Who is spreading rumors that my filial piety towards them has changed?

Chu Mingkong still cared about his daughter's feelings, and whispered to her, "How about I let Fengying's mother pick out a set of Yueqi accessories for you next month when you're all grown up?"

This time, Yuehe Cat stopped being stubborn. She rested her chin on Chu Mingkong's shoulder and nodded gently, seemingly envious that Jiao'er had received a gift.

But gifts are gifts, food can't be delayed. The little girl stretched out her little finger and touched Chu Mingkong's storage ring without saying a word.

Chu Mingkong, puzzled, conveyed his meaning with a glance to Feng Ying: "What do you mean?"

Feng Ying smiled knowingly as he looked at the little girl: "This little glutton, Maomao, wanted to eat. I took her out to eat, but she said she was tired of it after only two times and felt that it wasn't as good as what you gave her."

Oh, so she thought he had hidden all the food in his storage ring, which is why she was touching his ring without saying a word.

To better explain where he retrieved his items, Chu Mingkong would always pretend to take things from his storage ring, but in reality, he would exchange them on the spot most of the time.

The little girl thought he had hidden everything in his storage ring!

"The food I prepared is all for this person to enjoy with drinks. I haven't prepared a portion for Maomao yet. Why don't you ask her if she'll give one?" Chu Mingkong pointed to Zuo Qiuchi, hoping that Maomao would spend more time with her and become closer.

As for the generational titles, Maomao knew nothing about them. This was mainly because the family relationships around her father were complicated, so she just followed Chu Mingkong's way of addressing him and didn't quite understand what those titles meant.

I reckon if we have any new little ones in the future, we'll have to follow Yuehe Cat's example, otherwise the little ones won't understand those strange and complicated terms of address. Like Jinyu and Pei Mi, they might be wondering, "Why does Mother call my older sister 'younger sister'?"

These are all big problems!

Yuehe Cat turned her gaze to Zuo Qiuchi and asked in a childish voice, "...Master, Cat wants to eat something."

If Feng Ying were to ask this question, Zuo Qiuchi wouldn't mind in her heart, but she would definitely say no. She would have to give Feng Ying a hard time and make her feel intimidated.

Since it was just a little girl asking, she couldn't joke around like that.

"Eat it. If your dad doesn't give it to you, just tell me, and I'll beat him up!" Zuo Qiuchi nodded, encouraging him.

Now that Yuehe Cat has someone backing her up, she looks up at Chu Mingkong, wanting some food, but Chu Mingkong says, "No."

"..."

The little girl stared at her wicked father with her big eyes, remained silent for a moment, then turned to Zuo Qiuchi and said aggrievedly:

"Master, help the cat beat up Daddy."

The courtyard was filled with laughter and cheerful chatter.

Chu Mingkong dared not tease his daughter any longer, or she might really get angry. He quickly changed some food and fed her, naturally including his precious daughter.

After playing with the two little girls for a while, Chu Ming was tired and went back to his room to rest.

Just then, a message arrived. Chu Mingkong adjusted his sitting posture, while Ge You lay on the soft couch, picking up the message to see what it was about.

"Qingse's? The last time I contacted her, it was through her connections that I got the White Tiger Totem Jade. Could this be related to the auction?"

Chu Mingkong glanced at it briefly and found that it really was true!

[Qingse: A senior figure is planning to hold an auction soon. This senior figure holds a small auction about once every fifty years and a large one about once every hundred years. This year happens to be his big auction year. Would you like to go and take a look?]

Qingse's invitation was clearly not for the purpose of actually buying anything.

What she was really thinking about was whether she could learn from the experience of those who came before her. Although she had said that if things really didn't work out, she wouldn't have to hold auctions at all, and that her Immortal Treasure Pavilion was no longer suitable for auctions, she was still in this line of work and definitely still had that thought in mind.

It's impossible to just give up like that.

Just then, a senior's grand auction was about to take place, and Qingse wondered if Chu Mingkong could go along as well, perhaps it could inspire him in some way?

Qingse was very thorough in her work. After inquiring, she also provided some historical information about the auction, including what items had fetched sky-high prices and the address of the auction venue.

"The Dragon Palace Auction, that place in the East Sea, huh? I remember that Sister-in-law Huang's parents were from a cultivator family in the East Sea." Chu Mingkong's current experience traveling abroad is limited to the Crescent Moon Kingdom.

Further away, that would probably be the realm of the lunar eclipse gods...

