Chapter 7 : The Child of Destiny Seemed Quite Easy to Get Along With

Chapter 7: The Child of Destiny Seemed Quite Easy to Get Along With

Windless Cliff, as an internal trial ground of the sect, naturally had several so-called Safe Zones.

After all, disciples at the Qi-Refining Ninth Layer were already considered important sect resources; it was impossible to truly let them die casually during a trial.

After following Nan Yuchen in a mad dash of five li, Long Tao followed him into a massive tree hollow.

The interior was sparsely furnished, containing only some basic medicinal herbs, healing artifacts, and a few spare sets of clothing.

It truly was the most rudimentary safe house.

“Senior Brother Long, I won’t ask for now why you appeared at the spirit spring, but we aren’t completely safe yet. That Wolf King is a Foundation Establishment Third Layer Demon Beast. Even if we hide here, it can still track us by scent. We must circulate the Turtle-Breath Technique in coordination with the concealment formation here to ensure safety.”

The heart Long Tao had just settled lifted again.

The Turtle-Breath Technique was a cultivation method only those at Qi-Refining Eighth Layer and above could practice.

With his mere Fifth Layer cultivation, he naturally did not know it.

Only now did he suddenly realize why the Windless Cliff trial required at least Qi-Refining Ninth Layer—so that was the hidden threshold.

Left with no choice, he could only take out that bottle of inferior Turtle-Breath Pills.

Though he was extremely unwilling, there was no other option at the moment.

“Junior Brother Nan, I’m a worthless Qi-Refining Fifth Layer cultivator and don’t know the Turtle-Breath Technique. However, I do have Turtle-Breath Pills. It’s just that this bottle has some issues—apparently, while taking effect, it puts the user into a sleep paralysis state. So once we’re safe, remember to wake me up quickly.”

Nan Yuchen examined the small bottle with some curiosity.

Ever since entering the sect, all the resources he had obtained were top-tier; he truly had never heard of such a peculiar pill.

Still, this wasn’t the time to dig into details.

He simply nodded and began circulating his cultivation.

Meanwhile, Long Tao steeled his heart, swallowed the pill, and began circulating qi to digest it after it entered his stomach.

Yes—many pills required the user to actively circulate qi in order to take effect.

This was also why Turtle-Breath Pills couldn’t be used as a knockout drug tossed into an enemy’s mouth.

As long as the opponent wasn’t foolish enough to circulate qi to digest it, the pill wouldn’t have any effect at all—at most, it might improve their sleep that night.

Very soon… Long Tao’s body began to go limp, his breathing gradually weakening, yet his consciousness remained clear.

It truly felt just like sleep paralysis in the morning—clearly awake… yet unable to move even a finger.

It was unbearably uncomfortable.

But there was no helping it.

Having the chance to live was already good enough.

.......

He didn’t know how long had passed when a warm current suddenly flowed through his limbs and bones.

His previously heavy body rapidly regained sensation.

When he opened his eyes, he indeed saw Nan Yuchen’s face filled with concern.

“That’s great! Senior Brother Long, that beast has already given up and gone back. We’re safe now.”

“Is that so...” Long Tao let out a long breath.

The tremor of surviving a catastrophe nearly overflowed from his chest.

“At last… at last, we survived!”

Those words were truly Long Tao’s heartfelt sigh.

The System’s life-threatening task had finally been completed on the brink of life and death.

“However… Senior Brother Long...” Nan Yuchen’s tone remained gentle, but his gaze carried a hint of inquiry.

“Why exactly did you appear there? By all logic, you shouldn’t have been on the mountain at all.”

Long Tao could see the suspicion in his eyes.

There was no helping it—his actions tonight were indeed far too suspicious.

Even if Nan Yuchen dragged him to the Discipline Hall, it would be perfectly justified.

Fortunately, he had prepared his story in advance.

Supporting himself as he sat up, he let a trace of regret appear on his face at just the right moment.

“Sigh… it’s quite embarrassing to say. I was greedy for a moment. Junior Brother, you saw me fiddling with some demon beast droppings while cleaning the mountain path today, didn’t you?”

“Indeed. Could it be related to that?”

“Yes. Before I ran into you, I found spirit fruit pits in several piles of droppings, and the spiritual energy was quite dense. So I guessed that some ganoderma or immortal herbs had likely matured on the cliff, affecting the surrounding spirit fruits as well.”

As he spoke, Long Tao took the fruit pits out from his waist pouch.

Nan Yuchen glanced at them briefly and found that they were indeed much richer in spiritual energy than ordinary pits.

Still puzzled, he asked,

“Even so, it was far too dangerous. With your Qi-Refining Fifth Layer cultivation, you really shouldn’t have ventured in alone.”

“Sigh… of course I knew that, so I was very careful the whole way. At the slightest hint of danger, I was ready to run back. Along the way, I didn’t encounter any real Demon Beasts—just a wave of ordinary beast tide, which I drove off with Beast-Repelling Powder. After that, I smoothly reached the area above that spring.”

His speech was steady, half-truthful and half-false.

He stole a glance and saw Nan Yuchen listening intently, the suspicion on his face already gone.

Clearly, he believed most of it.

“Who would’ve thought there would be nothing at all around there! I steeled myself and decided to go down and try my luck, to see if I could find some valuable spirit herbs. Not long after I went down, you and that Wolf King—oh, right!” Long Tao suddenly changed the topic, his tone taking on just the right amount of surprise.

