After Breaking Off the Engagement, I Started Pursuing My Master - Chapter 237

Chapter 237: Gentle

The white clouds outside the window drifted lazily.

The morning light streamed through the window lattice, and Jiang Huai opened his eyes, sitting up.

Luo Yueguan was lying beside him, half of her porcelain body covered by the bedding, the other half bathed in sunlight from the window, as if dusted with a layer of gold. Still slightly dazed from the aftereffects of the night, it took him a moment to recall what the two of them had done.

They had embraced and kissed for a while last night, but in the end, both he and Luo Yueguan had been restrained, not mentioning a word related to passion or desire. When Luo Yueguan grew tired from kissing, she curled up in his arms, occasionally moving close to his lips to lick them with her tongue, like a kitten drinking water.

Luo Yueguan slowly opened her eyes, and Jiang Huai reached out to shield her from the bright light.

She took a moment to adjust before sitting up, the bedding slipping from her shoulder. Her clothing, disheveled from her restless sleep, was scattered. Jiang Huai suddenly remembered something and said, “Last night, besides tossing and turning, you also hogged the blanket.”

“So what if I did?”

Luo Yueguan huffed, picking out a set of gorgeous and intricate clothes. She looked up at Jiang Huai, “Help me get dressed.”

Fortunately, Jiang Huai had experience dressing Luo Qingyu and Wen Wanwan in such elaborate garments. He carefully helped Luo Yueguan into each piece, inevitably touching her soft skin. Yet Luo Yueguan’s eyes remained fixed on Jiang Huai Jr. as if expecting something, but Jiang Huai did nothing more than touch her skin with his fingertips.

Her dress, a mix of white and pale purple, added an ethereal quality, reducing her usual seductive charm. But Luo Yueguan was born with fox-like eyes, always hinting at something unsaid. Jiang Huai finished dressing her, and Luo Yueguan pointed to a pair of silver high heels by the cabinet. Jiang Huai knelt down, carefully holding her ankle as she lifted her leg.

She tried to catch a glimpse of desire in Jiang Huai’s eyes but found none, leading to an inexplicable sense of loss and frustration.

Unfortunately, Jiang Huai did not notice.

Luo Yueguan sat in front of the dressing table, and Jiang Huai picked up a sandalwood comb to brush her hair. After arranging her hair, he picked up a hairpin and flower to weave into her hairdo.

Everyone has two faces: one shown when alone or with very close friends and the other in front of strangers. The Luo Yueguan seen by outsiders always had this languid and composed appearance, at a glance giving off a sense of cold detachment.

“All done.”

Jiang Huai was pleased with Luo Yueguan’s reflection in the mirror. She inspected herself from different angles before standing up.

…

Ziyun City was home to the grand Ziyun Pavilion.

This city belonged to cultivators. From the spirit boat, Jiang Huai could see the bustling scene below. Besides Ziyun Pavilion, many casual cultivators took advantage of the pavilion’s territory to sell spiritual treasures, or to find like-minded companions to explore secret realms in search of opportunities, or even to find a partner. Some cultivators resided here permanently, but the land was said to be incredibly expensive, not something just anyone could afford.

Jiang Huai and Luo Yueguan disembarked from the spirit boat and approached the ninety-nine-story pavilion. Before entering the city gates, they each showed their jade tokens representing their identities. Inside, a vibrant and lively atmosphere greeted them.

Luo Yueguan’s appearance drew many glances from cultivators. Her beauty was well-known in the Eastern Region, and now seeing her in person, many realized that the portraits they had seen did not capture even a third of her beauty.

Jiang Huai stood close to Luo Yueguan, not too far nor too close, slightly behind her, giving the impression of a senior with a junior. He stealthily glanced at Luo Yueguan’s profile; her eyes were languid and composed, showing none of the coquettish behavior from before.

Thinking that he was the only one who had seen Luo Yueguan’s private displays of affection, Jiang Huai felt a sudden inexplicable thrill. When he became aware of this emotion, he suppressed it fiercely.

They walked through a long street and soon arrived at the base of the grand Ziyun Pavilion, the tallest building in the city, its top reaching the clouds. As they approached, Jiang Huai noticed even the paving stones were made of purple jade, and he couldn’t help but marvel at the grandeur of the Ziyun Pavilion’s founder from a thousand years ago.

The identity of the Ziyun Pavilion’s master was especially mysterious; known only as a woman who always wore a veil. A thousand years ago, her cultivation had already reached the eighth realm, but she had not been seen since then. For a thousand years, there had been no news of her, and all affairs of the Ziyun Pavilion were handled by the elders.

As the most mysterious power, to this day, no one knew whether the Ziyun Pavilion’s master still resided within the pavilion.

Jiang Huai’s trip was to sell his pill refining techniques. If he had come alone, it would have been somewhat troublesome to meet someone influential at Ziyun Pavilion. However, because Luo Yueguan accompanied him, they were greeted by a servant in a purple dress shortly after they entered and began to browse.

