Chapter 491: Flowers Do Not Bloom Red for a Hundred Days

The inner hall was a small yet refined chamber. Valley Master Nie sat to one side, his eyes closed, as though lost in thought.

Nie Qianyu entered at a brisk pace and took a seat beside him. She said nothing. After a long while, Valley Master Nie opened his eyes and asked: “Little Yu, what do you make of this matter?”

Nie Qianyu replied calmly: “I leave it entirely to Father’s judgment. There is not much more for your daughter to say.”

“Sigh, what was the matter with your second elder sister today? She was so aggressive. If it weren’t for the fact that Qiang Shi is someone I’ve watched grow up since childhood, I would truly begin to doubt her intentions.”

“Father need not overthink it. Second Sister did, after all, come from Spring Rebirth Valley. She would never harbor thoughts harmful to the valley. This affair is probably no different from what happened with Eldest Sister’s husband’s family a few years back—they all want to use our Spring Rebirth Valley as a bridge to latch onto the Incense Spreading Sect. If Qiang Shi were to gain their favor and secure some position—an outer disciple, or even an inner disciple—wouldn’t that bring honor to the Giant Whale Gang as well? It would be the same as having the Incense Spreading Sect as their backing.”

Valley Master Nie sighed again. “If only it were that easy. My Spring Rebirth Valley has been on good terms with the Incense Spreading Sect for many years, yet how many times have they truly lent us a hand? In the end, haven’t we always had to weather our trials by our own strength?”

“Father speaks the truth, but that is something we say behind closed doors. How would outsiders know? They only see us dressed in fine robes and assume we’ve benefited greatly from the Incense Spreading Sect’s favor. That is why they rack their brains to find a way through our Spring Rebirth Valley.”

“I only fear that once an opening is made for Qiang Shi, others will come seeking the same arrangement. That would put us in a difficult position.”

Nie Qianyu gave a bitter smile. “There is nothing that can be done. From Second Sister’s tone, if Qiang Shi is not allowed to go along, then even Elder Brother Ren will not be going either. She would surely raise such a storm that heaven and earth would be overturned. And if the Incense Spreading Sect’s envoy truly arrives tomorrow as Second Sister claims, then by the time we think of remedies, it will already be too late.”

Valley Master Nie nodded slowly. “Let us hope it is only this once—never again. Could it be that once a daughter is married off, she truly becomes like water that has been poured away? That she would no longer consider her father’s painstaking intentions?”

After speaking, he glanced once more at Nie Qianyu and smiled faintly. “I wonder what fate awaits Little Yu in the future?”

Nie Qianyu’s face flushed red as she said: “Father must be joking. How could your daughter still harbor such thoughts? In all likelihood, I will simply remain by Father’s side and spend my life here in the valley.”

Valley Master Nie let out a sigh. “Young Nephew Ren truly is a fine young man. It’s just that…”

Nie Qianyu immediately cut him off before he could continue. “Please don’t say any more, Father. Elder Brother Ren may already have someone in his heart. Your daughter…”

She stopped halfway through, too shy to continue.

Valley Master Nie said in surprise: “I wonder which family’s daughter she might be—to be even more captivating than our Little Yu?”

Faced with her father’s attempt at comfort, Nie Qianyu felt not the slightest bit of joy. She merely said: “Elder Brother Ren is very tight-lipped. No matter how Little Orange and I tried, we couldn’t pry anything out of him. Sigh… I truly wonder what sort of woman could be worthy of Elder Brother Ren.”

“Enough, Little Yu,” Valley Master Nie said gently. “The world is not short of fine men—Elder Brother Ren is not the only one. You needn’t hang yourself upon a single tree. Look further ahead. With the strength of our Spring Rebirth Valley, finding you a satisfactory husband would hardly be difficult.”

Nie Qianyu wore a lonely expression. “Let us speak of this after some time has passed. After all, Elder Brother Ren hasn’t yet been expelled from the Spring Rebirth Valley.”

When she spoke of expelling Zhang Xiaohua from the valley, an unconscious trace of a smile appeared on her face.

