“It seems like everyone’s here.”

Auntie Yimin walked up to the desk and took a seat next to Jing’er, who was seated opposite Hei. Xiaoli took a seat next to her and threw a glance at Honghuo, which she retracted before anyone could notice. Next to Hei, Honghuo was seated with Ju Li on his lap.

Hei rolled up the last of the notes he had just finished taking and popped them into his sleeve, where they disappeared into his storage space.

“The Crimson Moon Sect is effectively disbanded.”

“I’ll say. We didn’t run into a single member on our way here. Was that your doing?”

“Partly. I aided Matriarch Radiant Jade of the Radiant Jade Sect.”

Hearing this name, Jing’er’s ears perked up.

“Matriarch Radiant Jade is here too? Why is that?”

Hei turned his gaze to Jing’er.

“That reminds me. You have a marriage arrangement with the matriarch’s daughter, do you not?”

“Yeah?” Jing’er raised a brow. He had a sense of foreboding.

“I’m afraid there’s been a change of plans.”

“What do you mean there’s been a change of plans?!” Jing’er burst out of his seat and slammed his hands on the table.

“Perhaps you should calm down.”

“…” Jing’er clenched his shaking hands and took his seat. “Can you please explain to me what’s going on?”

“Matriarch Radiant Jade is here. I did not invite her, and she didn’t come of her own volition. You should be able to put the pieces together.”

“…” Jing’er leaned back into his seat and looked up to the sky. He let out a deep sigh. “It’s just one bad thing after another today.”

Auntie Yimin placed her arm over Jing’er’s shoulder.

After a moment, Jing’er looked back to Hei.

“Are you telling me that my father…”

“I cannot say with certainty, but that seems likely.”

“I see.”

“Though, I’m curious about something.”

“What is it?”

“Why did your father make a marriage arrangement with Matriarch Radiant Jade? At first, I had assumed he wanted to take her sect leader’s token, but that doesn’t seem to have been a part of the plan. What was the purpose of getting you and Jingfei engaged?”

“Hm? No. It wasn’t my father. I asked Matriarch Radiant Jade myself. I’ve always admired Jingfei’s beauty and kindness. And it seemed like a good match with our relative positions.”

“You’ve always admired her? When could you have seen her? The Radiant Jade Sect doesn’t allow men to enter as they please.”

“This wasn’t the first time Matriarch Radiant Jade visited our clan.” “It was over ten years ago now, back when I had just begun to walk the path of cultivation.” “Matriarch Radiant Jade had been invited to the clan for some event and she brought Jingfei with her. I was cultivating in private, but it wasn’t going well. I had tried many times to break through to the next realm, but nothing I did was working. I was ready to give up for the day, but then Jingfei stumbled into my courtyard. I still don’t know what the guards were doing that day. Anyway, she scolded me and encouraged me to continue. Angered by her naive words, I pushed her and she fell to the ground. It seemed she hadn’t started cultivating yet at the time because she fell without any struggle. Anyway, I felt bad when she started crying. But even after she got up, she told me not to give up. Otherwise, I would be a man who wasn’t suitable to have a wife. Whatever that meant.” “I don’t know why, but those words really got to me. I’ve always been a little jealous of my father who had a beautiful wife.”

“I know the feeling.”

“Guess I’m not the only one. Cool.” “Anyway, to prove her wrong, I gave it my all that day. And at the end of it all, I still failed.” “As I lay on the ground, panting heavily, Jingfei walked up to me, squatted down and told me that since I hadn’t given up, there was still a chance I could get a wife…” “That was when I fell in love with her.”

“That was a strange jump.”

“I know. But that’s the way it happened.” ”It’s embarrassing to say, but Jingfei’s the reason I’ve worked so hard all these years. I wanted to be worthy of being her husband.”

“Oh, wow, Jing’er. I didn’t know you were so romantic.” Xiaoli almost had tears in her eyes.

“You’ve grown into a fine young man’ Jing’er” Auntie Yimin mirrored Xiaoli’s sentiments.

“Too bad it’s all for nothing now,” Xiaoli said. “There’s no way Matriarch Radiant Jade is going to let this one go.”

“Sigh. I know.”

“I wouldn’t be so sure,” Hei interjected.

“Hm?”

