Chapter 61: Cooperation Reached

After advancing to the Core Formation realm, Hua Changxi found her body increasingly light; from deep within the southern mountain range back to Medicine Valley, using the Steps Like Waves technique, she arrived in just a few minutes.

Not long after returning to Medicine Valley, Guo Yu came looking for her.

"What, Senior Zhuo Fan and Senior Jiang Ye are leaving?"

"Yes, both seniors have matters to attend to. They know the healing medicine you refine is very effective and want to buy some from you."

"The healing medicine is easy to handle. I still have something to discuss with the seniors. Are they free now? I'll go find them right away."

Watching Hua Changxi rush off toward the western mountain in a fluster, Guo Yu followed unhurriedly behind, sighing inwardly that experience truly counts.

Ever since guessing that Hua Changxi wanted to use the Cao Gang, Weiyuan Escort Bureau, and the Beggars' Sect to gather information, Master and the others had been waiting for her to bring it up on her own.

Who would have thought that during this time, apart from treating Senior Yang Chuan's illness, Hua Changxi had no intention of talking to Master and the others.

Senior Zhuo Fan grew a bit impatient, so he, along with Master and Senior Jiang, came up with this idea—to force Hua Changxi to speak first.

As soon as Hua Changxi entered the stone cave, she saw Zhuo Fan and Jiang Ye bidding farewell to Old You and Yang Chuan.

Zhuo Fan looked at Yang Chuan: "Yang Chuan, just stay here at You Lin's place and recover. Once Jiang Ye and I finish our business, we'll come back to see you."

Jiang Ye nodded in agreement: "A living dog is better than a dead lion. Try to see things more openly—you still have us."

Seeing Hua Changxi arrive, Old You took the initiative: "Changxi, Zhuo Fan and Jiang Ye are leaving. They're both wandering the world, so injuries are common for them. They want to buy more healing medicine from you."

Hua Changxi smiled: "Since Senior Zhuo and Senior Jiang need it, I will naturally meet their request." As she spoke, she walked over to Yang Chuan, who could now move around on the ground, and took his pulse.

"Senior Yang's injuries have mostly healed."

Yang Chuan gave Hua Changxi a forced smile: "I owe this old life of mine to you, little girl."

Hua Changxi found a seat and sat down, shaking her head with a smile: "Though I put in some effort, it can't compare to how much the three seniors value Senior Yang."

Upon hearing this, Yang Chuan's expression softened; he looked at Old You and the other two with gratitude and relief, saying nothing, yet seemingly saying everything.

Old You and the other two said nothing either, only smiling back at Yang Chuan.

Watching the four of them exchange glances, Hua Changxi was touched. To have such close friends was indeed a great fortune in life: "I have something I'd like to discuss with the four seniors."

Old You quickly exchanged a glance with the other three and smiled: "What is it?"

Hua Changxi looked at Old You: "Senior, you were the one who led me to the rift deep in the southern mountain range. What do you think of that place?"

Old You was taken aback—the matter Hua Changxi brought up was completely off from what they had anticipated: "I don't understand your meaning. What do you mean by 'what do I think'?"

Hua Changxi took out a piece of Fire Spirit Stone: "This stone is called a Fire Spirit Stone. Do you know what it's used for?"

Old You looked at the other three; even if he had a guess, he still shook his head.

Hua Changxi: "Martial artists need to take elixirs to stimulate their bodily potential and cultivate inner force and protective energy."

"Cultivators need to absorb the power of heaven and earth for their own use. The most basic power of heaven and earth is the power of the Five Elements. The four seniors should know what the Five Elements are, right?"

Zhuo Fan snorted: "Who doesn't know the Five Elements? Metal, wood, water, fire, and earth."

Hua Changxi smiled, stood up, and handed one piece of Fire Spirit Stone to each of Old You and the other three. Seeing Guo Yu standing to the side, she also gave him one: "What is contained in this stone is the fire power among the Five Elements."

Upon hearing this, Old You and the other three changed expression, their breathing becoming a little rapid.

Before this, they only knew that cultivators absorbed the power of heaven and earth for their own use, but they had been completely in the dark about what the power of heaven and earth actually was; now they finally understood.

Zhuo Fan stared at Hua Changxi with blazing eyes: "Little girl, what exactly are you trying to say?"

Hua Changxi looked at Old You again: "Senior, below the rift is a Fire Spirit Mine."

Old You still didn't quite understand what Hua Changxi was getting at: "So what?"

Hua Changxi widened her eyes: "A Fire Spirit Mine! Aren't you tempted?"

At these words, Old You, Zhuo Fan, Jiang Ye, Yang Chuan, and Guo Yu, who had been acting as background, finally understood Hua Changxi's intention and all looked at each other in surprise.

