Chapter Eighty One

Chú Róng turned his head slightly to evade him. His jade-pale fingertips pressed against the man's firm chest, trying to free himself from Ning Yuan's embrace: "Stop that. I have something to say to Sect Master Jìn."

The Dragon Vein Ancient Land appeared only once in a thousand years, and the abundance of resources within it drew the entire Hundred Immortal Sects like moths to a flame. In the original novel, the Ancient Land expedition was the one and only time Qīngxū Sect came away empty-handed.

For no other reason than that the bulk of the secret realm's resources ended up in Cen Yan's hands — including the true dragon's breath that tens of thousands of cultivators had scrambled for. And it was on that foundation that Cen Yan was later able, through his own efforts, to raise Qingyang Heavenly Sect back to prominence.

The people of Qīngxū Sect had shown him genuine goodwill and care. Chú Róng also wanted to repay them in some measure. As for whom the secret realm "should have" belonged to — hah. Cen Yan had returned kindness with betrayal, thrown him out to bear the blame, and nearly let the Hundred Immortal Sects hound him to death. Stealing Cen Yan's opportunity in return — was that really too much to ask?

The reason Chú Róng had refrained from getting involved in the plot before was partly that he had no interest in being a dispensable cannon fodder in someone else's love story, and partly that he had needed to stay alive. Back then he had been only a mortal — the gap between him and cultivators was enormous. Going head to head with the male leads had offered him no advantage. The only thing he could do was keep his head down.

But the present was different from the past. His cultivation was no longer inferior to any of those male leads. Why should he keep yielding?

When one's strength was insufficient, keeping a low profile, lying in wait, and enduring was the wise course. But when one's strength was more than adequate, to continue doing nothing but endure was foolishness — weakness and incompetence.

This had been the principle Chú Róng had lived by through more than twenty years of clawing his way through life alone.

And of course, repaying kindness with kindness was also one of his guiding principles.

Ning Yuan extended an arm and drew him back into his embrace, bending down to press a kiss to the corner of Chú Róng's eye. He had no intention whatsoever of letting go: "All right. You talk."

Chú Róng's lashes, as dense as a fan, gave a sweep. He glanced back at the man with a sideways look — those glistening, shimmering eyes like water — and resigned himself to staying in the man's arms.

The sound-transmission talisman floated in the palace. Jìn Tuò on the other side was taking in all of the two people's movements, and with an awkward flush on his face he stumbled: "What did the young master wish to say to me?"

Chú Róng turned his attention back from Ning Yuan and, no longer paying him any mind, spoke into the talisman: "The news from outside the sect is true. A secret realm is indeed about to appear."

"Is that so?" Jìn Tuò's eyes went wide. No longer caring about his awkwardness, his face was flooded with excitement.

"Completely true." Chú Róng leaned against the man's chest and gave a light nod. The orchid fragrance around him stirred softly: "Unless something unexpected occurs, the secret realm should be the Dragon Vein Ancient Land."

Ning Yuan breathed in deeply, his Adam's apple bobbing ceaselessly. He could not stop himself from sweeping aside the silky smooth hair at the side of the person in his arms' neck and closing his lips around his translucently luminous earlobe.

"Dragon Vein Ancient Land?" Jìn Tuò furrowed his brows and listened carefully. Having cultivated for several hundred years, he had never heard of such a secret realm existing in the cultivation world.

Yún Sōng and the others in the hall also turned their gazes toward the sound-transmission talisman — they had not heard of this secret realm either.

Chú Róng's supple body gave another tremor. He hunched his neck inward trying to evade the man's presence, his ear tips going pink and reflecting a shimmering, glistening light.

Since he had decided to repay their kindness, Chú Róng saw no reason to hold anything back. He relayed to them, without omission, everything he had read in the original novel about the Dragon Vein Ancient Land.

Ning Yuan's tall frame gave a slight pause. A ripple passed through the depths of his dark, still eyes. There was dragon breath within the ancient land?

After more than three hundred years of cultivation, Ning Yuan naturally knew what dragon breath could do. If he could obtain it… his gaze darkened. It fixed on the person so close to him. Dark tides surged in the depths of his eyes, as though they might swallow him whole.

Ning Yuan lowered his head and pressed his lips forward again, closing them once more around the jade-white earlobe of the person in his arms.

On the other side of the sound-transmission talisman, Jìn Tuò was holding his breath. The more he heard, the wider his pupils grew — disbelief, delight, excitement, exhilaration — different emotions crossed his face in succession, and for a moment he could not find any words.

Endless resources.

Limitless breakthrough opportunities.

