"Junior Sister, you've gotten a bit dirty. No wonder you have a Water Spiritual Root—turns out it's wastewater."
Qi Yuan looked at Jiang Lingsu with an appreciative gaze.
It truly was the first time he had seen Jiang Lingsu like this, and she carried a distinct, captivating charm.
Jiang Lingsu remained graceful and unreserved, making no attempt to hide herself, and a surge of delight arose in her heart.
Men and women alike possessed vanity; being viewed with an admiring eye by a supreme talent like Eldest Senior Brother naturally brought joy.
"Not bad. Your looks and figure are vastly superior to your elder sister Jiang Ya's. Being a greeter is more than within your reach."
Qi Yuan could not resist offering his evaluation.
The smile in Jiang Lingsu's eyes froze.
Of course... Eldest Senior Brother was always Eldest Senior Brother. She never should have harbored any expectations for whatever came out of his mouth.
"Eldest Senior Brother, thank you so very much for this," Jiang Lingsu continued gratefully.
"Don't mention it, just a trivial matter."
Fellow disciples ought to love and cherish each other like family.
It was a pity their master, Ruan Yixi, was not around; perhaps she was in the Upper Realm.
Jin Li, the mother of his child, was also in the Upper Realm.
At present, without having reached the Yin God realm, Qi Yuan had no way of traveling to the Upper Realm.
"Senior Brother, you've helped me so immensely, yet I have nothing to repay you with. How about... you make a request of me that isn't too excessive, and I will grant it," Jiang Lingsu said with earnest sincerity.
Her words caught Qi Yuan slightly off guard.
Jiang Lingsu openly added, "Even if it's slightly excessive, that's fine too."
Jiang Lingsu knew Qi Yuan's character, which was why she spoke so boldly.
Were it anyone else, she would simply have offered up all her spirit stones and precious treasures.
"I'm quite curious." Hearing Jiang Lingsu's words, Qi Yuan was reminded of something.
He asked, "Since I helped you, if I gave you two options, which one would you choose?"
"What options?" Jiang Lingsu asked.
"Option one: 'This humble maiden has nothing to repay you with and will serve you like a beast of burden in the next life.' Option two: 'This humble maiden wishes to devote herself to you in marriage.'"
This involved his looks.
According to Qi Yuan's memories, if a benefactor was ugly, the aristocratic young lady would claim she would serve as a beast of burden in her next life to repay him. But if the benefactor was handsome, excuse me, she would offer herself in marriage on the spot.
Such occurrences were everywhere.
Take, for instance, ancient matchmakers arranging meetings between men and women.
If the woman was satisfied, she would say it was entirely up to her parents to decide.
If she was dissatisfied, she would have an entirely different script ready.
Either way, one had to speak with high emotional intelligence.
Qi Yuan was also striving to be a person of high emotional intelligence.
Jiang Lingsu furrowed her brows, seeming to ponder the matter seriously.
After a long while, looking straight into Qi Yuan's eyes, she answered, "Compared to being a beast of burden, I'd still choose to devote myself in marriage."
Upon hearing this, joy bloomed across Qi Yuan's face.
It seemed he was indeed quite handsome.
Being certified by someone else as handsome was completely different from being uncertified.
Just as Qi Yuan was feeling smug, he heard Jiang Lingsu speak hesitantly. "Could it be that the excessive request Eldest Senior Brother wants to make... is precisely this? If so, I..."
Qi Yuan waved his hands in a hurry. "Certainly not! I'm not the sort of person to use a favor as leverage!"
He couldn't bring himself to do what the Cowherd did, either.
Jiang Lingsu was left somewhat bewildered.
Though she had appeared calm on the surface when answering just now, an intense struggle had raged in her heart.
Now, receiving this response, her feelings grew incomparably tangled.
She didn't know whether she felt relieved or disappointed.
Yet this style... was indeed very much like Eldest Senior Brother.
His behavior had always been unconventional and elusive.
As a result, Jiang Lingsu had already mastered the trick to communicating with him: if she couldn't understand it, she simply shouldn't try.
"Let's put this request on hold for now. By the way, when hosting the Divine Infant Assembly this time, be sure to invite the Demonic Desire Sect!" Qi Yuan specifically instructed.
