Chapter 180
Chapter 180: Rong Shu’s Backdoor Route
“If you want to go, then go.”
Rong Shu’s eyes lit up. “Really?”
Wu Hua nodded. He was just about to say his master had agreed to take her in when Rong Shu blurted, “Then if I want to test into the Academy, what cultivation level do I need at minimum? What kind of assessment do I have to pass? When does the Academy recruit students?”
Wu Hua’s words stuck in his throat. He let out a slow breath and changed course. “You want to take the exam yourself?”
“Yeah.” Rong Shu tilted her head. “What else would I do?”
Wu Hua’s expression looked… restrained, like he was swallowing something. Rong Shu narrowed her eyes. “Don’t tell me there’s… a backdoor option?”
Wu Hua laughed. “Sure.”
“If you want to try getting in on your own, you can. I’ll give you a chance.” His tone stayed loose, almost lazy. “And if you can’t, it’s no big deal. Your Senior Brother will pull strings for you.”
Rong Shu’s eyes went wide. Then she snapped back to herself and grinned. “Hehehe! Thank you, Senior Brother!”
Wu Hua could only shake his head.
Silly girl.
What backdoor?
For an Academy tied to a sect-level cultivation power, the only way in without any assessment was simple—be accepted as a personal disciple.
“When do you plan to leave?” Wu Hua finally asked, after he’d gotten all his “I’ll take you away” nonsense out of his system.
“Tomorrow.” Rong Shu answered like it was obvious.
“I’m refining a pill to restore my memories, but I’m still missing some spirit herbs. I need to gather them first.” Then she leaned forward, bright-eyed. “Oh, Senior Brother!”
Her brows lifted with pride. “I’m already a rank-four alchemist! And I got lucky and found an exotic flame.”
A blue flame gathered in her palm—small and lively, dancing like a child showing off a stolen treasure.
“Is that so?” Wu Hua nodded, a faint smile touching his lips. “Good. These two years weren’t wasted.”
“Hehehe…” Rong Shu withdrew the flame. “I cultivate hard every day.”
Wu Hua’s gaze swept over her aura. Still Qi Refining, fourth layer. He reminded her gently, “If you want to test into the Academy on your own, you need to hurry with your cultivation.”
“To enter the Academy, Foundation Establishment Stage is the safest.” He paused, clearly recalculating after seeing her realm. “Otherwise, at least Qi Refining, eighth or ninth layer.”
“Mm. I know.” Rong Shu nodded obediently.
It wasn’t that she didn’t want to advance.
It was just that her ice cultivation crawled like a snail. You couldn’t rush it.
As for whether she should tell Wu Hua her true realm…
Rong Shu decided to wait.
It was only Foundation Establishment Stage. Nothing worth mentioning.
After that, Wu Hua asked about other things.
“Did you visit that person in the valley?”
“Yeah. I came back half a month ago, then took missions for half a month.”
“And the two years of training?”
Rong Shu hesitated, then admitted, “The gains were pretty big… Senior Brother, I even ran into that Flirt-Fire Secret Realm…”
Wu Hua fell silent.
By the time the sky darkened, Rong Shu finally said her goodbyes.
…
Night.
Inside the training room, Rong Shu lay on bedding spread across the floor, mind blank, eyes unfocused on the ceiling.
“The Central Continent… the Heart-Inquiry Academy…” she murmured. “What kind of place is it?”
She rolled over, tried to sleep, failed. Restless, she thought of the Little Hamster, who had been sleeping like a rock inside the Han Chuan Cosmos Bead these past few days.
Instantly, she felt wronged.
The environment inside the Han Chuan Cosmos Bead was far better than an ordinary beast-taming pouch. It wasn’t its own little world, but it could adjust the lighting—no more endless pitch-black darkness. After going in two or three times, the Little Hamster had started refusing to come out.
Rong Shu reached out and tugged him free with a thought.
“Yan Yan.” She poked his round little body with one finger. “Wake up.”
The Little Hamster rolled over, mumbled something, and tried to sink back into sleep.
“I saw Senior Brother today.”
The words “Senior Brother” hit like a lightning strike. The Little Hamster jolted upright, fur bristling on instinct.
“Gugu??”
Rong Shu laughed and poked him again. “Look how scared you are. Senior Brother isn’t here. I mean earlier—during the day—I saw Senior Brother.”
The Little Hamster covered the spot she’d poked, staring at her with pure grievance.
“But…” Rong Shu’s eyes flicked sideways, mischief glinting. “Tomorrow, Senior Brother is traveling with us.”
The Little Hamster froze.
Then wilted like a flower caught in a storm.
Rong Shu burst out laughing. “Hahaha…”
“Gugu!!”
“Hahaha…”
The Little Hamster stomped in fury, squeaking rapid-fire nonsense. “Gugu gugu gugu!!!”
“Alright, alright.” Rong Shu wiped at her eyes, still smiling. “No more teasing. Serious talk.”
She leaned closer, voice low as if sharing a secret. “Senior Brother told me that beyond the Southern Wilderness, there’s also the Central Continent.”
“It’s bigger than the Southern Wilderness, with more cultivators, and stronger ones.”
“And there’s the Academy there. Senior Brother said it’s even better than Tian Yan Sect.”
“Gu?”
