Simply Made for Each Other (Please Keep Reading!)

"They're just about to come out of the furnace."

As she spoke, Dayu formed a Method Formula with her fingers. The Pill Furnace suddenly trembled, and a burst of medicinal fragrance poured from its opening.

The lid sprang open with a hum, and several pills the size of longan fruit flew out in a row, hovering in midair.

The pills were crimson throughout, their surfaces smooth as mirrors. They were Crimson Yang Essence-Melting Pills.

"I've never treated a cultivator of the Frozen Water Dao Path before, so the refining will be a little more troublesome. We'll have to wait for the next batch. This batch is for your precious grandson. He cultivates the Bright Yang lineage, and I've long known the Pill Formula by heart. I could refine top-grade pills with my eyes closed."

Yuhong took the pills and examined them carefully with his Divine Sense before saying:

"Good. Their appearance is excellent."

True Person Dayu pretended to pout in displeasure and gave a soft huff.

"Oh, Senior, after all these years, you're still so careful. Surely you aren't afraid I tampered with the pills?"

Li Zhengjun didn't dare interrupt and could only click his tongue inwardly.

She dares speak to Grandfather like that. Their relationship really is unusual.

Yuhong, however, showed no sign of a smile. With complete seriousness, he said:

"Of course I trust you, Dayu. But from the ingredients to the refining, too many people have handled these pills. What you keep an eye on isn't necessarily what you can control."

The coquettish indignation on Dayu's face faded a little. She recalled something from the past and said no more.

Yuhong paused, then continued:

"Since Chenjun's pills will take some more time, sorry for the trouble, Dayu, but please wash and refine my grandson's body first."

Dayu froze, clearly not expecting Yuhong to be so direct. She looked at him as if to confirm he wasn't joking.

"Are you serious, Senior? Spirit items for washing the body aren't cheap. I thought giving this junior a batch of pills was already an enormous reward, yet now you want to wash and refine his body too. His treatment is almost on par with the talented seeds of the various households."

There was a hint of probing in her words. Yuhong naturally heard it and sighed softly.

"Zhengjun and his second uncle defended the Thawing Ice Bright Jade together, and they nearly lost their lives doing it. By every measure, I ought to reward him well."

"Besides, my third son died young, leaving him as the sole surviving shoot of that branch. As his grandfather, I can't just stand by and watch its incense burn out. While his cultivation is still low, there's still time to do something about his descendants. If I have him spread his branches and put out leaves, I'll have something to show the Li Household's ancestors."

Dayu nodded repeatedly as she listened.

"Very well, we'll do as you say, Senior. But... besides providing the necessary spirit items, I'll also need you to do me a favor."

Yuhong had expected as much. Though he and Dayu were close friends, each had a large household behind them.

Friendship was friendship, and interests were interests; the two could never be confused.

True Person Dayu had taken over Heart-Destroying Mountain from her master, and her path had been a difficult one. Skilled in pill refining, she had managed to keep the household afloat only by finding favor among the many major and minor powers of the Chu Kingdom.

Over the years, whenever she refined pills for Yuhong, Dayu had never taken anything beyond the necessary ingredients, only occasionally asking him to lend a hand.

Whenever she asked, Yuhong always did his utmost.

"What is it?"

Dayu clearly found it difficult to speak. After some hesitation, she finally said:

"Some years ago, I saw a spirit tree in a blessed land. It bore [Clear Heart Spirit Fruit]. For us Tinder Fire cultivators, the fruit steadies the mind and clears the spirit platform."

"I obtained a few spirit seeds and tried planting them several times, but the fire veins of Heart-Destroying Mountain are too strong. The seeds either roasted to death or barely managed to sprout before withering and dying."

"This tree favors water. It can only survive by the sea or beside a great river. I've thought it over and over, and in all the Chu Kingdom, you're the only person I can entrust it to, Senior."

By this point, Yuhong understood. She wanted to use his help to grow Clear Heart Fruit near the Lesser Cold River.

As if afraid Yuhong would refuse, Dayu went on:

"Our Chu Kingdom lies deep inland, and the only sea bordering it is controlled by True Person Heaven-Forging, so I can only consider the Lesser Cold River. But among the True Persons I know, yours is the only territory with waters rich in spiritual vitality. The Luo Household and the others also border rivers, but I can't put my mind at ease with them."

