The Hehuan Sect cultivates alchemy; my senior sister helps me refine alchemy throughout the world.

Shen Yifei stood under the porch of the inner courtyard of the Hehuan Sect, holding a tray with a pot of "Hehuan Brew" and three "Bliss Pills".

The menial disciples in the alchemy room did this kind of errand-running work.

The door wasn't closed properly, leaving a small gap.

Logically he should have knocked, but the sound coming from inside made his fingers pause.

"Senior brother...you...you have so much spiritual energy, slow down..."

The woman's voice was so soothing it made half of your body go numb.

Shen Yifei was eighteen years old and had been in the sect for three years. This was the first time he had delivered medicine to an inner disciple who practiced dual cultivation.

He had heard of this senior sister, Ye Hongling, before. She was an ordinary inner sect female disciple, whom he had only seen from afar before.

He couldn't help but peek through the crack in the door.

He was instantly captivated and unable to extricate himself from the sight of her.

Inside the room, a man and a woman were practicing the Hehuan Sect's martial arts on the bed.

Ye Hongling had her back to the door, her long black hair cascading down, covering most of her face, revealing only half of her chin and a section of her slender neck.

The man's appearance was unclear.

"Junior sister...ouch..."

"Senior brother, have you ever seen this move I'm using before? Your spiritual energy needs to keep up..." Ye Hongling's voice was tinged with laughter. "The pill hasn't dissolved yet. If your spiritual energy can't keep up, all this spiritual energy from dual cultivation will be wasted."

Shen Yifei stood outside the door with a tray in his hand, his palms sweating. He knew he should leave; he shouldn't have been peeping at the inner disciples' dual cultivation.

But the sight before him made him unable to move his feet. He felt a surge of heat rush to his head, and he almost dropped the tray.

Just then, the man suddenly let out a scream: "Ah...no...no..."

Shen Yifei saw Ye Hongling's back tense up, as if she was gathering all her strength.

The man continued to scream in agony, "My meridians... my meridians are about to break!"

"Senior brother, you must hold on! The spiritual energy is currently cleansing your meridians, and your cultivation will soon improve. Listen to me!"

"you……!"

The man struggled to turn over, but Ye Hongling held him down firmly, preventing him from moving.

"Senior brother, don't waste your energy," Ye Hongling giggled, her voice sweet and alluring. "You just took the Bliss Pill and drank the Acacia Wine, so all your blood and energy are rushing to one place right now. It'll be over soon..."

"You...you're trying to harm me?! I'm an inner disciple, the sect won't let you get away with this!"

Ye Hongling chuckled, "Senior Brother clearly suffered a qi deviation during dual cultivation and died suddenly. I was too shocked, and my cultivation level dropped. At most, I can only reflect on my mistakes in seclusion for three months. I'll gladly accept the things in Senior Brother's storage bag."

Shen Yifei stood outside the door, and the wine jug on the tray almost slipped off.

He took a step back, intending to turn and run away, but his heel hit the threshold with a dull thud.

"Who?" Ye Hongling shouted sharply.

Shen Yifei felt a chill run down his spine and turned to run.

But before he could run two steps, he heard a whoosh of wind behind him, followed by a tightening around the back of his neck as he was lifted up.

"Oh, so you're just a lowly handyman!" Ye Hongling's voice rang in his ear. "And from the alchemy room, no less?"

Shen Yifei was lifted up by the back of his collar and suspended in mid-air, his legs kicking wildly. The tray in his hands had long since fallen, the wine pot was broken on the ground, and the Hehuan wine was spilled all over the ground.

"Senior sister, spare me! I didn't see anything! I didn't hear anything!"

"Didn't you see?" Ye Hongling turned him around and pinched his chin to make him raise his head.

Shen Yifei then got a clear look at the woman's face.

She has an oval face, willow-leaf eyebrows, and a pair of bright, watery eyes with slightly upturned corners, exuding a natural charm.

She had just gotten out of bed, wearing only a thin gauze dress with nothing underneath, the hint of spring in her skin peeking out from beneath.

Shen Yifei glanced at it only once before quickly lowering his eyelids.

"Little servant," Ye Hongling pinched his chin, gently rubbing her thumb against his lips, "Hey, not bad looking. How long were you staring at him outside?"

"No... I didn't watch for long..."

"That means... you've already seen it."

Ye Hongling sighed, released his jaw, and turned to look at the man on the bed.

The man stopped moving.

His eyes were open, his mouth was agape, and the look of terror he had felt before his death lingered on his face.

"My senior brother suffered a qi deviation and died suddenly," Ye Hongling said softly. "The servant was delivering medicine when he saw this and fled in panic, but he lost his footing and fell off the cliff."

She turned to Shen Yifei and gave him a sweet smile: "Little handyman, what do you think of this?"

Even if Shen Yifei was stupid, he could understand what she meant: she was going to kill him to silence him!

His legs went weak and he knelt on the ground.

"Senior sister! Please, senior sister, spare my life! I swear, I won't say a word! If I do, may I be struck by lightning and die a horrible death!"

"What's the use of swearing an oath? Especially you stinking men, you just open your mouths and swear an oath, but not a single word of it is true."

Ye Hongling squatted down, her watery eyes fixed on Shen Yifei's eyes. "If I believed your oath, I'd be a fool."

She reached out, her slender, fair fingers stroking Shen Yifei's neck and gently pressing on his Adam's apple.

"Little servant, what's your name?"

"Shen... Shen Yifei."

"Shen Yifei," Ye Hongling repeated his name, then smiled, "It's a nice name. It's a pity, I have to send you on your way today."

"Senior Sister, wait!" Shen Yifei cried out in desperation, "I...I'm also an expert in dual cultivation!"

"You? A lowly servant, you know how to cultivate dual cultivation? You're kidding me!" Ye Hongling's fingers were about to exert force!

"Senior Sister... dual cultivation... dual cultivation, I... I can do that too!"

Upon hearing this, Ye Hongling immediately released her grip.

"Cough...cough..." Shen Yifei coughed twice and quickly said, "Senior Sister, don't underestimate me just because I'm young. I've been in the sect for three years and have secretly eaten a lot of pills in the alchemy room. My physique is extraordinary! If you use me as a furnace, I guarantee I'll be more effective than that senior brother from before!"

He didn't even know what he was saying when he said that.

During his three years as a handyman in the alchemy room, he had seen countless pills and even stolen quite a few! But those were all scraps; he couldn't reach the most valuable pills at all.

But right now, this is the only excuse that can save their lives.

Ye Hongling suddenly laughed when she heard him say that.

She released her grip. "Little servant, do you know what it means to be a furnace cauldron?"

Shen Yifei knelt on the ground, looking up at her.

Beneath the gauze dress, spring's beauty still lingered. He swallowed hard. "I know."

"You know? Then tell me, what do you need to do to make a furnace cauldron?"

"It's...it's about letting my senior sister absorb yang energy," Shen Yifei said, forcing a smile. "My senior sister needs yang energy for cultivation, so I'll provide her with yang energy."

"Hmm...anything else?"

"And...and...that's all I don't know, Senior Sister. Whatever you need, I'll give it to you."

"Heh, you're quite the smooth talker. And... if I were to drain your life force in one go, your meridians would be severed, your dantian shattered. At best, you'd lose all your cultivation and become a cripple; at worst, you'd die on the spot."

Ye Hongling said slowly and deliberately, "Just like that senior brother."

"Then... then please, senior sister, have mercy." Shen Yifei was so frightened that he could barely speak.

"Go easy on him, huh? You're quite the smooth talker, you little handyman."