[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":-1},["ShallowReactive",2],{"origin-the-dragon-lies-hidden":3,"chapter-the-dragon-lies-hidden-the-dragon-lies-hidden-chapter-58":6},{"origin":4,"title":5},"chinese","The Dragon Lies Hidden",{"chapter":7,"nextChapterSlug":19,"prevChapterSlug":20,"totalChapters":21,"novelImage":22},{"id":8,"novel_id":9,"title":10,"slug":11,"index":12,"content":13,"wordcount":14,"created_at":15,"updated_at":15,"volume":16,"translator":17,"content_hash":18},2289356,4477,"Chapter 58: Push","the-dragon-lies-hidden-chapter-58",58,"\u003Cp>Xiang Weiyuan barely escaped from the Xuanming Hall ward. The Daoist had used too much medicinal water when cleaning the wound, so he had to add more muscle-regenerating powder; then the powder was too much, so he had to sprinkle more medicinal water. If Xiang Weiyuan’s body weren’t so robust, he’d have been crippled long ago by the Daoist’s mishandling.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>In his panic, the Daoist accidentally revealed he was only eighteen and hadn’t yet graduated—he had no talent for medicine and could never practice independently. But the hall was short-staffed, the Xin-class ward had been understaffed for ages, so they’d sent him over.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After leaving the ward, Xiang Weiyuan felt he ought to visit Bao Yun out of propriety, to thank her for saving him at great risk. But how could one visit a savior empty-handed? Yet Xiang Weiyuan was penniless and had nothing worth offering. After rummaging through his entire room, he finally found a bottle of Peiyuan Elixir—barely decent enough—and took it to visit Bao Yun.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Bao Yun’s courtyard lay dozens of li from Xiang Weiyuan’s residence. He refused to ride the palace carriage, relying on his youth and strength to run all the way to her dwelling.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Bao Yun’s residence looked no different from Xiang Weiyuan’s—both were standard small courtyards built against the mountain, two-story pavilions with cultivation chambers directly carved into the caves. But standing at the gate, Xiang Weiyuan caught a faint, soothing fragrance that lifted his spirit.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Xiang Weiyuan knocked on the courtyard gate. An old servant opened it, saw it was him, and smiled warmly, inviting him inside.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>As soon as he entered the courtyard, Xiang Weiyuan saw a flowering tree in the central yard, about a zhang tall, its branches thick with blue pentagonal leaves that scattered tiny specks of blue light as they swayed.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Starfall Dragon Kui !\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Xiang Weiyuan recognized the tree at once—there was no mistaking it, for it was far too famous. Its leaves were one of the main ingredients in Peiyuan Elixir. This tree, so large, must be at least a thousand years old; its leaves alone could yield hundreds of bottles of top-grade Peiyuan Elixir. Premium Peiyuan Elixir was twenty percent more potent than the ordinary kind and twice as expensive, so Xiang Weiyuan had never tasted it.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>So how much immortal silver was this thousand-year tree worth? And yet it was planted here not for harvesting, but merely as a screen, to block the view of the main hall upon entering the courtyard.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Still stunned, Xiang Weiyuan caught a flash of vivid red from the corner of his eye.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>In one corner of the courtyard grew a peculiar tree, entirely crimson, shaped like coral, with branches but no leaves, flames rising between them. The fragrance he’d smelled outside came from this tree.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Xiang Weiyuan recognized this Red Jade Coral too—it was one of the three priceless herbs essential for forging a Dao Foundation. During his Technique Theory class, the instructor had shown a specimen, forbidding anyone to touch it and not allowing anyone to look at it for long. That one was barely half the size of this one. Cui Yu himself had used a Red Jade Coral for his Celestial-Class cultivation.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Besides that, every chair and table in the courtyard was made of Beihai Ice Jade Marrow. Ice jade was cheap, but add “marrow” and it became unbuyable. The tea set on the table was of a material Xiang Weiyuan couldn’t identify, and even the grass in the lawn and the vines crawling up the walls, bearing tiny red fruits…\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Young Brother Xiang has come? Please, come in!” Bao Yun’s voice floated from the main hall.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Xiang Weiyuan followed the old servant into the main hall. As soon as he stepped inside, he felt the spiritual energy so thick it nearly condensed into mist and dew! The spiritual density here was over ten times that of his own courtyard—cultivating here, even without any pills, would grant him two or three times the speed of an ordinary cultivator.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Xiang Weiyuan glanced around and understood at once: this pavilion looked identical to the original, but it had been completely dismantled and rebuilt.