Several disciples and elders with the Ji surname from the Demonic Desire Sect had offended him.
Back then, Qi Yuan had been busy wiping out that major adversary, the Palace of Light, so he had casually slain a few elders from the Demonic Desire Sect.
When the Palace of Light fell and he returned to Great Shang, who could have predicted that an upheaval would occur in the Demonic Desire Sect?
Within the Demonic Desire Sect, two factions had historically held power: one bearing the Shen surname, which was exceptionally low-profile, and one bearing the Ji surname, which was excessively arrogant.
For many years, the Ji faction had suppressed the Shen faction.
Yet when Qi Yuan returned last time, he learned that the Shen surname had suppressed and purged the Ji surname.
Now, power in the Demonic Desire Sect was once again in the hands of the Shen surname.
Qi Yuan was quite curious about this turn of events and wished to learn about the current state of the Demonic Desire Sect, so he gave the order in passing just to take a look.
In any case, since the Ji faction was completely dead, he couldn't be bothered to make a trip to the Demonic Desire Sect himself.
After parting ways with Jiang Lingsu, Qi Yuan returned to his room.
His daughter, Qi Jianjun, was elusive, fishing who-knew-where.
Qi Yuan immersed his consciousness into the game jade slip.
The game had concluded, and Qi Yuan was waiting for a new one.
This time was just like before.
Within the game jade slip, a new game icon was slowly forming.
Qi Yuan's divine sense surged toward the game icon, but unfortunately returned without success.
"What kind of world will it be this time?" Qi Yuan anticipated eagerly.
The games had aided him immensely.
Before a single day had passed, he had broken through from the Golden Core realm to the Divine Infant realm.
Though still far behind that civilization in the Ancestral Land, within the Canglan Realm, he could now be considered on par with a municipal key high school.
At this moment, Qi Yuan recalled something.
The Innate Seed appeared before him.
This was one of the rewards obtained from completing the quest in the Mortal Heart Realm.
The Innate Seed could take root and sprout in any world, growing on Qi Yuan's behalf.
Moreover, the feedback of strength Qi Yuan would receive upon inheriting it would far exceed that of previous games.
Without any hesitation, he separated a wisp of consciousness, infusing it into the Innate Seed to shape it into his own likeness.
Under Qi Yuan's control, the Innate Seed entered straight into the jade slip.
"Huh, it went right in without any obstruction?"
This caught Qi Yuan quite off guard.
"You bastard, you won't let me in, but the Innate Seed can go in?"
Qi Yuan expressed great indignation.
He couldn't enter, yet the Innate Seed could.
This left him feeling rather helpless.
Right then, through the unseen void, he faintly sensed that a life was gestating.
This sensation originated from within the game icon.
It also gave Qi Yuan a clearer understanding of the Innate Seed's function.
Indeed, someone had just finished clapping for love—or clapping in some other fashion—thereby conceiving his identity for this game.
"Don't tell me that when I go in, I'll still be an embryo?"
The thought gave Qi Yuan a headache.
He had no desire to wear diapers and be raised by hand through all the mess of infancy; just the thought was horrifying.
Qi Yuan eavesdropped on the game jade slip for several minutes, and hearing no movement, he withdrew.
"I'll take another look once the game finishes loading."
With this thought in mind, Qi Yuan went to see Sect Master True Monarch Kumu.
The request to host a Divine Infant Assembly left True Monarch Kumu stunned.
Yet he was only stunned for a moment. Since Qi Yuan had asked, even if it were an Ascension to Immortality Assembly, he would still see it done.
"There's one more thing. Since I've already advanced to the Divine Infant realm, living in a brick-and-tile house no longer matches my status. Now, I want to build a large single-story bungalow made of cement!"
Qi Yuan felt that with his wealth, even living in a detached villa would be reasonable.
Yet he did not forget his roots, kept his teachings in mind, and gave full play to the fine virtues of plain living and hard work.
"What is cement?" True Monarch Kumu asked, confused. He knew both water and mud, but combining the two to build a house sounded far too bizarre.
"Uncultured. Back on Blue Star, there's a community full of talented folks where people can make cement before even finishing middle school."
This "community," of course, was the comment section.
"I'll teach you." Qi Yuan explained the method for producing cement to True Monarch Kumu.
