Chapter 208: Rich Woman's Sponsorship and Spirit Veins

The face was Bao Zhu's face, her skin originally wheat-colored, but under the moonlight it looked dark, only a silhouette could be seen.

"Is it your wife's?" Bao Zhu asked curiously.

Heng Xian put away the jade pendant and said, "Couldn't it be mine?"

Bao Zhu said, "A butterfly-shaped jade pendant is obviously not something a man would like; it's more likely a woman's accessory."

Heng Xian crossed his legs and said, "Not necessarily; I actually prefer butterfly-shaped ones, they look nice."

Bao Zhu stared for a moment, not knowing how to respond, then changed the subject: "Even though this is our first meeting, I feel very familiar with you!"

Heng Xian said, "Oh?"

Bao Zhu said, "When I was at the Three Mysteries Sect, I was in charge of gathering outside news. These past months, you've turned the entire Dongyu cultivation world upside down!"

My master and the sect leader have privately discussed you, saying you are absolutely a sly, treacherous lot, and we must always be on guard—if we meet, we must be careful!

Heng Xian looked at the moon in the sky and said, "Then you'd better be careful!"

Bao Zhu said, "But my opinion has changed now—I never expected you to be so young, and you look like a girl; you're not that kind of person."

Heng Xian hesitated and said, "You mean I'm... effeminate?"

Bao Zhu thought and said, "Although you look a bit disheveled now, your handsome features can't be hidden!"

Heng Xian touched his face and said, "Naturally handsome, hard to give up—I'll grow a beard tomorrow to add some masculinity."

Bao Zhu let out a "heh" and laughed.

Heng Xian glanced at her and said, "If you don't leave, then change your angle when speaking to me—you're making me feel pressured like this."

Bao Zhu stood while Heng Xian lay on the narrow wooden roof, their poses were quite improper.

"Okay!" Bao Zhu replied, lying opposite Heng Xian with their feet facing each other.

The moonlight shone brightly, casting a mottled glow all around; in the distance, wind and sand undulated, hills stretched on, vast and desolate, when suddenly a faint wailing flute sound drifted over.

Heng Xian asked, "What is that sound?"

Bao Zhu said, "Some jerk is blowing a cloud flute, calling out to the girls of Clear Water Village next door, blowing every night—it's annoying to death!"

Heng Xian shook his ankle and said, "I see—beautiful love is praiseworthy; how could it be annoying?"

Bao Zhu coldly said, "Is there really love in the world? Heh!"

Just hearing her tone, it sounded like she'd been hurt by a man.

Heng Xian exclaimed, "What? You were bullied by a man?"

Bao Zhu fell silent for a moment, then said, "My brother and I were originally from a prominent clan; when I was five, our family fell, and my brother sent me to the Three Mysteries Sect to cultivate. I had a childhood friend, a senior fellow disciple, who treated me very well—I thought he would be my sole reliance in this life."

But after the sect disbanded, he ended up forming a dual cultivation partnership with a 170-year-old Primordial Elixir Female Elder from Plum Mountain!

I confronted him for an explanation, and he said we had no future together; after all these years of hard work, we've only reached the second or third layer of the Qi Sea Realm, with no backing or good treasures, making future breakthroughs nearly impossible!

Heng Xian laughed and said, "Maybe his approach is correct!"

Bao Zhu doubted and said, "His way of abandoning what he started, cultivating and taking a wife much older than him—is that also correct?"

Heng Xian snapped his fingers and said, "People climb high, water flows low—he sought a rich woman to support him for his prospects, and we broke up peacefully, without pain or conflict."

He got what he wanted, and you saw his true scoundrel nature—you can now go find your own happiness; best of both worlds, no problem, right?

Bao Zhu sighed and said, "What about you?"

Heng Xian gazed at the moon, a few figures flashing in his mind, and said, "Me? Girls usually throw themselves at me; I just pick casually, no worries in that regard."

