She Gave Too Much, and Yun Mo Was Glad She Had

Hah—

Mo Xue's lips twitched. As her mouth parted slightly, a breath was already rising in her throat.

Qiu Yun hurriedly squeezed her elder sister's palm inside her sleeve, sparing her an embarrassing outburst. Mo Xue lowered her little head and sat beside Luo Fanchen with Qiu Yun, as though the two of them meant to surround him. Her eyes remained fixed warily on Yun Mo.

She had met Yun Mo once before and remembered the rather beautiful fairy well.

Yun Mo was not as lovely as Qiu Yun, but she outshone Mo Xue. She was also poised and thoughtful, had reached the sixth level of Qi Refining, and held a steward's position at the Treasure Pavilion. Yet she had taken a particular liking to Master Luo.

Not only had she given him many treasures, she had now come to visit in person, all humility. She must want something!

A powerful sense of danger rose in Mo Xue's heart. She feared Yun Mo would take some of Master Luo's affection for herself.

This is bad.

At the same time, Yun Mo realized something was wrong.

She immediately sensed the two young women's hostility. At last, it dawned on her: she seemed to have stepped into their territory.

Fortunately, Mo Xue's hostility did not last long. Once Luo Fanchen lifted the pot's lid and brought out the bear meat for everyone, its mouthwatering aroma kept her swallowing. Her head grew hazy, and thinking became difficult.

"I must thank Fairy Yunmo this time. Had she not given me the bear meat, I'm afraid my empty purse would have left me too embarrassed to invite you all to dinner."

At those words, Mo Xue pursed her lips. Her hostility temporarily subsided, and she forced a stiff smile for Yun Mo.

She did understand that it was hard to speak ill of someone while eating their food.

"My lord, you honor me far too much..."

Yun Mo smiled apologetically, looking rather constrained. Inwardly, she was delighted by the goodwill he had shown her.

She promptly had Xiao Cui bring out three brocade boxes she had prepared, then presented them before him with both hands and utmost respect.

"These are a few modest gifts from our pavilion. Though they are slight, they represent the Treasure Pavilion's goodwill. If you do not mind, my lord, please accept them. Should you need anything in the future, the Treasure Pavilion will give your requests priority."

Yun Mo opened the boxes herself. The fragrance of pills immediately filled the hall, at one point even overpowering the aroma of the meat.

Two bottles of Meridian-Opening Pills and one bottle of Qi Condensation Pills. She calls that modest? What generosity.

Granny Zhang's lips moved soundlessly, her eyes full of envy.

Low-grade pills generally could not compete with Talismans of the same grade, apart from a handful of irreplaceable functional pills.

Chief among those were cultivation pills that aided breathing exercises. Pills produced by the Treasure Pavilion were all high-grade and carried a markup of at least twenty percent.

Meridian-Opening Pills, for instance, normally cost four Spirit Dust apiece. In these unusual times, Rogue Cultivators without sect connections had to pay nine.

As for high-grade First Tier Qi Condensation Pills, each was worth eight Spirit Dust. Even ordinary sect disciples at Late Qi Refining could only take one occasionally.

A bottle should hold ten pills. Twenty Meridian-Opening Pills and ten Qi Condensation Pills would cost her a full sixteen Spirit Stones.

And she called that a modest gift?

"It is a small gift, but given with sincere regard. I hope you will not disdain it, my lord."

Yun Mo remained humble. Sixteen Spirit Stones was no small sum even to her, but it would come from the pavilion's accounts.

Using the Treasure Pavilion's resources to improve Lord Ling's opinion of her was a sure profit. The pavilion would gain his goodwill as well.

"These are two bottles of Qi Gathering Pills, my own humble work. Mo Xue has only just begun cultivating, so they should be of use to her."

"That's thoughtful of you."

When Luo Fanchen nodded to show that she could accept them, Mo Xue's almond-shaped eyes lit up.

All hostility vanished from her little face. She stared without blinking at the Qi Gathering Pills before her.

