Match Made in Heaven

Seeking the Dao in the Mortal World

Three rounds of drinks had passed.

Qin Yi's gaze towards Li Qinglin became increasingly complex.

More complex than before.

Previously, there was a lot of wariness because a cold-blooded person who could kill his own brother could naturally also eliminate him after using him. He had always felt a thorn in his heart regarding such a politician and couldn't get close to Li Qinglin.

But if what Li Qinglin said was sincere, Qin Yi actually felt quite impressed.

He felt impressed by someone who had killed his own brother... This made Qin Yi seriously doubt if something was wrong with his values. If he also considered Li Qingjun's feelings upon learning the truth, it became even more complicated.

Li Qinglin slowly sipped his wine and said leisurely, "I know Brother Qin has been wary of me since meeting Ye Ling, and I know what you're thinking. Perhaps you're afraid I'll silence you afterward, or even that I'm a lunatic who would harm Qing Jun... But Brother Qin is overthinking. If I wanted to silence someone, the first person I'd kill would be Ye Ling, not you. Without Ye Ling, even if you spread the word everywhere, no one would believe it. Moreover, even if someone did believe it, it wouldn't matter. Even Dong Huazi's various attacks on me in court have yielded no results, let alone yours?"

Qin Yi said, "Why would someone in a high position need to consider so much when silencing someone? Some people simply kill a young man they happen to encounter in the mountains while doing something secret, without a second thought."

"Oh?" Li Qinglin looked a little surprised. "Could this be... the source of Brother Qin's resentment towards Dong Huazi? His people killed your friend?"

"Something like that."

"Pfft... Hahaha..." Li Qinglin spat out a mouthful of wine and burst into laughter. "This is the consequence of not considering so much, creating enemies for no reason. He probably doesn't even know where he provoked them. Interesting, interesting."

After laughing for a while, he added, "This is a living example. You, Qin Yi, may not be without support behind you. I wouldn't provoke such trouble for nothing."

Qin Yi couldn't help but laugh.

"The reason I'm talking so much with Brother Qin is that I believe collaborators shouldn't be suspicious of each other, as that can only lead to bad things. Our goals are the same, and we hope to cooperate sincerely. So..." Li Qinglin looked at him with burning eyes. "Can Brother Qin be open with me now?"

Qin Yi raised his cup in salute. "Why say that? Aren't we already friends?"

Li Qinglin clinked his cup against Qin Yi's and smiled, "Indeed, we have long been friends."

The two finished their drinks, and Li Qinglin let out a sigh, looking a bit more relaxed. "Based on my years of observation and understanding, Dong Huazi is quite similar to the Chechi Three Immortals in your story. He definitely doesn't have any legitimate inheritance, just some wild fox Zen. For example, that medicinal pill is clearly problematic. There are only two possibilities: either he deliberately harmed my father, or he himself doesn't understand and made a mistake. There are many other signs like this. I lean towards him genuinely not understanding much."

Qin Yi nodded. "When I faced Dong Huazi today, I also felt that he didn't understand cultivation as much as I thought. He's more like a politician than a cultivator. Even the divination that Jianghu sorcerers should be proficient in, he doesn't seem to be very skilled at. Because truly confident people would mostly argue with me about divination with righteous indignation, rather than playing political games."

Li Qinglin smiled. "Since I met Brother Qin, I've always felt that your learning clearly has a system and inheritance, surpassing Dong Huazi. As long as you can make my father trust you, Dong Huazi will have no more support."

This was the reason Li Qinglin valued Qin Yi so much. Qin Yi sighed inwardly, feeling a little more favorably towards Li Qinglin. Because Li Qinglin had another way to deal with Dong Huazi, which didn't require such a roundabout approach.

That was to directly usurp the throne.

The army was in Li Qinglin's hands. He could completely do what Li Shimin had done and force his father to abdicate and cultivate. As long as he sat on the throne, wouldn't it be a simple matter to drive away a National Teacher with just a word?

But he didn't choose this path. Instead, he eagerly invited a Fangshi, planning to compete with Dong Huazi for his father's trust.

Qin Yi sighed, "I will do my best when I see your father tomorrow morning."