“Sect master Luo, what would you like to purchase this time? My name is Yuzhu. Whatever you wish for, just let me know, and I will lead you to make your selection,” said the purple-dressed servant girl, standing beside Luo Yueguan with a gentle and respectful tone.

It was at this moment that Jiang Huai spoke up, “I would like to offer Ziyun Pavilion a pill refining technique that ensures perfect quality for all pills below the heavenly-grade.”

Jiang Huai lowered his voice, and the servant named Yuzhu, initially startled, looked up and softly replied, “This matter is not for me to decide. Please wait while I send a message to the elder in charge of pill refining to make a decision.”

“Alright.”

“Esteemed guests, please follow me to the elegant room on the sixty-sixth floor to wait. I will call for the pill refining elder immediately.”

…

Inside the elegant room on the sixty-sixth floor of Ziyun Pavilion, the room was brightly lit. Jiang Huai and Luo Yueguan sat on chairs, with Yuzhu quietly making tea. Opposite Jiang Huai sat an old man with white hair and beard.

Jiang Huai took out a pill formation diagram he had prepared earlier and softly said, “This is the formation diagram for refining the Clear Heart Pill. Just by placing the medicinal ingredients inside, one can refine a perfect quality Clear Heart Pill.”

The pill refining elder took the diagram from Jiang Huai’s hand, his eyes revealing a hint of skepticism, but instead of speaking, he directly took out the ingredients for the Clear Heart Pill and placed them inside. Without even needing to add spiritual fire, the pill formation diagram began to burn, extract, and merge, and a Clear Heart Pill appeared on the round table in an instant.

“Indeed, it’s an interesting method. Do you wish to sell this perfect quality Clear Heart Pill refining method to Ziyun Pavilion?”

“If it’s just this one, what price can Ziyun Pavilion offer?”

“This will require serious discussion with the other pill refining elders, but I estimate we can offer you between eighty thousand to one hundred thousand spirit stones.”

The pill refining elder took a sip of tea and spoke unhurriedly, “Ziyun Pavilion itself possesses the most superior pill refining techniques in the Eastern Region, with a sixty percent chance of producing perfect quality Clear Heart Pills. Therefore, we can only offer this price. You implied earlier that you possess other perfect pill refining methods?”

“Yes.”

“Which others? Such interesting items interest us at Ziyun Pavilion, and only we in the entire Eastern Region can afford the price you ask.” The pill refining elder seemed particularly confident, smiling at Jiang Huai.

“There are a total of two hundred and thirty-seven commonly used pills below the heavenly-grade.” Jiang Huai suddenly spoke.

The pill refining elder across from him was taken aback.

“I have the refining methods for all two hundred and thirty-seven pills, but I need you to give me a satisfactory price.”

Upon his declaration, the tea room fell into an eerie silence. The previously smiling elder’s expression froze, and it took him several breaths to regain his composure. He asked again, half in disbelief, “All?”

“All.”

After another pause, the elder chuckled wryly, “Ziyun Pavilion indeed can afford the price, but we will need to discuss whether it’s necessary to purchase. If possible… please give us a few hours. I need to gather the other elders responsible for pill sales, as well as a purple-robed elder, to discuss this matter.”

“Fine, there’s no rush.”

“You may stay in Ziyun City for now. You can take this card, and once we have finished our discussion, we will invite you back to the tea room.”

“Thank you.”

Jiang Huai accepted the card, surprised by the respectful address used by the pill refining elder. After a moment’s thought, he took out several dozen one-time use pill formation diagrams and placed them on the table, “You can take these to study while you discuss.”

“Aren’t you worried that we might decipher these pill formation diagrams, and then your method might not be worth much?”

Jiang Huai scratched his head, “No disrespect intended, but I have a strange intuition… Deciphering these pill formations might not be as easy as you think.”

“Then we thank you for your kindness.”

The pill refining elder collected the diagrams and stood up to contact the other elders, while Jiang Huai and Luo Yueguan left the tea room together, strolling around.

Apart from being a business association, Ziyun Pavilion also served as a bank. Most of Luo Yueguan’s savings were stored at Ziyun Pavilion, and the blue card she held was a high-level membership card with a total of four million spirit stones. She also enjoyed a thirty percent discount on most purchases from Ziyun Pavilion.

On the other hand, Jiang Huai’s own card had just over ten thousand spirit stones. With nothing particular he wanted to buy, he simply accompanied Luo Yueguan in shopping for dresses. Watching Luo Yueguan spend several hundred spirit stones on a single dress, Jiang Huai felt an inexplicable sense of pain. With those several hundred spirit stones, he could make a dozen dresses himself. Luo Yueguan also dragged him along, buying several outfits for him, and Jiang Huai felt like he was being dragged around by an elder to buy clothes during the New Year, reluctantly going along while Luo Yueguan happily forced him to try them on.

At that moment, Luo Yueguan stood in front of him, tenderly fixing his collar.