Chapter 5
Of course, defecting from the Hehuan Sect was a joke. A core inner sect disciple defecting would definitely be hunted down by the sect. She’d rather not live a life on the run.
“Anyway, the time limit for the mission is ten years, so there’s no rush.”
Heng Yu stretched and flew back to Ning Yu Peak on her sword.
You Yun sat in the courtyard brewing tea. The tea leaves were from plants he had casually grown himself, not any famous variety. But even ordinary tea leaves, carefully cultivated and prepared by a late-stage Nascent Soul cultivator, were far from ordinary.
Heng Yu flew back to the peak, intending to find a place to sleep, when a refreshing tea fragrance wafted to her nose. Only she and her master lived on Ning Yu Peak, so the tea was naturally brewed by her cheap master.
Having just received her inner sect mission, she should, by all accounts, report to her master and inform him of the matter. She had always lived within the Hehuan Sect and wasn’t wealthy. With such a difficult mission ahead, her master should, out of duty and affection, bestow some treasures upon her.
Thinking this, Heng Yu headed straight for You Yun’s courtyard.
“Master, I’ve come to pay my respects.”
She bowed at the courtyard gate.
“Come in,” You Yun’s voice called out.
Heng Yu pushed open the wooden door, entered, and bowed again.
You Yun was always casual. He gestured with his wrist towards the empty seat opposite him. “Sit down. If you want tea, pour yourself some.”
Lifting her sleeve slightly, Heng Yu poured herself a cup of tea.
Taking a sip, she found the taste incredibly bitter.
She calmly swallowed. After a few breaths, Heng Yu felt a faint warmth spreading through her meridians, and her mind became clearer.
“This tea—”
Heng Yu chuckled and commented, “Has a strange taste.”
She thought for a moment. “Master, do you have more of these tea leaves? If so, could you give me some?”
You Yun glanced at her sideways. “Didn’t you say it tasted strange?”
Could she be after the benefits of this tea? This tea aided in enlightenment; it seemed his disciple had good taste.
Heng Yu said earnestly, “I don’t particularly like the taste, but the Buddhist disciple might.”
You Yun readily agreed. “Alright, the inner sect mission is important. I’ll give you some tea leaves.”
“Master, aren’t you skilled in alchemy? Do you have any life-saving or healing pills? Give me a few dozen, just in case the Buddhist disciple gets injured, I can seize the opportunity to show my concern.”
“Also, Master, do you have any life-saving artifacts? I can give them to the Buddhist disciple as gifts. I don’t need many, just a dozen or so will do.”
You Yun tightened his grip on his teacup.
“Oh, and Master, shouldn’t you give me some spirit stones as well? I don’t need much, just one or two thousand mid-grade spirit stones will suffice. Inviting the Buddhist disciple to dinner and such will incur significant expenses. Spending only a few mid-grade spirit stones per meal wouldn’t show my generosity.”
“What else am I missing, Master…”
You Yun’s face was expressionless.
This unfilial discipleof his, constantly talking about the Buddhist disciple and the mission…
It sounded nice, but those bald donkeys of the Undying Sect mostly ate simple meals. Spending a few low-grade spirit stones on a meal was considered extravagant.
It went without saying who these benefits were truly for.
“Unfilial disciple, are you going to leave my courtyard yourself, or shall I throw you out?”
Heng Yu frowned. “Master, half the amount is fine too. We can discuss it further.”
You Yun flicked his sleeve.
Heng Yu’s vision went black. When she could see again, she was back in her own courtyard.
“A late-stage Nascent Soul cultivator, and he can’t be generous to his only direct disciple? So stingy.”
Heng Yu muttered, levitating onto the parasol tree in her courtyard. She plucked a leaf, put it in her mouth, and leaned against the trunk, falling asleep.
With You Yun’s cultivation, Heng Yu’s muttering was as clear as if she had shouted in his ear.
He almost laughed in anger.
Calling him stingy?
He had roamed the Canglan Continent for years, becoming the dream lover of countless female cultivators, partly because he was willing to spend money on beautiful women.
A few dozen healing pills, a dozen or so life-saving artifacts, and one or two thousand mid-grade spirit stones?
He would not only give them, but double the amount to this unfilial disciple!
When Heng Yu woke up, she saw a storage ring placed on the stone table in her courtyard. The ring was intricately patterned and dark red, clearly not an ordinary item.
