"Eh? You didn't know?" Qin Miaoyan asked, feigning surprise. "The Old Ancestor just brought it up a few days ago. He said that although you're still young, it's time to start looking for a betrothal partner."
"You have no idea—once the news got out, people nearly trampled down our door! Plenty of them even came to me."
"If we work together, we'll make a fortune!"
Qin Wangchuan: "..."
A betrothal at birth? Was that still a thing in this world?
Seeing his peculiar expression, Qin Miaoyan couldn't help giggling. "What, Ninth Brother, are you shy? Don't worry. My intelligence business is thriving. As long as you're willing to cooperate, I guarantee you'll have the upper hand!"
"You'll definitely be on top!"
"Besides, it's only a betrothal."
"..."
Qin Wangchuan took a deep breath and turned to leave.
But after thinking it over, he turned back.
He couldn't avoid this sort of thing anyway. He might as well make some money off it.
And get some intelligence, too.
"Let's settle the split first."
"Sixty-forty?" Qin Miaoyan ventured. "Of course, you get forty and I get sixty!"
Qin Wangchuan stared at her expressionlessly. "Thirty-seventy."
"What?" Qin Miaoyan's eyes widened, and the abacus nearly slipped from her hands. "Ninth Brother, that's unreasonable! I'm the one who's working hard to contact buyers and taking all the risks..."
"Thirty-seventy. I get seventy, you get thirty." Qin Wangchuan cut off her long-winded speech, his tone leaving no room for argument.
"This..." Qin Miaoyan's eyes darted around, and she immediately put on a wounded expression. "How about we split it fifty-fifty? Otherwise, your big sister..."
"If you won't agree, I'm leaving." Qin Wangchuan turned to go.
"Wait!" Qin Miaoyan hurriedly grabbed his sleeve. "Thirty-seventy! We'll do it your way!" She bit her lip and added, looking as though it pained her, "This is a loss-making deal for me..."
As she spoke, her abacus clacked away, and she could barely keep the corners of her mouth from curling up.
Believing she'd take a loss was like believing the Foolish System wasn't broken.
Qin Wangchuan glanced at her. "You're selling my information. What would you lose?"
Qin Miaoyan was at a loss for words. She sheepishly let go and muttered something about how she'd need to grease a few palms, then turned away with her head hanging.
After taking a few steps, she turned back and called out:
"Remember to write out your preferences in detail! Your favorite snacks, the things and colors you like..."
Qin Wangchuan was about to answer when a lazy chuckle drifted down from above.
"You're quite popular."
His heart tightened. With his senses, he hadn't even noticed someone standing so close.
He looked toward the sound and saw a green robe draped casually across the branches of an ancient tree.
The young man's features were unremarkable, yet he carried an indescribably carefree air, as if he were one with heaven and earth.
An ordinary disciple should have been impossible to miss. But if he were someone famous, he couldn't possibly have such a forgettable face.
That left only one possibility. Qin Wangchuan looked up and tentatively called out:
"Second Brother?"
The young man nodded in reply.
The Second Young Master, Qin Xuanji.
Born with the Innate Dao Fetus, he possessed extraordinary insight.
He seemed mild and humble on the surface, but was actually deeply calculating and skilled at playing the fool to catch his enemies off guard.
He also loved disguises. They said he wore at least twenty or thirty masks at once—a real schemer!
"What brings you here, Second Brother?" Qin Wangchuan asked.
Qin Xuanji didn't answer. He gazed into the distance instead.
Following his gaze, Qin Wangchuan saw two figures on the Martial Arts Arena, instructing the clan's disciples in their training.
Or perhaps it was more accurate to call it a one-sided massacre?
One man stood with his hands behind his back, dressed in white as pristine as snow. In a cool, detached voice, he spoke to a pillar. "Your punches aren't fast enough, and they're nowhere near vicious enough!"
It was the Eldest Young Master, Qin Wudao.
He possessed the Desolate Ancient Sacred Body and unmatched combat prowess, and was hailed as "the Qin Clan's future Heavenly Emperor."
He was powerful and arrogant, but unfortunately... he was face-blind.
Like Ye Jianwei, he had a flaw rooted in the laws of the Great Dao.
His eyesight was poor, and he was notorious for not remembering people's faces. He often mistook elders for one another, and could even mistake pillars and wooden dummies for people.
