Chapter 089

Chapter 89: Guided by Fate

“This… I’m about to advance again!” Yun Xi murmured softly, quickly retrieving the Immortal Spirit Herb from her wooden tablet space. To avoid attracting unnecessary attention with a large fluctuation of spiritual energy in the base, she had no choice but to rely on the herb to supply her.

The Immortal Spirit Herb gently rustled its leaves, continuously channeling energy while softly sending a message to her: “You were so close to dying earlier; I was already preparing to sacrifice myself—”

“Relax,” Yun Xi reassured calmly, “I won’t go down that easily. Right now, I’m about to break through again, so help me gather the necessary spiritual energy.”

Yun Xi crossed her legs and sat on the meditation mat, carefully guiding the spiritual energy flowing within her meridians. With each rotation, she expanded her meridians, compressed the energy into spiritual liquid, and stored it in her dantian.

The Immortal Spirit Herb, having absorbed an entire mid-grade spiritual vein from Treasure Blossom Range, had enough energy reserves to support Yun Xi all the way to the Golden Core stage.

This breakthrough was extremely smooth. When the last drop of spiritual liquid fell into place, Yun Xi’s cultivation solidified firmly at the peak of Foundation Establishment mid-stage. She could have easily advanced further, but she forcefully halted herself.

She wasn’t reluctant to rise higher. However, after two consecutive breakthroughs, her combat techniques and skills hadn’t kept pace with her cultivation, leaving her strength hollow and unstable. Yun Xi knew clearly the risks of a weak foundation. She decided to pause here, consolidate properly, and only advance to Foundation Establishment late-stage when fully prepared.

Using her Floral Forehead Immortal Ornament, Yun Xi lowered her aura to the early Foundation Establishment stage, freshly broken through. This was a prudent measure to disguise her actual cultivation level.

Fortunately, thanks to this breakthrough and the suppression potion she’d consumed, her crisis of physical collapse was completely resolved.

The instant Yun Xi opened her eyes, she swiftly returned the Immortal Spirit Herb to her space, noticing that the little Trail Seeking Mouse had already drooled all over itself, eyes fixed greedily on the herb.

She caught the little mouse by its tail, asking lightly, “Little one, did you see anything just now?”

The Trail Seeking Mouse instantly showed a strong desire to survive. It kicked its tiny legs and quickly squeaked, “Master, little mouse saw nothing at all!”

“Really?”

“Absolutely nothing!”

Yun Xi, now in a good mood, gently rubbed the mouse all over until its fur stood comically on end. Only then did she speak again, “I had no intention of making a contract with you initially; I simply found you cute and wanted to keep you as a pet. Yet somehow, you eagerly took the first chance you got to become my contracted beast. Tell me, besides tracking, what else can you do?”

The Trail Seeking Mouse carefully smoothed its fur with its paws and sat obediently in Yun Xi’s palm before quietly sending its thoughts, “Actually, little mouse carries a faint trace of Treasure Sniffing Mouse bloodline. Because the bloodline isn’t pure enough, I ended up as an ordinary Trail Seeking Mouse. But in truth, my tracking ability is because I can sniff the treasures cultivators carry with them.”

As the mouse spoke, it held its paws together, looking remarkably human-like.

Yun Xi raised an eyebrow playfully, “So, what treasures did you smell on me?”

“A great treasure!” The mouse replied boldly. “And my nose was right—Master truly has a portable space!”

Yun Xi clicked her tongue, teasing, “Tsk, tsk. You really think I won’t dare to get rid of you?”

“No, no, master!” the mouse hastily assured her. “I’m already your contracted beast. From now on, I’ll definitely help you find more treasures. You won’t regret keeping me!”

“With your measly first-stage strength?”

“I’ll get stronger soon!” the mouse insisted earnestly. “If you give me two more of those milk fruits, I can immediately advance to the second stage!”

