Ye Xiangli's eyes flickered slightly as she buried her face, with a trace of reliance, into Shui Lianyue's embrace, catching the scent of Shui Lianyue at the tip of her nose.
Seeing that Shui Lianyue did not pull away, the corners of Ye Xiangli's eyes curved upward. She tentatively wrapped her arms around Shui Lianyue's slender waist, her heart filled with nervous anticipation.
Aside from the influence of the System tasks, there was an even more important reason: having grown up in such an environment, she too yearned for warmth.
Shui Lianyue stroked Ye Xiangli's head, though confusion lingered in her eyes. What on earth was floating right in front of her?
Three tasks...
The more she looked, the more Shui Lianyue felt something was amiss. Had Ye Xiangli somehow bound herself to a System?
That was the only explanation Shui Lianyue could think of. Judging by Ye Xiangli's current actions, she must have chosen the third task.
*Sigh*, this girl has really narrowed her own path. Weren't high-grade spirit tools wonderful?
Still, her comprehension seemed quite decent. The female protagonist's natural talent was already formidable; add some boosted comprehension to that, and taking off was just standard operating procedure.
Sure enough, ever since she transmigrated into the book, things had indeed changed. The female protagonist should still be the original one, save for the addition of a System, which didn't really affect her personally.
Well... wait, that didn't seem quite right. She might end up being harassed by the female protagonist later on.
Then again, she might not even live that long.
Ye Xiangli would likely grow much stronger because of the System; she just wondered what other bizarre tasks might pop up down the line.
Looked at this way, had things truly changed because of her arrival?
In the original novel, Ye Xiangli certainly didn't have this System.
Never mind, it didn't matter. She had a far more important issue to concern herself with at the moment—namely, that she seemed to be turning into a pervert.
At this moment, Ye Xiangli had no idea that Shui Lianyue could see every single one of the System task choices laid before her.
Meanwhile, Luochen had just returned to find his two disciples embracing, and a gratified smile immediately appeared on his aged face.
He had been worried that Shui Lianyue and Ye Xiangli wouldn't get along, especially since Shui Lianyue rarely showed much emotional fluctuation, even around him.
Now it seemed his worries had been entirely unnecessary.
"Ahem."
Knowing that Shui Lianyue was already aware of his arrival, Luochen still gave an obligatory, light cough.
Hearing Luochen's cough, Ye Xiangli finally released Shui Lianyue, feeling a tinge of reluctance in her heart. *Senior Sister smells so good.*
*Child, you're acting a bit strange.*
Both Shui Lianyue and Ye Xiangli greeted Luochen as Master. Looking at his two disciples, Luochen's eyes crinkled with smiles.
"Good, good. I've already spoken with the Sect Master; from now on, Xiangli, you are a disciple of Yinxian Gate. Furthermore, you are my disciple. I have only two disciples in total, so you must care for one another and live in harmony."
Hearing Luochen's words, both Shui Lianyue and Ye Xiangli nodded. The reserve on Ye Xiangli's face had faded considerably as she tried hard to familiarize herself with her new environment.
Her well-behaved appearance only deepened the amusement in Luochen's eyes. He beckoned Ye Xiangli over; he wanted to inspect his youngest disciple and figure out the exact cause of her physical condition.
Knowing that this would likely pertain to her cultivation, Ye Xiangli trotted over to Luochen, her bright eyes fixed on him with eager anticipation.
With only a handful of Tribulation Passing stage cultivators existing across the entire Four Continents, surely he would be able to diagnose the root cause of her condition?
"Mhm, let me have a look..."
His spiritual power entered Ye Xiangli's body. Three years ago, he had only made a brief, superficial check and formed a general idea, but a meticulous probe now yielded entirely new discoveries.
"Her dantian is riddled with countless cracks, from which the Origin of Heavenly Thunder leaks out. It turns out to be a Calamity Thunder Physique..."
Luochen murmured softly. Though his voice was quiet, Ye Xiangli heard every word with crystal clarity.
