Fog City, meeting hall of the Tianque Sect’s main shop.
Lin Shu sat in the main seat with a commanding air, while Lu Zhiyun sat beside him. She kept her legs together and her hands folded neatly on her lap, looking very well-behaved.
Following Lin Shu’s instructions, two female disciples had already set out to “carry” Chang Jiuyu over.
A thick stack of account books lay on the table. Lu Zhiyun only needed to glance at the top page to fall silent.
It was filled with bright red minus signs.
This meant everything was a loss with zero profit.
One hour later, footsteps approached from outside. Then, the door was pushed open. The two female disciples from earlier were carrying a stretcher, which was covered by a white cloth.
“Senior… Senior Brother! Senior Sister has been delivered. We’ll take our leave now!” The two disciples retreated, trembling with fear.
Lu Zhiyun stared intensely at the thin white cloth, her eyes filled with wariness.
This entrance was certainly unique!
However, as her gaze drifted downward and she noticed the flat silhouette under the cloth, she felt an inexplicable sense of relief.
‘A kindred spirit!’
Lin Shu pulled back the white cloth, revealing her true form.
The moment the cloth was lifted, Lu Zhiyun smelled a dense floral fragrance, as if she had been transported into a forest of blossoms. Within moments, the scent permeated the entire room, filling her nostrils.
The fragrance naturally originated from this Eldest Senior Sister she had never met before.
At the moment, the woman’s eyes were tightly shut. Her long hair fell naturally, making her look as beautiful and cold as a sleeping ice lotus.
“She smells so good!” Lu Zhiyun exclaimed.
Inside her mental space, the Sanqing Fairy sent a message: ‘The Stainless Immortal Body? This is the immortal body women dream of most!’
‘Stainless Immortal Body? What’s that?’ Lu Zhiyun asked.
This wasn’t the first time Lu Zhiyun had encountered an immortal body. During the last trial in the Green Mountain Town secret realm, she had met Tong Yao, who possessed the All-Spirit Immortal Body, which increased her affinity with the spirits of all things.
‘This immortal body is naturally untainted by dust, pure and stainless. Furthermore, the owner is born with a body fragrance that can change according to the environment.’
‘Why does this immortal body sound so useless?’
Lu Zhiyun wasn’t particularly interested in a physique that offered no help in combat.
‘It isn’t as simple as you think. The trait of being untainted by dust alone is quite miraculous. What’s even more astonishing is that the owners of this physique go through three stages, much like a butterfly.’
‘Larva, cocoon, and breaking the cocoon. Usually, cultivators with this physique stay in the cocoon stage for a long time. The longer the cocoon stage lasts, the greater the cultivation leap when they finally break out.’
‘There was once a cultivator with the Stainless Immortal Body who only broke her cocoon during the Tribulation Transcendence Stage. After breaking out, she broke through to the Immortal Realm in one go, setting the record for the fastest person to reach the Immortal Realm in the cultivation world.’
After hearing the fairy’s explanation, Lu Zhiyun was envious. This was exactly what she wanted!
Unfortunately, she didn’t have it. Even her initial three-spirit root was obtained by “taking medicine.”
Perhaps sensing Lu Zhiyun’s mood, the Sanqing Fairy comforted her. ‘Relax, this immortal body has a major weakness too. Look! Excessive sleepiness during the cocoon stage is a primary characteristic.’
Chang Jiuyu had once fallen asleep in the Qi Induction Secret Realm because of this Stainless Immortal Body. It was only after that incident that Wu Qinglong learned his lesson and designed Version 2.0 to torture those who came after her.
If it were just drowsiness, it would be fine, but if one accidentally fell asleep during a battle, it would be a massive problem.
Just as Lu Zhiyun was wondering how Lin Shu would wake their Eldest Senior Sister, Lin Shu placed a hand behind her head and began lightly slapping Chang Jiuyu’s supple cheeks.
“Senior… Senior Brother! How can you treat a girl like that?”
Lu Zhiyun spoke up indignantly for this Senior Sister whom she had never met but felt a strange kinship with.
Just as she was about to step forward to stop him.
In the next moment, a “ehehehe” giggle escaped from the slapped Chang Jiuyu’s mouth.
‘Wait… why does it feel like she’s enjoying it?’
Under Lin Shu’s continuous tapping, the sleeping beauty slowly opened her eyes.
Chang Jiuyu looked around, staring blankly at Lu Zhiyun with bleary eyes. Only when she saw Lin Shu did her eyes sharpen slightly as she pulled herself together.
“Junior Brother, why are you here?” Chang Jiuyu let out a yawn. “Your Senior Sister has been inspecting the shops these past few days, guiding them in alchemy and forging. I’m mentally and physically exhausted!”
“Senior Sister, do you really think I’ll believe that?” Lin Shu said helplessly.
Chang Jiuyu stretched and turned her gaze toward Lu Zhiyun. “Is this our Little Junior Sister?”
Lu Zhiyun stepped forward and bowed. “Lu Zhiyun greets Eldest Senior Sister!”
“Mm-hmm! Good~” Chang Jiuyu said listlessly.
“Explain this! What’s going on with this account book? How could there be such a massive loss?” Lin Shu interrupted their conversation, intending to get his questions answered first.
“Loss?” Chang Jiuyu frowned, appearing to turn serious. “Let me see where the loss is.”
