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The Kunlun Spring was originally not a hot spring.

It was merely a subterranean mineral spring, and the water that gushed forth was ice-cold to the touch and never froze throughout the year, containing an abundance of minerals.

Or rather, it was the Earth Pulse Spiritual Power contained within the minerals that endowed the bathing water with effects such as beautifying and nourishing the complexion, as well as cleansing filth and purifying the spirit.

Therefore, the female cultivators from the Ancient Clarify Cult channeled the springwater into pools constructed from warm jade, thus creating a series of indoor hot springs that have now become the sacred tourist destination of the Kunlun Border.

In a private hot spring room, Xu Yinglian shed her plain robe, revealing a flawless body, with her long black hair wrapped in a bath towel at the back of her head.

First, she lifted her jade feet and tentatively tested the water temperature, then she slowly stepped into the crystal-clear water, immersing her beautifully curved body.

“Sigh.” Reclining in the hot spring, leaning lightly against the warm jade wall, Xu Yinglian exhaled a long breath amidst the rising wisps of steam, her face revealing a contented expression of comfort.

After an unknown amount of time, a sudden thought sprang to mind.

What is Senior Brother Qiu doing now?

Is he soaking in a hot spring in some room as well?

Xu Yinglian’s feelings toward this Qiu Changtian, Senior Brother Qiu, were a mix of admiration and resentment.

Admiration was due to his unparalleled talent, which was truly enviable.

The resentment was also because of his unparalleled talent—it was so terrifying that it drove her close to despair in her pursuit.

The most infuriating thing was that her family had arranged a Daoist Companion marriage contract with him without even consulting her…

Xu Yinglian slowly submerged her face into the water, feeling somewhat powerless.

In truth, she did not dislike Senior Brother Qiu, but she had never considered him in a romantic way either.

Qiu Changtian was merely a goal for her to surpass.

Once she had completely defeated him, he would just become like any other insignificant and uninteresting person in the world; by then, she wouldn’t even spare him a glance.

Humph.

Thinking this, Xu Yinglian’s mood improved once again as she soaked in the hot spring.

Contrary to her guess, Qiu Changtian was at that moment socializing outside, meeting with the Kunlun Disciples who had also taken up the “hunt the Demonic Beast” mission.

In the restaurant, all the participants had arrived: three men and two women, aside from Qiu Changtian, all dressed as Outer Sect Disciples of Kunlun, exchanging names.

“I am Lv Zheng, and I greet my fellow Kunlun Sect peers,” one of them said, taking the lead with a formal bow.

“Well met, I am Liu Daoran.”

“Liu Yiyi.”

“Wen Qin.”

“Hu Haozhi.”

After everyone had introduced themselves in turn, their gazes fell on Qiu Changtian, who was the last to speak.

“Qiu Changtian,” he said with a smile as he introduced himself.

The room fell silent for a moment.

Then, the disciple named Lv Zheng, as if to break the awkward silence, chuckled:

“What a coincidence, to share the same name as this generation’s Chief Disciple.”

Qiu Changtian: ……….

Wait a minute, how did I become someone with the same name?

But he was quick-witted and soon figured out the reason.

Because Qiu Changtian was a Direct Disciple of the Sect Leader, his status was noble, and he had no need for external experience!

Those standing here were the pitiable Outer Sect Disciples without the protection of a master, forced to stand on their own two feet and strengthen themselves independently.

In order to improve their cultivation levels swiftly, they reluctantly had to take on long-term Qi Refining Rank missions from the service hall, all for the sake of earning a few Spirit Stones to fund their cultivation.

Among all the Qi Refining Rank missions, hunting Demonic Beasts was the one with the least compensation and the most laborious.

One should know that whether it is exploring ancient ruins or searching for enemy cultivators, there are chances to obtain additional Magical Treasures, Elixirs, or even Cultivation Techniques.

What could one possibly get from hunting demonic beasts? Fur? Flesh? Excrement?

The only advantage of this task was that it could be completed quickly, allowing for a rapid accumulation of completed missions and enough spirit stones through this accumulation… Thus, the ones who would take on this task were all outer sect disciples desperately in need of spirit stones.

Not to mention the current Chief Disciple, even other direct disciples and inner sect disciples, who could receive a monthly stipend from their masters, would not care about such a small amount of spirit stones!

With this in mind, Qiu Changtian felt it was no longer appropriate to stress that “I am the Chief Disciple,” so he just nodded in agreement.

The other outer sect disciples still seemed oblivious, merely chatting among themselves in a friendly manner.

“Speaking of the Taiqing Sect’s Chief Disciple Qiu Changtian, it seems he is a figure whose reputation does not match reality.” The disciple who had previously introduced himself as “Liu Daoran” now chuckled coldly, “I heard that when he first joined the Kunlun Sect, he never walked the path to heaven, but was directly appointed by the Sect Leader!”

“Really?” Another female disciple named “Wen Qin” was apparently unaware of this and asked in surprise, “If he hadn’t completed the path to heaven, how could the sect confirm his qualifications for cultivation? Why would he be directly made the Chief Disciple of our generation?”