Bao Zhu lightly spat and said, "What if it's a Primordial Elixir female cultivator—ah, a rich woman supporting you—would you agree?"

"Of course I wouldn't!" Heng Xian said sternly.

A hint of approval appeared on Bao Zhu's face.

Then Heng Xian added, "A Primordial Elixir rich woman is too low; if she wants to support me, she at least needs to be a Nascent Soul-stage rich woman!"

"You..." Bao Zhu sat up, feeling indignant that they couldn't agree even half a sentence.

However, as soon as they exerted force, the roof cracked with a "ka" sound, and they both fell down.

In midair, they twisted their bodies and landed lightly on the ground.

Just as they landed, a foul smell rushed over them.

Inside the house were more than ten dung pits, with the Second Boss and three lackeys squatting, defecating.

The five of them stared at each other; Bao Zhu turned her head and vanished outside the door.

The Second Boss and his three men grinned, showing big yellow teeth, and gave Heng Xian a thumbs-up: "Brother Heng, we share your view—we also want to find a rich woman, even a Qi Sea Realm rich woman is fine!"

Heng Xian glanced around, never expecting this place to be a latrine, nor noticing when these three fellows showed up, and nodded heavily: "Very well, let's encourage each other!"

He turned and left.

The next morning.

Heng Xian finished practicing his sword and techniques, left his solitary wooden hut, found the Second Boss, borrowed a wolf cart, driven by a burly man called 'Jian Ren', and headed straight to a point 190 li to the south.

There are five minor spirit veins there; we'll go have a look and then decide.

The wolf cart sped like wind and lightning, departing in the morning, passing over earthen hills, sand dunes, and rivers, and by afternoon reached the approximate destination.

The wolf cart stopped at a three-way intersection; Jian Ren turned his head, twisted shyly, and asked, "Sir, I've never been here either—where should we go?"

Heng Xian looked around, opened the "Mysterious Yellow Heavenly Hexagram", calculated for a while, and pointed in a direction: "Nine li!"

"Okay!" Jian Ren continued driving onward.

Heng Xian looked at Jian Ren's sturdy build and full beard, and couldn't help asking, "How did you get the nickname 'Jian Ren'?"

Jian Ren twisted shyly and said, "Ever since I was little, a girl has lived in my heart, so I speak a bit like a girl, and those bad people call me 'Jian Ren' because of it."

A burly man twisted shyly, giving a very unique feeling; Heng Xian coughed and said, "Hmm, very good!"

Jian Ren excitedly raised an orchid finger and said, "Sir, you also think it's good, right? Do you have a girl in your heart?"

Heng Xian nodded and said, "Yes, many—and they don't wear clothes!"

"Disgusting!" Jianren brushed his beard, chuckling.

Heng Xian suddenly felt that the name "Jianren" really suited him.

The wolf cart galloped for eight or nine li, when suddenly a gourd‑mouth‑shaped valley appeared ahead; upon arriving here, the spiritual aura suddenly grew thick.

Heng Xian rose to look closer, only to see faint distortions in the air ahead—that was the sign of overflowing spiritual aura—and, unable to contain his excitement, he slapped the cart's side: "Speed up!"

"Good!" Jianren vigorously whipped the whip.

However, just as the cart was about to charge into the valley mouth, dozens of fierce-looking men suddenly rushed out, each holding a spiritual weapon: "Halt! Idlers keep out!"

The wolf cart stopped.

Heng Xian jumped off the cart and peered into the valley mouth, only to see the interior filled with yellow and pale‑white spiritual ore stones; in the very center was a well‑shaped object—exactly the outlet of a minor spiritual vein.

Around them sat one or two hundred people, meditating cross‑legged.

He couldn't help but say: "This spiritual vein wouldn't notice if one more person came or one less—why not let people in?"

A strong man at the Qi Hai Realm snorted coldly: "Where did this brat come from? Do you know the rules? This spiritual vein belongs to our Blue Mountain Stronghold; outsiders may not enter, and trespassers will die!"

(End of chapter)