"The Path of Ruthlessness?"
Ji Xuan: "A very ancient Taoist practice."
Qing pondered the words "ruthless," wondering, "Could it be cultivated by heartless and ungrateful people?"
Ji Xuan shook his head, the vicissitudes in his eyes adding a touch of unfathomable mystery to the gesture. "The Broken Words Pavilion has books about the Path of Ruthlessness. You can go and take a look."
After saying that, he stopped talking and focused on forging iron.
Seeing this, Qinghe did not linger any longer and took her leave. But just as she took one step out, she felt a chill behind her. In a flash, a silver needle slashed across her shoulder and pierced the trunk of a large tree in the courtyard.
Qinghe turned to look at Ji Xuan, "What do you mean by this, Senior?"
Ji Xuan didn't look up: "I just wanted to remind you to do less eavesdropping in the future; it's good for your character and self-cultivation."
Qinghe raised an eyebrow, implying that she had character flaws.
She wasn't angry at all, and still politely said, "Thank you for your guidance, senior. Farewell."
...
After coming out, Qinghe did not go to the Suiyan Residence that Ji Xuan had mentioned. Instead, she changed direction and headed towards Luochuan City. Two incense sticks later, she stood in front of the Happy Pavilion.
The gambling den was still bustling, and the alluring woman was still sitting at the table, playing games with the customers with great enthusiasm. After Qinghe explained her purpose, the alluring woman looked her up and down for a long time before leading her to the second floor.
As Qinghe went upstairs, she pondered the meaning behind the alluring woman's gaze. Could it be that she saw her shabby clothes and ordinary appearance and didn't believe she came without anything?
In the same room as last time, Qi Rong was sitting on a futon, leisurely drinking tea.
After the alluring woman left, Qinghe sat down opposite him, and Qirong picked up the teapot and poured her a cup of tea.
Qinghe took a sip; the tea was fragrant and refreshing. She couldn't help but wonder if Qi Rong had cast some kind of spell, since his tea tasted better than everyone else's.
After finishing his tea, Qinghe got straight to the point: "I'm here to buy something."
Qi Rong raised his usual wicked smile and asked, "What do you want?"
Qinghe: "The space jade pendant, the kind you gave to Miao'er."
Although she has a spatial storage ring, it can only hold inanimate objects, and it's small, so it can't hold anything slightly larger. The Qingyun Sect is also extremely poor, so she has to buy things from other places.
Qi Rong didn't hesitate at all, took out a jade pendant and handed it to her, "It's for you, no money required."
Qinghe said, "How can this be..." but his body betrayed him, and he quickly took the jade pendant.
The red fox carving was so lifelike that Qinghe looked at him and asked, "Aren't there any other designs?"
Qi Rong said, "Isn't a fox good?"
Qinghe looked at the jade pendant in his hand that was exactly the same as the one hanging on Miao'er's waist and said, "Foxes are nice, but if others see them, they will think that you bought them wholesale. This will damage your image in their eyes. I am thinking of you."
After listening to Qinghe's earnest words, Qi Rong gave her a deep look, and finally took out another jade pendant.
It is crystal clear, round and crystal-like, and feels cool to the touch.
"This is cold jade, which has therapeutic effects. Wearing it close to your body is good for your health," Qi Rong said.
Qinghe stared at it for a while and then asked, "How big is the space?"
Qi Rong: "The same as the previous one."
Qinghe: "It can also change according to one's mood?"
Qi Rong nodded.
"That's good." Qinghe was satisfied. She hung the jade pendant on her waist, paused for a moment, then took it off, untied the tassel under the jade, and hung the jade pendant around her neck, keeping it close to her body.
Qi Rong looked at the small patch of fair skin exposed on her neck, her eyes darkening slightly. She quickly lowered her eyes, but her ears turned red.
He picked up the teacup and took a sip as a cover-up, but he choked because he drank too quickly.
Hearing the coughs, Qinghe felt that he was implying something. After thinking for a moment, she took out the money she had earned from selling herbs on the street. "One hundred taels. This is all I have. You can have it all."
Qi Rong paused for a moment and said, "I said I wouldn't take any money, and I will never go back on my word."
Qinghe insisted, "It's better to settle the accounts clearly."
Qi Rong had anticipated her response and said lazily, "Are you sure you want to settle accounts with me?"
Looking at his sly smile, Qinghe thought about it carefully and realized that she really didn't owe him anything, so she nodded firmly.
Qi Rong put down her teacup. "Since that's the case, then I'll settle things with you properly. I saved you from the Mirror of Reincarnation before, and I should repay this life-saving grace tenfold. You were knocked unconscious by the poisonous smoke of the Fiery Eye, and if I hadn't used a Saint-grade pill, you wouldn't have woken up so quickly. And..."
Qing interrupted him, "A Saint-grade elixir?"
Qi Rong nodded: "That's right, the poisonous smoke from the Fire Eye is extremely potent. Even I can't completely dispel it; I can only use pills."
Qinghe suddenly realized that the reason she was alright was because she had taken a high-grade elixir.
Qi Rong: "I spent five thousand taels to buy pills from you before, but in the end I still gave the pills to you. How are you going to settle this score?"
Thinking of this, Qinghe chuckled awkwardly, and was about to change the subject when he suddenly remembered something and said, "What do you mean you bought it from me? I don't remember selling you any pills. Someone with my shallow cultivation would have kept all the pills for myself if I had them, why would I sell them!"
She spoke with such righteous indignation that even she herself believed it.
Qi Rong's smile remained unchanged as she quietly watched her.
Qing blinked, but in her mind she was thinking about when she had given herself away. She knew she shouldn't stay here any longer; if she did, her disguise would be completely exposed.
Qinghe stood up and gave a rare, proper bow. "It was a pleasure working with Young Master Qi. If I need anything in the future, I will definitely come to you again. Farewell."
After saying that, he turned and left without even looking at Qi Rong.
He dashed out of the gambling den like the wind, startling even the glamorous woman, who muttered, "Why are you running? Have you seen a ghost?"
...
As dusk approached, Qinghe went to Suiyanju. As the name suggests, Suiyanju was a place for storing books, similar to the Heavenly Book Pavilion of the Qingyun Sect. However, the two were very different in both appearance and interior.
The Suiyan Residence houses tens of thousands of books, clearly categorized. Qinghe found the book about the Path of Ruthlessness without much effort. However, the book was placed on the top shelf and was covered in dust, indicating that few people had ever looked at it.
The book states: "The art of ruthlessness returns to the original mind, severing emotions and love, which is the supreme foundation. Only by being selfless and without desire can one cultivate divinity."
Qinghe's fingers brushed across the paper, and on the next page was written the cultivation method of the Ruthless Path, the characters were strange, almost identical to the incantation engraved on the Great Light Mantra.
Closing the book, Qinghe fell into deep thought. There are only a handful of people in the world who can become gods. Not everyone can be ruthless and loveless. Therefore, he sought other cultivation methods. Although the process was arduous, the results were remarkable.
However, it is undeniable that severing romantic love is a shortcut to becoming a god; without desire, cultivation becomes purer.
But just by looking at this book of ruthless cultivation, with its yellowed pages covered in dust, one can tell that this method of cultivation won't work here at Imperial Mirror Manor.
Qinghe pondered for a long time before finally putting it back in its original place.
Ultimately, she is just a mortal. She can't do what others can't, at least not when it comes to matters of love.
She had no intention of becoming a god, so she naturally didn't need these things. Besides, the path to godhood was so difficult that she knew her own limitations and wouldn't take the risk.
The most important thing in life is to be happy.
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