After three hours of cultivation, Xu Wanci finally sheathed her Nine Heavens Sword and sat by the dark jade table to regulate her spiritual energy.
The illusory leaves drifted down with the wind, yet none dared to disturb her, veering away from her presence.
Half an incense stick later, she opened her eyes.
Before resuming her practice, she picked up the light blue cup on the dark jade table, took a casual sip, and rose to her feet.
High in the sky, as if reflected in a mirror, Xiao Yuyan also sat by a dark jade table, his slender fingers wrapped around a cup of clear tea. He raised it in a toast—yet across from him, there was no one.
Only solitude and melancholy lingered on the ground beneath him.
The only flicker of light in the emptiness was the rain-transforming flower woven from spiritual energy, swaying gently in the wind.
"Wanci!"
Just as Xu Wanci stood to continue her sword practice, a familiar voice called out from the entrance.
In the next moment, a familiar figure darted through the doorway and appeared before her.
Jiang Qiuning wore a pale yellow martial robe, its collar embroidered with dark golden cloud orchids, while her belt was crafted from hollowed gold and jade—simple yet exquisitely ornate.
Her long hair was pinned up with a single hairpin, accentuating her delicate features.
Unlike her usual gentle and noble demeanor, she now carried an air of effortless confidence, as if she had shed some invisible burden and become more genuine.
She took Xu Wanci’s hands, her voice warm and lighter than ever before:
"Wanci, I’ve come to see you."
Xu Wanci stiffened for a moment before relaxing at the familiar presence, her voice tinged with hesitation:
"Qiuning."
Unbothered by the glaring sunlight on her face, Jiang Qiuning smiled brightly at her.
"Wanci, I had to rush back to the Jiang family last time and didn’t get to congratulate you properly."
"Congratulations on your breakthrough to the Divine Transformation realm."
She pulled out a three-thousand-year-old green jade thread, painstakingly retrieved from the Jiang family’s treasury, and with a flick of spiritual energy, fastened it to the Three-Leaf Lotus at Xu Wanci’s waist, replacing the previous six-grade spiritual cord.
"I searched for a long time."
"I thought this might be what Wanci needs most."
Knowing the significance of the Three-Leaf Lotus to Xu Wanci, she avoided direct contact, using only spiritual energy to handle it.
Xu Wanci tensed instinctively, her spiritual energy surging in defense—until she saw the focused expression on Jiang Qiuning’s face as she leaned in. The energy dissipated, and her gaze softened.
Jiang Qiuning was one of the few people she trusted.
A moment later, Jiang Qiuning straightened, beaming. "Do you like it, Wanci?"
Xu Wanci glanced down at her waist. Beneath the jade-green thread, the Three-Leaf Lotus rested peacefully against her robes, as it always had.
The previous cord that had held it had also been a gift from Jiang Qiuning—only to be lost in the Demon Realm.
She… had truly helped her so much.
Lifting her head, Xu Wanci met her gaze and answered sincerely, "Thank you, Qiuning. I love it."
As she did, she finally took in Jiang Qiuning’s current state. Her eyes flickered over the faint pallor of her face, her brow furrowing almost imperceptibly.
Jiang Qiuning… was injured?
Who could harm the Jiang family’s young mistress without provoking the Jiang family’s wrath?
And yet, far from being weighed down by her injuries, she seemed almost… liberated, as if they had brought her some unexpected relief.
A thought crossed Xu Wanci’s mind, but in the end, she said nothing.
Jiang Qiuning noticed her lingering gaze and, seeing that she didn’t press further, smiled even more genuinely.
The pain in her back was now a form of release.
She had finally defied her father’s will openly, confessing everything about her severed ties with Chu Qingchuan in the Jiang family ancestral hall.
The shackles that had bound her for decades had shattered with that single strike of Daoist law.
At last, she could be herself—not the gentle, poised Jiang family heiress Chu Qingchuan had adored.
Perhaps her father still cared for her. Or perhaps it was her close ties to Xu Wanci that made him tread carefully.
Even after dismantling decades of the Jiang family’s schemes, he had only told her to reflect—no confinement, no punishment.
Whether out of love or pragmatism, from this day forward, she was free.
A spirited glow lit Jiang Qiuning’s gentle features.
Her eyes fell on the Nine Heavens Sword in Xu Wanci’s hand, and without needing to ask, she knew she must have been training relentlessly.
Remembering how Xu Wanci used to practice day and night without rest, she tugged her hand lightly.
"Wanci, the last time I visited the Taiqing Sect, I was too caught up in other matters to appreciate the scenery here."