Yun Xi secretly had a weakness for soft, furry little creatures. She knew Trail Seeking Mice were harmless, often kept as pets by cultivators, so she was merely teasing it. Fortunately, this mouse was self-aware enough to form a master-servant contract. If something happened to Yun Xi, the mouse would also suffer backlash from the contract’s power. Loyalty was not a concern.

Seeing Yun Xi stay silent, the little mouse timidly squeaked again, “Master, even one milk fruit will do. I promise to cultivate diligently!”

Yun Xi smiled and lightly flicked its tiny forehead before saying, “Fine. I’ll grant your wish and give you a proper name. You’re so tiny; let’s call you Dian Dian. You’ll take my surname and be Wei Dian Dian.”

The mouse’s black, beady eyes sparkled brightly, and it eagerly cupped its paws in a gesture of gratitude, “Thank you, Master! Little mouse will be Wei Dian Dian from now on!”

“Now go and cultivate,” Yun Xi instructed. “I’ll have more questions for you later after I finish handling my affairs.”

“Yes, Master!”

Dian Dian obediently curled up by the meditation mat, beginning to refine the energy from the milk fruit it had eaten earlier.

Yun Xi waved away the bathtub, sat cross-legged again, and sent her divine sense into the wooden tablet space once more. Previously, physically entering the space had been dangerously reckless. She was lucky that the powerful figures in Treasure Blossom City had been distracted by the earlier heavenly phenomenon. Now that the danger had passed, caution was necessary.

Entering the group chat, Yun Xi immediately informed everyone of her safety.

Ox Head and Horse Face: [Little Yun Yan, remember to cultivate the Soul Refining Art diligently. It can stabilize your overly powerful spiritual energy.]

Survival is Truth: [Don’t be so reckless next time you go adventuring.]

Drifting with Immortal Grace: [Let me know if you need any new skills or cultivation techniques.]

Tribe Warrior: [If you don’t have enough milk fruit, you can always trade with me.]

Passing Clouds: [Thank you all for your concern. Yun Yan promises to be more careful from now on.]

Afterward, she privately messaged Star Trek immediately. She wouldn’t take advantage of someone else’s generosity without returning the favor.

At this very moment, back in Grand Righteous Sect, Wei Yun Qing, who was currently channeling wood spiritual energy into the Foundation Establishment Grass, suddenly felt her energy fluctuate violently. Startled, she quickly retracted her spiritual energy and pressed a hand to her chest, feeling the strange tightness again.

She knew this sensation was related to Wei Yun Xi, though she couldn’t explain why. Yet she firmly believed Yun Xi had stolen opportunities meant for her—the hairpin from the family, the cultivation methods, and pills that could raise spiritual root quality. Even though these things had never surfaced, Yun Qing stubbornly believed Yun Xi had obtained them all.

Such deep-rooted resentment made Yun Qing wonder if she’d gone insane, yet each time she calmed down, she became more certain of her assumptions.

“Hmph! I hope you perish out there!” Wei Yun Qing growled bitterly under her breath.

“Junior Sister Yun Qing, how’s the herb doing?” Ye Shao Tian’s voice suddenly came from behind, startling Yun Qing back to her senses.

She turned around, instantly putting on a sweet smile, “Senior Brother Ye, I’ve already restored this Foundation Establishment Grass. Now, I only need to nourish it daily until it matures enough for alchemy.”

Ye Shao Tian happily praised her efforts and, after checking the revived spirit plant, departed the spiritual medicine fields smilingly.

Elsewhere, Zong Hao, immersed in consolidating his own cultivation, had no idea that Yun Xi had just survived a brush with death.

Meanwhile, at the Grand Righteous Sect base in Treasure Blossom City, Sheng Yu Hong, deep in meditation, suddenly jolted awake. His sharp gaze swept the room cautiously before slowly easing his rapid heartbeat.

At that exact instant, he’d felt terrifyingly close to death itself.

Coincidentally, it was precisely the moment when Yun Xi had been consuming the invading soul.