Drip, drip, drip…

Outside the window, fine raindrops continued to fall, tapping on the eaves of the house.

A cockatoo with a tiger-like plumage stood on the windowsill, gazing into the distance with its intelligent eyes, seeming to be worried about how to fly back to its owner.

Ye Anping looked at it, raised his hand to rub his temple, and was still contemplating the issues with his junior sister and Sima Xuanji.

At this point, Sima Xuanji was almost certain to come knocking on his door.

So, he and his junior sister were likely unable to avoid this matter.

Their contact with Sima Xuanji indeed had the potential to shift the “main character” position away from Feng Yudie, and this possibility was quite significant.

However, perhaps it was worth considering it from a different perspective.

Sima Xuanji was already a legendary character, and in the middle of the game, there was a mini-game resembling Gwent cards, where “Sima Xuanji” was a super rare gold card.

It could be said that meeting Sima Xuanji was a stroke of great luck for Feng Yudie.

This stroke of luck was no less than the “Mysterious Yin Art.”

Furthermore, this stroke of luck was different from those magical treasures and cultivation techniques; it was something that could be obtained repeatedly.

So, their acquaintance with Sima Xuanji was equivalent to gaining a great stroke of luck as well, Ye Anping thought.

As for what this great stroke of luck would bring, Ye Anping couldn’t imagine, but he was certain that it would be of great help to him and his junior sister.

“It’s raining!! It’s raining!! Can’t go back!! Can’t go back!!”

The cockatoo exclaimed, then hopped onto Ye Anping’s stomach, staring at him as if it wanted him to help return it to its owner.

Ye Anping reached out and gently touched the cockatoo’s crest, saying, “Who let you wander around? Your owner must be worried.”

“You’re really polite!! You’re really polite!!”

The parrot nuzzled his finger, seemingly expressing joy, although the words and tone sounded more like an insult.

Ye Anping sighed, “You’re quite an extraordinary little fellow.”

“Thank you for the compliment!! Thank you for the compliment!!”

“…”

“Gong Xi Fa Cai!! Gong Xi Fa Cai!!”

“…”

Ye Anping heaved a sigh and, with some spare time on his hands, took a non-crumbling ointment from the table. He used his spiritual energy to shape it into small portions and offered them to the parrot to eat.

At noon, Pei Lengxue and Xiao Yunluo came by to deliver a meal again. However, before they entered the room, the tiger-skinned cockatoo had already flown out of the window.

It seemed that Sima Xuanji didn’t want her daughter to know that she was observing, so she sent the parrot back.

However, whether it was intentional on Sima Xuanji’s part or because the parrot liked the food he had given, who knew. Just as Pei Lengxue and Xiao Yunluo left, the parrot flew back and brought back about ten spirit stones, as if it were paying him a “feeding fee.”

Ye Anping had no choice but to provide for the bird. Fortunately, it was just a parrot, not smelly, and relatively easy to care for.

But then again, since Sima Xuanji was willing to let him take care of this tiger-skinned cockatoo, it indicated that she probably had a strong interest in him.

Why?

Is it because she thinks he’s quite handsome? Ye Anping thought it was very likely. …

At sunset, Xiao Yunluo arrived at the Profound Star Sect’s scripture repository. It was a massive hundred-story tower, resembling a golden hoop, perched on the highest mountain in the northern part of the Profound Star Sect. This place had the strictest security in the Profound Star Sect, and even the daughter of the sect master like her couldn’t simply use a facial recognition card to enter; she had to show her identification and register.

Earlier, she had heard about those cultivation methods from Pei Lengxue, such as feeding poison and getting beaten up. The more she heard, the scarier it became, but she was also quite curious about trying it.

Since Pei Lengxue’s explanations were quite vague, and she mentioned that her cultivation methods were shared by her senior brother, Xiao Yunluo originally wanted to ask Ye Anping for the specific cultivation techniques and try them out. However, Pei Lengxue was overly protective, and she hadn’t found an opportunity to ask.

So, coming to the scripture repository now, she wanted to find Master Qi and inquire about those cultivation methods.

After registering at the entrance, Xiao Yunluo flew on her sword to the top floor of a separate room.

Knock, knock…

“Master Qi, it’s Xiao Yunluo.”

“Please come in.”

As she entered the room, the scent of ink immediately greeted her. Qi Baishi held a brush and was writing something. Xiao Yunluo didn’t dare to disturb and waited by the side until Qi Baishi set down his brush. She then spoke, “Master Qi, I wanted to ask you about cultivation matters.”

“Cultivation matters?” Qi Baishi paused, looked up at her, and asked, “What’s the matter with cultivation?”

“I heard… there’s a kind of cultivation method that involves… continuously getting beaten and taking poison, is that true?”

“Getting beaten? Taking poison?” Qi Baishi was momentarily puzzled, but he suddenly realized what she wanted to ask, as it seemed that she had been getting close to that girl named Pei Lengxue recently.

“Indeed, there is such a cultivation method. It was used by cultivators a thousand years ago but gradually became a discarded method of cultivation.”

“So, I…”

“You can’t do it.”

“Why?” Xiao Yunluo furrowed her brows and quickly asked, “If Master Qi is worried that I can’t endure it, you can rest assured…”

Qi Baishi interrupted, “Setting aside whether you can endure it or not, this kind of cultivation method requires a one-on-one master-disciple relationship.”

“What does that mean?”

“It means that the master must understand every aspect of the disciple, even better than the disciple knows themselves. They must have a deep knowledge of the meridians, physical constitution, and everything else. Otherwise, it’s easy to damage the meridians and leave the disciple as a cripple.”

“So, I can’t find someone…”

“Currently, within the Profound Star Sect, only the Sect Master understands the path of rigorous cultivation, but…”

Qi Baishi didn’t finish the second part of his sentence: How could the Sect Master bear to let her only daughter go through such rigorous training?

Upon hearing this, Xiao Yunluo fell silent. She was quite fearful of her mother, especially after the sword trial incident.

“Don’t you know, Master Qi?”

“I do know, but I’ve never taught it to anyone. I can’t experiment with it on the sect Young Mistress like you. Besides, that Pei girl is quite special. Elder Wang mentioned that she was asked by the Sect Master of the Hundred Lotus Sect to undergo rigorous training with the young master of the Hundred Lotus Sect. However, I don’t think it’s true. If you have time, you can get to know the young master Ye.”

“…”

Qi Baishi stroked his beard and said, “Although I haven’t met that young Ye, Elder Wang has been praising him in front of me.”

“Praising him?”

“Praising him for giving away hundreds of spirit stones for nothing.” Qi Baishi chuckled and added, “That kid is young, but he’s quite shrewd. Making friends with him wouldn’t be a bad idea for you.”

“Alright… I understand, Master.”

Xiao Yunluo clasped her hands in gratitude and then left the scripture repository.