Ya Fei's Punishment

Ya Fei sat on Ye Xiu's lap, her entire body stiffening.

To be honest, she had considered all sorts of possibilities before coming here and had prepared herself to be given a hard time. But now that it had actually reached this point, she was still panicking internally.

"S-Senior..."

Ye Xiu didn't speak, his hand gently pinching her waist.

Ya Fei's body trembled, and her voice wavered slightly: "Senior, Ya Fei... Ya Fei didn't mean it like that..."

"Then what did you mean?" Ye Xiu asked.

Ya Fei bit her lip, her mind racing. She had spent so many years in the auction house; what kind of people hadn't she seen? Yet, she couldn't get a read on the man in front of her at all.

If one said he wasn't interested in women, his hand was currently resting on her. If one said he was lecherous, she had stood there for him to look at several times before, and he hadn't even batted an eyelid.

"Senior, Ya Fei knows it was wrong to come uninvited. If you want to punish me, I accept it..."

She paused, bit her lip again, and continued: "It's just that Foundation Establishment Spirit Liquid... Ya Fei truly wants it. If you are willing to sell it to me, I will pay any price..."

Ye Xiu patted her waist: "If you want the Foundation Establishment Spirit Liquid, I can give it to you."

Ya Fei's eyes lit up: "Really?"

"Mm." Ye Xiu nodded. "Not only will I give you the Foundation Establishment Spirit Liquid, but I will also ensure you break through to a Dou Zhe within two months and become a Dou Shi within a year."

Ya Fei was stunned upon hearing this.

Break through to a Dou Zhe in two months?

Become a Dou Shi in a year?

She had been stuck at the seventh stage of Dou Power for nearly three years, having exhausted every method to advance. Now, Ye Xiu was telling her that he could make her a Dou Shi within a year?

"Senior, you... you aren't joking, are you?"

Ye Xiu glanced at her: "Do I look like the type to joke?"

Ya Fei's heart raced.

She knew what kind of person Ye Xiu was. A young Dou Ling expert and a fourth-tier Alchemist—the words of such a person certainly weren't spoken lightly.

"Then... then what does Ya Fei need to do?"

Ye Xiu looked at her, the corners of his mouth curling up: "What do you think?"

Ya Fei blushed and lowered her head.

Ye Xiu was a Dou Ling expert and a fourth-tier Alchemist; the words of such a person certainly weren't spoken lightly.

Moreover, he was handsome, possessed monstrous talent, had ridiculous strength, and could casually produce treasures that others would fight tooth and nail for.

Ya Fei had spent many years in the auction house and had seen too many so-called young masters who were geniuses; they were all arrogant, with little ability but plenty of airs. But Ye Xiu was different. He had real skill and never put on airs.

She had always admired such a young prodigy, so even if... it wouldn't be a loss.

After a few seconds, she gritted her teeth and whispered: "If Senior can truly help Ya Fei break through to a Dou Zhe, Ya Fei... Ya Fei is willing..."

With that, Ye Xiu said no more, wrapped his arm around Ya Fei's slender waist, and walked into the room.

One day later, early in the morning.

Ya Fei emerged from the room and saw Ye Xiu lying on a rattan chair in the courtyard, basking in the sun as if nothing had happened.

Ya Fei bit her lip, feeling a complex mix of emotions.

If one were to call it grievance, that didn't seem quite right. She had sought him out herself, and Ye Xiu had kept his promise. If one were to call it happiness, it felt a bit complicated.

She took a deep breath and walked up to Ye Xiu.

"Senior, Ya Fei will head back now."

Ye Xiu opened his eyes and pulled a jade bottle from his Storage Ring, tossing it to her.

"This is the Foundation Establishment Spirit Liquid. Take it."

Ya Fei caught it and was stunned, not expecting Ye Xiu to simply give her the Foundation Establishment Spirit Liquid.

Ye Xiu waved his hand: "Go back. If you have any difficulties in your cultivation in the future, come find me."

Ya Fei nodded, turned around, and left the courtyard.

In the days that followed, Ya Fei ran over to Ye Xiu's place every few days.

Sometimes she came in the morning, sometimes in the afternoon, and sometimes at night.

Every time she arrived, Ye Xiu would first guide her in her cultivation.

Although Ye Xiu wasn't a famous master, he was a fourth-tier Alchemist and a Dou Ling; guiding someone at the Dou Power stage like Ya Fei was effortless for him.

Ya Fei's talent was indeed average, but she was diligent enough.

After Ye Xiu finished guiding her through her cultivation, he would instruct Ya Fei to fix the water pipes.

After doing this several times, she became increasingly adept at fixing those water pipes.

Ye Xiu was becoming increasingly satisfied with this.

Although this woman didn't have much talent for cultivation, she learned the aspect of maintenance quite quickly.

In the blink of an eye, a month had passed.

That evening, Ye Xiu sat cross-legged in the backyard.

BOOM!

An incomparably tyrannical aura exploded outward.

Three-star Dou Ling, breakthrough!

Ye Xiu opened his eyes and stretched his limbs.

"Not bad, finally a three-star Dou Ling."

He stood up and walked toward the house.

Inside, Ya Fei was lying on the bed resting.

Seeing Ye Xiu enter, she asked weakly, "Senior, did you break through again?"

Ye Xiu nodded, "Three stars."

Ya Fei: "..."

She was silent for a moment before she couldn't help but say, "Senior, isn't your cultivation a bit too easy? You broke through a star in just one month."

Ye Xiu came to her side, "You're not bad either, you're at the ninth stage of Dou Power. In a little while, you'll be able to break through to Dou Zhe."

Hearing this, Ya Fei felt very happy inside.

A month ago, she was only at the seventh stage of Dou Power, and now she had improved by two stages in a row.

Previously, she felt that breaking through to Dou Zhe was a distant prospect, but now she felt it was truly close.

"It's all thanks to your guidance, Senior." Ya Fei leaned in closer to Ye Xiu.

Ye Xiu didn't speak, resting his hand on her waist.

After a while, Ya Fei suddenly remembered something, "That's right, Senior, I heard that the recruitment team from Jianan Academy has arrived in Wutan City."

Ye Xiu's eyes lit up.

They had finally arrived.

"When did they get here?"

"This afternoon," Ya Fei said. "The team is led by a woman, it seems her name is Instructor Ruo Lin, and she is a Da Dou Shi. They have already set up camp in the north of the city, and the recruitment tests start tomorrow."

Ye Xiu nodded.

Jianan Academy, it had finally arrived.

He had been waiting for this day for over a month.

Seeing that he seemed quite interested, Ya Fei asked, "Is Senior also very interested in Jianan Academy?"

Ye Xiu didn't hide it from her, "Mm, I plan to sign up."

Ya Fei was stunned for a moment before she realized that for Ye Xiu, getting into Jianan Academy was as easy as pie, and she couldn't help but feel a bit conflicted.

If Ye Xiu left, what would she do?

But she didn't dare to ask that.

Ye Xiu seemed to see what Ya Fei was thinking and said, "Rest assured, I will help you break through to Dou Zhe before I leave, and I will also leave behind enough cultivation resources for you to reach Dou Shi after I'm gone."

Hearing this, Ya Fei felt both happy and a little lost.

She was happy that she would finally be able to break through.

She felt lost because she didn't know if they would ever meet again after Ye Xiu left.