Old You probed: "You mean to..."

Hua Changxi: "You all fought desperately over the appearance of a single spirit fruit, and now a Fire Spirit Mine lies before us—don't you want to claim it for yourselves?"

Old You and the others' eyelids twitched simultaneously, knowing this girl had big ambitions, but never expecting them to be this big.

Old You couldn't help but remind her: "The southern mountain rift is not far from Medicine Valley at all."

The implication was that the imperial court would likely discover that place. Could Hua Changxi possibly dare to contend with the court over the Fire Spirit Mine?

Hua Changxi understood Old You's meaning: "Everything has an order of precedence. Besides, I believe that the situation at South Mountain Rift Valley is bound to occur in other places too. The imperial court can't and doesn't have the means to monopolize all the benefits."

Old You looked at his three old friends. Hua Changxi's goal was clear—she probably wanted to cooperate with them and take possession of the Fire Spirit Mine.

The Fire Spirit Mine...

Knowing it was a cultivation resource needed by cultivators, Old You and the other three's hearts were stirred.

Zhuo Fan exchanged glances with Old You and the other two, then looked at Hua Changxi: "But we aren't cultivators. The Fire Spirit Mine is useless to us."

Hua Changxi: "What if... I could make you all become cultivators?"

Zhuo Fan shot up from his seat with a clatter. Old You, Jiang Ye, Yang Chuan, and Guo Yu all held their breath.

"Are you telling the truth?"

"You're not fooling us, are you?"

"Can you really make us cultivators?"

Zhuo Fan stared intently at Hua Changxi, not letting a single expression escape his notice.

Hua Changxi looked at Old You and the others, who wore eager and tense faces, and smiled: "I have no reason to deceive you. But what can you offer in exchange?"

Old You and the other three immediately exchanged glances.

After a moment of silent communication, Zhuo Fan spoke: "Little girl, stop being mysterious. You just want to cooperate with us to seize that Fire Spirit Mine, right? Spit it out—how do you plan to cooperate?"

Hua Changxi: "I want sixty percent of the Fire Spirit Mine and the surrounding spirit plants and spirit fruits. The remaining forty percent—how you split it is none of my concern."

Zhuo Fan immediately started shouting: "Little girl, you're too greedy..."

Hua Changxi cut him off directly: "For a mortal to become a cultivator is a heaven-defying opportunity. Senior Zhuo, don't gain an advantage and then act as if you're being wronged."

Zhuo Fan stamped his foot: "To take over the Fire Spirit Mine, we need to guard it, we need to mine it, and if some fool comes to snatch it, we have to drive them away. We do all that work, and you want sixty percent? Who's really getting the advantage here?"

Hua Changxi's expression was indifferent: "Senior Zhuo, if you put it that way, it's meaningless. If you couldn't do all these things, why do you think I'd seek your cooperation? Because of your bad temper?"

Zhuo Fan choked, then started fuming and glaring.

Hua Changxi looked at Old You and the other two: "Whether I'm taking advantage of you, you know in your hearts. I ask myself—I'm being rather generous."

Zhuo Fan snorted angrily: "You, generous? Little girl, you mean thick-skinned. Do you think we can only become cultivators through you?"

Hua Changxi smiled at him: "Senior, you are free to seek others—like the Three Pure Ones Palace or the Supreme Simplicity Palace you mentioned earlier."

As she spoke, her smile vanished.

"Senior, think carefully. If you go to those places, the price you'll pay to become cultivators will only be higher. You might even have to sell yourselves."

Zhuo Fan wanted to retort but couldn't find a reason, because he knew Hua Changxi was right—the Three Pure Ones Palace and the Supreme Simplicity Palace were not places they could easily attach themselves to.

If it had been anyone else with even a little power who had discovered the Fire Spirit Mine today, they wouldn't have bothered to cooperate.

If they wanted to become cultivators, they'd have to sign a slave contract, guard the Fire Spirit Mine for free, and then collect a meager hardship allowance each month.

Zhuo Fan looked toward Old You and the others, signaling with his eyes for them to take over—he couldn't fool this sharp little girl.

Old You and Jiang Ye looked helpless. Although Hua Changxi wanted to seize the Fire Spirit Mine, they wanted to become cultivators even more. In terms of the intensity of their desires, they were already at a disadvantage.

Old You sighed: "Alright, we agree."

Hua Changxi suppressed the upward twitch of her lips: "I have to tell you one thing in advance. I can forge spiritual meridians for you. Once you have spiritual meridians, you'll be able to absorb the power of heaven and earth. But you'll have to find cultivation techniques yourselves."

