Chapter 78: More Money, Greater Risk

In the training room on the basement level of the villa.

Chen Yan sat cross-legged, practiced the Yuan Qi Circulation Technique several times, and then practiced the 【Finger Sword】 a few more times.

He had become very skilled at condensing Yuan Qi; with a mere thought, he could rapidly channel the Yuan Qi to his fingertips, condense it into a thread, and then surge it outward.

After practicing the 【Finger Sword】 for a few days, Chen Yan had tried it out: with his current level of Yuan Qi cultivation, if he exerted his full strength, he could pierce through a block of bluestone!

This power was already comparable to a bullet.

However, at this level, Chen Yan could only unleash the Finger Sword three times at most; any more and it would be impossible.

It wasn't that the Yuan Qi couldn't keep up, but rather that his fingers couldn't withstand it.

After all, he was still flesh and blood; the efficacy of Yuan Qi nourishing the body had a ceiling, and it was impossible to truly turn the body into something as hard as iron.

He had tried it out: after unleashing the 【Finger Sword】 at full power for the third time, his fingers began to swell, and there was a faint, sharp pain.

Chen Yan thought for a moment, then decided to invite Gu Qingyi over and lower his stance to seek her advice.

When Gu Qingyi came downstairs, she was still holding a freshly washed apple; the twenty-one-year-old legitimate mother chewed on the apple, glanced at Chen Yan's swollen fingers, and shook her head, saying, "Your technique is correct; the problem lies in your body being too fragile."

Chen Yan was not the type of person who was rigid and unadaptable.

Since one finger could only be used three times...

Then he had ten fingers!

Couldn't he just alternate them?

So, over the next few days, whenever Chen Yan had nothing to do, he tried modifying the Yuan Qi circulation path of the Finger Sword, changing the burst point from the index finger to the thumb, middle finger, ring finger, little finger...

When Gu Qingyi learned of Chen Yan's maneuver, she was somewhat surprised by his ingenious idea.

"This move of yours, after it was created back then, must have been passed down through many generations; did none of the ancestors ever think of this idea?" Chen Yan was also somewhat curious.

Gu Qingyi shook her head: "... Practitioners of combat techniques have bodies far stronger than yours; we do not have the trouble of our bodies being unable to bear finger pain."

Speaking thus, Gu Qingyi casually snapped a block of bluestone in half with her bare hands right in front of Chen Yan, then took a piece of bluestone, held it in her hand, and gently rubbed it into powder!

Chen Yan looked at her white, tender little hands and instinctively swallowed; when she had previously pulled him to perform a movement technique to fly close to the ground, her hands had clearly felt very delicate and soft...

However, as a twenty-two-year-old concubine-born son, it was not proper to keep staring at the hands of the twenty-one-year-old legitimate mother.

Chen Yan quickly averted his gaze and said casually, "The reason you couldn't think of it isn't because you don't know about finger pain, but because your thinking is rigid! Once I figure this method out, all five fingers can freely unleash the Finger Sword... Do you know of a Wu Gong called..."

"You want to say Six Meridian Divine Swords?" Gu Qingyi tilted her head, thought for a moment, and said it very quickly.

Now it was Chen Yan's turn to be somewhat surprised: "How did you know that? Did you go online and read novels these past few days?"

Gu Qingyi's tone was very calm: "Do you think the Domain Realm is very closed off? Or do you think people in our Domain Realm know nothing about your world?"

"What do you mean?"

Gu Qingyi said, "I told you, there are channels between the two worlds; these channels opened by arrays shuttle between the boundary walls. Although traveling through them is not easy, occasionally someone from the Domain Realm does come to your world."

Chen Yan's expression grew a bit more serious: "What do people from the Domain Realm come to our world to do?"

Gu Qingyi looked deeply at Chen Yan: "Your world, although unsuitable for cultivation and lacking in cultivation resources, is very lucky to possess a peaceful world. This world... is very comfortable."

"What do you mean?"

"To come and collect some of the novel things from your world, and then take them back," Gu Qingyi said in a low voice. "Before, people also thought of coming to your world to look for special weapons to fight against... um. Although people in your world cannot cultivate and are individually very weak, your technology is very advanced."