True Monarch Kumu was, after all, a Divine Infant True Monarch; upon hearing it, he grasped the principles in an instant. "An interesting little gadget."
Of course, it was merely interesting.
This was only natural.
After all, the overall strength of the Canglan Realm was quite formidable.
A Divine Infant cultivator could withstand the most powerful nuclear warhead from Blue Star completely unharmed.
Certain technological creations were simply not essential to the Canglan Realm.
Take chemical fertilizer, for instance—did the cultivation world need fertilizer?
A direct Myriad Things Growth Technique or various other spells could be cast at will.
Thinking of these things, Qi Yuan could not help feeling nostalgic about life on Blue Star.
After all, there were so many talents in Blue Star's comment sections.
People would argue for thousands of replies over whether tofu pudding should be sweet or savory. Pity for them, Qi Yuan preferred his spicy and numbing.
"Within a single day, your new... cave abode can be completed," True Monarch Kumu said.
"Good," Qi Yuan said. "The Divine Infant Assembly needs to be expedited as well."
True Monarch Kumu was stunned.
In the State of Great Shang, cultivators who advanced to the Divine Infant realm did indeed host a Divine Infant Assembly.
Yet one as rushed as Qi Yuan... had never been seen before.
"Understood..." True Monarch Kumu nodded.
Because according to Qi Yuan, the Divine Infant Assembly had to conclude by tomorrow.
This was simply too fast.
Having said his piece, Qi Yuan vanished.
True Monarch Kumu looked at the spot where Qi Yuan had stood, his gaze turning exceptionally profound.
"Is He... playing around in the mortal world?"
Regardless, this was the greatest opportunity of his entire life, and he had to handle the matter properly.
With a wave of his hand, two paper spiritual cranes flew away.
Before long, Kang Fulu rushed over anxiously. "Why has Lord Sect Master summoned me?"
At this moment, Kang Fulu had a full head of white hair, and his heart was filled with confusion.
He had just returned from Cuiyun Continent not long ago and had even made it onto the Eastern Lands Heavenly Pride Roll. Yet the Sect Master had shown only a lukewarm reaction to such a joyous occasion.
During this period, Kang Fulu had also investigated what had transpired after his departure from the sect.
To his astonishment, he discovered that while he was away, a Purple Mansion cultivator had caused trouble, only to be slain by a Purple Mansion expert from the Blood-Robed Alliance!
The Blood-Robed Alliance also had deep ties to Seven Colors Peak.
This inevitably caused his mind to wander.
Back when they participated in the Eastern Lands Prodigy Battle, Junior Brother Qi Yuan had claimed he would enter through the back door.
As it turned out, a mysterious person truly had entered through the back door.
Piecing all these things together, Kang Fulu could not help overthinking.
Qi Yuan definitely shared a profound connection with the Blood-Robed Sword God.
Could it be that Qi Yuan, with his faulty brain, had a fool's good fortune and had caught the eye of the Blood-Robed Sword God, being taken in as a disciple?
Given his train of thought, he could only arrive at this kind of explanation.
True Monarch Kumu looked at Kang Fulu and spoke casually, "Tomorrow, our Divine Light Sect will host a Divine Infant Assembly. Go make the preparations and arrangements, pass down the orders, and deliver the invitations."
"Which Martial Uncle has broken through to the Divine Infant realm?" Kang Fulu rejoiced inwardly.
If the Divine Light Sect gained another Divine Infant cultivator now, its strength would increase considerably.
With the Demonic Desire Sect experiencing internal upheaval, the Divine Light Sect ought to become the foremost sect in Great Shang.
"Seven Colors Peak... Qi Yuan."
"Junior Brother Qi Yuan?" Kang Fulu's eyes widened, scarcely able to believe his ears.
Qi Yuan... was a Divine Infant!
What was going on? Hadn't he just reached Foundation Establishment?
"As the eldest disciple of a peak, your mental fortitude is so lacking; you are far inferior to Qi Yuan," True Monarch Kumu said with smug pride.
When he heard Qi Yuan claim to have stepped into the Divine Infant realm, True Monarch Kumu felt no shock whatsoever, only curiosity.
Why would a dignified Yin God pretend to have just broken through to the Divine Infant realm?