"Calamity Thunder Physique... What is that?"Ye Xiangli tilted her head slightly. Seeing that Luochen's expression remained calm, her own heart settled; as long as it was not a ruined constitution, everything was fine.
Standing beside them, Shui Lianyue watched Ye Xiangli's slight head tilt, her obedient and well-behaved appearance causing Shui Lianyue's eyes to deepen.
"When a fetus is in the mother's womb, if it encounters a heavenly tribulation, there is a one-in-ten-million chance that the Origin of Heavenly Thunder will burrow into the child's body and affect them. The Origin of Heavenly Thunder burrows into the fetus's unformed dantian. An unborn fetus that has never practiced cultivation naturally cannot withstand it; the dantian becomes devastated from the inside out. Even if it remains confined to the dantian, it still affects your body, Xiangli. Of course, this effect is a subtle, gradual transformation of your body, allowing it to adapt to the Origin of Heavenly Thunder once the dantian is repaired. If you can repair your dantian and refine and control the Origin of Heavenly Thunder within it, then it is safe to say that every bizarre thunder in this world will be at your disposal. Simply being struck by lightning will be enough to increase your cultivation. Throughout history, Xiangli, you should be the second person to possess the Calamity Thunder Physique."
Hearing Luochen's explanation, Ye Xiangli gradually understood in her heart that she should be able to cultivate after all. Moreover, her physique sounded quite formidable.
Being struck by lightning sounded a bit frightening, but if it could make her stronger, if it could allow her to catch up to Senior Sister, then it did not seem so frightening after all.
Only... repairing the dantian and making the Origin of Heavenly Thunder serve her—even Ye Xiangli, who had never practiced cultivation, knew that a cultivator's dantian was the most vital part of the body and exceedingly difficult to repair, not to mention dealing with something originating from the world itself like the Origin of Heavenly Thunder.
At the same time, a lingering doubt haunted Ye Xiangli's mind: had her mother really been struck by lightning while pregnant with her?
Ye Xiangli did not know. She had never even met her mother. As for her father... he had already passed away, or else her life within the Ye Family would not have been so difficult.
When she raised her gaze again, she saw that Luochen's cloudy eyes were now bright and sparkling, looking at her with anticipation and eagerness.
Ye Xiangli suddenly understood that her master must have been waiting for her to ask him what to do next. It felt a bit childish, but she rather liked it.
"Master, what should I do?"
"We only need Spirit-Replenishing Pills. As it happens, I have all the materials for concocting them. However, repairing a dantian of the Calamity Thunder Physique still requires one most crucial spiritual object."
Unlike the shattered dantian of an ordinary cultivator, the dantian of the Calamity Thunder Physique contained the Origin of Heavenly Thunder. A vital spiritual object was required to suppress the Origin of Heavenly Thunder during the repair process, and only after everything was completed could the person refine and control the Origin of Heavenly Thunder themselves.
Hearing this, Ye Xiangli looked at Luochen with large, damp eyes. Being looked at like this by his little apprentice made Luochen's heart leap with joy, but before Luochen could speak, a crisp, melodious voice sounded.
"The Thunder-Attracting Bead."
As the words fell, she received a resentful glance from Luochen.
"A Thunder-Attracting... Bead?"
Ye Xiangli's eyes flashed slightly, a bad premonition rising within her. Thunder-attracting...
Shui Lianyue had already guessed what she was thinking. "Yes, the Thunder-Attracting Bead. It increases the probability of the bearer being struck by lightning. Well... if there is a thunderstorm, you might just be walking down the street and the lightning from the sky will strike you."
At this, the corners of Shui Lianyue's lips curved up slightly, though Ye Xiangli, lost in thought, did not see it.
Aside from being needed for practicing specific cultivation methods or spells, it was mostly used to satisfy the peculiar hobbies of certain people. All in all, very few people had any use for a Thunder-Attracting Bead; it was a rather useless spiritual object under normal circumstances.