Chen Yan frowned and said, "Do you mean that people from your Domain Realm have come here and taken some technological products, such as... weapons?"

"You could say that." Gu Qingyi raised her hand and made a gun gesture: "For example, your firearms; people over there also took some back to imitate. But unfortunately, the power of gunpowder is still too small, and it seems to be suppressed by world rules; once your gunpowder reaches the Domain Realm, its power shrinks by more than ten times. Over there, it can only be used for fireworks."

Chen Yan sneered: "Just firearms? You might not know that our world has an extremely powerful..."

"You mean nuclear weapons?" Gu Qingyi shook her head: "It's useless. My third uncle came to this world many years ago; he went to that northern country, stole a nuclear warhead back to study, and the result left him very depressed."

Chen Yan's mouth twitched... Steal a nuclear warhead?!

He frowned and asked, "Depressed about what?"

"Third uncle seemed to say something about fission and some reaction; in our world, it simply cannot react, so... it cannot be used."

Is it that the rules of chemistry and physics are different? Chen Yan pondered in his heart...

It seems, it is also a kind of balance.

The Heavenly Dao rules of the real world suppress cultivation; cultivation is difficult, Yuan Qi is thin, cultivation resources are scarce, and abilities above the Heavenly Human Realm cannot be used here!

And the Heavenly Dao of the Domain Realm suppresses the technological side; the rules might be completely different from their own world, with different differences regarding gunpowder, chemical reactions, physical rules, and fission, preventing firearms from displaying their power in the Domain Realm?

Mutually BANed each other's world's strongest means of force?

Gu Qingyi continued: "The means of force in your world cannot be used over there, so when people from our side come over, they can only occasionally come to get some of the novel things from here to take back. Your world, however, is very rich in materials for enjoyment."

Chen Yan frowned: "But after I got to know you, I still felt that you are not very familiar with many things in our world—you don't even know how to use ordinary household appliances."

"I just don't know how to use your latest household appliances. The existence of the boundary wall and the difficulty of array traversal mean one cannot come over at all times. For example, my third uncle; his most recent visit to your world was still twenty or thirty years ago."

"I heard from family members that before, every time he came, he would bring back some of the novel things from here; although he didn't bring much, at least we over there were somewhat familiar with your world."

As Gu Qingyi spoke, she smiled: "For example, the Six Meridian Divine Swords you mentioned—I have also read Jin Yong's novels."

She actually read Jin Yong's novels?

Chen Yan was somewhat surprised—but then he thought, her so-called third uncle came to this world twenty or thirty years ago; in that era, Jin Yong's works were still quite popular.

But now... she definitely hasn't read about domineering CEOs or "thirty years east of the river, thirty years west of the river," and as for "walking backwards in the washroom" and the like, she definitely wouldn't know those either.

"Laughing, Writing, Divine, Hero, leaning on Bi and Yuan; Flying Snow, Connecting Heaven, Shooting White Deer; I have read them all." Gu Qingyi snorted: "Don't think I am a country bumpkin!"

"Mm, mm, mm, you are not." Chen Yan sighed.

"Not just these, I also know 'Palace Jade Wine, one hundred and eighty per cup!'" Gu Qingyi's small face looked a bit proud: "Third uncle also brought back a television and that machine that can play discs."

"Ho? You even know 'Palace Jade Wine'? Then do you know 'Tango, four bullets, walk while shooting'?"

"Of course I know!" Gu Qingyi showed a smile on her face, but the smile quickly vanished; she shook her head and sighed, her tone somewhat regretful: "Only after I came over this time did I learn that the old lady behind 'Palace Jade Wine' has already passed away. Originally, Third uncle said he wanted me to see if there were any new works to bring back for everyone to see."

·

Gu Qingyi seemed to have accidentally revealed some more information about the Domain Realm.

Chen Yan deduced that the Domain Realm over there did not seem to be a cultivation world similar to the 【Ancient】 times as he had previously imagined.

That world occasionally exchanges with their own world. Although the extent of this exchange remains sporadic, it is enough for people of the Domain Realm to maintain a certain understanding of some technological, civilizational, and cultural achievements of their own world.

