Chapter Thirty-One: Child of Destiny?

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With Qu Yi-qiu’s urging, Zhao Wen and Huang Lan managed to gather all the resources needed to upgrade the spirit field to the third rank by the following day.

She and Zhou Chen supervised Zhao Wen and Huang Lan as they buried the resources beneath the spirit field, leaving them to be nurtured by time into a third-rank field.

The fence interlaced with verdant jade was rebuilt; a faint bluish-green shimmer twined around the enclosure, and Zhou Chen planted five-colored morning glories beside it. They climbed and bloomed in radiant trumpet-shaped flowers.

After completing these tasks, Qu Yi-qiu announced to the world that she would be secluding herself for several days, then slipped into her personal space.

The crimson-nurturing soil she’d taken from the Ghost Cultivator’s Paradise wasn’t exhausted; within her space, she had already expanded five additional spirit fields.

She sat by the spiritual spring and emptied the storage pouch Yao Zhi-mei had packed for her.

A small mountain of items spilled out, occupying nearly half the space.

Qu Yi-qiu selected a plain pill cauldron from the pile.

It was entirely bronze, with plump, upright ears on either side, and the body of the cauldron was carved with a gluttonous Taotie.

“The most ordinary first-grade pill furnace—just perfect for my use. Yao Zhi-mei really did prepare useful things,” Qu Yi-qiu praised her.

She then picked out Condensed Shade Grass and various other spirit herbs, each three hundred years old.

Except for the Condensed Shade Grass, which grew natively in the Ghost Cultivator’s Paradise, all the other herbs and items had been collected elsewhere by the Gold Ghost King and handed to her by Yao Zhi-mei in the storage pouch.

Recalling the pill refining techniques she’d learned in the Hundred Arts Hall, Qu Yi-qiu set both hands in motion.

A cluster of flickering flames rose from her palms.

One incense stick’s time later—

Qu Yi-qiu withdrew the flame, exhausted, and gazed in shock at the pile of lustrous white pills before her.

“What’s going on? Why is every batch successfully refined? There’s nothing like the instructors said, about nine out of ten batches exploding…”

“And these pills… even the lowest grade among them has two spirit lines…”

“The instructors in the Hundred Arts Hall all said that for a beginner, producing a single one-line pill per batch is considered excellent. Yet I get twelve pills per batch, every time…”

“What on earth is happening?”

“Could it be that I’m a genius at pill refining???”

Qu Yi-qiu stared at the Condensed Essence Pill in her hand and swallowed hard.

“Whether I’m a genius or not, I’ll only know after testing. I’d better take these pills out and have a real alchemist inspect them first!”

She put away all the Condensed Essence Pills, steadied her excited heart, and entered meditation.

Refining these few batches had already drained all her spiritual energy.

Five days later—

Qu Yi-qiu emerged from her cave dwelling.

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She glanced at Mu Yun-jin’s quiet cave, puzzled. “Master is really dedicated to his cultivation. It’s as if Junior Brother Mu hasn’t returned at all…”

Something was off…

Where had they gone to train?

A sense of unease suddenly rose in Qu Yi-qiu’s heart.

Before she could descend the mountain to search, she saw Mu Yun-jin returning, cradling a small animal in his arms.

Following behind him was Mo Qing-li, his white robe stained red.

“Master, how did you get hurt?” Qu Yi-qiu hurried over to him.

Mo Qing-li and Mu Yun-jin were both startled, only then looking down and realizing the situation.

“Yi-qiu, this isn’t my blood.”

Qu Yi-qiu’s tense expression collapsed into exasperation. “Where did you two go? How did you get blood all over you?”

So much for worrying!

“Senior Sister, look! This is the fawn Master delivered! The blood got on him when he helped the fawn’s birth in Mount Yan-zi,” Mu Yun-jin announced with innocent pride, holding up the little deer.

Qu Yi-qiu frowned, paying little attention to the fawn.

“When did you go to Mount Yan-zi? Master, didn’t you promise to properly teach Junior Brother Mu his techniques?” A wave of irritation surged within her.

So Mo Qing-li had promised her one moment, and the next had run off with Mu Yun-jin to a dangerous place outside the sect.

Clearly, he hadn’t taken her words seriously at all!

Just because they returned safely this time didn’t mean they’d always be so lucky!

How long can two mere Qi Refining cultivators survive outside?

Qu Yi-qiu glared at Mo Qing-li, waiting for an explanation.

“I did teach him… He could only save the mother of the Nine-Colored Deer because Yun-jin mastered my Gale Sword Technique,” Mo Qing-li replied, blinking in confusion.

“At Mount Yan-zi, we completed a task while practicing cultivation. Isn’t that killing two birds with one stone?”

“Wasn’t that what you said…? Yun-jin can learn magic in real combat, and I can improve my cultivation as well…”

When did I ever say that?

Qu Yi-qiu nearly coughed up blood in frustration.

Faced with their pure, innocent eyes, all her anger deflated.

Forget it, forget it!

How could she expect these two to obediently understand her subtle hints?

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She should have spoken plainly from the start, not hinted at them in a roundabout way.

At least this time, they only went to Mount Yan-zi and brought back a Nine-Colored Deer—it wasn’t too late to correct things… Wait, a deer?

A Nine-Colored Deer?

“What kind of fawn did you bring back?” Qu Yi-qiu’s voice rose sharply, reaching for the fawn in Mu Yun-jin’s hands.

“S-Senior Sister, the fawn was just born—it can’t be handled so roughly…” Mu Yun-jin shrank back, hugging the little deer protectively and dodging her grasp.

“Yes, yes, Junior Brother is right. This is a Nine-Colored Deer; we can’t be so violent!” Yet Qu Yi-qiu’s gaze remained fixed on the little deer’s budding antlers, and she licked her lips.

Mo Qing-li instantly understood her intentions and said, “You can’t touch it. It’s not food, nor is it material for forging, alchemy, or talisman-making.”

Qu Yi-qiu’s greedy gaze shifted to Mo Qing-li.

“Master, do you intend to raise it and then slaughter it when it’s grown?”

She understood well!

Every part of the Nine-Colored Deer was a treasure: eating its flesh could prolong life, its blood could draw seventh-grade talismans, its heart could be refined into eighth-grade pills, and its antlers could be made into postnatal spirit treasures!

A fawn couldn’t be killed now; once it matured, it would be far more useful and valuable!

Mo Qing-li looked at her helplessly and said gently, “It’s not for materials, and we won’t kill it when it grows up. It’s to be part of our Little Peace Peak.”

“What?” Qu Yi-qiu was stunned.

She didn’t notice Mu Yun-jin backing away several steps, terrified by her words and expression.

“Master, you mean it’s to be part of Little Peace Peak?”

“You want to make it our mountain guardian beast? But it’s not strong enough! You’d better reconsider that! The Nine-Colored Deer is decent for materials, but as a fighter it’s terribly weak—it can’t protect the mountain at all!”

“How about I get you a spirit beast with more combat ability? Spirit beasts aren’t too expensive these days. If we save a little, we could buy a second-rank guardian easily—you wouldn’t have to worry!”

Mo Qing-li’s lips twitched. “Yi-qiu, I never planned to make it our guardian beast. Yun-jin and I wish to raise it, and when it transforms into human form, let it decide for itself whether to stay or leave.”

Qu Yi-qiu’s litany came to an abrupt halt.

A hush fell over them.

Senior Sister is so fierce! But he still likes her—what should he do?

Mu Yun-jin, shielding the Nine-Colored Deer, stared at Qu Yi-qiu without daring to move.