Song Liuhua ultimately decided to spend the night at her own home first, planning to pack her belongings and move to Feng Ci’s residence the next day.
Xie Residence
Xie Liu Shi had gone to the Song family to break off the engagement today and returned utterly infuriated. Just after finishing dinner, she slammed the bowls and chopsticks onto the table with a sour expression and called Xie Huai Sheng into the inner room.
“That little wretch actually wants to take back the Spirit Sword that Song Yuan gave you.”
Hearing his mother’s vulgar words, Xie Huai Sheng frowned uncomfortably. “Mother, Liu Hua is a good girl. Our Xie family has already wronged her; you shouldn’t speak of her like that.”
“I will personally return the sword to her tomorrow.”
Although reluctant, he still valued his dignity.
“Pah! What good girl? You didn’t see how arrogant she was today. It turns out she was just putting on an act in front of us all along.”
Xie Huai Sheng felt conflicted. He wasn’t completely without feelings for Song Liuhua, but he could never marry a useless invalid who served no purpose.
Moreover, with Song Yuan now disabled, there was even less room for reconciliation in this marriage arrangement.
Having been engaged to Song Liuhua for over a decade, he genuinely cared for her. The current conflict between their families pained him deeply whenever he thought about it.
Xie Liu Shi understood her son’s feelings perfectly—she shared his distress. Her eyes shifting cunningly, she proposed an idea: “That little… Song Liuhua has been rejected by you now and will likely struggle to find another match. Just wait a couple of months. When she’s nearly eighteen and still unmarried with no prospects, you can take her as a concubine.”
“After that, merely providing her with basic sustenance would be a tremendous mercy.”
Then she’d see if that little wretch would still dare act so insolently in her presence.
Xie Huai Sheng’s eyes lit up. If she couldn’t be his wife, taking her as a concubine would involve far fewer complications. “As you suggest, Mother. I’ll trouble you to handle it when the time comes.”
Xie Liu Shi thumped her chest in assurance. “Don’t worry, I’ll make sure it’s done properly.”
Early Morning
Song Liuhua suddenly remembered the bucket of unidentified green liquid she had refined yesterday, still sitting in the side hall.
Since she had worked hard to produce it, taking a look would provide some closure.
Entering the side hall and opening the door, she was greeted by a nauseating stench that made her gag. Pulling out a handkerchief to cover her nose and mouth, she headed straight for the wooden bucket in the corner.
The closer she got, the more overpowering the revolting odor became, penetrating even through the handkerchief. It seemed even worse than yesterday.
After a moment’s hesitation, Song Liuhua leaned in for a closer look.
“Oh—”
She blinked her sparkling eyes in surprise.
The liquid in the bucket had become noticeably clearer overnight.
The previously dark green, disgusting fluid had lightened to a pale green hue, appearing somewhat less repulsive than when first produced.
If not for the smell, it almost tempted one to take a sip.
Song Liuhua shook her head at the absurd thought. “Must be because I haven’t eaten breakfast yet.”
She’d rather eat pig slop than drink this stuff.
Swallowing hard, she took a deliberate sniff. “Yue~”
It really hit hard.
“Maybe… just a tiny taste? No one would see anyway.” As Song Liuhua wrestled with the idea, Song Yuan’s loud voice carried from the courtyard.
“Brother-in-law, you’re here.”
In the Courtyard
Song Yuan grinned widely at the sight of Feng Ci.
“Little sister’s in the side hall. I’ll take you there.” Without waiting for Feng Ci’s response, he led him toward the side hall.
Song Liuhua crouched in front of a wooden bucket, ears perked up listening to the conversation outside when the door burst open with a bang.
Turning her head, she saw Song Yuan and Feng Ci entering one after the other.
Spotting her crouching before a wooden bucket, Song Yuan curiously approached. “Little sister, your husband’s here to pick you up. What are you doing?” After taking just a few steps closer, he covered his nose, his thick eyebrows furrowing into a knot.
“What is this? It smells awful!”
Feng Ci, who had followed behind Song Yuan, detected an indescribable odor the moment the door opened.
Strangely, as the scent entered his nostrils, his injured Spirit Abode felt a faint warmth, bringing unexpected comfort.
