Chapter 54

The newcomer was no one else—it was Feng Ming, one of the Qingluan Three Phoenixes, and Qing Ge's dao partner.

Qing Ge greeted him with a beaming smile, while the surrounding disciples' faces were full of envy; the Qingluan Three Phoenixes were all extraordinarily beautiful, yet it was a pity that the only one who had become dao partners with a Yunyin Sect disciple, Miss Feng Ming, actually took a liking to Qing Ge—what a waste of a fine pair of eyes!

The remaining female cultivators filed out, some with seductive eyes like silk, others striking poses; female cultivators naturally possess an ethereal aura beyond ordinary people, with top-notch skin and figures, and Qingluan Sect cultivators have also studied enchantment techniques, so even if they were originally plain-looking, each still has a unique charm.

One by one, the Yunyin Sect cultivators stepped forward to meet their dao partners; most immediately bowed farewell to the remaining crowd, happily taking their beauties away to begin their private world.

Time slowly passed, the crowd dwindling from a group to just three or five people, while Qiu Hu still hadn't appeared. Two dao-partner pairs remained on the scene: one was Qing Ge and Feng Ming, the other was Feng Ming's close friend, the female cultivator Hai Yan, and her dao partner Qing Ye, a cultivator of the Spirit Beast House.

As an inner disciple, Qing Ge often wore a smile but was inwardly arrogant; ordinary outer disciples wouldn't catch his eye, yet facing Wei Yuning, whose strange abilities and status were already not inferior, he dared not look down on him and even wanted to make friends—moreover, his dao partner Feng Ming and Hai Yan were close friends, and Hai Yan wished to stay and chat with Wei Yuning, so he certainly couldn't just walk away.

Hai Yan's life had been saved by Wei Yuning; upon seeing her benefactor again, even though there wasn't much for Wei Yuning and her to talk about, she remained enthusiastic, chatting nearby about the female cultivator Qiu Hu.

Hai Yan's dao partner Qing Ye was an old acquaintance of Wei Yuning; during their time at the Beast Pasture, Qing Ye had been in the third team, and this time, in achieving the cooperation agreement with the Spirit Beast House to raise insects, it was this familiar face Qing Ye who facilitated the connection.

"Senior Brother Qing Mo, Junior Sister Qiu Hu has really changed a lot—you'll surely be shocked when you see her," Hai Yan said, having repeated this many times; Wei Yuning also didn't know whether her words were true or false.

"Could Qiu Hu have used some excuse to revert to her true appearance?" he couldn't help but guess. If that were true, then later Qing Ge probably wouldn't be so pleased.

Under Wei Yuning's eager anticipation, the plain-faced Qiu Hu finally emerged as the last one, accompanied by another—a girl with a loli face and a fiery figure, the female cultivator Thus line: Ye Ying.

Qiu Hu had indeed changed.

As always, she had a slender medium build, a tranquil temperament like a deep blue lake under an autumn sunset. Today she wore a pale yellow one-piece dress, large red phoenix shoes, her hair piled high, with a huge red flower pinned on one side, nearly covering half her head, matching today's atmosphere well.

Her features were still the same, just her eyes a bit larger, eyebrows a bit thicker and longer, nose a bit straighter, mouth a bit smaller—only slight changes in each part, yet her beauty instantly rose two levels, making her a middle-to-top appearance among the Qingluan Sect female cultivators.

The only slight regret is that the whole combination feels a bit off, like some people who have succeeded in plastic surgery: their faces became prettier, but the overall look lacks harmony.

"Alright, I accept it—after all, it's all fake; at least this appearance is presentable now, so the Yunyin Sect fellows won't keep thinking I have weird aesthetic tastes!" Wei Yuning thought this way and also walked forward enthusiastically.

Qiu Hu gave Wei Yuning a faint smile and a nod, while the loli-faced female cultivator beside her was even more elated, radiant; from her expression, it seemed Thus line: Ye Ying was the true star of the day.

"Sorry, just now because Thus line: Ye Ying isn't a sect disciple's dao partner, I caused a bit of trouble and made you wait?" Qiu Hu glanced around the deserted square and said apologetically.

