98: Chapter 98 Team building tonight, Master Taixu

[The moonlight is like water.]

[Chu Sheng concealed his aura and landed silently in the backyard of the House of Joy.]

[The lights in the three upper rooms were still on.]

[Three slender shadows were projected onto the window paper: one was admiring herself in the mirror, one was sitting cross-legged in meditation, and one was secretly snacking.]

[A smile curled at the corner of Chu Sheng's mouth.]

["I'm back."]

[He pushed the door open and entered.]

[Three pairs of eyes stared at him in unison.]

[Then—]

["He's alive!"]

[Li Zhiyi was the first to pounce, hanging onto his neck like a koala, her tears and snot smearing all over his face.]

[Wan Qing was a step slower, looking like she wanted to pounce but felt too embarrassed to do so.]

[Xiao Huan was the most pitiful; a comb was still stuck in her hair, and she stamped her feet in anxiety.]

[Chu Sheng held Li Zhiyi with one arm, pulled Wan Qing into his embrace with the other, and beckoned to Xiao Huan.]

["Everyone come over, we're having a meeting."]

[Only then did Xiao Huan pounce over with her crooked hair bun, and the three of them huddled together.]

["Alright, alright," Chu Sheng said, being squeezed until he couldn't breathe, "haven't I returned now?"]

[Li Zhiyi looked up, her eyes as red as a rabbit's.]

["Do you know how worried we were? Such a huge thing happened at the Qinglan Sect, everyone said you were dead..."]

[Chu Sheng was taken aback.]

["Who said that?"]

[Wan Qing said softly, "News came from the Qinglan Sect saying you were swallowed by a white snake... we were almost ready to go collect your body."]

[Chu Sheng: "..."]

[Well, the act was played out to the full.]

[He coughed dryly.]

["That... it's a long story. Anyway, I'm not dead, I'm perfectly fine."]

[He looked down at the three women.]

["Your cultivation..."]

[Li Zhiyi raised her chin proudly.]

["Qi Induction Third Grade! Now I'm the best fighter among the women in our family!"]

[Wan Qing pursed her lips and smiled: "Qi Induction Second Grade, but my foundation is solid."]

[Xiao Huan said in a small voice: "I've also reached Qi Induction... though I'm still the weakest."]

[The corner of Chu Sheng's mouth twitched.]

[How long has it been? Were the Qi Induction Pills he gave them that effective?]

["You ate them all?"]

[Li Zhiyi nodded: "The pills you gave us, we each had a bottle and ate them like snacks every day."]

[Chu Sheng nodded with satisfaction.]

["Not bad, not bad, there's progress."]

[He suddenly remembered something and chuckled.]

["Since everyone is so happy, why don't we..."]

[Chu Sheng gave a grand wave of his hand.]

["Team building tonight!"]

["Team building?" The three women displayed puzzled expressions.]

[A night of silence.]

[Only the next morning, Li Zhiyi complained while holding her waist: "You... you must be the reincarnation of a beast."]

[Chu Sheng lay on the couch, feeling refreshed.]

[The "Many Children, Many Blessings" trait was operating within his body.]

[He thought happily, "In a few more months, it should bear fruit."]

[In the evening, Chu Sheng called the three women together.]

[He began pulling things out of his storage ring.]

[Pills—bottle after bottle of Qi Induction Pills, Qi Gathering Pills, and Soul Nurturing Pills were lined up across the table.]

[Magic treasures—several Yellow Rank protective jade pendants, Light-step Boots, and Stealth Cloaks, one set for each person.]

[Spirit stones—a bag for each, enough for them to cultivate until next year.]

[And a bunch of miscellaneous items: Beauty Pills, Breast Enhancement and Slimming Pills, and Mutton-fat Jade Water.]

[The three women's eyes went wide.]

["There's enough for everyone. Cultivate well, and strive to reach the Late Stage Yin Qi by the time I return."]

[Wan Qing was taken aback.]

["You're leaving?"]

[Chu Sheng nodded.]

["I have some matters to handle. Don't worry, I'll be back soon."]

[He walked over and kissed each of them on the forehead.]

["Wait for me obediently. I'll bring you gifts when I return."]

["What gifts?"]

