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

Jiang Huaiyue sheathed her long sword and looked down at Gu Jiusi from her high vantage point.

"Moreover, since this woman has already submitted to her master, she naturally has to do something for him. Keeping her around without paying a price is just a waste of resources."

In the corner, Gu Jiusi trembled violently.

Her life was controlled, and she had no say in her own fate. Faced with this demonic practice, she had no chance to resist.

Lin Yuan looked at Gu Jiusi's pale and terrified face without any other expression.

He quickly weighed the pros and cons in his mind.

Gu Jiusi was a core disciple of the Tai Xuan Immortal Sect, possessing a late-stage Foundation Establishment cultivation level and exceptional talent. Killing a cultivator of this level would certainly save trouble, but it would be a terrible waste of talent.

Keeping them alive is far more valuable than killing them.

He nodded.

"Go to the cave entrance and protect the Dharma," Lin Yuan ordered Jiang Huaiyue.

Jiang Huaiyue sheathed her sword: "Yes."

She turned around decisively and headed towards the cave entrance.

Only Lin Yuan and Gu Jiusi remained in the cave.

The firelight flickered between the two men, stretching and shortening their shadows.

Lin Yuan walked up to Gu Jiusi and squatted down.

His gaze was calm, devoid of greed, malice, or even a hint of threat.

"I'm going to teach you a technique now, which will benefit you greatly." Lin Yuan's tone was as casual as if he were discussing what to eat today. "Of course, if you don't want to, I won't force you."

Gu Jiusi was slightly taken aback.

This statement was completely different from what she had expected.

There were no harsh commands, no condescending handouts, and certainly no nauseating, predatory stares.

She raised her head, her clear, cold eyes filled with vigilance and scrutiny as she stared intently at Lin Yuan's expression, trying to find any trace of hypocrisy or scheming.

But on that fair and handsome face, there was only a kind of composure that was hard to describe.

Gu Jiusi gritted her teeth and hesitated for a moment. The words churned in her throat several times before she finally managed to squeeze out a strained voice: "If I'm willing... afterwards..."

"During our previous negotiations, I promised you that I would release you afterward if you revealed the secret," Lin Yuan interrupted her directly. "I have one redeeming quality: I never go back on my promises."

He paused for a moment, then added, "The main problem is that going back on your word is too risky."

Gu Jiusi's lips twitched.

This was the first time she had ever seen someone measure "keeping one's word" in terms of "cost-effectiveness".

Ironically, this absurd logic somehow made her believe it.

Because someone who is calculating and profit-driven is actually the least likely to make a losing deal. And breaking a promise, in the current situation, is indeed a losing proposition.

"it is good."

……

A day and a night passed.

The campfire in the corner, used for lighting and warmth, had long since gone out, leaving only a pile of lukewarm ashes.

The sound of wind and sand outside the cave had subsided considerably, and the dark red sunlight shone through the cracks in the rocks.

Lin Yuan examined his Qi Sea again. The milky-white true energy that had previously occupied most of his Qi Sea and was slightly boiling had now completely subsided. The volume of the true energy had shrunk by nearly a third, but its color had become deeper and extremely viscous.

There was not a trace of weakness. All the power was as natural as an extension of one's own limbs.

The hidden dangers created by forcibly piling up nine top-grade Foundation Establishment Pills have been completely eliminated.

Furthermore, Lin Yuan carefully sensed the changes in his body. His low-grade spiritual root's perception of external spiritual energy had become even clearer. The free spiritual energy floating in the air around him, which he had previously observed through a thin veil, now seemed to have been torn even thinner.

Although it is still of low grade, as long as one perseveres, a complete transformation of the spiritual root is just around the corner.

Lin Yuan opened his eyes. His gaze was clear and bright.

Across from him, Gu Jiusi also opened his eyes at the same time.

Her face was no longer pale; the hidden injuries from her underground exploration had completely healed, and her complexion was rosy. Her skin had a radiant glow, as moist and translucent as a peeled lychee.

Gu Jiusi looked down at her hands, feeling the surging magical power within her body, her clear, cold eyes filled with shock.

This day and night of arduous face-to-face practice.

Lin Yuan used her to solidify his realm, making his fragile foundation impenetrable. As the other end that bore the brunt of Lin Yuan's violent magical power, she also reaped astonishing rewards.

Having been stuck at the late Foundation Establishment stage for so long, she finally made a giant leap forward. The barrier that had troubled her for two years was now covered with spiderweb-like cracks, and with just a little more effort, a breakthrough was in sight.

What alarmed her even more was that her spiritual root seemed to have undergone some subtle improvement. Her perception of the spiritual energy of heaven and earth had become more acute, and the efficiency of spiritual energy conversion during her breathing was much higher than before.

She raised her head and looked at the man in the blue robe in front of her.

There was no exploitation or humiliation. It was a purely mutually beneficial partnership.

Lin Yuan stood up and straightened the hem of his blue robe.

Lin Yuan turned around and walked towards the cave entrance.

Hearing the commotion, Jiang Huaiyue lowered her guard and turned to follow Lin Yuan. Gu Jiusi stood up silently without saying a word and followed.

Lin Yuan looked at the sky outside the cave.

"Alright, we've almost finished everything that needed to be done," Lin Yuan said calmly.

"There's still some time before the Crimson Forbidden Land closes. Let's gather some spiritual materials."

"After gathering the herbs, we'll pick up Lin Feilu, do some things that everyone enjoys, and then we can prepare to leave."

……

Time passed day by day.

