5: Chapter 5 Little Jiu, We Didn't Spoil Him for Nothing

The carriage came to a slow stop in front of the Shen Mansion.

The Shen Mansion occupied a vast area. Its vermilion gates stood three zhang high, flanked by two majestic and powerful stone lions. Above the lintel, the words 'Shen Mansion' were written in a bold, flowing calligraphy that exuded a magnificent Aura.

Shen Qingyuan lifted the carriage curtain and stepped out lazily.

Luo Qingyue followed closely behind, her white clothes as pure as snow, looking cold and ethereal.

The Shen Family guards stationed at the entrance bowed hurriedly upon seeing Shen Qingyuan. "Ninth Elder!"

Shen Qingyuan waved his hand dismissively and led Luo Qingyue inside.

Shen Quan followed behind, clutching his chest and stumbling, his face filled with a complex expression.

Once inside the Shen Mansion, Shen Qingyuan stopped and glanced back at Shen Quan. "Go see your father in the main hall yourself. I'm going back to Wutong Garden."

Shen Quan was taken aback. "Ninth Uncle, you're not going to see my father?"

Shen Qingyuan yawned. "I'm sleepy. We'll talk tomorrow."

Without waiting for Shen Quan's reaction, he headed toward Wutong Garden with Luo Qingyue.

Shen Quan opened his mouth as if to say something, but ultimately just sighed.

Well, Ninth Uncle was still the same old Ninth Uncle.

He shook his head, clutched his chest, and turned toward the main hall.

...

Inside the main hall, the lights were brightly lit.

Patriarch Shen Tianze sat upright in the seat of honor, dressed in a black robe. His face was majestic, but his brow was furrowed deeply.

He had just received news that his son had suffered a great loss at the hands of Wang Teng, having been beaten until he spat blood in public!

When the news reached him, he nearly crushed the teacup in his hand!

That rebellious son, Shen Quan, usually cultivated hard enough. Why did he always drop the ball at critical moments?

What infuriated him even more was that little brat Wang Teng daring to humiliate his son in public!

No! He couldn't swallow this insult!

Tonight, he would change his clothes and sneak into the Wang Family to give their Family Head a good thrashing!

Only after thinking this did he manage to suppress the fury in his heart.

"Father..."

A weak voice came from the doorway.

Patriarch Shen Tianze looked up to see Shen Quan cautiously stepping over the threshold, his face filled with trepidation and guilt.

Patriarch Shen Tianze snorted coldly, his expression instantly darkening. "You still have the face to come back!"

Shen Quan trembled and hurried forward a few steps, standing before Patriarch Shen Tianze with his head bowed, not daring to make a sound.

"What did I tell you today?" Patriarch Shen Tianze's voice was low, carrying suppressed anger. "I sent you to invite Little Jiu, but instead, you got into a fight with the Wang boy? Getting into a fight is one thing, but you actually lost!"

"My son, the son of Patriarch Shen Tianze, beaten until he spat blood in public! You've certainly made me proud!"

Shen Quan's head hung even lower, his face burning with shame.

Seeing him like this only fueled Patriarch Shen Tianze's anger. "Speak! Are you a mute?"

Shen Quan shrank his neck and whispered, "Father, I, I..."

"You what?" Patriarch Shen Tianze snorted. "Where is Little Jiu? Did you manage to invite him?"

Shen Quan nodded quickly. "I did, I did! Ninth Uncle said he will attend the Five Families Grand Competition tomorrow!"

Patriarch Shen Tianze's expression softened slightly.

It was good that Little Jiu was willing to attend.

Although Little Jiu usually neglected his duties and spent his days at Yicui Pavilion, he was still the Ninth Elder of the Shen Family after all.

With the other Four Great Families present at tomorrow's Five Families Grand Competition, it would indeed look bad if too many of the Shen Family's Elders were absent.

"Anything else?" Patriarch Shen Tianze asked in a heavy voice.

Shen Quan was startled. "Any... anything else?"

Patriarch Shen Tianze frowned and stared at him. "Did Little Jiu not give you anything?"

He knew Shen Qingyuan too well.

Although that boy appeared frivolous and acted like a playboy on the surface, he was never stingy with his own family.

A few days ago, he had given Patriarch Shen Tianze quite a few Medicinal Pills. Any one of those pills would have caused the Cultivators of the entire Southern Region to fight to the death for it!

His son had been beaten so badly today; there was no way Little Jiu wouldn't show some concern.

