Chapter 6: A Peculiar Encounter and a Difficult Choice

Quan Haoqing remained utterly oblivious that, during those brief seconds of her stunned silence, the heavenly immortal beauty before him had already considered hundreds of ways to eliminate him.

This wasn’t because Quan Haoqing had witnessed her current state; after all, though her body had transformed into a woman’s, her psyche couldn’t shift so readily. Subconsciously, the frankness shared between men felt incredibly awkward with a stranger, but it certainly wasn’t cause for mortal conflict.

Instead, Ye Lan was acutely aware that, given the multiple opportunities she had previously seized from Quan Haoqing, their current encounter could very well escalate into a battle for both supremacy and survival.

Especially in her current condition, perhaps due to her changed body, her cultivation had plummeted from the Primordial Return Realm to merely the Marrow Cleansing Realm. With her cultivation technique also completely altered, and her past abilities greatly diminished, she was undoubtedly at a severe disadvantage.

She couldn’t fathom why he hadn’t immediately launched an attack.

Truth be told, their fates were intertwined by a strange karma. Normally, Ye Lan maintained a low-key and composed demeanor, yet every time he wished to indulge in shamelessness, he invariably ran into this very person.

Consequently, she had simply given up trying to impress Quan Haoqing; if she could just eliminate him, no one would ever know of her brazenness.

Clearly, she hadn’t succeeded, and even more clearly, it seemed she was about to fall.

The crimson treasure sword appeared poised to strike, and merely imagining it sent a faint, stinging sensation across Ye Lan’s skin. If she were impaled by it, she would instantly become a roasted salted fish, wouldn’t she?!

Ye Lan lowered her head slightly, her expression flickering with uncertainty, preparing to retreat into the cold pond to temporarily avoid the imminent danger.

If forced to choose between death by suffocation or by roasting, suffocation at least promised a quicker end.

Yet, before she could even make a move, Quan Haoqing abruptly spun around, his voice rapid as he declared, “I apologize, I was unaware a fairy was bathing here. My intrusion was truly unforgivable.”

‘Hm? A fairy?’

‘Is this person out of their mind?’

‘Where is this fairy he speaks of?’

Ye Lan gazed around in confusion, only realizing after three seconds, ‘Oh, he’s talking about me, isn’t he?!’

‘Am I truly this beautiful?’

Curiosity piqued, Ye Lan touched her own face, then lowered her gaze to the water’s surface, where a slightly blurred reflection revealed her countenance.

Judging by the contours, it did indeed appear quite lovely.

A wave of sorrow welled up from the depths of her soul. While she was certainly a Looks-Oriented Person (TL Note: A person who prioritizes physical appearance or aesthetics), she absolutely did not wish to become the object of someone else’s desire.

Composing herself to prevent the rise of inner demons, Ye Lan secretly consoled herself that, at the very least, her current appearance was advantageous and harmless.

Observing the young man’s actions, it seemed his moral compass was significantly higher than her own.

Secretly steeling her resolve, Ye Lan lightly patted her supple cheeks, her voice turning cold as she softly inquired, “May I ask, Fellow Daoist, what brings you here?”

Hearing her tone, Quan Haoqing offered a wry smile, realizing he had likely been mistaken for a lecherous scoundrel (TL Note: Dēngtú Làngzǐ, a term for a philanderer or a man who harasses women).

He had no intention of revealing anything about Ye Lan; instead, he replied, “I came to this grotto-heaven in search of opportunities.”

Ye Lan feigned understanding, asking, “And have you found these opportunities?”

Quan Haoqing regretfully replied, “Not yet.”

Ye Lan’s smile held no warmth as she spoke in a mocking tone, “Oh really? I beg to differ. Haven’t you already found one?”

Quan Haoqing looked puzzled. “Hm?”

“You’re still standing here, Fellow Daoist,” Ye Lan stated coolly. “Aren’t you waiting for this humble maiden to bestow an opportunity upon you? Or perhaps this maiden lingering in the lake prevents the young master from fully enjoying himself?”

“Ah?!”

Seizing the moment of Quan Haoqing’s bewilderment, Ye Lan pressed her advantage. “It certainly seems so. Alas, it was my own naiveté that led to this predicament. I implore you, Fellow Daoist, to show a little mercy later and spare my life.”

