“Brother, surely you’re joking?”

Piao Genshuo looked at Qi Yuan like he was staring at a lunatic, his expression twitching with speechlessness. “Do you think Celestial Zenith Body Tempering Pills are cabbages found at a roadside stall? Even if you gutted the secret vaults of the Celestial Zenith Sanctuary, you wouldn’t be able to scrape together fifty of them!”

Qi Yuan let out a heavy sigh, his face a mask of troubled hesitation. “You claim to be the illustrious Holy Scion of the Celestial Zenith Sanctuary, yet you can’t even produce a handful of Body Tempering Pills? If this is the extent of your resources… it’s very hard for me to believe you.”

“This…”

Piao Genshuo faltered.

He was acutely aware of the Soul Formation realm Formation Spirit looming inside the hall. Trying to use force to snatch the token back was a suicide mission.

But fifty Celestial Zenith Body Tempering Pills? Impossible. He couldn’t afford that even if he sold his own body on the street.

Seeing the “Holy Scion” hesitate, Qi Yuan rubbed his nose thoughtfully, his expression shifting to one of grave concern.

“Brother Piao, look. While this token is useless to me, I can’t just hand it over to you without proof. If the real Holy Scion comes looking for it later, I’d be in serious trouble for giving his property to an impostor.”

Qi Yuan’s eyes lit up as if striking upon a brilliant idea. “For safety’s sake, how about I publish a ‘Lost and Found’ notice across the cultivation world? I’ll let everyone know I picked up the personal token of the Celestial Zenith Sanctuary’s Holy Scion.”

“If no one comes to claim it within three months, I’ll hand it over to you. That way, even if the real Holy Scion blames me later, I’ll have a solid defense. What do you think?”

“Brother! You absolutely must not do that!”

Piao Genshuo’s face turned the color of ash. He screamed the objection, panic seizing his heart.

If a ‘Lost and Found’ notice actually went public, it wouldn’t take half a day for the entire cultivation world to learn that the dignified Holy Scion had lost his identity token.

As the saying goes: Good deeds stay indoors, but scandals travel a thousand miles. The cultivation world was populated by melon-eating spectators who lived for drama. After the rumor mill churned through the story a few times, who knew what outrageous version would emerge?

Not only would his personal reputation be flushed down the drain, but the Celestial Zenith Sanctuary’s face would be slapped swollen. And once his Master found out he lost the token while visiting a brothel? He would personally clean the sect’s gene pool by removing Piao Genshuo from existence.

The mere thought shattered Piao Genshuo’s resistance.

With a pained grimace, he reached into his storage bracelet and pulled out a jade vial.

“Brother, didn’t you want the pills?” he said through gritted teeth, his heart dripping blood. “I really don’t have fifty. I only have three on me right now. Take them all!”

It physically hurt to hand them over.

These three Celestial Zenith Body Tempering Pills had been specially bestowed upon him by the Sanctuary when he ascended to the position of Holy Scion. They were so precious he hadn’t couldn’t bear to swallow them, saving them for his future breakthrough into the Soul Formation realm.

He never imagined they would end up lining someone else’s pockets.

In this world, medicinal pills were categorized into seven tiers based on efficacy and rarity: Immortal, Dao, Saint, Heaven, Earth, Profound, and Yellow.

Yellow-tier pills were the most common trash—like the Qi Gathering Pills used by Qi Refining cultivators—easily cooked up by any street-side alchemist.

Foundation Building Pills were Profound-tier.

The Celestial Zenith Body Tempering Pill, however, was a genuine Saint-tier pill. It could temper a cultivator’s physique to terrifying levels. Even as a low-grade Saint pill, its value eclipsed anything in the Heaven tier.

As for the Creation Heaven-Mending Pill Qi Yuan was originally hunting for? That was a high-grade Saint pill. Such items were serendipitous treasures that spirit stones simply couldn’t buy.

“Easy now, easy.”

Qi Yuan accepted the priceless vial with an expression of forced indifference, though his heart was already doing backflips.

Jackpot.

