160: Chapter 160 Shen Qingluan's Departure

The snake's head exploded, and the headless snake corpse thrashed violently on the ground a few times before completely stilling.

Shen Qingluan nodded slightly. "Your reaction was good, and the Spell transitions were smooth, but your timing for the Water Mirror Technique was half a breath slow. If you had encountered a Medium Grade Yao Beast, you would already be dead."

"I will remember that." You humbly accepted the instruction.

Over the next few days, Shen Qingluan brought you deeper into the Ten Thousand Mountains. She deliberately suppressed her aura, drawing out some Low Grade and Medium Grade Yao Beasts for you to practice on.

From your initial clumsiness and panic, you gradually became calm and decisive. Your martial arts foundation at the Earthly Immortal realm allowed you to far surpass other Cultivators of the same rank in close-quarters evasion and timing.

Every time you finished hunting a Yao Beast, Shen Qingluan only took the Yao core and the most valuable Materials, leaving all the remaining flesh and bones for you.

"Sister Qingluan, you don't want any of these?" You looked at the pile of Materials on the ground, your eyes shining.

"They take up space, and I can't be bothered to carry them." Shen Qingluan said indifferently.

You happily took out your Storage Pouch and stuffed all the Materials into it, secretly rejoicing, "It's a good thing that when I was so poor I was eating dirt, I didn't sell the Storage Pouch that Su Mianyue gave me. These are all shiny Spirit Stones!"

On the way back, the sky began to darken.

To avoid a herd of High Grade Iron-Armored Rhinos, you ducked into a hidden cave.

As soon as you entered the cave, you smelled a peculiar fragrance. You followed the scent deep into the cave and, in a crack in the rock wall, discovered a Spiritual Plant that was entirely dark blue and bore three red fruits.

"That is... a Dark Orchid Red Blood Fruit?" Shen Qingluan followed, and upon seeing the Spiritual Plant, a look of astonishment appeared on her cold, elegant face.

"Sister Qingluan, is this thing rare?" You asked curiously.

Shen Qingluan gave you a strange look. "It's not rare, but for a Cultivator in the early stages of Qi Refining, it is an excellent item for achieving a Breakthrough. The strange thing is, I passed through this cave three days ago, and there were clearly only weeds here. How could a mature Spiritual Plant have suddenly grown?"

You blinked, and suddenly understood in your heart.

Peerless Elegance! Awesome!

"Just eat it." Shen Qingluan composed herself, drew her long sword, and stood at the cave entrance. "If a Spiritual Plant is picked without a jade box for preservation, its Spiritual Qi will dissipate rapidly. Since you are already at the Peak of the first level of Qi Refining, eating it should allow you to achieve a Breakthrough. You can Breakthrough right here; I will act as your Protector."

"Thank you, Sister Qingluan!"

You didn't act coy, stepped forward, picked the three Red Blood Fruits, and swallowed them in one gulp.

The fruit flesh melted in your mouth, turning into a majestic torrent of Spiritual Qi that surged down your throat and into your Meridians with a roar.

You immediately sat cross-legged and fully activated the Burning Heaven True Art, frantically devouring the Spiritual Qi brought by the fruit and converting it into your own cultivation.

The Spiritual liquid within your Qi Sea began to churn violently, its volume constantly expanding.

Half an hour later, when the last trace of medicinal power was refined, a crisp "crack" sound came from within your body, as if some sort of shackle had been broken.

Your aura surged upward, and your Spiritual Qi reserves increased by a full fifty percent compared to before.

Second level of Qi Refining, done!

In the following month, Shen Qingluan took you into the Ten Thousand Mountains three more times. Your combat experience grew increasingly rich, and your cultivation was thoroughly stabilized at the second level of Qi Refining.

But this evening, after returning to the courtyard, you found Shen Qingluan sitting by the stone table. She wasn't polishing her sword as usual, but was staring at the teacup on the table, hesitating to speak.

Your heart skipped a beat. In fact, you had vaguely sensed her abnormality over the past few days.

