What does my ancestor's pregnancy have to do with me, a mere servant?

Shen Guiyan was finally sent away.

A dark, ethereal light shot into the sky, tearing through the night.

She hovered a hundred feet above Black Crow Mountain, her aloof face illuminated by the moonlight, appearing as if sculpted from ice and jade.

Those phoenix eyes, however, were the complete opposite of his aloof demeanor; deep within them surged an uncontrollable heat.

She looked back at the cave below, her lips moving slightly.

"Then I'll wait for you to come back."

"At that time... a thousand times, ten thousand times."

She suddenly flicked her sleeve, and her whole body transformed into a long rainbow, instantly disappearing into the horizon.

Inside the cave.

Lin Yuan stood beside the bluestone bed, completely unaware of the outrageous words uttered by the Nascent Soul ancestor who had lived for hundreds of years above him.

He waved his hand to dispel the lingering enchanting atmosphere in the stone chamber, his expression remaining unchanged.

His gaze fell upon the small golden characters that appeared in his eyes.

Name: Lin Yuan

[Dharma Cultivation: Late Foundation Establishment; Body Cultivation: Mid-Transformation]

【五品丹师：0/100000（可加点）；五品灵植师：0/100000（可加点）；五品符师：0/100000（可加点）；五品器师：0/100000（可加点）；五品阵师：0/100000（可加点）；五品驭灵师：0/100000（可加点）】

[Formless Mortal Transformation Technique: Perfected (No points can be added); Thousand Evolutions Corpse Control Technique: Perfected (No points can be added)...]

Available attribute points: 103348

Last time, I spent over 200,000 points upgrading my talisman and weapon skills, which directly cut my available attribute points in half.

However, after a single face-to-face intensive training session with Shen Guiyan, I gained exactly 10,000 points.

This number caused a barely perceptible glint to flash in Lin Yuan's eyes.

But then, he extinguished that glimmer of light himself.

This method must never be exposed.

If Shen Guiyan finds out that he can now cultivate face-to-face without restriction, then he won't be able to leave this cave dwelling, let alone go to the Taixu Secret Realm.

Given the level of greed that Nascent Soul Ancestor just displayed...

Lin Yuan could almost foresee the miserable scene of himself being bound hand and foot to a bluestone bed, being exploited day and night until he was completely exhausted.

Just thinking about it gives me chills.

The first principle of Gou Dao (a philosophy of life): Never let others know your true value. Otherwise, you are not a partner, but a fat sheep waiting to be slaughtered.

Lin Yuan regained his composure and walked to the stone table.

He raised his hand and flicked it.

A series of spiritual lights flashed on the stone table, and various treasures appeared one after another.

Seven Xuan Yin Absolute Thunderbolts. This is the final quantity, with two more being refined later.

Five Heavenly Stem Immovable Talismans.

The Nine Netherworld Locking Heaven Array has a central array plate surrounded by twelve black array flags.

The two talismans bestowed by Shen Guiyan lay quietly in a specially made jade box.

……

Lingcui Peak.

Sima Duan's cave is decorated with lanterns and colorful streamers today.

Crimson ribbons draped across the entire mountain peak, stretching from the summit to the mountainside, fluttering in the night breeze. The joyous atmosphere almost completely dispelled the gloomy, ghostly aura that permeated the Xuan Yin Sect year-round. Spiritual lamps hung high, illuminating the entire Lingcui Peak as if it were daytime.

The Sima family put on a grand show for this marriage alliance.

This was no ordinary marriage. It was a high-stakes gamble wagered by two powerful families, each risking their entire fortune. The stakes were the opportunity for two Golden Core cultivators to break through to the Nascent Soul stage, and the bargaining chip was a living, breathing woman.

Inside the bridal chamber.

The red candles flickered. The candlelight made the red silk in the room look as if it were soaked in blood.

Sima Duan, dressed in a bright red wedding robe, strode into the room. He was tall and handsome, but the light in his eyes cast an unsettling shadow over his good looks.

He cast a spell with his backhand, sealing the door shut. In a flash, the entire bridal chamber was completely isolated from the outside world.

