After leaving the small courtyard, Ren Wencai did not return directly to his own cave dwelling.
Though he had played it perfectly cool in front of Gu Chengming — all lofty composure, the very picture of a man who'd shoulder the sky if it fell — the scales in Ren Wencai's heart were calibrated more precisely than anyone else's.
He knew exactly what Liu Changfeng was made of.
That old wretch was petty-minded and vindictive to the bone. On the surface, constrained by the face of both sects and the prestige of the Wenjian Sect, Liu Changfeng might not dare move openly against Gu Chengming. But behind the scenes? And what if Gu Chengming happened to be away from the sect?
"No. This situation isn't stable."
Ren Wencai stroked the beard on his chin, brow furrowing slightly.
On his own, he could keep watch well enough — but the moment his attention slipped even once, he might live to regret it for the rest of his days. He needed a helper. Or rather... an ally who valued Gu Chengming just as much, and who packed enough raw power to back it up.
He turned it over in his mind, and one figure surfaced.
Ren Wencai reached into his sleeve and produced a message-transmitting jade slip. The slip was old and worn, carved with a lopsided little wine-gourd symbol.
He channeled a thread of spiritual energy into it. The slip trembled faintly, suffusing the air with a dim, ghostly luminescence.
A thousand li away, deep in a wine cellar behind the Hunyuan Sect's rear mountain.
Hua Daiyi was sprawled across a heap of empty wine jars with the abandon of a man who'd given up entirely on his dignity, one hand clutching a roast chicken, grease running freely down his chin.
"Hmmm—"
The message-transmitting jade slip at his waist suddenly vibrated, interrupting his contentment.
Hua Daiyi's brow creased. He snatched up the slip with irritation, swept it with his divine sense — and the moment he registered Ren Wencai's aura, his expression went thoroughly black.
"That old ghost. Middle of the night and he can't sleep — what does he want from me? Don't tell me he's come to gloat."
The moment he thought about that promising young talent he'd had his eye on ending up in Ren Wencai's hands instead, Hua Daiyi found that even the roast chicken in his grip had lost its flavor.
He connected the transmission with ill grace.
"Spit it out."
On the other end, Ren Wencai's voice was surprisingly measured — even carrying a distinct note of amusement:
"Heh heh. Fellow Daoist Hua, no need to be so prickly. I simply thought — something rather entertaining happened today involving Gu Chengming, and I couldn't help wanting to share it with you."
At the sound of that name, Hua Daiyi's fingers paused. His mouth continued muttering "what's that got to do with me," but his ears had already perked up with conspicuous honesty.
Ren Wencai didn't keep him in suspense. He launched into a vivid, colorful account of everything that had unfolded at the Sword-Questioning Stage that day.
He was a gifted storyteller, and though Hua Daiyi hadn't been there himself, as he listened, the scene assembled itself unbidden in his mind.
Especially the part where Gu Chengming — at the mere sixth layer of the first realm — had gone toe-to-toe with an eighth-layer bitter-sword cultivator and beaten her so thoroughly she couldn't even fight back. Hua Daiyi couldn't hold himself back. He slapped his thigh so hard a cloud of dust erupted around him.
"Ha! Now that's my boy!"
Hua Daiyi tossed the roast chicken aside entirely:
"Now that is one hell of a promising talent! Guts, fire, backbone! This temperament — it's exactly what I like!"
The more he heard, the more excited he grew, and the more he regretted.
That time outside the small courtyard, he'd seen Gu Chengming's exceptional quality well enough — but he'd still held onto his pride, and hadn't lowered himself to badger and grovel for the boy properly.
If he'd known back then that this kid had not only staggering sword-cultivation talent but such remarkable body-tempering potential to boot, he'd have camped outside the Wenjian Sect's gate from the very first day. He'd have kidnapped the boy back to the Hunyuan Sect if he'd had to.
"Ahhh..."
What a waste. Such a magnificent talent — and it had to be this old codger who stumbled upon him. Heaven truly had no eyes. A priceless gem cast before a fool.
Hua Daiyi let out a long, sour sigh saturated with regret:
"Alright, alright, quit showing off in front of me. I know you've struck gold. Now get lost and stop spoiling my drinking."
