Fairy Jiujiu Appears, A Broad Mind

Li Yang and Li Changshou's little maneuver inflicted great emotional damage on Lan Ling'e.

So much so that along the way, the three of them kept a hundred zhang between each other and didn't exchange a single word.

Soon, the three landed before the Hall of Hundred Affairs, where several hundred figures had already gathered.

Scanning the crowd, men and women in Daoist robes and long skirts chatted and laughed here; rarely did one see an ugly or misshapen face.

After all, they were all Qi Practitioners—good looks were just the baseline.

Among the many people, Li Changshou was utterly unremarkable, a completely generic face.

And though Lan Ling'e had concealed her appearance, that aura of liveliness tinged with a hint of laziness made her stand out conspicuously even among the female disciples, who all had fine features, slender figures, and varied temperaments.

It was truly her unique temperament.

The crowd marveled and whispered among themselves.

"Is that Lan Ling'e from Lesser Qiong Peak? She's actually at the Second Stage of Spirit Transformation? I remember she only joined the sect ten years ago, right?"

"It's her. Ten years in the sect, her master is Martial Uncle Qi Yuan, and she hasn't become an immortal yet."

"A true peerless genius. No wonder those Taishang Elders all want to take her as a disciple!"

"More than that, many Taishang Elders actually want to take another person as a disciple even more."

"Who?"

"Lesser Qiong Peak's second disciple, Lan Ling'e's senior disciple brother, Li Yang!"

"Li Yang? I've never heard of him?"

"That's him!"

Following the direction a disciple pointed, many disciples looked over.

What kind of person was that?

His appearance was roughly that of a youth—though of course, one couldn't be too sure, since that related to a Qi Practitioner's state of mind.

His cultivation was at the Spirit Transformation stage, barely passable.

The person was also quite strange; he looked fairly handsome, but once you turned your head away, it was easy to overlook him.

What was going on?

A disciple muttered, "Spirit Transformation stage, that's just so-so. That trait of being easy to overlook is a bit interesting—that's the real reason those Taishang Elders want to take him as a disciple, right?"

A disciple in the know sneered, "Spirit Transformation stage and you say 'just so-so'? Since your standards are so high, how come you've only reached the Second Stage of Return to Void after a thousand years of cultivation?"

Hearing the sarcastic words and tone, this disciple frowned with displeasure: "What? Did I say something wrong?"

"Of course," the knowledgeable disciple explained. "He's only eighteen this year, entered the sect ten years ago, and was already at the Ninth Stage of Qi Refining five years ago. Another five years have passed—how many stages of Spirit Transformation do you think he's at now?"

These words made many who didn't know the details gasp sharply.

"No wonder. With that kind of genius, if I were a Taishang Elder, I'd want to take him as a disciple too!"

Li Yang paid no attention to the disciples' chatter. He even deliberately acted aloof, leaning against a pillar with an air of keeping people at a distance.

In truth, he was frantically communicating with Li Changshou behind the scenes.

Li Changshou: "Junior Brother, why are you so high-profile today? This is far from steady. And using the Concealment Art so blatantly—doesn't that just draw more attention to you?"

Li Yang: "Senior Brother, it's not like I want to be high-profile either. Look at Junior Sister—her temperament is too unique. Compared to the trouble a beautiful Fairy Maiden brings, my being high-profile can actually erase those troubles. Senior Brother, you don't want more people noticing you, do you?"

Li Changshou: "..."

I feel like that sounded weird.

Never mind, Junior Brother is just a native of the Great Desolation World; I'll take it as an unintentional slip.

Li Changshou: "Junior Brother, where are you planning to go for training this time?"

Li Yang: "Northern Juru Continent!"

"Northern Juru Continent?"

"Right. There's something I need in Northern Juru Continent."

With that, Li Yang gave Li Changshou a rough idea about the Star Stone.

"I'll ask Senior Disciple Brother to keep an eye out for me then!"

"Good!"

