Night had already covered the Profound Flower Sect when Yun Che arrived at Su Lian’s pavilion. The spiritual lanterns hanging beneath the eaves cast a soft light over the path, while the wind slowly stirred the leaves of the trees.
He knocked twice before a woman’s voice echoed from inside.
"Come in."
Yun Che opened the door and found Su Lian sitting beside the window. She raised her eyes and, upon recognizing him, remained silent for several seconds.
"Honestly, I thought you wouldn’t come back."
"I said I would."
"I remember. I just didn’t expect you to actually fulfill my requirements. Or did you come here to reconsider?"
Yun Che did not respond to the provocation. He walked to the table, took out a small pouch, and placed it before her.
"Thirty spiritual crystals, correct?"
Su Lian looked at the pouch but did not open it immediately.
"Indeed, thirty spiritual crystals. I’m quite impressed. I suppose I should believe you?"
"That’s what you asked for, wasn’t it?"
Yun Che then took out a small jade bottle and placed it beside the crystals.
"The Veil-Breaking Pill you requested has also been obtained."
This time, Su Lian could not completely hide her surprise.
She picked up the bottle and examined it carefully. The medicinal energy escaping from the container was enough to confirm that it was not a counterfeit.
"It’s really a genuine pill."
"I wouldn’t have come if it wasn’t."
Su Lian placed the bottle back on the table.
"How did a disciple at the Tempered Body Realm obtain a pill of this purity?"
"I won’t reveal my tricks so easily."
"How did a Tempered Body disciple get a pill like this? You’re really not going to tell me, are you, Yun Che?"
Yun Che remained indifferent.
"You don’t need to know. All that matters is that you have what you asked for, and I want what was promised to me."
Su Lian narrowed her eyes.
She clearly disliked his answer, but she also knew she would not be able to force an explanation out of him.
Then she looked at the crystals again.
"Thirty is a little too little for you to enjoy my beautiful body, don’t you think?"
Yun Che remained silent.
"When I made that demand, I didn’t expect you to actually succeed. Now I’ve realized that perhaps I underestimated your ability, and therefore offered you too low a price."
She crossed her arms.
"You should add another ten."
Yun Che looked at her.
"Another ten?"
"I want forty crystals in total."
Silence remained between the two.
Su Lian expected him to argue.
Instead, Yun Che took another small amount of crystals from his pouch and placed them on the table.
"Fine."
Su Lian was slightly surprised. She had not expected him to accept so easily.
"You’re not going to argue?"
"You asked for another ten. I gave them to you. Why should I waste my time arguing with you when my intentions are obvious? I’m not going to bargain over a woman’s body."
Her gaze moved across the crystals. She remained silent for several moments before another idea occurred to her.
"Come to think of it, perhaps I also need some recovery pills. I’ll be exhausted after getting involved with you in dual cultivation."
Yun Che did not respond.
Su Lian continued.
"And spiritual materials. If I’m really going to attempt to break through my bottleneck, I can’t rely on a single pill."
Yun Che slowly raised his eyes.
"Anything else?"
She noticed the change in his tone.
"Perhaps a few higher-quality crystals..."
Yun Che stood up. The movement was calm but decisive. Su Lian was surprised.
"What are you doing?"
"I’m leaving."
She frowned.
"Leaving?"
"Yes."
Yun Che put away the pouch containing his remaining crystals.
"I came here to fulfill exactly what we agreed upon. I gave you the thirty crystals and the pill you requested. Then you demanded another ten, and I gave you those as well."
He pointed toward the resources on the table.
"Now you’re trying to raise the price again. Do you think I’m that desperate for a woman?"
Su Lian fell silent. Yun Che turned toward the door.
"You’re too greedy."
She slightly clenched her fingers.
"Yun Che."
He stopped but did not turn around.
"Don’t think you’re the only woman in this sect. With what I have in my hands, despite my reputation, I believe another cultivator would be more than willing to go to bed with me for a dual cultivation that benefits both of us."
Su Lian froze.
Yun Che continued.
"If you don’t want to honor the agreement, I’ll find someone else."
He finally turned his head.
"I’m not going to keep increasing the price every time you realize how badly I need you."
Su Lian watched him in silence.
It was the first time someone had simply refused her demands.
She had thought that after obtaining the pill and crystals, Yun Che would accept any condition to get what he wanted. After all, her beauty alone had always supported her arrogance. It would not be easy to find another woman with breasts as beautiful as hers.
But she was wrong.
He was genuinely willing to find someone else.
And that meant she could lose an opportunity that might never appear again.
Su Lian looked at the Veil-Breaking Pill. She needed that pill. She needed an opportunity to break through the bottleneck that had restrained her for so long.
If Yun Che left, she might never find another partner capable of giving her a similar opportunity.
"Wait."
Yun Che remained beside the door. Su Lian slowly breathed in.
"Thirty spiritual crystals."
He did not answer.
"And the Veil-Breaking Pill."
Yun Che turned around.
"That was the agreement."
"Yes."
She held the small jade bottle tightly between her breasts.
"I accept."
Yun Che observed her for several seconds.
"No new demands, right?"
Su Lian gave him an irritated look.
"Don’t push your luck."
A small smile appeared on Yun Che’s face.
"Then we have a deal."
Su Lian took the thirty crystals and the pill. However, before he left, she added,
"Don’t mistake this for submission, or think that my body is for sale."
"I don’t."
"I’m accepting because I also need this opportunity to enter the sect’s secret realm."
"I know."
She was surprised.
"You know?"
"If you didn’t need to break through your bottleneck, you wouldn’t have changed your mind."
Su Lian stared at him.
Yun Che opened the door.
"Prepare yourself properly for our dual cultivation tomorrow. I wonder what you’ll taste like."
He left.
The door closed.
Su Lian remained alone in the room, staring at the Veil-Breaking Pill. She realized that the young man everyone called useless had changed.
It wasn’t only the way he spoke. It was the way he thought.
And although she did not want to admit it, that change was beginning to arouse her curiosity.
Outside, Yun Che walked through the sect’s silent corridors.
The interface appeared before his eyes.
[Dual Cultivation Partner Confirmed: Su Lian.]
[Material Conditions: Fulfilled.]
[Crystals Delivered: 30.]
[Veil-Breaking Pill: Delivered.]
[Main Quest Time Remaining: 4 Days.]
Yun Che closed the interface.
"Finally."
Now he no longer needed to search for another person, but the real challenge was only about to begin.