As he spoke, he moved to cut the connection. His heart was clogged up with grievance; he urgently needed several crocks of strong liquor to drown it.
"Ah, Fellow Daoist Hua, you misread me entirely."
Ren Wencai's voice came through again, carrying that same tone of meaningful amusement:
"I didn't seek you out to show off."
"You should know — that boy has your Immortal-Concealing Wine-Sword Formula."
Hua Daiyi's heart lurched.
Back then, in his attempt to poach the boy, he had indeed secretly slipped Gu Chengming a token and a copy of the sword manual. But he had done it with extreme discretion. Besides the parties directly involved, no one should have known.
How did this old ghost find out?
Hua Daiyi went a touch guilty, and hedged uncomfortably: "That was just a little trinket I handed off on a whim, because I happened to like the look of him."
"Handed off on a whim?"
Ren Wencai chuckled softly. "Then why, pray tell, have I heard that when Chengming practices his sword these past few days, his sword intent carries a faint trace of wine-soaked, unrestrained flair? And furthermore — his opinion of you is quite high, I'm told."
This, of course, was pure fabrication on Ren Wencai's part.
Whether Gu Chengming had actually practiced the Immortal-Concealing Wine-Sword Formula, he had no idea.
But he knew this: say it, and this old rascal Hua Daiyi would take the bait without fail.
Sure enough, the moment Hua Daiyi heard that, the impulse to shut down the transmission faded considerably.
"Is that so?"
"Naturally."
Ren Wencai's tone was perfectly assured:
"Think about it — if he hadn't been practicing your sword art, where would an outer disciple find the nerve to challenge a Yunyue Sect genius? Isn't that proof he's inherited the true essence of your wine-sword?"
Hua Daiyi, hearing this, felt a warmth suffuse his entire being.
Logically speaking, it was a stretch. But he wanted to believe it.
The kid had practiced his sword art!
Which meant...
"Ahem, ahem."
"So you see, Fellow Daoist Hua. In name, yes, he's my disciple — but in the sense of transmitting the Dao and imparting teachings... one could argue he's half your disciple as well."
"Consider this: when this boy's name one day shakes the heavens, and people speak of that extraordinary sword art of his — won't your name, Hua Daiyi, have to be mentioned in the same breath?"
That phrase — "half your disciple" — planted a smile on his face that no amount of effort could suppress. The jealousy and irritation he'd been nursing evaporated entirely.
Hua Daiyi gave a couple of gruff hmph's, but his tone had softened noticeably:
"Since the boy has practiced my sword art, I naturally can't just stand by and do nothing. Say it then — what exactly did you come to me for? Don't dance around it."
Seeing that the moment was ripe, Ren Wencai let the smile drop from his voice:
"You know what those Yunyue Sect people are like."
"Chengming won today, but he's also made a thorough enemy of Liu Changfeng. That petty-minded old wretch — I worry he'll nurse his grudge and keep his hands clean in public while reaching for a knife in the dark."
"If those Yunyue Sect dogs were to harm him and snap off such a fine talent before his time, where would that leave either of our faces? And wouldn't that lineage of your Immortal-Concealing Wine-Sword Formula be cut short yet again?"
"He wouldn't dare!"
Hua Daiyi shot to his feet: "That hypocrite Liu Changfeng — if he dares lay a single finger on my half-disciple, I'll smash that fancy fan of his and break both his hands!"
Wild and erratic as he appeared on ordinary days, Hua Daiyi as a Hunyuan Sect elder was famous for one thing above all: protecting his own. Ferociously.
And this, moreover, was a rare talent he had personally taken a shine to — a boy who already bore, in every practical sense, the relationship of master and disciple.
"Alright, alright, I know your temper well enough."
Hua Daiyi drew a deep breath, steadying himself, and when he spoke again his voice carried a cold, bone-chilling edge:
"Since you've gone and laid it all out like this, I can hardly sit on my hands."
"Go on then. What underhanded scheme are we cooking up this time?"
The two of them had pulled plenty of these jobs in their younger days; the moment Ren Wencai led with that tone, Hua Daiyi already understood half of it.
"Off the record."
"Fine."
Hua Daiyi didn't waste another word. He crushed the message-transmitting jade slip in his palm, and his entire person transformed into a streak of light carrying the smell of wine, vanishing from the spot in an instant.
