Test? Hesitation!

"Did you think I was testing you?" Jiang Xinyue reclined back in the rocking chair, her eyes gleaming with amusement as she stared at the thoughts written plainly across Li Wei's face. She found it rather funny.

Li Wei blinked. "Ah, wasn't it?"

Jiang Xinyue simply tilted her head back to gaze at the sky. Through the gaps between the leaves, she stared at the bright-red pomegranates and remained silent for a long while.

Li Wei followed her gaze upward. Pomegranates... could she really see flowers in them?

Sitting still felt uncomfortable, so she simply stretched her legs forward and changed her posture. Her little feet swung back and forth inside her sandals, pale and tender, until even she felt dizzy watching them.

"Tsk." Jiang Xinyue suddenly spoke, her voice tinged with disdain. "Did you throw away all seven days of etiquette lessons to feed the dogs?"

Li Wei jumped and hurriedly pulled her legs back, sitting up straight. She had to keep up her young-lady persona.

"You..."

Jiang Xinyue shook her head with a bitter smile. Her voice turned low and hoarse. "Actually, I wasn't testing you just now... The reason I said that was because I was hesitating too..."

"Hesitating?" Li Wei asked, puzzled.

Jiang Xinyue nodded, her thoughts seeming to drift far away. "I was hesitating over whether I should 'sacrifice the lesser justice to uphold the greater justice'!"

Lesser justice? Greater justice? What was she dragging into this now?

Li Wei was even more confused, but she had thick skin and asked whenever she didn't understand. "Grandma, could you explain?"

Jiang Xinyue was amused by her. She pointed a finger at Li Wei's forehead and scolded her with a laugh before explaining anyway. "Originally, Xiao Qiu came to ask me to cooperate, and I agreed without hesitation. Don't think I'm heartless. In my eyes, trading someone with an aura-blood value of only fifty-three for that boy Gu Jinzhi is worth it!"

Li Wei rubbed her chin and actually nodded along. "Indeed. He's the national competition champion, after all~"

Jiang Xinyue: "..."

No, this girl's position was a little bewildering...

Jiang Xinyue was choked into silence for quite a while before barely maintaining her grandmaster's dignity and reorganizing her thoughts. "But that was my previous opinion... Sigh~ Before meeting you, I didn't hesitate because Jinzhi was at peak Minor Perfection. After meeting you, I hesitated..."

The corners of Li Wei's mouth twitched. The overwhelming sense of déjà vu made another line automatically play in her mind—

Before tonight, I had no doubts, because my heart held only the realm; after tonight, I have doubts. Now that I have a sister-in-law, what do I need the realm for?

Jiang Xinyue had only spoken halfway when she felt that something was off about Li Wei's expression. She could not help but turn cold. "Are you muttering about this old woman?"

Li Wei jolted. Her head shook like a rattle drum, her cheeks puffing and trembling.

"Of course not! Grandma, you misunderstood!"

Jiang Xinyue flicked a finger.

An invisible wave of force shot out.

Pain exploded across Li Wei's forehead. She instantly behaved herself, not daring to let her imagination run wild again.

"Hmph!" Jiang Xinyue snorted coldly, speaking with exasperation. "You lazy good-for-nothing, do you know what an eighteen-year-old Dao-Approaching Body means?"

Li Wei covered her reddening forehead and shook her head with bared teeth.

Jiang Xinyue raised an eyebrow. "Take Gu Jinzhi for example. Back when he was in the Freshman Competition, his aura-blood was eighty-nine, and he had Minor Accomplishment in the Gu Family saber technique. Suppose his strength at that time was one."

"And you now have a strength of three."

Li Wei crooked her mouth into a smile, sat cross-legged, and folded her arms. She did not even care about the swelling on her forehead anymore. She had to strike a proud pose.

The corner of Jiang Xinyue's mouth twitched again. Suppressing the urge to beat her, she said through clenched teeth, "A Dao-Approaching Body can actively enter 'Heaven-Man Resonance.' With the enhancement of 'Heaven-Man Resonance,' both your combat power and cultivation speed will increase."

