Chapter 18: A Gift and a Misunderstanding

The brilliant moon hung high in the sky.

A delicate figure glided through the moonlight, traversing the distance in mere moments.

Ah Ling arrived before Hua Yaoyao’s manor.

Instead of knocking immediately, she gazed at the storage bag in her hand, lost in thought.

What lay within the storage bag was no mystery to her; after all, Qin Yangjun had not kept it from her, and she had been present during its selection.

Yet, the Third Elder had always doted on her disciple, meaning Hua Yaoyao was hardly lacking in such cultivation resources.

Her young master’s act of gifting these items to her seemed entirely unnecessary.

Moreover, the bag even contained some rather underwhelming magical artifacts, such as the Blazing Lightning Wings.

This particular flying artifact was a tricky one; while Golden Core cultivators could already fly on their swords, the Blazing Lightning Wings, though agile, were exceptionally troublesome to refine, involving an element of luck.

Even a slight error could lead to failure in refinement and the artifact’s self-destruction.

Though its destructive power might not be fatal, injury was all but guaranteed.

Rather than expending such effort on refining this, it would be far better for her master to simply provide her with something superior.

Thus, the contents of this storage bag were, for Hua Yaoyao, practically useless.

Nevertheless, as it was her young master’s instruction, Ah Ling dutifully prepared to comply.

She then knocked on the courtyard gate.

To her surprise, it was not Hua Yaoyao who opened the door, but someone else entirely…

Ah Ling distinctly remembered this person: the young girl her young master had insisted on keeping, despite considerable pressure.

That incident was still a popular topic of discussion among the disciples; she recalled the girl’s name was… Yu Lingyue.

But why was she here, in Hua Yaoyao’s manor?

“Why are you here?” Ah Ling directly questioned, voicing the doubt in her heart.

“It’s like this, Senior Sister…”

Yu Lingyue briefly explained the reason.

Their peak lacked sufficient residences, and since there was an empty room here, her master had temporarily settled her in this location.

“If Senior Sister is looking for Senior Sister Hua, she isn’t here at the moment. Is there anything you’d like me to convey?”

Ah Ling glanced at Yu Lingyue before her, then at the storage bag in her hand.

Suddenly, a realization dawned on Ah Ling.

‘My young master told me to bring these things to Hua Yaoyao, but he never actually said to give them to Hua Yaoyao, did he?!’

‘Could it be that these items were never intended for Hua Yaoyao in the first place?’

The more Ah Ling considered it, the more plausible it seemed.

While the contents of the storage bag were useless to Hua Yaoyao, they would be priceless treasures for a new disciple like Yu Lingyue, who was only at the Qi Refinement stage.

‘Coupled with the fact that my young master had previously gone against pressure to keep her…’

A logical conclusion formed in Ah Ling’s mind.

‘My young master has taken a liking to this person before me.’

‘Yes, this must be it. There’s no other explanation.’

At this thought, Ah Ling couldn’t help but scrutinize Yu Lingyue from head to toe.

Though her talent and appearance were acceptable, she was simply too weak, her cultivation only at the Qi Refinement stage.

Ah Ling’s intense gaze left Yu Lingyue feeling somewhat perplexed.

“Senior Sister, I don’t underst—”

Before Yu Lingyue could finish her sentence, Ah Ling thrust the storage bag forward, presenting it to her.

Yu Lingyue paused, startled, then pointed to herself, a look of disbelief on her face.

“Senior Brother gave this to me? Senior Sister, you must have the wrong person.”

Ah Ling, however, shook her head.

“It is for you.”

Seeing Yu Lingyue hesitate, she simply tucked the storage bag directly into Yu Lingyue’s arms.

Yu Lingyue clutched the storage bag and glanced down; when she looked up again, Ah Ling had already vanished.

Yu Lingyue scanned her surroundings, finding no trace of Ah Ling, then finally looked at the storage bag in her hands, feeling utterly bewildered.

