Chapter 75

“You say the secret manual left to you by the Venerable didn’t mention cultivation realms?”

Sitting in the courtyard of his villa, leaning back in a reclining chair, Gu Qingyi chewed a steamed bun slowly and said: “The Venerable surely has her own reasons… I’m not one to guess. But since you’ve already entered the [Guanyuan Realm], you must begin cultivating your soul.”

Chen Yan sat upright across from Gu Qingyi, his posture as earnest as a student in class, and said solemnly: “What does cultivating the soul mean?”

Gu Qingyi frowned, her tone tinged with confusion: “Before the Guanyuan Realm, cultivators move Qi into the body, using it to nourish the flesh, temper the blood, muscles, bones, and internal organs, strengthening the body to become a better vessel for Qi.

But Qi is still just Qi—its ability to nourish the body reaches a limit.

Only those like me, who walk the path of martial cultivation, continue to temper the body, making combat the primary focus of our practice.

Most cultivators don’t follow my path; by the Guanyuan Realm, Qi’s nourishment and tempering of the flesh have plateaued, and they must begin cultivating the soul.

Above the Guanyuan Realm is the Dengtai Realm.

The Dengtai Realm is the final great step before breaking into the Tianren Realm.

To break into the Tianren Realm, one must pass through a major threshold, which tests two things.

The first is the level of Qi cultivation—which, in effect, also demands strength in the body, because if the vessel isn’t strong enough, your Qi can’t be strong either. That’s what I said earlier: Qi must fully nourish the body.

The second is the test of the soul—if the soul isn’t strong enough, you cannot break into the Tianren Realm.

By the Guanyuan Realm, the body has already been nourished to its ceiling. For many cultivators, then, the Guanyuan Realm becomes the primary stage for soul training.”

Chen Yan frowned as he listened: “But the manual left to me by Old Grandma only contains one Qi circulation method—there’s nothing on soul cultivation.”

“Huh?”

Gu Qingyi looked startled, pausing before asking in confusion: “That… is very unusual. Since you’re not walking the martial path, why didn’t the Venerable leave you a soul-training method? She gave you the Qi circulation method, didn’t she?”

“How would I know…” Chen Yan lowered his head in thought, then asked: “Can you teach me a soul-training method?”

Gu Qingyi slowly shook her head: “I’m not unwilling to teach you—I simply don’t have one.”

She sighed, her tone calm: “I practice martial cultivation. On this path, after the Guanyuan Realm, we don’t train the soul with formal methods—we cultivate the soul through combat, condensing killing intent through battle.

Otherwise, I wouldn’t have spent five years in the Prison Platform.”

Glancing at Chen Yan, Gu Qingyi spoke softly: “My path isn’t suited to you. Those who walk the martial path begin training from childhood—I entered at five. You’re already twenty-two; your bones and body are fully formed. Even if you switched to martial cultivation now, you’d never achieve anything in this lifetime.”

Chen Yan, too, felt puzzled: “Then… am I stuck at the Guanyuan Realm?”

“No, you can still advance to the Dengtai Realm after Guanyuan. But without a soul-training method, your highest achievement will be the Dengtai Realm—and since you don’t train your soul, you’ll be the weakest among peers at that level.

A seasoned cultivator in the Dengtai Realm could suppress you with a single mental projection.”

Chen Yan fell silent for a moment, then murmured: “Perhaps… Old Grandma didn’t want me to keep breaking through to the Tianren Realm? Maybe she wants me to stop at the Dengtai Realm, remaining a mortal cultivator?”

Gu Qingyi said nothing, quietly watching Chen Yan.

Chen Yan frowned, thinking slowly: “My father, Chen Jue, was infamous in your realm—no one knows what heavenly law he broke, but surely… he bore heavy karmic debts.

Perhaps Old Grandma didn’t want me to break into the Tianren Realm, or even enter your realm.

That’s why she only passed me the Qi circulation method and a manual—enough to carry me to the final mortal realm, Dengtai.

That level is useless in your realm.

But in this world, the skills in the manual are enough for me to live a life of comfort and wealth.”

Gu Qingyi’s eyes held a complex look as she softly murmured: “So… the Venerable wants you… to live free of illness and disaster, reaching the rank of duke?”

Live free of illness and disaster, reaching the rank of duke… Chen Yan felt a quiet ache in his chest.

Sigh… suddenly, he missed Old Grandma.

·

If this was truly Old Grandma’s wish, Chen Yan had no complaints—after all, everything he had came from her. He could only feel gratitude for her careful planning for him.

—From Gu Qingyi’s fragmented words, Chen Yan had glimpsed that so-called [Realm]—it was surely no kind place!

Chen Yan asked again: “Then the Yin Sha Qi we collected after killing the Mountain Demon… is it useless now? You said it would help me cultivate my soul.”

Gu Qingyi smiled bitterly: “I didn’t know the Venerable hadn’t left you any soul-training method at all.”

Seeing Chen Yan’s disappointment, Gu Qingyi’s mind stirred, and she said slowly: “Cultivating the soul is like forging a divine blade.

