Milk tea should not be consumed indiscriminately.

Seeing Mu Wanqing, Lin Yuan's heart suddenly skipped a beat.

"Calm down, calm down, I have no flaws." Lin Yuan's thoughts raced, forcibly suppressing the instinctive tremor. "She can't recognize me."

His face still held that slightly dull and respectful expression, his gaze sweeping over Mu Wanqing's graceful, pretty face before dropping, as if looking at a completely unrelated stranger.

Mu Wanqing's gaze was equally unfamiliar, as if it were just a casual glance.

But the moment she brushed past Lin Yuan and walked towards the counter, her delicate, upturned nose subtly twitched, almost imperceptibly.

A faint, yet incredibly unique fragrance wafted into her nostrils.

In the depths of Mu Wanqing's eyes, a wave of shock, like a raging storm, flashed and then was completely covered by a calculating glint.

She regained the composure of a strong businesswoman, nodded slightly to Qing Tan behind the counter, her voice clear but with a deliberate distance.

"Fairy Qing Tan, I have an important matter to discuss with you. Is now a convenient time?"

Fairy Qing Tan?

She and her sister had been together since childhood; a single glance was enough to know each other's thoughts. This address was problematic!

"Junior Brother Lin, please seriously consider what I just told you when you go back." Qing Tan's voice returned to its usual coolness, showing no ripples of emotion.

Lin Yuan nodded.

Although he hadn't figured out why Qing Tan was suddenly so enthusiastic towards him, the other party seemed to bear no ill will. His mind was now filled with that inexplicable sense of crisis, and he only wanted to leave this place of trouble as soon as possible.

He cupped his hands and turned to leave.

It wasn't until Lin Yuan's figure completely disappeared outside the Pill Treasure Pavilion that Qing Tan abruptly turned her head, staring intently at her sister.

"Little Sister, you..."

Mu Wanqing did not answer immediately, but instead asked, "Did Junior Brother Lin just now come to inquire about the list of alchemists going to the front lines for support?"

"How did you know? Do you know him?" Qing Tan's voice tightened.

Mu Wanqing took a deep breath, suppressing the turmoil in her heart, and whispered each word, "I'm telling you, he is Alchemist Huang. Do you believe me?"

Boom!

Qing Tan's mind was like a sudden clap of thunder, her pupils contracting to the extreme in an instant.

"How is that possible!"

These three words almost burst out, carrying a panic she herself hadn't noticed.

"He took the jade marrow clear heart dew I prepared, and he has that faint, special fragrance on him. I couldn't possibly be mistaken!" Mu Wanqing's tone was resolute.

"That doesn't mean he's Alchemist Huang!" Qing Tan's voice was somewhat out of control; she didn't even realize what she was refuting. "Although jade marrow clear heart dew is precious, others might also have the Opportunity to obtain it!"

An inexplicable panic welled up in her heart, as if a treasure she had cherished for a long time, one she hadn't even clearly seen herself, had suddenly been snatched away.

"My jade marrow clear heart dew is specially formulated, and its scent is completely different from what's on the market." Mu Wanqing's lips curved into a knowing smile. "I dare say, my portion is unique in this Cultivation world."

Qing Tan had just tried to set up Lin Yuan and herself... she never expected that in the blink of an eye, he would become her half... brother-in-law?

What kind of situation was this!

She steadied herself, forced herself to calm down, and pointed out a key suspicious detail.

"I've known him for decades. This person is cautious to the bone and would never carelessly eat or drink anything given by others. Even the spiritual tea I personally brewed, he would rarely touch if he had no business with it."

"How did you get him to take the jade marrow clear heart dew?"

A charming blush appeared on Mu Wanqing's pretty face. She subconsciously puffed out her high, full chest, her eyes carrying a hint of cunning and charm.

"Isn't that simple?"

"Just apply it where he's sure to eat it!"

Qing Tan was utterly bewildered, a rare look of confusion appearing on her eternally icy face.

"What do you mean?"

"It's normal for older sister, being an unmarried maiden, not to understand." Mu Wanqing covered her mouth with a light laugh, her eyes sparkling. "You'll understand naturally once you have a Dao Companion."

She then reined in her smile and said seriously, "Sister just said she's known him for decades, so it seems Lin Yuan is Alchemist Huang's real name. If Father's guess is correct, then Sun Wukong should also be his alias."

"Sister, quickly tell me about his specific situation."

...Lin Yuan naturally didn't know that the identity he had painstakingly cultivated had been completely exposed.

At this moment, he was sitting cross-legged inside his Immortal Cave at Wind Listening Cliff.

