A Fortuitous Bond, an Unexpected Gain

Qian Wanan had seen grand occasions before. He'd seen plenty of mighty great cultivators.

He wasn't surprised. What surprised him was, "Cousin, you said he was a new disciple who entered the sect half a year ago?"

Dazed and confused, he still refused to give up, as if clutching at a final shred of hope.

"That's right."

His cousin cast a pitying glance at this cousin of his, whose talent was lacking.

The other man truly had poor judgment. Of course, he himself hadn't expected things to turn out this way either.

After all, within the sect gates, the closer one got to the interior, the richer the spiritual energy became. Naturally, the gap wasn't yet so sharply divided in the Outer Academy; only between the Inner Academy and the Outer Academy did a true gulf in spiritual energy exist.

Leaping down from the White Crane's back, his cousin sensed, upon arriving here, an aura no weaker than his own.

It even made his heart pound with alarm.

"Senior Brothers, I wonder where this matter of exchanging Dao Peaks came from, for you to bring it to me?"

The owner of the aura his cousin had sensed appeared to be a young man. His aura was natural and unrestrained, but the Foundation Establishment aura around him couldn't possibly be false.

The moment he saw Lu Qing, and then saw the faint clouds and mist winding around the courtyard behind him—

"Cough, cough. Junior Brother Lu, it was my cousin who let Ghost cloud his mind. This can't count, it can't count."

Qian Wanan's soul had practically left his body by now.

He was only in the Qi Nourishment Realm, while that Foundation Establishment aura was vast and solid as the heavens. The instant he stepped into the courtyard, he hurriedly admitted, "It was my fault. I offended this Senior Brother."

Lu Qing was taken aback. They hadn't even exchanged more than a few words—how had this man already lost all spirit before him?

"It's nothing."

The other party approached with a placating smile, and Lu Qing couldn't very well play the evil host and drive him away. So they chatted for a few sentences.

"Junior Brother, this Cloud Mist Formation of yours must have been derived from the Grand Cloud-Mist Formation. Half-hidden and half-revealed—it's no wonder I sensed something different after entering this place."

His cousin smiled and casually brought up the subject.

"Senior Brother has sharp eyes."

Lu Qing admitted it readily. With the Cloud Mist Formation paired with the Spirit-Gathering Formation, the Spiritual Power it circulated wasn't dispersed like that of the Grand Cloud-Mist Formation. Instead, it could be concentrated more effectively within the courtyard and the Spirit Field behind it.

A sharp gleam flickered repeatedly in his cousin's eyes. With a look of admiration, he flipped his hand and passed over a diagram from his Storage Ring.

"Impressive, impressive. I never expected Junior Brother to have studied formations as well. As it happens, I have a formation diagram here. I brought my cousin to visit so rashly today, and it serves little purpose in my hands. Let it be a gift for Junior Brother."

"This? Senior Brother should take it back."

Lu Qing hurriedly declined. He had no friendship whatsoever with this Senior Brother Qian before him. How could he dare accept something the man offered so readily?

In the cultivation world, one could never truly read another person's heart.

"Ah, Junior Brother, there's no need to worry. I simply wish to form a good bond with you, and let this serve as an apology as well. After all, my cousin is truly rather disappointing."

Qian Wanan watched his nose, and his nose watched his heart, not daring to utter a single word.

Being mocked by his cousin was still better than getting beaten up by someone else. If Lu Qing had been even a little narrow-minded, he might have gained a Foundation Establishment enemy today.

Damn it, if I'd known, I wouldn't have been so greedy.

Heh, no wonder they said geniuses were geniuses.

Qian Wanan had clearly forgotten what he'd thought earlier—that a genius was merely a genius, not necessarily a powerhouse.

He wasn't an idiot. Seeing his cousin behave this way, how could he fail to understand that Junior Brother Lu's cultivation definitely hadn't only just entered Foundation Establishment?

It wasn't until half an hour later that they finally left.

Qian Wanan remained dazed as he watched his cousin and Lu Qing chat to their hearts' content. From the look of it, calling the two friends wouldn't have been an exaggeration.

Only after descending the mountain—

Did the smile on his cousin's face gradually fade.

"Cousin."

Qian Wanan's voice was weak.

"Ah, Cousin, that temperament of yours needs some polishing. As it happens, one disciple from the Red Civet Clan by the sect gates is about to leave the mountain for an experience mission. You can go take his place."

With a single sentence, he made the arrangement.

Qian Wanan's face immediately filled with panic. Pulling a long face, he said, "Cousin, Red Civet claws are sharp. I'm afraid my body won't be able to take it."

His scalp went numb. Who didn't know that their Dao Academy had many spirit beasts? The Red Civet Ancestor was the mount of one of the academy's powerful deans.

That thing had backing. Not only did it have to be fed and cared for well every day, but whenever it got in the mood, they even had to find a disciple to fight it.

Those claws were exceedingly sharp. Quite a few disciples who had eagerly wanted to try their luck and use the chance to curry favor had left Red Civet Forest from afar with faces blooming like great flowers, their expressions black with misery.

"I'm doing this for your own good."

"Junior Brother Lu is no simple person. His talent is excellent. At first, I thought he focused solely on cultivation, but then I discovered that his formation techniques are quite extraordinary as well. Didn't someone previously want to study the Grand Cloud-Mist Formation too? But those without the brains and comprehension couldn't even get through the door."

"Besides, I observed that his aura was tranquil yet contained Qingling. It must be the aura of Spirit Plants. Despite splitting his attention between formations and Spirit Plants, he still has such cultivation. If he specialized in one path, your cousin would have to change how I addressed him and call him Senior Brother already."

His cousin's face was full of emotion.

He worked in the Outer Academy's Mission Hall, so he had naturally trained a pair of piercing eyes.

By now, he had already seen that Junior Brother Lu possessed boundless potential.

What he valued was the other's future.

In speaking with Lu Qing, one could tell a person's inclinations from his speech and manner.

This Junior Brother Lu undoubtedly leaned toward tranquility and nonaction.

There was certainly envy, but even more than that, there was joy. Investing in a genius was an art.

No, it should be said that making friends with a genius was an art.

His cousin understood this well. After all, he himself had once been called a genius, but he had no hope of entering the Inner Academy. This Junior Brother Lu, however, might yet have that chance.

Perhaps this small bond formed today would prove useful in the future.

And fortunately, he was someone with a pure, harmonious nature. Otherwise, today's knot of cause and effect truly might not have been easy to resolve.

Qian Wanan's eyes went wide at this, and he nodded earnestly up and down. "Cousin, you're right."

Lu Qing walked out of the courtyard and gazed toward the distant clouds, gilded in a layer of golden light by the morning rays.

Then he looked at the formation diagram in his hand.

No wonder no deadly omen had appeared in his mind. Strength was the foundation.

Lu Qing's expression remained calm as he took the formation disk from his storage pouch.

The ancient formation disk rested in his palm.

In his right hand was the unfolded formation diagram.

"To give away a high-grade formation diagram right away—no wonder he's a disciple who can work in the Mission Hall."

During their conversation, aside from the wariness at the beginning, that slight barrier between them had quickly been cleared away in just a few words.

His Dao Peak was purely the work of formations.

When Qian Wanan passed by earlier, the spiritual energy he instinctively sensed had come from the formations.

He couldn't see through its mysteries, but a Foundation Establishment cultivator could.

Though he didn't cultivate formations, he was still within the sect gates and encountered them in daily life.

Even if they had exchanged Dao Peaks, Qian Wanan would have been the one at a disadvantage.

Thus, this formation diagram catered to his tastes, dissolved resentment, and formed a bond.