Never could he have imagined that this pill, purchased at the Wanxing Auction House for two thousand spirit stones, was actually a fake. It left him feeling thoroughly played.
Meanwhile, Meng Yao blinked her large eyes, staring at Fang Chen in absolute disbelief!
She knew all about the Wanxing Auction House; they always verified the authenticity of items before putting them up for auction, and if they couldn't tell, they would honestly state so.
This Heaven-Enlightening Pill must have been authenticated, yet a fake that even the Wanxing Auction House was fooled by had been seen right through by Fang Chen at a single glance!
Such appraisal skills were truly extraordinary!
The commotion here had already drawn a considerable crowd, especially after Yu Yuanwen proudly proclaimed his background, causing the gazes turned toward him to be filled with awe and reverence.
Yet when Fang Chen exposed it as a fake pill—and specifically used the word "idiot"—quite a few people burst out laughing on the spot.
"Good heavens! Who is savage enough to say that?"
"Paying two thousand spirit stones for a fake pill? I'm dying of laughter."
"Could this Young Master Yu be a complete sucker?"
At this moment, veins bulged on Yu Yuanwen's forehead. Especially when he saw the surrounding gazes looking at him as if he were some kind of clown, he wished he could find a crack in the ground to crawl into.
He glared viciously at Fang Chen. It was all because of this person right here that he had suffered such humiliation!
"What? Idiot? Still want to throw punches?" Fang Chen asked, his expression calm as he gazed at him indifferently.
Meng Yao stepped forward, her voice icy as she addressed Yu Yuanwen: "Well, Yu Yuanwen? Are you trying to lay a hand on my fiancé? If you dare touch him, then I will fight you to the bitter death!"
"Meng Shimei has misunderstood. I have no such intentions whatsoever."
Yu Yuanwen hurriedly shook his head.
The Duanmu Family was powerful in the Shendong Domain, but the Meng Family in the Shendong Domain was practically the heavens themselves—not someone their Duanmu Family could afford to provoke at will.
He could only shoot a ferocious glare at Fang Chen before turning to his lackey and snapping, "Let's go!"
Just as he was about to leave, however, he sent a voice transmission to Fang Chen: " brat, I won't let today go easily. Just you wait! Even with Meng Yao protecting you, I have countless ways to finish you off!"
After dropping this harsh threat, he strode away.
"Did he send you a voice transmission?"
Meng Yao asked.
Fang Chen smiled faintly and replied, "Yes, but it's nothing. I can handle it myself."
He wasn't going to hide behind Meng Yao forever; if he had to trouble her with such trivial matters, what kind of man would he even be?
Hearing this, Meng Yao beamed and said, "Mm-hmm, I believe you can definitely do it. Although your realm is a bit weak right now, I trust that with your talent, you'll grow rapidly."
She stepped closer to Fang Chen, her cherry lips nearly brushing against his ear as she breathed softly, "I saw it, you know. Your sword Dao Pattern."
When Meng Yao drew near, Fang Chen felt his heart leap into his throat.
And upon hearing those words, he was instantly startled.
Meng Yao gracefully stepped back with an alluring, captivating smile.
"Rest assured, I won't tell a soul. This is a secret that belongs just between the two of us." She fluttered her eyelashes with a charming wink.
Fang Chen gave Meng Yao a deep look and nodded heavily.
Meng Yao continued, "So you must work hard to grow stronger, and then come marry me!"
Holding Meng Yao's hand, Fang Chen nodded firmly: "I won't let you down."
Although Yu Yuanwen had already left, the two of them were still holding hands without letting go.
Both of them were well aware of it, yet both pretended not to notice.
"Meng Yao!"
At that very moment, a familiar voice rang out.
Lin Xueyan had arrived.
When Lin Xueyan saw Fang Chen holding Meng Yao's hand, a surge of anger flared up in her chest!
She marched right up to Meng Yao and pulled her away.
"Xueyan, what's wrong?" Meng Yao asked, bewildered.
Lin Xueyan said, "I have something to tell you."
Seeing that Lin Xueyan had arrived, Fang Chen said to Meng Yao, "Meng Yao, since Senior Sister Lin is here, I'll take my leave."