Heng Yu’s face lit up with “excitement.” “Could it be Master…”
She flashed from the tree to the stone table, picked up the storage ring, and infused it with her divine sense.
Using her divine sense, she could “see” hundreds of bottles of high-grade pills piled in a corner, dozens of life-saving artifacts stacked together, and even several sets of exquisite robes.
Mid-grade spirit stones were piled up like a small mountain, and there were even one hundred high-grade spirit stones.
Besides these, there were various rare materials.
Heng Yu withdrew her divine sense, her expression moved. “This is too much. No wonder Master is the dream lover of millions of female cultivators…”
In the neighboring courtyard, You Yun heard Heng Yu’s heartfelt sigh and leisurely took a sip of tea.
See, his disciple’s judgment was finally improving.
Heng Yu put the storage ring on her finger, looked towards the neighboring courtyard, stretched, and sighed silently.
Life was hard; she had to rely on tricking her master to earn some resources.
Her master was too easy to fool; he must be often deceived.
Rather than letting other wicked women swindle him, it was better for her, his disciple, to take advantage of him a few more times. At least the benefits would stay within the family.
Having thought this through, Heng Yu cheerfully entered the study.
The study wasn’t large, but the corner was piled with books and manuals.
She had been in the Canglan Continent for over a month, mostly spent healing. Now that the hidden injuries in her meridians had recovered, it was time to properly understand this continent.
After some thought, Heng Yu first picked up “A Brief History of the Continent.”
As the name suggested, “A Brief History of the Continent” recounted the events of the past ten thousand years in the Canglan Continent. It was compiled by the eight righteous sects and the five demonic sects and revised every thousand years. The copy in Heng Yu’s hands was the latest version, revised just ten years ago.
Heng Yu opened to the first page.
Written in bold calligraphy were the eight characters: “Demons and devils rampant, all beings suffer.”
Her eyes narrowed.
Demons and devils?
Continuing to read, Heng Yu gradually understood what kind of cultivation world this was. Ten thousand years ago, the Canglan Continent had experienced a catastrophic tribulation. Countless brilliant cultivators perished, and the remaining powerful figures established sects, recruiting disciples.
Over the next ten millennia, the Canglan Continent gradually recovered and prospered.
But the catastrophic tribulation hadn’t completely subsided. A black mist that could erode people’s hearts lingered in the world. When someone developed inner demons, the black mist would take advantage of their vulnerability, gradually controlling them and turning them into the walking dead. Only Buddhist cultivators could purify those consumed by the black mist.
Therefore, Buddhist cultivators often cultivated in the mortal world, traveling and spreading Buddhist teachings.
Reading this, Heng Yu flipped to the section on the Undying Sect and found the records about Buddhist disciple Liao Wu.
—Buddhist disciple Liao Wu, born with a Buddha Bone, heart as clear as a mirror, cultivates the great compassion and great mercy of Buddha.
Seeing these words, Heng Yu suddenly became curious—what kind of extraordinary person was this Buddhist disciple, hailed as the Light of Buddhism?
Driven by curiosity, Heng Yu took out a paper crane from her storage ring and wrote a line on it: What kind of person is Liao Wu?
She infused the crane with spiritual energy. “Qi Le Peak, Mu Huan.”
As her voice faded, the paper crane transformed into a streak of light and vanished into the sky.
Mu Huan was sulking in her courtyard. Among the ten young masters, she had joined the sect the earliest and had the highest cultivation. Yet, not only did she not receive the mission to seduce the Buddhist disciple, but Master Chi received an S-rank mission, Master Wu Mei received a Quasi S-rank mission, and she only received an A-rank mission!
“Fine,” Mu Huan sneered. “Who says that just because Luo Heng Yu accepted the mission, she’s the only one who can seduce the Buddhist disciple? After I complete my inner sect mission, I’ll also go find Liao Wu.”
Having made up her mind, Mu Huan’s sullen mood instantly dissipated.
She was about to go find a partner for dual cultivation when she suddenly saw a paper crane land on her barrier.
Mu Huan raised her hand, and the paper crane landed in her hand, transforming into a piece of paper.
Written on it was Heng Yu’s question.
The paper crane flew back.
Heng Yu raised an eyebrow: as she expected, Mu Huan would answer her question.
