Chu Yanyu looked at the green-tinged tea in her cup. Her beautiful face lost all color, and she nearly fainted from shock.
"What's wrong? Is the tea no good?"
Ye Qingyun was a little surprised.
He had grown these tea leaves himself, and pan-roasted them with his own hands.
Back then, the system had even specifically awarded him the title of Tea Sage.
He had been proud of that for quite a while.
The brewing method for these two cups of tea had long since been entered into the whole-house smart system. Although a tea machine had brewed them, they were every bit as good as tea Ye Qingyun brewed himself.
"N-no, that's not it!"
Chu Yanyu shook her head repeatedly, afraid of displeasing the senior master before her.
The hand holding her teacup trembled slightly.
It wasn't that the tea was bad.
Rather, what filled this teacup was pure spiritual liquid!
When Spiritual Qi became sufficiently concentrated, it turned into spiritual liquid.
A single drop of spiritual liquid contained an enormous amount of Spiritual Qi.
And the Spiritual Qi contained in this cup of tea was beyond anything Chu Yanyu could imagine.
She didn't dare drink it at all.
Because if she drank it, her body would be unable to withstand such an enormous amount of Spiritual Qi and would explode on the spot.
Beside her, Xiaoqing saw that her princess wasn't drinking, so naturally she didn't dare drink either.
"Young master, we... we're not very used to drinking tea."
Chu Yanyu gave a bitter smile. That was all she could say.
"Oh, I see."
Ye Qingyun rubbed his chin.
"Then have some fruit."
As he spoke, Ye Qingyun brought over a bowl of grapes and set it before the two women.
"At last, something ordinary."
Chu Yanyu breathed a sigh of relief.
"Thank you, young master."
She picked up a grape and placed it in her mouth with great elegance.
"Hmm?"
The moment she bit into it, refreshingly sweet juice burst in her mouth.
Sweet and fragrant!
With an endless aftertaste!
Chu Yanyu had never eaten grapes this delicious.
Compared with these, the grapes she had eaten before fell short by a hundred and eight thousand miles.
"They're so good!"
Chu Yanyu couldn't help exclaiming.
Beside her, Xiaoqing had also been conquered by the grapes' flavor. Her hand wouldn't stop picking them up and popping them into her mouth, one after another.
Chu Yanyu abandoned all concern for appearances too, using both hands, afraid Xiaoqing would finish them first.
"Xiaoqing, leave some for me!"
Seeing Xiaoqing eating even faster than she was, Princess Tianyao grew anxious.
"Your High... miss, you've clearly eaten more than me!"
Xiaoqing's words came out muffled, grape juice still spilling from the corners of her mouth.
Ye Qingyun watched, dumbfounded.
Wasn't it just a bowl of grapes?
Did they have to get this excited?
Could this world not have grapes?
Surely not?
Under the fierce clash between mistress and maid, the bowl of grapes was soon swept clean.
By the end, the two weren't even spitting out the grape skins.
Ye Qingyun looked at their juice-covered faces and was speechless.
Only then did Chu Yanyu realize how badly she had lost her composure. Her cheeks flushed, and she was so embarrassed that she could hardly face Ye Qingyun.
"I've made a fool of myself before you, young master. I really... I've really never eaten grapes this delicious!"
Ye Qingyun gave an awkward laugh. "It's fine, it's fine. As long as you enjoyed them."
"Miss, my stomach feels so hot."
Xiaoqing suddenly spoke up beside her.
Chu Yanyu turned to look and saw that Xiaoqing's face had turned fiery red. White smoke was even rising from her head.
"Xiaoqing, what's wrong?"
Princess Tianyao asked with some concern.
Xiaoqing was her personal maid, and they had grown up together.
Though mistress and maid, they were as close as sisters.
"I... I feel a stream of heat rushing around inside my body, like lots of strength is pouring out!"
Xiaoqing spoke with rapid breaths.
"No, I can't hold it in anymore!"
Xiaoqing suddenly jumped up, then began running madly around the house.