“Besides, he entered the Incense Spreading Sect under the identity of the Spring Rebirth Valley’s prospective son-in-law. Even if Father is eager to marry off his daughter, you’ll still have to wait until these matters have passed. Moreover…” She hesitated slightly. “Father, this time the martial-matchmaking event was staged on such a grand scale. Who in the jianghu does not know of it? Who would still come to our Spring Rebirth Valley to seek a marriage alliance?”

Valley Master Nie wore an expression full of apology. “Little Yu, Father truly failed to think this through. I’ve really caused you to suffer injustice.”

Nie Qianyu took a deep breath and smiled. “Father’s intentions were entirely good—you only wished to draw the enemy’s attention elsewhere. How could your daughter not understand that? How could I blame Father? Let us put this matter aside. The envoy from the Incense Spreading Sect may arrive at Spring Rebirth Valley tomorrow. If things proceed as before and they only remain in the valley for a single day, then Elder Brother Ren’s Scarlet Flame Pill will still require two days to complete. That leaves an extra day in between. Father will need to give this some thought.”

Valley Master Nie sighed. “Indeed, it is a troublesome matter. I learned long ago that the Incense Spreading Sect’s envoy had arrived in Mochou City. Come to think of it, it’s quite strange—every time, they first appear in Mochou City, then vanish without a trace, and only afterward come to our Spring Rebirth Valley. I truly don’t know what they do in Mochou City.”

“Matters of the Incense Spreading Sect are not for us to meddle in. But as for Second Sister, Father—you should give her another warning. She must not play with fire.”

Valley Master Nie nodded. “The Incense Spreading Sect revealing their movements is a signal to our valley, giving us time to prepare. As for your Second Sister, she is likely using manpower from the Giant Whale Gang to prepare for this opportunity—to send Qiang Shi into the Incense Spreading Sect. Such chances are rare; there likely won’t be another in the future.”

“Let us hope so. Still… sigh, never mind. Second Sister and the Giant Whale Gang are well aware of the Incense Spreading Sect’s strength. They would not dare do anything reckless.”

“Yes. Though your Second Sister is not as perceptive as you, she is hardly foolish. She can still distinguish what is at stake. Hmm? Little Yu, why do you look so dispirited? Never mind. It’s already late. Father won’t say any more. These days, you’ve been studying the Great Evolution Five Elements Formation—it’s been taxing on your spirit. Go rest early.”

Nie Qianyu said nothing more. She rose, bowed respectfully, and withdrew, a faint trace of sorrow lingering on her face.

Valley Master Nie watched his daughter’s retreating figure for a long time, unwilling to look away. That slender silhouette, those slightly weary steps, all bore silent witness to the heavy burden she carried upon her shoulders.

Yes—Little Yu’s heart had long remembered only Zhang Xiaohua. Though the world was filled with countless men, who else could truly enter her heart? Let alone in such a short span of time—even after several years, it might still be impossible for her to untangle the myriad knots within her heart.

What was more, when one considered Zhang Xiaohua’s peerless martial prowess, his almost divine skill in pill refinement, and his unfathomable mastery of formations—among all the men of this world, how many could even hope to see his back? It was no wonder that Little Yu had fallen so deeply into the web of affection.

Night had grown deep. In the Spring Rebirth Valley, the chorus of insects filled the air. Though summer had already arrived, the valley still enjoyed springlike weather. The peach grove at Peach Blossom Hermitage remained, but the blossoms had long since fallen, leaving only luxuriant green leaves. Thinking back to the day she had come here together with Zhang Xiaohua, when the peach blossoms had been in full, radiant bloom, Nie Qianyu felt a surge of melancholy. As the ancients had said, “Flowers do not remain red for a hundred days.” Even a land of eternal spring like the Spring Rebirth Valley could not keep tender peach blossoms forever upon their branches.

After all, only a peach tree that bears fruit can be called a true peach tree. Peach blossoms are merely one stage along the way!