The breath of an ancient true dragon.

This… this… this was not a secret realm — this was a treasure vault beyond all reckoning. Every other secret realm they had ever entered, combined, could not compare to this one!

Upon learning what the dragon breath could do in particular, Jìn Tuò was so overwhelmed with excitement that his face and neck turned red, and he launched straight out of his seat — entirely unbecoming of a sect leader: "Does the young master know where the Dragon Vein Ancient Land is?"

Yún Sōng and the others' expressions were no different from Jìn Tuò's. All of them craned their necks and crowded around the sound-transmission talisman, as though they wanted to crawl inside the talisman and hear every word clearly.

"I do." Chú Róng felt a numbing heat in his ear and instinctively raised a hand, pressing it against the man's chiselled face.

His jade-white fingers covered the man's features. Tendrils of fragrance seeped from his skin, making the head swim. Ning Yuan went entirely still, and his breathing grew heavier and heavier.

Chú Róng didn't notice the man's expression behind him. He continued talking business with Jìn Tuò.

In the original novel, the process of Cen Yan claiming the secret realm had been described in detail, and Chú Róng remembered the specific location recorded in the text. But before revealing the location of the secret realm: "Would Sect Master Jìn agree to one condition of mine?"

"Please state your condition, young master." Jìn Tuò replied with respectful attention.

Chú Róng was not one to beat around the bush, and laid out his condition cleanly and directly: "I want to go along on the Dragon Vein Ancient Land expedition. I will forgo all the resources and opportunities in the secret realm — but if Qīngxū Sect obtains the dragon breath, I want three strands allocated to me. And if I happen to obtain the dragon breath myself, I will keep only three strands, and the rest goes entirely to Qīngxū Sect."

The reason Chú Róng wanted three strands of dragon breath: one strand was for Ning Yuan. Ning Yuan was at the Mahayana stage, and breaking through further was no easy matter — keeping a strand of dragon breath would serve as a safeguard for when it was needed.

One strand was for himself. Since he had committed to the path of cultivation, he would see it through to the end. This strand of dragon breath would be held in reserve for breaking through to the Nascent Soul stage.

One strand was for Yunzhi. Yunzhi had saved him once, sparing him from Xú Zǐyáng's abuse. With the help of dragon breath, Yunzhi would surely be able to successfully draw qi into his body and formally step onto the path of cultivation — and this would be his way of repaying Yunzhi's kindness.

The Ancient Land held countless opportunities and resources. Chú Róng's conditions were purely advantageous for Qīngxū Sect, with no downsides whatsoever.

"That won't do." Jìn Tuò waved his hands in repeated refusal: "Three strands of dragon breath is far too few. The young master should take the majority of what the ancient land contains. Qīngxū Sect need only take a small portion."

Yún Sōng and the others chimed in agreement. It was Chú Róng who had provided the information about the secret realm, and Chú Róng who had provided its location. The credit was his, and the chief share was rightfully his as well. In fact, Chú Róng could claim the entire secret realm for himself — yet he was willing to offer all the resources to Qīngxū Sect, and they were genuinely undeserving of it.

"Sect Master Jìn need not refuse. Qīngxū Sect assisted my cultivation, and I am simply repaying a debt of gratitude. This is as it should be." Chú Róng closed the matter with a word and spoke no more with Jìn Tuò. He pinpointed the location of the ancient land's entrance in clear detail: "The secret realm holds many opportunities. Qīngxū Sect may bring more people."

Each additional person could mean one more opportunity claimed.

With Tiānjī Sect's capabilities, they would soon locate the entrance to the secret realm — and then sell the information to the Hundred Immortal Sects at a high price. Every sect would rush to the ancient land at the fastest speed they could manage.

Better to let the opportunities go to the sect's own disciples than leave them for outsiders.

Everyone present was a shrewd individual, and none of them failed to hear the implication in Chú Róng's words. Jìn Tuò and the others felt a warmth rise in their chests. They had not expected the young master to be so thoughtful on behalf of the sect's disciples.

The immortal sects had spent countless years maneuvering against one another, scheming and competing without end. Jìn Tuò and his people had witnessed far too many of the uglier sides of human nature. They had not encountered anyone as clear-headed and grateful as Chú Róng in a very long time — it was impossible not to feel a genuine fondness.

"Yes. We will follow the young master's wishes." Jìn Tuò replied with deep respect, and closed the sound transmission, no longer disturbing Chú Róng.

Just then, a disciple approached from outside the hall, presenting a letter with both hands.