Kang Fulu remained silent for a long time before asking, "Sect Master... are you certain you aren't joking with me?"
To suddenly be told that someone who was at Foundation Establishment half a day ago had stepped into the Divine Infant realm—who could believe that?
It was as though you were a vocational college student, and your slacker roommate—whom you joked was your adopted son—had worse grades than you, yet one day during class, the teacher announced that your deskmate had won a Nobel Prize and had been successfully elected an academician of the Academy of Sciences.
Could you possibly make sense of that?
"Does this old man have any need to deceive you about such matters? The invitations have already been prepared; send them out," True Monarch Kumu said.
On the invitations, in accordance with Qi Yuan's special request, the inscription 'The Foremost Divine Infant of Great Shang' had even been added.
Kang Fulu offered no objection.
After all, if the boss felt like playing around, they would simply play along.
***
Meanwhile, Qi Yuan entered the chat group of the Four Emperors of Divine Flower.
"I have good news for everyone: I've stepped into the Divine Infant stage."
Having stepped into the realm of a Divine Infant True Monarch, he naturally had to flaunt it properly.
Qi Yuan had even considered whether he should approach the head guildmaster of the Divine Flower Society to pin a post to the top of their forum:
*Congratulations to Qi Yuan of Seven Colors Peak, Divine Light Sect, Great Shang, for Stepping into the Divine Infant Realm and Becoming the Foremost Divine Infant of Great Shang.*
Yet on second thought, it was better to keep a low profile when exercising special privileges.
So he let the idea drop.
"You're a Divine Infant?" Rogue Celestial Venerable was dumbfounded. "Origin Celestial Venerable, you're way too fierce!"
Regardless of anything else, when facing Qi Yuan, flattery was the immediate way to go.
Great Sun Flame Emperor also appeared to lavish praise.
Iceberg Overlord Woman offered a few words of praise as well, but then spoke despondently, "Sigh, your realms keep soaring step by step, while this old lady has been trapped for several centuries."
Iceberg Overlord Woman had been stuck at the peak of Purple Mansion all along.
To enter the Yin God realm, one needed to take a journey through the Boundless Thunder Sea.
Yet with the Great Tribulation approaching, the Boundless Thunder Sea had grown even more perilous; even for ordinary Yin Gods, acting as Dao protectors involved immense hardship and danger. For her to break through to the Yin God realm was doubly difficult.
Her grandfather was too advanced in years and seemed to carry lingering injuries; barging into the Boundless Thunder Sea rashly carried a very high probability of perishing.
Having never found a suitable Dao protector, she naturally had not attempted the breakthrough.
She had also considered the Blood-Robed Sword God—that was, Origin Celestial Venerable—but ultimately gave up on the idea.
Origin Celestial Venerable was merely a Venerable, and protecting someone in the Boundless Thunder Sea nowadays carried the risk of death even for Venerables.
Furthermore, all Yin Gods had to conserve their strength to face the Great Tribulation centuries from now.
She did not wish to beg Qi Yuan, nor could she afford to pay the price.
"It's all because of that damn Great Tribulation!" Iceberg Overlord Woman could not help cursing.
Were it not for the Great Tribulation, she would still have a chance to break through into the Yin God realm.
"The Great Tribulation..." Mentioning the Great Tribulation, Qi Yuan's gaze turned solemn as well.
Although in the Mortal Heart Realm he had ultimately surpassed the Mythological tier by a vast margin, even slaying two Yang Gods, he remained rather wary when facing a Great Tribulation that could summon reinforcements.
Granted, he could call for backup too.
However... what if the Great Tribulation summoned a Yang God down upon them?
The disparity between different Yang Gods was even wider than the disparity between a human and a dog.
He had no idea which Yang God was lurking behind the Great Tribulation.
"Sister Iceberg Overlord Woman, don't worry. Once I play another game, I'll wipe out the Great Tribulation!" Qi Yuan declared in the group.
In fact, if the Yang God behind the Great Tribulation was unable to personally descend, or possessed mediocre strength, he could simply solo the Great Tribulation once his realm stabilized.
"Origin Celestial Venerable, you'd better not call me Sister," Iceberg Overlord Woman said.
Having a Yin God powerhouse address her as "Sister"—wouldn't that make her sound ancient?
Chapter 242