Long Xiaoyao casually reached into his sleeve.
With a flick of his wrist, a small jade bottle appeared in his hand. He popped the cork, with the casual indifference of someone opening a container of common snacks.
Instantly, a thick, medicinal fragrance wafted out.
The young nobles gathered around the table froze. Noses twitched. Eyes widened. One fat noble was actually mid-chew, the food forgotten in his mouth.
Long Xiaoyao rolled the pill out onto his palm. A low-quality Qi Refining Pill by the standard of the wider cultivation world. But to these sheltered hedonists, it glowed like a celestial treasure.
"A Qi Refining Pill..." they whispered to each other, their voice trembling with greed.
Long Xiaoyao tossed the pill up and caught it, playing with it like a toy. He sighed, feigning a look of burden.
"My Royal Father, the King, insisted I take it before I left the capital. He truly worries too much. Since I've already broken through to the Qi Refining Realm, this scrap is practically useless to me. Eating it would just be a waste"
"However," Long Xiaoyao continued, leaning forward, "I hate to see good medicine go to waste. I have a few questions about this city. Whoever satisfies my curiosity... gets the pill."
The tension in the room skyrocketed. The nobles looked ready to sell their own ancestors for that mottled green sphere.
"Ask, Young Master Long! Anything!" the one from the Wang clan stammered, wiping drool from his lip.
Greed is a powerful motivator Long Xiaoyao mused inwardly, a cold light dancing in his eyes. 'If I want them to open their mouths and betray every secret of this city, I need to show them that my "luck" isn't just a hollow boast.'
He looked at them, the scions of the city's most influential houses. To others, they were arrogant young lords. To him, they were the foundation stones. If he moved these stones, the entire structure of Myriad Leaf City would collapse into his hands.
'A little investment of 500 Domination Points for a massive return,'
"Simple," Long Xiaoyao said, his eyes narrowing slightly. "Tell me about the cultivators in this city. I want the factions they belong to, and their cultivation levels."
The nobles exchanged glances, scrambling to be the first to speak.
"Most of the cultivators here are the Patriarchs of the major families!" one youth blurted out quickly. "But they are old, mostly stuck at the 1st or 2nd level of Qi Refining. They barely have enough energy to maintain their youth!"
"Is that all?" Long Xiaoyao looked unimpressed, his thumb brushing over the pill.
"No, no! Your Highness," young Miss LI interjected, desperate to claim the prize. She glanced nervously across the table. "There is... one other."
The group's gaze collectively shifted toward the silent figure at the end of the table Meng Hao.
"General Meng Xiong's household. Aside from the General, who is at the 5th level of Qi Refining," young miss Li said, lowering her voice as if discussing a taboo.
"His second wife...young master Meng Hao's stepmother, Meng Lin's mother. She is a cultivator."
Long Xiaoyao raised an eyebrow. "Oh? And her level?"
"Fourth level Qi Refining," young Miss Li whispered with a mix of awe and fear.
"She is technically the strongest in the city after General Meng Xiong. However... she has been sick for years. Bedridden. They say her cultivation backfired, or perhaps it was a poison. She rarely sees the light of day."
His eyes sharpened slightly as he glanced at Meng Hao
'She's bedridden? Poisoned? 'That part doesn't add up. General Meng Xiong controls the military might of the city. He has connections, resources, and wealth that dwarf everyone else here. A mere poison affecting a Qi Refining cultivator shouldn't be an unsolvable riddle for someone of his stature. Unless the poison is of a grade far exceeding this city's level... or perhaps, the General hasn't tried as hard as he claims to find a cure?'
Long Xiaoyao nodded slowly, absorbing the information. "A crippled expert. Interesting. Anyone else?"
"There is the Mysterious Immortal! You Highness" young master Wang shouted, trying to regain the spotlight. "The immortal appeared in the city recently. But... no one knows that person, or the immortal's cultivation level."
The table fell silent again. They had run out of information. Then, the eyes of the nobles turned back to Meng Hao, gleaming with a mix of jealousy and expectation.
"Young Master Meng," one of them politely asked, looking desperate. "Surely you know where this Immortal is? Or perhaps your father does? After all, the General's estate has the most connections."
Meng Hao sat there, his expression unreadable.
'Inwardly, he snorted cold disdain. 'A bunch of frogs in a well. Even if I knew the immortal's location, why would I spill a single word to traitors like you?'
Outwardly, however, Meng Hao placed his cup down gently. He wore a mask of polite, helpless ignorance.
"I am afraid I cannot help you Your Highness," Meng Hao said softly, his voice smooth. "My father, the General, handles all such matters personally. He is the only one who knows such information.'
'Heh. Slick little bastard,' Long Xiaoyao scoffed inwardly.
