302: Liu Xuan is one of our own.

Red Pine Sect.

Outside the Mountain Gate Formation.

A giant Crane was flapping its wings, blocked outside by the Formation barrier, immediately alerting the guarding Disciples to rush over.

The Crane had a wingspan of several dozen meters, its body covered in snow-white feathers, with only its claws and long beak being black; it was incredibly majestic.

"Father!"

"Mother!"

"Quickly open the Formation gate, I'm back!"

Fourth Brother Dao Cheng spotted the figure of his younger brother Dao Ming below and immediately shouted, "Sixth Brother, your Brother Cheng is back, hurry and let us in!"

The Sixth Brother looked at the incredibly majestic and imposing Crane, and then at the Daoist nun standing beside Daocheng, who exuded a terrifying Aura and held a whisk. He coughed twice and nodded, saying, "Brother Cheng, please wait a moment!"

If Fourth Brother had returned alone, he would have welcomed him in immediately, but since he was accompanied by a Daoist nun who clearly looked like a big shot, he decided it was best to wait until his father and the concubines arrived.

A moment later, Liu Xuan appeared in the air and ordered the guarding Disciples to open the Formation gate to invite them in.

'This must be the Senior Sister Yun Xian that Junior Sister Yun Xi spoke of!'

Late Golden Core Stage cultivation, a Perfected Golden Core Stage Crane; everything matches, it can't be wrong!

Yun Xian wore a plain Daoist robe, her hair simply tied into a bun, and she held a white whisk. Her face was stunningly beautiful, possessing an inexplicable sense of holiness.

Liu Xuan had seen many cold women, but this was the first time he had encountered someone like her—who, despite having a seemingly gentle and indifferent expression, gave off a stronger sense of distance than anyone else.

This was a true fairy who did not eat the food of mortals, a Bodhisattva who pitied all living beings yet remained high above.

"What are you looking at, you brat? Keep looking and I'll dig your eyeballs out!"

The Crane shrank in size, and with a flash of light, transformed into a young girl who looked thirty percent similar to Yun Xian.

Unlike the cold and indifferent Yun Xian, her personality was much livelier, and she spoke like a little girl.

"Junior Liu Xuan pays respects to Immortal Master Yun Xian and Senior Yun Yao!"

Liu Xuan bowed with his hands cupped, his demeanor generous, and he was not affected by the Crane Maiden's words.

"Eh? You recognize us?"

The Crane Yun Yao tilted her head and looked at Liu Xuan in confusion, carefully recalling if she had ever seen him before.

"Senior Sister Yunxi has mentioned both Seniors to me. I had previously heard that my fourth son, Daocheng, was fortunate enough to become a Disciple of Immortal Master Yun Xian, so I boldly guessed the identities of the two Seniors."

"So you are Liu Xuan!" The Crane Yun Yao scrutinized him and suddenly realized that this boy indeed had a good appearance, looking better than any man she had ever seen.

She, Yun Yao, was not a shallow Yao Beast; she valued inner character, but... he seemed a bit too good-looking! Even better-looking than those scholars at the Gentlemans Academy.

Immortal Master Yun Xian was also scrutinizing Liu Xuan. Because of Junior Sister Yun Xi, she had learned a lot of information about Liu Xuan.

Her visit to the Red Pine Sect this time was mainly to check on the situation of her Junior Sister An Yunxi, to ensure she wasn't being swindled by Liu Xuan while still counting his money for him.

Her Junior Sister had come out for experience and possessed life-saving measures left by the Academy Head, so she wasn't worried about her life being in danger, but she was afraid that someone would take advantage of her innocence to deceive her.

Liu Xuan's reputation for lechery was widespread, and he had countless women. With her Junior Sister staying at the Liu Family for a long time, from all perspectives, he was highly suspicious of deceiving the young girl.

"Where is Junior Sister Yun Xi? Take me to see her."

Immortal Master Yun Xian had no intention of wasting time with Liu Xuan; she would deal with everything after seeing her Junior Sister first.

"The two of you, please follow me!"

Liu Xuan led them to the Guest Hall in the North Garden on the mountain peak. Since the death of Xiao Mingcheng, the North Garden had become a place for entertaining guests and discussing major Family matters, and some members of the Xiao Family who had defected to the Liu Family also resided there.

