Chapter 17

Chapter 17: Mutual Tricks

Wei Yun Xi immediately put on a conflicted little expression, as if she was hesitating over whether to tell her.

Wei Yun Qing blinked and felt like there was hope, so she asked even more warmly, “Little sister, you’re going to the Hao Ran Sect with me. You won’t even tell me something this small?”

Wei Yun Xi immediately shook her head. Then she looked around and leaned close to Wei Yun Qing’s ear, whispering, “It was the maidservant Feng Xiu by my side who helped me. Her cultivation is at late-stage Qi Refining. She used her spiritual energy to do an empowerment infusion on me, so I was able to succeed in Qi Induction so quickly.”

Wei Yun Xi was talking pure nonsense. She had picked it up from reading xianxia novels, and she didn’t even know if it was true. But it was more than enough to fool Wei Yun Qing, who had only just stepped into cultivation herself.

Wei Yun Qing’s gaze flickered, as if she had other ideas. Then she held Wei Yun Xi’s hand, and the two of them went into the cultivation hall like affectionate sisters.

Watching Wei Yun Xi lie with a straight face, Feng Xiu almost had the urge to rub her forehead. But at a time like this, she couldn’t undermine her young miss, so she kept a straight face, said goodbye, and returned to Zhuo Hua Courtyard. She still had to keep an eye on Zhen Zhu.

After the two sisters entered the cultivation hall, the other children all learned that Wei Yun Xi had also succeeded in Qi Induction. They sent another wave of jealous looks, then started cultivating even harder.

After the Sixth Elder confirmed Wei Yun Xi had succeeded in Qi Induction, he changed her cultivation spot to a place where the spiritual energy was relatively denser.

Wei Yun Qing and Wei Zong Jin were already there. Now Wei Yun Xi was added, and the three of them formed a small group of their own, which was truly enviable.

After needling Wei Yun Qing, Wei Yun Xi sat down beside Wei Zong Jin and smiled sweetly at him as a greeting.

Wei Zong Jin was also five years old. A bit proud, he lifted his chin at Wei Yun Xi, then sat cross-legged, closed his eyes, and started cultivating. He clearly didn’t want to talk to her.

Wei Yun Xi shrugged, sat cross-legged as well, and began absorbing spiritual energy with effort.

Before long, she entered that state that felt like soaking in a hot spring. She absorbed the surrounding spiritual energy rapidly. It even seemed like the spiritual energy liked her more, swarming into her body one after another.

The Sixth Elder sensed the change in the spiritual energy inside the cultivation hall. He looked toward where the three of them were. All three were cultivating seriously. Satisfied, he nodded and continued urging the children who hadn’t succeeded in Qi Induction yet.

After that day’s cultivation ended, Feng Xiu picked Wei Yun Xi up and brought her back. After eating a spirit meal, she opened the defensive array again and entered cultivation.

Wei Yun Xi had already been taught by Feng Jia Qing. She knew very well that early-stage Qi Refining cultivation only made her a bit stronger than a mortal. Her senses would become sharper and her body tougher, but her attack strength wasn’t much different from an ordinary person’s.

If she, with her tiny five-year-old body, faced an adult mortal, then without using cultivation methods, she wouldn’t stand a chance at all.

Feng Jia Qing had once told Wei Yun Xi, “Before you cultivate to late-stage Qi Refining, you’d better not leave the family. Otherwise, it’s easy for you to die on the way.”

So Wei Yun Xi kept her uncle’s warning in mind. She first raised her cultivation, and she used the pure spiritual energy she cultivated to widen her meridians. Among cultivators of the same level, the one with more stored spiritual energy was the final winner.

Wei Yun Xi cultivated steadily, unaware that Du Ruo Lan was already thinking of ways to destroy her spiritual roots.

When news of Wei Yun Xi succeeding in Qi Induction reached Du Ruo Lan, she smashed the cup in her hand. She had just used Wei Yun Xi’s poor aptitude as an excuse to persuade the First Master to forbid Wei Yun Xi from going with Yun Qing to the Hao Ran Sect. Then Wei Yun Xi turned around and succeeded in Qi Induction, clearly slapping her in the face.

“No. We can’t let her go to the Hao Ran Sect.”