[Chu Mingkong: How much longer until we open? How long will the journey take?]

[Qingse: I've already given you a detailed introduction... This auction lasts for a month, to take care of those cultivators who have been in seclusion for a long time, giving them some buffer time to wake up, but the main events are usually the few sessions in the middle of the month.]

If you're going, you can start making plans soon. Naturally, my Immortal Treasure Pavilion will use a spaceship/floating boat to get there. Including the auction time, it should take about half a month.

This comprehensive introduction saves you time and effort, eliminating the need to ask questions about every single detail.

In half a month, we should be able to handle the matters related to the day of the full moon without missing anything.

Moreover, Chu Mingkong didn't think that such a unique day was worth paying attention to, especially since it was a once-in-a-century auction event that only he and the Kunlun Dao Sect were interested in. He thought that the various intelligence transactions surrounding the auction were just as noteworthy as the auction itself, and that they might be able to find out more information about the Day of Prosperous Yin.

I was just thinking that I might have to go out someday, but I didn't expect something to happen so soon.

[Chu Mingkong: Okay, I'll give you some advice. By the way, did your colleague from the Crescent Moon Kingdom, Nida, go?]

Chu Mingkong remembered her kindness in generously gifting him the White Tiger Totem Jade, but she was a bit... too enthusiastic.

[Qingse: Of course I'm going. It's a once-in-a-century auction. Even if I don't buy anything, I'll still go to broaden my horizons. But she probably won't be going with me.]

That's good!

Chapter 42 My Sister Awakens!

Chu Mingkong also wanted to ask about intelligence from the outside world, specifically the movements of the Tianji Empire's royal family.

After he returned, he didn't pay much attention to the situation outside. Although the emperor had been dead for less than a month, the situation should have changed quite a bit.

Xiling did not want to get too involved, so it maintained a relatively closed-off policy. Unless it was business dealings in neighboring areas, long-distance communication was basically not allowed, for fear that external disturbances would seep into Xiling's peace through these daily exchanges.

However, I imagine this is a complicated matter that can't be explained in a few words. It's a bit difficult to communicate through paper notes, so let's talk about it when we meet in a few days.

With so much free time along the way, why not save it for later chat and kill some time? Or are we just going to let time rot away?

[Chu Mingkong: While you're at it, have someone compile a report on the situation in Tianji Capital over the past half month to almost a month. See what the current situation is, and then show it to me when we set off together.]

Qingse readily agreed, as gathering intelligence was essential for merchants, and this was just a convenient task.

[Qingse: No problem... Your Highness, would you mind revealing where you get all those strange things from?]

"...How am I supposed to answer that? Dig up the grave of some old bastard from the Hehuan Sect? The jade dildo incident is unexplainable. You can't expect someone who's been dead for who knows how many years to foresee that someone's penis will grow up to look like mine, can you?"

[Chu Mingkong: Excessive curiosity is not a good thing!]

[Qingse: That's not what I wanted to ask. It's mainly because some clients, like Nida, who can't reveal their identities, have asked me several times, with a puzzled look, how do you manage to cause trouble and kill people all at the same time while still producing a constant stream of jade dildos...]

Do you have girls around you who constantly stare at your manhood and try to carve it? Do you need a sculptor to help increase production?

Qingse was so embarrassed that she stopped writing halfway through that she felt too embarrassed to finish.

Although she was always curious about these questions, it didn't stop her from making money. She could restrain herself from asking them, since selling her jade ox carvings was a strange thing in itself.

But Nida bothered her many times, asking questions every now and then, so Qingse had no choice but to relay Nida's words.

[Qingse: Someone said they didn't care about the carving or anything like that; they just wanted to see what such a large piece of high-quality jade looked like.]

[Chu Mingkong: Just say that the appearance of the spirit jade ore is similar to that of the spirit jade ore.]

Qingse: ...That makes some sense.

Chu Mingkong ended the conversation and was also thinking about this question. Although it was only Nida who was harassing him, she was definitely not the only one with similar doubts.

It may not be convenient to dump such large quantities of cattle in the future.

He, Chu, is now someone who cares a little about his reputation. He worries that when his daughter grows up and goes out, everyone will be talking about how her father used to kill people while simultaneously selling his cow-shaped carvings...

Big question!

In the future, it would be best to only sell jade dildos that are of red quality. I need to be more restrained; I'm not short of money anyway.

"What should we do with those jade dildos of mediocre quality? Break them in half and sell them for the price of spirit jade?"