"Alright then." Seeing how hostile Lin Xueyan was toward Fang Chen, Meng Yao could only nod helplessly.
With that, Fang Chen took his leave.
Lin Xueyan hauled Meng Yao back onto the spirit boat, where Meng Yao demanded, "Xueyan, what on earth is going on?"
"Meng Yao, don't let him fool you. I went and asked that Su Wan'er, and she told me everything. Fang Chen used to abuse her constantly, and it was only to seek out supreme treasures, driven to desperation, that she joined forces with Luoyun to excise his Heavenly Dao Bone. Furthermore, this Fang Chen was already a scumbag before—"
"Xueyan!" Meng Yao looked at Lin Xueyan with feigned anger.
She stated, "You may not know what kind of person Su Wan'er is, but I do. Both Fang Chen and her master doted on her endlessly, yet she betrayed Fang Chen and even tried to murder her master. As for being a so-called scumbag, that's completely impossible—Fang Chen spent five whole years guarding the tomb before the grave of Tianlingzi. You've been to that place yourself; it's the middle of nowhere, who would ever go there?"
"Besides, Fang Chen was just a mortal back then. How could he possibly have abused Su Wan'er, who had actual cultivation?"
"And since he was able to climb three hundred and fifty-nine steps on the Heaven-Ascending Stairway while still in the Spirit Gathering Realm, you should understand how formidable his willpower is. Would a man like that ever do such despicable things?"
"But..." Lin Xueyan still wanted to argue, yet she couldn't help feeling that Meng Yao made a lot of sense.
Meng Yao pressed on: "Xueyan, you've spent years cultivating in solitude; sometimes it's hard for you to tell right from wrong, and you simply cling to whatever you believe."
"Think carefully: from beginning to end, how has Fang Chen actually behaved?"
Lin Xueyan fell into total silence.
Indeed, Fang Chen didn't seem to have done anything out of line. Could she really have been wrong about him?
Meng Yao took Lin Xueyan's delicate hand and said, "Anyway, to truly understand what a person is like, you can't just look with your eyes—you have to look with your heart!"
"Don't you also have an engagement with him? Why don't you keep it instead of calling it off, and marry him together with me? Didn't we say when we were little that we'd be best friends forever? If we're going to marry a husband, we should share a good one."
Meng Yao blinked her large, expressive eyes and laughed seductively.
Lin Xueyan's face flushed crimson instantly, and she glared at her in a mix of embarrassment and anger: "What nonsense are you spouting?"
Meng Yao chuckled, "Anyway, I certainly won't mind. Besides, you're my best friend! I could never bear to see you marry someone else!"
As the two of them chatted, they started playfully shoving each other.
The melodious sound of silvery laughter continuously echoed across the spirit boat.
***
Meanwhile, at the Wanxing Auction House in Yucheng!
When Yu Yuanwen produced the fake Heaven-Enlightening Pill and kicked up a massive fuss at the Wanxing Auction House, it immediately drew the attention of the auction house's upper management.
At first, they assumed he was just creating trouble, but upon verifying that the Heaven-Enlightening Pill genuinely originated from their establishment, they instantly took the matter very seriously.
Inside the inner pavilion of the Wanxing Auction House.
Bang!
Furious to the extreme, Yu Yuanwen pointed straight at the Heaven-Enlightening Pill resting on the table and roared, "I spent a full two thousand spirit stones to buy what turned out to be a fake right here at your auction! If my discerning eyes hadn't seen through it, I almost would have been scammed by you lot!"
An elder seated within the pavilion—an elder of the Wanxing Auction House—could only offer polite, perfunctory nods to the enraged Yu Yuanwen, promising him a proper explanation.
At that moment, the pavilion doors swung open, and a woman walked in.
Clad in a long crimson cheongsam, she walked in with a beaming smile, her lips curved upward. Her skin was as white as freshly peeled water chestnuts, and a tiny dark mole at the corner of her lips only added to her alluring and breathtaking beauty.
The woman was Yan Qiaolin, the person in charge of the Wanxing Auction House.