Li Changshou agreed, then asked curiously: "Northern Juru Continent is full of miasma and Sha Qi, extremely dangerous. There are cultivation restrictions for going there—can you handle it?"

Li Yang replied: "Last time, Northern Juru Continent was an option, but the minimum requirement was the Sixth Stage of Spirit Transformation. Even if it's raised this time, it shouldn't exceed the Ninth Stage of Spirit Transformation. I'll just see what the requirement is then. As long as it's within Spirit Transformation, I can adjust anytime. If the minimum requirement is Return to Void, then I'll have to trouble you, Senior Brother!"

Li Yang naturally knew that the minimum cultivation requirement for this trip to Northern Juru Continent was the Ninth Stage of Spirit Transformation.

The reason he explained it so thoroughly to Senior Disciple Brother was mainly to set a precaution, so that when the time came, the two of them wouldn't reveal their Ninth Stage of Spirit Transformation cultivation together.

That would be far too absurd.

After all, Li Changshou back in the day was also a genius; no matter how bad it got, it couldn't sink to this level.

He believed that his steady Senior Disciple Brother would understand.

Li Changshou pondered, then transmitted his voice to Li Yang: "I know what to do. If the minimum is Ninth Stage of Spirit Transformation, I'll adjust my cultivation to Void Refining First Stage.

But you also need to keep an eye out for Immortal Solace Grass."

Li Yang naturally knew why Senior Disciple Brother was looking for this item; besides, his own focus was on alchemy, so there was no reason for him not to know about these things.

After thinking it over, he found that the sect indeed had records on the Melting Immortal Pill, so Li Yang replied to Senior Disciple Brother without hesitation.

"Senior Brother, are you refining the Melting Immortal Pill for Master?"

Li Changshou's heart skipped a beat. He held back the urge to turn his head and look at Li Yang, instead calming his mind.

"That's right, Master needs this pill..."

With that, he detailed Qi Yuan's specific situation to Li Yang.

Li Yang had long known the circumstances, but since it involved the foundation, he truly had no way to resolve it.

So after hearing everything, he agreed without a moment's hesitation.

"Senior Brother, doing things for Master is my duty as a disciple. I'll keep an eye out for the Immortal Solace Grass, and I'll handle the subsequent pill refining as well."

Li Changshou was delighted to hear this. He knew his Junior Brother's alchemy skills surpassed his own, but he also knew that Junior Brother had been somewhat rigid since childhood, and he feared he might disagree with this strategy, thinking it unorthodox.

As it turned out, Junior Brother had grown quite a bit over the years.

But thinking about it, it made sense—Junior Brother had studied the Steady Character Scripture with him for ten years now; he was already a reflection of himself.

"Junior Brother, it makes me very happy that you think this way.

This time, with the two of us working together, we can break through anything."

After their exchange, the two closed their eyes to rest. Six bells rang, and figures flew out from the Hall of Hundred Affairs, sixty-three in total.

These people varied in appearance and temperament; some were already white-haired and wrinkled, while others looked like maidens in their prime, though most presented themselves with a mature and steady demeanor.

But each of them had a faint glow of immortal light around them, clearly indicating they were immortals from various peaks, responsible for the safety of this expedition.

As their auras spread slightly, the area outside the Hall of Hundred Affairs fell into utter silence.

And Li Yang's gaze was drawn to one person.

This was a female immortal, with a large and a small gourd hanging from her waist, dressed simply. Her short, light brown hair was a rare oddity among the many long-haired female Qi Practitioners.

Her image and temperament were entirely that of someone who had given up on herself in decadence, far too similar to the sect's menial disciples.

Of course, Li Yang wasn't looking at those things.

Nor was it the slender waist bound by cloth strips.

And certainly not the broad bosom that seemed about to burst through the linen short shirt.

Rather, it was this person's Dao name: "Jiu Jiu."

'That bosom is even more exaggerated than in the anime.

Too bad, this is ultimately a normal world, not as daringly dressed as in the anime.'