"Sister Qingluan, are you... leaving?" You walked over, sat down opposite her, and asked softly.

Shen Qingluan raised her head, looked at you deeply, and no longer hid it. "Yes, my family is urging me. They've sent three transmission Talismans. I've delayed too long here, and since I haven't found the Opportunity I was looking for, I must return."

You had long been prepared for this, but hearing it for real, you still felt a bit empty.

The air in the courtyard suddenly went quiet.

Shen Qingluan tapped her fingertips gently on the table and said in a deep voice, "Shuang Wan, what are your plans? Meng Si is a petty man who holds grudges. If I leave, he will sooner or later find out where you are. Do you want me to take you away from Qingyue Market tonight to another market?"

"How about Yuhe Market in the south? No one there knows you, so it might be safer."

You lowered your eyelids, your brain working at high speed.

Leave?

The selection for the Zhao family's Guest Elder begins in a month. With your current appearance and cultivation, the Zhao family has no reason not to accept you, unless they are truly afraid of that second-generation heir, Meng Si.

What if you changed markets?

With this face of "Peerless Elegance," you would be a source of trouble wherever you went. As long as Meng Si had the intention, it would be easy for him to find you by spending a few Spirit Stones.

Unless you disguised yourself again and lived under an assumed name, but that would mean turning back into that miserable, bottom-tier Loose Cultivator worrying about a few Spirit Stones.

"Why should I?" You sneered in your heart.

This Cultivation World is all about the strong preying on the weak. If the Meng Si father and son really dare to provoke you, you can just use your trump card, [Purple Mansion Reincarnation], and slaughter them all! You could even rob Qingyue Market. Between the two of them's personal wealth and the market's inventory, after robbing this haul, the resources would definitely be an astronomical figure. Then, the sky is the limit, and you can just find some desolate mountain range to hide and Cultivate until you reach Qi Refining Perfection before coming out.

Won't let me Cultivate in peace, huh? Then I'll just flip the table, and nobody gets to live!

A flash of ruthlessness crossed your eyes, but when you looked up, your face returned to a calm smile.

"Sister Qingluan, I'm not leaving." You shook your head, your tone firm. "I plan to participate in the Zhao family's Guest Elder selection in a month. As long as I can become a Zhao family Guest Elder, no matter how arrogant Meng Si is, he won't dare to move against me openly in Qingyue Market. Besides... it's been so long, he might have already forgotten about me."

Shen Qingluan looked at you, her brows slightly furrowed. She felt you were still too naive and didn't understand the sinister nature of people in the Cultivation World, but she also knew that while you appeared weak on the outside, you were a person with very strong opinions deep down.

"Fine." Shen Qingluan sighed, stopped trying to persuade you, and stood up to start packing her things.

Watching her busy back, a complex emotion welled up in your heart—regret, and a trace of reluctance.

These few months by Shen Qingluan's side could be said to be the most comfortable and secure time you'd had since arriving in the Cultivation World. You had resources, a backer, and didn't have to calculate how to survive every day. But you knew very well that this was only temporary.

Night fell, and the moon was bright with sparse stars.

Shen Qingluan, carrying her sword case, stood before the courtyard gate. She turned around, looked at you standing on the steps, and was silent for a moment.

Then, she reached into her Storage Pouch and took out a Talisman that radiated a faint silver light, handing it to you.

"Shuang Wan, take this."

"This is..." You felt the astonishing fluctuation of Spiritual Qi flowing on the Talisman, and your pupils constricted sharply.

"I promised to stay here with you for a year, but I broke my word. Let this serve as an apology to you." Shen Qingluan's tone was gentle.

... Thanks to Aili Xihuan Haiqin Yan for the Great God certification! To Ke Ke Ai Ai Ne for the 2 update reminders! To Linglong for the 2 update reminders! To 7891 Hājīmǐ for the Boba Milk Tea! And thanks to everyone's gifts and support, here is an extra chapter!