Rong Shu rubbed the Little Hamster’s head. “Anyway, Senior Brother is there too. The place that trained Senior Brother should be better than Tian Yan Sect, right?”
The Little Hamster hesitated, then shouted a firm agreement like he was swearing an oath. “Gu!”
Somehow, that stupid little sound steadied Rong Shu too.
She hugged him close and lay back down, speaking to him and also to herself. “Yeah. It’ll definitely be better than Tian Yan Sect.”
…
Wu Ji Peak.
Inside a residence, Yun Wu Ya’s voice cut like ice. “What’s going on? Why haven’t you acted yet?”
The remnant soul felt wronged enough to choke. For the past half month, Rong Shu hadn’t returned to Wu Ji Peak once. He couldn’t just strike on Spirit-Nurturing Peak, where people came and went.
Spirit-Nurturing Peak had Tian Yan Sect elders at Nascent Soul Stage. If he acted and leaked his aura, in his current remnant state, he’d be trapped and destroyed.
“It’s not that I won’t act,” the remnant soul ground out. “There’s no chance! That little girl hasn’t come back to Wu Ji Peak at all. She runs to the training rooms every day and even sleeps there.”
Yun Wu Ya’s jaw clenched. “No. We can’t drag this out. Even if we risk exposing a spy, we have to eliminate Rong Shu.”
If he didn’t, the one at risk of exposure would be him.
“Yes!”
…
Not long after, someone arrived.
“Young Valley Master.”
Yun Wu Ya waved a hand. The remnant soul slipped away and hid.
“Jin Yu Senior Brother!”
The voice was soft and sweet. Yun Wu Ya’s expression stayed flat—until he stepped outside. In the blink of an eye, his features warmed into gentle composure, like carved jade.
“Ruanruan Junior Sister.” Yun Wu Ya watched Yu Ruan Ruan stride into the courtyard, a mild smile on his lips.
“Jin Yu Senior Brother, I came to invite you to leave the sect with me.” Yu Ruan Ruan stole glances at his face, visibly pleased by the calm, refined aura he deliberately wore.
“You’ve been here so long, and I haven’t properly hosted you.” She spoke quickly, practiced. “My Second Senior Brother said that in one month, Xiao Yao City will hold an Alchemy Tournament. It’s inviting famous alchemists and talented young cultivators. Jin Yu Senior Brother, you’re an alchemist too, right? We can go watch together.”
Yun Wu Ya nodded with a smile. “In that case, I’ll accept.”
“Then in two days, we’ll set off.”
“Of course. I’ll listen to whatever Ruanruan Junior Sister decides.”
…
After Yu Ruan Ruan left, Yun Wu Ya returned inside.
The remnant soul floated out again, fuming. “Young Valley Master, that foolish woman is unbearable. She shows up every few days.”
Yun Wu Ya’s face went blank. “She isn’t that smart, but I always feel something is off.”
“She has an excellent reputation in Tian Yan Sect—painted as a genius girl.” His eyes narrowed. “But in the small details, she’s vulgar. The things she says and does always leave others unable to refute her, so they can only go along with her.”
The remnant soul’s unease deepened. “Young Valley Master… why does she sound more like an evil cultivator than us?”
“Enough.” Yun Wu Ya didn’t look worried. He was confident he could control Yu Ruan Ruan. “Overthinking won’t help.”
Then his tone sharpened. “Besides, she’s useful. Because of her, we’ve had cover. Over these two years, we slipped several covert agents in.”
“Xiao Yao City’s Alchemy Tournament…” He smiled faintly. “We got the intel months ago. I heard there will be alchemists coming from the Central Continent.”
The remnant soul jolted. “The Central Continent?! Xiao Yao City can invite figures from there?”
Yun Wu Ya’s smile widened. “I was still considering what identity and reason I should use to go. Now I don’t need to waste effort plotting.”
The remnant soul laughed along. “Young Valley Master is wise.”
…
Elsewhere.
After leaving Tian Yan Sect, Rong Shu and Wu Hua went straight to the nearest branch of the Alchemist Guild.
Rong Shu requested the dozen-plus spirit herbs she needed.
The branch had deep stock—almost everything she wanted was available.
Almost.
One herb was missing: Pureclear Six-Spirit Flower.
Rong Shu pressed, unwilling to accept it. “None?”
“Yes.” The staff member was polite, but firm. “It isn’t a top-grade herb, but its uses are narrow, there’s little market, and it’s difficult to cultivate and harvest. We don’t keep it stocked.”
“If you truly need it, you can wait half a year to a year. Or try your luck at major auction houses.”
Half a year to a year was far too long.
If even the guild branch didn’t have it, ordinary herb shops wouldn’t either.
Rong Shu turned to Wu Hua. “Senior Brother, let’s try the black market.”
Wu Hua lowered his voice. “I have contacts in the guild. I can ask them to transfer a batch of Pureclear Six-Spirit Flower.”
Rong Shu considered it, then shook her head. “Let’s check the black market first. If there’s none on hand, then I’ll trouble you.”
Even with contacts, every favor spent burned goodwill. She wasn’t at a dead end yet.
Wu Hua nodded. “Alright.”
They left the guild branch and headed for the black market.
There, Rong Shu picked up the intel she had ordered earlier, then asked around for any trace of Pureclear Six-Spirit Flower.