The Young Lord, Settle the Sect's Affairs; Yellow Immortal Finds the Flavor Hard to Resist

Chen Duan waved his hand casually, utterly unconcerned.

He did not know where Chen Duan had found the enormous wooden chest strapped to his back. It seemed to contain something.

Qi Baorui's eyes flickered, but in tacit understanding, he did not ask further.

After spending so much time together, he had long since come to understand Chen Duan's character.

"Come outside and talk." Qi Baorui lowered his voice.

"Sure." Chen Duan nodded.

Qi Baorui instructed several people to stay behind and clean up the aftermath, then walked out of the courtyard with Chen Duan.

The disciples who remained stared at the devastation before them, their hearts filled with dread. They could hardly imagine how savage the battle that had erupted here moments ago must have been.

Outside the courtyard.

Qi Baorui did not beat around the bush and got straight to the point.

"Chen Duan, leave Yuanxiang Sect directly."

Since Chen Duan had never intended to remain in the sect for long, there was no need for him to board this ship called Yuanxiang Sect, which might capsize at any moment.

Although Chen Duan was a Five Refinement Master with formidable strength,

when it came to the sect's impending calamity, simply having one more Five Refinement Master was not enough to turn the tide.

The experts who had achieved "Break Apex" were the greatest variables in this turmoil.

Otherwise, why would people like Xia Jingtian and Yan Cong risk everything to attempt the Evil Cultivation of "Break Apex"?

He understood that having Chen Duan help would undoubtedly provide tremendous support in the storm to come.

But whenever he thought of Qian Changchun's entrustment, he could not bring himself to do it.

Qian Changchun's original intention had been for Chen Duan to practice martial arts here in peace and enjoy the protection of a great sect. Now, they were instead asking him to become a pillar supporting the sect. What kind of arrangement was that?

Qi Baorui could not find peace over it.

"For this one matter, you have to listen to me! Don't argue with me! If anything happens to you, I, Qi Baorui, will have no face to meet your master!"

Although Chen Duan had a record of killing two Five Refinement Masters, tomorrow's Martial Alliance Meeting would be surrounded by wolves. It would not be a matter of dealing with one or two Five Refinement Masters.

Given Chen Duan's temperament, a prodigy this outstanding would surely become the target of everyone.

Hearing this, Chen Duan merely pointed at the courtyard and laughed.

"Steward Qi, I'm afraid that's not quite right, is it? I just helped you resolve such a huge problem, and now you're turning around and trying to drive me away?"

Qi Baorui seemed to have expected him to say this. He glanced around, and only after confirming that no one was nearby did he quietly pull two booklets from his robes and stuff them into Chen Duan's hands.

"These are the Secret Manuals for the Water Element Art and Fire Element Art. They're enough for you to practice up to the Five Refinement level. Don't even think about the Earth Element Art and Gold Element Art. These three techniques are more than enough for you.

"Moreover, according to what our patriarch passed down, the Hongyuan Five Elements were originally one body, all sharing the same origin.

"As long as you cultivate any one of them to the highest realm, the five elements will naturally resonate with one another. They will merge and connect, allowing you to glimpse the truth of the Great Dao of Hongyuan."

Of course, whether this legend was true remained to be verified.

Qi Baorui brought it up now mainly to reassure Chen Duan and make his words more convincing. If he could obtain the Earth and Gold elements, he would naturally hand them directly to Chen Duan.

With his current status, obtaining the Water and Fire elements was not difficult, but the Earth and Gold elements were exceptionally special, and acquiring them was extremely hard.

A trace of surprise flashed through Chen Duan's eyes. He had not expected Qi Baorui to have considered everything so thoroughly.

Although he could now forcibly graft other internal forces with Flower Transfer Grafting, having complete Secret Manuals to consult and gaining a deeper understanding of the techniques' essence was naturally even better.

But compared to that, he was more concerned with the words, "The Hongyuan Five Elements were originally one body."

He had never heard this claim before.