Upon hearing this, Shen Quan suddenly remembered the jade bottle in his robe and hurriedly reached for it.

"Yes, yes! Ninth Uncle gave me this!"

He carefully held the jade bottle in his palms and presented it to Patriarch Shen Tianze.

Patriarch Shen Tianze took the bottle and looked down—

His pupils suddenly constricted!

His entire body froze instantly!

The jade bottle was translucent and lustrous, with spiritual light flowing over it. Through the semi-transparent walls, a golden Medicinal Pill lay quietly, its surface covered with nine clearly visible pill veins, with faint dragon-shaped currents of air swirling around it!

"Ni... Nine Veins..."

Patriarch Shen Tianze's voice was trembling.

Although he was the Head of the Shen Family and had seen much of the world, this was his first time seeing a Medicinal Pill of this level with his own eyes!

A Nine-Pattern Precious Pill!

And it was the legendary nirvana pill at that!

A nirvana pill that could improve one's cultivation Aptitude!

Patriarch Shen Tianze took a deep breath, forcing himself to calm down as he carefully examined the jade bottle in his hand.

The more he looked, the more startled and shocked he became.

The pill was golden throughout, the pill veins were like dragons, and the Spiritual Qi was restrained yet sharp. It was clearly the best of the best!

"This... Little Jiu gave this to you?"

Patriarch Shen Tianze looked up, his eyes filled with disbelief.

He had thought the pills Shen Qingyuan gave him a few days ago were top-grade, but compared to this Nine-Pattern Precious Pill, those were just trash!

Shen Quan nodded repeatedly. "Yes, yes, yes!"

Patriarch Shen Tianze remained silent for a long while before slowly exhaling a breath of turbid air.

He looked at the Nine-Vein Nirvana Pill in his hand, complex emotions flashing through his eyes.

Shock, reflection, relief...

In the end, it all turned into a sigh of emotion. "That child Little Jiu, raising him wasn't in vain!"

Thinking back to when Shen Nantian brought Little Jiu back, the child was only a few months old, as delicate as carved pink jade and incredibly cute.

Back then, Shen Nantian was often away, so Little Jiu was basically raised under his watch.

As a child, Little Jiu was well-behaved; he didn't cry or make a fuss, spending all day sleeping. Everyone who saw him liked him.

Later, as Little Jiu grew up, although he was frivolous and neglected his duties, he truly cared for his family.

"Father..." Shen Quan looked at him cautiously. "This pill..."

Patriarch Shen Tianze snapped back to reality and glared at him. "Little Jiu gave it to you. Are you keeping it to hatch a chick instead of eating it?"

Shen Quan gave a sheepish smile.

Patriarch Shen Tianze handed the jade bottle back to him and instructed, "Go back and consume it. Refine it well. If you lose again in tomorrow's competition, I'll break your legs!"

---

Shen Qingyuan led Luo Qingyue through the winding corridors and pavilions of the Shen Mansion, heading all the way east before finally stopping in front of a quiet courtyard.

Above the courtyard gate, a simple and ancient plaque hung quietly, with three words inscribed upon it—Wutong Garden.

"We're here."

Shen Qingyuan lazily pushed open the courtyard gate and stepped inside.

Luo Qingyue followed closely behind.

However, the moment she stepped over the threshold—

Her body suddenly stiffened!

Her cold eyes snapped wide!

The density of the Spiritual Qi had changed!

If the Spiritual Qi in the outside air was a thin mist, then the Spiritual Qi in Wutong Garden was like liquid water, so thick it wouldn't disperse!

Luo Qingyue took a deep breath, feeling every pore on her body greedily opening and frantically absorbing this dense Spiritual Qi.

She closed her eyes, sensing it carefully.

"This Spiritual Qi concentration..."

Luo Qingyue opened her eyes, which were filled with shock.

She was a Dharma Image Realm Cultivator, and her perception far exceeded that of ordinary people.

The Spiritual Qi concentration in the outside Guangnan City was considered upper-middle among the thirty-six main cities of the Southern Region, but compared to Wutong Garden, it was simply a barren desert!

"It's at least... thirty times that of the outside world!"

Luo Qingyue's voice carried a rare hint of fluctuation.

What did thirty times mean?

It meant that cultivating for one day in Wutong Garden was equivalent to a month of cultivation outside!

It meant that even a Cultivator with mediocre Aptitude could be forcibly turned into a minor Genius by staying here year after year!

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