["You'll know then. It might be heavenly treasures, or it might be a snake-skin belt, depends on luck."]

[Li Zhiyi: "..."]

[Chu Sheng turned and pushed the door open.]

[Behind him, the three women stood at the door, watching his figure disappear into the night.]

[Li Zhiyi shouted: "Remember to buy a crib!"]

[Wan Qing shouted: "Be safe!"]

[Xiao Huan shouted: "Big Brother Chu, come back soon!"]

[Chu Sheng didn't look back and just waved his hand.]

[During his journey, the moon was bright and stars were few.]

[While flying with his Qi, Chu Sheng looked down at the ring on his hand.]

[The Old Grandfather in the ring had responded to him before, but now there was no movement again.]

[He decided to increase the intensity.]

[Sitting cross-legged on a cloud, he took out the soul nurturing grass, mobilized his full spiritual power, and frantically poured it into the ring.]

["Kid! You're finally willing to wake this seat up again?!"]

[Chu Sheng was startled and almost tumbled off the cloud.]

["A ghost?!"]

[The voice continued to roar.]

["Ghost your head! This seat is Perfected Man Taixu! Back then, I roamed the cultivation world, and whoever saw me had to call me Senior Taixu!"]

[Chu Sheng stabilized himself and asked cautiously.]

["That... Senior Taixu? Why are you in the ring?"]

["Uh... well... it's a long story..."]

[Chu Sheng understood.]

[Most likely he was sealed by someone.]

[He didn't press further, lest he embarrass the old man.]

[Perfected Man Taixu coughed dryly and changed the subject.]

["Kid, the aura on you... isn't right."]

[Chu Sheng was taken aback.]

["How is it not right?"]

[Perfected Man Taixu went silent for a moment.]

["You have the aura of a contract on you... but why can't this seat sense the constraints of the contract?"]

[Chu Sheng was bewildered.]

["What contract?"]

[Perfected Man Taixu's voice became serious.]

["Years ago, this seat made a pact with a couple in the Dao Palace Realm to assist their son's growth. That contract cannot be undone. This seat should have gone to the Heavenly Wind Imperial Capital to find that kid named Ye Wuhen..."]

[He paused.]

["But why do you have the aura of the contract on you? And... how did you break it?"]

[Chu Sheng was even more bewildered.]

["I don't know. This ring was... uh... picked up by me."]

[Perfected Man Taixu fell silent.]

[Chu Sheng could feel that old divine sense in the ring sweeping back and forth across him.]

[After a long while, Perfected Man Taixu's voice rang out.]

["...low-grade earth artifact? low-grade heaven artifact?"]

["You kid's background isn't simple either, is it?"]

[Chu Sheng scratched his head.]

["Just... an ordinary rogue cultivator, my luck is just relatively good."]

["Forget it, forget it," he sighed, "following you isn't bad either. As for that kid named Ye Wuhen, let him fend for himself."]

[Chu Sheng was stunned.]

["Senior, you're just giving up like that?"]

[Perfected Man Taixu snorted.]

["What do you mean giving up? Look at you, you have earth rank magic treasures and heaven rank magic treasures."]

["Isn't this better than that kid who's living off his parents in the imperial capital?"]

["By the way, Senior," he remembered something, "that Ye Wuhen... how old is he?"]

[Perfected Man Taixu thought for a moment.]

["He should be... fifteen or sixteen now. Both parents are in the Dao Palace, but they left him alone in the imperial capital, saying it was to temper his character."]

["Actually, they just couldn't be bothered to care. That kid is probably being bullied every day now, it's quite pathetic."]

Chu Sheng fell silent upon seeing this.

"...It couldn't be such a coincidence, could it?"

I don't remember taking the villain's script? How did I encounter the Chosen One?

["What? You know him?"]

[Chu Sheng shook his head.]

["I don't. But I just feel... a bit guilty."]

[Perfected Man Taixu laughed loudly.]

["Guilty of what? In the cultivation world, the strong prey on the weak. You taking his ring is his blessing. If he were strong enough, he should be the one taking yours."]

[Perfected Man Taixu gave a cold laugh.]

["However, this seat reminds you, that kid's parents are both in the Dao Palace. If you let them know the ring is in your hands, be careful they don't form a team to come and seize your treasure."]