Moreover, he now possessed three types of internal force within his body—wood, fire, and water. Yet in his perception, their attributes were entirely different, and he had sensed nothing "shared" among them.

He looked at Qi Baorui. The other man's face was solemn, his eyes carrying an unquestionable resolve.

Although Chen Duan's realm and strength had long since far surpassed Qi Baorui's, Qi Baorui had always treated him like an elder, with concern and responsibility.

Just like Qian Changchun back then.

After a moment of silence, Chen Duan nodded.

"Fine. I understand."

Qi Baorui let out a sigh of relief.

He naturally understood that privately passing the sect's Secret Manuals to a disciple who was about to leave was highly improper as far as the sect was concerned.

But beyond personal affection and moral feeling, there were rational considerations as well.

Chen Duan's talent was terrifying, rare beneath the heavens.

If he truly managed to cultivate the Hongyuan Five Elements, then should Yuanxiang Sect fail to rebuild itself, Chen Duan would still be a spark of life—a thread of hope.

"Then that should be about everything that needed to be said."

Qi Baorui cupped his fists. "Take good care of yourself."

Chen Duan solemnly returned the salute.

"You take good care of yourself too, Martial Uncle."

"Mm."

Qi Baorui answered instinctively, then froze.

By the time he came to his senses, Chen Duan's figure had already vanished.

For a long while.

Qi Baorui raised his own hands. The faint internal force of the first level of Fuhu Fist circulated from his fingertips.

When he had Dispersed his cultivation back then, he had deliberately retained a little of it to preserve a memento.

How had this boy discovered it?

Had Qian Changchun told him?

If he had discovered it, why had he only called me Martial Uncle now?

In the end, Qi Baorui merely shook his head, a helpless yet gratified smile appearing on his face.

None of that mattered anymore.

In a daze, his gaze grew distant.

As though crossing through the river of time,

he saw the people and events of many years ago.

Sniff, sniff~

Sniff, sniff~

Ah Huang stared fixedly at the enormous lump of meat Chen Duan had brought back.

Its nose twitched nonstop, and it swallowed saliva again and again.

Chen Duan observed Ah Huang's reaction from the side. Seeing it in such a state, he held two fingers together like a blade and casually slit open the lump of meat.

"I'll let you suck on it once," Chen Duan said indifferently.

Having received permission, Ah Huang went wild with joy and bowed to Chen Duan again and again.

The mere scent of this thing made its soul tremble. It simply could not resist!

It pounced forward, opened its mouth, and sucked hard.

Wonderful~

Wonderful~

The essence of the "delicacy" surged into Ah Huang's body, and every strand of fur on its body relaxed.

It could not help groaning, sinking into the experience so completely that it entirely ignored Chen Duan's command nearby.

"You can stop now."

"Didn't you hear me?"

"Stop!"

Chen Duan kicked Ah Huang straight into the air.

Only then did Ah Huang awaken as if from a dream, shaking its head.

Chen Duan looked toward the lump of meat, his brows furrowing.

In just this short while, the plump lump of meat had shriveled by nearly half.

Ah Huang was certainly fast when it came to eating.

He had only just brought this lump back and had not finished studying it. If it could not regenerate on its own, the loss would be enormous.

But things had already come to this, and there was nothing he could do.

He shot Ah Huang a harsh look.

Ah Huang placed both hands behind its back and lowered its head, not daring to meet his eyes.

"How did it taste?" Chen Duan asked.

At those words, Ah Huang immediately perked up again.

Recalling the delicious flavor from moments ago, it could not suppress its joy and gave a thumbs-up.

A radiant smile spread across its face, accompanied by a cackling, grotesque laugh.

From that laughter alone, Chen Duan could tell how delicious the lump of meat had been to Ah Huang.

After carefully questioning Ah Huang about its specific sensations after sucking on it, Chen Duan ordered it to produce some powder immediately.

The Yellow Medicine prepared afterward was more than twice as high in quality as before.

Chen Duan now had a clear idea.

He then carried the strange lump of meat and turned toward the cellar.