“What else could be the reason?” Liu Daoran curled his lips, “Probably just another cultivator from a cultivator family with connections.”

At these words, everyone fell silent. That the descendants of the cultivator families often occupied the majority of the slots as direct disciples and inner sect disciples of the Taiqing Sect was an almost open secret. Sometimes, even those with poor aptitude could snag a slot because of a relative who was a real person or elder in Kunlun, which earned them considerable disdain from their fellow disciples.

“Forget about that Chief Disciple; let’s look at the task at hand.” Seeing everyone’s spirits dampened, Lv Zheng hastily tried to lighten the mood, introducing the task at hand, “In the spirit stone mine at Old Dragon Ridge, mole crickets have recently invaded and are obstructing mining.”

“This creature resembles a wild goat with four horns, capable of running and jumping, and becomes fiercely carnivorous at the sight of blood.”

“Fortunately, it cannot wield the Five Elemental Spells and is considered a low-rank demonic beast; therefore, as long as we act carefully, we should not find it difficult to efficiently kill with flying swords.”

“From here to Old Dragon Ridge is not far; if all goes well, the hunt and return should take no more than two hours at most.”

He passed around the scripture scroll detailing the mission, and everyone agreed without objections.

After all, Qi Refining Rank cultivators had not yet undergone Marrow Cleansing; although their bodies were frail and no different from ordinary people, the attack power of flying swords was nonetheless formidable.

Unless a demonic beast found an opportunity to launch a surprise attack, it would typically die when pierced through a vital spot by a flying sword, rather than the turn-based combat of “you cast a fire incantation, I unleash a wind blade” as written in xuanhuan novels.

With the task confirmed, the group was about to set off when Qiu Changtian suddenly spoke up:

“Wait a moment, I have a junior sister who will be joining me. Could everyone please wait for me to bring her here?”

“That’s not really appropriate,” Lv Zheng said, feeling awkward, “The spirit stones from this mission are already few; five people sharing is manageable, but with six people, it becomes too little.”

Qiu Changtian was left speechless. He had seen the mission reward earlier, just one hundred and twenty low-grade spirit stones; whether divided among five or six people, it was a difference of just four stones. How could that little difference matter?

Looking at the other disciples, though they said nothing, their expressions all conveyed the same message: They did not want another person sharing.

With this, Qiu Changtian had another realization: Four low-grade spirit stones meant nothing to him, but to these outer sect disciples, they represented a significant sum of money!

“How about this?” he changed tack, smiling, “My junior sister and I will both contribute effort, but we will only take the share of one person’s reward.”

“That would be excellent!” Lv Zheng was overjoyed at the prospect, as it would essentially be gaining an extra hand for free, “But would your junior sister agree to this?”

“She doesn’t care,” Qiu Changtian smiled, “She comes from a cultivator family and doesn’t mind such a small amount of spirit stones.”

As soon as he made this Versailles-like remark, everyone’s faces stiffened. Lv Zheng was about to continue asking “then why take on the task,” but was rudely interrupted by Hu Haozhi next to him:

“Fellow daoist, since you are bringing your junior sister, please hurry it up. We can’t have so many of us waiting just for you two!”

While the others were members of the 280th generation of disciples and had only recently entered the sect, Hu Haozhi was from the 279th generation and had joined Kunlun thirty years earlier than the rest.

Thus, when he pulled rank to interrupt, Lv Zheng did not continue to inquire, though his face showed lingering skepticism.

“Mm, please wait just a moment, everyone, I will be right back,” Qiu Changtian said as he turned to leave.

After he was out of sight, Liu Daoran scoffed, “A cultivator family’s young miss doing this sort of grueling work? That man is probably not being truthful. Everyone be careful later, don’t let him take advantage of the confusion.”

“Let’s not dwell on that,” Liu Yiyi, who had been silent so far, suddenly spoke up, “At least he is quite handsome.”

“You think so too?” Wen Qin exclaimed excitedly, “He does indeed resemble a graceful young master from a large family!”

“Can a handsome face be used as spirit stones?” Liu Daoran shot back with a dark face, “An embroidered pillow full of straw, don’t you understand?”

“You ugly man don’t know anything!” Wen Qin had not been pleased with him and now yelled directly, “Keep your jealousy of his good looks to yourself! Don’t be so passive-aggressive; it’s irritating!”

“You!” Liu Daoran was infuriated and about to retort, but Lv Zheng hurriedly intervened to pacify the situation, “Alright, alright, we are all disciples of the same Kunlun Sect, let’s not ruin our harmony.”

Having just calmed down, Liu Daoran began considering leaving the team to venture on his own.

After all, having fallen out with the female cultivators in the team, remaining silent would mean swallowing insults, and retorting would compromise his dignity. It seemed better to leave.

Yet thinking further, if he were to leave in such a disheartened manner, he couldn’t help but imagine how these female cultivators would gossip behind his back, mocking and deriding him.

It would be better to wait for the others to bring back that junior sister, to let everybody see what kind of “young miss” she was!