Upon inspecting it, she discovered a substantial trove of resources: elixirs, several Profound-tier cultivation techniques, and even magical artifacts.

With these items, she could guarantee reaching the peak of Qi Refinement within a month.

Moreover, her combat prowess would double.

But at this moment, an inexpressible sentiment stirred within Yu Lingyue.

She was not so foolish as to miss the implications: from the assistance on Trial Mountain to the delivery of cultivation resources now, these repeated gestures of goodwill.

‘Could he truly be interested in me?’

Due to past experiences, Yu Lingyue harbored a slight aversion to others’ romantic pursuits.

However, precisely because her past experiences had been so bizarre, she found herself momentarily struggling to adapt to what seemed like normal overtures.

She didn’t dislike Qin Yangjun, the Senior Brother; on the contrary, she felt a slight fondness for him.

Even so, she couldn’t comfortably accept gifts from others.

Besides, he had already helped her once, and her master was not stingy with resources either.

‘Tomorrow, I should return these things to Senior Brother. As for our relationship, perhaps we can take it one step at a time…’

Yu Lingyue thought, her cheeks faintly flushed, deciding to visit the Senior Brother who had consistently helped her.

In a flash, the next day arrived.

Yu Lingyue, carrying the storage bag, arrived before Qin Yangjun’s mountain manor.

Just as she was about to knock, a female voice drifted out from within.

“Young Master, do you truly think so highly of that Junior Sister?”

A hint of confusion clouded Ah Ling’s face.

‘While Yu Lingyue is indeed beautiful and possesses ample potential, such individuals are not unheard of in the Yuqian Sect.

Yueyao is an excellent example.’

‘Moreover, Yueyao is significantly stronger than Yu Lingyue.’

‘She has both strength and background.’

‘In her opinion, Yueyao, with her status and power, is a perfect match for our young master.

Why bother pursuing Yu Lingyue?’

Yu Lingyue’s hand, poised to knock, froze.

‘Are they talking about me?’

Qin Yangjun, who was currently eating breakfast, paused slightly, wondering why the question sounded so odd.

‘That Junior Sister she’s referring to must be Hua Yaoyao.’

‘Even though Ah Ling is my maidservant, she joined the sect earlier than Hua Yaoyao and is stronger than her, so calling Hua Yaoyao ‘Junior Sister’ is perfectly fine.’

Qin Yangjun then set down his chopsticks, stating with utmost seriousness:

“Of course, I think highly of her.”

“But Young Master, despite her good talent, she is ultimately too weak right now.”

‘Though Yu Lingyue possesses a Celestial-grade spiritual root, she unfortunately lacks any significant background.

Even with the Third Elder’s full dedication to her cultivation, her growth rate would never rival that of Qin Yangjun, who is nurtured with the entire sect’s resources.’

‘Perhaps she could be a concubine, but she is certainly not worth our young master actively pursuing.’

Qin Yangjun merely offered a faint smile.

Hua Yaoyao’s early Golden Core cultivation was indeed commendable, but compared to the Nascent Soul stage, it was truly a world apart.

He then patiently explained:

“Compared to you, Junior Sister is indeed much weaker.

However, we shouldn’t dismiss her simply because of her current weakness; everyone holds infinite possibilities.”

Qin Yangjun harbored no doubts about Hua Yaoyao’s future accomplishments.

Qin Yangjun knew well that she possessed a Phoenix bloodline.

The day it awakened, her cry would reverberate through the nine heavens.

Furthermore, the chaotic connections brought about by this bloodline – if he could draw those relationships to his side – ‘She would undoubtedly become a golden asset in later battles against the protagonist’s group.’

‘Perhaps in the future, he could even rely on her to avoid the fate of being “lit like a sky lantern” (TL Note: A brutal method of execution where a person is burned alive, often by being hung upside down and set alight, like a sky lantern).’

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