“In the end, what are you trying to achieve by hiding your identity from her? If you can’t explain it to me clearly, don’t blame me for taking your life!”

　　Qin Xi was silent for a long time before he lightly said, “If I didn’t hide my identity from her, she wouldn’t have stayed at Xuanqing School.”

　　“Stay at Xuanqing School?” Zhong Muling was a bit surprised but soon asked in a heavy tone, “What do you want to do now that she decided to stay at Xuanqing School?”

　　Although a wry smile appeared on Qin Xi’s face, he still answered bluntly, “What could be done if she didn’t stay at Xuanqing School?”

　　Zhong Muling’s heart sank. He naturally understood the meaning behind Qin Xi’s words. An Aura Refining female cultivator with a special body constitution with no patron backing her—how long could she live in the cultivation world? On second thought, he also perceived one more meaning behind Qin Xi’s words. If Mo Tiange didn’t stay at Xuanqing School, this brat himself also wouldn’t be able to help her.

　　His tone eased down slightly. “So you mean you’re doing all of this out of good will?”

　　This time, Qin Xi didn’t immediately answer. After a long while, he finally said, “I don’t know if Senior’s aware of the matter between me and her father?”

　　Mo Tiange talked to him about it before, so Zhong Muling uttered a “hmph” and said, “I heard about it.”

　　Qin Xi chuckled. “There are some matters she isn’t clear about. Presumably, Senior also isn’t aware of them yet.” He paused for a moment before he continued slowly. “Twenty years ago, before her father died, he helped me escape and told me to take care of his wife and daughter. At that time, he promised me one thing.”

　　Surprised, Zhong Muling asked, “What thing?”

　　Qin Xi explained slowly, word by word: “In the future, all matters regarding her Dual Cultivation would be decided by me.”

　　Once he finished, the surroundings sank into an eerie silence.

　　All of a sudden, there was a spiritual aura fluctuation. Zhong Muling silently appeared in front of Qin Xi, looking completely ashen. “Decided by you?”

　　With a wave of his sleeve, spiritual aura pressure was released. Qin Xi once again fell to the floor; his existing injuries were compounded.

　　Zhong Muling’s expression looked heavy. “Are you trying to say her father promised her to you?”

　　Despite his severe injuries, Qin Xi still displayed a smile and answered unyieldingly, “Senior may interpret it however Senior likes.”

　　“Then how about you? How did you interpret it?”

　　“Me?” Qin Xi wiped the bloodstain at the corner of his lips and sat up. “Before her uncle passed away, I already agreed that I would never force her if she wasn’t willing.”

　　Zhong Muling said nothing further. His expression constantly changed; sometimes, he looked severe, and other times, he looked relaxed. He kept glaring at Qin Xi’s pale, almost bloodless face.

　　Qin Xi didn’t look at him. He wasn’t afraid in the slightest and had a completely calm expression on his face.

　　“Aling!” Inside the hut, there was a spiritual aura fluctuation once again. Yuan Bao, who suddenly appeared, stared at Qin Xi with full interest and said to Zhong Muling, “Don’t you think… Dual Cultivation is a good idea?”

　　Zhong Muling’s expression turned ugly. He cast an angry gaze at Yuan Bao.

　　Yuan Bao just shrugged and said in an innocent manner, “Fine, Dual Cultivation isn’t a good idea. However, this boy has Yang Spiritual Bead inside his body and two spiritual roots, metal and fire—his Yang aura is tremendous. Allowing him to become Tiange’s Human Furnace isn’t bad either.”

　　Upon hearing what Yuan Bao said, Qin Xi’s expression instantly changed. He raised his head to look at the two people in front of him.

　　Zhong Muling’s expression gradually eased down. After muttering irresolutely for a while, he slowly nodded. “What you said is quite reasonable.”

　　The two people then stared at Qin Xi. It was as if they were deciding whether or not he could live up to their standards.

　　The spiritual aura inside Qin Xi’s body ran amok. Because fury was flourishing in his heart, he suddenly vomited a mouthful of blood.

　　Yuan Bao made a “tsk tsk” noise then crouched down and grabbed Qin Xi’s hand. A surge of spiritual breath instantly rushed into Qin Xi’s body. “It won’t do for a Human Furnace to be this weak. Aling, let me raise this boy well, will you? Hehe, he has Yang Spiritual Bead in his body; it isn’t much different from having a Pure Yang Constitution. He’s actually quite suitable for learning from me.”

