"Su Xuan, rest assured," Qi Li said to him softly as he accompanied her back to the sect. "I will make sure you get the 10,000 Moon Profound Stones. They are rightfully yours. When will you go to the Nine Ding Sect to find Xie Cheng?"

She wasn't focused on the Moon Profound Stones. She was focused on when he would be leaving.

"Tomorrow, I suppose." Gazing at the fish-belly white of the eastern dawn, Su Xuan said, "I'll stay at the Floating Cloud Sect for one more day. After all, your father and the others aren't at their peak. If someone comes looking for trouble, I can lend a hand."

"Mm." Qi Li nodded with gratitude.

Having absorbed a great number of strange butterflies in the tomb, Su Xuan's cultivation had already entered the Heaven Severing Realm. His presence guarding the Floating Cloud Sect was incredibly reassuring. She couldn't help but think that many of the Moon Profound Stones had lost their power because they were absorbed by those butterflies.

RUMBLE...

Suddenly, a deep, soul-shaking roar echoed from the far distance.

Both Su Xuan and Qi Li instinctively looked toward the sound, but they saw nothing.

"Su Xuan, if you go to the Nine Ding Sect... I might not be able to go with you," Qi Li said in a low voice, clenching her small hands. "You must be careful out there on your own. The mountains are full of not only evil people but also all kinds of ferocious beasts. You must take good care of yourself."

"I'll be fine," Su Xuan smiled, but that terrifying sound weighed on his mind.

The system rewarded me with a mount, but I haven't seen it since leaving the tomb. Could that roar have come from my mount? A mount that can make a sound that terrifying is certainly impressive... but is it discreet?

"Su Xuan, you should keep that sachet!" Unaware of his thoughts, Qi Li considered for a moment before continuing, "I don't usually wear sachets, and besides, that one belonged to another woman. If you want to give me a sachet, then give me a new one... okay?"

By the end of her sentence, her voice had become a mere whisper. She had never imagined she would one day ask a man for a gift.

"Of course," Su Xuan said, pulling his gaze back from the distance. "Once I get the medicinal pills I need, I'll give you the most beautiful sachet to express my gratitude. Without you, I'd just be a headless fly wandering the world of the mountains."

"Don't say thank you!" Qi Li said, lowering her head.

The two chatted as they walked, soon arriving back at the sect. Qi Li personally escorted Su Xuan to the guest quarters before returning to her own residence.

"Is that you?"

Standing at the window of his quarters, Su Xuan gazed into the distance. His new residence was a quiet, secluded courtyard, one of the most prestigious in the Floating Cloud Sect, usually reserved for visiting sect leaders.

A low growl echoed again from the distance, as if in answer to his question.

But Su Xuan wasn't as thrilled as when he received the Koenigsegg.

Riding a golden-scaled crocodile... isn't that a bit weird? A crocodile is... well, it's a crocodile.

Su Xuan yawned and returned to his bed. He didn't sleep, however. Instead, he took out the sachet and began muttering to himself as he counted its contents.

"One."

"Two."

"Three..."

「At noon,」

KNOCK, KNOCK, KNOCK!

A sudden knock came at Su Xuan's door. He opened it to see Qi Qingshan.

"Sect Leader Qi, shouldn't you be resting?" Su Xuan asked.

"No need for rest. I took a couple of elixirs and my energy is back," Qi Qingshan said, not in the least bit lethargic. In fact, he was brimming with vigor. "Did you sleep well?"

"Pretty well," Su Xuan answered.

"Then come with me. Let's go divide the loot!"

Smiling, Qi Qingshan led Su Xuan back to the secret room from before. Just before they entered, he reminded him, "From now on, don't call me Sect Leader or 'Brother Qi' or anything like that. Call me Uncle. Got it?"

Inside the secret room, only Yan Peng was present.

"Ahem!" After they sat down, Qi Qingshan cleared his throat. "We've finished inventorying everything from the tomb. Now it's time to divide it up."

Yan Peng nodded.

Su Xuan sat quietly, saying nothing.

"Su Xuan," Qi Qingshan's gaze fell upon him. "Li'er told me a little while ago that you plan to visit Grand Alchemist Xie Cheng of the Nine Ding Sect tomorrow and that you need 10,000 Moon Profound Stones, correct? Rest assured, we will give you 10,000 Moon Profound Stones!"

"Indeed," Yan Peng added. "Your contribution this time was immense. It would be unthinkable not to give you a share, even though we only found 30,000 Moon Profound Stones in total."

"Su Xuan, are you satisfied?" Qi Qingshan asked, watching him.

He was sure Su Xuan would be overjoyed. At the very least, his expression should show a hint of pleasant surprise. But to his astonishment, Su Xuan's face remained placid as he simply said, "Thank you."

Su Xuan didn't refuse, even though he already possessed countless Moon Profound Stones. It's just my considerate nature. If I refused, wouldn't that be a slap in the face to Sect Leaders Qi and Yan?

Qi Qingshan and Yan Peng exchanged a glance, assuming Su Xuan's placid reaction was because he didn't understand the value of 10,000 Moon Profound Stones, treating it like any ordinary gift.

"Su Xuan, Xie Cheng is the Third Elder of the Nine Ding Sect. Only people of status and reputation are qualified to request pills directly from him," Yan Peng explained after a moment's thought. "An ordinary person could never come up with 10,000 Moon Profound Stones. Even for Brother Qi and me, it would take a long time to gather that many at once. We're a small sect, after all. For you to take 10,000 Moon Profound Stones..."

"Right, right!" Fearing Yan Peng might say something unpleasant, Qi Qingshan cut in, speaking to Su Xuan. "Once you have the 10,000 Moon Profound Stones, you must guard them well. Don't let anyone trick you out of them. When you set off tomorrow, we'll exchange the stones for Moon Tickets. These 10,000 Moon Tickets are equivalent to 10,000 Moon Profound Stones, and they are accepted by all the major banks."

"Thank you for the trouble," Su Xuan nodded. Moon Tickets were even better; it saved him the effort of lugging 10,000 heavy stones to find Xie Cheng.

Seeing Su Xuan's expression remain perfectly calm, Qi Qingshan's mouth twitched. He leaned over and whispered to Yan Peng, "You have to understand, Su Xuan is a magnate back in the world below. The mansion he lives in is absurdly expensive, easily worth hundreds of thousands of Moon Profound Stones, hehehe..."

"Father!"

Just then, Qi Li burst into the secret room. Her expression was grave, laced with a hint of panic. After nodding in greeting to Su Xuan and Yan Peng, she said abruptly, "Someone from Flying Wolf Villa is here!"

"What?!" Qi Qingshan was startled. "What are they doing here? Don't tell me they failed to ambush us and have now come to rob us in broad daylight!"

He and Yan Peng had nearly fought a sect-annihilating battle, all thanks to Flying Wolf Villa, who had set their sights on the tomb, mistaking it for a spirit stone mine.

"Damn it!" Yan Peng couldn't help but clench his fists. "They couldn't have picked a worse time!"

He himself was fine, his body unharmed. But Qi Qingshan hadn't fully recovered. A fight right now would be disastrous.

Su Xuan, however, seemed to have expected their arrival. He stood up and said simply, "Then let's go have a look."

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