"It's fine, I have these few keeping me company; you… your appearance has changed?" Wei Yuning pointed to Qing Ge, Feng Ming, and the others beside him, then asked.

"How about it, have I become prettier?" Qiu Hu nodded in greeting to Qing Ge and the others, then asked Wei Yuning, her eyes full of mischievousness.

"Pretty, pretty!" Wei Yuning said insincerely.

"Senior Sister, I spent a lot of money buying the Beauty Pill from the Hundred United Merchant Alliance—hmph, it's all for you, what do you have to show for it?" Thus line: Ye Ying interjected from the side, her tone still unpleasant.

Wei Yuning pursed his lips, wanting to retort but holding back; in his eyes, Thus line: Ye Ying was merely an immature child, her age no more than that of a junior high student.

"I've fixed my appearance; for a while now, I'll look like this!" Qiu Hu's mental transmission drifted into Wei Yuning's ears.

Wei Yuning was a bit startled upon hearing that, but quickly came to terms, saying, "Come on, I bought you a big mansion; let's go see it now."

"Where? The half-mountain villa? Then aren't we just going back again?" Thus line: Ye Ying complained. They had already learned from their sisters about the situation here: newly arrived Qingluan Sect female cultivators basically live in the half-mountain villas, while residences above the Cloud Mist peaks aren't affordable for ordinary disciples, and those Yunyin Sect disciples who married into the Qingluan Sect are mostly ordinary outer disciples.

Of course, although the half-mountain villas aren't inside the main body of the mountain-protecting grand formation, they still have defensive formations, and there is a small spiritual spring there; the spiritual energy is comparable to that of Ke Lai Peak above the clouds, the only drawback being the heavy fog that impairs visibility.

However, this isn't set in stone. After Qingluan Sect female cultivators become dao partners of Yunyin Sect disciples, if they have suitable abilities, they can also take on various tasks from the Yunyin Sect, earning sect contribution points and spirit stones; once their contribution points are sufficient, they can obtain free housing in the communal dormitory area of Ke Lai Peak.

If they secure a fixed daily job, it's even more convenient—they can live directly in the dormitories.

"Certainly not a villa—I bought a residence in Fenghe Garden, northern area of Ke Lai Peak, selected by Senior Uncle Hongzhi; I haven't even gone to look at it yet!" Wei Yuning said with a hint of pride.

"Oh, so you also bought a place in Fenghe—looks like we'll be neighbors from now on!" Qing Ge said, quite surprised. He rarely cared about matters outside cultivation, so he naturally didn't know that Wei Yuning was a wealthy tycoon among the new disciples.

"I heard from a senior sister who came ten years ago that among the northern gardens of Cui Zhu, Fenghe, and Songtao, Fenghe Garden has the best scenery, and it even contains a spiritual lake that's very helpful for cultivation!" Feng Ming also said.

"Really? That's great! The spiritual energy here is much stronger than that of the Qingluan Sect!" Thus line: Ye Ying exclaimed in surprise.

"Junior Brother Qing Mo, Hai Yan and I are leaving first; let's chat again when we have time!" Qing Ye suddenly said.

"Senior Brother, goodbye!" Wei Yuning hurriedly replied.

Seeing Qing Ye pull away an unwilling Hai Yan, Feng Ming only then realized she might have misspoken, regretting: "Hai Yan still has to live in the villa; I shouldn't have said that."

"The villa's spiritual energy isn't worse than here's, but if you want Hai Yan to live up there, it's not impossible—just find a fixed job in the sect, and actually living in the sect's dormitories isn't bad either; it just lacks a courtyard." Wei Yuning said.

"Taking on tasks is still doable, but the sect's fixed positions aren't many, and our disciples still have plenty of free time!" Even though Qing Ge is an inner disciple, hearing Wei Yuning's words made him frown.

"No problem, I can provide work!"

"You? How can you provide work?" Qing Ge stared wide-eyed, utterly incredulous.

"I've contracted a plot in the Spirit Beast House to raise spirit beasts, and I'm short on help!" Wei Yuning chuckled.