Yu Yuanwen greedily scanned Yan Qiaolin's figure before letting out a cold snort. "Ah, Manager Yan has arrived. Take a look for yourself—this is the Heaven-Enlightening Pill auctioned off here two days ago! If not for my brilliant insight, I would have been completely swindled by you people! What is this? Has the Wanxing Auction House started auctioning counterfeit goods now?"
Yan Qiaolin glanced at the Heaven-Enlightening Pill, then turned her gaze to the elder.
The elder gave a slight nod, confirming that the pill had indeed been purchased from them.
Seeing this, Yan Qiaolin maintained her smile and seated herself opposite Yu Yuanwen.
She first had someone serve tea, then smiled gracefully, "Young Master Yu, there's no need to fly into such a rage. To be honest, the level of forgery on this pill far exceeded our expectations; we were deceived as well, making us victims too."
"How about this? Our auction house will offer double compensation. What do you think?"
A flash of greed crossed Yu Yuanwen's eyes, but he immediately sneered, "What? Manager Yan, do you think a mere double payout can settle this matter?"
"Then how much do you want?"
"At least tenfold! Otherwise, I will make this matter public, and by then, your esteemed house's reputation will be dragged through the mud."
Faced with this threat, Yan Qiaolin's expression remained calm. She picked up the teacup from the table, took a sip of the spiritual tea, and only then replied, "Young Master Yu, it's best to be forgiving when one can. Double compensation is the limit of what my house can offer, but if you insist on tenfold... well, that is possible too. It just depends on whether you have the courage to take it."
By the end of her sentence, her tone was dripping with bone-chilling coldness.
Yu Yuanwen felt a slight tremor in his heart. He had heard from his father that the Wanxing Auction House possessed unfathomably deep backing and must not be offended.
Blinded by his anger over the fake pill, he had wanted to extort a fortune and completely forgotten this crucial detail.
Giving a dry cough, he muttered, "Forget it. Seeing as your esteemed house wasn't doing this intentionally, let's call it a day."
Hearing this, Yan Qiaolin's smile returned. She waved her hand to have the spirit stones brought out immediately.
Yu Yuanwen was overjoyed; he never expected to actually turn a profit out of this.
After collecting the spirit stones, he didn't dare linger and promptly took his leave.
"Go." Staring at the fake pill, Yan Qiaolin commanded, "Find out who the person was that brought this pill in to sell! Search to the ends of the earth if you must! Anyone daring to scam my Wanxing Auction House will be hacked into a thousand pieces!"
By the end, her expression had turned pitch black.
Acquiring a fake and failing to detect it was, to her, the ultimate humiliation!
"Understood!" The elder received his orders and prepared to investigate.
"Wait!" Yan Qiaolin recalled something and continued, "Have someone look into who it was that figured out the pill was a fake."
"The level of forgery on this pill is practically flawless. From the medicinal fragrance down to its color and form, there are virtually no flaws to be found—it even deceived our own appraisers. Whoever could see through this fake is certainly no ordinary person. If we can recruit them to our house, such incidents won't happen again in the future."
"Manager, didn't Young Master Yu just claim that he was the one who spotted it?" the elder asked, puzzled.
"With that little talent of his? If he really had the eye for it, he wouldn't have waited until today to come forward," Yan Qiaolin said, full of utter disdain. She knew Yu Yuanwen far too well.
"Yes!" The elder acknowledged the order and went out to make arrangements.
Yan Qiaolin gently picked up the fake pill with her delicate hand: "I really am curious—what kind of person was able to see through such a forgery?"
***
After returning to his residence, Fang Chen shared the good news of winning first place in the Seven Peaks Assessment and entering the Inner Sect's Seventh Peak with his senior sister/master's wife.
Upon hearing the news, Qiu Mei was overjoyed and bustled about to prepare a table full of fine dishes.
After finishing dinner, Fang Chen returned to his room.
Earlier today, while crossing the Heaven-Ascending Stairway, he had absorbed a drop of the Sword Demon's blood.
This drop of blood wasn't used to strengthen his physical body, cultivation base, or Heavenly Dao Demonic Bone; instead, it was absorbed entirely by his willpower.
In fact, willpower had another name: spiritual force.
For cultivators, spiritual force was exceedingly crucial—especially for alchemists, weapon refiners, formation masters, and divine rune masters.
