Lurking in the Shadows

Wei Yunxi was extremely vigilant. She immediately notified Wei Zonghao in secret, and the two met during the midday meal break.

"Yunxi, are you sure someone has their eyes on us?"

"Mm. If it happened once, it could be called a coincidence, but it's been like this for three days straight. There's definitely something wrong."

Yunxi replied with certainty.

"Then do you think they're after our spirit field, or are they targeting us?"

Yunxi shook her head.

"I don't know."

In truth, she had some suspicions. She worried that Chen Feng's friends had followed the scent here. That would be troublesome.

Wei Zonghao rubbed his face.

"They really picked their timing. I've been preparing to break through to the seventh layer of Qi Refining lately. What if—"

Yunxi shared that concern. After thinking it over, she whispered a few words into Zonghao's ear. His face twisted with hesitation.

"Will that work?"

"It has to work even if it doesn't. We can't let them lead us around by the nose."

"Fine. I'll listen to you."

Afterward, the two split up and prepared for any sudden incident, waiting for those people to come knocking.

The person watching Wei Yunxi and the others this time was none other than Chen Feng's former lover, Tang Ru.

Because she had become a Golden Core True Person's concubine, Tang Ru had already raised her cultivation to Qi Refining Layer 9. That was only because she had given half the cultivation resources she obtained to Chen Feng; otherwise, she would have broken through to the Foundation Establishment Realm long ago.

Yet Chen Feng had not come to see her for two months in a row, nor had he retrieved the cultivation resources she had hidden away for him. Growing anxious, she secretly spent spirit stones to inquire into Chen Feng's whereabouts.

However, Chen Feng had gone to the Outer Five Peaks to find Wei Yunxi intending to seize her resources and silence her permanently after taking revenge. He believed his cultivation exceeded hers and that this trip was foolproof, so he had not told anyone at all.

The sect prohibited its disciples from killing one another. Chen Feng could not possibly hand such a massive handle over to others, so he had not even informed Tang Ru. As a result, no one knew after he was killed.

And as an Outer Sect Disciple, he was not qualified to light a Soul Lamp. Thus, his death passed without a ripple, with only Tang Ru still thinking of him.

Tang Ru felt deeply uneasy. Using the jade hairpin Chen Feng had given her, she cast the Tracking Spell and determined that the last place he had appeared was the B-grade spirit fields of the Outer Five Peaks. She could not track the exact location.

But Tang Ru knew Chen Feng was most likely doomed. Wanting to know who had harmed him, she spent spirit stones to hire people to investigate, and the Wei siblings fell within the scope of her inquiries.

At first, she fixed her suspicious gaze on the two of them. Once she confirmed their movements, however, she crossed them off.

She understood Chen Feng very well. Without absolute certainty, he would not take on someone at the same cultivation level. It was possible that he had gone after the Wei Family's little girl alone, but her cultivation was two minor stages below Chen Feng's. She simply had no ability to deal with him.

Afterward, Tang Ru turned her suspicions toward others, allowing Yunxi to avoid disaster.

Still, neither Yunxi nor Zonghao could determine whether the people lingering near the spirit field were targeting the field or the two of them. Thus, they did not cultivate for the next two days and kept constant watch over their own spirit field.

Meanwhile, Wei Yunqing had been living quite comfortably lately. After taking on a mission at the Alchemy Peak to sort spiritual herbs, she gradually became acquainted with the senior brothers there.

With her obedient and eager-to-learn image, she earned the approval of a Senior Brother Ye and obtained a long-term Sect Mission. She was responsible for sorting spiritual herbs at the Alchemy Peak, could earn spirit stones, and could even purchase some pills at low prices. This made her smug again.

Since the Wei family disciples would not include her, she would shine beautifully on her own. She had also seen the benefits that came with becoming an alchemist, so she decided to follow the path of pill cultivation.