And somewhere in a remote stretch of wilderness along the road between the Wenjian Sect and the Yunyue Sect, two furtive silhouettes huddled together over a map, pointing and muttering, punctuated now and then by soft, hair-raising chuckles.
All of this, of course, was entirely unknown to Liu Changfeng — who was far away on a guest peak, busy tending to his injured disciple.
Meanwhile, on the other side, after Ren Wencai had departed —
Gu Chengming reached out and undid the restriction sealed at the mouth of the pouch. He extended his divine sense inside.
Even by his own estimation, he possessed considerable composure — and yet when he discerned what was within, he couldn't help but raise an eyebrow.
One had to admit: Elder Ren had been genuinely generous this time.
A full five thousand low-grade spirit stones, piled together in a faintly luminous mound — for an outer disciple, this was an unquestionable fortune.
Beyond that, there were three vials of premium Primal Essence Pills — hard currency among second-realm cultivators for consolidating their foundation and advancing their cultivation, each vial worth a considerable sum.
But the most precious item of all was a small rosewood token resting quietly in the corner.
The front face of the token bore the characters "Hidden Scripture." The reverse bore a single ancient character: "Three." Both sides faintly emanated a scholarly aura threaded through with the pulses of a restriction seal.
A third-floor access token for the Scripture Library.
[Hundred Bones Resonance looked upon this table full of spoils of war and began taking inventory with the utmost satisfaction.]
[It had already mapped out exactly how to spend these resources: five thousand spirit stones toward a weapon, the three vials of Primal Essence Pills for raising and consolidating the realm, and the Scripture Library third-floor access token...]
Hundred Bones Resonance's dialogue box suddenly stuttered to a halt.
[Wrong. Something is very wrong!]
[Hundred Bones Resonance's mental alarm bells rang out at full volume. It had just realized something terrifyingly important: Gu Chengming had already attained the Hundred Bones in Full Resonance realm — his physical foundation was already laid. If at this juncture he were to enter the third floor of the Scripture Library...]
[There were quite a number of high-tier body-tempering cultivation methods in there!]
[After all, its current Primordial Imperial Merit, impressive as the name sounded, was still propped up entirely by Gu Chengming's affinity points. If Gu Chengming were to let the tail wag the dog and swap it out, wouldn't it be getting phased out of the picture entirely?]
[Hundred Bones Resonance immediately cried out at the top of its voice within the sea of consciousness: Lord Gu the Emperor! Wait! Hold on!]
[Consider — your sword arts are peerless, your body-tempering method is top-tier, and your divine soul has the Qingxin Formula supporting it from the side.]
[In its humble opinion, the third floor of the Scripture Library is a once-in-a-thousand-years opportunity — why not use it to obtain a supreme movement technique instead?]
Gu Chengming found it amusing, but he offered a brief explanation anyway, to put Hundred Bones Resonance's anxieties to rest.
"I'm only one step away from the seventh layer of the first realm. Even without deliberate cultivation, with the Huiyuan Sword Art's assistance, breakthrough is a matter of one or two days at most. It's time to start preparing for the push to the second realm."
"So I'm planning to switch my core cultivation method."
Theoretically speaking, cultivation from the second realm onward was the true threshold of "Tempering Reality."
The first realm still belonged to the domain of the warrior: forging sinew and bone, refining a thread of primordial true qi. Even without a sophisticated cultivation method, with enough grit and hard work, practicing some basic sword arts or breathing techniques would naturally carry one to the breakthrough.
But the second realm was different. Breaking through to the second realm meant building one's own system upon the foundation of the Great Dao.
That required a true core cultivation method — a heart method — to serve as the primary framework, governing the circulation of spiritual energy throughout the entire body.
The grade of a heart method often determined the quality of spiritual energy, the speed of qi recovery, and the ceiling of all future advancement.
Though a heart method could theoretically be changed later, doing so typically required scrapping all prior cultivation and starting over, or spending enormous amounts of time grinding new compatibility into one's meridians — an exhausting, wasteful endeavor. Since the opportunity was here, naturally one should choose the finest from the outset.
The third floor of the Scripture Library held no shortage of high-tier cultivation methods. If he truly followed Hundred Bones Resonance's suggestion and exchanged the token for a movement technique, it was entirely possible he might obtain a high-tier movement technique on par with Flowing Cloud Moon-Following.