With an expectant expression, she said:
"Now that we finally have some free time, would you like to accompany me to see the scenery of the Taiqing Sect, Xu Wanci?"
Knowing Xu Wanci was devoted to cultivation, she quickly added:
"Just one... no, half an hour will do. Think of it as a stroll to relax."
Xu Wanci looked at the faint plea in Jiang Qiuning's eyes and swallowed her words of refusal.
In the original story, Jiang Qiuning's entire life revolved around Chu Qingchuan. She and the Jiang family were the male lead's greatest advantage.
She suppressed her own desires, restrained her cultivation, and offered all rare treasures to Chu Qingchuan.
In the end, the Jiang family declined under his constant exploitation, and Jiang Qiuning gradually lost her true self, becoming nothing more than the poised and proper Daoist companion of Chu Qingchuan.
Gazing at the lively and carefree figure before her now, Xu Wanci softly replied:
"Alright."
The spiritual peak adjacent to the Sword Summit was Luolin Peak, where spiritual energy overflowed, and the soil was a rare treasure even in the cultivation world.
This was the Taiqing Sect's dedicated area for cultivating spiritual plants. Even inner disciples were forbidden from entering without permission or an assigned task.
Xu Wanci was unaware of this. As she walked along the foot of the mountain, admiring the lush greenery, she encountered no obstacles.
Jiang Qiuning, walking beside her, seemed about to say something but swallowed her words upon seeing the subtle curiosity in Xu Wanci's calm expression.
The two strolled quietly through Luolin Peak.
As they ventured deeper, the spiritual plants around them gradually shifted from third-grade to fourth-grade, then fifth-grade.
Xu Wanci gazed at the scenery ahead, her mood slowly unwinding.
Since arriving in the cultivation world, she had been constantly on edge. Even in safe surroundings, she had no choice but to train relentlessly to survive.
She had never experienced such a leisurely and peaceful moment—time itself seemed to slow.
Just then, her steps faltered slightly as she noticed a Brightsweet Tree laden with fruit in the distance.
She remembered that Brightsweet Fruit was one of the most delicious spiritual fruits in the original story—refreshingly sweet with a rich, fragrant aroma.
Though its spiritual effects were weak, merely enhancing the fragrance of pills, it was a delicacy cherished by many cultivators.
She wondered—what did Brightsweet Fruit truly taste like?
She had long mastered the art of controlling her expressions. No matter what she thought, her face remained as composed as ever.
Even when lost in thought, her eyes would unconsciously carry a trace of sorrow and melancholy she herself never noticed.
Jiang Qiuning's gaze never left Xu Wanci.
She immediately noticed the pause in her steps and the flicker of emotion as she looked at the Brightsweet Tree.
She had always known that the only thing capable of stirring Xu Wanci's emotions was the Qingyan Immortal.
Was it this tree?
Did it remind her of him again?
At this thought, Jiang Qiuning's eyes filled with irrepressible tenderness and concern.
High above in the heavens, Xiao Yuyan thought the same.
Despite the bitterness in his chest, he stubbornly refused to look away.
He knew that apart from the "him" of the past, Xu Wanci cared for no one else.
So even though Jiang Qiuning's presence annoyed him, he had never truly regarded her as a threat.
Xiao Yuyan gazed at the Brightsweet Tree below, his fingertips gathering threads of Heavenly Dao energy:
It was just a memory related to "him."
All he had to do was overwrite it.
Let her forget the past when she thought of the Brightsweet Tree—remember only this moment.
The moment he did this for her.
In the heavens, boundless Heavenly Dao energy silently descended upon the distant Brightsweet Tree.
A brilliant radiance erupted around the tree as its grade began to ascend rapidly.
Fifth-grade, sixth-grade, seventh-grade... until it stabilized at ninth-grade.
Thick spiritual energy condensed into a gentle rain, showering Xu Wanci.
The aura of a ninth-grade spiritual plant breached Luolin Peak's barrier, spreading across half the sect.
Xu Wanci inhaled the increasingly sweet and intoxicating fragrance, lowering her eyes to conceal her surprise:
Had a ninth-grade Brightsweet Tree appeared in the original story?
She found no answer, attributing it to mere coincidence.
Beside her, Jiang Qiuning's expression was uncharacteristically stunned.
In mere moments, a spiritual plant had leapt from fifth-grade to ninth-grade.
Such a miracle had likely never been witnessed in the cultivation world.
Soon, Ning Menglan and several elders arrived, drawn by the commotion.
Staring at the ninth-grade Brightsweet Tree, Ning Menglan was dumbfounded. Suppressing his shock, he asked in a trembling voice:
"Xu Wanci, Young Mistress Jiang... do you know what just happened?"