He had only intended to probe the guy’s limits on a whim. He never expected this lecherous fool to actually carry Celestial Zenith Body Tempering Pills on him—and three of them at that!

After discreetly checking the pills’ authenticity, Qi Yuan’s gaze toward the Holy Scion became noticeably warmer. It was the look one gives a particularly fat and juicy sheep.

“Brother, I’ve given you the pills. You have to believe me now, right?”

Seeing Qi Yuan pocket the bribe, Piao Genshuo rubbed his hands together anxiously. “Hurry up and return the Five-Color Celestial Token. I… I still need to go to the Drunken Joy Brothel to unwind.”

At a time like this, only the warm, soft embrace of the young ladies could soothe his traumatized soul.

The corner of Qi Yuan’s mouth hooked upward. He calmly stowed the pills in his storage bag and spoke with a tone of leisurely reason.

“Considering our relationship, I’ll accept three. However… I am handing over a critical item to you. You should leave some collateral, don’t you think? That jade pendant on your waist looks decent…”

“What?!”

Piao Genshuo instinctively clutched the jade pendant at his waist, staring at Qi Yuan with heightened vigilance. “This Nine Luminaries Liluo Pendant is a top-tier defensive treasure! Don’t you dare get any funny ideas!”

Seeing the mark recoil, Qi Yuan flashed a smile of pure, unadulterated innocence and patted his chest.

“Relax! I don’t want your pendant. I’m suggesting you leave it with me as a deposit. Just for safekeeping. Once the heat dies down, I’ll return it to you.”

“Think about it,” Qi Yuan reasoned smoothly. “I’m merely a Qi Refining cultivator. You are a dignified Nascent Soul powerhouse. Are you seriously afraid I’d try to steal your gear?”

“If I refused to return it later, you could simply slap me to death and take it back. Isn’t that right?”

As he spun his web, Qi Yuan pulled the Five-Color Celestial Token from his bag and dangled it enticingly before Piao Genshuo’s eyes.

“Come back in three months and ask for me, Big Qi. For a simple return of property, I’m sure Senior Formation Spirit wouldn’t bother intervening.”

That… makes sense.

Piao Genshuo blinked. Big Qi is just a Qi Refining bug. Would he dare scam me?

The logic seemed sound. Piao immediately untied the pendant and handed it over. “You better watch it closely. Do not lose it.”

“Don’t worry,” Qi Yuan beamed, accepting the treasure and tossing the token back in exchange. “How could I possibly lose such a fine baby?”

Piao Genshuo caught his lost token. Yet, staring at the object he had fought so hard to retrieve, he didn’t feel the surge of joy he expected.

Instead, he felt an urge to weep.

“Alright then, brother. I’ll take my leave. Until we meet again.”

Piao Genshuo put away the token with a depressed sigh. forcing himself to salute Qi Yuan. He turned and walked away, his footsteps heavy and desolate.

He looked exactly like a man stumbling out of a brothel at dawn—wallet empty, body drained, and soul hollowed out.

…

Inside the hall, the members of Falling Cloud Valley wore complicated expressions.

No one here was an idiot. The moment Piao Genshuo coughed up three Saint-tier pills, his identity as the Celestial Zenith Holy Scion was confirmed beyond doubt.

Only a figure of immense status within the Celestial Zenith Sanctuary could possess such wealth. Combined with his Nascent Soul cultivation, who else could it be?

Under normal circumstances, the arrival of a genuine Holy Scion would be an earth-shattering event for a sect like Falling Cloud Valley. They would be rolling out the red carpet in fear and awe.

But right now? The people of Falling Cloud Valley were numb.

They had been bombarded by so many shocks recently that their capacity for surprise had burned out. A Holy Scion popping up? Sure, why not.

They blamed a certain monster. Qi Yuan’s actions were so consistently unhinged and unpredictable that everyone was mentally exhausted. Their jaws had been on the floor for so long they were at risk of permanent dislocation.

“Cough, cough—”

In the eerie silence, the unconscious Sect Leader, Bai Qingwu, suddenly hacked out two violent coughs.

His eyelids fluttered. Slowly, he woke, his eyes opening with a hazy, confused glaze…