Cultivation begins with forming a bond with a spirit bee.

Having made up his mind, Qu Ye did not return to cultivate as usual. Instead, he moved swiftly towards the exit of the horse farm.

"Just in case, we can't let our guard down tonight."

He concealed his presence, circled around, and arrived at a grove of trees a little distance from Hou Youde's courtyard.

He then hid in a bush, activated "Hidden Fusion," his face changed, and his magical aura became even more restrained, making it difficult to detect.

Perhaps it was the latent talent that enhanced his concentration, but he found that his perception of the slightest movement around him had become exceptionally clear.

After hiding, Qu Ye summoned a worker bee from his spirit beast pouch and controlled it to fly slowly close to the ground.

The worker bees eventually stopped not far from the exit road and remained motionless.

Hou Youde's cultivation level is higher than his, so he cannot directly monitor him with his divine sense. It is better to use his naked eyes instead.

As for the worker bees, they serve as a layer of protection, preventing them from being attacked from behind while they are too focused.

With everything prepared, Qu Ye cleared his mind of all distractions and began to closely monitor Hou Youde's movements.

……

Nothing happened that night.

"It seems that Hou Youde most likely didn't mean anything by it."

Qu Ye quietly returned to her courtyard, reverting to her original appearance, and the sense of urgency in her heart dissipated slightly.

At least for now, it's not the worst outcome.

"However, we still can't let our guard down; we need to test the waters first."

After thinking it over, Qu Ye realized he couldn't go empty-handed when visiting someone, so he took out a piece of bear meat from his storage bag and carried it in his hand.

He didn't eat much on a regular basis, and there was still more than half of the brown bear's meat left. The little bit he took out was just a drop in the ocean.

But it just so happens to meet the standard of reciprocity for a fourth-level Qi Refining Spirit Contract Craftsman.

After checking himself with his divine sense and confirming that he hadn't gotten any branches or leaves on him, Qu Ye carried the bear meat and walked towards Hou Youde's courtyard.

A short while later, he arrived at the gate of Hou Youde's courtyard.

The courtyard gate was half-open, and the sound of flowing water could be heard from inside.

Qu Ye raised his hand and knocked on the door.

dong dong dong.

"Who is it?" Hou Youde's voice came from inside the courtyard.

"Uncle De, it's me, Qu Ye."

Soon, the courtyard gate was opened, and Hou Youde appeared, dressed in a loose robe and holding a wooden ladle in his hand.

"Fellow Daoist Qu, what brings you here today?"

Qu Ye held up the bear meat in his hand and said with a smile, "I troubled Uncle De to take care of Red Hare for me a few days ago, and I haven't had a chance to thank him. I happen to have nothing to do today, so I came to bother you a bit."

"Why are you being so polite with me?" Hou Youde glanced at the bear meat, sensing the essence within it, and his smile deepened. He stepped aside and said, "Come in, I'm free anyway."

Qu Ye stepped into the courtyard.

In the corner of the yard, there were a few more pots of worthless medicinal herbs than before, with water droplets still remaining on the leaves.

"Fellow Daoist Qu, please wait a moment."

Hou Youde invited Qu Ye to sit down in the guest room, then turned and went to another room.

A moment later, he came out with a pot of spirit wine and poured a bowl for each of them.

Instantly, the aroma of wine filled the air.

Qu Ye picked it up, examined it discreetly, smelled it, and praised, "The aroma is wonderful, with a hint of spiciness—a fine wine!"

"Hahaha." Hou Youde picked up his wine bowl and took a big gulp: "This is Huoshaochun, a strong liquor. It's only sold at Yushanlou in the market. I wouldn't be willing to use this liquor to entertain ordinary guests."

"You flatter me." Qu Ye smiled and put down his wine bowl as he handed over the bear meat.

"Uncle Hou, this is mid-grade first-level beast meat. It can nourish the body and restore vitality. I brought it here especially for you to try."

Hou Youde happily accepted the bear meat without examining it closely: "Fellow Daoist Qu, you've gone to so much trouble. Why would someone my age eat monster meat?"

Despite his words, he was quick to put away the bear meat.

Next, the two chatted for a few more minutes about trivial matters at the horse farm.

When Hou Youde talked about preparing hay for the new spirit horse foals, he also mentioned that the price of spirit herbs had recently risen, and that the days ahead might not be easy.

Qu Ye responded with a few words, following the lead of the conversation.

Once the atmosphere had become more relaxed, he casually asked, "Speaking of which, I hope Red Hare didn't cause any trouble while I was away at the horse farm the other day?"

