Breaking through to Spirit Transformation leads straight into the Divine Treasury.
The Divine Treasury consists of five realms: Gathered Spirit Sea, Condensed Spirit Palace (Origin Mansion), True Spirit Transformation, Treading Divine Bridge, and finally, Return to One and Harmonize with Dao.
Another two years passed.
"Mother."
"Wuyī has already gathered his sea and broken through the nine Extreme Realms."
At this moment, a youth in a white robe with a faint reddish tint was standing before Ying Hongyi and speaking.
Although Yìng Wúyī was only five years old, his body had already grown to that of a twelve or thirteen-year-old, showing the early signs of a handsome and talented youth.
His features were striking and handsome, like a young lord stepped out of a painting;
His gaze was deep and penetrating, as if able to see right through a person's heart;
His aura was piercing to the spirit, sharp as a celestial sword!
"Come here, let your mother give you a hug."
With that, Yìng Wúyī hurried into his mother's arms.
"My boy is all grown up. Once you go out, who knows how many saintesses and princesses will be pining over you."
"Truly... not even this palace is spared."
Hongyi affectionately stroked her son's small face.
Familiar with this little habit of his mother's, Yìng Wúyī was already long used to it.
"Let's see, Tiānyáo that little girl will be turning two soon."
"The clan wants to have that girl moved to the Qīngyún Palace so that I and several elders can teach you siblings together."
"Wuyī will listen to Mother."
"Mhm, then it is settled."
"Besides, if you're bored, go outside and wander around for a bit."
"Staying cooped up in my Qīngyún Palace all this time, you must be getting sick of it."
Yìng Wúyī knew that his mother had seen through his thoughts.
"Hehe, then Wuyī will go check on our clan brothers and sisters right now."
He then stood up and bowed respectfully to Hongyi.
The two maidservants inside the hall also consciously bowed and withdrew.
...
"I can finally come out and stretch my legs."
"Sister Jīng'er, are there any fun places you can recommend?"
Yìng Wúyī asked outside the Qīngyún Immortal Palace.
"Reporting to Young Master, the Ancient Stele of Stone Desolation Town, Thunder Cliff, Thousand-Success Waterfall, and the Heavenly Martial Arena are all quite good. The disciples of the clan usually like to go to these places for cultivation and trials."
"Since that's the case..."
"Let's head to the Eighth Elder's place."
"Huh!? Oh... Understood!"
The two maidservants reacted quickly, though they were still somewhat baffled, unable to fathom Yìng Wúyī's intentions.
"Master let our Young Master come out, shouldn't the Young Master go look for the younger disciples? Why go to the Eighth Elder's place?"
Beneath the vast starry sky of the Ying family, there was a suspended paradise of purple-gold bamboo forests.
Before long.
"Young Master, ahead is the Eighth Elder's Dao arena."
Yìng Wúyī looked at the scenery before him. Though not quite as grand as the Qīngyún Immortal Palace, it possessed a unique style.
Wisps of white spiritual mist, varying in density, enshrouded the entire bamboo forest. Purple-gold bamboos loomed vaguely within it, while a stream flowed out from the misty woods, forming a waterfall that plunged ten thousand zhang straight down into the endless void, resembling a celestial wonderland.
"Let's go, let's head in and take a look."
Right at that moment.
A young maiden sat cross-legged in the void within the bamboo forest, her starry eyes tightly closed, her cheeks reflecting a rosy hue like smoke-veiled peonies or rain-kissed peach blossoms.
Behind her, the visions of a blazing sun and a bright moon hung suspended, emanating a terrifying might that altered the surrounding environment.
Suddenly, she sensed the arrival of outsiders.
Opening her eyes, she saw a jade-like youth accompanied by two maidservants approaching from ahead, whereupon she stood up and performed a greeting of peers.
"Luòxī greets the Dao Child."
At this moment, Yìng Wúyī also arrived before her.
"Oh? Saintess Luòxī?"