Li Qinglin pondered for a moment, then suddenly said, "This time Mang Zhan came to Nanli, I'm afraid it has something to do with Dong Huazi. I even suspect now that Dong Huazi was originally an insider sent by the Western Wilderness to cause trouble. So, Brother Qin, no matter what your feelings are for Qing Jun, in front of my father, please stick to your relationship and don't give up."

"My feelings?" Qin Yi felt a little awkward and wanted to drink to cover it up, but looking at Li Qinglin's eyes, he finally gritted his teeth and said directly, "You don't need to tell me this. Mang Zhan can die as far away from me as possible."

Li Qinglin clapped his hands and laughed heartily. "So our cooperation is truly a Match Made in Heaven."

Returning to his guest courtyard, Qin Yi had no intention of sleeping. He leaned against the window sill and looked at the moon.

So much happened today. The initial battle with Dong Huazi, the change in his relationship with Li Qingjun, and the complete frankness with Li Qinglin. Each event flashed through his mind, and when he closed his eyes, the faces of these people repeatedly echoed.

"Stick, what do you think?" he suddenly asked.

Liu Su leisurely replied, "Li Qinglin is very interesting. Such an interesting soul is one in ten thousand in both the immortal and mortal realms. Unfortunately, his path is not compatible with mine, so we cannot work together."

"What about the others?"

"Li Qingjun is quite cute."

"..."

"As for the other mediocre people..." Liu Su scoffed, "Mang Zhan is just a martial artist, not even as good as Li Qinglin. I can discern Dong Huazi's cultivation at a glance; he's merely at the Phoenix Beginning Stage Seventh Layer, like an ant. To consider these two as great opponents is simply a disgrace to me. If you truly cultivate with me, there are ten thousand ways to ensure these types never reincarnate."

Phoenix Beginning Stage Seventh Layer.

Having crammed Daoist knowledge these past few days, Qin Yi had gained some understanding of these realms. Cultivating the mind and body is divided into five periods and seven stages. The first stage is when old ailments disappear, the body feels light and the mind is clear, the four elements are harmonious, and the six emotions are subdued. This is the Phoenix Beginning Stage.

To put it simply, it's the Qi Refining Stage... Qin Yi preferred to call it that, out of habit. And Liu Su never insisted on specific realm names; in its eyes, the name was meaningless. You could call it whatever you liked, even the "Idiot Stage" if you wanted.

Qi Refining Seventh Layer, perhaps truly considered an immortal by mortals, but to Liu Su, it was a true beginner, a novice who had just touched the threshold of cultivation, and a self-taught one at that. Setting aside some techniques that are difficult for ordinary people to understand, purely in terms of combat power, he might not even be able to defeat an experienced innate martial artist like Li Qinglin.

Actually, Dong Huazi probably couldn't even defeat Ye Ling... if Ye Ling wasn't restrained.

So if Dong Huazi were truly driven out of power, he would have difficulty even escaping with his life.

"You shouldn't underestimate Dong Huazi too much," Qin Yi said cautiously. "He has Minghe on his side. Who knows what their relationship is."

"Minghe... that is indeed a bit troublesome," Liu Su said. "If Minghe truly stands with Dong Huazi, you and Li Qinglin might as well wash up and go to sleep. Forget about being a Match Made in Heaven; you'd be closer to a pair of desperate lovers on the run."

Qin Yi automatically ignored its sarcasm and asked, "What do you think her divination meant? Can you explain it in detail?"

"No."

"Huh?"

Liu Su sighed, "Do you really think I know everything? I've never studied the art of divination. What I've taught you is just common knowledge. The true art of divination is vast and profound; it's not something that can be explained just like that. Even Minghe herself, who calculated that hexagram, might not truly understand the hexagram she calculated."

"She doesn't even understand it herself?"

"Of course. Otherwise, why didn't I learn it back then?" Liu Su's voice held contempt. "Ignorant fools think they can calculate the ways of heaven, but the ways of heaven are unpredictable. Who can truly know them all? In the end, they mislead others and themselves, becoming nothing but jokes. As for that hexagram, you'd be better off forgetting it to avoid unnecessary trouble."

You say it's vast and profound on one hand, and then say it's all jokes on the other... I think it's because you couldn't learn it... Qin Yi grumbled inwardly, but instead felt a little closer to Liu Su.

So it also had things it didn't know.