　　Zhong Muling “hmphed” and flung his sleeve. In a flash, he disappeared from inside the hut, leaving behind his voice: “Just take him if you like. What are you asking me first for?”

　　—

　　“Human Furnace…”

　　Qin Xi muttered those two words softly and opened his eyes.

　　He had never gone through such humiliation in his whole life!

　　He knew that although those two men beat him to a critical state, they had given him a lot of benefits. Even if there was no gratitude between them, they also didn’t have animosity between them. However, he really couldn’t swallow such humiliation!

　　Human Furnace… They actually wanted him to be a Human Furnace!

　　Ever since he was a child, he already practiced Dao School’s mental cultivation method, so the idea of using a Human Furnace had never once crossed his mind. He never expected that there would be a day when someone wanted to turn him into a Human Furnace instead!

　　Qin Xi closed his eyes and tried to calm down.

　　Since he entered Mount Taikang at eight years old, there had never been a time when his mind was volatile like it was now. With a Nascent Soul cultivator as an elder, his cultivation always progressed quickly and no one dared to show him attitude. Even when he went out of the school by himself, he always had enough resources to sustain his life.

　　During those few short days, the Deification cultivator known as Yuan Bao passed him a set of incantations and fed him a lot of strange things. Some caused him so much pain that he wished he was dead, while others caused his cultivation level to advance at an alarming speed. He was practically toyed to death. Furthermore, when he left, Yuan Bao snickered mischievously and told him that he had to form his Nascent Soul soon so he could be a good Human Furnace.

　　Recalling those memories, Qin Xi once again clenched his fists; his lips were pursed tightly.

　　Human Furnace! His pride made him unable to tell his master about these matters, so he could only bury them deep within his heart.

　　The incantations Yuan Bao gave him caused his constitution to become more and more similar to a Pure Yang Constitution, so many of the potential barriers during realm-breakthroughs would be increasingly easier for him to deal with. For him, this was actually an enormous gain. Had they not done anything outrageous, he would certainly be grateful towards them. However, not only did they humiliate him, but they also made him feel worried. If those two people really wanted to make him into a Human Furnace after his cultivation realm advanced, what should he do?

　　He didn’t dislike Mo Tiange, nor would he deny once having different thoughts about her. But that only happened for a short while. Before he could achieve the Great Dao, he couldn’t be distracted by other things. The matter of Dual Cultivation was also out of his scope. It was just that after this happened, he would feel extremely embarrassed every time he saw her! This kind of embarrassment didn’t have anything to do with her, but it made him not want to see her.

　　He had been pondering for a long time on how to solve this problem. If he continued practicing the incantations, his Pure Yang aura would continue to flourish until his constitution became very similar to a Pure Yang Constitution, and it also meant… he would be even more suitable to become the Human Furnace they talked about. Nevertheless, if he didn’t practice them, the speed of his cultivation wouldn’t be as quick; he might even be trapped in the Nascent Soul realm, unable to advance to the Deification realm for the rest of his life…

　　Therefore, he finally decided that not only would he practice those incantations, but he would also do it quickly. He would form his Nascent Soul as quickly as possible then advance to the Deification realm. It was only after he entered the Deification realm and had control over his own fate that he would be able to erase this shame!

　　Qin Xi took a deep breath, stood up and walked out of his cave.

　　His injuries were all healed. In the past two years, his cultivation level also progressed. After a few days, he could start preparing to break through to the late stage of the Core Formation realm. He had a very good grasp of his abilities. He would spend another twenty to thirty years until he reached the peak stage of the Core Formation realm then he could try forming his Nascent Soul. He was 143 years old right now; with the assumption that he would spend around fifty years in total, there was a huge chance he could advance to the Nascent Soul realm when he was around 200 years old.

　　As for how many years he would have to spend after he advanced to the Nascent Soul realm, he still didn’t know.

　　Lord Daoist Jinghe entered the Nascent Soul realm when he was 400 years old, and he was already more than 800 years old now. Although he stayed in the Nascent Soul realm for more than 400 years, he was still only in the middle stage of the Nascent Soul realm. Even now, he still couldn’t reach the doorstep of the late stage.

　　Qin Xi’s aptitude was worse than his master’s. He was only able to reach his current cultivation realm because he had Yang Spiritual Bead inside his body and a resolute heart. But after entering the Nascent Soul realm, these probably wouldn’t provide him with any additional benefits…

　　He was still walking absent-mindedly when he suddenly heard noises ahead of him. Startled, his footsteps halted.  This place is…

　　—

　　“Tiange, congratulations! Within such a short period of time, you’ve already been formally accepted by grandmaster as his formal disciple! You really make me jealous to death! Ah, wrong, I should call you ‘Martial Uncle’ now.”