Brightsweet Trees were inherently limited to fifth-grade at most—ninth-grade had never existed in the cultivation world.
Yet now, the Taiqing Sect possessed one!
Xu Wanci briefly recounted what had transpired.
Ning Menglan summarized her words, her voice drifting faintly: "So, it was just an accident."
For centuries, the Taiqing Sect had never encountered such a heaven-sent 'accident' like this.
Xie Tingbai plucked a Brightsweet Fruit and examined it with his spiritual energy, his tone thoughtful:
"A ninth-grade Brightsweet Fruit seems to enhance the final potency of elixirs."
"If it were used in refining the Qiyun Elixir, even a single pill could rival the effects of the Xuan Yun Orchid."
Ning Menglan and the others wore expressions of shock mixed with barely contained delight:
"The ninth-grade Brightsweet Fruit actually has such an effect!"
The higher the grade of an elixir, the harder it is to improve even slightly—yet that slight improvement was enough to stir anyone's heart.
Imagine a Nascent Soul Formation Pill, which originally had only a seventy percent success rate. With the addition of the Brightsweet Fruit, the probability could rise to eighty percent or even higher!
At this thought, Ning Menglan's breathing grew noticeably faster.
Listening to their discussion, Xu Wanci lowered her gaze slightly, as if lost in thought, staring at a pale blue Lifespan Blossom in the distance:
If the ninth-grade Brightsweet Fruit truly had such an effect, the original novel would have mentioned it.
But now, this world seemed to be diverging more and more from the original story.
High above, Xiao Yuyan's eyes never lingered on anyone else.
Amid the crowd, his gaze was fixed solely on Xu Wanci.
Noticing her attention on the Lifespan Blossom, he pressed his lips together slightly, as if trying to draw her focus. With a flick of his fingers, the power of the Heavenly Dao surged once more, descending upon the spot where her gaze rested.
And so, everyone witnessed the breathtaking sight of a fourth-grade Lifespan Blossom ascending in rank.
Azure-blue spiritual energy churned violently around the flower, growing denser and more radiant—fifth-grade, sixth-grade… it didn’t stop even at ninth-grade.
Finally, it stabilized at half-step Immortal grade.
Half-step Immortal grade!
What was once a mere fourth-grade flower, capable of extending the lifespan of only a Nascent Soul cultivator, had now become a supreme treasure that could grant longevity even to Tribulation Transcendence experts!
This was a treasure countless supreme elders across the cultivation world had dreamed of but could never find!
Jiang Qiuning stared at the Lifespan Blossom, her spiritual energy roiling uncontrollably, her eyes alight with desire.
Xu Wanci’s expression remained calm, but inwardly, she had her answer:
Perhaps she truly had inherited half of Chu Qingchuan’s fortune.
So this was what it felt like to be blessed by overwhelming destiny?
Wherever she went, opportunities abounded.
Snapping out of her thoughts, she sensed the shift in aura beside her and turned to Jiang Qiuning:
"Do you want it?"
Jiang Qiuning nodded reflexively.
The Jiang family had only one elder at the late-stage Tribulation Transcendence realm—the Jiang Patriarch.
His existence was the very foundation of the Jiang family’s status as the foremost noble clan in the cultivation world.
But the Patriarch’s lifespan was nearing its end, with only a mere decade or so left. There was no time left to wait for fate to intervene.
Yet with this Lifespan Blossom…
Jiang Qiuning jolted back to reality. Instead of directly asking for it, she spoke with solemn sincerity:
"Wanci, I can offer you a Jiang family treasure in exchange."
"Whatever treasure you desire—even if the Jiang family doesn’t possess it, we will spare no effort to obtain it for you."
Xu Wanci didn’t answer immediately. Instead, she glanced at Ning Menglan, whose hands trembled slightly.
Ning Menglan and the others had all noticed Xu Wanci’s earlier gaze upon the Lifespan Blossom.
All their doubts were dispelled in that moment.
The ascension of these two spirit plants had nothing to do with the Taiqing Sect—it was all because of Xu Wanci.
Her overwhelming fortune had triggered such a miraculous phenomenon.
Taking a deep breath, Ning Menglan declared:
"The Lifespan Blossom’s ascension is tied to Wanci’s destiny."
"Its fate rests in her hands. The Taiqing Sect will raise no objections."
The other elders nodded in agreement.
Even the eldest among them, the Grand Elder, still had millennia of lifespan left—there was no need for the flower now.
Hearing Ning Menglan’s response, Xu Wanci turned back to Jiang Qiuning and said earnestly:
"I’d like the Verdant Jade Thread in exchange. That will suffice."