He turned around.

His gaze passed over the mahogany screen and stared intently at the figure on the large bed.

Li Lan, dressed in an extremely elaborate gold and red wedding gown, sat gracefully on the edge of the bed.

The tassels on her phoenix crown hung down on both sides of her face, swaying gently with her breath.

That face was exactly the same as Li Yang's, equally mature and voluptuous, equally radiant and captivating.

At this moment, however, there was not a trace of the joy and shyness that belonged to the bride.

There was only endless coldness and resistance.

"Fellow Daoist Li." Sima Duan walked to the bedside and looked down at her.

His gaze traveled down her face, across her collarbone, chest, and waist, revealing an undisguised, naked possessiveness.

"I never expected this. When I proposed to the Li family, I wanted your older sister, Li Yang. But that Li Yang is a slippery woman, and in the end, you're the one who married into the family."

A playful smile curled at the corner of his lips.

"But that's fine too. You sisters look exactly alike, so it doesn't matter who comes."

Li Lan slightly raised her head.

Her magical powers had been sealed by her family's ancestor. With her meridians blocked and her spiritual energy unable to flow, she was now no different from an ordinary mortal.

She had no desire to get married.

However, the patriarch of the Li family is nearing the end of his life. If he cannot obtain a spot in the core area of ​​the Taixu Secret Realm, he will basically have no chance of reaching the Nascent Soul stage in this lifetime.

She was pushed forward as a bargaining chip.

From beginning to end, no one asked her if she was willing.

"My marriage to you is solely for the benefit of my family."

"I will serve as your vessel for spiritual cultivation, helping you condense your Nascent Soul in the Great Void Secret Realm. But—"

She raised her bright eyes, which were exactly like Li Yang's, and looked directly into Sima Duan's eyes.

"It's not the right time yet."

Sima Duan frowned. He took a step forward, and his aura as a late-stage Golden Core cultivator pressed down on him without any concealment.

"Do you think you have the right to negotiate with me?"

Li Lan suddenly raised her right hand.

Sometime during the night, a slender silver needle appeared between her fingers. The needle was extremely thin, yet it gleamed with a sinister blue light.

The silver needle was pressed directly into his snow-white throat.

"If you dare touch a single hair on my head right now," Li Lan's voice was terrifyingly calm, "I will sever my own heart meridian."

"By then, I'll be nothing but a cold corpse. Once I enter the Great Void Secret Realm, what will I use to absorb primordial yin? What will I use to condense a Dao Infant?"

A cold smile even appeared on her lips.

"Sima Duan, you can't afford to gamble."

Sima Duan abruptly stopped in his tracks.

His expression shifted between light and shadow, his chest heaving violently for a few breaths. His sinister eyes were fixed on the silver needle lodged in Li Lan's throat.

Li Lan's primordial yin was the key to his condensation of a high-grade Dao infant.

Without this woman, even if he entered the Spirit Gathering Array, he could only condense a sixth-grade Dao Infant at most. With her, he might even reach the third or second grade.

This is a qualitative leap.

He couldn't possibly ruin his centuries-long plan for a moment of impulse.

Sima Duan suppressed the surging anger in his heart, and the gloom on his face quickly disappeared, replaced by a gentle smile.

"Fellow Daoist Li, why be so resolute?" He took a half step back, placed his hands behind his back, and softened his tone slightly. "Now that we have become Daoist partners, we are one. How could I mistreat my partner?"

He turned his head, his gaze lingering on her cold, exquisitely beautiful face for a moment.

"Don't worry. Once I break through to the Nascent Soul stage in the secret realm, I will not only treat you well, but I will also find you a top-grade Nascent Soul Condensation Pill. It will also help you reach the Nascent Soul stage in the future. Wouldn't it be wonderful for us to cultivate together as husband and wife?"

That sounds very high-sounding.

But Li Lan knew all too well. Once the technique of draining her life force was used, most of her cultivation would be drained. Even if she didn't die, her cultivation level would plummet, and she would never be able to return to her peak for the rest of her life.