　　Mo Tiange was packing up the things from her previous cave while chatting with Luo Fengxue. When she heard what Luo Fengxue said, she couldn’t help but chuckle and say, “Senior Martial Sister Luo, you’re making me nervous by calling me ‘Martial Uncle’.”

　　“Nervous about what?” Luo Fengxue righteously said, “You’re grandmaster’s formal disciple. I naturally have to call you ‘Martial Uncle.’ You shouldn’t call me ‘Senior Martial Sister’ anymore; right now, I can’t afford being addressed like that. Besides, it wouldn’t be good if others heard it.”

　　“Then… All right, Fengxue.”

　　Upon being addressed like this, a smile blossomed on Luo Fengxue’s face. “Unexpectedly, it’s only now that I can hear you calling me by my name. Martial Uncle Mo, I think you’re a very guarded person…”

　　She said “Martial Uncle Mo” in a teasing tone, but it made Mo Tiange blush with shame. What Luo Fengxue said wasn’t wrong. Mo Tiange was simply unwilling to get too close with others, so she had been unwilling to call Luo Fengxue by her name. On the other hand, Luo Fengxue was always sincere in how she treated Mo Tiange. Truth to be told, Mo Tiange had indeed wronged Luo Fengxue.

　　“Fengxue, I…”

　　“Forget it, no need to explain.” Luo Fengxue smiled and said, “I understand. You’ve had a rough life, so you’re always wary of others. If you weren’t brought back by Martial Uncle Shoujing and accepted as a disciple by grandmaster, I also wouldn’t have treated you this sincerely.”

　　What Luo Fengxue said made Mo Tiange feel a bit better and less guilty. Hence, she smiled and said, “All right, Fengxue, since I won’t be living here anymore, you can have the medicinal garden. If any newcomers are arranged to live here in the future, you can decide whether you want to relocate it or not.”

　　“Got it! Since you’re now grandmaster’s formal disciple, I’m going to be blunt. The spiritual plants we bought last time in Danding School are still in my hands—I want all of them. You don’t have any objections, right?”

　　Mo Tiange burst out laughing. “Of course! I’m now the senior, so of course I can’t argue with my junior.”

　　“Ha! You’re adapting to your new identity quite quickly; now you’re already flaunting your identity as a senior in front of me. Hmph! Anyway, I’ve taken the real advantage here, so I won’t fight you over this status change.”

　　After chatting for a while, Luo Fengxue finally led Mo Tiange to meet Master Daoist Xuanyin.

　　During the battle two years ago, both Luo Fengxue and Wei Jiasi were injured. Wei Jiasi’s injuries were severe, so she was still recuperating. Luo Fengxue’s condition was very good now; she even obtained medicinal pills and so on as a reward from the school. As for Han Qingyu, because she was injured some time ago, she was currently in Closed Door Meditation to recuperate. Therefore, when Mo Tiange returned, she only saw Luo Fengxue.

　　As they approached Master Daoist Xuanyin’s Immortal’s Cave, the disciples guarding the door hastily came over and greeted them. “Greetings to Martial Uncle Mo, Senior Martial Sister Luo.”

　　Mo Tiange was quite flabbergasted. Was news of her being accepted as a formal disciple already all over Clear Spring Peak?

　　Luo Fengxue quietly whispered to her, “Right after grandmaster came back, he said you were courageous enough to fight a fifth rank demonic beast by yourself in this war and lived up to Clear Spring Peak’s prestige. Therefore, he directly declared he accepted you as his formal disciple.”

　　So that was what happened. No wonder the door-keeping disciples already changed the way they addressed her.

　　When they entered the hall, Master Daoist Xuanyin was meditating with his eyes closed. Luo Fengxue called, “Master!”

　　Master Daoist Xuanyin opened his eyes. He swept his gaze over the two of them before fixating on Mo Tiange. “Tiange, how are you?”

　　Mo Tiange stepped forward and greeted him politely, “Martial Uncle Xuanyin, I’m all right. Forgive me for worrying everyone.”

　　Master Daoist Xuanyin stroked his long beard. A smile appeared on his face. “Since you’ve already been accepted by master as his formal disciple, you don’t need to call me ‘Martial Uncle’ anymore. Calling me ‘Senior Martial Brother’ will do.”