“There’s a chance Matriarch Radiant Jade won’t blame you for what your father did. She doesn’t strike me as the kind of person who would do that.”

“Really? You think there’s still a chance?”

“Mm. But you ought to talk to Jingfei about this. I’m somewhat of a gatekeeper for her out of obligation.” “If she doesn’t want to marry you, then I won’t let it happen no matter what her mother says.” “I apologise if it doesn’t work out for you.”

“Hey. As long as there’s a chance, I’m sure things will work out.”

“If you say so.” Hei pointed out to the distance. “Coincidentally, there’s Matriarch Radiant Jade now. Perhaps you should bare your heart to her.”

“Mm.”

Everyone watched as Jing’er went off to speak with her.

Honghuo turned to Hei.

“What are you going to do now, Heihuo?”

“I also wanted to ask you that,” Xiaoli said. To which, Auntie Yimin responded by poking her cheek.

“I’m going to head to the Shimmering Sword Sect.”

“The Shimmering Sword Sect?” Honghuo asked. “What a coincidence. I’m also going there.”

“Oh?”

“Yeah. It’s my sect. What are you going there for? You can’t be a fellow disciple, can you? There’s no way I wouldn’t know of someone as strong as you. Maybe you’re an alumnus?”

“There’s someone I need to visit there. Other than that, I have no relation to the sect.”

“I see. Well, since we’re going to the same place, why don’t we go together?”

“If you want.”

“It, um, It just so happens that I was thinking of visiting the Shimmering Sword Sect as well.” Xiaoli said. “To, uh, to polish my swordsmanship. I hear they allow outsiders to attend certain lectures.”

“I hate you Heihuo. You know that?” Honghuo covered his sister’s eyes and turned her away from Hei. “I really do.”

“Well, well, well.” Auntie Yimin patted Xiaoli’s shoulder. “Look who’s interested in broadening her horizons all of a sudden.”

“Auntie Yimin!”

“Don’t worry, Xiaoli. I’ll put in a good word with your parents. They should be willing to take you on a training journey.”

“…” Xiaoli crossed her arms and puffed her cheeks out. She then sighed and returned to her normal posture.“Thanks, Auntie Yimin. Preciate it.”

“As for me.” Auntie Yimin said. “I’ll be waiting for the grand opening.”

“Grand opening?” Xiaoli asked.

“If you don’t know about it, then you probably don’t need to know.” Auntie Yimin turned to Hei. “Isn’t that right?”

“Yes. And speaking of.” Hei turned to Honghuo, or more specifically, to his sister. “You are reliant on external resources for your cultivation. Am I correct?”

Ju Li could tell that he was talking to her, so she pried Honghuo’s hands away and turned to face him.

“How did you know that?”

“You have the aura of someone like me.”

“Someone like you?”

“Mm. You should be able to see it. It’s not any kind of technique I’m using. It’s more like a unique physique.”

“I see.”

“We tend to be born without spirit roots, so cultivation can be difficult for us.”

“Why are you saying all of this?”

“I have a technique which can resolve that problem. However, only those who swear loyalty to… my clan, are permitted to practice it.”

“Hey! What are you trying to do?” Honghuo hugged his sister tighter. “You can’t go around poaching people!”

“Don’t misunderstand. I am merely giving her an offer. There is no obligation to accept.”

“Is that right?”

“Yes. Unfortunately, there are people hunting those like your sister and I. Auntie Yimin, Jing’er and Xiaoli can confirm this.”

Upon Hei’s prompt, Auntie Yimin and Xiaoli remembered the interference they faced on the way to the Crimson Moon. So when Honghuo turned to them, they could nod in confidence.

“What kind of force is this?”

“It goes beyond the scope of this world.”

“Sigh. Out of the frying pan and into the fire. Does this mean even more people will be coming after Ju Li beside the Merchant Guild?”

“It is a possibility.”

“What can we do? You won’t help her unless she swears loyalty to you?”

“That isn’t the case. I am willing to give her access to a certain cultivation technique which should help her to gain strength faster. Though she will still be dependent on cultivation resources.”

“Really? That’s great!”

Hei put his right hand into his left sleeve and pulled out a stack of books.

When Honghuo saw the title, he couldn’t help but furrow his brows.

