The Arrogant Immortal
Chapter 91: Dad, Can We Not Pretend?

Chapter 91: Chapter 91: Dad, Can We Not Pretend?

Elder Chaoyan didn’t stay long; before leaving, he told her that the record of the Secret Realm Token had been erased, so there was no need to worry that someone might uncover anything. If anyone came to ask about the Nine Apertures Heart-Penetrating Lotus, she should remember not to admit to anything, and to just report his name, directing those people to him.

He also left behind a stack of Sound Transmission Talismans.

He instructed her to send him a message if she encountered any danger.

Xie Jiuniang looked at the Sound Transmission Talisman in her hand, feeling an indescribable complexity in her heart.

Was he just going to walk away like this?

Is he not going to inquire about what she did in the Secret Realm?

Not going to ask about the Nine Apertures Heart-Penetrating Lotus?

Without asking anything else, he only exhorted her to achieve Foundation Establishment early so that she could become his disciple...

That Elder Chaoyan wanted to take her as his disciple was something Xie Jiuniang hadn’t expected, but today’s events had shown his exceptional character.

In the cultivation world, who doesn’t have secrets?

Yet he understood the importance of respecting others’ secrets, even if the other party was a weaker person.

It wasn’t about control, but respect.

In the cultivation world, where the strong are venerated and elders are teachers, it was almost taken for granted that the powerful and elder figures would ask the younger generation about personal matters. If the younger ones hid anything, they were seen as wrong. Though no one would say it aloud, their actions all demonstrated one principle: the weak have no right to talk about respect or privacy.

Fear the strong, honor the elder, this has been the way for thousands of years.

Therefore, Elder Chaoyan’s actions today were especially commendable.

Xie Jiuniang thought to herself.

If he truly wanted to take her as his disciple, she would probably be willing. Having such a master seemed like a good thing, didn’t it?

She was acutely aware of her situation and couldn’t afford to make even a slight mistake.

Not all masters in the world would consider their disciple’s well-being. If she unfortunately encountered a master with ulterior motives, her situation would become even more precarious.

Upon returning to her small courtyard, Xie Jiuniang didn’t come out of seclusion right away.

She reverted to her own appearance, letting her bangs grow a bit longer, and downplayed her looks somewhat.

This made her seem younger and more naive.

It was better this way to lower the guard of others.

Xie Jiuniang needed to seclude herself for several days to sort through the harvest from the Secret Realm, and to store the important and not to be revealed items in an empty Storage Bag, keeping them close to her body.

Finally, she sat cross-legged on the cushion, closed her eyes, and concentrated, introspecting her own body.

The Nine Apertures Heart-Penetrating Lotus gained from the last time had brought her great benefits, aiding her future cultivation immensely. In addition to the strengthening of her body due to her use of spiritual energy for body tempering, her Dantian was in excellent condition.

She then observed her silver Sea of Consciousness.

Every time she saw the Time Leaf floating leisurely above, she had the illusion that this Sea of Consciousness had an owner, and that owner wasn’t her.

Damn!

However, the Time Leaf had changed.

It had grown more than twice as large as before, and its color had shifted from lush green to light green, with the veins resembling white frost.

After a close study for a while.

Apart from the color of the Sea of Consciousness being different from her previous life, almost everything else was the same, so Xie Jiuniang stopped pondering over it and began to cultivate in earnest.

The Spirit Gathering Array had been active for a year, so the spiritual energy in the small courtyard was quite abundant.

By the time she finished cultivating, three days had gone by.

Next, she had to secretly deal with the large amount of resources she possessed.

After leaving seclusion, she avoided the people of Shihao Mountain.

Xie Jiuniang donned a cloak, covering her small head entirely, and sneaked away to the mid-mountain slope. She didn’t see the familiar Little Immortal Crane.

With a Spirit-Gathering Pill, she lured a crane. Flying on a sword was impossible, as the cultivation level she showed to the outside world was still Qi Cultivation level eight.

She went to the mountain gate and registered to leave the Sect.

Rode on Immortal Cranes to the Sect Market.