She had been troubled by her lack of a cultivation method and her slow progress.

She had tried Qi Gathering Pills several times before, and they worked well enough to make up for that deficiency. Unfortunately, their price had later soared. Spirit Stones were precious, and she could not bear to ask Master Luo to buy them. She had not enjoyed one since.

Cultivation matters most. I need to grow stronger quickly so I can protect Master Luo and Qiu Yun.

Mo Xue weighed it in her heart. For the sake of those two precious people, she was willing to endure a little and give some ground.

"Thank you, big sister."

Mo Xue's hand clenched tightly, but a sweet smile appeared on her little face, as though she were offering goodwill.

"I was fortunate enough to watch the pavilion master refine pills, so I can make a few trifling things. I'm glad you like them, Mo Xue."

Yun Mo relaxed a little, only to worry that she had not prepared enough. She had brought Mo Xue a meeting gift, but what about Qiu Yun?

If she had guessed correctly, Qiu Yun was probably the spirit of Lord Ling's Life-Bound Dharma Artifact. She absolutely could not slight her.

"The pavilion still has a little Soul-Washing Crystal. In a few days, I will send it along with the cultivation method, as a meeting gift for Qiu Yun."

"For me, too?"

Qiu Yun was flattered. For a moment, she felt too embarrassed to remain hostile toward Yun Mo.

Fairy Yunmo was wealthy and generous. It would be impolite to keep targeting her.

"Thank your pavilion master for me."

After weighing it for a moment, Luo Fanchen decided to accept. For one thing, he truly needed the gifts. For another, refusing them would only betray his insecurity.

How could a disciple of the Orthodox Profound School be swayed by pills worth a mere dozen or so Spirit Stones?

Keeping up this act is hard. I've just been poor for too long.

Dinner continued. Luo Fanchen opened the pot, and the bubbling meat released a rich aroma that rode the steam into everyone's nose. It made them ache for a taste. A Niu was already wiping away drool, his stomach rumbling like a drum.

Granny Zhang wanted to scold him for his poor manners, but she could not stop swallowing herself. Her stomach kept groaning.

"I hope you and Fairy Yunmo will look after Mo Xue and Qiu Yun in the future, Granny Zhang."

Luo Fanchen served the broth first, then brought out the bear meat that had been cooked earlier. He presented most of the lean meat to Yun Mo before anyone else, leaving her flattered.

Qiu Yun and Mo Xue had no objections. The fairy had given them far too much.

Luo Fanchen took the smaller remaining portion of lean meat for himself. He split the Bear Paw between Mo Xue and Qiu Yun, then mixed the few scraps barely visible to the naked eye into the broth and divided it among the other three.

Granny Zhang had no complaints. Instead, she looked at him gratefully.

Her body was old and her vital energy had waned. Demon Beast meat was a rare tonic. Ling Wudao was already generous to put some genuine bear meat in her bowl.

"Eat while it's hot. It won't be as good once the spiritual energy dissipates."

Smiling, Luo Fanchen bit into the bear meat. It was springy and took effort to tear, yet once in his mouth, it melted without so much as a press of his tongue.

Powerful blood energy carried spiritual energy down his throat, turning into a scorching current that spread through his limbs and bones. Luo Fanchen's face reddened slightly. He breathed out in comfort, and the few Meridians he had opened filled with spiritual energy.

Only after Luo Fanchen began eating did the others pick up their food.

Mo Xue bit off a piece of Bear Paw. Her little face immediately relaxed, her almond eyes narrowing with such bliss that she seemed about to faint.

She no longer cared how she looked while eating. Her little face was nearly buried in her plate.

Luo Fanchen dripped blood onto Qiu Yun's Bear Paw. She touched it through the Puppet and absorbed its Essence with her Soul Body. Her soul trembled faintly with pleasure, though fortunately, she did not lose her composure.

The bear meat was delicious, but it still fell far short of Uncle Luo's flavor.