It was common knowledge that when a Spirit Abode was damaged, cultivation would decline—a survival mechanism for Martial Spirit Masters. Though extremely subtle, his keen perception allowed him to detect this slight difference.
His gaze shifted toward the source of the smell.
It was emanating from a wooden bucket in front of his newlywed wife.
Song Yuan finally identified the source of the foul odor—a bucket of green water. Crouching beside Song Liuhua and pinching his nose, he asked, “Little sister, what is this stuff? It’s disgusting.”
Song Liuhua blinked innocently. “It’s a potion I brewed.”
“You? Elixir Crafting?!”
Song Yuan jumped to his feet, eyes wide with disbelief.
“You awakened?!”
Song Liuhua: “Yeah? Didn’t I tell you?”
Song Yuan: “…”
“What do you think?”
Song Liuhua scratched her head sheepishly. “I forgot…”
“I tested as having low-grade aptitude. I spent all day yesterday brewing this, but aside from its nauseating smell, it seems useless.”
After one last reluctant glance, she sighed. “I’ll pour it out now. This stuff has been sitting overnight and stunk up the whole room.”
Song Yuan understood—his sister was fortunate just to have awakened. How could they expect her to produce anything remarkable?
Moreover, with low-grade aptitude, her talents would only be somewhat useful for finding Spirit Plants or digging wild vegetables. True Elixir Crafting or Artifact Crafting required at least medium-grade aptitude.
Patting Song Liuhua’s head comfortingly, Song Yuan said, “Don’t worry, Elixir Crafting is difficult—many people can’t manage it.” He then picked up the bucket to dispose of its contents.
“Wait.”
Feng Ci quickly stepped forward, his slender index finger dipping into the green liquid.
The jade-like finger now coated with a thin layer of green liquid emitted the foul odor.
With a slightly solemn expression, Feng Ci gently brought his finger to his mouth. An astringent flavor instantly spread across his taste buds, followed by a gentle flow of power entering his Spirit Abode.
The nearly invisible cracks in his Spirit Abode began slowly healing.
Typically, after a Spirit Abode injury, one could only seek out special Exotic Beasts or Spirit Power with extremely gentle properties for recovery. However, such beasts or Spirit Plants were not only exceedingly rare but also high-grade and difficult to obtain.
Even if found, they were challenging to capture.
Thus, once a Spirit Abode was injured, most practitioners’ cultivation paths were effectively severed. Thereafter, they had to use Spirit Power with extreme caution—overexertion could cause complete rupture of the Spirit Abode, leading to spiritual power backlash and death.
Throughout the thousand-year history of the Ten Winds Continent, no one had ever successfully concocted medicine capable of repairing a Spirit Abode.
The red Lingzhi had been something he and his clansmen stumbled upon by chance during their last trip to West River Ridge. They had expended considerable effort clearing the territory of fourth-grade Crimson Spirit Beasts before managing to harvest several dozen pounds of the red Lingzhi.
After taking this medicine, although the speed of repairing the Spirit Abode was extremely slow, it was indeed visible to the naked eye.
Its effect was hundreds of times better than the second-grade red Lingzhi given to Song Yuan yesterday. While that second-grade red Lingzhi did have the function of repairing the Spirit Abode, it required long-term consumption to produce a subtle effect.
Yet this green potion, with just one drop, had such an effect—truly unbelievable.
Feng Ci’s pupils trembled in shock. “This medicine…”
After his astonishment, he met two pairs of wide-eyed stares.
“You actually dared to drink it!!”
Song Liuhua admired him for being a real man!
She quickly took a step back.
Secretly pondering whether this husband was still worth keeping.
If it really came to it, she might as well divorce him.
Song Yuan also shifted his big feet with evident distaste. “Brother-in-law, why on earth did you drink this stuff? Don’t tell me you’ll be poisoned to death?”
“My sister just randomly concocted this thing. It’s even smellier than piss. Even if it’s mixed with high-grade Spirit Fruits, not even a dog would drink it. You…”
Feng Ci looked at the siblings who seemed eager to stay a hundred miles away from him and couldn’t help but rub his forehead in exasperation.