As Ye Lan spoke, she began swimming towards Quan Haoqing, but his figure had already vanished from his spot, leaving only his voice echoing in the air.

“Though I, Quan, am no righteous gentleman, I am also not one to kick a man when he’s down. My offense to you, fair maiden, was merely a misunderstanding. Farewell.”

‘Phew~, he’s gone.’

Ye Lan let out a slight sigh of relief. Beneath the cold pond, several ice swords lay hidden. If Quan Haoqing had truly dared to act with lewd intentions, she wouldn’t have hesitated to give him a full set of ‘vegetative state acupuncture.’

Moreover, Ye Lan raised her snow-white, lotus-root-like arm, as graceful as white jade. Her palm opened, facing upwards, and four droplets of water spiraled up from the icy lake.

Above the icy lake, she might not have been Quan Haoqing’s match, but within the lake, even without fully adapting to her new cultivation technique, she held an absolute advantage.

However, since others had entered this grotto-heaven, she couldn’t just stay here indefinitely. Although Quan Haoqing had spoken those words, entrusting her safety to another was clearly foolish.

‘But if I act now…’

At this thought, Ye Lan gnashed her teeth. Her storage bag originally contained spare clothes, but they had all been transformed into Profound Yellow Qi. What was most hateful was that the Book Spirit hadn’t warned her beforehand, leaving her in a truly miserable predicament.

Even more tragically, she could only hope that the unprincipled Book Spirit would bring her some proper attire.

‘No, why is this book taking so long to come back?!’

****

“Alas!”

“I say,” Quan Haoqing remarked, “you’ve been sighing ever since I left that cold lake. You couldn’t possibly be regretting your master’s missed romantic opportunity, could you?”

Quan Haoqing, who had followed his heart and refrained from becoming a beast, had now heard his Book Spirit’s third heavy sigh, prompting him to tease it.

Though the Book Spirit had no eyes, Quan Haoqing could feel it staring intently at him with a ‘Are you serious?’ gaze.

“No, that fairy was quite beautiful, after all,” he continued. “As a normal man, it’s only natural to be a little moved. Still, the place and time of our first meeting were truly too inappropriate.”

Quan Haoqing could sense the strong hostility emanating from Ye Lan, but he didn’t connect it to the Sky Philosophy Sect cultivator who had previously robbed him. After all, not only their gender, but also their appearance and demeanor were vastly different from Ye Lan’s former image.

He merely assumed he had intruded while she was in the midst of bathing and cultivating.

His failure to leave immediately was certainly not because he was waiting for Ye Lan to ‘bestow benefits’ upon him. It was akin to having a ferocious beast behind him, ready to claim his life at any moment; at such a time, Quan Haoqing wouldn’t dare act rashly without proper preparations.

Ultimately, Ye Lan’s impulsive actions disrupted her own rhythm, allowing Quan Haoqing to seize the opportune moment to safely withdraw.

“Women are truly terrifying, though,” he mused. “In that fleeting moment, I barely saw anything beyond her face, yet she looked ready to kill. When she swam towards me just now, she wasn’t trying to fulfill my desires at all; she was preparing to murder me, wasn’t she? Although a woman’s reputation is also incredibly important…”

Navigating this world of blades and shadows, Quan Haoqing had encountered far too many inexplicable hostilities. If he were to approach every instance with the mindset of rooting out evil, he would likely have become a notorious figure in the demonic path. At least Ye Lan’s hostility wasn’t one of those inexplicable kinds.

“No, that woman is actually…”

The Book Spirit struggled, trying to figure out how to circumvent the restriction placed upon it by a certain individual, so it could reveal the truth to Quan Haoqing.

Before it could finish its thought, Quan Haoqing interjected, “Alright, stop dwelling on that woman. Where are those treasures you mentioned in this secret realm? Let’s grab them and get out quickly; there isn’t much time left before the realm closes.”

“As for my arch-nemesis, did he not cultivate that technique? But since his sect token was found here, he must have visited. Yet if he cultivated it, why isn’t he in that icy lake? Could it be that he didn’t take the cultivation technique with him, leaving an opportunity for future successors?”