They even took back firearms for research, so they have likely studied some technological achievements as well—Gu Qingyi mentioned that her third uncle once brought back something like a television.

However, due to the existence of the boundary wall, traveling between the two worlds has many restrictions; perhaps time limits are one of them.

Gu Qingyi had previously said that the array of the boundary wall can only be traversed at intervals.

If the last time was twenty or thirty years ago... then the Domain Realm people's understanding of the real world should still be stuck in the 1990s?

No wonder this Miss knows about "Palace Jade Liquid Wine" but doesn't know about smoking, drinking, and perming hair.

Gu Qingyi's mouth has always been tight; she refuses to reveal too much about the Domain Realm.

Especially... what exactly are the people of the Domain Realm fighting against? On this point, she has never uttered a single word.

·

For the Qi-version of the Six Meridian Swords, Chen Yan spent three days and finally made some headway. Gu Qingyi provided great help—after all, the 【Finger Sword】 attack skill was taught to Chen Yan by her, so she is naturally more familiar with the Qi circulation mode than Chen Yan.

The path of Qi circulation, from shoulder to arm to fingertip, switching from the index finger to other fingers, is not as easy as just saying it.

As for Qi circulation, if Chen Yan fumbled around blindly by himself, he wouldn't know how much time he would waste on the blind man asking the way process. With Gu Qingyi, an insider, helping out, the result is twice the achievement with half the effort.

In three days, the outline of the Qi-version Six Meridian Swords began to take shape; Chen Yan could release Finger Swords from all five fingers, but except for the index finger used in the original version of the Finger Sword, the effect of the Finger Swords released from the other four fingers was... hard to describe.

The power of the thumb was quite strong, reaching more than double the power of the original index finger version!

But the speed of Qi circulation was very slow—Chen Yan roughly estimated that if he used his thumb to release a Finger Sword during combat, from Qi activation, circulating to the thumb, and finally shooting out...

the process would take a full five seconds.

The wind-up process before the skill activates is too long!

Unless the opponent in combat foolishly stands still to act as a target for you, otherwise, although the thumb's Finger Sword power is very strong, its practical significance is not great.

The fastest is the little finger.

The speed of Qi circulation and condensation is even a bit faster than the original index finger version.

The power, however, is much weaker.

When Chen Yan exerted his full strength, the power could only penetrate a thin wooden board.

This level of power is roughly equivalent to a punch from an ordinary person.

The benefit is that at this level of power, the finger doesn't hurt, so many shots can be released.

After the twenty-two-year-old good son and the twenty-one-year-old legitimate mother my lord studied for three days and fiddled out the Qi-version Six Meridian Swords...

Gu Qingyi suddenly remembered something and looked at Chen Yan, saying: "There is something I have never figured out."

Chen Yan asked casually: "What is it?"

The expression on Gu Qingyi's pretty face was serious as she spoke word by word: "It is clearly a Wu Gong performed with 【five】 fingers, so why is it called the 【Six】 Meridian Swords?"

Chen Yan was stunned: "..."

Well, he vaguely remembered that in Jin Yong's original book, the six meridians of the Six Meridian Swords were derived from some meridian theory...

But when reading the story back then, he only remembered how exciting the story was; who cared about these details?

Was the Immortal Sister taking off her clothes while poisoned in the woodshed not good to look at? Or was the honest meeting between Dream Girl and Dream Boy in the ice cellar not exciting?

·

On the fifth morning after the Mountain Ogre incident, Chen Yan left his home. When passing the central square, he saw the old man from next door standing there from far away, wearing a training suit and moving his hands and feet. That myna birdcage was hanging on a nearby horizontal bar.

Seeing Chen Yan approach, the old man greeted him with a smile and looked Chen Yan up and down.

"Did you not get the prescription I gave you and take the medicine? Your problem of excessive vital energy has not improved at all."

Chen Yan scratched his head—these past few days he had been busy perfecting the 【Qi-version Six Meridian Swords】 and had completely forgotten the prescription the old man gave him earlier.

"I will go out today to get the medicine—by the way, the herbs in the prescription you wrote should all be available at Chinese medicine pharmacies, right?"