However, Long Xiaoyao didn't press the issue. Pushing a cornered dog would only make it bite, and right now, he had found prey far more appetizing than a secretive immortal.
"A pity," Long Xiaoyao said aloud, his voice dripping with feigned regret. "But filial piety is a virtue. If General Meng keeps his secrets close, it is not my place to pry."
With a casual flick of his thumb, he sent the low-quality Qi Refining Pill soaring through the air. It formed a perfect arc and landed squarely in the lap of the young Miss Li, who had revealed the information about the stepmother.
Young Miss Li scrambled to grab the pill, practically weeping with gratitude. Long Xiaoyao leaned back in his chair, taking a slow sip of wine to hide the predatory curve of his lips. His mind was already racing, leaving the banquet hall far behind.
'Fourth level Qi Refining...' he mused, the gears in his head turning rapidly.
Sick. Bedridden. Vulnerable.
'This is perfect. If she were at full health, she might be a threat. But a wounded tigress is just a kitten waiting to be tamed.'
Long Xiaoyao glanced toward the window, looking in the direction of the General's estate.
It was a sprawling complex of interconnected courtyards, high watchtowers, and tiered roofs that seemed to swallow the surrounding neighborhood. By his estimation, it was easily ten times the size of his own residence.
He knew that General Meng Xiong was currently away. The timing couldn't have been more divinely ordained if he had written the script himself.
'If I can "cure" her illness...' Long Xiaoyao's internal monologue took a darker, more ambitious turn. 'I could think of various ways to put her guard down... and guide her into dual cultivation.'
He could almost feel the energy coursing through his meridians at the thought 'I'll ascend to the Fourth Level of Qi Refining in a single night. Maybe 10. It doesn't matter'
He set his cup down with a sharp 'clack', signaling the end of his interest in the conversation.
"I find myself suddenly tired" Long Xiaoyao stood up, smoothing out his robes. "I will retire for now"
"Your Highness! This humble girl… I cannot thank you enough," young Miss Li stammered, her eyes shimmering. "The Li family will remember this great kindness!"
Long Xiaoyao paused at the doorway, turning halfway back with a benevolent, practiced smile. "Think nothing of it, Miss Li. Fate brought us together at this table. Consider it a small token of our meeting. With a swirl of his robes, he turned and exited the banquet hall, leaving the uproar behind him.
The young nobles look at Long Xiaoyao's back with reverence as he leaves the banquet hall. Comparing him to the Meng family
The disparity was staggering. A Prince was truly a different existence from a mere noble family.
General Meng needed to risk his life and venture into the forest of beasts to hunt beast cores, which he could exchange for a Qi Refining pill. But Long Xiaoyao casually gave one, as if it were nothing.
Ding!
[By casually gifting a Qi Refining Pill, the Host has demonstrated a level of casual extravagance that exceeds the imagination of the young nobles]
[The Meng Family, previously considered the pinnacle of wealth and power, has been reduced to impoverished egoistic nobles who think highly of themselves]
[+500 Domination Points]
..
On the streets
"Your Highness, was it truly wise to casually toss a Qi Refining Pill to that girl? You merely asked her a few trivial questions. A pill of that quality could fetch a high price, yet you treated it like a piece of candy."
Long Xiaoyao stopped and turned to her, a lazy grin spreading across his face. He leaned in slightly.
"My dear Qingqui, stop worrying about pennies," he teased, "To you, it was a pill. To me, it was a fair trade. In fact, I'd say I robbed her."
Mo Qingqui frowned slightly. "Robbed her? She gave you nothing but gossip."
"She gave me the key to the Fourth Level of the Qi Refining Realm," Long Xiaoyao replied, his tone shifting from playful to sharp for just a second.
"That Miss Li let slip that General Meng's Second Wife is a cultivator. Specifically, she has reached the 4th Level of Qi Refining."
Mo Qingqui's footsteps faltered for a fraction of a second. Her intelligent eyes widened imperceptibly as the realization hit her.
'If he is seeking a female cultivator at that specific level, there is only one reason…Dual Cultivation'
'He intended to use the General's wife as a cultivation partner to break through'. Yet, looking at his confident smirk, she felt a strange mix of worry and resignation. 'He was a madman'
She pushed the thought aside, noticing the direction they were walking. The path they were taking was leading away from their district.
"Your Highness," Mo Qingqui asked "This is not the road back to your residence. The hour is late. Where are we going?"
Long Xiaoyao straightened his robes, his eyes gleaming predatorily
"We aren't going home just yet, Qingqui. We need to strike while the iron is hot" he laughed, pointing down the road toward the most imposing compound in the distance.
"We are going to General Meng's Estate."