Yun Wanchu's handsome, captivating face wore an expression that was now utterly spectacular.
He had always believed he stood straight and true. He never expected Su Li's few words to expose all his dirty laundry!
Beside Yun Wanchu, Hua Ziyan and Mu Yuxi exchanged bewildered looks.
There seemed to be a lot hidden in Master Su's words.
Once they understood, they pressed their lips together and looked at Yun Wanchu with very strange expressions.
The muscles in Yun Wanchu's face twitched several times. He felt like he couldn't show his face anymore.
Honestly, Su Li, Master Su, was something else. I never said I didn't believe you, so why were you telling everyone everything?
Did Yun Wanchu have no shame?
"Master Su, um... let's talk about A Li's fated calamity instead. I, the Holy Lord—well, I still think this matter is the most important!"
Yun Wanchu hurriedly interrupted Su Li before he could reveal anything more. If this went on, his dignity as Holy Lord would be swept away!
Seeing this, Su Li knew things had worked out. He smiled and said, "From the changes in the Holy Lord's face earlier, I already sensed the hidden danger through my divination. That's why I had no choice but to reveal one ten-thousandth of my divination ability, so the Holy Lord would be thoroughly convinced.
"After all, I'm an unparalleled genius the likes of whom appear only once in ten thousand generations. Heaven itself is bound to envy me. My fate is full of twists and turns, so I have no choice but to nip every danger in the bud."
Yun Wanchu was utterly speechless.
By now, he had also reined in the awe-inspiring might of a Nascent Soul expert, becoming like an ordinary middle-aged man. Clearly, it was safer to be thoroughly unremarkable in front of Su Li, Master Su.
Seeing that Yun Wanchu had corrected his attitude, Su Li didn't continue exposing him. After all, he was a man of great virtue and noble character. How could he casually expose other people's private affairs?
Su Li gave himself a small reprimand, then felt a rush of accomplishment.
"Master Su, I... I was wrong, all right? Master Su, about A Li's situation, how exactly should we deal with it?"
Yun Wanchu had straightened out his attitude, and immediately became rather obsequious, asking with great care.
Su Li glanced at Yun Wanchu in surprise, then secretly opened the Life Archive System and examined him closely. Only after confirming that Yun Wanchu had been thoroughly "put in his place" and was no longer harboring any crooked ideas did Su Li feel somewhat reassured.
That made sense. Though Yun Wanchu was a Nascent Soul old monster and a major figure of the age, Hua Ziyan's father had summed him up with brutal precision: he was useless at everything, but number one at being afraid of death!
Because this man was excessively cautious, the Hua Clan had been all but wiped out, while he himself had managed to live in extraordinary comfort.
"There's no need to elaborate on how to handle it. Fairy Li, explain it to the Holy Lord."
Su Li gestured toward Hua Ziyan.
"Of course, Master Su. Please wait a moment."
Hua Ziyan immediately bowed when she heard him, adopting a very deferential posture.
A Heavenly Secrets Master like Su Li, with genuine talent and an appearance that defied the heavens, was rare in this world. She couldn't afford to slight him.
Then Hua Ziyan and Yun Wanchu began discussing the matter.
But with every detail, Yun Wanchu would glance at Su Li, seeming to ask for his approval: Master, should we divine this? Is it safe enough?
At first, Su Li cooperated, performing divinations and checking the Life Archive.
But then Yun Wanchu killed a few Puppet Death Warriors and still suspected that the enemy had set a vast net to trap him and would fight him to the death. He wanted Su Li to repeatedly divine every possible danger. Su Li felt a real urge to slap the man dead. What the hell, did he have persecution mania?
You were a Nascent Soul old monster, for heaven's sake. You'd lived nearly seven hundred years, yet you were still so spineless about killing a few golden-core Puppet Death Warriors you considered nobodies?
Su Li held the man in deep contempt. So that radiant, godlike, all-powerful appearance he'd put on earlier really had been an act!
At last, the two finished their discussion.
Su Li knew it was time to make his request—but naturally, he couldn't let on that he "couldn't" cultivate.