Li Zhengjun exchanged glances with his grandfather and third uncle, and each saw a meaningful look in the others' eyes.

It favored water?

It had to be planted by the sea or beside a great river?

Wasn't that describing the Ning Kingdom?

Jade Wave Island was surrounded by the sea on all sides and rich in water Spiritual Qi. It was practically tailor-made for the tree.

What was more, Li Zhengjun was planning to attack Gold-Bearing Mountain. It was near the sea and had vast stretches of spirit fields. If he took the spirit seeds there, the two would be a match made in heaven.

All three members of the Li Household rejoiced inwardly, but their faces showed expressions of difficulty as if by agreement.

Yuhong even put on a show of indecision, his brows slightly knitted as though he were weighing the pros and cons over and over.

"You know, Dayu, the Lesser Cold River was just raided. The spirit lands upstream were badly damaged and still haven't recovered. The yield of Frozen Water spirit items has already fallen. If these foreign spirit trees take a share of the Spiritual Qi as well, I fear... complications may arise."

Dayu's heart sank. How could she not know the plight of the Li Household's Lesser Cold River? If the Clear Heart Fruit could be grown elsewhere, she wouldn't have had to swallow her pride and ask Yuhong. But there really weren't many places in the Chu Kingdom where it could grow.

She didn't trust the Luo Household of Tiger Leaping Cliff or the few powers near the water, and she didn't dare approach True Person Heaven-Forging, the only one by the sea.

The spirit fruit was highly useful to both Qi Ingestion and Immortal Foundation cultivators. If the Li Household refused to help, she could only sell the spirit seeds for a pittance.

With that in mind, she said:

"Senior, I've already asked True Person Chunxing to examine it. Although the tree's growing conditions are demanding, it can take root and sprout in three years. After that, its fruit ripens once a year, and its yield is fairly stable. If you agree to grow it, I'll take only a fixed number of the spirit fruit each year. The rest will all be yours. What do you think, Senior?"

Because resources were limited, the hundred arts of cultivation in the Yuyu Realm were highly developed. True Person Chunxing was a Spirit Plant Grandmaster of the Horn Wood lineage, and the annual yield of any Spirit Plant he examined could generally be estimated.

Dayu was naturally quite confident if she dared propose this arrangement. Seeing that Yuhong still looked noncommittal, she added:

"I've heard the spiritual atmosphere has changed and the weather is growing colder by the day. Last year, the upper reaches of the Lesser Cold River stayed frozen much longer than usual, and the yield of Frozen Water spirit items fell considerably. The Luo Household and those others are thinking of taking the chance to raise their prices. If you agree to this, Senior, I'm willing to mediate and help curb their arrogance."

The three members of the Li Household kept their faces taut.

How could Dayu know that Li Zhengjun had already solved the Lesser Cold River's Frozen Water problem in another world?

Had she played this last card before, Yuhong might well have gone along with the current and agreed.

Yuhong pretended to hesitate for a moment, then said:

"There's no need. I have my own way of dealing with the Luo Household. How about this? Based on True Person Chunxing's estimate, we'll split it seventy-thirty: seven parts for me, three for you. No matter how the harvest turns out, I can guarantee your thirty percent."

True Person Dayu's red lips parted slightly, as if she wanted to bargain further. But on second thought, with the spirit seeds in her own hands, she couldn't grow them, and she couldn't bear to sell them.

Since the Li Household was willing to guarantee her a harvest come drought or flood, a thirty-percent share was not so little.

Besides, the spirit tree was extremely difficult to propagate, taking sixty years to produce seeds. The Li Household would only be cultivating three trees for her, so the yield was limited to begin with. The difference between a fifty-fifty split and a seventy-thirty split might not be as great as she imagined.

"In that case, it's a deal."

She handed Yuhong the spirit seeds along with the method for planting them, then carefully reminded him of several things to watch out for. Only then did she raise her jade hand and speak slowly:

"Now that the matter is settled, let's tend to Zhengjun's physique. What result would you like him to achieve, Senior?"

Yuhong took his time putting away the spirit seeds, then laid out a floorful of spirit items. With a serious expression, he said:

"No upper limit. I want my grandson to have a house full of children and grandchildren in the future."