One could even use spiritual force as a method of attack, taking lives invisibly. For instance, Fang Chen's Soul-Sky Demonic Eye divine ability relied heavily on the strength of his spiritual force.
The reason Luoyun, Meng Yao, and the others were able to communicate via voice transmissions also relied on spiritual force.
However, spiritual force was something that ordinarily required stepping into the Houtian Realm to acquire; it was impossible to gather at the Spirit Gathering Realm.
Yet!
The Sword Demon's blood defied imagination! Once his sea of consciousness absorbed that single drop of blood, it genuinely allowed Fang Chen to possess spiritual force right here in the Spirit Gathering Realm!
This was the terrifying might of an ancient Sword Demon!
By now, Fang Chen's spiritual force was already comparable to that of a Houtian Realm Level 1 cultivator!
Do not underestimate this mere Level 1; most cultivators couldn't even reach Level 1 when first stepping into the Houtian Realm, having to spend vast amounts of time and energy to slowly build it up.
Most importantly, Fang Chen was now capable of beginning the cultivation of his spiritual force—something other Spirit Gathering Realm cultivators wouldn't even dare to dream of.
Of course, Fang Chen wasn't in a hurry to cultivate his spiritual force right now.
Because cultivating spiritual force likewise required a mental technique; without one, the cultivation speed would be agonizingly slow.
He took out a stalk of Luoling Grass.
"I need to break through to the Houtian Realm as fast as possible. With these five stalks of Luoling Grass, reaching the Peak Spirit Gathering in a short time shouldn't be a problem."
Without any hesitation, he tossed a stalk of Luoling Grass straight into his mouth and chewed it down!
Instantly, an intensely pure surge of energy entered Fang Chen's body and began to be continuously absorbed by him!
A day later, Fang Chen's aura surged violently, rocketing straight from Spirit Gathering Level 6 to the Peak Level 6!
He opened his eyes, sensing the changes within his body in utter disbelief!
"This! I actually absorbed one hundred percent of this Luoling Grass's medicinal efficacy!"
If medicinal potency was rated at ten parts, an ordinary person could only absorb about three parts of a spiritual grass's medicinal power.
The remaining seven parts would be expelled from the body through the hundred meridian points and dissipate into the air.
To absorb more medicinal power, the best method was refinement into pills.
Yet even with pills, the amount one could absorb would only increase by perhaps one part.
Yet Fang Chen had just absorbed one hundred percent of the Luoling Grass's efficacy! This was precisely why he managed to leap directly to Peak Level 6 with just a single stalk of Luoling Grass!
Moreover, this kind of breakthrough was exceptionally solid, leaving no hidden flaws in his foundation!
"The Sword Demon Body is truly formidable! If I keep taking them, I can break through to Level 7 by tomorrow!"
Thinking of this, he didn't hesitate a moment longer. Pulling out another stalk of Luoling Grass, he resumed his cultivation!
The next day! A terrifying aura erupted fiercely! Fang Chen broke straight through to Level 7!
Feeling the transformation within himself, Fang Chen smiled faintly.
Ever since he was blessed with the Sword Demon Body, every single breakthrough multiplied his strength exponentially!
Whether it was his physique, the thickness of his spiritual energy, his foundation, his dantian, or his sea of consciousness, he was several times more powerful than ordinary Spirit Gathering Realm Level 7 cultivators!
He could even fight toe-to-toe with ordinary Houtian Realm Level 1 or 2 cultivators!
Fang Chen was thoroughly satisfied with his transformation, but he had no intention of continuing his cultivation just yet.
"Today is the third day. It's time to pack up and report to the Seventh Peak."
With that, he stepped out of his room.
Yet when he saw the scene inside the courtyard, he froze in surprise.
***
In the courtyard, quite a few figures resembling guards were busy moving his few remaining pieces of furniture and luggage, while his master's wife and Meng Yao stood near the entrance, chatting and giving directions.
Both women wore smiles on their faces, appearing to be deep in lively conversation.
"Brother Fang!"
Seeing Fang Chen emerge, Meng Yao beamed, her expression charming and alluring.
Fang Chen walked over and asked in bewilderment, "Meng Yao, why are you here?"