“Didn’t you say earlier that you were going to meditate at the peak tonight? How did you end up running into that ferocious beast?”

Nan Yuchen truly seemed inexperienced in interpersonal communication.

He didn’t even realize how deliberate Long Tao’s topic shift was and immediately answered,

“I was originally meditating tonight, but for some reason… that beast seemed to be stimulated by something. Senior Brother, you should’ve heard it too—that loud roar.”

“Indeed. It startled me badly. That wave of beast tide was also because of that roar.”

The youth nodded and continued,

“I have a life-saving artifact given by my master, so I wasn’t afraid. I was just curious and went to take a look. Unexpectedly, before I even got close to its den, it charged out and tried to bite me.”

“And then you fought?”

“Yes. Of course I couldn’t defeat that beast—it’s at Foundation Establishment Third Layer. But this place is meant for trials, so I thought to use the chance to spar with it for a few rounds, to test myself. Who knew, just as the fight was getting intense, it suddenly ran back. I followed after it and then saw you, Senior Brother.”

At that point, an awkward silence fell between them.

Long Tao knew that the other party wanted to ask whether he had found something good, but because of his usual upbringing and manners, he found it difficult to speak up.

However, this gave Long Tao some ideas.

Originally, he had not felt the slightest goodwill toward Nan Yuchen—he only wanted to complete the task and never interact again.

But now, it seemed this kid was actually quite easy to get along with.

His personality was good, and he was rather simple.

Thinking about how that damned System would likely keep assigning life-threatening tasks, building a good relationship with this little fellow at the center of those tasks was clearly a sure win with no losses choice.

Besides, the Nine-Leaf Ganoderma he found was meant for him in the first place.

If he handed it over proactively now, he would definitely gain a heavy favor… though gaining the goodwill of a man really wasn’t all that interesting.

“I don’t really recognize those precious herbs. I just pulled a few at random back then. Take a look and see if there’s anything you recognize.”

Breaking the silence, Long Tao spoke as he took items out of his pouch.

He deliberately pulled out several ordinary companion weeds first, letting that unremarkable-looking Nine-Leaf Ganoderma make its appearance last.

“This! This is!! Nine-Leaf Ganoderma!!!”

Long Tao thought to himself that the kid truly lived up to being a Personally Transmitted Disciple—he could recognize it at a glance despite such an ordinary appearance.

Still, he pretended to be confused and asked,

“What? What ganoderma? I just pulled a few casually. Did I really find a treasure?”

Nan Yuchen revealed a rare look of excitement, which made Long Tao realize that this shabby herb seemed even more valuable than he had imagined.

He had originally only treated it as a quest item; now he was genuinely curious.

Nan Yuchen didn’t dare confirm it immediately.

After obtaining permission, he held it in his hands and examined it repeatedly before finally saying with certainty,

“That’s right. It’s absolutely Nine-Leaf Ganoderma! I never imagined it would grow on Windless Cliff. I’ll need to inform my master when I return.”

“Is it that valuable? You look so excited.”

The youth seemed afraid that Long Tao might misunderstand and think he would forcibly take it.

He hurriedly returned the item and said,

“It is! It really is very precious! But… but since Senior Brother found it first, I won’t harbor any improper thoughts!”

Hearing this, Long Tao knew the moment had arrived.

He let a trace of regret appear on his face before turning resolute.

“Since it’s so precious, then give it to you, Junior Brother. Consider it repayment for saving my life.”

“How can that be! Senior Brother Long… you don’t know how rare Nine-Leaf Ganoderma is. Even my master doesn’t have any for now! And tonight, I only lent a helping hand—there was no real loss.”

Something even a Golden Core True Person didn’t have?! Now Long Tao truly felt heartache.

But there was no helping it—this item was never fated to belong to him.

He could only continue to act magnanimous.

“We Qi-Refining disciples have long memorized the herbs we need, but I’ve never even heard the name Nine-Leaf Ganoderma. That means it’s useless at the Qi-Refining stage, right? Rather than waste it on me, it’s better to give it to you. Besides… if you hadn’t lured the Wolf King away, I wouldn’t have gotten it either. In the end, the greatest credit is yours.”

“That’s true. Nine-Leaf Ganoderma is most effective at the Foundation Establishment stage. It can temper muscles and bones and remove deep impurities. If used properly, it might shorten the bottleneck at Foundation Establishment Third to Fifth Layer by one-third, or even half! Precisely because it’s so precious, I really can’t—”

“Alright, alright.” Long Tao interrupted him, patting the youth’s shoulder with feigned boldness.

“A grown man shouldn’t be so wishy-washy. If you really feel like you’re taking advantage of me, then… then just give me some Qi-Refining stage pills or artifacts as compensation. That way, we’ll be even. After all, this ganoderma is useless to me anyway. And if I took such a valuable herb to sell… I’d probably end up being targeted by villains.”

“Then… since Senior Brother has already said this much, I’ll shamelessly accept it. But rest assured, Senior Brother, I’ll definitely give you appropriate compensation.”

At that moment, Nan Yuchen was like a child receiving New Year’s gift money—his mouth kept saying no and offering polite refusals, yet his expression had already revealed his true thoughts.

The instant he accepted the ganoderma into his hands, the System interface appeared once more, and that voice in Long Tao’s mind rang out again,

“The Child of Destiny Nan Yuchen has obtained Nine-Leaf Ganoderma. Task completed. Confirmation that Nan Yuchen himself was also at the task location. Destiny Luck reward obtained. Soul Lamp value +3.”