“Senior Brother, hold on.”

Qi Yuan suddenly called out, halting the impending tragedy.

He figured that if Lu Changfeng had the guts to swallow a Top-grade Emotion Severing Pill, the man clearly possessed immense resolve. He wasn’t beyond saving; he just needed a redirection of energy.

After all, they were fellow disciples. Watching his Eldest Senior Brother willingly jump into a pit of spiritual lobotomy without trying to pull him back would weigh on Qi Yuan’s conscience.

“Hmm?”

Lu Changfeng looked up, his eyes dull and lifeless. Before he could speak, Qi Yuan reached out and covered the mouth of the jade bottle.

Qi Yuan cleared his throat, his expression turning solemn. “Senior Brother Lu, what you’re doing is treating the symptoms, not the root cause. Not only will this fail to solve the fundamental problem, but it will also crack your Dao Heart and cripple your future cultivation.”

“In my opinion, if you truly want to forget Fairy Xiao, you need to attack the problem at its source. Think about it—you’ve already mustered the courage to take the Emotion Severing Pill. Is there anything in this world you can’t do?”

“The source?”

Hearing this, a flicker of thought returned to Lu Changfeng’s eyes.

A moment later, his face drained of all color. He glanced down at his crotch, his lips trembling violently.

“Junior Brother Qi… do you mean… I should go all the way and cut off the root of all evil?”

He shuddered, shaking his head like a rattle drum.

“No! Absolutely not!”

“Although my Little Brother has never had the chance to prove his valor in battle, the physical body is the foundation of the Dao! It is the precious raft we use to cross the sea of suffering! How can I just chop it off? I… I’d better just take the pill…”

Dammit!

What the hell is wrong with your brain circuitry? Did I say anything about castration?

Qi Yuan’s face darkened with black lines. He forcibly suppressed the urge to scream profanities and instead adopted the tone of a patient life coach.

“Senior Brother Lu, you’ve misunderstood. The ‘source’ isn’t physical. I’m talking about your mindset.”

“As the saying goes: the best way to get over someone is to get under someone else. There are plenty of fish in the sea. Why hang yourself from a single tree?”

Qi Yuan leaned in, whispering conspiratorially. “If Fairy Xiao is out, find another Fairy. Why stop at one? Change your target. Hell, pursue ten at once! Cast a wide net and catch more fish!”

“Trust me. Many female cultivators have terrible eyesight. Statistically speaking, one of them is bound to like you.”

He paused, letting the wisdom sink in before delivering the punchline.

“If you lick the boots of one woman, you are a Simp. But if you lick the boots of a hundred women… you are a Sea King!”

Sea King.

Hearing this title, Lu Changfeng’s heart surged with inexplicable excitement. He didn’t fully understand the term, but it sounded majestic. Profound.

But the adrenaline faded as quickly as it came. His shoulders slumped, and he wilted back into depression.

“Junior Brother Qi, you make it sound simple. But how could any other woman compare to Fairy Xiao? Sigh…”

Qi Yuan didn’t give up. He immediately switched tactics.

“Since the ‘Player’ route won’t work for you, let’s try a different angle. For us cultivators, the Dao Heart is paramount. If your mental state is weak, Inner Demons will invade and destroy you.”

“Taking the pill is the coward’s way out. Instead, why not treat the Exquisite Holy Maiden as a living trial to temper your Dao Heart?”

Lu Changfeng blinked. “A trial?”

“Exactly,” Qi Yuan said smoothly. “The colder she is, the calmer you must be. When she ignores you, force your heart to remain as still as water. Use her indifference to grind away your vulnerability.”

“Imagine this: One day, she finds a Dao Companion. She marries someone else. If you can watch that happen without a single ripple of emotion in your heart, it will prove that your Path of Forgetfulness has reached the Grand Completion stage! You will achieve greatness!”

Qi Yuan was trying to scare him straight—or at least give him a long-term goal that didn’t involve permanent soul damage. Plus, considering Qi Yuan’s own entanglement with Xiao Yuening, he needed to give Lu Changfeng a vaccination against future shock. He didn’t want a cliché “brothers turning against each other” plotline later.

“Fairy Xiao… becoming someone else’s Dao Companion?”

Lu Changfeng’s face turned a shade of green. He muttered to himself, “Just imagining that scene makes my skin crawl. I want to smash my head against the wall. And yet…”

His voice dropped to a whisper. “For some reason… there is a faint trace of anticipation in my heart.”

“If that really happened, my hope would truly die. And in that total despair, I could finally sever all worldly attachments and prove my Dao!”

Hearing this, Qi Yuan’s expression twisted.

No way.

Did I just accidentally awaken some weird NTR fetish in my Senior Brother?

“Haha! I get it! I’m enlightened!”

Lu Changfeng suddenly looked up, eyes shining with a fanatical light. “Junior Brother, your wisdom is terrifying! This plan is brilliant!”

“Fairy Xiao is my tribulation! If I can strengthen my will and survive the ultimate heartbreak of seeing her with another man, I will surely achieve Supreme Forgetfulness!”

“If she finds a perfect husband, and I can endure that news standing up… my Dao will be accomplished!”

He began to pace, manic energy replacing his earlier gloom. Then, his brow furrowed in concern.

“But Fairy Xiao has always been pure as ice and snow. Her standards are sky-high; she treats all men like dirt. How can she find a Dao Companion quickly enough for my cultivation?”

Suddenly, Lu Changfeng stopped pacing. He turned slowly to look at Qi Yuan, his eyes glowing like predatory lamps.

“Junior Brother Qi… how about you do it?”

Qi Yuan: “????”

Lu Changfeng grabbed Qi Yuan’s shoulders, shaking him with enthusiasm.

“Fairy Xiao seems fond of you! She specifically came looking for you today. Plus, your character is outstanding and your talent is god-tier. Marrying you wouldn’t be an insult to her dignity!”

“More importantly, you are my dearest Junior Brother. If it’s you cucking me… I mean, if it’s you dating her, I can accept it more easily!”

“Junior Brother Qi, it has to be you! Consider this a request from your Eldest Brother… I can even give you a dossier on her likes, dislikes, and sensitive spots to help you speedrun her heart…”

Is this guy insane?

Qi Yuan stared at the babbling Lu Changfeng, dumbfounded. He felt as if ten thousand mud-sliding alpacas were stampeding across his soul.

His face twitched uncontrollably. He opened his mouth, closed it, and finally sighed.

“Forget it. You should just take the pill.”