"Holy Lord, I have a friend who once helped me. I promised him I would find a cultivation method for him, so I used Heavenly Secrets techniques to give myself the same symptoms as him and test it firsthand. Holy Lord, what kind of cultivation would suit him, and how can we ensure his safety? Do special pills exist that can let someone establish their foundation and form a core in a single step?"
Su Li took another approach to ask about the difficulties of cultivation.
As for himself...
As a Heavenly Secrets Master, there was no way he couldn't cultivate.
"Master Su, your friend hasn't even entered the Qi Refining stage yet and can't control the spiritual energy of heaven and earth. Even with a top-grade protective treasure, he wouldn't be able to refine it... A 'single-use' talisman seal that can fuse with the aura of his soul might offer some protection, but its effect would be minimal.
"As for pills, there are no pills that let someone reach Qi Refining, or even establish their foundation and form a core, by taking just one.
"Of course, such immortal medicine may have existed during the Era of Demise, or perhaps even in the ancient Primordial Era. But today, it has long since vanished."
Yun Wanchu thought for a long while before answering with certainty.
"How about this? Master Su has gone to such lengths for his friend, even sealing his own cultivation and disregarding his safety. Why not have Mu Yuxi serve as a maid by your side, pouring tea and fetching water?"
Yun Wanchu thought it over, then looked back and forth at Mu Yuxi several times. He had noticed her sneaking glances at Su Li on several occasions.
At his words, Mu Yuxi's pretty face immediately blushed with shyness. She felt nervous, yet inexplicably hopeful.
"We'll discuss this another time."
Su Li felt somewhat dispirited.
The hope of cleansing his meridians and reaching Nascent Soul with a single pill had been mercilessly dashed.
Now even getting Yun Wanchu to refine a set of heaven-defying Spirit Artifact armor or something else to save his life was a pipe dream?
Was this world not a little too cruel?
If you didn't have the talent or constitution for cultivation, did that mean you had to wait for green smoke to rise from your ancestors' graves before you could turn your fate around?
No—even if green smoke did rise from their graves, he probably still wouldn't be able to turn things around, would he?
A sense of danger welled up in Su Li's heart, and he valued the Life Archive System even more.
"Master Su, the Holy Land has some protective talisman seals. They're single-use, but offer very good protection, and the requirements are much lower. When the time comes, perhaps... probably... maybe there's a chance they'll work."
Yun Wanchu thought it over before speaking, though he didn't sound very sure.
Su Li's breath caught. With the way this man talked, he'd be a goner within two episodes if he were in a TV drama!
That was right, too. This man was about to meet his end.
Su Li raised his head and looked at Yun Wanchu with some regret.
Yun Wanchu shuddered all over when he saw that look, a jolt running through him.
"Master Su, that look of yours... it makes me rather uneasy. I've been restless these past few days, and based on my past experience, something big is about to happen.
"Now, A Li's situation should be settled, so why do I still feel this way?
"Did Master Su see... see some calamity in my future? Please don't hesitate to enlighten me. I'll be forever grateful."
Yun Wanchu panicked, his expression full of uncertainty.
That reaction made Su Li think more highly of him.
He'd only given the man a regretful look, yet Yun Wanchu had picked up on it so keenly?
Was this man genuinely impressive, or just really afraid of death?
"Let's talk as we go. It's time to set off."
Su Li neither agreed nor refused.
It wasn't that he didn't want to help Yun Wanchu. He simply didn't have nearly enough Heavenly Secrets Value to check Yun Wanchu's Life Archive for the next three days.
Besides, Yun Wanchu was about to meet his end—but whether that would happen within the next three days was anyone's guess.
Next, Hua Ziyan and Mu Yuxi flew on their swords as usual, heading toward the Wanli Holy Land.
Yun Wanchu suppressed his unease and released the Phantom Spirit Boat. He took Su Li aboard, vanished into thin air, and quietly followed high above and behind Hua Ziyan.
Inside the flying boat, Yun Wanchu sighed wistfully. "Master Su, I imagine you're about to become a Spirit Master-level Heavenly Secrets Master, aren't you?"
"A Spirit Master? What's that?"
Su Li looked completely bewildered. At that moment, he was thinking about how to get his hands on the Phantom Spirit Boat.
"???"
Yun Wanchu was dumbfounded by Su Li's question.
Before you continue