Chapter 25: The Lyrical Tune

If it weren't for meeting Senior Sister Wan, who led her onto the immortal path, Jiang Yu could never recall her past life in this lifetime.

She, who lost both parents from childhood, was compensated with the fields and house left by her father and mother, allowing her to stay with various relatives, stumbling through growing up and work, just as she was about to blossom she withered.

Fortunately, in this life her parents and elder brother love her, letting her fully enjoy the warmth of a home.

Thus she cultivates diligently, not only for a better life but also to return to the mortal realm to find her family.

Indeed, she must quickly reach the Ninth Layer of Refining Qi or the Great Perfection, so she can go back to visit relatives.

"One bottle for me, one bottle for you, one bottle for you, one bottle for me, another bottle for me, one bottle…"

Jiang Yu, the pills have been divided," despite being Refining Qi stage pills, the Little Turtle likes to treat them as candy beans.

Just after finishing the division, it looked up and saw a flood of spiritual energy rushing toward Jiang Yu; she herself was seated cross‑legged on a chair, eyes closed, running a cultivation method, while the Four Symbols Array sat on another chair.

"Jiang Tu, there's no time to lease a cave dwelling; help me with the protective method and try setting an array,"

The Little Turtle blinked, "Oh dear, advancing here?"

Swish swish swish

Without a second thought, it took out several high‑quality spiritual stones and in an instant laid a Spirit Gathering Array on the table.

It sometimes attends Jiang Yu's lessons, setting two or three simple arrays.

And the Four Symbols Trapped Dragon Array is the one it uses most proficiently.

At that moment, the attendant carrying a pot of tea and a menu outside the door also noticed that the spiritual energy inside and outside the private room had suddenly become unusually active.

He hesitated, pulling back his hand from the door, about to report to the shopkeeper, when Uncle Guan hurried over, tossing him two spiritual stones to quiet the commotion.

Taking another careful look at the private room, he actually saw the Little Turtle setting an array, and a barrier around Jiang Yu isolating spiritual perception.

Uncle Guan silently nodded; the little black turtle's spiritual intelligence was quite high, so he sent a mental message, "Jiang Tu, I'm guarding outside, stay calm."

Then he bowed to the guests whose spiritual perception reached the doorway, saying, "Our sect's disciple is advancing; apologies for the intrusion, I will offer each table a pot of spiritual tea."

The diners immediately withdrew their spiritual perception; the host's politeness remained courteous—Grand Void Sect's spiritual tea truly lives up to its reputation.

Uncle Guan slapped his storage bag, handed the tea box to the arriving granddaughter, "Go ask the shopkeeper to brew it and have him deliver each set."

"Grandpa, is it necessary? The market is our territory," the little girl didn't understand why grandpa wasn't taking a tougher stance.

Uncle Guan gently patted her head, sending a mental message, "Grandpa saw several Core Formations on the third floor, swept this side, and among them two were real cultivators from the Taiyi Sect and Ten Thousand Swords Sect."

Today, the Sect Elder is also present here and will treat us courteously.

Not just for Jiang Yu, but also for the image of our sect.

Little Miss Guan nodded and took it, "Xun'er, I'm going now."

Uncle Guan nodded, twirled his mustache, and a moment later sent a Flying Sword Letter to Master Lin.

Meanwhile, Jiang Yu in the private room knew nothing of what was happening outside.

She also didn't expect that, after a sudden intuition, the barrier standing before the eighth layer of Refining Qi would crumble.

If she doesn't advance now, she would be letting down the loved ones she misses.

Fortunately, this restaurant is in the sect's market district, said to be invested by the External Affairs Hall, and with Jiang Tu by her side, she can advance with peace of mind.

Time passed, and the high‑quality spiritual stones were barely consumed; Jiang Yu successfully entered the eighth layer of Refining Qi.

The Little Turtle counted the pills one by one at the side, finally awaiting her to open her eyes in the evening with her cultivation stabilized.

"Uncle Guan is guarding outside and even sent you several pots of spiritual tea.

That favor, I owe you a great deal."

Actually, it's no big deal if they ignore you, but when they help, you must thank them.

"I'll go out and ask Uncle Guan to arrange a table of premium spiritual meals." Jiang Yu grabbed the still half‑full high‑quality spiritual stone, thinking this was a lavish treat.

"This one and the one on the Flying Boat, I'll give them back to you together later."