As the dark red sky completely lost its last trace of crimson, the spatial rules of the Crimson Forbidden Land began to collapse.

An invisible repulsive force drove all the living cultivators toward the exit.

Entrance to the Crimson Forbidden Land.

Outside the light curtain.

Sima Duan stood with his hands behind his back. This cultivator, who was the most promising candidate to condense his Nascent Soul and was at the Great Perfection of Core Formation in the Xuan Yin Sect, was respectful at this moment.

Not only him, but the other Core Formation elders beside him also held their breath and dared not utter a sound.

This was because a female cultivator was standing in front of them.

The female cultivator wore a flowing, ink-wash style dress, with several dark floral patterns embroidered on the hem, which swayed gently in the wind. Her figure was tall and slender, yet she did not appear frail; instead, she possessed a resilience as straight as a pine tree.

Her long, black hair cascaded down to her waist, casually held in place by a plain silver hairpin. Her skin was as smooth and lustrous as the finest white jade, gleaming with a cool sheen under the crimson sunlight. Her features were exquisitely perfect, every line sculpted with divine skill.

But those eyes revealed a cold indifference that kept people at arm's length.

It was as if everything in this world was insignificant in her eyes.

As his aura circulated throughout his body, a terrifying spiritual pressure far exceeding that of a Golden Core cultivator naturally spread out.

Shen Guiyan.

One of the five Nascent Soul Ancestors of the Xuan Yin Sect.

Despite being at the early stage of the Nascent Soul realm, he was the youngest and most promising prodigy in the sect to reach the Divine Transformation realm.

This woman is usually elusive, rarely seen except when she is in seclusion or traveling.

Today, however, they have descended upon the exit of this blood-red forbidden land.

"Is it about to close?" Shen Guiyan's red lips parted slightly, her voice like jade striking each other, crisp yet carrying a chilling edge.

"Reporting to Uncle Shen, the time has come and it will be closed soon," Sima Duan immediately bowed and replied, keeping a very low profile.

Shen Guiyan nodded slightly, said nothing more, and turned her gaze to the distorted blood-red light screen in front of her.

At that moment, the crimson light curtain trembled violently.

The once stable array patterns began to twist and tear. One after another, figures were forcibly ejected by the rules of the secret realm and fell to the ground.

Sima Duan and several other Core Formation cultivators stared intently at it.

One.

two.

Three.

The more people were counted, the more somber the expressions of these Core Formation cultivators became.

When they entered, there were fifty elite disciples from the Xuan Yin Sect's inner sect. They were all outstanding young disciples from the Qi Refining stage to the Foundation Establishment stage, each one nurtured by the sect with a great deal of resources.

Now, there are only twelve people lying haphazardly on the ground, plus those barely standing.

They were all wounded, dressed in rags, and looked weak and listless.

"What's going on? Why are so many people missing!" Sima Duan took a step forward, and the pressure of his perfected Core Formation stage crushed down like a tangible force.

Although the Crimson Forbidden Zone was dangerous in the past, even in the most devastating incident, the survival rate was over one-third.

This time, the number of employees has decreased by nearly 80%.

Sima Duan's gaze swept quickly across the crowd.

He saw his personal disciple, Jiang Huaiyue. Though his clothes were tattered, his breathing was still steady. He breathed a slight sigh of relief.

Immediately afterwards, his face darkened.

I didn't see the Holy Son.

Not only did they not see the Holy Son Chu Tianhan, but even the core disciples who were being groomed for key positions were nowhere to be found.

"Reporting to Martial Uncle, we were ambushed in the forbidden area. That person wasn't from our Xuan Yin Sect at all. His techniques were strange; he killed anyone he saw."

"What?" Sima Duan's eyes flashed with intense killing intent.

Outsiders have infiltrated the sect's vital territory and slaughtered a large number of elites. This is undermining the Xuan Yin Sect's confidence.

Sima Duan's aura locked tightly around the twelve people in the arena.

"There is only one exit from the secret realm. If any outsiders had infiltrated, they would surely still be among you right now." Sima Duan's voice was as cold as the wind from the deepest hell.

in the crowd.

Lin Yuan wore a tattered blue robe, concealed all his aura, and suppressed his cultivation to the Qi Refining stage.

He blended in among the disciples, completely inconspicuous.

"Master, I also encountered that cultivator from another sect." Jiang Huaiyue's face was filled with sorrow. "Judging from the traces of his sword control technique, he is from the Tai Xuan Immortal Sect. I fought him fiercely, and the situation was extremely dangerous. Fortunately, Senior Brother Chu, the Holy Son, arrived in time."

"Senior Brother Chu used a secret technique to burn his life essence. In the end, he perished together with that cultivator from the Tai Xuan Immortal Sect."

Sima Duan's face turned ashen.

There is no way to verify the truth since the dead are dead.

With Jiang Huaiyue, his direct disciple, as a witness, the Tai Xuan Immortal Sect is definitely going to take the blame. Not only does it cover up the fact that he killed Chu Tianhan, it also diverts the anger of the sect's higher-ups.

"alright."

Shen Guiyan's cold voice swept across the entire venue.

"If one's skills are inferior, then death is death. Now that the enemy from the outer sect has been defeated, the sect will settle this score with the Tai Xuan Immortal Sect."

Her gaze swept over the twelve survivors.

"You managed to come out alive, which means you're incredibly lucky. The rules remain the same: bring out all the medicinal herbs you collected from the forbidden area."

The twelve disciples all fell silent.