Once, he mistook the Old Ancestor for a humble servant sweeping the grounds and told him to "get out of the way." The Old Ancestor had punished him by making him face the wall for three days.
The other man was bare-chested, with bulging muscles. His punches were fierce and unstoppable. At those words, he threw back his head and laughed. "Hahaha! Fight! Come on, fight!"
This one was even more of a heavyweight—the Fourth Young Master, Qin Kuangge, wielder of the Heavenly Tyrant Body.
A fighting maniac, he spent every day either fighting or on his way to a fight.
Those two standing together...
One stood with his hands behind his back, talking to a pillar.
The other seemed to have a masochistic streak, laughing happily as more than a dozen people ganged up on him.
Tsk. It was hard to know what to make of them.
"Don't go showing off like they do." Qin Xuanji shifted his gaze back, his voice gentle. "This world has no shortage of geniuses. Only by hiding your brilliance and keeping a low profile can you go further."
Qin Wangchuan listened, but his expression turned strange. "Honestly, Second Brother, with that forgettable face of yours, you don't look any less conspicuous than they do."
Qin Xuanji chuckled. A glint of amusement flashed across his ordinary face. "Forgettable?" He raised a hand and wiped his face. In an instant, it became handsome and refined, like fine jade. "How about this?"
Before Qin Wangchuan could answer, he wiped his face again. This time, he became a wrinkled old man. "Or this?" Then he turned into a boy. "Or do you prefer this one?"
Qin Wangchuan: "..."
"All right, enough fooling around." Qin Xuanji wiped his face and returned to his original appearance, then casually tossed down a pouch. "I heard you took in a little maid whose Origin Source is damaged."
"There are ten Innate Divine Sources inside. They won't do much, but they're better than nothing."
Then he suddenly lowered his voice. "I've got more detailed information about that betrothal announcement. The Old Ancestor has already chosen someone in secret. He only spread the news as a smokescreen."
"They'll announce it to the world at your Tenth Birthday Banquet. I hear this banquet will be unprecedented in scale, with representatives from every major Daoist tradition attending. Is there any particular gift you'd like, Ninth Brother?"
Qin Wangchuan put away the Divine Sources and thanked him, then shook his head.
"Nothing."
"Hmm... In that case, I'll pick out a gift myself."
The Qin Clan's dragon had nine sons. Though every one of them was crazy, there was no faulting their strength or how well they got along.
Aside from one Little Female Demon, the Young Masters were remarkably harmonious with one another. Qin Wangchuan even felt like he was the one being doted on.
After chatting a little longer, Qin Wangchuan mentioned that he wanted to find Fifth Sister Qin Qingzheng and ask her for guidance on sword techniques.
Unexpectedly, Qin Xuanji shook his head and drawled, "She's not at home."
"Oh?" Qin Wangchuan's brows rose slightly.
"She went to find treasures to temper your body," Qin Xuanji said, glancing meaningfully at Qin Wangchuan's Root Bone, which had already been perfectly tempered. A playful smile tugged at the corner of his mouth. "She has no idea you tempered your body so quickly..."
Ordinary Prodigies needed Heavenly Materials and Earthly Treasures to lay a foundation after reaching the second realm. It usually took four to six years to reach the third. But even the Qin Clan hadn't expected Qin Wangchuan's cultivation to advance so quickly.
That was the Longevity Immortal Body for you.
Neither Qin Qingzheng nor even Qin Xuanji had anticipated it.
He paused, then shook his head with a laugh. "But you know what your Fifth Sister is like. She's a bit of a blockhead. She spends all day either staring into space while hugging that sword of hers or scouring the place for Heavenly Materials and Earthly Treasures. Let her be. She'll probably be back in a few days."
"Still... if she brings back anything strange, Ninth Brother, you'd better brace yourself."
"Remember the last time she brought me a three-colored 'Sacred Medicine' for healing? It left me bedridden for half a month."
That terrifying?
Qin Wangchuan silently made a note of it.
After bidding his Second Brother farewell, Qin Wangchuan found himself at a loss for where to go.
"The Old Ancestor said last time that the Li Clan Sword Seal was incredibly mysterious, and even he had no clue about it."
"So who else can I ask..."
Before he finished speaking, a flash of inspiration crossed his mind. He remembered the token the Old Ancestor had given him.
He looked up sharply, his eyes gleaming:
"That's right! The Divine Tree!"
Before you continue