The old geezer smiled: "What else? If I wrote you a prescription for a thousand-year-old ginseng, would you even have a place to buy it?"

Chen Yan nodded, then heard this old geezer say: "According to domestic market rates, a dose of medicine costs about two or three hundred yuan. Get ten doses back according to my prescription. Boil one dose daily, reducing three bowls of water to one bowl, and drink for ten days; your condition should slowly improve."

One dose a day, two or three hundred a day, that's fine... Chen Yan is not short of money now; ten days would cost two or three thousand, which he can afford.

"Actually, besides taking medicine, there is another method that can make you improve immediately." The old geezer looked at Chen Yan with a smile: "Find a suitable girl and harmonize your yin and yang..."

Chen Yan rolled his Bai Yan: "Mr., you should watch less borderline content."

"Pah!" The old man sneered: "Do you think I am teaching you a crooked path? For your condition, even if you find a girl to harmonize yin and yang, not just anyone will do. Dual Cultivation Technique, do you know it? It can harmonize your vital energy, and moreover... after this process, both parties in the dual cultivation will benefit greatly!"

"You young fool don't understand; it's like a dog biting Lu Dongbin!"

Being called a dog for no reason early in the morning made Chen Yan somewhat unhappy, but just as he was about to retort, he suddenly felt a movement in his heart, changed his expression, and smiled, saying: "Mr., the Dual Cultivation Technique you mentioned... do you understand it?"

"Ha!" The old man turned his head away: "If I don't understand it, then there are few people in this world who do."

Chen Yan looked at this old geezer suspiciously—first go back and try if his prescription works; if it doesn't, then the old man is just bluffing.

If the prescription works, then come back to him to learn that Dual Cultivation Technique.

Thinking of this, Chen Yan waved his hand to take his leave: "Alright, I will go handle the prescription matter today. Good, you continue exercising; I still need to go out to buy breakfast."

He originally just wanted to go out to buy breakfast—he saw on Meituan that a breakfast shop opened nearby.

Youtiao is better when bought freshly fried in person.

But since he met the old man from next door, Chen Yan simply turned around, went home, found that prescription, tucked it in his chest, and went out again.

He found the Chinese medicine pharmacy closest to his home online. Chen Yan went to the pharmacy and first asked the pharmacist there to look at the prescription. Such Chinese medicine pharmacies usually have pharmacists with medical knowledge stationed there.

After taking the prescription and glancing at it, the pharmacist said the herbs on the prescription were just things for regulating blood and qi, but regarding such a combination formula, the pharmacist admitted he didn't quite understand it, though he felt it seemed quite profound.

Chen Yan felt slightly relieved and had someone grab more than ten doses of medicine to take back.

Hmm, bought a few extra doses; I'll let Guigeng taste them for a few days first when I get back.

If it eats it without issue, then I will eat it!

Carrying the medicine bag out of the pharmacy, Chen Yan went to a nearby breakfast shop to buy a few freshly fried Youtiao. Holding them in his hand, he bit into one while walking home.

Having applied a Lightness Talisman to his body, walking was not tiring; instead, his body felt light and floating, quite like riding the wind.

Returning to the residential complex, the central plaza was already empty—Old Deng next door must have gone home already.

Chen Yan didn't think much of it. He walked to his own courtyard gate, then suddenly stopped in his tracks.

Behind him, a black sedan slowly rolled over and stopped right beside him.

The car door opened, revealing the figure of that woman, Chu Keqing.

Seeing Chu Keqing standing by the road, Chu Keqing didn't wait for her assistant to come open the door—she pushed it open herself and stepped out.

The weather was getting colder and colder, yet this woman was still wearing a pale purple qipao, though a soft fox-tail shawl was draped over her shoulders; the snow-white fox-tail shawl only served to set off that face of hers—delicate, charming, and utterly fetching.

After getting out of the car, she gently pushed the glasses on the bridge of her nose, then walked briskly to Chen Yan's side, lowered her head, and respectfully called out: "Senior!"

Chen Yan laughed inwardly, but put on a cold expression on his face: "What are you here for? Still not convinced about last time?"