Deep within the inner Spring Rebirth Valley, inside the alchemy chamber, Zhang Xiaohua was utterly unaware that his journey to the Incense Spreading Sect had nearly caused internal strife throughout the valley. Nor did he know of Nie Qianyu’s aching heart as she gazed upon the beloved peach grove. At this moment, his eyes were fixed intently upon the medicinal liquid within the pill furnace, a faint thread of tension in his heart.

It was now the twelfth day of pill refinement. The medicinal liquid inside the furnace had gradually taken shape; the internal rotation had also begun to slow and stabilize. Using his divine sense, Zhang Xiaohua examined it carefully. Upon the outer layer of the liquid, something resembling a formation was beginning to take form—a formation containing the primordial energies of the Five Elements.

Why say “something like” a formation? Because this construct was unlike any formation Zhang Xiaohua had ever learned before—or rather, it was completely different from the formations he cultivated. Zhang Xiaohua had merely forced the name “formation” upon it. This gradually forming structure harmonized in an orderly manner the heaven-and-earth Yuan Qi contained within the two principal medicinal ingredients and several auxiliary ones, creating a pill that held a universe within itself, where the Five Elements intermingled and fused.

Moreover, this “formation” was slowly undergoing changes unknown even to Zhang Xiaohua’s divine sense, gradually isolating itself from his perception, allowing the pill to become a truly independent, self-contained medicinal pill.

Zhang Xiaohua had practiced pill refinement before—he had even re-refined all the representative pills of the Spring Rebirth Valley using immortal cultivation methods. Yet in all his previous refinements, he had never witnessed such a distinct and vivid process. It was precisely this process that made him feel that only by refining this pill was he truly practicing alchemy. Everything he had previously called pill refinement had been nothing more than a warm-up.

If even a low-grade pill could display such effects, then what kind of scene would unfold when refining mid-grade or high-grade pills?

After imprinting the final hand seal, Zhang Xiaohua began cultivating the Carefree Heart Sutra, yet a faint thread of anticipation still lingered in his heart.

Another night of cultivation arrived. Starlight once again filtered into the Scarlet Flame Pill that was nearing completion. During these dozen-plus days of pill incubation, Zhang Xiaohua had remained before the pill furnace each night, cultivating the Carefree Heart Sutra. Thus, for more than ten consecutive nights, starlight had enveloped the pill without interruption. At first it had been faint and imperceptible, but now, within the pill itself, one could already see specks of starlight—scattered and embedded throughout, like stars strewn across the heavens.

Yet whether this infusion of starlight would prove a blessing or a calamity, none could say.

The gathering of starlight, too, was a matter of accumulation from little to much. Zhang Xiaohua had not noticed it earlier. It was not until the morning of the thirteenth day, when his divine sense casually swept across the medicinal liquid, that he suddenly discovered it.

By the final stage of pill incubation, divine sense could no longer probe freely; the internal changes were largely imperceptible. Yet this starlight was different from all other essences—it was scattered throughout the interior of the pill in an exceedingly strange arrangement.

The moment Zhang Xiaohua saw the starlight, his entire body stiffened. This phenomenon was not mentioned anywhere in the formula for the Moistening Meridian Pill, nor did it appear in the Scarlet Flame Pill’s recipe. Could it be that something had gone awry in his refinement, giving rise to this bizarre anomaly?

He tilted his head and pondered for a long while, carefully recalling every step—from the moment he added the ingredients to the present stage of pill incubation. Every hand seal, every process, he reviewed in detail, yet he could not find a single mistake. Could it be that by transforming the medicinal liquid from a sphere into a flat disc, then from a disc back into a sphere, these specks of starlight had somehow appeared?

Scratching his head, Zhang Xiaohua felt utterly baffled. How could that be possible? He had merely employed the techniques at will. If such hand seals could generate things out of nothing, that would truly be too convenient. Could it be because the Moistening Meridian Pill formula was incomplete, and he had used only the herbs from the Scarlet Flame Pill instead?

As Zhang Xiaohua was deep in thought, his brows suddenly furrowed. At his ear, he faintly heard a trace of string instruments’ music drifting through the air.