Sitting atop the lid, Xiao Chen looked at Ye Feng's black eye and couldn't help bursting into hearty laughter.
Ye Feng got to his feet, curled his lip, and muttered a curse under his breath. "Damn it, does a tier-six spirit sprite have this much grip strength?"
Meanwhile, Meng Wanshu returned to her boudoir on the rear mountain and called out, "Xiao Cui, where is my mother?"
The young maid outside the door replied with a beaming smile, "In answer to Miss, the mistress is currently stewing chicken in her private courtyard. She said she's going to bring it to the young master-in-law to eat once it's done."
Hearing this, Meng Wanshu's cheeks instantly flushed crimson. She murmured with mild reproach, "What time is it already, and she's still stewing chicken soup? Doesn't my mother know what happened earlier?"
The maid tilted her head, thought for a moment, and said, "The mistress doesn't seem to know."
The corners of Meng Wanshu's lips curved slightly. Changing into an azure gown, she walked out the door and instructed, "If my father asks, tell him I went to the rear mountain."
Taking a step forward, she vanished on the spot in an instant.
When she reappeared, she had already arrived at the core area of the domain territory—Li Guilan's own little secluded world.
Here, several mountain peaks rolled together, and nestled in a mountain hollow was a brick-and-tile house built in a rather imposing style.
Of course, that imposing air was only in comparison to ordinary buildings at the foot of the mountains.
Compared to the magnificent, gold-gilded architecture of the rest of the domain, it looked considerably humble.
Halfway up the mountainside, a slightly plump woman was currently chasing chickens...
Indeed, these young hens were all raised by Li Guilan herself.
Watching the woman struggle with the exertion, Meng Wanshu couldn't help smiling. "Mother, you're already a Nascent Soul cultivator. Why do you still refuse to use primal energy?"
The lady straightened up and snapped crossly, "What do you know? Primal energy this, primal energy that—if you use it for everything, where's the fun in catching a chicken yourself?"
As she spoke, she rolled up her sleeves and declared, "I refuse to believe I can't catch you!"
Then she glanced over. "What are you just watching for? Come help! Stop standing there like a wooden peg."
Meng Wanshu smiled faintly. If anyone happened to pass by, they would see the wife and daughter of the Shenbao Domain Lord scurrying all across the hillside chasing chickens.
In truth, given the strength of the two, catching chickens could not have been easier.
Yet neither mobilized a shred of primal energy or divine sense. Like an ordinary country woman and girl, they simply enjoyed the process of the chase.
Before long, Meng Wanshu sat beside the hearth in her luxurious gown, helping tend the fire.
The small wooden stool beneath her was low, but very comfortable to sit on.
Resting her chin on one hand, the young woman tossed pieces of firewood into the hearth with the other.
The bright firelight illuminated her face, casting a glow over her cheeks like the crimson clouds of sunset.
Butchering the chicken, Li Guilan glanced at the girl whose thoughts had long since drifted away, and she smiled faintly.
A young maiden harboring budding love, wearing an expression of sweet happiness, was truly a sight to behold.
Li Guilan handled the young hen with deft, practiced motions, questioning her casually.
"Girl."
"Mm?"
"You like him?"
"Mm..."
"Hahahaha! Compared to before, has that boy changed?"
Even though Li Guilan was genuinely fond of Li Guanqi, she still respected Meng Wanshu's own feelings when it came to her lifelong happiness.
If Meng Wanshu didn't truly like him that much, it wouldn't matter even if things didn't work out between them.
Yet unexpectedly, Meng Wanshu's gaze drifted, and after a long silence, she softly spoke.
"He's changed."
Hearing that, the kitchen cleaver in Li Guilan's hand slammed down, severing the chicken's neck in one stroke. The gleaming blade vibrated with a continuous hum atop the chopping board.
With a furious expression, the woman demanded, "Changed? Then absolutely not! I won't agree to the two of you being together!"
The sudden display gave Meng Wanshu a start, and she hurriedly rose to explain, "Mother~ that's not what I meant!"
"Then what do you mean?"
Meng Wanshu said bashfully, "He... he became better. Even more exceptional."
Only upon hearing this did the woman feel somewhat reassured, turning her attention to plucking the feathers from the hen in the basin of hot water.
"Oh? Tell me about it."
"In any case, I think Guanqi is wonderful. Just like before, the look in his eyes when he sees me, that feeling... it's all the same as it used to be."
"Hiss... his eyes still can't see, right?"
When the woman said this with her back to Meng Wanshu, she failed to notice the crimson blush flooding her daughter's cheeks.
Meng Wanshu's face was brimming with shyness.
Li Guilan continued, "What cultivation realm is he at now? He probably hasn't reached Core Formation yet, right?"
"You and your father need to look after him more, and don't look down on him."
"He's a little blind orphan with no father or mother. It wasn't easy for him to come this far. Besides, he's not even twenty yet; reaching Foundation Establishment is already quite impressive."
Hearing this, Meng Wanshu looked at her mother with a peculiar expression.
Then she recalled that her mother's perception of others' auras was exceptionally vague, and things made sense.
The young woman smiled, stepped forward, and wrapped her arms around her mother from behind. "Don't worry, Mother, Guanqi isn't as weak as you imagine."
The woman immediately protested, "You wretched girl, let go! I'm filthy right now, what are you hugging me for?"
Meng Wanshu acted spoiled. "I don't care, let me hug you for a bit."
"By the way, Mother, you know Xiao Chen, right?"
Li Guilan nodded and smiled. "Of course I know him. That boy pesters you every day, how could I not?"
"Truth be told, if I hadn't seen Guanqi earlier, I would have thought that boy wasn't bad either. At least he treats you well."
"Besides, I heard he counts as some great genius in our Shenbao Domain, ranking on some list or another."
Meng Wanshu nodded with pride and chuckled softly. "That's right, Brother Xiao Chen is very strong. Even looking across the entire Shenbao Domain, there are scarcely any of his age who surpass him."
"Yet just moments ago, people from ten factions on par with his family came to our domain."
Upon hearing this, Li Guilan grabbed her kitchen cleaver and turned around to storm out.
"Hmph! Did they come to bully Little Li? Let me go see who dares!"
Meng Wanshu quickly held the woman back. "Mother, don't go. They've already left."
"Hm? They're all gone?"
"Yes. Ten Holy Sons from ten sacred lands in total. Li Guanqi fought all ten of them at once... and beat every single one of them half to death."
The woman nodded, but then suddenly realized something was amiss, crying out at the top of her lungs.
"What??? One against ten?? Beat them all half to death??"
"Wait!! Didn't you say they're in the same realm as Xiao Chen?"
"Then..."
Meng Wanshu clasped her hands behind her back and said with immense pride, "That's right! Li Guanqi is very strong now! Strong enough to crush the peer geniuses and monstrous talents of an entire domain!"
"And you said he hasn't even reached Core Formation—his cultivation realm is only slightly lower than mine."
When she mentioned cultivation realms, Meng Wanshu's blush spread all the way to the tips of her ears.
A look of sudden enlightenment dawned on Li Guilan's face. Pursing her lips in a grin, she said, "Oh~ I know! In the cultivation world, this is called... dual cultivation, right?"
"Aiya, Mother~!"
"Hahahaha! Then I definitely have to stew today's chicken soup well to nourish my son-in-law! Hahaha!"
Inside the room, Li Guanqi slowly regained consciousness. Darkness surrounded him, enveloped in swirling steam.
Numerous little white sticks floated beside him, while Pengluo, flushed bright red all over and foaming at the mouth, drifted past his face...
Chapter 547