Hou Youde waved his hand: "There's nothing wrong. Although that little guy has a bit of a temper, I've raised the Fierce Cloud Steed for so many years, I can still keep him in check."

Qu Ye nodded, seemingly relieved. "That's good. After all, I just took over the Fierce Cloud Steed cub, and I was still a little uneasy."

"You," Hou Youde stroked his beard, "a spirit beast like the Fierce Cloud Steed can't be raised too roughly, nor can it be kept too tightly guarded, otherwise it will backfire."

"How so?"

Qu Ye looked like he was humbly asking for advice.

Hou Youde seemed to be enjoying this feeling quite a bit. He took another sip of the spirit wine and began to explain it to Qu Ye in detail.

I don’t know if it was the bear meat that had the effect, but he was talking about details that he couldn’t possibly understand without years of experience raising horses.

Why shouldn't a newborn spirit steed be fed too much and should be allowed to run around more? And why, when choosing fodder, try to pick some with a fire element...?

"There was an unexpected bonus."

Qu Ye thought to himself.

Although he was a veterinarian in his previous life, spirit beasts and ordinary beasts are ultimately different.

Hou Youde's ability to manage the Lingma Farm for so many years naturally stems from his unique skills.

After talking for a while, just as Qu Ye was thinking about how to ask if anyone else knew that he was not at the horse farm, there was a knock on the gate.

"Fellow Daoist Hou, are you there?"

Hou Youde gave Qu Ye an apologetic smile, walked over and opened the courtyard gate, frowning: "Hu Si?"

Standing outside the door was Hu Si.

He changed into a clean robe today, but he looked more haggard than usual, with sunken eyes.

What do you want?

Hu Si looked around and said, "Fellow Daoist Hou, may we go inside and discuss this further?"

Hou Youde stared at Hu Si for a few moments before nodding: "Come in."

Hu Si walked into the courtyard and was slightly taken aback to see Qu Ye there. He then forced a smile and said, "Fellow Daoist Qu, you're here too."

Qu Ye cupped his hands in greeting: "Fellow Daoist Hu."

You can't hit someone who's smiling, and he and Hu Si didn't have any real conflict.

Hou Youde sat back down, his expression indifferent: "What brings you here today?"

Hu Si stood to the side, seemingly finding it difficult to speak. After hesitating for a moment, he slowly opened his mouth:

"Fellow Daoist Hou, it's like this. Zhao Haiqiong and I had a really unpleasant falling out. We're all people making a living at the horse farm, and we'll run into each other all the time. This stalemate can't go on forever."

"Therefore, I would like to hold a banquet in the courtyard tomorrow and invite Fellow Daoist Zhao to come and have a frank discussion."

He paused.

"I'm just afraid that things will get messy again and my good intentions will backfire, so I'd like to ask Fellow Daoist Hou to be a witness."

Hou Youde's expression softened slightly after hearing this.

"Hmph, it should have been done a long time ago. You two should have settled your messy affairs sooner and focused on raising horses properly."

Hu Si bowed deeply and said, "I was too hasty the other day and did many things wrong. I hope Fellow Daoist Hou will forgive me."

"Alright, tomorrow, right? I agree."

Hou Youde nodded and agreed.

Qu Ye sat to the side, and the more he listened, the more something seemed off.

The conflict between these two cannot be explained in just a few words.

The sudden decision to hold a banquet to seek peace, with Hou Youde as a witness, seems a bit too abrupt.

However, it cannot be ruled out that Hu Si may have truly come to terms with reality and wanted to back down.

After all, they could usually only argue verbally, but this time the distribution of spirit steeds was directly related to Hu Si's spirit stone income.

Hu Si breathed a sigh of relief upon hearing Hou Youde's agreement: "Thank you, Fellow Daoist Hou."

After saying this, he cupped his hands in a respectful gesture to Qu Ye, then turned and left.

Only after Hu Si had walked a distance did Hou Youde pick up his wine bowl and take a large gulp: "That Hu Si, he should have given in a long time ago. He insisted on keeping up this stubbornness. Now he's behaved, isn't he?"

After saying that, he looked at Qu Ye and said, "Fellow Daoist Qu, don't feel sorry for this man. Some time ago, he got addicted to gambling and borrowed spirit stones from all over the place. He even lost his Daoist partner because of gambling."

"They still owe me three spirit stones!"

It turned out to be the case.

Qu Ye suddenly realized.

No wonder everyone dislikes Hu Si.

He nodded, secretly deciding to sever ties with Hu Si.

Gamblers don't deserve sympathy!