With that, Chang Jiuyu took the account book and flipped through it carefully. With every page she turned, her expression grew more solemn. Then, she said, “Give me a pen!”
As the youngest junior in the room, Lu Zhiyun hurriedly picked up the brush from the table and handed it to Chang Jiuyu.
Seeing Chang Jiuyu start writing with a flourish while her face returned to a calm state, Lu Zhiyun suddenly felt she might have been too quick to believe others’ rumors.
‘Senior Sister should be quite reliable!’
A few minutes later, Chang Jiuyu casually tossed the account book back to Lin Shu and said, “Solved! There are no losses now!”
Lu Zhiyun leaned in to check. She was curious how Chang Jiuyu had solved the crisis in such a short amount of time.
She saw that in the thick account book, a vertical line had been added to every single one of the countless minus signs.
The minus signs in the account book had all been turned into plus signs!
‘So they really all became profits…’
‘The hell they did!’
Lin Shu was so angry he tossed the book back to Chang Jiuyu, while Lu Zhiyun felt that she was still too young and needed to study with an open mind.
“Stop messing around, Senior Sister! Tell me the current situation!” Lin Shu urged. “Let’s start with the alchemy. Why have so many cauldrons exploded?”
The alchemy skills of the disciples under the Tianque Sect were generally quite accomplished. Even if they were occasionally reckless and failed a concoction, it shouldn’t result in an exploding cauldron. Furthermore, these cauldrons were crafted by Spirit Severing Grade blacksmiths; they were more than sufficient for these low-level beginners!
Even if they couldn’t produce high-grade pills, a steady output of low-grade ones shouldn’t result in a loss.
“Exploding cauldrons… that sounds familiar. That’s my fault!” Chang Jiuyu tried hard to remember.
“Your fault?” Lin Shu asked curiously.
“Yeah! I had them help me heat up my lunch box, and then they exploded!” After Chang Jiuyu finished, she pulled an exquisite lunch box from her storage bag. A cute, chibi-style version of a cold and elegant woman was carved onto it.
Lin Shu was speechless for a moment.
“But don’t worry, Junior Brother! Although I don’t know why they exploded, I’ve already told them not to use cauldrons for heating anymore! So, the cauldrons won’t explode anymore!” Chang Jiuyu promised.
Lin Shu sighed and decided to move on to the next topic. “Then why are the talismans and formations getting so many bad reviews?”
Talismans and formations were subjects with relatively low entry costs, and almost everyone in the Tianque Sect knew a bit about them. If the disciples reached even a basic level of proficiency, they could make enough to earn a living. Logically, they shouldn’t be receiving so many negative reviews.
The most critical part was that the number one item on the bad review list was the simplest Spirit Gathering Formation!
How could such a basic formation that simply gathered spiritual energy receive such high negative feedback?
“The Spirit Gathering Formation?” Chang Jiuyu thought for a moment and then said, “They said that people wouldn’t buy such a simple thing in large quantities just because of the Tianque Sect brand.”
“And so?” Lin Shu tilted his head.
“So, they decided to be unique. They increased the rotation speed and purification efficiency of the Spirit Gathering Formation!”
Lin Shu thought about it carefully and immediately understood the cause.
Following that design logic, the following scene would inevitably occur: A cultivator buys a Spirit Gathering Formation from the Tianque Sect, planning to work overtime and cultivate after a long day to outperform their peers. However, the spiritual energy purified by the Tianque Sect’s formation is so massive that it knocks them unconscious instantly. As a result, the cultivator has a wonderful sleep, wastes their cultivation time, and gains nothing but sweet dreams.
After asking about a few more areas, Lin Shu had a massive headache. This situation was quite difficult to handle!
Chang Jiuyu merely comforted him, “Don’t be anxious, Junior Brother. As the saying goes, ‘There is always a path when the car reaches the mountain. The boat naturally sinks when it hits the bridge…’ We will definitely find a way!”
Lu Zhiyun also hurried to chime in, wanting to boost her favorability with the evil cultivator.
“That’s right! Senior Brother! No matter what happens, I will follow you!”
Hearing the encouragement from his Little Junior Sister, Lin Shu felt a bit more relaxed.
What else could he say?
Since things had come to this, it was time to eat!
***
Outside Fog City, at the solemn and ancient city gate.
A line of carriages rolled slowly forward. As they passed the checkpoint, they were stopped by the city guards.
“Who goes there? What is in the carriages?” the soldier barked.
He had just broken through to the early Gold Core Stage this year and was an elite among cultivators. A few days ago, he had been promoted to captain of the guard, and today it was his team’s turn to patrol the city gate.
At the guard’s words, the carriages stopped. The driver looked at the guard with disdain and turned his head away.
“You!” the soldier shouted in anger.
The next moment, a soul-stirring laugh came from inside the carriage. The beaded curtain rolled up, revealing an exquisite and beautiful face.
“Officer! The carriage contains some wicked things that would be inconvenient for you to inspect. However, this little lady would like to ask you to show some mercy and let us through.”
Hearing the words “wicked things” and an overt request to be let through, the soldier should have refused. However, the seductive voice wrapped around his ears like a demon.
He dazed for a moment and then began to repeat woodenly:
“Welcome, Saintess… Welcome, Saintess…”
In less than a moment, the carriages began to move again, entering the bustling Fog City…