When returned to our street back home, saw the door of our little shop open, with two customers just coming out.

Xie Jiuniang walked up to the shop’s entrance and peered inside.

Xie Shen, who was sitting behind the counter, suddenly looked up and met his daughter’s gaze, joy instantly brimming on his honest face.

"My girl, you’re back!"

"Father!"

Xie Jiuniang’s eyes shone with stars as she gleefully dashed over to Xie Shen, took his arm, and glanced through the gap in the bamboo curtain to the inner hall, "And mother?"

"She’s inside learning alchemy."

Xie Shen pointed towards the location of the Earthfire Room.

Xie Jiuniang gestured towards the entrance; Xie Shen understood, hung up a ’Resting’ sign, and closed the big door. Their business had never been that great, so they weren’t worried about the impact of closing for a bit.

Father and daughter headed to the backyard.

Sitting in the elegant pavilion of the small garden, Xie Shen prepared some Spirit Fruits and Spiritual Tea for his daughter, all things Xie Jiuniang loved.

While waiting for Mo Lan to come out, the father and daughter chatted.

Xie Shen spoke of the year’s business at the fangshi, unremarkable but reassuringly stable. He used the Spirit Stones given by Xie Jiuniang to purchase a high-tier Spirit Plant at half price from Rongsheng Trading Company, sold it for a profit of over a million, and then gradually bought some cultivation resources for Xie Jiuniang.

He took out a Storage Bag and handed it to his daughter.

Xie Jiuniang received it and swept it with her divine sense.

Inside were resources suitable for the later stages of Qi Cultivation, with Spiritual Liquid being the most abundant, amounting to fifty bottles. Seeing this, she felt some things would be better off explained to her parents.

"Father, I have something to show you."

Xie Jiuniang walked to an open space outside the pavilion, measured the size with her hands, then, with a wave of her hand, brought out the Great Tortoise Shell.

Xie Shen stood up in surprise, walking around the tortoise shell, "This is a great treasure, my girl."

"Father, check inside with your Divine Sense."

Xie Jiuniang suggested, and following her guidance, Xie Shen quickly grasped his daughter’s intention. He went into the tortoise shell to inspect.

Xie Jiuniang followed him in, but when Xie Shen turned his head, he jumped in shock.

"My, my girl?"

Xie Shen was astonished by his daughter’s cultivation base, "You’ve reached Foundation Establishment?"

"Yes, I’ve established my foundation unintentionally," Xie Jiuniang said with a wry face, "Father, what should I do if I keep looking this young from now on?"

"Ha, hahaha."

Xie Shen needed that reminder.

The thought of his daughter looking like a young girl until she reaches Infant Formation caused him to try holding back his laughter, but ultimately, he failed.

He was delighted, Foundation Establishment was great!

After walking around his daughter for a good while and knowing her foundations were solid, he felt even more relieved.

When his daughter took out thirteen Storage Rings and three large-capacity Storage Bags, Xie Shen’s face didn’t show joy, but instead, he became serious.

"So, ’a year of secluded cultivation’ was a lie, and ’going out to rob people’ was the truth?" Xie Shen didn’t touch the items.

Xie Jiuniang knew she couldn’t keep it a secret any more and roughly recounted her experiences of the year to him, "I traded a Water-Repelling Pearl with my elder sister for a spot in the Secret Realm, afraid that you and mother would worry, I didn’t dare mention it..."

The more Xie Shen listened, the more serious his face grew.

"Father, you have no idea, the Tianshui Secret Realm is filled with water everywhere. No wonder elder sister was willing to trade a spot for my Water-Repelling Pearl; without it, it would have been quite difficult to move an inch inside," Xie Jiuniang said while gauging her father’s expression.

Her heart was in turmoil, worried that her father would be angry.

Seeing his daughter treading so carefully, Xie Shen felt a softness in his heart and with a bittersweet tone of a father, "My girl has grown up, even learning to keep secrets."

Xie Jiuniang felt a blockage in her heart.

Father, can you not be so dramatic?