She ran faster and faster, as though wind were rising beneath her feet.
Chu Yanyu was shocked.
"Could Xiaoqing have successfully opened her spirit and become a martial artist?"
Ye Qingyun was even more astonished.
What was going on with this girl?
Had she taken stimulants?
Should I give her a urine test?
Before Xiaoqing had finished running, Chu Yanyu's body began to change as well.
White smoke rose from the top of her head too.
Waves of rich, full-bodied presence surged from deep within her.
"This is..."
Chu Yanyu was shocked.
She had only just broken through from the Spirit Opening Realm middle stage to the Spirit Opening Realm late stage.
Yet now, there were faint signs that she was charging toward great perfection.
Martial cultivation had eight major realms in total.
They were Spirit Opening, Source Gathering, Core Condensation, Heaven Connecting, Spirit Refining, Aperture Returning, Origin Transformation, and Pinnacle Seeking.
Each realm was further divided into four levels: early stage, middle stage, late stage, and great perfection.
Despite her youth, Chu Yanyu had already reached the Spirit Opening Realm middle stage, and had just broken through to the Spirit Opening Realm late stage.
Now, her cultivation seemed unable to stop, visibly racing toward great perfection.
Xiaoqing stopped, and waves of Spiritual Qi fluctuations surged from her.
Chu Yanyu was utterly astonished.
"Xiaoqing, you've entered the Spirit Opening Realm?"
Xiaoqing looked bewildered.
"I... I don't know either."
Chu Yanyu hurried over and grabbed Xiaoqing's wrist. What she discovered nearly scared Princess Tianyao to death.
This was far beyond merely entering the Spirit Opening Realm. She had actually reached the Spirit Opening Realm middle stage.
Chu Yanyu's face was filled with shock.
Xiaoqing had no talent for cultivation before, yet now she's already at the Spirit Opening middle stage.
And I'm only one step away from Spirit Opening great perfection.
The more Chu Yanyu thought about it, the more alarmed she became, and she couldn't help recalling the grapes they had just eaten.
Could it be because of the grapes?
Chu Yanyu immediately turned toward Ye Qingyun and hurriedly bowed.
"Thank you for your gift, great master!"
Ye Qingyun scratched his head.
A great master?
Where?
Did she mean me?
But I wasn't that tall.
Seeing Ye Qingyun react this way, Chu Yanyu's heart trembled, and she immediately recalled the big yellow dog's warning.
"I'm sorry, I misspoke."
Chu Yanyu hastily corrected herself.
She was terrified of angering this great master.
He surely didn't want her exposing his true identity.
This great master must have been living here in seclusion as a mortal.
Presumably, it was to gain insight into mortal life.
If she revealed his identity, she would certainly displease him.
Ye Qingyun, however, didn't think anything of it.
"I've troubled you today, young master. I have nothing to repay you with, so please accept this."
Princess Tianyao reached into the front of her robe.
Ye Qingyun jumped in alarm and waved his hands repeatedly.
But what she took out was a golden token.
Ye Qingyun's eyes lit up.
Gold?
Good stuff.
This woman was loaded.
She was handing out gold just like that.
A rich woman! She had to be a rich woman!
Still, Ye Qingyun continued waving his hands.
"Oh, I couldn't. You're being far too generous. You only ate a few grapes. There's no need to give me something so valuable."
Trading such a big gold token for grapes?
What kind of family was this, throwing money around like that?
"Young master, you must accept it!"
Chu Yanyu insisted on giving Ye Qingyun the gold token.
Ye Qingyun put on a helpless air, then accepted it, inwardly delighted.
"Then how about this? Whenever you want grapes, just come over. I have more grapes here than I can finish."
The corners of Chu Yanyu's mouth twitched.
Those grapes were by no means ordinary. They were probably rarely seen in the mortal world.
But to a great master like this, they probably really weren't anything special.
Fortunately, with those words from Ye Qingyun, Chu Yanyu secretly rejoiced. This counted as having made a connection with this great master.
This was an opportunity as vast as the heavens!