Host and guests enjoyed the meal alike. Granny Zhang was old; after a few bowls of soup, her aging Meridians could bear no more blood energy, and she quietly stopped. Xiao Cui grew dizzy after three bowls. A Niu finished the rest.

"I can't eat another bite."

Yun Mo covered her mouth as she gave a soft burp, her pretty face flushing with embarrassment. Qiu Yun and Mo Xue also wanted more, but their Meridians were so full they could not hold a shred of energy.

Most of them had about three-quarters of their bear meat left. It was, after all, the choicest part of a Peak First-Tier Demon Beast. Even after preparation, its spiritual energy and blood energy were difficult for ordinary cultivators to digest quickly.

Only upon reaching the seventh level of Qi Refining and opening the Qi Sea could they store additional spiritual energy.

"It would be a shame to waste what's left. Why not let me pack it up and refine it into Blood-Activating Pills? That should preserve thirty or forty percent of its spiritual potency."

Yun Mo thought it a pity. She had given Lord Ling so much of the bear's choicest meat intending for him to reward his servants. Unexpectedly, he lived in seclusion with no one to attend him, and had invited only a few guests, all low-level cultivators.

It was rather wasteful.

"Are you all full?"

Luo Fanchen had only just set down his bowl and chopsticks. He licked his lips, without the slightest feeling of fullness.

"I've failed to do justice to your kind intentions, my lord..."

Yun Mo's pretty face tightened ruefully. She did not want to embarrass Lord Ling, but she truly could not fit in another bite.

"The bear meat was your pavilion master's kindness."

Luo Fanchen shook his head gently and took the large portions of Bear Paw that Qiu Yun and Mo Xue had left.

After all, the remaining Bear Paw was worth several Spirit Stones. Wasting it would be shameful.

Luo Fanchen mixed the bear meat into his bowl and finished it within minutes. Spiritual energy brimmed through his Meridians, then soon settled back to normal.

"My lord... you truly are extraordinary."

Yun Mo's lips moved faintly, her eyes gleaming with amazement.

A cultivator below the seventh level of Qi Refining risked bursting their Meridians and dying if they took in spiritual energy amounting to roughly twenty percent of their own reserves in a short time.

The lean meat Lord Ling had eaten held about as much spiritual energy as a sixth-level Qi Refining cultivator possessed in total, not counting its powerful, difficult-to-tame blood energy.

However exquisite the Arcane Canon might be, it could not let someone at the Fourth Level of Qi Refining open a Qi Sea ahead of time.

Was this my lord's innate talent—or perhaps a Divine Ability Physique?

Yun Mo murmured soundlessly, awe filling her eyes.

Beyond their Profound Arts, disciples of the Orthodox Profound School were exceptional figures of their age. Outstanding talent was merely the threshold.

Most were blessed with a Special Physique. Heavenly Phenomena accompanied their births, and Mystic Divine Abilities protected them. They were children favored by fate.

Lord Ling is only at the Fourth Level of Qi Refining, yet his fighting strength may already rival someone at Late Qi Refining... Is this what the Orthodox Profound School is like?

Yun Mo sighed inwardly, thankful she had reported him in time. Otherwise, that heaven-sent opportunity might have slipped through her fingers.

When cultivators at Late Qi Refining fought, the outcome depended heavily on their reserves of True Essence, aside from their Magic Treasures.

Lord Ling absorbed spiritual energy no less effectively than a cultivator at Late Qi Refining and still had strength to spare. With the Arcane Canon's inheritance and his Life-Bound Magic Treasure besides, his fighting power was impossible to measure.

If they truly fought, she would probably be subdued within three moves.

Of course, she did not believe he cared about that little bit of bear meat. In the eyes of a Dao Sect disciple, it was no more than a tribute that passed briefly before him.

Did Lord Ling intend to use this chance to reveal his strength and the depth of his abilities?

I still need to flatter him carefully. I mustn't push my luck...

Yun Mo could not work it out and could only reflect on her own conduct. Luo Fanchen had already set down his bowl and chopsticks. Still wanting more, he rose and invited the two of them into a private room to talk.