Pudu Mountain, Qingxi Peak
Moonlight filtered through dense strands of water-attribute Spiritual Qi, scattering across the bluestone courtyard outside Ye Yuetang's secluded residence.
In the eastern wing, Chang Le stared at the pill floating within his virtual System interface, grinning so widely his cheeks hurt.
[Pill Name: Unnamed]
[Primary Effect: Greatly enhances comprehension of Water-Type Spells (continuous)]
[Side Effect: Permanently locks fire-type spell talent]
"Heh…"
He rubbed his hands together, laughter echoing faintly in the cluttered room.
"A Water-only genius? Perfect for my Yuetang. Who needs fire arts? We'll dominate the water path and forget the rest!"
He conveniently ignored the word permanent. To him, what mattered was whether it worked.
Ever since Ye Yuetang's Peerless-Grade water spirit root awakened—and she became Peak Lord Lin Xizhu's personal disciple—his own fortunes had risen alongside hers.
The herbs she now had access to were mediocre by orthodox alchemy standards, but for his System, they were premium feed.
After endless experiments, he'd learned one thing: the attributes of the ingredients could guide the pill's random effects. It was still chaotic—but no longer entirely blind luck. Better materials meant more "civilized" side effects. No more horrors like "intermittent barking" or "one month constipation."
That alone restored his confidence.
He pocketed the aqua-blue pill and padded to the main room window.
"Yuetang~ I've got something good for you!"
Inside, Ye Yuetang sat cross-legged, drawing Qi into her body to rebuild her shattered foundation.
Though reduced to the level of a mortal, her aura had grown colder, more restrained.
She opened her eyes slowly. "What is it?"
Their relationship had grown complicated.
She needed his pills to recover—and perhaps surpass—her former cultivation. Yet she despised the coercive undertone behind his so-called "pill toxin dissolution."
And the smug look he wore every time he presented something new…
Chang Le entered cheerfully and offered the pill like a treasure.
"Freshly refined—Bi Bo Insight Pill! With this, mastering water spells will be like breathing. Even Peak Lord Lin will think you're a once-in-ten-millennia prodigy."
She examined it carefully. No poison. The internal structure was strange—unprecedented—but not harmful.
"Price?" she asked coldly.
Chang Le coughed. "Minor. Insignificant."
She stared.
"Just… your fire-type spell aptitude might decline a bit. No big deal! You have a top-tier water root. Why split focus?"
Silence lingered.
In the end, her hunger for strength won.
She swallowed the pill.
Cool insight flooded her Sea of Consciousness like a rising tide.
Bottlenecks within the Water Origin Art unraveled instantly.
The thin strand of Qi she had rebuilt surged, drawing surrounding water-attribute Spiritual Qi into her body. It multiplied in an instant.
She formed a sword-hand seal and cast a minor spell—Condensate Dew.
Water vapor condensed at her fingertip, forming a flawless bead that hovered steadily—more refined than when she'd cast it at mid-Foundation Establishment years ago.
Shock flashed through her eyes.
Chang Le leaned closer, grinning. "Impressive, right? Since the pill works, shouldn't we… dissolve the pill toxin?"
Her expression froze. The water bead shattered.
"Do not push your luck."
"I'm helping you!" he protested. "The pill's potent—residual toxin may clog your meridians. Only Yin-Yang harmony can fully refine it. I'm thinking of your cultivation!"
He'd repeated the lie so often he nearly believed it.
She trembled with fury—but she was no longer powerful enough to force him out.
In the end, she turned her face away and whispered through clenched teeth:
"Out…"
"Starting now."
He carried her into the inner chamber.
Outside, the moon blurred behind drifting clouds.
Inside, candlelight flickered red.
From that day on, Ye Yuetang's progress became terrifying.
Whether basic mist condensation or advanced water shields, she mastered each technique at a glance. Her control was sharper, her Qi expenditure lower, her spells more refined.
Peak Lord Lin Xizhu attributed it to the awakening of her Peerless water root combined with accumulated experience. She invested even more resources into her prized disciple.
Ye Yuetang soon rose as Qingxi Peak's brightest star.
Chang Le, as her exclusive medicine boy, lived comfortably.
And he began expanding his influence.
The Servant Pavilion Incident
One afternoon, Chang Le overheard vulgar gossip about Ye Yuetang in the Servants' Pavilion.
"…That Senior Sister Ye? Absolute beauty…"
"If I could touch her once, I'd die happy."
Chang Le's smile vanished.
He kicked a pavilion pillar with a loud crack.
"Say that again."
The fat servant sneered. "Medicine Boy Chang? Got permission from Fairy Ye to bark at us?"
Chang Le pointed at him coldly. "Insult her again and I'll tear your tongue out."
The fat servant swung first.
Chang Le didn't dodge.
He head-butted him square in the nose.
The servant screamed.
Chang Le followed with ruthless kicks to shins and ribs—targeting pain, not damage.
His System trait activated:
[Positive: Your punches hurt immensely]
[Negative: They deal zero actual damage]
The blows felt like iron bars. Within moments, three Qi-Refining servants lay writhing on the ground.
Rumor spread quickly.
The "crazy medicine boy" backed by Fairy Ye became someone no one dared provoke.
Chang Le formed a small faction among the servants, running petty schemes under Ye Yuetang's name.
Life felt good.
The Pill
That day, alone in his room, Chang Le tossed his last high-grade spiritual herb into the virtual cauldron.
The glow this time was different—soft, steady.
When the pill condensed, it looked utterly ordinary.
[Pill Name: Unnamed]
[Effect: Longevity]
[Side Effects: None]
Chang Le blinked.
Longevity?
That was it?
No embellishment. No conditions.
No side effects.
Cultivators across the world defied heaven seeking immortality.
And he… refined it casually?
His fingers trembled.
He wanted to swallow it immediately.
But fear stopped him.
What kind of longevity? What cost? Why no side effects?
After agonizing, he made a decision.
"Let Yuetang test it first."
No guilt whatsoever.
The Swallowing
Ye Yuetang examined the dull pill.
It radiated nothing.
"Effect?" she asked.
"…You'll live a very, very long time."
She frowned. Lifespan pills existed—but all were priceless treasures.
Still, his pills had never lied.
She swallowed it.
Nothing happened.
No Qi surge. No bodily change.
They stared at each other awkwardly.
"Dud?" Chang Le muttered.
Above Pudu Mountain
Without warning—
The sky vanished.
Pure, suffocating blackness smothered the heavens.
Not nightfall.
Annihilation.
Sunlight disappeared. Clouds froze.
Three-colored lightning—black, gold, blood-red—coiled within silent thunderclouds.
No sound.
No wind.
Only overwhelming pressure.
Sect alarms rang.
Peak Lords and Elders gathered in horror.
"Heavenly Tribulation?"
"What kind of tribulation is silent?!"
Across the continent, ancient beings opened their eyes.
"Heavenly Dao's wrath…"
Yet at the storm's center—
Chang Le and Ye Yuetang remained oblivious.
Moments later—
The blackness dispersed.
The sky returned to normal.
As if nothing had happened.
No lightning struck.
No tribulation fell.
Only a question lingered.
What had the heavens tried—and failed—to destroy?
Inside the quiet room, Chang Le opened the window.
"Huh?"
Blue sky.
Sunlight.
Normal.
Ye Yuetang felt only a faint, fleeting discomfort in her heart before resuming cultivation.
The pill remained silent within her.
And far above—
Something had changed.