An Unexpected Encounter and a Hefty Apology

Having claimed her reward from the Elixir Sect, Xiao Miao emerged from the grand Alchemy Conference.

Amidst the bustling throng, her gaze instantly landed upon a figure standing apart. He wore a bamboo hat and cradled a calico cat that seemed to be purring for attention.

With but a single glance, Xiao Miao surmised that this person was awaiting her. Though surrounded by a multitude, she felt no fear, yet a thread of vigilance tightened in her heart; for when one traveled, it was all too easy to inadvertently offend someone.

She gracefully made her way through the currents of people, eventually stopping before him.

“You are?”

“Qin Yan.”

Meeting Xiao Miao’s gaze as she drew near, Qin Yan responded.

“Qin…!”

Xiao Miao’s astonishment was palpable; it had apparently never crossed her mind that she would encounter Qin Yan in such a place.

Before her words could fully escape, however, Qin Yan pressed a book against her lips. This place teemed with onlookers, and the name “Qin Yan” had, by now, become a household word across the entire Qin Kingdom, particularly among the cultivators who comprised the majority of their surroundings.

Sensing the large hand over her mouth, Xiao Miao’s understanding dawned, and she merely blinked her eyes in acknowledgment.

“Follow me—”

Qin Yan spoke, taking Xiao Miao’s hand, and they proceeded, one behind the other, until they reached the city’s grandest inn, where Qin Yan promptly requested a private room from the attendant.

Seated within the private room, Xiao Miao watched the calico cat pacing on the floor before turning her gaze to Qin Yan, who was presently observing the world beyond the window.

“This Ancient Spirit City is truly bustling,” Qin Yan remarked.

“Qin Yan, why are you here?”

Composing herself, Xiao Miao inquired with a hint of curiosity.

“Ah, I found the arduous cultivation within the sect rather dull, so I descended the mountain to temper my Dao heart,” Qin Yan replied with a light smile.

Xiao Miao found herself momentarily speechless by his words. ‘Could that truly be a human sentiment?’ she mused. Indeed, it was easy to find shade when one stood beneath a great tree; ordinary cultivators like themselves would never embark on a journey solely to temper their Dao heart.

For them, cultivation and survival itself was a ceaseless tempering of their Dao heart.

“I see,” Xiao Miao nodded, though a new question quickly surfaced in her mind. “Qin Yan, were you specifically waiting for me just now?”

“Indeed!” Qin Yan affirmed with a nod. “I was present during your alchemy session earlier; I found it quite fascinating to observe your process, and then, of course, I witnessed you claim first prize at this Alchemy Conference.”

“Mere luck, nothing more than luck,” Xiao Miao demurred.

A brief silence fell between them, but soon, Xiao Miao broke it. “Qin Yan,” she began, “I truly apologize for what happened last time. Had it not been for me, I doubt everyone would have been plunged into such peril.”

“I never even had the chance to ask this, Xiao Miao,” Qin Yan interjected, his face etched with a thoughtful expression, “but why exactly did you draw out that demon dragon?”

“Because of this…”

In response to Qin Yan’s query, Xiao Miao extended her hand, and a verdant stream of clear water began to flow gracefully around her entire right hand. Simultaneously, a potent aura of vitality suffused the entire private room.

“What is this?” Qin Yan asked, observing the object; it was undoubtedly a rare treasure.

“This item is called ‘Strange Water’. I was specifically searching for it at the time,” Xiao Miao explained, a look of apology gracing her features. “My intention was that, with the Strange Water, I could then aid you and your senior sister. My cultivation was meager then, and my participation in battle would only have served as a distraction. I never anticipated, however, that a Nascent Soul demon dragon would be lurking in that very spot, alas…”

At this, Xiao Miao sighed, then turned her gaze to Qin Yan. “I wonder how your senior sister fares? This Strange Water I acquired possesses healing properties; perhaps it could be of assistance to her.”

Qin Yan shook his head. While the idea seemed plausible, he understood his senior sister’s temperament all too well; for her to accept Xiao Miao’s aid would be akin to the sun rising in the west.

“She is doing well now, recuperating quietly within the sect,” he replied.

“That is good to hear,” Xiao Miao affirmed.

Xiao Miao nodded, then retrieved a pill from her storage ring. “This is a second-grade Solidifying Spirit Pill that I refined earlier at the Alchemy Conference,” she explained. “I hope Qin Yan won’t find it beneath him.”

Given her modest cultivation, she had initially joined the demon-slaying expedition, only for her actions to nearly lead to their collective demise. Naturally, she felt immense guilt, yet she could conceive of no suitable means of recompense.

After all, with their esteemed statuses, Qin Yan and his senior sister were never wanting for anything.

Nevertheless, this was no excuse for inaction. Yet, for her to seek out Qin Yan and his senior sister, given her humble standing, would be akin to an ordinary mortal intruding upon celestial courts. Compounding the awkwardness, their past as former fiancés would only serve to complicate matters further.

‘Xiao Miaozi, you just gave away that pill?’

Just then, Xiao Miao’s Shizun’s words echoed in her mind.

”What else could I do? You, fearing capture by Qin Yan’s Shizun, fled with me. Because of that incident, I haven’t slept soundly in ages.”

Through divine sense, Xiao Miao communicated with her Shizun. ”Shizun, if you and a friend entered a secret realm, and due to your own actions, nearly caused everyone’s demise, what would you do?”

”Naturally, I would offer compensation.”

”Yes, in your heyday as a grand alchemist, everyone was, of course, eager to accept your compensation, and you could find peace of mind. But I am merely a person of little consequence. After such an event, Qin Yan is still willing to converse with me so calmly. If I were to do nothing, would I not become an unrighteous individual? Shizun, do you truly wish your disciple to be such a person?”

”I… oh, never mind, I can’t win an argument with you! If that’s the case, this private room will likely cost a pretty penny. To save face and appear generous, you’ll have to pay a hefty sum.”

”Then a hefty sum it shall be,’ Xiao Miao retorted to her Shizun, her gaze then falling upon Qin Yan before her. ‘Had you not secretly siphoned my spiritual energy from the storage ring back then, I doubt I would ever have had to break off my engagement with Qin Yan.”

This time, her Shizun remained silent, for Xiao Miao’s words held undeniable truth.

Had it not been for her clandestine absorption of spiritual energy, which subsequently caused Xiao Miao’s cultivation to regress, she and Qin Yan would likely now be an enviable pair of immortal lovers.

”Hmph?! Just a mere man! Your master shall simply impart to you the Secret Art of Wooing Men!”

Such a matter, however, was certainly not something she could admit directly; she still had her pride, after all. Despite her own shameless deeds, she mused, ‘Having lived for so long, can I not, for once, teach my disciple how to charm a young man?!’

Upon hearing this, Xiao Miao nearly froze in mortified embarrassment. ‘What in the world is a “Secret Art of Wooing Men”?’ she thought. ‘Does such a spell even exist?!’ She was still but a young maiden, entirely lacking the sly cunning of her Shizun.

“Meow~!”

Just then, the calico cat in the room suddenly leaped up, snatching and devouring the Solidifying Spirit Pill from Xiao Miao’s hand. As a ghost cultivator, it had always harbored a particular craving for such elixirs.

Unable to resist any longer, it had acted directly, refining the pill in an instant.

This entire spectacle left Xiao Miao utterly dumbfounded, while Qin Yan’s forehead visibly pulsed with bulging veins. Were it not for Xiao Miao’s presence, he would undoubtedly have seized the little cat and given it a severe thrashing.