Chapter 24: Yan Lingqing

Just as Li Luo was surprised that Yan Lingqing hailed from the Astral Sage College, those two groups of people had already approached them.

"Haha, Young Master, Chief Steward, your arrival at Xiyang House truly makes this place shine with brilliance." The middle-aged man named Bei Yu spoke first, his face full of sincere and enthusiastic smiles.

Compared to his enthusiasm, Yan Lingqing was much colder. She merely glanced at Cai Wei, then swept her gaze over Li Luo before shoving her hands into her pockets, showing no intention of speaking.

"Vice President Bei Yu is being too formal. Xiyang House is an asset of House Luolan; what is so brilliant about the Young Master coming to see his own property?" Cai Wei smiled.

Bei Yu was taken aback, then hurriedly smiled and nodded: "I misspoke."

He accompanied them for a while longer, then cupped his hands toward Li Luo, saying he had matters to attend to, and retreated directly.

Li Luo watched this scene; it was clear that this Bei Yu had completely defected to Pei Hao, so while he appeared enthusiastic when facing him, he was actually harboring some wariness and detachment.

That enthusiasm was merely an act.

Conversely, the consistently cold and indifferent Yan Lingqing, though she hadn't paid him much mind, had ultimately stayed with them the whole time without finding an excuse to leave.

However, as Bei Yu departed, Yan Lingqing’s expression softened slightly, and she said to Cai Wei: "What brings you here today, Sister Cai Wei?"

Her voice was crisp and melodious, like a flowing stream, cold yet moving.

Cai Wei walked forward, took Yan Lingqing’s arm, and laughed coquettishly: "I brought the Young Master here to take a look."

Both women possessed excellent temperament and beauty; standing together, they were quite a sight, yet because they were so close, a certain disparity became apparent.

If Cai Wei was undulating with magnificent peaks, then Yan Lingqing was as flat as a prairie.

Li Luo’s gaze swept past, but it was still keenly detected by Yan Lingqing, who immediately lifted her snow-white chin and said with some disdain: "Little brother, what are you comparing?"

Li Luo blinked innocently.

Yan Lingqing gave a light huff, ignored him, and pulled Cai Wei toward the inside.

Li Luo didn't mind and followed behind.

As they walked into Xiyang House and ascended a covered bridge, standing on it, one could see refining platforms several stories high on both sides.

These refining platforms were partitioned into many rooms, each with a transparent crystal wall in front, and through the crystal walls, one could see a figure in a white robe busy inside.

On the tables inside the rooms hung many transparent crystal bottles, and the white-robed figures were constantly mixing various concoctions; occasionally, blue light would flicker in some rooms, representing the successful production of a batch of Spirit Liquid or Light.

"Sister Cai Wei, currently in this Xiyang House branch, there are two Grade Four Refiners, nine Grade Three Refiners, sixteen Grade Two Refiners, and thirty-three Grade One Refiners."

Li Luo watched curiously, while Yan Lingqing’s cold voice came from the front, which made him chuckle inwardly; as Chief Steward, Cai Wei must have known this information long ago, so Yan Lingqing repeating it was clearly for his benefit.

This close friend of Jiang Qing’e seemed cold, but her heart was actually quite good; of course, he understood it was mostly for Jiang Qing’e’s sake.

After walking through and doing some touring, Yan Lingqing brought the two to the place where she worked: her refining room.

"Sister Cai Wei, you didn't come here just to look around, did you?" Once there, Yan Lingqing took off her long coat, revealing simple clothes underneath that outlined her slender, slim curves. Her gaze drifted toward the refining table, her mind clearly already on her work.

"It’s because of the Young Master."

Cai Wei smiled: "He wants to learn about Refiners."

Yan Lingqing looked over in confusion and said: "Isn't he..."

She didn't finish her sentence, but the meaning was clear: wasn't Li Luo an Empty Resonance? Why learn about Refiners?

Cai Wei gave a light clap with her small hand and teased Li Luo: "Start your performance and give our high-achiever a surprise."

Li Luo was speechless, but he still channeled his Water Resonance, manifesting his blue resonant power.

"This... this is a Water Resonance?"

Surprise finally appeared on Yan Lingqing’s face. She lifted her silver-rimmed glasses with her slender jade fingers and sized up Li Luo: "You have a resonance?"

Li Luo nodded and said sincerely: "It is a Grade Five Water Resonance, so I want to learn the art of refining and become a Refiner."

Yan Lingqing’s crescent-like brows furrowed slightly: "Your Nanfeng Academy’s final exam is coming up soon, right? Shouldn't you be focusing all your energy on cultivation right now, trying to see if you can get into the Astral Sage College first? The Astral Sage College has a Refiner Institute where there are many excellent teachers."

Li Luo smiled: "I just want to get familiar with it first."

Yan Lingqing looked at Li Luo, seemingly understanding something. Although the current Li Luo had awakened a resonance, it seemed a bit too late. With his current strength, he might not truly be able to enter the Astral Sage College; if that were the case, becoming a Refiner early would provide another path for the future.

"It’s rare for the Young Master to have such ambition; you, as a high-achiever, should teach him a thing or two," Cai Wei urged from the side.

Yan Lingqing looked at her helplessly, then put down the crystal bottle in her hand and said: "You should have already learned some basic knowledge about Refiners, right?"

Li Luo nodded hurriedly; after obtaining his Water Resonance, the first thing he did was learn many basics about Refiners.

Yan Lingqing flicked her finger, and blue resonant power flew from her fingertip like a line of water, binding a stack of books and tossing them in front of Li Luo.

"Read them all."

Hearing this, Li Luo didn't say anything, but sat honestly at the table and began to flip through the books on refining.

"Sit there yourself; I still have things to finish." Seeing that Li Luo showed no impatience, Yan Lingqing nodded slightly, said a word to Cai Wei, and went to the workbench to busy herself.

Cai Wei stretched lazily, feeling a bit bored, then sat down nearby and closed her eyes to rest.

Meanwhile, in another room of Xiyang House.

"Did the Young Master and the Chief Steward do anything?" Bei Yu sat in his chair, asking the person in front of him with a calm expression.

"They didn't do anything, just looked around and then went to Vice President Yan’s workroom," the person replied.

Bei Yu nodded and said: "Keep a close watch. If they contact anyone, write it down. The most important thing during this time is for me to become the president of this branch. Once successful, I can make Yan Lingqing get lost, and then this Xiyang House will be under our control."

"Yes!"

Bei Yu waved his hand to dismiss the person, then a cold sneer appeared on his face.

"Jiang Qing’e, do you think you can fight me by finding a little girl from an academy? Let me tell you, keep dreaming!"

"This Xiyang House, I, Bei Yu, am determined to have it!"

(End of chapter)