"This junior wouldn't dare." Chu Keqing's tone clearly carried a few degrees of compliance: "The New Year is approaching, this junior… this junior has come to pay respects to Senior Chen, to bring you some New Year gifts."

As she spoke, Chu Keqing lowered her head to look at the things in Chen Yan's hands.

A pack of Chinese medicine?

This wasn't all that strange—among these seniors and lofty figures of the mystic arts, preparing some body-conditioning medicines for oneself was considered normal behavior. She, Chu Keqing, also knew a bit of pharmacology, and had a few unique secret prescriptions of her own. Quite a bit of the halo around "Purple Elder" had actually been built up by her medical skills.

But just one glance at the packaging bag on the Chinese medicine packet, and the pharmacy's name was clearly printed on it… Never heard of such a lofty figure going to a chain pharmacy to get medicine?

To put it bluntly, this was like Principal Wang's old man wanting to sell a building and still listing it on Beike online.

"Senior… you went to get medicine?" Chu Keqing asked carefully.

Chen Yan glanced at this woman, and said nothing.

Chu Keqing took a deep breath: "This junior has no other meaning. What I mean to say is… if Senior needs some medicinal ingredients, this junior also has a small pharmacy. It's not large in scale, but in terms of medicinal ingredients, everything is top-quality with full years. If Senior needs it, this junior would be glad to offer a small tribute…"

Chu Keqing wasn't lying—she really did have a small pharmacy. It just didn't do much business to the public on ordinary days, and the pharmacy's medicine reserves weren't large either, but there were quite a few precious medicinal ingredients.

This pharmacy existed only for her to network with powerful and wealthy people. Many of her clients were either rich or noble, and would come to her seeking medical treatment and medicine.

Chen Yan looked at this woman, then pretended to be cold as he shifted his gaze away—he really didn't dare look too much.

Nowadays his qi and blood were excessively abundant. This woman was born truly bewitching, and naturally carried a few hints of allure. With Chen Yan's current state, it was like placing a plump, fully ripe peach in front of someone who had been starving and thirsting for three days!

If he stared at her a few more times, the great philanthropist Chen would probably not dare stand up straight on the spot.

Coughing once, Chen Yan said slowly: "Since you're not here to cause trouble, then I suppose you're a guest. Come in and sit for a while."

After saying this, seeing the look of delight appear on Chu Keqing's face, Chen Yan reached into his pocket, fished out a crumpled prescription, and tossed it to this woman.

"Since you're so inclined to bring medicine, fill me twenty doses according to this prescription."

"Yes! Please rest assured, Senior, and leave it to this junior!"

Chu Keqing was even more delighted in her heart. She took the prescription and unfolded it to look.

The moment her eyes fell on it, she first saw that beautiful brush calligraphy, and inwardly praised: Truly a senior and lofty figure—who could write such beautiful calligraphy these days? Practically no one!

Then she looked at the prescription… Chu Keqing also understood medical theory, and her expression couldn't help but turn a bit awkward, a few hints of blush rising on her pretty face.

Silently folding the prescription up and putting it in her bag, she muttered inwardly: This should be a prescription for "clearing heat" and "suppressing desire," right… This senior… isn't he already ninety-one years old?

Hmm, this senior has reversed aging, and his body now looks youthful—he should be in a prime, vigorous state, but… this medicine is prescribed way too aggressively, isn't it?

Just how much "heat" is there?

Forcing down the guesses in her heart, not daring to show a trace of it on her face, Chu Keqing politely followed Chen Yan through the door.

After the courtyard gate opened, she left her assistant behind, instructed her to have the gifts brought inside, and Chu Keqing followed Chen Yan into the courtyard.

The moment she stepped into the courtyard, Chu Keqing's expression suddenly changed!!

(This Yuan Qi?!)

She, Chu Keqing, was also someone who had cultivated for many years—of course she was more than familiar with Yuan Qi. Moreover, her realm was on par with Chen Yan's, so naturally she could sense the external Heaven and Earth Yuan Qi.

The moment she stepped into this courtyard, she immediately felt that the Yuan Qi concentration inside was at least three times higher than outside!