"Tch, why split it so cleanly? It delayed you over a year living in Shan Shui Valley; handing out a few spiritual stones is no big deal." The Little Turtle hadn't even intended to take any.

Jiang Yu appreciated its goodwill, but having the high‑quality spiritual stone, she felt she must compensate it.

She closed the array, opened the door, and bowed to Uncle Guan, even though Jiang Bai's jade letter mentioned that the other party had followed her, she didn't think this uncle would harm her.

Moreover, with the granddaughter present, "Thank you for your trouble, Uncle, I would like to invite you and Junior Sister Guan to dine together."

Seeing him about to refuse, Jiang Yu quickly added, "It's getting dark, and I still wish to ask you to accompany me to the escort agency to deliver something to a friend of the Taiyi Sect."

"Grandpa..." Guan Xun'er, the little girl, tugged at grandpa's sleeve; she had only eaten a bowl of noodles at noon and was now hungry.

Uncle Guan immediately replied, "Fine, but I will order the dishes."

He knew that Refining Qi junior disciples find spiritual stones hard to earn, often buying a few decent artifacts only to become broke again, so he ordered just four dishes and a soup.

Jiang Yu wanted to add more dishes, but seeing his firm refusal, she secretly sent a mental message to the attendant, requesting the two most famous desserts from the shop and swapping the spiritual wine for the finest.

Little Miss Guan was delighted by the desserts, "Grandpa, Senior Sister Jiang has already ordered everything; it can't be returned."

"Another day, I'll take Jiang Tu to Spirit Beast Valley for fun, and ask Uncle Han for more Spirit Beast Pills, that'll do."

This is great, this is great, the Little Turtle kept nodding; it never speaks in front of outsiders, just dutifully devours its own dessert.

Little Miss Guan even swapped bites with it, Uncle Guan repeatedly accepted Jiang Yu's toasts, and the gathering was filled with merriment.

After three rounds of wine and five courses, everyone, satisfied, moved on to the escort agency simply named "Zhi".

Jiang Yu entrusted a jade box sealed with several talismans to the courier; the escort agency's manager said the Secret Escort would cost five times the normal fee.

She paid as usual, "Expedite, fast."

"Senior Sister Jiang, you spend spiritual stones like water, splashing everywhere." On the way back to the sect, Little Miss Guan was truly envious; she earned only a few spiritual stones a month, never enough.

Uncle Guan reported the matter to Master Lin, who said Jiang Yu indeed has a close friend in the Taiyi Sect.

But recalling the secret that Yuan Hu Zhenjun and his disciple were both poisoned, Master Lin suddenly speculated.

And early the next day, he had Lin Yuan send a message for Jiang Yu, who was moving houses, to meet at Spring Valley.

But less than a quarter hour later, another message said she need not go to Spring Valley for the audience.

When she asked Senior Brother Lin, there was no concrete answer, only a reminder not to leave the sect for the time being.

Thus Jiang Yu set aside this matter and carefully arranged the cave dwelling she had drawn on Fú Qū Peak.

This place remains a south‑facing detached courtyard; the neighbors up, down, left, and right are at least half a li apart, making it a non‑interfering type.

Moreover, beneath the peak valley runs a spiritual vein that extends to the opposite male disciple's Ding Qu Peak; the spiritual energy there is only slightly weaker than that of Chaos Valley, and the large tract of valley in between, called Qu Valley, is planted with plenty of spiritual rice used for brewing wine.

Jiang Yu had no desire to get to know the neighbors; later that day she went to accept a late‑stage Qi Refining task.

At that moment, True Person Lin sent someone to the Taiyi Sect market to check on the situation of Yuan Hu Zhenjun.

In just two months he received news that the poison afflicting Yuan Hu Zhenjun and his disciple had been completely dispelled, but no one in the market knew where the Dragon Saliva Grass had come from.

True Person Lin thought it over, wrote a piece of calligraphy, and had Lin Yuan deliver it to Jiang Yu.

She opened it on the spot, and the two characters "Huai Bi" shone brightly.

Jiang Yu thought left and right, feeling something was off—surely someone had leaked the news of her Dragon Saliva Grass—and she immediately requested an audience with True Person Lin, but before she could get a reply, the Grand Void Hall first sent someone to summon her.

"It's just Dragon Saliva Grass; if they want it, give it to them," the Little Black Turtle sensed its companion's tension.