He ordered the maids to serve the most precious jade phoenix tree spirit tea, and Liu Xuan smiled and said, "The two Seniors, please wait a moment; Senior Sister Yunxi will be here shortly."

Liu Xuan instructed Daocheng beside him, "Fourth Brother, go and pay your respects to your mother and the concubines first. I will prepare a welcome banquet for you tonight."

"Alright!"

Upon hearing that his father was going to host a welcome banquet for him, Daocheng happily pumped his fist. The other brothers and sisters did not receive this kind of treatment.

Just as Daocheng left, An Yunxi walked in, followed by the Big Black Bear, Dashan.

"Third Senior Sister, it really is you!" An Yunxi ran a few steps to Yun Xian's side and held her hand.

"Wuwuwu... Third Senior Sister, after leaving home for so many years, I missed you so much, I missed my sister, and I missed my father!"

"My sister and father lied to me; they promised to come find me soon, but it's been so long and they haven't come. You are the only one who is good to me, Third Senior Sister!"

A rare trace of human warmth appeared on Yun Xian's face as she held An Yunxi's hand to check her physical condition.

A moment later, she nodded slightly, "Your mana and Divine Soul have become much more refined, and you are already at the Peak Foundation Establishment Realm. Have you sensed a Breakthrough Bottleneck?"

An Yunxi's condition was even better than she had imagined. She had thought that this girl would have difficulty making progress while staying at the Liu Family without much experience, but she didn't expect that not only was her cultivation at Peak Foundation Establishment, but her mana and Divine Soul were also much more refined than before. At this rate, there was hope for the Golden Core.

The Academy Head and the First Senior Sister were most worried that the Junior Sister had grown up in a greenhouse since childhood and would find it difficult to break through the hurdle of refining the Divine Soul for the Golden Core Stage.

The Divine Soul is the foundation of Cultivation. If one's Heart-Nature and will are not firm, and one lacks experience, no amount of Heaven And Earth Treasure can guarantee a successful Core Formation.

The concept of Heart-Nature is mysterious and profound; it is not simply one's view of things, but one's comprehension of the Great Dao of Heaven and Earth.

Experience only increases one's knowledge; it is unknown how many things one must go through to grow, and it is not necessarily effective.

It is said that since arriving at the Red Pine Sect, she has stayed at the Liu Family for a long time and has not gone out to gain much experience. Why is her progress so great?

"No!" An Yunxi shook her head slowly, then said happily, "But I learned Artifact Refining, and now I am a Second-Rank Artifact Refiner!"

"Artifact Refining? A Second-Rank Artifact Refiner?"

"Yes!" An Yunxi pointed to Liu Xuan beside her and introduced him, "Junior Brother Liu Xuan is a Genius Artifact Refining Great Master. His mind is full of all kinds of novel ideas, and his Artifact Refining methods are incredibly profound. My Artifact Refining skills were all taught by him."

So that was it! Yun Xian immediately understood; the progress her Junior Sister had made must have been brought about by Artifact Refining.

Experience does not necessarily mean going out to take risks; learning a Cultivation skill is also a very good way.

Alchemy, Artifact Refining, Talisman, Formation—any one of these is a skill that points directly to the Dao. At high levels, they are even more important than many Cultivation Techniques, providing great help to one's cultivation, or rather, they represent one's cultivation itself.

However, she remembered that her Junior Sister had no talent for Artifact Refining and had no interest in the complex path of Artifact Refining. Why had she become a Second-Rank Artifact Refiner in just over a dozen years?

"Third Senior Sister, let me tell you, Junior Brother Liu Xuan is amazing. He is not only a Genius Artifact Refining Great Master, but also a Genius Alchemist, a Genius Talisman master, a Genius Formation Master, and he is also proficient in the Sword Dao; he is a young Sword Immortal..."

An Yunxi spoke endlessly about Liu Xuan, her eyes shining as she looked at him.

"Third Senior Sister, actually... I had already taken Liu Xuan as a Disciple on my father's behalf. He is now my Junior Brother, he is one of our own. Can you take care of him in the future?"