“Madam, then what should we do? The Feng Family’s maidservant watches Yun Xi very closely. She won’t let this servant get near at all.”

Zhen Zhu frowned.

Du Ruo Lan thought for a moment, then said, “You just keep a close watch on her. I’ll think of a way for the rest.”

“Yes, Madam.”

After Zhen Zhu was dismissed, Du Ruo Lan began searching through her storage bag.

When Wei Ling Yue learned that Yun Xi was the third disciple to succeed in Qi Induction, he didn’t feel anything special.

Two months later, Wei Yun Qing’s cultivation reached the first level of Qi Refining, drawing yet another wave of envy and jealousy. Wei Yun Xi still smiled and congratulated her, then continued cultivating diligently.

Only, on the surface, Wei Yun Xi’s good luck seemed to have been spent on Qi Induction. Before they went to the Hao Ran Sect, Wei Yun Qing’s cultivation had already reached the peak of the first level of Qi Refining. She was just a step away from breaking through to the second level, making her one of the most outstanding among the clan disciples.

Meanwhile, Wei Yun Xi never broke through the first level of Qi Refining. She did cultivate hard, though. Even Wei Zong Jin broke through to the first level of Qi Refining.

In the end, Wei Yun Xi wasn’t on the list going to the Hao Ran Sect. Du Ruo Lan secretly rejoiced for a long time and temporarily stopped her plan.

When Wei Yun Xi learned this, she finally let out a real sigh of relief. But to keep up the act, she pretended to be dissatisfied and secretly complained to her maternal family. Then Feng Jia Qing appeared right on cue.

No one knew what Feng Jia Qing said to Wei Ling Yue, but the final result was that Wei Yun Xi moved to the Feng Family to study alchemy.

“That’s great!”

Wei Yun Xi felt like everything had finally settled. She was celebrating that she had taken the first step toward escaping her fate, when two days later, reality slapped her in the face.

After the Wei Family confirmed the five people going to the Hao Ran Sect, they prepared some resources for the children. Wei Ling Yue volunteered to escort the five children to the Hao Ran Sect.

But on the day they were supposed to depart, the Hao Ran Sect’s Nascent Soul elder, True Lord Yu Feng, arrived at the Wei Family in Kun Yu City.

The Wei Family’s head, Wei Ling Tao, personally led the family elders to welcome True Lord Yu Feng into their home.

Kun Yu City also became lively because of the arrival of a Nascent Soul True Lord, and the Wei Family enjoyed a surge of prestige.

Wei Ling Tao was Wei Ling Yue’s younger brother and also Wei Zong Jin’s father. Because his ability was stronger than Wei Ling Yue’s, he took the position of Family Head, so the clan generally referred to Wei Ling Yue as the First Master.

If Wei Ling Yue had no lucky chance, he would stop at the peak of late-stage Foundation Establishment in this lifetime. But Wei Ling Tao was different. His aptitude was better than his older brother’s, and he had hope of forming a Golden Core. That advantage was why he sat in the Family Head’s seat.

The two brothers didn’t have open conflict, but privately, they competed with each other. This time, they were competing over their children’s aptitude, and the one who narrowly won was Wei Ling Yue.

Since it involved his daughter entering the Hao Ran Sect, Wei Ling Yue also appeared in the council hall.

After some pleasantries, Wei Ling Tao politely asked, “True Lord Yu Feng, may I ask why you’ve come to Kun Yu City specifically this time?”

True Lord Yu Feng had a rugged face and a rather stern expression. He smoothed his robe and said, “The sect has issued an order. This time, we will expand the number of disciples we recruit. On my way to pick up Wei Family disciples, I will also select a group of disciples with good aptitude in Kun Yu City and bring them to the sect.”

Wei Ling Tao and Wei Ling Yue exchanged a look. Both were surprised. In the past, the Hao Ran Sect wouldn’t recruit disciples in such a remote place. The reason they could send clan children to the Hao Ran Sect at all was because of protection from their ancestors.

True Lord Yu Feng ignored their silent sparring and continued directly.

“I will inform the City Lord of Kun Yu City. I will stay for one day tomorrow. After recruiting disciples, I will depart and return to the sect. I can make the call and give the Wei Family three more spots to enter the sect.”