Such dense Yuan Qi—she, Chu Keqing, had traveled all over, visited plenty of famous mountains and great rivers, and seen those so-called blessed lands and caves of paradise that were advertised, yet she had never seen Yuan Qi this concentrated!

Moreover, by Chu Keqing's perception, she could sense that some kind of force within this courtyard seemed to be drawing in endless Heaven and Earth Yuan Qi from all directions, strand by strand, like a siphon effect, gathering it all into this courtyard.

And once the Yuan Qi was drawn in, it gathered here and did not disperse, as if constrained by some invisible force.

(Simply comparable to an immortal's divine ability!)

Chu Keqing's face was full of shock. Following behind Chen Yan, her breathing also suddenly quickened.

Hearing Chu Keqing's quickened breathing, Chen Yan turned his head to glance at her: "What's wrong?"

Chu Keqing obediently lowered her head and obediently said: "This junior lost her composure… Senior's residence here is permeated with Yuan Qi. This kind of divine ability has truly shaken this junior."

"A minor, shallow formation." Knowing Chu Keqing could sense the Yuan Qi change, Chen Yan deliberately said lightly: "Purple Elder's fame fills Jin Ling—have you never seen this kind of formation?"

Chu Keqing: "…"

Let alone this kind of formation that could manipulate Yuan Qi—even this senior's casting of spells, Chu Keqing had never seen!

Formations weren't unfamiliar to Chu Keqing—but among those in the mystic arts, people only knew some shallow feng shui formations.

This kind of manipulation of Yuan Qi, nearly an immortal's divine ability, existed for her only in legends and fantasy.

·

Gu Qingyi had originally been upstairs. Hearing movement downstairs as someone entered the house, she came down the stairs and complained: "You said you were going to buy a youtiao—how come it took so long?"

Chen Yan smiled, tossed the pack of youtiao in his hand onto the dining table: "Just out of the fryer, still hot."

Only then did a bit more smile appear on Gu Qingyi's face. At one glance she saw Chu Keqing following behind Chen Yan, and the twenty-one-year-old legitimate mother said with an even, flat expression: "A guest?"

Chen Yan nodded casually: "Mm, a friend came to drop off some New Year goods."

Chu Keqing stared intently at Gu Qingyi for a couple of seconds, and couldn't help feeling a few hints of amazement rise in her heart.

Subconsciously, she stole another glance at Chen Yan.

This Senior Chen Yan… truly is a… scumbag!

Previously she had once run into him at a shop near Luoyun Studio—at that time there was a young, fetching, gentle girl by his side.

Then after getting to know him, because of Luo Qing's matter, it involved the proprietress of that internet cafe—also a pitiable stunner of a beauty.

Now, there actually hides such a beauty who brings disaster in the family!

This senior Chen Yan is indeed as I saw when I used the Gaze-into-Qi Art on him that day—his peach blossoms are plentiful!

However, Chu Keqing hesitated for a moment, looked at Gu Qingyi but didn't know how to greet her, so she looked at Chen Yan for help.

Chen Yan scratched his head and said vaguely, "This is... a distant elder relative of mine."

Chu Keqing has a gentle temperament and a flexible figure. Now, being awed by this senior Chen Yan, she immediately greeted Gu Qingyi politely without the slightest hesitation: "Greetings, Senior!"

She was clearly over thirty, and seeing that Gu Qingyi was at least ten years younger than her, looking no more than twenty, yet she called her "Senior" without any obstacle.

This ninety-one-year-old senior Chen Yan looks like a twenty-year-old youth; as for this stunning young lady, who knows how old she is?

She might even be old enough to be my grandmother.

This family... they are probably all experts!

Gu Qingyi tugged at the corner of her mouth, returning a polite smile: "Hello."

Then, Gu Xiaoniang hugged a fried dough stick and dove straight into the dining room.

·

Chen Yan led Chu Keqing to sit on the living room sofa.

He, a post-2000s generation, doesn't like tea and doesn't know how to do tea ceremonies, so he took a bottle of mineral water and placed it in front of Chu Keqing.

"Alright, if you have any purpose, just say it." Chen Yan looked at Chu Keqing.

"... A few days ago, a Mountain Demon caused trouble in Purple Gold Mountain; it should have been suppressed by your hand, right?" Chu Keqing asked.