Zhuo Fan started shouting again: "Don't you have a cultivation technique? Otherwise, how did you cultivate?"

Hua Changxi shook her head: "My cultivation technique cannot be passed on."

She had tried before to record the bird's breathing technique, but every time she had that thought, her head would ache as if splitting. After several attempts, she understood that her cultivation technique could not be casually transmitted.

Zhuo Fan looked skeptical: "Really?"

Hua Changxi: "I intend to cooperate with you long-term. I don't want to start by undermining our trust. Once you become cultivators in the future, you can verify it yourselves."

"All four seniors are capable people, with forces spread far and wide. You even managed to find the pomegranate. Finding cultivation techniques shouldn't be too difficult."

Jiang Ye suddenly spoke up: "Little girl, can you tell us—what is the use of that pomegranate?"

Hua Changxi smiled: "You will naturally know once you seniors become cultivators in the future."

She was not about to tell them that it was a Creation Pomegranate used to refine Creation Pills.

A Creation Pill, when taken by a mortal, can shape a spiritual meridian.

Creation-type spiritual fruits are extremely rare and difficult to grow; once they appear, they are targeted by heavenly thunder and directly annihilated. To think that Old You and his three companions actually encountered one—their luck is truly good enough.

Zhuo Fan snorted: "Since we are already partners, what’s there to hide? Keeping things secret is not straightforward at all."

Hua Changxi turned to look at him: "Senior Zhuo, how much silver does Weiyuan Escort Agency earn each year? How many men do you have? How many partners? Would you tell me these things?"

"I may be young, but I’m no fool. Although we have a partnership, we still need to keep our proper boundaries, don’t you think?"

Zhuo Fan, being refuted, bristled with anger and snorted, then stopped speaking.

Hua Changxi looked at Old You and the other three: "Since you four seniors and I have reached an agreement, let us sign a contract."

Old You and his companions found it amusing that Hua Changxi actually believed in that.

If a mere piece of paper could restrain people, there would not be so many deadbeats in the world.

Amusing as it was, Old You still cast a glance at Guo Yu, who immediately went into the stone chamber to fetch paper and brush.

Old You signaled Guo Yu to give the paper and brush to Hua Changxi.

Hua Changxi did not decline; she took the paper and brush and began to write, saying as she wrote: "Actually, when cultivators sign a contract, they need to swear a heart demon oath, but I cannot do that, so I have to make do with a paper contract."

As she spoke, she smiled and glanced at Old You and the other three.

"Cultivators most dread giving rise to heart demons. Once troubled by heart demons, at the very least their cultivation cannot advance further, and at worst they will suffer backlash. You four seniors, having become Grandmasters, should understand the weight of a promise."

Upon hearing this, Old You and his companions immediately became serious, shedding their previous dismissive attitude.

Soon, Hua Changxi finished writing five copies of the contract, and both she and Old You’s group signed their names.

Seeing that there was no copy for him, Guo Yu anxiously looked at Hua Changxi: "What about mine?"

Hua Changxi paused: "The four seniors contributed effort and personnel—what can you contribute?"

Guo Yu looked to Old You for help.

Old You gave a light cough: "Changxi..."

Hua Changxi raised her hand to stop him: "There is no such thing as a free lunch in the world. I am not a philanthropist, and I do not conduct unpaid transactions." As she spoke, she took out four wooden boxes the size of half a palm and handed them to Old You and the others.

"These are Fire-type Creation Pills. Open the box and take them as soon as possible."

The Creation Pomegranate contains abundant Five Elements Qi; Hua Changxi refined Fire-type Creation Pills from the pomegranate seeds that glowed red.

After Old You and his companions consumed the Creation Pills, they would be able to form a Fire spiritual root.

After Old You and the others carefully took the wooden boxes, Hua Changxi did not look at Guo Yu’s eager eyes and quickly left the stone cave.

One Creation Pomegranate had six hundred seeds, enough to refine six hundred Creation Pills. Giving one to Guo Yu was not impossible, but she could not start that precedent—she could not let Old You and his group think she was easy to deal with.

Everyone has relatives and friends. Once she opened that door, there would be no peace from then on.

Moreover, she believed in having principles—her principle was fair trade. No freeloading!

Hua Changxi walked down the mountain. As she neared the entrance of the Medicine Valley, a familiar figure flying on a sword came into view.

Gu Jin’fan!

Hua Changxi’s expression changed drastically. She was both surprised that Gu Jin’fan had come here and astonished that she could actually fly on a sword.

She watched Gu Jin’fan arrive at the Medicine Valley entrance, lightly jump off the flying sword, and then, with a wave of her hand, the nearly two-meter-long sword turned into a streak of light and vanished into her body.

After that, Gu Jin’fan headed up West Mountain.