　　“Yes,” Mo Tiange corrected herself. “Senior Martial Brother Xuanyin, the grace you showed me through several years of teaching, Tiange will never forget. I’m leaving today, so I came here to say my thanks.”

　　“This child…” Master Daoist Xuanyin stared at her affectionately. She took two years to build her foundation but also disappeared for two years; if they were technical about it, he didn’t even teach her for three years. However, they were still master and disciple in all aspects except in name.

　　“Tiange, since you’re already master’s disciple, you have to work even harder in your cultivation in the future. You mustn’t bring shame to master’s name, understand?”

　　“I will definitely follow Senior Martial Brother Xuanyin’s instructions.”

　　“En. We still have a lot of chances to meet in the future, so we don’t need to be too sad. Go!”

　　“Yes.”

　　Having solemnly conveyed her thanks, Mo Tiange retreated and followed Luo Fengxue out.

　　“Okay, Fengxue, I’m going back to my cave. You can always visit me whenever you have free time.”

　　With a smile, Luo Fengxue stepped forwards to give her a brief hug. “Got it.” Although Mo Tiange said that, Luo Fengxue knew very well in her heart that their chances to meet up in the future would be few and far between. Was Grandmaster Jinghe’s Immortal’s Cave a place she could go to frequently?

　　After saying goodbye to Luo Fengxue, Mo Tiange turned around. She was about to continue walking when she saw someone standing not too far from her with a rather unhappy expression.

　　It was Qin Xi.

　　It had been more than two years since they last saw each other—since they separated at Luoyan Cliff, to be exact. That year, when they came out of Zhong Muling’s Virtual Sky World, Qin Xi’s expression already didn’t look good. Now, the way he was looking at her was indescribably complicated. It seemed a bit nostalgic but at the same time, it also carried a sense of alienation. Furthermore, he looked conflicted and had a very cold attitude.

　　Mo Tiange stopped walking. Just like his gaze, her feelings too were indescribably complicated. Should she greet him and ask how he was doing? One moment she felt unwilling if she didn’t greet him, the next she felt she shouldn’t care about him. Nevertheless, she eventually took a step forward then walked towards Qin Xi with a smile on her face.

　　In the next second, however, Qin Xi lowered his gaze, turned around and walked away without the slightest hesitation.

　　She was stunned.

　　He… he didn’t walk away because he didn’t see her; he walked away because he didn’t want to talk to her!

　　Her heart suddenly felt as if it was stifled, though she couldn’t tell whether it was because she was angry or disappointed.

　　“Tiange?”

　　Mo Tiange turned around and saw that Luo Fengxue was watching her with confusion. Presumably, she also saw what just happened.

　　After taking a deep breath, Mo Tiange smiled at Luo Fengxue. “It’s all right. I’ll head back first.”

　　“… Okay.” Luo Fengxue answered with uncertainty. She hesitated for a moment, but in the end, she still didn’t tell Mo Tiange about the matter regarding the so-called Senior Martial Brother Qin.

　　Regarding this matter, she really shouldn’t meddle as an outsider. Besides, Tiange was also her martial uncle now.

　　Upon returning to her new Immortal’s Cave, Mo Tiange sat in the sitting room for quite a while.

　　In this cave, every piece of furniture and every small object was left behind by someone else. It felt as if it was filled with past years that didn’t belong to her.

　　Its previous owner had perhaps been like her, sitting there drinking some tea, chatting with some people, or perhaps just contemplating quietly. Maybe he previously also meditated in the cultivating room and flipped through those books; after all, his handwriting was still on those papers. The concocting room, refining room, bedroom… traces of his existence could be found in every one of those rooms.

　　Eventually, a faint smile appeared on her face. She stood up, took a deep breath and started to put everything inside those rooms into an empty Qiankun Bag. Whether it was the table, chairs or books, none of them were hers. Hence, it’d be better for her to replace all of them.

　　“Martial Uncle Mo!” A surprised cry came through.

　　Mo Tiange tossed a glance towards the direction where the sound came from. Two female cultivators were standing in the doorway, watching her with astonishment.

　　“What? Is there something wrong?” she asked expressionlessly.

　　“What are you doing?”

　　“Tidying up my cave.”

　　“Huh?”

　　Mo Tiange glanced coldly at them. “What? Didn’t you say I could deal with these objects inside this cave as I wished? Is it wrong if I don’t want them?”

　　“This…” The two female cultivators stared at her, feeling completely helpless. They did say such things, but it never once crossed their minds that this Martial Uncle Mo would throw away all Martial Uncle Shoujing’s belongings!