Meng Yao kept her smile as she replied, "Today is the day you report to the Seventh Peak! I came over to help Master's wife move!"
"Master's wife?" Fang Chen blinked.
Qiu Mei stepped forward and said, "I've already heard everything from Xiao Meng. Little Fang, you must treat Xiao Meng well from now on. If I find out you're bullying her, I won't let you off."
"Thank you, Master's wife." Meng Yao linked her arm through Qiu Mei's. "If Brother Fang bullies me in the future, I'll know who to come crying to."
Qiu Mei nodded with a smile, "Good, good, good. If he bullies you, just tell me and see how I discipline him."
Seeing this, Fang Chen didn't know whether to laugh or cry. Had he really fallen out of favor not long after going into seclusion?
Shortly after, Meng Yao asked, "Brother Fang, is there anything in your room that needs packing?"
"My room—that reminds me!"
Remembering something, Fang Chen hurried back to his room and retrieved the wooden box he had brought back from the small wooden cabin at his master's grave.
He opened the wooden box and looked closely, discovering that mixed in among the miscellaneous items were indeed several other marriage agreements.
He reached in to grab them, but paused the moment his fingers brushed against the papers.
The thickness didn't feel right at all!
Pulling them out, he stood frozen in place.
He had actually pulled out a stack of nine marriage agreements!
"Nine marriage agreements!"
Meng Yao, who had followed him inside, was equally stunned at the sight of this stack of papers.
"Adding Xueyan's to these, your master lined up a full ten wives for you."
Meng Yao wrinkled her pretty little nose, her captivating face brimming with jealousy.
"This..."
For a moment, Fang Chen didn't know what to say. He had previously been completely oblivious to all this.
"I want to see what kind of little wives your master set you up with."
Meng Yao snatched the nine marriage agreements from Fang Chen's hands and began flipping through them.
Not looking would have been fine, but looking gave her a massive shock.
"Tiannan Domain, little heiress of the Duanmu Family! Duanmu Baixue!"
"Northern Ice Domain, Saintess of the Tianxue Sacred Sect! Zhao Shimai!"
"And..."
Reading name after name left Meng Yao utterly shocked.
Every single one of these factions was among the absolute pinnacle of their respective domains! Every one of them was a favored daughter of the heavens, shaking the entire world! To think they all shared marriage agreements with Fang Chen!
If word of this leaked out, it would cause a sensation across every domain!
Countless admirers of theirs would tear Fang Chen into shreds!
Meng Yao looked deeply at Fang Chen before finally spitting out this single sentence: "Your master is truly something else!"
Fang Chen gave an awkward smile; he hadn't known about any of this beforehand.
"Give them here."
He took back the marriage agreements, singled out Meng Yao's agreement, and then made to tear up all the rest!
"Stop!"
Seeing this, Meng Yao hurriedly stopped him: "What are you tearing them up for?"
Fang Chen answered, "Having your marriage agreement alone is enough for me."
Hearing this, Meng Yao felt a gentle stir in her heart.
Even so, she snatched the marriage agreements back from Fang Chen's hands and said, "You still can't tear them up! These were left to you by your master—they represent his painstaking efforts."
"But!"
Fang Chen wanted to argue, but Meng Yao cut him off.
"Even if you don't want these engagements, you should at least make things clear with the other parties and call them off properly. If they keep waiting for you forever while you simply ignore them, wouldn't you be acting irresponsibly?" she said.
Her words left Fang Chen utterly speechless in refutation.
"So."
Meng Yao carefully placed the marriage agreements back into the wooden box: "Keep them safe for now. If you ever get the chance to visit those places in the future, make things clear to them then. That way, there won't be any bitter partings, right?"
"And if the other person keeps waiting for you... then you'll just have to bring her back with you and never let her down."
Fang Chen gazed dumbly at Meng Yao, deeply moved by her words.
With a wife like this, what more could a man ask for?
He gently pulled Meng Yao into an embrace and whispered, "In this life, I, Fang Chen, will never let you down!"
Meng Yao smiled softly and returned the hug, whispering, "But let's get one thing straight! No matter how many wives you have, you have to marry me first! I'm going to be the first wife!"