The problem was that given Gu Chengming's current Agility attribute, attempting to learn a movement technique with such extreme body-coordination demands would be harder than ascending to heaven.
The lesson of Flowing Light, Sword Shadows was still fresh. If not for exploiting a clever shortcut through the Huiyuan Sword Art's special properties, he'd probably still be sitting there staring blankly at that sword manual.
Better to bet on a sure thing — a high-tier heart method that could solidly raise his base attributes and integrate cleanly with his existing system — than to gamble on a movement technique he might never master.
[Hundred Bones Resonance instantly breathed a great sigh of relief. The Emperor spoke most wisely — as the saying goes, without a firm foundation the earth itself trembles. To lay one's foundation with a supreme heart method is the very mark of a true Sovereign's bearing.]
Gu Chengming shook his head helplessly, stowed the token and spirit stones away, and with a turn of thought, activated the Myriad Mysteries Convergence Method.
The moment he entered the Myriad Wonders Assembly, he found the forum already buzzing with discussion about himself.
[One Sword Breaks All Techniques! Just how deeply has Senior Brother Gu been hiding his hand in today's Sword-Questioning Stage battle?!]
"Does anyone who knows what they're talking about want to break down what technique Senior Brother Gu used at the end? From where I was standing it looked a lot like the Yunyue Sect's Flowing Cloud Moon-Following Sword Art?"
"What do you mean 'looked like'? It was exactly that! I heard from one of the inner sect senior brothers — it's called 'repaying the enemy in their own coin.' That is what it means to truly strike at both body and soul."
Reading through the posts, Gu Chengming felt a quiet, warm satisfaction settle in.
After all — who doesn't enjoy being praised?
Though amid the sea of acclaim, there were also some rather different voices.
[Does anyone know what kind of cultivation partner Senior Brother Gu Chengming likes?]
— The kind who speaks in dialogue boxes and has an affinity meter floating above their head.
Gu Chengming thought privately.
One day later.
In a side hall of the Hall of Merit and Discipline, the air was thick with the fragrance of medicine.
The furnishings were sparse. A bronze beast-headed incense burner released steady curls of mind-calming, qi-settling smoke. The lattice windows were half-open, letting in a few pale threads of morning light that fell in dappled patterns across the bedside.
Liu Enchuan sat beside the bed, holding a bowl of freshly brewed dark brown medicinal broth, brows slightly knit.
He blew gently on the steam and looked at the disciple lying on the bed — face wan as yellowed paper, chest wound in thick white bandages — and quietly sighed.
Just then, Jiang Lu's eyes snapped open. He instinctively tried to sit up.
But his injuries hadn't fully healed. A lance of searing pain hit him; he let out a muffled groan, his body went limp, and he fell back against the pillow, a layer of fine cold sweat beading instantly across his forehead.
"What are you thrashing about for? Not satisfied that your bones aren't broken thoroughly enough?"
A steady voice — calm but carrying a note of rebuke — sounded in his ear.
Jiang Lu turned his head with effort, his gaze slowly finding focus, until he made out the face of the elder sitting at his bedside.
Master?
The moment he saw Liu Enchuan's stern face, Jiang Lu felt something sting in his chest. He struggled to sit up and bow in salute:
"Your disciple has brought shame upon Master."
"Enough. Lie still."
Liu Enchuan placed a hand on his shoulder and pressed him gently back down. A warm, steady current of spiritual energy flowed through his palm into the boy's body.
"Losing to someone better than you — what's shameful about that?"
Liu Enchuan brought the medicine bowl to his lips:
"That Sea-Overturning strike of yours was well executed. Without the suppression of realm disparity, that Yunyue Sect girl might not have won so easily. And you had the courage to step onto the stage at that moment — you didn't lose the backbone of our Huiyuan Gate."
Jiang Lu drank several mouthfuls of the bitter broth from his master's hand, but the bitterness in his heart ran far deeper.
"Master... did we lose?"
He remembered that before he'd lost consciousness, Li Mozi had already defeated several of his senior brothers.
Liu Enchuan's hand paused slightly as he set the medicine bowl down.