“Elemental Foundations?”

“Yes.”

“…”

Honghuo flipped through the book, not expecting to find anything of value, but as he got further and further, he could tell just how solid it was. Even though only a fifth of it covered the fire element, he could see places where his own understanding was flawed.

“I see why it has that name. It builds really solid foundations.” “But isn’t this a technique for cultivators with mixed elements? Won’t that make Ju Li weaker in the long run.”

“That is a commonly held misconception caused by a lack of quality technique for those who have been deemed to have low-quality spirit roots. In truth, mixed elements roots, particularly the kind which contain all five primary elements, are the most balanced of elemental roots. Regardless of their opponent’s specialties, a five elements-cultivator can use the same approach.”

“So by creating a technique which purposefully mixes the elements, you’ve managed to remove the issue of split masteries. This will put five-elements cultivators on a level playing field with single-element cultivators.” “It’s actually kind of amazing.” “You’re just giving this away for free?”

“To those qualified.”

“And Ju Li is one of those?”

“Yes. So are you, Auntie Yimin and Jing'er.”

“Me too?”

“Yes, but your current technique surpasses the current Fire Element Foundations. You may not derive any benefit from switching over.”

“What about me?” Xiaoli asked.

“You’re not qualified.”

Xiaoli was saddened to hear this.

“However, there is a lesser version of Wind and Earth Element Foundations I’m willing to give to you in return for helping me with my dual cul- My synchronisation technique.” Hei transmitted the technique to Xiaoli. “At your level, starting over may well be worth it.”

“What’s that supposed to mean?”

“Is my assessment inaccurate? You seem to be particularly weak for someone at your cultivation level. It’s as if you neglected to have sparring practice.”

“You hit the nail on the head.” Auntie Yimin said. “Xiaoli has always been a lazy one.”

“I wasn’t lazy. I was just… focused on other things.”

Auntie Yimin rubbed Xiaoli’s head then turned to face Hei.

“You said that Jing’er and I are qualified to practice this Elemental Foundations of yours?”

“You are, but I wouldn’t recommend it at this time. Your Zhu Clan may have caught the ire of the Merchant Guild. Restarting your cultivation at this time could have dire consequences. If you’re interested, you will be able to learn it in a safe environment after the grand opening.”

“Sounds good.”

Honghuo slid the Elemental Foundations books back to Hei and grinned.

“There’s no need for these books. She may not look like it, but Ju Li has already awakened her internal sea. She managed to awaken it even though she couldn’t break out of the body refining realm. You can just transmit the techniques to her.”

“I see.” Hei transmitted the techniques to Ju Li and taught her the complaining method while he was at it. If she ever decided to join the Shao Clan, she would know how to find him.

After things were settled, Jing’er, Matriarch Radiant Jade and the others returned. The women were now wearing different clothes, and a few of them were adorned with jewels. It was quite different to how they looked before.

“Judging by the smile on your face, things seem to have gone well.” After Jing’er sat down, Hei made this observation.

“Mm. Mother-in-law is just how you described her.”

“You’ll still have to get Jingfei’s blessing, Jing’er. That’s always how I intended for it to go, then all of this happened.” Matriarch Radian Jade walked up to Hei and bent down until she was at eye level with him.

“Here’s the treasure we found.” Matriarch Radiant Jade gave him a handful of spatial rings.

Hei scanned them with his spiritual perception and took all of the knowledge then tossed the rings onto the table.

“You can all split these among yourselves. But be aware that a lot of these resources likely came from the Radiant Jade Sect. I hope you can factor that in.”

“Of course we can.” One woman said.

“It’s the least we could do.”

“Hey! Let go, Fire Fiend!” One woman saw that Honghuo had already taken hold of a few of the treasures. “How much have you already taken for yourself? He said they were for all of us to share!”

“Fire Fiend?” “Oh. It’s you.” “Hey. Blame yourself for being too slow.”

“Brother…” Ju Li shook her head.

Matriarch Radiant Jade ignored the commotion, placing her attention on Hei. She was all smiles as she spoke.

“I heard you became Jingfei’s little guardian.”

“Something like that.”

The look in her eyes grew warmer and her smile grew brighter.

“I would like to have a word with you. Is that okay?”