“Father, you’re awake!”

“Sect Master, you’re finally conscious! We were all waiting for you to take charge of the situation!”

“That little demon spawn dared to cry thief while being the thief! He slandered you, claiming you colluded with the demonic path. I firmly opposed him back then! My loyalty to you shines like the sun and moon…”

“Reporting to the Sect Master! A traitor has come out from inside us!”

Hearing the chaotic clamor around him, Bai Qingwu, whose brain was already scrambled, looked completely bewildered. He asked in a dazed trance, “What happened? Why are there so many people here?”

“And… you said what came out inside of who?”

“A traitor… inside the sect…”

While the crowd swarmed Bai Qingwu with concerned inquiries and bootlicking flattery, the Formation Spirit placed its hands behind its back and strolled over to Qi Yuan.

“Kid,” the spirit said with a look of approval. “You did well. You didn’t disappoint this old man.”

Then, it gently shook its head and muttered to itself, “I don’t know what kind of dog-shit luck Falling Cloud Valley stepped in to recruit a freak like you. It seems the sect’s fate isn’t exhausted yet.”

“Heh…”

Qi Yuan gave a dry, hollow laugh and replied modestly, “Junior was merely borrowing your prestige, Senior Formation Spirit. as the saying goes, ‘Having an elder in the house is like having a treasure.’ You are the true pillar that stabilizes the seas of Falling Cloud Valley.”

“Save the ass-kissing.”

The Formation Spirit shot him a sideways glance. “I still want to live a few more years in peace. To put it bluntly, it doesn’t matter to me who sits in the Sect Master’s chair. If I didn’t owe you a favor, I wouldn’t have bothered coming out to deal with this messy business.”

“I’m leaving. Don’t bother me in the future unless the sky is falling.”

As it spoke, the Formation Spirit’s figure blurred, fading into nothingness in an instant.

Oh, right!

Those two—Dumb and Dumber—are still on their way here…

Remembering his two slow-witted sidekicks, Qi Yuan quickly pulled the communication talisman from his robes. Just as he was about to activate it, the Counterattack System’s interface materialized before his eyes.

The task list refreshed. A new notification popped up.

[New Main Quest Issued]

[Background: Catastrophe has befallen Falling Cloud Valley. Inner Sect Elder Yin Qingyuan colluded with demonic cultivators to murder Sect Master Bai Qingwu and incite a rebellion. After a brutal bloodbath, Yin Qingyuan successfully seized the throne and took control of the sect.]

[However, due to your early detection of the Yin father-son duo’s spy status, you were on high alert. You not only survived the crisis but also managed to rescue the heavily injured Eldest Senior Sister, Bai Xirou, amidst the chaos. After a narrow escape from death, you fled Falling Cloud Valley with her.]

[Unfortunately, you have discovered that a wisp of Netherworld Demonic Qi lurks within Bai Xirou’s body. Her life hangs by a thread…]

[Quest Objective: Before Eldest Senior Sister Bai Xirou dies, use the ‘Scripture of Yin-Yang Metamorphosis’ to save her. Simultaneously, raise your own cultivation to the Foundation Building realm.]

[Difficulty: Three Stars (Average)]

[Rewards:]

1,000 Counterattack Points

15 Top-grade Essence Condensing Pills

Top-grade Magical Artifact: Dark Light Qilin Sword

Personal Storage Space expanded to 500 cubic meters

Awakened Talent: [Moocher’s Might] (You may choose one cultivation partner whose cultivation exceeds yours as a bound target. Once bound, you can freely utilize that partner’s strongest divine ability. Note: The target must be your dual cultivation partner. Only one bond can be active at a time. Once unbound, you lose access to the ability.)

“????”

After a long moment of stunned silence, Qi Yuan got hard.

His fists. His fists got hard.

What the actual f—!!!

Listen here, you damn System!

Is this a task a normal system comes up with?!

What kind of decent system forces its host to do something this deranged?

The ridiculous quest description was one thing. He was an anomaly in this world, so his interference had changed the tragic ending the System expected—Sect Master Bai was alive, the rebellion failed. He could forgive the System for lagging behind the plot.

But what the hell was this objective?

Right now, Eldest Senior Sister Bai Xirou was alive and kicking. She didn’t have a scratch on her.

If he went up to a perfectly healthy woman and tried to “heal” her via dual cultivation, he wouldn’t be a hero; he’d be labeled a perverted sexual predator. The glorious, mysterious image he had worked so hard to build would collapse in seconds.

And even if Bai Xirou was willing, it still felt wrong!

He had just finished flirting with a Demon Sect enchantress. If he turned around and immediately tried to bed the pure, innocent Righteous Sect Senior Sister, wouldn’t that make him a legendary scumbag?

Even worse, just like the previous quest, this one lacked the [Abandon Quest] button. It was mandatory. If he didn’t finish it, the quest chain would freeze, and no new tasks would generate.

The only silver lining…

The deadline was “Before Bai Xirou dies.” Since she was currently healthy, she wasn’t going to die anytime soon. He had plenty of time to figure this out.

At the very least, I need to wine and dine her first. Build some emotional foundation. Otherwise, I really am just trash.

There was one other piece of relatively good news. According to the Damn System’s hallucination, the quest line had officially moved outside of Falling Cloud Valley. This meant he no longer had to stay cooped up in this small sect playing the role of an undercover agent.

While his mind wandered through these turbulent thoughts, Sect Master Bai Qingwu had been helped into the main seat of the hall. He looked down at Qi Yuan with a gaze full of warmth and gratitude.

“Big Qi. Our sect faced a great calamity, and it was entirely thanks to you that we turned the tide. You have rendered a monumental service. Both logically and emotionally, you deserve a heavy reward. Tell me what you want. As long as I can give it, I, the Sect Master, will not be stingy!”

Hearing this, the disciples in the hall cast looks of intense envy toward Qi Yuan, chiming in one after another.

“Martial Nephew Qi’s contributions are obvious to all. He deserves a great reward.”

“That’s right. The sect will never forget this kindness.”

“With such a prodigy in our ranks, Falling Cloud Valley is sure to rise again…”

Surrounded by a chorus of praise, Qi Yuan rubbed his nose, feeling a bit sheepish. Still distracted by the System’s absurd demand, he spoke in a relaxed, casual tone:

“You are all too polite. Honestly, I don’t need much. I only want Eldest Senior Sister.”

…Huh?

The moment those words left his mouth, the entire Great Hall fell into a deathly silence.

Every single pair of eyes glazed over, staring blankly at him.

“What did you say?!”

The smile on Bai Qingwu’s face froze solid. He had always been confident in his hearing, but for the first time in his life, he suspected his ears were malfunctioning.

As for the person in question, Bai Xirou trembled. Her fair, porcelain skin turned a deep, burning crimson in the blink of an eye.