spirit and cultivating his character.
Though he and Ning Fengzhi were both considered the top Support-type Soul Masters in the world, his talent and fame might not match Ning Fengzhi's.
Yet, in terms of temperament, he was in no way inferior.
Even facing death, he could meet it with composure.
But today's meditation seemed somewhat different.
Within that high-quality sandalwood incense...
There was also a faint, almost imperceptible scent of snake.
The tightly shut windows seemed to let in a gust of wind.
"Is that Patriarch Dugu?" Ye Renxin said softly, slowly opening his closed eyes.
"Haha~"
Dugu Bo's laughter echoed in the quiet room.
"Patriarch Ye is indeed perceptive."
"..."
Upon hearing this, Ye Renxin immediately focused his gaze.
He soon saw, outside the now-opened window, a figure in dark green leaning casually against the frame.
"It really is Patriarch Dugu! A rare guest indeed!"
As he spoke, Ye Renxin quickly rose and stood by the window, inviting Dugu Bo inside. "Patriarch Dugu, please, come in. It's a rare honor for you to visit my Ye Family today. As your host, I must offer you proper hospitality."
Dugu Bo smiled mysteriously, placing his hands on the windowsill.
"You certainly should offer me hospitality, but not in this place of meditation."
"Meditation depends on the person, not the place."
Ye Renxin shook his head with a wry smile.
"Besides, I may not have much use for this room in the future."
"No! You will."
Dugu Bo shook his head, smiling as he took out Ye Tian's reply letter, declaring confidently:
"I didn't come to the Ye Family to bid you farewell, but to inform you that the path I pointed out to you has already borne fruit."
With those words,
Dugu Bo placed the letter in his hand squarely into Ye Renxin's arms.
"?!"
Ye Renxin was momentarily stunned,
but wasted no time, immediately unfolding the letter to read it carefully.
As he reviewed the proposed plan for feigning death within the letter,
a brilliant light shone from Ye Renxin's apricot-colored eyes.
"Eternal Night Frostbloom, Fairy Tulip Pill..."
"Feigning death, Spirit Evolution... is this... is this truly possible?!"
Ye Renxin looked at the letter in his hand with disbelief.
"Haha!"
Dugu Bo laughed heartily, as if no one else were present.
"Old friend, of course it's true. My granddaughter Yan Yan's Martial Soul evolved precisely because of a single Pill. Young friend Ye Tian is now the esteemed Holy Son of the Spirit Hall; why would he fabricate such a matter? Moreover, His Highness has even outlined the direction for our future work..."
As he spoke,
Dugu Bo directly handed over the letter Ye Tian had sent him.
Ye Renxin immediately took it and began to read.
"Your Highness actually has a collaboration with the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile School for the Body Tempering Pill? This pill is truly marvelous, absolutely marvelous!"
"Indeed, indeed!"
Dugu Bo nodded repeatedly beside him.
"All we need to do is wait for the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile School to complete the construction of the Longevity Pavilion, and then we can move in directly with His Highness's orders. Using our granddaughters as the golden signboard, backed by both the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile School and the Spirit Hall, who would fear that no one would attend the auction for this Body Tempering Pill? His Highness's Longevity Pavilion is bound to become an instant success!"
"Truly unbelievable..."
Ye Renxin slowly suppressed the overwhelming shock in his heart.
Dugu Bo had long ago told him about Ye Tian's Soul Ring Configuration and Dugu Yan's thousand-year first Spirit Ring. Regarding the Body Tempering Pill, Ye Renxin completely believed it. Similarly, there was no reason for him not to believe in the Fairy Tulip Pill and the Eternal Night Frostbloom.
Like Ning Fengzhi,
Ye Renxin also realized that the pills refined by Ye Tian would bring unexpected changes to the vast Soul Master Realm.
From now on,
the limit for Soul Masters and Soul Grandmasters would no longer be hundred-year Spirit Rings!
The definition of genius would be rewritten.
Ye Renxin carefully held the two letters in his hands and returned them to Dugu Bo, his face full of solemnity. "Master Dugu, thank you for your guidance and His Highness's life-saving grace. From now on, I, Ye, owe you my old life. Please convey to His Highness that I will spare no effort in contributing to the development of the Longevity Pavilion."
"Haha~ Master Ye's credibility is beyond doubt. As for these words of loyalty, you can say them to His Highness yourself when you meet him in the future."
Dugu Bo laughed heartily.
He put away the two letters and patted Ye Renxin on the shoulder. In this vast Heaven Dou City, it was rare to find someone who suited his taste, and he naturally did not wish for Ye Renxin to die prematurely.
To some extent, their Dugu Family and the Ye Family shared similar misfortunes.
"Indeed, indeed!"
"From now on, I, Ye, still have many days ahead. But today, Master Dugu must not refuse. I must drink with you until we are thoroughly drunk."
"Absolutely! Until we are thoroughly drunk!"
"..."
—————
Not far from the elegant study where Ye Renxin was cultivating, in a cozy little room.
A pair of sky-blue beautiful eyes slowly opened.
Hearing the unfamiliar yet familiar laughter outside, those pure, sky-like eyes couldn't help but fill with curiosity.
"Why is Grandpa suddenly so happy?"
A soft voice, clear and melodious like an oriole emerging from a valley, spoke.
The speaker was a young girl.
Sky-blue hair, blue eyes, skin as fair and translucent as peeled lychee, with a delicate and exquisite face, like carved jade.
At this moment,
she was completely naked, soaking in a bathtub filled with what looked like black, sticky asphalt.
Hearing the laughter growing louder outside,
a small, delicate arm emerged from the black, sticky asphalt, grabbed the edge of the bathtub, and just as she was about to stand up, Ye Lingling sat back down.
Her elegant eyebrows furrowed slightly.
"No sound? Did I mishear?"
After hesitating for a moment, Ye Lingling placed her arm back into the Black Jade Ointment that Ye Renxin had painstakingly prepared.
"Hmm~"
Ye Lingling pouted somewhat gloomily.
Her mother had seemed to become strange lately, crying every day as if she had been weeping. Perhaps in a couple of days, when she successfully awakens the Nine-Hearted Begonia Martial Soul, her mother will become happy again?
Often,
the joys and sorrows of children do not align with those of adults.
On the other side.
The Seven Treasure Glazed Tile School delegation, led by Ning Fengzhi, naturally returned to the sect much faster than Xue Xing Qinwang and his group, who were on official business.
Without lingering too long,
Ning Fengzhi had already begun scouting suitable locations on the map of Heaven Dou City.
The tip of his pen wandered across the map,
unconsciously landing on the golden characters "Moon Pavilion" and lingering there for a long time.
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