Half a month later.

Moon Gaze Peak.

A rich, medicinal aroma drifted from the summit pavilion, thick enough to be almost tangible. It blanketed the entire peak, carrying with it the unmistakable scent of high-grade alchemy.

In the courtyard, Yao Ning paused her brutal stance training. She wiped the sweat from her brow and glanced toward the alchemy room, a faint, proud smile gracing her lips.

“Another batch of Flawless pills,” she murmured. Her admiration for her Senior Brother deepened. Is there anything he cannot do?

Upstairs, Leng Yixue opened her eyes, pulling herself from deep meditation. The medicinal fragrance alone had been enough to stimulate her “Spirit Refining Art,” pushing it toward a breakthrough.

“Seven out of ten batches are Flawless…” she calculated silently, her usually cold eyes wide with astonishment. “Other Alchemists struggle for a lifetime to produce one. Junior Brother Li treats them like common candy.”

His talent in the Dao of Alchemy was monstrous. If he ever formed his Golden Core, his influence in the Tianlan Continent would be limitless.

Downstairs, Li Meng exhaled a breath of turbid air. With a casual flick of his sleeve, over a dozen crystal-clear pills flew into a waiting bottle.

“That concludes the alchemy for now,” he decided, noting the depleted pill liquid in his gourd.

Besides the Soul Nourishing Pills for his patients, he had also refined several batches of Root Strengthening pills. Cultivation wasn’t just about raw power; it was about stability. A cultivator who rushed their breakthroughs without consolidating their foundation would end up like a leaky pufferfish—full of hot air and prone to exploding.

He stood up, stretching his limbs, and walked out into the courtyard with a contented smile.

Click.

The door opened, and Li Meng strolled out, looking every bit the leisurely sage.

“Senior Brother! Hit me with a top-grade Lightning Attraction Talisman!”

Yao Ning didn’t even stop her punches. Her fist struck the air, generating a fierce gale that kicked up a cloud of dust. She looked at him with eyes burning with battle intent.

Li Meng raised an eyebrow. “As you wish.”

He flicked his wrist. A golden talisman shot into the sky, transforming into a beam of light that pierced the heavens.

RUMBLE.

Dark clouds instantly gathered, swirling ominously above the peak. The pressure was immense, far heavier than before.

CRACK!

A purple lightning dragon, thick and jagged, descended with terrifying speed. It slammed into Yao Ning, engulfing her in a blinding flash.

Instead of collapsing, Yao Ning gritted her teeth, her spirit shaking but unbroken. Her aura surged, meeting the heavenly punishment head-on. Her stance deepened, her punches becoming even more ferocious under the bombardment.

Li Meng watched with gratification. His Junior Sister might be reckless, but her Dao Heart for strengthening herself was flawless.

He rose on the wind, soaring upward. He left the peak behind, heading toward the distant horizon.

Yao Ning spared him a quick glance amidst the lightning. Where is he going now?

Cloud Soaring Peak.

Once the abode of a Nascent Soul Ancestor, this peak ranked among the top five spiritual lands in the Joyous Union Sect. After the Ancestor’s Sitting Death, the sect had allowed his concubine, Wen Huanhuan, to inherit it—perhaps as compensation, perhaps out of pity.

Today, a figure descended from the sky, hovering respectfully outside the protective mists.

“Inner Disciple Li Meng pays his respects to Senior Wen!”

His clear voice echoed through the mountains. Immediately, several powerful Divine Senses swept over him—Golden Core elders checking the visitor. Satisfied, they withdrew.

The mists parted, revealing a passage. Li Meng smiled and flew in.

As he glided over the bamboo forests of the peak, he nodded in appreciation. The layout of Cloud Soaring Peak was exquisite. Every pavilion, every garden, was placed with geometric precision, acting as a Formation Core for a massive mountain-water array.

The late Ancestor was a Formation Master, Li Meng noted. Though it seems the array was never fully completed.

He spotted a pavilion in the center of a pristine lake. A lone figure stood there, waiting.

Li Meng descended, landing softly on the pavilion floor.

“Oh? What a rare guest.”

Wen Huanhuan turned, her movements languid and graceful. She approached him, her body swaying seductively, her robes trailing like water. She pressed close, her scent enveloping him.

“What is it? After so many days apart, could it be that my dear Nephew misses his Senior?”

She smiled charmingly, tapping a slender finger against his chest before stepping back coyly.

But she only retreated one step before Li Meng moved. His arm snaked out, wrapping firmly around her soft, warm waist.

“Yes,” Li Meng said, his voice dripping with sincerity. “Your Nephew misses Senior very much.”

He pulled her back into his embrace, his grip possessive.

A trace of genuine surprise flashed in Wen Huanhuan’s eyes.

Has this kid taken the wrong medicine?

This was Cloud Soaring Peak. Wasn’t he afraid Han Li would slap him to death? And more importantly, she was a Golden Core cultivator. Where did a mere Foundation Establishment junior get the audacity to sexually harass a senior?

Li Meng looked down at her, his expression a perfect mask of lovestruck devotion.

“Since we parted last time, Senior’s figure has haunted my thoughts. I cannot focus on alchemy. I cannot refine artifacts. My Dao Heart is unstable because of you. If I didn’t come to seek Senior today, I fear my path to the Great Dao would be ruined by lovesickness!”

Wen Huanhuan stared blankly at him.

He… he really dares to say such things?

The words were cheesy, melodramatic, and utterly shameless. Yet he said them with such solemn gravity that it was disorienting.

Suspicion flickered in her eyes. He has an impure motive. He must.

She laughed, a bell-like sound, and pushed him away gently.

“Oh, Nephew Li’s mouth is truly sweet. But you shouldn’t joke with your Senior.”

Li Meng didn’t let up. He stepped forward, closing the distance instantly, and pulled her into his arms again.

“Senior,” he declared, looking deep into her confused eyes. “Your Nephew’s feelings for you are witnessed by heaven and earth! I am not joking!”

Facing his relentless, “shameless offensive,” Wen Huanhuan felt a rare emotion: confusion. She knew her reputation. She knew men feared her madness more than they desired her beauty.

For the first time in centuries, she was at a loss.