Chen Yan raised an eyebrow, looking at this woman: "How do you know?"

Chu Keqing took a deep breath and recounted how she discovered the evil qi spreading from the mountain, then went to Purple Gold Mountain to investigate, followed by a series of observations.

Finally, she took out the fragment of a talisman paper with a corner still remaining that she had seen and placed it on the coffee table.

"This junior saw this object and thus confirmed it was your work. The Mountain Demon caused trouble in the mountain, but when I went there, there was no trace, yet this object was left behind; this junior dares to guess that it must have been resolved by your hand."

Chen Yan thought for a moment and said in a very calm tone: "It was merely a coincidence."

Speaking, he lifted his eyelids and glanced at this woman: "You didn't come to my door just to inquire about this matter, did you?"

"No." Chu Keqing shook her head and said softly in her distinctive voice with a natural nasal tone: "This junior dares not pry into the Senior's actions; I only sought to verify this matter for another reason, which is also related to the purpose of my visit today."

Pausing for a moment, Chu Keqing's tone became even more cautious: "Since the Senior was willing to act on the matter of the Mountain Demon, it shows the Senior possesses compassion and a heart willing to protect ordinary people... This junior came this time because I encountered a tricky matter these past two days. My cultivation is insufficient, and I am powerless to resolve it, so I had to boldly come to your door and request the Senior's assistance."

Hearing these words, Chen Yan frowned, thought for a moment, and then said: "Your cultivation is excellent, and you are very famous in Jin Ling Prefecture; what matter is beyond your ability to resolve with your cultivation?"

Chu Keqing's expression did not change; she shook her head and said: "Indeed, this junior is powerless to resolve it; after much thought, I still have no clue, which is why I boldly came to your door."

Chen Yan glanced toward the dining room; Gu Xiaoniang was sitting there, holding a fried dough stick in one hand and a cup of soy milk in the other, eating and drinking with full concentration—but this woman certainly knew every word and action Chen Yan made here.

Chen Yan then said: "The New Year is approaching; I haven't had much mind to deal with trivial matters recently."

Chu Keqing pondered briefly and then said: "The patron who commissioned me for this matter is a wealthy merchant and an old client I have known for many years. This time he came to me seeking help, and I could not refuse; only after hearing the full account of the matter did I feel it was tricky."

However, this friend encountered such difficulties and had nowhere else to turn, so I could not refuse to help; I..."

Chen Yan smiled as he looked at her: "That is your friend, not mine."

Chu Keqing, calm and unhurried, took out paper and pen from her bag, quickly wrote down a string of numbers, and then pushed it in front of Chen Yan.

"This friend is willing to offer this sum as a reward to me. However, this junior's cultivation is insufficient; I know well that I have the intention but lack the power to resolve this matter. If Senior you are willing to act, this junior is willing to offer this entire reward to you!"

As for me... I seek nothing else; I only wish to follow beside you, lend a hand, broaden my horizons, and gain some experience; that is enough!"

Chen Yan glanced at the string of numbers on the paper—that string of numbers was enough to buy the villa he currently rented.

This was not a small sum of money!

However, Chen Yan was not the type to value money over life... Although this sum was tempting, Chen Yan knew more clearly: if it were not an extremely difficult matter, people would not be willing to offer such a large reward.

The more money, the greater the difficulty; perhaps the risk is even greater!

Tapping his fingers on the table, Chen Yan's expression remained calm: "You tell me first, what exactly is this matter. I will make a decision after hearing it."

Chu Keqing breathed a sigh of relief inside—since the other party did not directly refuse, it seemed her judgment was correct.

Chu Keqing had carefully analyzed the matter of Senior Chen Yan helping Director Fang act, and reached her own conclusion: This senior, although an expert from the outside world, should... also like money!

Showing the number of the reward directly seemed to be the right approach.

Taking a deep breath, Chu Keqing steadied herself and then slowly recounted a strange matter...

·

【Wishing everyone a Happy New Year, may the whole family be happy and healthy! Wishing you prosperity!】

【Please give some tips as red envelopes; not much is needed, just for good luck and a bit of meaning.】

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