"If the Yin Corpse Sect falls, it will be like a tree falling and monkeys scattering."

"At that time, how can any egg remain unbroken under an overturned nest?"

"Regardless of the outside world, truly increasing one's Cultivation is the only way to survive!"

He cast aside distracting thoughts and immersed his mind in Cultivation.

Two days passed in a flash.

Lin Yuan, who was in the midst of Cultivation, suddenly opened his eyes.

He sensed that a spiritual energy fluctuation had been blocked by the Nine-Curve Soul Bewildering Formation.

He raised his hand and formed Hand Seals, and a gap opened in the Formation. A moment later, an exquisite Paper Crane, folded from a spiritual talisman, lightly floated into his palm.

As spiritual energy was injected, Mu Wanqing's somewhat charming voice emerged from it.

"Fellow Daoist Sun, my father has successfully entered secluded Cultivation after taking the violet extreme obstacle breaking pill. To thank Fellow Daoist for facilitating this, this humble one has specially prepared a small banquet at the Peak Masters Residence. I hope Fellow Daoist will grace us with your presence, allowing me to express my gratitude in person."

Lin Yuan stroked his chin.

"Cultivating continuously for two days has indeed been a bit monotonous. Going out for a walk would be a good way to relax."

He mused that the connection with Mu Wanqing must be maintained well.

With this thought, he rose, controlled his Escape Light, and left his Immortal Cave... Meanwhile.

Yin Corpse Sect, the first of the seventy-two peaks, Yin Corpse Peak.

The entire peak was pitch black, perpetually shrouded in dense black Qi, with fierce Yin winds howling and ghostly wails echoing incessantly, as if it connected to the Nine Netherworld. Ordinary Disciples dared not approach it.

Deep within the Immortal Cave at the peak's summit, it was even more bone-chillingly cold, the air thick like mercury.

Old Ancestor Xuan Yin, his face withered and only skin and bones remaining, stared intently at a meditation cushion in the center of the quiet room, his eyes filled with suppressed anxiety and madness.

On the cushion, a girl who appeared to be no more than seventeen or eighteen years old sat cross-legged.

The girl's face was ashen white, devoid of color, and a decaying Death Qi permeated her body, yet within her, a vast and chaotic spiritual energy was confined.

At times, she exuded the faint fluctuations of the Ninth Layer of Qi Refining.

The next instant, it would surge to the intensity of the Foundation Establishment Stage.

Occasionally, a terrifying pressure belonging to the Core Formation Stage would flash and then instantly plummet.

Her life force was decaying at a visible rate.

In front of the girl, an elder with white hair and beard, but an unusually rosy complexion, extended two fingers, resting them on the girl's wrist, his two long white eyebrows tightly furrowed.

"Pill Hall Master, how is she?" Old Ancestor Xuan Yin's voice was hoarse and dry, filled with tension.

The elder, referred to as "Pill Hall Master," withdrew his fingers, let out a long sigh, his face full of exhaustion and helplessness.

"Old Ancestor, Fairy Gu... her Divine Soul is severely damaged, and her Golden Core has also suffered a violent impact, covered in cracks. She's too badly injured."

"Is there a way to treat her?" Old Ancestor Xuan Yin's voice trembled, and the Yin Qi within the Immortal Cave surged violently in response.

"Yes," the Pill Hall Master said solemnly, his tone incredibly grave. "We need to use yang returning lotus seeds as the main ingredient to refine a soul nurturing pill to stabilize her dispersing soul. Then, use yang returning lotus petals as the main material to refine a nirvana pill to reshape her shattered Core. Both are indispensable and must be taken within seven days, otherwise... her path to Immortality will be severed, and even Immortals will be powerless to save her!"

Hearing this, a hint of brutality flashed in Old Ancestor Xuan Yin's eyes: "This Ancestor remembers, there seems to be a yang returning lotus seed in the Sect's treasure vault!"

The Pill Hall Master shook his head bitterly: "Old Ancestor, you may not know, but that yang returning lotus seed was sought by True Man Mu of Hundred Herbs Peak more than ten years ago to refine a soul nurturing pill for his daughter whose Divine Soul was injured."

"At that time, this old man was only a Fifth-Grade Alchemist. I personally refined this pill, but unfortunately... it was a complete failure, the refinement failed."

"However..." The Pill Hall Master changed the subject, "Some time ago, that old fellow True Man Mu came to find me again, wanting me to open another furnace for a soul nurturing pill. This old man refused due to other matters, but from what he said, he seems to have found the whereabouts of yang returning lotus seeds again. Old Ancestor, you might want to inquire about it."