Chu Mingkong had a terrible headache. He rubbed his temples, deciding not to think about it for the time being. Some problems were very rewarding to solve, while others only made him more frustrated. Why was he stumped by his own ox?

He flipped through the "chat history" in the paper notes, reading all the way through, and finally stopped at his master's wife Shen Xuejun and his sister Xiao Yunhan.

"Yuehe's wife deduced a conclusion and told me to keep an eye on Shen Xuejun."

Based on their current interactions, his master's wife has provided him with a lot of positive assistance; she has been indispensable in obtaining the Frost Origin Spiritual Energy and the map of the Heavenly Palace.

However, through this direct contact, Chu Mingkong could indeed sense that his master's wife was extraordinary. Compared to ordinary sect cultivators, she had a particularly powerful aura!

"Let me say hello briefly. No matter what, my master's wife has helped me a lot. I haven't asked about her much since I came back, which is really wrong of me. I should also ask about Yunhan's condition."

[Chu Mingkong: Master's wife, it's as if I'm seeing you in person. It's been a long time since I last sent my greetings. I wonder how you've been lately.]

I've heard there's a once-in-a-century auction going on recently, during which many cultivators who have been in seclusion will awaken and emerge. I thought of Yunhan, whom I haven't seen in a long time. Has she emerged from seclusion yet?

He usually sends messages by paper, mostly using colloquial language, but this time it has unknowingly become a more formal letter style.

Although it was only a few words, after going back and forth to revise it, the cup of tea that Maomao had given him before writing the letter had unknowingly gone cold.

---------

Wenqing Pavilion.

The snowstorm from the Crescent Moon Kingdom didn't reach the Pavilion of Love and Inquiry, but since the area is covered in snow and ice year-round, the presence of cold winds doesn't have a significant impact on the place.

The unchanging scenery year after year always evokes the feeling of "a glance that lasts for eternity, only the glacier remains," and gradually makes people forget time in the tranquility of each day, unaware of the passing years.

A beautiful woman in a snow-white dress walked towards her beloved disciple's fairy peak. Her steps were graceful, and snowflakes fell from the sky under her feet. Her proud and full breasts swayed, and she had the majestic and elegant, yet cold and awe-inspiring, appearance of a snow-capped mountain.

Shen Xuejun had sensed her disciple Xiao Yunhan's aura preparing to emerge from seclusion a few days ago. Not long after she arrived today, the restrictions on the Immortal Peak were lifted, and Xiao Yunhan emerged from seclusion.

She went into seclusion this time to consolidate her cultivation. After her previous breakthrough, she rushed out of seclusion, which made her cultivation somewhat impetuous. She needs time to settle down.

Her once black hair, which had turned white due to her impetuous cultivation, has now returned to its original glossy black color. However, seeing that her master has snow-white hair, Xiao Yunhan continues to keep her hair color unchanged.

After a brief greeting, Xiao Yunhan naturally wanted to know what had happened during her seclusion, how Xiling was doing, and whether her younger brother was alright.

"Master, your disciple wants to know what happened during your seclusion."

"Then let me tell you about the important matters. While you were in seclusion, Mingkong handled the martial arts competition in Tianya City, reconciled with the Princess Consort of Chu, and expelled your maternal grandfather's family and the royal family from Xiling. Afterwards, Mingkong returned to the capital."

Xiao Yunhan frowned slightly: "Returning to the capital?! He's already back in Xiling, how come he's really back in the wolf's den? Didn't Zuo Qiuchi try to dissuade him?"

Shen Xuejun did not answer, but continued:

"Afterwards, Mingkong joined forces with Xiaoxiang Qin Academy to transport the female relatives and friends in the capital out of the capital and send them back to Xiling. Then, he fought against the emperor and Prince Jin in the palace, killed Prince Jin who had been transformed into Jiyuan, and Mingkong successfully escaped from the palace and returned to Xiling."

He then traveled to the Crescent Moon Kingdom, participating in a power struggle within the Moonlit Royal Family before retreating to the Kunlun Daoist Sect. After the power structure of the Crescent Moon Kingdom was reshuffled, he united with the weaker faction to regain the upper hand, forcing the Heavenly Emperor out of the palace. He first defeated the Emperor's clone, then single-handedly entered the palace, killed the Emperor, and safely returned to Xiling.

"...?"

Xiao Yunhan looked around, and after the question mark above her head disappeared, she asked in confusion:

"Master, how long have I been in seclusion?"