“Fine, it’s Earth-grade tea,” Zhang Xian confessed. He pulled two brocade boxes from his storage pouch and handed them over. “It enhances one’s comprehension.”

Li Fuxi held the boxes, hesitating for a moment.

“Don’t want them?” Zhang Xian teased, reaching out as if to take them back. “Then I’ll give these to Supervisor Liu Qingxuan and save the others for Pavilion Master Yun.”

“In your dreams!” the two women snapped in unison, instantly clutching the boxes to their chests.

“Hmph! Master and I aren’t falling for that,” Lin Yinyin added, seeing right through him. “You probably already have their portions tucked away somewhere, don’t you?”

Despite their sharp words, both women carefully stowed the treasures away.

After finishing her tea, Li Fuxi was the first to gain a sudden flash of insight. Zhang Xian and Lin Yinyin tactfully withdrew to give her space.

She sat cross-legged where the starlight was brightest. The spiritual energy around her ebbed and flowed like a physical tide. In just one night, she recovered to the fifth level of the Golden Core. Sensing the surging power within her, she felt confident she could return to her peak at the sixth level within two months.

Moreover, the bottleneck that had plagued her for a century in the later stages had simply vanished. This Earth-grade tea, combined with the Supreme Spirit Root Zhang Xian had gifted her, created a debt she felt she could never repay, even if she reached the Nascent Soul stage.

Li Fuxi gently stroked her longsword, sinking into deep contemplation.

Three days later, Lin Yinyin awoke from her meditation. After drinking the Green Qiao tea, she too had entered a state of deep seclusion. Now, a sharp gleam flashed in her eyes; she was at the threshold of the ninth level of Foundation Establishment.

“Brother.” She pushed open the door to the sword chamber.

Her master, Li Fuxi, was still practicing; her sword intent felt noticeably more refined. Nearby, Zhang Xian sat cross-legged, controlling two metal-water puppets in fierce combat.

Sweat beaded on his forehead. Controlling two puppets while simultaneously mimicking his master’s sword techniques was a grueling task. Seeing Lin Yinyin, he ceased his efforts, and the puppets slumped to the floor.

“You’re out? Join us at the hot spring chamber tonight to replenish your spiritual energy.”

“There’s a hot spring chamber, too!?” Lin Yinyin exclaimed.

“Yeah, we soak there every day,” Zhang Xian said matter-of-factly. “We didn’t call for you because you were in seclusion.”

Nearby, Li Fuxi’s sword movements faltered. She pretended not to hear, though the tips of her ears turned a quiet red.

“The past few days… just the two of you?” Lin Yinyin’s voice trembled slightly. “Were there two rooms?”

“One room,” Zhang Xian replied nonchalantly as he stood up. “Just like on the mountain. There’s a water mirror separating us, so you can’t see anything. With Master’s help suppressing the energy from the high-grade stones, it’s like a massage—cultivation goes much faster.”

Lin Yinyin looked at her brother, then at her “composed” master. She leaned close to Zhang Xian’s ear and whispered, “In all these days I’ve been gone… just how far have you two gotten?”

Hum! Li Fuxi’s twin swords trembled violently.

Inside the hot spring chamber, Zhang Xian let out a long sigh of relief as he sank into the pool. Most of his fatigue dissipated instantly. He squinted through the mist toward the other side. Though the water mirror obscured his view, he could make out two slender silhouettes.

Each has their own merits, he thought. But something was missing.

“Strange,” he muttered. “The water isn’t as effective today.”

Usually, the sound of flowing water would be accompanied by that spiritually invigorating massage sensation. He raised his voice: “Master? Why isn’t there a spiritual massage today?”

A sudden splash came from behind the mirror, as if someone had been startled.

“Ahem…” Li Fuxi’s voice sounded flustered before she regained her cool. “Today… your master is a bit tired from cultivation. I cannot suppress the energy as effectively.”

Before she could finish, Lin Yinyin pressed close to her master’s side. Her damp bangs clung to her forehead, and her eyes shone with curiosity. “What massage? Is it a special feature of the spring?”

“Yinyin, you just got here, so you wouldn’t know,” Zhang Xian explained. “Master uses her energy to make the water sentient—it automatically massages your meridians. She says it’s an innate talent of Water Spirit Roots.”

“Automatic? An innate talent?” Lin Yinyin’s eyes lit up. “I want to try it, too!”

“No!!”

Li Fuxi’s rebuke was so forceful that both disciples jumped.

“M-Master…” Lin Yinyin ventured. “I was just curious.”

Li Fuxi took a breath. “Yinyin, your cultivation isn’t high enough to activate this talent. Focus on your meditation.”

“Oh.” Lin Yinyin pouted and swam to a corner.

Being a Heavenly Water Spirit Root holder herself, manipulating water was second nature. She flicked a finger, and a stream of water coiled around her arm like a snake.

“So that’s how it is…” she murmured, feeling the water flow across her skin. It wasn’t quite what she imagined, but it was interesting. Her eyes darted toward the water mirror, a playful smile tugging at her lips.

“Yinyin?” Li Fuxi’s voice was wary. “What are you smiling about?”

“Nothing; I just remembered something happy,” Lin Yinyin replied with a straight face.

Li Fuxi felt even less assured. This girl was mischievous. She might have fooled Zhang Xian, but she wouldn’t easily deceive a fellow Water Spirit Root user. She felt utterly flustered.

Lin Yinyin then took a small golden bean from a vial and swallowed it. Spiritual energy flooded the area.

“A Nurturing Golden Pill?” Li Fuxi asked.

“Mhm. Master, do you want one?”

Li Fuxi shook her head. “I am at the mid-Golden Core stage; they have no effect on me now.”

She remembered when her own master, Wangchuan, had gifted her a single pill. She had been so happy she was reluctant to eat it. Now, she watched Lin Yinyin shake the vial, the pills clinking like common marbles.

“Which number is that for you?”

“Almost ten? Brother gave me five at first, then a whole bottle.”

“Yinyin,” Li Fuxi said after a pause, “after so many, they lose their effectiveness.”

“I know. Brother said to treat them like snacks. Eat them until they stop working, then quit.”

Li Fuxi was speechless. From across the pool, Zhang Xian chimed in. “Master, once you reach the late Golden Core stage, I’ll provide all your Nascent Soul Formation Pills.”

Li Fuxi shook her head. “Those are Earth-grade elixirs. You can’t just buy them with stones.”

“Master, rest assured, I have my ways!”

Lin Yinyin seized the chance. “Brother just talks big! Even the whole Southern Region hardly produces those. You’re ‘covering’ them? I bet you can’t!”

“What if I can?”

“If you really have a way,” Lin Yinyin challenged, “then Master and I will fulfill… one wish of yours!”

“Deal?”

“Deal!”

Before Li Fuxi could process the exchange, the bet was sealed.

“Yinyin!” Li Fuxi hissed, pulling her disciple close. “What are you doing? I didn’t agree to this!”

“It’s a guaranteed win, Master,” Lin Yinyin whispered back. “Think of how we can humiliate him. Besides, even if we lose, he wouldn’t dare do anything to you anyway.”

Li Fuxi’s head was buzzing. She submerged herself in the water, feeling once again tangled in the whims of her disciple.

But… Nascent Soul Formation Pills.

A single pill was worth a hundred years of cultivation. She couldn’t help but wonder if he was serious.