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"By comparison, when Gu Jinzhi broke through Minor Perfection, his strength was ten. When you break through, your strength won't be thirty—it'll be fifty, or even higher."

"At that point, your peers will still be cultivating their blood. Even so-called prodigies like Yun Bajin may not reach a strength of one."

"After becoming a martial artist, with the cultivation bonus from 'Heaven-Man Resonance,' your realm will advance by leaps and bounds. At Yun Sheng's old fellow's pace, you'll be able to advance to the fourth tier in about two years."

"After reaching the fourth tier, your strength will break through one thousand with ease. But what about your peers? They'll have only just finished cultivating their blood. If they can reach Gu Jinzhi's level from the Freshman Competition, that'll already be impressive."

Li Wei listened with her eyebrows raised in delight. Am I really that amazing? No, Grandma's still being conservative. I'm even more amazing than she thinks! I'm the hidden '99+1' model!

Besides, I have the system! Two years to reach the fourth tier? Too slow, too slow. I'll get some more essence later and give this world a little taste of the protagonist's shock!

Also, is the 'Heaven-Man Resonance' she mentioned the same mystical state I entered at the hotel?

She was just about to ask what "Heaven-Man Resonance" was when Jiang Xinyue suddenly changed the subject and circled back to the main point, her tone sinking as well.

"That's why I said I wasn't testing you just now... I wouldn't hesitate to trade a dead-last student for Gu Jinzhi. But... trading a Dao-Approaching Body for Gu Jinzhi might be a crime..."

Hearing this, Li Wei smiled. "But from what I hear, you still decided to make the trade?"

A trace of helplessness flashed across Jiang Xinyue's face. She immediately shook her head with a bitter smile. "Even grandmasters are human. We all have our own selfish motives..."

"Who doesn't have a little selfishness?" Li Wei did not care in the slightest. Instead, she edged closer, her eyes sparkling with gossip. "Speaking of which, Grandma, what exactly is your relationship with Aunt Liang? Why are you helping her so much?"

Jiang Xinyue shot her a sidelong glance, her tone utterly casual. "Her father was my ex-boyfriend."

Huh???

Li Wei's jaw nearly hit the ground. This development... was way too stimulating!

Jiang Xinyue added, "When Liang Qiushi was studying in the Imperial Capital, she lived at the Jiang Family the whole time. I took her as my goddaughter."

Li Wei silently gave her a thumbs-up, her expression full of reverence.

Good grief! She raised her ex-boyfriend's daughter! This grandma is truly a heroine among women! No wonder she went so far to help Aunt Liang. So there was this layer to their relationship after all.

After saying all that, Jiang Xinyue lifted her chin. "All right, get ready. I'll help you break through to martial artist right now. At most, people outside will guess that you're at Great Perfection. If you go wandering around again while carrying a Dao-Approaching Body, things won't end well."

"After the breakthrough, your foundation won't be detectable anymore. Remember, don't show off foolishly outside. In this world, not everyone is as easygoing as I am."

She paused, her eyes meaningful. "Or rather, if I didn't need something from you and feel at least a little guilty about it, I might actually be quite interested in your little secret too~"

The moment she heard that she was about to break through, Li Wei became very excited.

After all, she had reached the end of the Quasi-Martial Artist path. If she wanted to continue growing stronger, she had to become a formal martial artist.

But Jiang Xinyue's last few words made a chill creep down her back.

Remembering her speculation and mental preparations at the courtyard gate earlier, she had initially thought she had muddled through. After all that, it turned out the other woman had seen everything clearly and had merely chosen not to expose her!

"Hehe..." Li Wei gave a dry laugh and hurriedly declared, "I definitely won't tell anyone! Rest assured! Also, I'll guarantee the life of your god-grandson! I'll make sure everything gets done beautifully for you and Aunt Liang!"

Jiang Xinyue stared at Li Wei's lively little face and brilliant smile. Her clenched fist loosened, then tightened again, repeating several times as if she had made an enormous decision. Only then did she rise from her chair, her figure swaying before she floated lightly behind Li Wei.

"Sit properly. Prepare for the breakthrough!"

Li Wei suppressed her excitement. "Yes!"