Published: March 4, 2025
Chapter 6: The Twists and Turns of the Spring and Autumn Pill
The impact of this statement on Meng Chaoran was akin to a magnitude nine earthquake. A simple sentence completely shattered his plans. Once the bottleneck was loosened, if he couldn't break through in one go, the next attempt would require twice the effort, yet there was no guarantee of success!
With his state of mind shaken, even if Meng Chaoran was determined to leave, he found it impossible to do so.
"I can't go out for now. I need to enter seclusion for a bit." Meng Chaoran's gaze sharpened as he sized up Chu Yang for a while. Seeing that Chu Yang's expression remained normal, as if that previous remark was merely an offhand comment, he couldn't help but smile helplessly.
He had just mentioned wanting to go out, but then he said he couldn't. Such abrupt changes in direction are usually looked down upon, yet Meng Chaoran seemed to have no qualms about it, casually stating it as if it were something quite ordinary.
"Ah, right. This Spring and Autumn Pill, you took it, didn't you?" Meng Chaoran smiled and raised his hand, tossing a small jade bottle over. "Qianshan just mentioned that your injuries need some healing. Let's use this to help you recover." There seemed to be a hint of mockery in his smile, adding a deeper layer of meaning...
Stone Thousand Mountain's face instantly changed dramatically!
The Spring and Autumn Pill was meant to enhance cultivation power; how could it be used to recover health? With so many healing medicines in the sect, why must they resort to the Spring and Autumn Pill?
His previous statement was only meant to instill some dislike for these two junior brothers in his master, yet it had backfired, and he inadvertently lost the Spring and Autumn Pill!
What... how did this happen?
Chu Yang keenly noticed the fleeting hint of sarcasm at the corner of Meng Chaoran's mouth and couldn't help but bitterly smile to himself: It seems that Stone Thousand Mountain's schemes are already in plain sight of my master... But why does he never stop them?
Moreover, this time bestowing the Spring and Autumn Pill upon me was undoubtedly because of my remark about "the heavens not moving, the river flowing, and the stone not turning." Yet my master really kept his cool, not asking anything...
After thinking for a moment, Chu Yang decided to probe a little: "Um, Master, my cultivation is still shallow; taking the Spring and Autumn Pill would be of little use. Why not give it to Senior Brother? It would help him achieve a better ranking in the Grand Competition among the peaks."
This was an attempt to test whether Meng Chaoran truly saw through Stone Thousand Mountain's true nature.
Upon hearing this, Tan Tan's brows furrowed in agitation, almost shaking with anxiety, as if he wanted to cover Chu Yang's mouth, nearly bursting into a scolding: "You fool! Master went through so much trouble to give you this, and you should just quietly seize the fortune without being so foolish as to give it away!"
Stone Thousand Mountain's face also showed a glimmer of hope.
The three of them fixed their eyes on Meng Chaoran. Tan Tan was anxious, Stone Thousand Mountain was apprehensive yet hopeful, and there was a trace of greed; while Chu Yang's gaze remained calm.
"No need. Your senior brother isn't injured... He doesn't need this." Meng Chaoran said lightly. Meeting Chu Yang's gaze, he smiled gently, "Besides, your current realm isn't much different from your senior brother's... Um, let's leave it at that. No need to discuss further."
Chu Yang's face fell; Meng Chaoran's words clearly carried a deeper meaning. Currently, he was at martial disciple level 3, while his senior brother, Stone Thousand Mountain, was at warrior level four. The gap between them couldn't be measured simply, so how could he say, "you two realms aren't much different"?
The true meaning behind Meng Chaoran's words seemed to be: Your cunning and deceitfulness are almost equal... What an injustice, Master! I'm pure-hearted! Chu Yang silently shouted in his heart...