Hua Changxi hid behind a large boulder, watching Gu Jin’fan walk up the mountain, her expression extremely grave.

Gu Jin’fan was a cultivator!

Even though she had lost the opportunity of the red stone, she had still embarked on the path of cultivation.

"What is she doing here?"

Hua Changxi carefully followed her. Soon, she discovered that Gu Jin’fan was heading toward the stone cliff halfway up the mountain.

"She came to find You Lao?"

Hua Changxi suddenly thought of the Zaohua Pomegranate. The Zaohua Fruit was too rare; anyone who knew its effects would fight to the death for it.

In the "Annotations on the Hundred Herbs Classic," the scenes of every appearance of the Zaohua Fruit were described as bloody and stormy.

Was Gu Jinfan after the Zaohua Pomegranate?

"Who's there?"

Guo Yu warily watched Gu Jinfan, who had appeared on the stone cliff without a sound.

Inside the stone cave, You Lao and the other three, who were about to take the Zaohua Pill, heard the noise and came out one after another.

Seeing Yang Chuan alive and well, Gu Jinfan exclaimed in surprise, "You're not dead?" Then, she quickly looked at the other three from You Lao's group and found that they didn't seem seriously injured either.

After Gu Jinfan shouted the words "You're not dead," the expressions of You Lao and the other three turned serious.

"Who are you?"

Gu Jinfan frowned deeply, suppressed the fact that Yang Chuan was still alive, and went straight to the point: "Did you go to Wuzhi Mountain in Qingzhou before and seize a five-colored pomegranate?"

Upon hearing this, You Lao denied it without a second thought: "No, we never went to any Wuzhi Mountain."

Gu Jinfan: "...That five-colored pomegranate is something you cannot keep. Hand it over, and I will stop the Shura Gate from pursuing you."

The expressions of You Lao and the other three changed. During the earlier struggle for the pomegranate, their biggest opponent had been the Shura Gate.

Unclear about Gu Jinfan's background, Jiang Ye exchanged glances with his three friends and denied it again: "Miss, we don't know what pomegranate you're talking about."

Gu Jinfan's face darkened: "If I weren't certain that you obtained that five-colored pomegranate, why would I come here? Don't force me to take action."

Hearing this, the faces of You Lao and the other three turned ugly.

The young girl before them spoke with such arrogance, and she exuded a pressure that made them all the more uneasy.

A cultivator?

You Lao glanced at Guo Yu, signaling him to go down the mountain and find Hua Changxi.

No matter what, they had given that pomegranate to Hua Changxi. Now that someone who might be a cultivator had come to demand it, that girl shouldn't be able to stand idly by.

Guo Yu received You Lao's signal and wanted to go down the mountain, but before he had taken a few steps, a green light shot toward him.

"Bang~"

The green light struck Guo Yu, sending him flying.

Fortunately, the green light wasn't aimed toward the cliff, or else Guo Yu would definitely have been knocked off the stone cliff.

Seeing Guo Yu spitting blood and falling to the ground, You Lao's expression changed. He exchanged glances with Jiang Ye and Zhuo Fan, and the three of them attacked Gu Jinfan simultaneously.

Seeing You Lao and the other two charging at her, Gu Jinfan sneered. Clouds and mist gathered beneath her feet, and with a "whoosh" she floated in midair.

"Bang, bang, bang~"

Three green lights flew out. You Lao's group had no means to resist; they were all struck by the green lights, spitting blood and falling to the ground.

Seeing this, Yang Chuan quickly shouted, "The pomegranate has already been taken by someone!"

Gu Jinfan's expression changed: "Taken by whom?"

Yang Chuan hesitated, unsure whether to reveal Hua Changxi.

Seeing his hesitation, Gu Jinfan condensed green light in her hand. The next moment, four green lights flew out again, heading toward You Lao and the other three.

"Pfft~"

You Lao and the other three were struck again, spitting blood.

Yang Chuan quickly shouted, "I'll talk..."

Just then, the air suddenly became scorching hot. The next moment, a fire lotus shot out, rushing fiercely toward Gu Jinfan in midair.

Seeing the fire lotus, Gu Jinfan's expression changed.

How could there be a cultivator here?!

In the moment of shock, the fire lotus had already engulfed Gu Jinfan. Seeing flames burning on her body, Gu Jinfan's heart surged with shock.

She was already a Qi Sea realm cultivator, yet she couldn't stop the Fire Lotus from burning.

Knowing that a cultivator whose strength surpassed her own was hidden in the shadows, Gu Jinfan understood she would not be able to obtain that Transcendence Fruit. Clenching her teeth, she used a teleportation talisman and flashed away from the West Mountain.