Heng Yu unfolded the crane and found only one line written on it: Even if you’ve never seen him, the moment you lay eyes on him, you’ll know he is Buddhist disciple Liao Wu.
Just one glance?
This Buddhist disciple Liao Wu was even more extraordinary than she had imagined.
Heng Yu put away the paper crane, smiled, and continued reading “A Brief History of the Continent.”
She read for the entire afternoon. The book was very thick, and Heng Yu only selected the parts that interested her.
Seeing the sky darken outside, she closed “A Brief History of the Continent” and placed it back on the bookshelf.
Standing up from the meditation mat, Heng Yu walked out of the study and closed the wooden door behind her.
For the next few days, Heng Yu stayed in the study, reading “A Brief History of the Continent” and occasionally browsing other books.
This continued until Wu Mei came looking for her.
“You’ve been in the courtyard reading this all these days?”
Entering the study, Wu Mei sounded incredulous.
Heng Yu glanced at her. “Is that all you came here to say?”
They were neither enemies nor friends, and she couldn’t quite grasp Wu Mei’s intentions.
“Mu Huan has left the sect. Believe it or not, she’ll complete her inner sect mission as quickly as possible and then interfere with yours,” Wu Mei said with a coquettish smile.
Heng Yu remained calm. “Not surprising.”
Her reaction was too calm; Wu Mei had been hoping for a good show.
She shrugged. “I also came here for another matter. I’ll be leaving the sect in a few days to carry out my mission and seek a breakthrough opportunity. If you’re also planning to leave in a few days, we could travel together.”
The area around the Hehuan Sect wasn’t safe, and traveling together would save them both trouble.
Heng Yu considered it and shook her head. “I don’t think so. I’ll need to stay in the sect for at least another month.”
Once she left the sect, she wouldn’t be able to return for a while. Plus, the time limit for her mission was ten years, so there was no need to rush.
Seeing her firm decision, Wu Mei could only bid farewell and leave with regret.
Not long after Wu Mei left, You Yun summoned Heng Yu.
As soon as she entered his courtyard, she saw a pile of… aphrodisiacs on the stone table.
“Well, what do you think? This is the surprise Master prepared for you!” You Yun said with a smile.
Heng Yu: ?
“Even an early-stage Nascent Soul cultivator would be knocked out by these aphrodisiacs. A Core Formation Buddhist disciple is nothing,” You Yun patted her shoulder. “Disciple, are you touched?”
Heng Yu said decisively, “Master, these aphrodisiacs are too precious. Why don’t you convert them into spirit stones for me? I prefer spirit stones.”
You Yun looked at her suspiciously. “Are you short of spirit stones?”
Was the sect’s monthly allowance for core disciples that meager? He remembered relying on the allowance when he was at the Foundation Establishment stage.
But that was over a thousand years ago.
Heng Yu nodded seriously. “Of course, I am.”
Traveling outside, if she wanted to sleep in a comfortable bed and eat delicacies every day, she needed a considerable amount of money.
“Alright,” You Yun said. “I’ll give you the spirit stones separately, but you should take all these aphrodisiacs as well.”
“In times of need, you must resort to extraordinary measures. You can’t expect Master to use his authority to lower the penalty for failing the mission.”
Heng Yu’s eyes brightened, and she asked expectantly, “Can you?”
“No, but you can get out now,” You Yun said with a deadpan expression.
Heng Yu stood up, smoothed her sleeves, and calmly left the courtyard.
In the evening, she received one thousand mid-grade spirit stones and over a hundred bottles of aphrodisiacs, reportedly potent enough to knock out even Nascent Soul cultivators, from You Yun.
Looking at the aphrodisiacs filling a corner of her room, Heng Yu: “…”
A month later, Heng Yu had finished reading all the books in her study and become more proficient in using spiritual energy for combat.
She packed her bags, went to the neighboring courtyard to find her master, and informed him that she would be leaving the sect the next day.
Looking at her handsome and easily fooled master, Heng Yu put on a show of reluctance.
—Such a handsome and generous master was hard to find.
The generous fool was delighted: his disciple was actually so reluctant to leave him.
When the generous fool was happy, he liked to give away spirit stones.
As soon as two thousand mid-grade spirit stones landed in her hands, Heng Yu’s reluctance instantly vanished.