Jiang Qiuning inhaled sharply, her voice thick with gratitude:
"Wanci, wait for me—just a little while."
How fortunate she was to have a friend like Xu Wanci.
If not for her, she might still be trapped under her father’s control, bound to Chu Qingchuan for life.
She activated a communication talisman with a flick of spiritual energy.
As the voice on the other end spoke, she straightened her posture with pride. Even facing her formidable father, her tone carried the innate arrogance of the Jiang family’s young mistress:
"Father."
Whatever was said in response made her brow arch slightly.
"Wanci has found a half-step Immortal-grade Lifespan Blossom—"
Before she could finish, everyone heard the stunned exclamation from the talisman:
"What?!"
After a pause, the Jiang family head’s voice turned dazed:
"Qiuning… you’re not deceiving me, are you?"
"What did you say you found?"
"It was Wanci who found it," Jiang Qiuning corrected.
At this point, she glanced playfully at Xu Wanci beside her, though her tone remained haughty:
"Father, if it’s convenient for you, you may send someone to retrieve it."
"However, this item is precious. Surely you wouldn’t hesitate to part with one of the Jiang family’s Ten Great Treasures—the Dust-Sealed Crystal."
The Dust-Sealed Crystal was a near-immortal-grade treasure, capable of aiding cultivators in launching divine sense attacks—precisely the kind of treasure Xu Wanci could use now.
The Jiang family patriarch’s voice was firm and decisive:
"I will personally bring the Dust-Sealed Crystal to the Taiqing Sect."
"Qiuning, you must protect the Lifebloom Flower at all costs!"
After ending the communication talisman, Jiang Qiuning hugged Xu Wanci tightly:
"Wanci, thank you so much."
Xu Wanci patted her back lightly, her voice tinged with helplessness:
"You’ve already offered a treasure in exchange. There’s no need for thanks."
In the following days, word of the events at the Taiqing Sect spread far and wide, and everyone came to realize just how formidable Xu Wanci’s fortune was.
Numerous esteemed elders paid visits to the sect.
Though none received a treasure as rare as the Lifebloom Flower, most left with at least a single Radiant Sweetfruit.
The sect leader of the Wuji Sect, who had exchanged a few words with Xu Wanci, even obtained a Cloudwing Butterfly.
People couldn’t help but marvel:
Who said Chu Qingchuan was the Child of Fortune?
Clearly, Xu Wanci was the true one!
Chu Qingchuan had spent decades at the Taiqing Sect—what had he ever brought them? What had he ever given the Jiang family?
In just a year since her rise to fame, Xu Wanci had already rescued Taiqing Sect disciples from an ancient battlefield, discovered a spiritual vein for the sect, not to mention the Qiyun Elixir and now the Radiant Sweetfruit.
Even the Jiang family, who had a somewhat closer relationship with her, received the Lifebloom Flower they desperately needed!
For a time, all the sects and noble families treated the Taiqing Sect as if they were sworn brothers.
The Bai family, however, stood apart from the joy of the others.
On Chu Qingchuan’s very first day at the Bai residence, he subdued the Netherghost Gu that had been passed down in their family for centuries.
Just like that, the Bai family’s treasured heirloom became his spirit beast.
Before they could even mourn the loss, the century-old Veinroot Ginseng hidden deep within their ancestral home was coincidentally discovered by Chu Qingchuan—and coincidentally absorbed by him.
In just a few days, the entire Bai household fell into a deathly silence.
The Bai family patriarch listened to his subordinate’s report about the events at the Taiqing Sect, his face darkening.
Once the subordinate left, he turned to his youngest daughter, Bai Wanyi, whose delicate features gave her an air of innocent purity.
"Wanyi, our family has never been one for charity."
"If we let Chu Qingchuan stay in our ancestral home any longer, who knows what else might happen?"
Bai Wanyi blinked her almond-shaped eyes innocently:
"What does Father intend to do, then?"
"I’ve heard Chu Qingchuan returned safely from the Soul-Eater Forest," the patriarch stroked his beard thoughtfully. "There are many spiritual treasures within it."
If Chu Qingchuan truly possessed extraordinary fortune, he would return alive.
If not… well, that would be just as well.
At least it would free the Bai family to curry favor with the true Child of Fortune.
"The Soul-Eater Forest is too dangerous," Bai Wanyi fretted, twisting the fabric of her sleeve. "What if something happens to him?"
Then she lifted her head, her expression earnest:
"In that case, I’ll use this time to coax as many treasures as I can from Chu Qingchuan."
She pressed her lips together, sighing softly:
"If he really meets misfortune, at least I’ll have these keepsakes to remember him by."