He glanced at his disciple's anxious face, and something unexpected surfaced on that habitually stern countenance — a look both peculiar and barely suppressed with glee.
"Don't overthink it. That Yunyue Sect girl was carried off the stage."
"Carried off?"
Jiang Lu's eyes went wide. He was certain he'd misheard.
"Who did it? Did an inner sect senior brother step in?" Jiang Lu pressed eagerly.
"Not the inner sect." Liu Enchuan shook his head, his tone carrying a note of quiet wonder. "It was your Senior Brother Gu."
"Senior Brother Gu?!"
Jiang Lu was completely dumbstruck.
"Master, you're not joking with me?"
Jiang Lu stammered:
"Isn't Senior Brother Gu only at the sixth layer of the first realm?"
"And what of it?"
Liu Enchuan glanced at him with quiet significance and said:
"Do you know how he won?"
"How did he win?"
"He returned to that Li Mozi girl every injury you suffered — with interest."
Jiang Lu's mouth fell open, and it stayed that way for a very long time.
Just then, a set of light, steady footsteps came from outside the hall.
Knock knock.
Two soft taps.
"Elder Liu, this disciple Gu Chengming has come to visit Junior Brother Jiang."
Jiang Lu instinctively turned his head toward the sound — and immediately pulled at his wounds, wincing through clenched teeth.
Liu Enchuan stood, straightened his robes, and restored his usual air of authority. He said evenly, "Come in."
The door swung open.
Gu Chengming, dressed in a plain blue robe, walked in against the light.
Seeing Liu Enchuan present, Gu Chengming wasn't surprised. He simply gave a respectful bow:
"Greetings, Elder Liu."
Liu Enchuan looked him over from head to toe, then gave a slow nod. His gaze settled on the jade vial in Gu Chengming's hand, and a flash of quiet approval crossed his eyes.
That was a premium healing medicine from Returning Spring Hall — not an inexpensive item for an outer disciple.
Liu Enchuan said nothing by way of pleasantries. He simply pointed at Jiang Lu on the bed:
"He just woke up and his medicine is taken. You two talk. I have case files to attend to."
With that, he clasped his hands behind his back and ambled unhurriedly out of the hall.
The room settled into quiet.
Gu Chengming walked to the bedside, set down what he'd brought, and pulled a chair over to sit down.
"These are some things Elder Ren gave me before, and some more that the sect distributed after the win."
Gu Chengming sorted through the vials as he spoke, his tone casual:
"I figured with your bones and sinew in this state, I'd bring them over."
Jiang Lu felt a swell of warmth in his chest — and a complex tangle of other feelings alongside it. He opened his mouth, but couldn't find what to say.
"Don't overthink it. That Sea-Overturning strike of yours — if the realm gap hadn't been so wide, that single sword would have made her pay dearly."
"Both Elder Liu and Elder Ren were singing your praises, calling you a young man of backbone who didn't let Huiyuan Gate down."
"Really?"
"Why would I lie to you?"
"These are some insights I drew from Li Mozi's sword techniques — specifically about how to counter swift-sword styles and how to push 'momentum' to its absolute limit."
"You can look through them while you're recuperating. It should be of some use to your Sea-Overturning."
Jiang Lu stared at the clearly freshly-written journal in his hands, his heart filled with a warmth beyond all expression.
His senior brother hadn't just avenged him — he'd walked through the whole battle for him afterward, and was now passing along every insight without reservation.
Jiang Lu struggled to rise. Gu Chengming pressed him back down.
"Enough, don't move."
Gu Chengming stood up and dusted off his hands:
"Rest well. When you're better, I'll come find you."
Jiang Lu nodded firmly:
"Senior Brother, don't worry. I'll be back on my feet as fast as I can. I won't let you down."
Gu Chengming gave a nod and turned toward the door.
As he reached it, he seemed to remember something. He stopped, back still turned to Jiang Lu, and said:
"By the way — that Myriad Mysteries Convergence Method of yours..."
Jiang Lu's heart gave a tight squeeze. He braced himself, certain his senior brother was about to reproach him for practicing such a low-grade cultivation method.
"...Practice it more when you have time."
Gu Chengming's voice drifted back, carrying a hint of a smile:
"That thing — it comes in handy sometimes."
With that, he pushed open the door and walked out in long strides.
