Chapter 56: Chapter Forty-Nine: Three Things

“Xiao Yan, you’re up.”

Gu Qingyi looked at Chen Yan, her face flushed, speaking in her soft, high-pitched voice to greet him.

Chen Yan could tell this Miss Gu was also forcing composure—this attempt at a “senior” tone sounded utterly unnatural.

Chen Yan sighed inwardly but smiled on his face: “Miss Gu, good morning.”

“Mm…” Gu Qingyi actually blushed again.

“Have you eaten?”

“...Not yet.” Miss Gu glanced hopefully toward the kitchen: “I can’t cook, so I’m waiting for you.”

Fine, I still have to wait on her... Chen Yan smiled wryly but replied politely: “Wait a moment—I’ll prepare breakfast right away.”

He was too lazy to cook; he’d been worn out from days outside, and didn’t feel like lighting the stove this morning. Instant noodles were in the house... but after eating them for so many days, the thought made him nauseous. He picked up his phone and ordered takeout.

A few fried dough sticks, two cups of soy milk, four eggs.

Remembering the one still swimming in the outdoor pool, Chen Yan scratched his head: “Uh, that old turtle you brought—what does it eat?”

Gu Qingyi shook her head: “I don’t know. Probably fish or shrimp. If not, just release it back into a wild lake during the day—it can hunt for itself.”

Chen Yan glanced at Miss Gu.

You make someone your servant, don’t pay them wages, and now expect them to bring their own food? Even capitalists aren’t this ruthless.

The takeout arrived about half an hour later. While waiting, the two sat awkwardly in the living room, staring at each other.

They’d actually talked late into the night yesterday. Chen Yan had asked Gu Qingyi many questions—about the Chen family, about the [Domain], about the Old Grandma’s identity.

But Gu Qingyi told Chen Yan that in the Domain, Chen Jue had always been the sole heir; after his disappearance, the main Chen lineage had virtually no one left—otherwise, Gu Qingyi wouldn’t have had to come to this world to find him.

She didn’t know what specific disaster Chen Jue had caused.

As for the Old Grandma, Gu Qingyi only told Chen Yan that she was widely known among the Thirty-Six Venerables, one of the ancient ancestors of the Ghost Clan in the Domain.

The Ghost Clan wasn’t what people in Chen Yan’s world imagined ghosts to be.

More accurately, whether in this world or the Domain, humans didn’t become ghosts after death.

The Ghost Clan was a race in the Domain that cultivated the Ghost Dao.

As for the Domain... Gu Qingyi told Chen Yan that there were rules for leaving the Domain’s boundary to enter this world: one must not reveal too much about the Domain to its people—unless Chen Yan chose to return to the Domain as a Chen family heir, in which case he’d be considered one of their own.

Otherwise, she couldn’t say much.

Besides that, Gu Qingyi also explained a few things about cultivation.

Earlier, Chen Yan had combed through the Old Grandma’s books, which only recorded cultivation methods and spells—but no divisions of cultivation realms. For the past month, his cultivation had felt like a blind man feeling an elephant.

According to Gu Qingyi’s explanation, cultivation realms were divided into three major tiers:

Mortal Cultivator, Transcendent, Saint.

Each tier had multiple sub-levels.

The [Mortal Cultivator] tier was for ordinary cultivators, ranked from low to high: Initiate, Return to Origin, Ascend Platform.

After Ascend Platform, Mortal Cultivators faced their first major threshold: cross it, and you become a Heavenly Person; fail, and you remain trapped in Mortal Cultivator—over ninety-nine percent of cultivators in the Domain spent their entire lives stuck here!

Only those with exceptional talent, by sheer luck, could cross into the Heavenly Person realm.

That was how one transitioned from Mortal Cultivator to [Transcendent].

The [Transcendent] tier had three levels: Heavenly Person, Golden Body, Nascent Soul.

Those who reached any of the three Transcendent levels were considered strong in the Domain.

Above Heavenly Person, cultivation became extremely difficult—each level was a massive threshold; the higher you climbed, the more talent and fortune you needed.

Beyond [Transcendent] lay the [Saint] tier.

The [Saint] tier had three levels: Venerable (Minor Saint), Earth Venerable, Heaven Venerable.

To reach Saint tier, talent and fortune alone weren’t enough!

In the Domain, there were only two Great Heaven Venerables, four Earth Venerables, and thirty-six Minor Venerables.

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Gu Qingyi told Chen Yan three things.

The number of [Saint] tier cultivators is fixed!

The Domain’s Heavenly Dao has a set number: two Heaven Venerables, four Earth Venerables, thirty-six Minor Venerables—forty-two total, ruling over all in the Domain. This number can never exceed!

Only when a Venerable perishes and the Heavenly Dao opens a vacancy can a lower cultivator break through and ascend.

If no vacancy exists, no matter how hard one tries, one can never rise beyond Nascent Soul—never become a Venerable!

Thus, in the Domain, Venerables, Earth Venerables, and Heaven Venerables are collectively called [Saint Tier].

Minor Venerable = Minor Saint, Earth Venerable = Saint, Heaven Venerable = Great Saint.

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Gu Qingyi’s second point to Chen Yan was:

In this world, even if one obtained cultivation methods, no matter how hard one worked or how gifted one was, one could never reach Heavenly Person realm.

One would remain forever trapped in the Mortal Cultivator tier—no breakthrough possible!

Chen Yan had already begun cultivation, but even if the method he received came from the Old Grandma’s Saint-tier lineage, as long as he stayed in this reality, he could never enter Heavenly Person realm.

This was determined by the world’s rules.