You have no forging method, and neither do I. But the Yin Sha Qi still has some use.

We lack the forging technique… but the method of sharpening a blade isn’t mysterious or hard to learn.

These Yin Sha Qi can’t forge your soul into a divine blade, but they can act as a whetstone, helping your soul grow slightly denser and more refined.”

Chen Yan’s thoughts were tangled; he waved his hand: “Then keep it. If it’s useful, it won’t be wasted.”

He knew deep down his path ahead was limited—he was now at the Guanyuan Realm, and the only next step was Dengtai, after which he’d hit a wall.

Thinking of this, Chen Yan couldn’t help but feel a dull lack of motivation.

·

Hu Shangke, meanwhile, was at the peak of his life.

Sitting in the reception room of the real estate agency, Hu Tiantou trembled as he held the folder before him, its pages filled with property documents and copies of ownership certificates.

Yan Li sat across from him, observing Hu Shangke’s expressions without expression, and said slowly: “The villa we rented out last time was handled by you.

You performed efficiently, and after I reported to my boss, he was very pleased with your ability—so he’s decided to entrust you with managing several properties.”

Hu Shangke stared wide-eyed at the folder: “All… all of these?”

“There are seventeen properties here. Four of them have leases expiring this month, two next month, and the rest are vacant and unrented.

These are all properties my boss bought over the years. He wants you to handle their rentals from now on.”

Hu Shangke swallowed hard: “So… all these listings will be handled by our company?”

“Not your company.”

Yan Li shook his head.

Hu Shangke froze—then Yan Li smiled at him: “They’re entrusted to you.”

“…Me?”

“Yes. My boss’s instruction is: these properties are your exclusive resources. We only recognize transactions handled by you—no one else.”

Holy shit!

Hu Shangke’s heart pounded wildly.

He flipped through the details of the seventeen properties.

All were around one hundred square meters—residential units, fully furnished, ready to move into.

And all located in mid- to high-end housing complexes.

These units had high rental demand; as long as the price was market-appropriate, they rarely sat vacant.

And… seventeen units!

If he earned commission on each…

Seventeen units meant nearly a hundred thousand in commission!

“You can list them on your agency’s platform, other platforms, or manage them privately—we don’t care. We only recognize you.”

With Yan Li’s words laid bare, Hu Shangke’s eyes lit up—but his tension grew. He glanced at Yan Li, reluctant to tear his gaze from the folder.

“Um… Yan Zong…”

“No, I’m not a ‘Zong.’ Call me Yan Li.” Yan Li smiled warmly.

“Right, um… Yan Li, I… I…” Hu Shangke took a breath: “I’m young, but I know there’s no such thing as a free gift. You and your boss place so much trust in me—I know my own worth.

Yes, I handled that villa rental, but my contribution wasn’t that great. I…”

Hu Shangke gritted his teeth: “Why are you treating me like this? Be honest—I’m young and timid. I won’t touch anything illegal.”

Yan Li laughed, moved his chair closer, and patted Hu Shangke’s shoulder: “Little Hu, you’re overthinking. There’s no illegal activity—none at all.

And this isn’t as great a favor as you think. You’re just managing rentals—you’re not getting the properties.

Besides, who rents them out doesn’t matter to us. We collect the rent either way. We lose nothing.

So the ‘favor’ you think you’re receiving isn’t nearly as big as you imagine.”

“To me, it’s a windfall. And… maybe more than one.

If you keep giving me these properties to manage, every time a lease ends and they’re re-rented, I’ll earn commission again. I…”

I’ve basically got a lifelong paycheck?!—Hu Shangke didn’t dare say that aloud.

If he weren’t covered in acne and balding, Hu Tiantou might’ve thought they were romantically interested.

Isn’t it said that those guys prefer round faces, buzz cuts, and beards?

I’m not their type.

And I’m not the kind they’d pick for some secret mission, right?

“Don’t worry. My boss always likes nurturing capable young people. You’re efficient—he’s pleased. That’s why he’s giving you these properties to manage. Do well, and he’ll give you more opportunities.”

After speaking, Yan Li checked the time: “It’s almost noon. Let’s have lunch?”

“Yes! Yes!” Hu Tiantou, ever the social animal, said: “I’ll treat you!”

“Alright. Your call.” Yan Li nodded with a smile—he knew not to appear too eager.

At noon, the two found a decent restaurant near the agency—Hu Tiantou had wanted somewhere fancier, but Yan Li declined, citing afternoon appointments.

Hu Tiantou ordered a full table of dishes and went out to buy a bottle of fine liquor.

After half the bottle was gone, the atmosphere warmed, and their spirits relaxed.

Hu Tiantou, though a salesperson, had only graduated six months ago—he was no match for Yan Li, a seasoned veteran.

Casually, Yan Li feigned curiosity about Chen Yan—a man willing to rent a haunted villa naturally drew interest.

Hu Tiantou, off guard and half-drunk, opened up…

·