Sunlight poured into the room, driving the shadows from the corners.
Jiang Lu watched the still-swinging door, gripping the jade vial and the handwritten journal tightly in both hands. A warmth unlike anything he'd felt before welled up and spread through his chest.
Outside the door.
Liu Enchuan hadn't gone far. He stood beneath the covered walkway, quietly watching as Gu Chengming emerged.
Their eyes met.
Gu Chengming cupped his hands in a bow. "Elder Liu."
Liu Enchuan gave a slow nod. That habitually unyielding face softened, just this once, into something rare and gentle.
"Go on."
He raised a hand in a mild wave of dismissal, and watched Gu Chengming's retreating figure until it was gone.
Upright character. Clear sense of gratitude and grievance. The makings of someone truly worth entrusting with great things.
So it seems Huiyuan Gate truly does have a future ahead of it.
After bidding farewell to Jiang Lu and Liu Enchuan, Gu Chengming didn't linger. He turned and headed in the direction of Yu Wenqiu's residence.
Jiang Lu's injuries were stable, but he still needed quiet rest. Among the outer sect, Gu Chengming didn't know many other people who were both familiar and well-connected enough to be useful.
Turning it over in his mind, if he wanted to procure a proper weapon or seek guidance on the critical points of cultivation, Elder Yu was still the most reliable option.
After all — the bond forged over serialized fiction counted for something.
Arriving at that familiar bamboo grove, the formation array was as obliging as ever. The moment Gu Chengming drew near, the mist parted on its own accord, revealing a serene and secluded small courtyard.
Yu Wenqiu was reclining in a bamboo chair in the courtyard, holding the fourth installment of the fiction serial Gu Chengming had brought last time, absorbed completely in it.
The afternoon sun filtered through bamboo leaves and pooled on her, its dappled shifting patterns flowing across her violet skirt as the chair swayed gently back and forth — lending this elder an unexpected air of languid, everyday warmth.
At the sound of footsteps, Yu Wenqiu didn't look up. Her eyes stayed fixed on the page, though the corner of her mouth curved upward almost imperceptibly.
"You're here?"
"This disciple Gu Chengming greets Elder Yu." Gu Chengming bowed properly.
Only then did Yu Wenqiu set the book down with obvious reluctance, tucking it with great care into her sleeve. She straightened up in her chair.
She looked Gu Chengming over — her gaze pausing for a moment on his plain blue robe, still unadorned with any token or ornament of status — and a gleam of approval passed through her eyes.
Though she hadn't been present at the Sword-Questioning Stage that day, she had watched the whole affair through the Clairvoyant Eye.
She had to admit: this young man came across as placid and unhurried in daily life, but once he actually moved — the ruthlessness and decisiveness he showed were very much to her taste.
Especially that final kick. Clean and decisive, no hesitation whatsoever, no lingering sentiment. Even more satisfying than the heroes in her fiction serials.
"Sit."
Yu Wenqiu gestured toward the stone stool opposite her. Her tone carried a warmth it hadn't held on previous visits:
"What brings you by?"
"There are two things I'd like to ask Elder's guidance on."
"Go ahead."
Yu Wenqiu was in high spirits, and poured him a cup of tea without much thought.
Gu Chengming explained honestly.
That iron sword of his had always been a mundane weapon bought at the disciple market. That it hadn't shattered on the spot during that last battle — with so much spiritual energy being forced into it — was already a miracle. Now the blade was riddled with hairline fractures, and it was clearly beyond further use.
"First: my cultivation has been advancing, and I'd like to find a proper weapon within the sect, but I don't know how these things work. Second: I've encountered some difficulties in my heart method cultivation, and I'd like to ask Elder to point me in the right direction."
A sword?
Yu Wenqiu raised an eyebrow at that, then let out a light laugh and rose to her feet.
"You've come to exactly the right person on this one. Come on — to the Hidden Sword Pavilion."
She didn't waste words. With a sweep of her wide sleeves — not even bothering with an escape-light technique — she led Gu Chengming straight out of the courtyard and set off along the mountain path toward the Hidden Sword Pavilion.
All along the way, Yu Wenqiu walked with a light, easy step, her mood clearly superb.