Quan Haoqing fell into deep thought, once again retrieving the lost sect token belonging to Ye Lan. He gently rubbed its surface, where the obvious bloodstains silently informed him that the token’s owner might be in a dire situation. If he wished to eliminate Ye Lan, this would be an excellent opportunity.

‘Alas, I can’t find the person!’

Meanwhile, the Book Spirit finally knew how to hint at the truth.

“If one cultivates the Profound Yin Netherfrost Art, the Book Spirit will automatically recognize them as its master, and the cold energy in the Profound Nether Lake is only sufficient for one person’s cultivation.”

The Book Spirit believed its hint was abundantly clear, yet a cultivation technique that transformed a person from yin to yang, inside and out, was simply unheard of.

Bound by worldly common sense, Quan Haoqing never once considered that Ye Lan and the fairy were the same person.

“Then his situation must have been so urgent that he couldn’t even cultivate other techniques,” Quan Haoqing concluded. “But that makes sense; the Sky Philosophy Sect already possesses divine secret arts that lead directly to immortals. Cultivation manuals, so precious to rogue cultivators, might genuinely be insignificant in the eyes of disciples from such a grand sect. Never mind, let’s leave it to fate. We’ll meet again eventually.”

Quan Haoqing swiftly redirected his attention to the grotto-heaven treasures that could bring him tangible benefits. Even a mere hundred high-grade spirit stones would be enough to make him a wealthy figure among the rogue cultivators in this region.

However, if his guess was correct, those treasures were likely prepared for that fairy.

But since the items hadn’t reached her hands yet, they were unowned.

Morality was one thing, but he was neither a lovesick fool nor a pedant. Or rather, to walk far on the path of cultivation, one could not afford to be pedantic.

Perhaps, he was merely a hypocritical mediocrity.

“As for that fairy, I’m truly sorry, but the immortal path is vast, and people are like scattered grains in the sea. It’s unlikely we’ll meet again. I trust she’ll forget about this soon enough.”

Quan Haoqing took it all in stride. The Book Spirit pondered for a moment, then agreed, “Exactly. We might not see that unlucky fellow again. Head northeast; at your current speed, it should take about a quarter of an hour… Actually, it seems it won’t even take a quarter of an hour.”

No sooner had the Book Spirit indicated the direction than Quan Haoqing and it witnessed a cultivation manual, carrying a storage bag, floating towards them.

Evidently, this manual was diligently transporting the storage bag it bore, completely oblivious to Quan Haoqing’s presence, floating openly past him.

With an odd expression, Quan Haoqing reached out and took the storage bag from the manual, opening it casually to peer inside.

Though the storage bag was only the size of two hands, its interior boasted ten square meters of space. As expected, it contained a hundred high-grade spirit stones. What distinguished it from the grotto-heaven’s contents, however, was a woman’s garment. Its style and material both appeared quite extraordinary, likely fetching a good price if taken to an auction house.

Its weight was indeed considerable; perhaps one or two mortals wouldn’t be able to lift the storage bag, but for Quan Haoqing, it was effortless.

Quan Haoqing was thoroughly satisfied, and as an afterthought, he took the manual that had frozen mid-air into his hand.

“Greetings, esteemed one. There are a few matters I wish to inquire about.”

“A ghost! Huh? Oh?”

It had been wondering why the weight on its back had suddenly become as light as a feather, when a person abruptly appeared before it, startling it.

Immediately afterwards, the Xuan Yin Book Spirit was overjoyed. [This truly is a golden age of cultivation! Even in my master’s era, there was only one individual possessing innate pure yang qi. To encounter two such opportunities today—my fortune is truly profound! My path is destined not to be solitary!]

Though the Book Spirit was ecstatic, Quan Haoqing could only shake his head regretfully. He had already settled on his primary cultivation technique, and at this stage, he couldn’t simultaneously cultivate two different paths, especially given that these were clearly yin and yang, two extremes.

Still, even if he couldn’t use it now, he might be able to in the future. More importantly, he was simply curious!

His own Book Spirit had piqued his interest more than once before. He flipped open the pages, and his gaze was instantly drawn to the cultivation requirements.

The first condition he met perfectly, so he could disregard it.

But the second condition!!!

Quan Haoqing felt a sudden pang in his lower body and decisively closed the manual, abandoning any thought of cultivating it.

“Ahem, let’s just auction this off.”