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Bao Yun still wore her pale yellow dress. She had always been stunningly beautiful, and now that she’d reached the Spirit Refining realm, her skin glowed faintly translucent, radiating inner luminescence—every smile and frown illuminated the entire hall.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Young brother, please sit!” Bao Yun motioned for Xiang Weiyuan to sit first, then gracefully took her seat opposite him.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Sitting across from Bao Yun, Xiang Weiyuan grew nervous, yet under her gaze he couldn’t stay silent. He forced himself to say: “I came to thank you for saving me at great risk. I brought a small gift—it’s hardly worthy of your kindness.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Xiang Weiyuan placed the bottle of Peiyuan Elixir on the table, his movements stiff and awkward, as if he were holding up a small mountain.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Looking back now, the gift was pathetically meager—after all, her courtyard held a thousand-year Starfall Dragon Kui . He’d essentially offered a single leaf, and a low-grade one at that.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Bao Yun didn’t take it immediately. She stared at him, lips slightly curved, and asked: “Why are you nervous? Do you think I’m unattractive?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“I’m not nervous!” Xiang Weiyuan denied outright. He knew he was just bluffing—he was nervous because the gift was so pitiful, and because facing a creditor naturally made him feel guilty.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Bao Yun suddenly laughed, and the entire hall bloomed as if filled with blossoms. She had shed much of her childishness, revealing her peerless beauty, and her laughter was beyond compare.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Bao Yun took the bottle of Peiyuan Elixir and said: “Don’t speak of ‘saving you at great risk’ again. To be honest, I never intended to save you, and I certainly wouldn’t have risked myself for you. But this is your first gift to me—I’ll accept it!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Xiang Weiyuan assumed Bao Yun, like himself, was too shy to admit she’d saved him. After all, everyone had seen her throw herself in front of the blade. No matter how she denied it, he owed her this debt. Seeing her accept the gift, he sighed in relief—but her tone felt strangely off.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After a few more casual words, Xiang Weiyuan rose to take his leave. Bao Yun didn’t detain him, escorting him to the courtyard gate. There, the old servant presented a gift box, saying it was the young lady’s return gift.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Xiang Weiyuan refused outright—he wouldn’t dream of accepting it.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Bao Yun said: “We’ve been classmates for three years. Are we really that distant? Won’t you even accept a small token of thanks?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>With that, Xiang Weiyuan had no excuse left. He took the box and fled quickly, as if escaping a disaster. Bao Yun and the old servant watched him disappear before closing the gate.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The old servant nodded slightly. “This boy is good—no pretense. He didn’t even slack off on body refinement during the round trip. Far better than your so-called friends.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Bao Yun snorted. “He just doesn’t want to spend silver on a carriage! You’re getting younger in your thinking—calling stinginess ‘refined’ now. Annoying. I had to fake a smile the whole time.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The old servant reached out and summoned the bottle of Peiyuan Elixir into his hand. “Oh? Then I’ll just throw this bottle away.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“No!” Bao Yun snatched the bottle away, rushed to her study, and slammed the door shut.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>In her study, Bao Yun idly reached to toss the bottle into a drawer—but paused, then placed it carefully on the antique shelf. The entire shelf held priceless treasures; any single item could buy hundreds of bottles of Peiyuan Elixir.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>She sat by the window, lost in thought, suddenly restless. She clenched her teeth and muttered: “If I find out who pushed me out, I’ll make you regret it!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Back at his residence, Xiang Weiyuan carefully opened the gift box and found two translucent fruits, each the size of an egg, each marked with blue veins. His Technique Theory instructor had once described these fruits—they were the seeds of the Starfall Dragon Kui .\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The seeds of a spiritual plant were worth at least ten thousand taels.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>(End of Chapter)\u003C\u002Fp>",1372,"2026-06-20T03:38:27.933Z",1,"Qwen3-Next 80B","6c3076e50c4d2207787676ebe2a1cd599525abd80bba93089fb137ccb463caca","the-dragon-lies-hidden-chapter-59","the-dragon-lies-hidden-chapter-57",1000,"https:\u002F\u002Fnovelzhen.com\u002Fimages\u002Fcovers\u002Fthe-dragon-lies-hidden-cover.jpg"]