When they reached the Hidden Sword Pavilion, the disciples on duty that day saw that their own supervising elder had personally led someone in, and immediately didn't dare breathe too loudly. They hastened to bow respectfully.
Yu Wenqiu paid the disciples no mind. She led Gu Chengming straight upstairs to the inner vault on the second floor.
This chamber housed treasured artifacts of established rank — spiritual light flickering, the aura of precious objects filling the air.
"See anything you like?"
Yu Wenqiu gestured casually at the array of swords lined up on the rack.
Gu Chengming swept his gaze across them, and it settled on a slender longsword of deep, uniform blue.
The blade was long and fine, free of elaborate engravings — plain and understated, deeply attuned to the sword intent of the Huiyuan Sword Art.
[Huiyuan Sword Art saw this sword and was quite taken with it, gazing at the blade with a look of pure, eager longing.]
Seeing the Huiyuan Sword Art this smitten, Gu Chengming spoke up:
"That one, then."
Yu Wenqiu gave a nod and turned to the disciple managing records:
"What's the price on this sword?"
The disciple hastily flipped open the ledger and answered respectfully:
"In reply to Elder, this sword requires two thousand merit points. If paying in spirit stones, it comes to six thousand low-grade spirit stones."
Six thousand spirit stones...
[Huiyuan Sword Art immediately announced that it didn't like the sword at all, actually, and that the one a few racks over with a price tag of a few dozen merit points looked much better.]
Now you're trying to save me money too.
Gu Chengming was at a loss. He had just turned to ask Yu Wenqiu if he could borrow some, when she flicked a glance at the disciple:
"Hold on — don't log it yet."
Then she turned to Gu Chengming, a crafty smile pulling at the corner of her mouth:
"Take out all your spirit stones."
Gu Chengming didn't understand, but he did as he was told. He pulled out his storage pouch and emptied out five thousand spirit stones.
Yu Wenqiu gave them a sweep of her gaze. Rather than tell the disciple to collect them directly, she produced the Hidden Sword Pavilion supervising elder's identity token from her sleeve and instructed the disciple:
"Don't put these spirit stones into the treasury directly. First, go to the External Affairs Hall in my name and exchange all of these stones for spirit ore. And make sure you find that manager surnamed Wang — tell him I sent you. Have him convert them at the maximum internal loss-offset ratio."
The disciple blinked in bewilderment, but seeing the elder's certain expression, dared not ask questions. He nodded and committed the instructions to memory.
"After the exchange,"
Yu Wenqiu continued, words coming in rapid succession — clearly she knew this whole procedure down to the last step by heart:
"Take the spirit ore to the Artifact Forging Hall and exchange it for refined iron-mother ingots. Then bring back the contribution points you receive, and come back here."
"According to sect regulations, a supervising elder is entitled to a depreciation allowance when replacing their official artifacts every three years. You'll use that allowance on my behalf to purchase this sword."
"As for the remaining difference..."
Yu Wenqiu paused, then passed a thread of spiritual light through her token:
"Cover it with my monthly supervising elder's operational expense allocation."
The whole maneuver flowed like water, every step locking seamlessly into the next. The disciple's brush nearly dropped from his fingers as he listened.
Standing to one side, Gu Chengming was staring with his mouth ajar.
Spirit stones converted to ore, ore to contribution points, contribution points discounted, and the remaining gap expensed through the public budget...
Elder Yu, you are a thoroughgoing institutional parasite.
A short while later, the disciple came sprinting back, drenched in sweat, and presented the sword along with a little over a hundred spirit stones in change.
"Elder, it's all done."
Yu Wenqiu waved the disciple away with a flick of her wrist, then turned to Gu Chengming with a look of undisguised pride:
"Well? Five thousand spirit stones — and not only did we buy a sword worth six thousand, there's still over a hundred left."
[Huiyuan Sword Art felt a pang of deep remorse, certain it should never have let its fondness for that sword show.]
[But seeing how seriously you took its feelings, it was filled with nothing but boundless gratitude and happiness.]
[Hundred Bones Resonance, witnessing Yu Wenqiu's masterclass in embezzlement, was struck dumb with awe.]
[Lord Gu the Emperor! This fine woman is a boon to you — on no account should you sever ties with her!]
Gu Chengming, for his part, was genuinely impressed. "Elder's methods are extraordinary."