One of the Seven Saints, the Sun and Moon Divine Body, Yìng Luòxī!
Such a special constitution was still quite easy to recognize.
So he asked, "You recognize Wuyī?"
Upon hearing this, Yìng Luòxī smiled faintly. "Not many people can freely enter this Purple Bamboo Forest, and for the most part, I know all of them."
As for the age not matching the physical body, that was nothing out of the ordinary.
"Freely?" Yìng Wúyī caught the keyword in his mind, tilted his head, and asked, "Putting it that way, Saintess Luòxī and Elder Yàyuǎn must be very close?"
"I often come here to bother the Eighth Elder, so I suppose our relationship is quite good."
"I see..."
"Is the relationship between the disciples and the clan elders all like Saintess Luòxī's?"
Strictly speaking, this was Yìng Wúyī's first time setting foot in a fantasy world, so naturally, he had to figure out the family's background first.
"That depends on the circumstances. For instance, the Dao One Saint Child is the Fourth Elder's disciple. However, the Dao Child can rest assured that the younger disciples all deeply respect their elders."
Seeing the Dao Child inquire, Yìng Luòxī assumed he was showing solicitude for his clansmen and wished to understand the situation of the younger disciples, which involuntarily stirred a trace of favorable impression in her.
After all, the Dao Child was only five years old; for him to possess such broad-mindedness and look so extraordinarily handsome as well, it was hard for anyone to raise their guard against him.
What kind of malicious intentions could a little child possibly have?
"That's good!"
Yìng Wúyī thought to himself, "With harmony in the clan and not too many scheming intrigues, my vexations can be reduced by more than half. That's just fantastic!"
However, seeing Yìng Wúyī's expression, Yìng Luòxī only grew more convinced of her own conjecture.
"Just as I thought!"
Putting aside the Dao Child's innate talent, the mere fact that at this age he knew to care for the clan's younger members meant that in terms of magnanimity, the Dao Child had already won!
Looked at this way, those few individuals were going to have a headache. But that didn't have much to do with her, seeing as she wasn't particularly close to them anyway.
"For the Dao Child to understand how to care for clan affairs is truly a blessing for the family."
Yìng Luòxī lowered her head slightly and praised.
(^_^) Huh?
Yìng Wúyī didn't think too much of it, dismissing it as mere polite pleasantries.
Right at that moment, an ethereal voice drifted over.
"How is it that the Dao Child has come to my domain without giving advance notice? That way I could have prepared."
Following the sound, they saw the spiritual energy in the bamboo forest consciously parting to clear a path.
A woman with fair skin and translucent, bright red lips, possessing a graceful and refined bearing with a cascade of bound hair reaching her waist, walked through the air.
"Wuyī pays his respects to Aunt Yàyuǎn."
Yìng Luòxī and the two maidservants also bowed in following.
The woman before them was naturally the Eighth Elder, Yìng Yàyuǎn. Though not a blood aunt, she was a dear sister to his own mother, so calling her aunt was entirely appropriate.
"Hongyi sent you here?"
"Replying to Aunt, I frequently heard Mother mention you, and therefore I wished to come and pay a visit to Aunt Yàyuǎn."
Upon hearing this, Yìng Yàyuǎn feigned displeasure and said:
"Cut the act. If you have something to say, spit it out. Your aunt still has medicine refining in her cauldron."
"Uh... Mother told Wuyī to come out and get some fresh air, so I wanted to come to the Purple Bamboo Forest to see Aunt."
My foot!
In truth, Yìng Wúyī simply didn't want to go look for those little brats.
He didn't even need to use his brain to know that if he went over there, those face-slapping tropes would definitely happen.
While it might feel satisfying, it completely lacked the imposing aura of a Dao Child, having to personally teach a bunch of nameless extras a lesson.
Hmph!
Better to come to the Eighth Elder's place instead. Isn't a beautiful aunt far more interesting than teaching those little brats a lesson?
"Did you really come to visit your aunt, or do you think your aunt is easy to fool?"