She possessed Water-Wood Dual Spiritual Roots and had a natural talent for cultivating spirit plants. Before Foundation Establishment, she could already use Earth Fire to refine pills. Once she reached Foundation Establishment and found an Exotic Flame to refine, she would be like a tiger with wings.

Moreover, she wanted to verify that illusion realm once more. She remembered the location of an Exotic Flame in that realm deeply and planned to give it a try.

It was simply that her cultivation was too low right now. Even if she knew there might be an Exotic Flame there, she had no ability to retrieve it. Therefore, she had to accumulate strength now.

The next day, she brought this good news back to the small courtyard, only to find Wei Yunying there. Learning from her that Yunxi was planning to stay permanently at the spirit fields of the Outer Five Peaks in order to grow Spiritual Rice, Yunqing scorned her and mocked her a few times.

Wei Yunying had no desire to pay Yunqing any attention. Seeing that Yunqing had started making snide remarks about her sisters again, she used cultivation as an excuse to return to her room, leaving Wei Yunqing feeling utterly bored.

When Yunqing went next door to complain to Zong Jin and Zong Yu, the two did not give her an opportunity at all. Both used accepting Sect Missions as an excuse and directly left her with nothing but their backs. So angry that she could only stamp her feet, Wei Yunqing returned to the outer sect Pill Peak.

Thus, all eight Wei siblings embarked upon their own chosen paths of cultivation, drifting farther and farther apart. Some watched over and helped one another along the road of cultivation, while others dedicated themselves to tripping up their own brothers and sisters. Some were left behind and ultimately faded away in the Cultivation Realm; some persisted in their efforts and eventually carved out their own broad, sunlit road.

Returning to the present, after Wei Yunxi and Zonghao had made thorough preparations, they waited for those people to make their move. Before that, however, they met the owner of Spirit Field No. 59, an eighth layer of Qi Refining cultivator named Fan Si.

When Yunxi and Zonghao saw that the protective barrier over his spirit field had been withdrawn, they approached together to greet him.

Fan Si looked at the two siblings, who only reached his chest, and said with a smile,

"I had been planning to lease both spirit fields on either side, but I didn't expect you two to get there first."

Yunxi immediately replied with a smile,

"Senior Brother Fan, Senior Brother Wang the Steward assigned this to us. Knowing it was our first time growing Spiritual Rice, he gave us a fertile spirit field.

If Senior Brother Fan wants to cultivate connected spirit fields, then after this season's Spiritual Rice is harvested, my brother and I can switch to two other spirit fields."

After hearing this, Fan Si's mood improved considerably. This little junior sister had good judgment and knew how to conduct herself, so he said with a smile,

"I'm acquainted with Senior Brother Wang the Steward. When the time comes, I'll arrange for you to exchange them for two comparable spirit fields that are also connected. I definitely won't let you suffer a loss."

"Then many thanks to Senior Brother Fan."

The two sides communicated rather pleasantly. After Yunxi had laid the groundwork, she gave Zonghao a meaningful look. Understanding, he stepped forward and lowered his voice.

"Senior Brother Fan, you may not know since you've only just emerged from seclusion, but lately people have been lingering around our spirit field. We don't know what they want. Could they be eyeing the Spiritual Rice that is about to mature? Please offer us some guidance."

Fan Si's brows furrowed at this. It was not as though he had never encountered people who wanted to pick the fruit without planting the tree. These were B-grade spirit fields. Once the Spiritual Rice ripened, after handing in the required amount, the rest was theirs. So long as they worked diligently, a hundred low-grade spirit stones could still fall into their Storage Pouch.

So he immediately said,

"This is your first time growing Spiritual Rice, and your cultivation is not high. It's normal for people to set their sights on you. I advise you to spend some spirit stones to hasten the Spiritual Rice's maturation, then harvest it early and submit it early. That's still better than having someone sweep away the whole pot in one go."

Zonghao asked in surprise,

"There are people like that even in the sect?"