Yu Wenqiu took that compliment and ran with it, tilting her chin up just slightly:
"What is this? Nothing but small tricks within the rules."
She gave a light, dismissive hum, as if drawing up a distant memory:
"Back when I was still a rank-and-file disciple and hadn't made elder yet, I spent no small amount of effort studying these angles just to stretch my cultivation resources. Every rule in this sect — which one don't I know inside out? As long as you don't cross the line, a bit of creative reinterpretation is doing the sect a convenience as much as doing yourself one."
At this point she suddenly realized she had talked herself into a corner, inadvertently broadcasting the full glorious history of her younger days as a sect freeloader.
"Ahem, ahem!"
Yu Wenqiu broke off with two sharp coughs, cutting herself short by force.
"That... ancient history. Not worth bringing up."
She pivoted swiftly, eyes dropping to the longsword in Gu Chengming's hands:
"The sword is sorted. Let's talk about your heart method."
Gu Chengming graciously didn't press further, and followed her lead:
"Yes. Elder, in my recent cultivation, I've been feeling a blockage during my full-cycle circulation. I believe the time has come when I need to take up a heart method — so I'd like to ask Elder to guide me on that front."
Hearing this, Yu Wenqiu didn't rush to answer. She paused to sense his cultivation state, and then asked:
"You're still working on that Hundred Bones Resonance method?"
Gu Chengming nodded. "That's right."
"How far along?"
"I'd say... I've more or less reached Hundred Bones in Full Resonance."
Gu Chengming chose his words carefully.
"Hundred Bones in Full Resonance?"
A look of genuine surprise flickered in Yu Wenqiu's eyes.
She knew the Hundred Bones Resonance cultivation method — well, in fact. She was quite familiar with it.
The method had an extremely low entry barrier, but precisely because of that, its ceiling wasn't particularly high, and the training process was brutally painful.
For an ordinary disciple, reaching the stage of "bone resonance" was already a testament to extraordinary willpower.
As for "Hundred Bones in Full Resonance" — that required the grinding, painstaking work of years, achievable only through long seasons of unrelenting effort.
And this young man had been at it for how long? A few months at most, by any calculation?
"Your physical talent... is genuinely something unexpected."
Yu Wenqiu remarked with a note of quiet wonder, then turned serious:
"However — since you've already reached Hundred Bones in Full Resonance, this cultivation method has more or less run its course."
Gu Chengming paused. "Elder's meaning is...?"
"Switch methods."
Yu Wenqiu said it plainly. "The reason Hundred Bones Resonance is classified as a bottom-tier body-tempering method is precisely because its path runs out. What people call 'Hundred Bones in Full Resonance' is, in truth, already the absolute peak of this method."
Gu Chengming frowned. "But Elder, I once saw in the cultivation manual that beyond this there are realms of 'form and spirit in shared resonance — even drawing the laws of heaven and earth into oneself'..."
"That's a lie."
Yu Wenqiu shattered his illusions without a hint of mercy and waved the notion away:
"That was the delusional imaginings of the predecessor who created this method, written when their lifespan was nearly spent and their mind was no longer clear. In theory it might sound possible — but in practice, no one has ever achieved it."
"Over hundreds of years, the Wenjian Sect has had no shortage of brilliant minds who attempted to extrapolate and complete the method — and every single one of them failed. The foundational architecture of this cultivation method is simply too crude. It cannot bear the weight of that level of celestial and terrestrial force."
She looked at Gu Chengming and spoke with the earnest directness of a senior who had genuinely thought this through:
"Your talent is evident, and your Dao-heart is resolute. Even if you were to switch body-tempering methods entirely, that would be far better than banging your head against this illusory 'harmony with heaven and earth.'"
Yu Wenqiu's words were offered in absolute sincerity — the perspective of an elder who was thinking purely about Gu Chengming's future.
Before Gu Chengming could even react to what she'd said, a dialogue box appeared before him.
[Hundred Bones Resonance is overcome with righteous fury. That vile cultivator! How dare she try to possess my Lord Gu the Emperor's beloved!]
____
________________________________________
If you want more chapters, please consider supporting my page on (P). with 50 advanced chapters available on (P)
👻 Join the crew by searching Leanzin on (P). You know the spot! 😉