"Could it be that coming to see me is false, and coming here to find Saintess Luòxī is the real truth?"
Yìng Wúyī: (⊙_⊙)?
Watching Yìng Yàyuǎn look at him with a meaningful gaze, Yìng Wúyī fell silent, and the other three maidens were all stunned as well.
A moment later, Yìng Luòxī and the two maidservants revealed expressions of sudden realization.
"Master has always been close with Elder Yàyuǎn. If the Dao Child wanted to visit, he wouldn't need to pick this exact time."
"Sending the Dao Child out at this juncture—even menial servants like us know what the intention is. Although the Dao Child is young, he is exceptionally intelligent; it's impossible that he hasn't figured it out."
"Since coming here isn't to visit Elder Yàyuǎn, it must be that he knew beforehand the Saintess was cultivating here, and came specifically for the Saintess!"
"Instead of looking for the Saint Child, he came looking for the Saintess instead... Could it be...?"
The two maidservants lost themselves in their own speculations.
As for Yìng Luòxī, her deduced conclusion was nearly identical. Seeing Yìng Wúyī "remain silent in tacit consent," she suddenly felt that he wasn't as simple as he appeared!
Harboring her own thoughts now, she feigned ignorance and stepped forward to ask:
"I wonder what business the Dao Child has with Luòxī?"
At this moment, Yìng Wúyī was utterly dumbfounded. Wasn't he just here to "cultivate his body and nurture his character"?
Was there something wrong with him saying he came to see Aunt Yàyuǎn?
Could it be that his aunt wasn't pretty enough?
(*￣︿￣)
"However, since Aunt says I came looking for Luòxī, I suppose there's nothing wrong with that either."
He looked at the young maiden before him: skin like congealed lard, cherry-red lips and hazy starry eyes paired perfectly with a petite, exquisite nose. Her simple white long dress outlined her budding, developing physique, resembling a flower bud just beginning to open in the spring breeze.
"......Wuyī heard that Saintess Luòxī is possessed of peerless talent and unparalleled beauty, so I thought I'd come over and take a look."
"Sure enough, he came for me!" Yìng Luòxī thought to herself.
"Those are merely rumors. The Dao Child is just joking."
"If we really must talk about talent, the Dao Child is the truly unparalleled one; Luòxī is full of shame by comparison."
Yìng Luòxī revealed a few pearly white teeth and replied with impeccable manners.
"......"
Yìng Wúyī was going crazy inside, feeling quite speechless. "Damn it! What's up with these two women singing in harmony? They understand me better than I understand myself!"
"Especially you, Yìng Luòxī! You haven't even met me yet, and you're already laying it on thick with the flattery?!"
"Playing dirty, are we?"
"Today, this young master is going to let you flatter your fill!"
He then spoke up:
"Put that way, Saintess Luòxī understands Wuyī quite well. I wonder which of this Dao Child's talents the Saintess is aware of?"
Yìng Luòxī looked at the Dao Child in astonishment, momentarily caught off guard that he would ask such a question. Her first thought was how utterly shameless the Dao Child could be.
Her second thought was that Yìng Wúyī was undoubtedly intentionally trying to make things difficult for her, leaving her with no choice but to bite the bullet and reply:
"The Dao Child's appearance is like that of an immortal, and having been sealed as a taboo existence, he is naturally a supreme prodigy, peerless across the ages!"
...
Watching the drama unfold from the side, Yìng Yàyuǎn gazed deeply at this Dao Child of her family.
With just a few words, he had at least managed to place Yìng Luòxī on the defensive purely through sheer momentum.
Luòxī had been coming to her place for quite some time, and she understood her fairly well—her heart was as deep as a tranquil pool, sophisticated and steady in her manners, certainly not someone easily manipulated.
Yet, among the five Saint Children and two Saintess, which one of them was an easy person to deal with anyway?!
Seen this way, this kid wasn't going to be a simple character in the future!
Splendid! Truly splendid!