Jìn Tuò reached out and took it, and turned it over in puzzlement. When he made out the contents, his expression grew heavy: "Tiānjī Sect has also caught wind of the secret realm."

"That quickly?" As expected of Tiānjī Sect — their instincts were uncommonly sharp. Going by Tiānjī Sect's usual methods, within a matter of days the news of the Dragon Vein Ancient Land would be spreading throughout the Hundred Immortal Sects.

The expressions of Yún Sōng and the others turned serious as well: "Will the sect leader negotiate with Tiānjī Sect?"

The letter did not mention the specific terms of the proposed deal, but Tiānjī Sect was never moved by anything without a profit to be gained. What Hè Tíng was after was not likely to be a simple thing.

"No." Jìn Tuò shook his head. They already knew more than enough about the Dragon Vein Ancient Land — there was no need to deal with outsiders in exchange for more intelligence: "The ancient land's entrance is extremely well hidden. However far Tiānjī Sect's reach extends, they may not necessarily find it this quickly. What's most pressing now is getting to the Dragon Vein Ancient Land first. Second Elder — quickly go gather the disciples. We depart at first light tomorrow!"

"One more thing." Jìn Tuò tossed the letter aside and did not give it another glance: "The young master asked only for three strands of dragon breath, but we cannot truly be so ungrateful. No matter which of our disciples obtains dragon breath, half of it is to go to the young master."

Yún Sōng and the others raised no objections whatsoever. This was only right — even giving up half the dragon breath was still a bargain for Qīngxū Sect.

The Second Elder bowed and accepted the order, then withdrew to gather the disciples.

—

Wangxian Peak.

The sound transmission ended. Chú Róng's hand, which was still pressed against the man's face, gave a slight shift as he prepared to withdraw it and put away the sound-transmission talisman. A large, clearly-jointed hand covered the back of his pale hand, and the man's lips closed gently on the rose-flushed center of his palm.

Chú Róng's slender wrist gave a reflex tremor, and the flush at the corners of his eyes deepened: "Let go."

Ning Yuan seemed not to hear. He went further — pressing his lips down again and again in the center of Chú Róng's palm, until the soft flesh there was thoroughly reddened and glistening.

"Why only three strands of dragon breath?" He could easily claim all the dragon breath for Chú Róng. With that, Chú Róng would not only break through to Nascent Soul — advancing another full stage beyond that would also be no problem.

"No need." Chú Róng tugged his wrist — not budging it at all: "Biting off more than you can chew does no good. One strand of dragon breath is more than enough for me."

One strand?

Ning Yuan's sharp brows shifted slightly. He pressed his lips to the center of the reddened palm once more: "And the other two strands?"

Chú Róng's palm was tingling and burning. The fine, dense sparks of sensation leapt across his nerves, making his spine pull taut instinctively: "One for you, one for Yunzhi — he helped me."

"For me?" Ning Yuan completely ignored the second half of the sentence. Eager ripples spread through his dark eyes, as though to melt Chú Róng entirely.

Chú Róng's lashes gave a slight tremble. As though scorched, he looked away, not daring to meet the man's eyes.

He drew a deep breath and lightly bit his lip, just about to speak — when Ning Yuan suddenly released his hand. His broad palm seized Chú Róng's waist. He leaned in and pressed him down onto the jade couch, then lowered his head and sealed his lips.

Chú Róng's pupils trembled. In a mild panic he wrapped his arms around the man's neck, and his throat could only manage a faint, soft sound.

—

The following day.

At first light, Chú Róng descended from Wangxian Peak. Over a hundred disciples were already arranged in orderly formation outside the main hall of the central peak — every one of them standing tall with bright, sharp eyes, full of spirit. Their cultivation stages were almost all at the Golden Core level.

"Remember — the opportunities of the ancient land are ours! The breath of the ancient true dragon is especially ours!" Jìn Tuò stood before the main hall and declared it with ringing conviction.

The words were bold — but Qīngxū Sect had the foundation to be bold.

The resources of the cultivation world had always gone mostly to Qīngxū Sect. The circumstances of the Dragon Vein Ancient Land expedition favored them in every way. What did the other sects have to compete with them? A peerless treasure like the dragon breath — who in the cultivation world but Qīngxū Sect had the right to claim it?

Sect Leader Jìn Tuò had not the slightest doubt that the dragon breath would end up in Qīngxū Sect's hands.

"Yes!" The disciples responded in a thunderous shout, their fighting spirit surging to an unprecedented height!

Jìn Tuò raised his hand and pointed in the direction of the Dragon Vein Ancient Land beyond the sect: "Move out——!!"

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Sorry for the long wait~