As for why, Gu Qingyi didn’t know—only her clan elders said so, likely because the Domain had its own cultivation qi, while this world had none!

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Gu Qingyi’s third point to Chen Yan was:

Powers above Heavenly Person realm cannot be freely used in this world.

That’s why, upon arriving here, Gu Qingyi could only use Mortal Cultivator-level power, never touching Heavenly Person power.

If she did, the world would suppress and repel her—minor consequence: expelled into the chaotic space beyond the boundary... no one knew what would happen then.

Major consequence: immediate backlash from the world’s rules—vanishing into ash on the spot.

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“So the reason you told me you were Heavenly Person and could carry me flying, let me walk all over town, was a lie?” Chen Yan protested.

But Chen Yan felt heartbroken: I even said “I’ve wandered half my life”—and now you tell me you can’t fly me?

“Not exactly. My realm is Heavenly Person. Though I can’t use Heavenly Person power here, in your world without cultivation lineage, I’m more than enough to protect you!”

“I can only manifest the peak of Mortal Cultivator—Ascend Platform—in your world. But since your world’s rules cap power at Ascend Platform, I’m already the strongest here.”

Chen Yan thought about it, then relaxed.

Miss Gu was effectively the ceiling here.

Enough.

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The term “Miss Gu” wasn’t Chen Yan’s invention—it was agreed upon between them.

Calling her “Mom”... Chen Yan wasn’t that shameless; even if beaten, he couldn’t say it. Gu Qingyi couldn’t bear it either.

Calling her “Mother” felt awkward too.

After discussion, they compromised: Chen Yan would call her Miss Gu.

But... Gu Qingyi had withheld one thing from Chen Yan: her destitution working at the Ultimate Internet Cafe, and the KFC bucket robbery incident.

Not because she was embarrassed—well, maybe a little.

But the main reason:

“I’ll carry you around, someone bothers you, I’ll beat them up...”

That was pure exaggeration.

When Gu Qingyi first arrived in this world, she was nearly starved to death, dared not flaunt her cultivation, and had to sneakily steal a KFC bucket while praying to her Ancestor for forgiveness... reduced to sleeping outdoors, taken in by the internet cafe owner.

The Domain had its own Heavenly Dao—cultivators couldn’t simply act recklessly with their power.

Domain cultivation included something called [Laws and Oaths], not mere written rules, but mystical vows taken during cultivation—complex and intricate.

Simply put: Evil cultivators swore to the Heavenly Dao: “I’ll do evil all my life—if I ever do good, punish me!”

Righteous cultivators swore: “I’ll do good all my life—if I ever do evil, punish me!”

Gu Qingyi had no intention of explaining these to Chen Yan.

After all, this guy wouldn’t go to the Domain... would he?

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After breakfast, Chen Yan used his phone app to buy groceries—fish, meat, eggs, milk, vegetables—quite a bit.

The benevolent Chen Yan even bought some fish and shrimp for the old turtle.

He glanced at his phone balance and sighed.

Supporting Gu Qingyi was fine—ethically, she was his Miss Gu.

Consider it maintenance.

A servant eating this expensively...

Thinking of it, the benevolent Chen Yan grew irritable, opened the door, and called the old turtle, who was sunbathing in the yard, inside.

“First, you’ve taken human form—don’t lie on the ground in the yard! What if someone comes over, they’ll think we’ve got a lunatic living here!” Chen Yan said slowly to the little old man before him; “Second, as a servant, you must work. Starting today, cleaning, laundry, and cooking are your duties.”

The turtle blinked at Chen Yan, then turned to glance at Gu Qingyi.

Gu Qingyi remained calm: “Xiao Yan is right.”

Someone has to do the work—if not you, then me?

I served people at the internet cafe for days without complaint—now that I’m the mistress, I’m entitled to enjoy myself!

The turtle sighed: “I humbly obey the Heavenly Person’s decree.”

Chen Yan looked at the skinny old man before him: “Do you have a name?”

“...No.”

“Then I’ll give you one. You’re a tortoise cultivator—your surname will be Gui. As for your given name... tortoises live long, so you’ll be Gui Geng.”

Gui Geng?

Sounds like you’re going to cook me?

The old tortoise dared not object, nodding reluctantly in agreement.

Thus, over the course of a morning, Chen Yan took Gui Geng around the villa twice, teaching it how to use household appliances.

Washing machine, microwave, dishwasher, sterilizer, vacuum cleaner...

By lunchtime, Gui Geng was already straining to drag the vacuum cleaner from room to room, cleaning diligently.

Chen Yan glanced over—hmm, it was just slow at working, but after all, it was a tortoise; slow was fine.

Besides, it was unpaid labor.

He turned to look at his own Gu Xiaoniang... and couldn’t help pulling at the corner of his mouth.

The “stepmother” was slumped on the living room sofa, watching a TV drama, lounging lazily.

The TV was airing a ridiculous fantasy idol drama, yet Gu Xiaoniang was utterly hooked.

A bag of sunflower seeds sat in front of her.

“I ordered braised chicken for lunch,” Chen Yan called out.

Gu Xiaoniang didn’t even lift her head from the TV, replying offhandedly: “Mm-hmm!”

So yesterday she was still a little fairy.

Today she’s turned into a Northeastern gal.

Yet her voice was still that high-pitched, dainty tone.

How on earth did she manage that—utterly rustic dialect, yet born with a naturally squeaky voice?

After lunch, Chen Yan left the two—his stepmother and the tortoise—at home and went out.

He had an important errand to run.

To buy items for the funeral marriage ceremony for his stepmother and his own father...

Just thinking about it made Chen Yan feel uneasy.

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