"It was my mistake, Brother. I judged her only by her cultivation and overlooked her past. My conclusions were shallow and taken for granted."
Hua Qian realized her error and admitted it without hesitation.
The Hua Clan Patriarch nodded slowly, then continued, "Let's return to the matter of Mó Yuè. Her words stirred the entire clan. In theory, she could have made outrageous demands, but she didn't. She gave us a benefit in exchange for something barely worth calling a request. Why would she do that?"
Hua Qian thought for a moment before answering, "She wants our clan to owe her a karmic debt."
"Exactly."
Her prompt insight earned a rare nod of approval. She was teachable after all.
"For cultivators, karma is something to avoid. That's why many sects preach the severing of attachments, the rejection of emotion—so they won't be bound by karmic ties."
"Then... are you saying she has a bigger plan?"
"Whether it's big or not, I don't know. But she has already handed over treasures, natural treasures, even ancient inheritances. All to us."
"We could just refuse them." As soon as the words left her mouth, Hua Qian realized how foolish they sounded. Thanks to the information Mó Yuè provided, their ancestor had already awakened and broken through to Mahayana Great Perfection. That karmic debt had already been formed.
Seeing his sister's expression change, the Patriarch went on, "Because of the ancestor, we thoroughly investigated Mó Yuè. Her cultivation, her methods, her conduct. And based on all that, I'd rather trade with her."
"Trade?"
The word confused Hua Qian, though she couldn't quite put her finger on why.
"Yes, trade. She has no interest in controlling the Hua Clan. She simply offered an equal exchange. But when you saw Du Yanran, you guessed she might offer similar benefits, and because she was weaker, you thought we could control her. That's a different matter altogether."
"What's the difference?"
"If a trade fails, you walk away. No harm done. But if control fails, the other party will find a way to retaliate. Cultivators are proud. No one wants to live forever under another's thumb. Of course, if you stood at the very peak of the cultivation world, people would naturally flock to submit to you."
"You're right, Brother. I was reckless. Next time, I'll think it through before making suggestions."
"I know you find these lessons tedious. I don't expect you to master all of it. But at least don't let yourself be outmaneuvered."
"Thank you for watching over me, Brother."
This exchange would shape the next thirty years, during which Du Yanran would repeatedly miss every great opportunity that came her way.
One time, she was fighting over a mid-grade spirit mine. Remembering her past failure, she played it safe and enlisted Fan Ji'an and Lord Peng of Yunling City to assist her. Meanwhile, she secretly took another route, hoping to seize the mine first.
But Hua Qian saw through her plan. She reached the mine before her and absorbed the entire vein, driving Du Yanran to the brink of madness. In her fury, Du Yanran hurled a Thunderburst Pill into the mine.
Her reckless act enraged the observing Hua Qian.
"She really is a viper. Good thing I left the mine before she lashed out. Red Blossom, teach her a lesson. Drop her cultivation to the Golden Core stage."
At the command, Red Blossom darted out.
Moments later, Du Yanran's screams echoed from the distance.
When Red Blossom returned to Hua Qian's side, she looked sick to her stem.
"Ptui! Ugh, what a wretched woman. What did she do, slaughter half the continent? Her spiritual power is so filthy I could throw up! Master, why did you make me absorb that?!"
Hua Qian raised an eyebrow, amused.
"So that's her true nature. Seems like I accidentally helped her by letting you absorb it."
"Ugh, thanks a lot! I'll be lucky if I don't get stomach rot."
Hua Qian grabbed Red Blossom's stem and gave her a good shake.
"Come on, spit it out before it gives you indigestion."
"Master, take it easy! You're gonna shake it out of me even if I don't want to!"
Now stripped of her Nascent Soul cultivation, Du Yanran clung to Fan Ji'an, crying and claiming she had been schemed against while trying to claim the mine.
The destruction of the mine left Fan Ji'an heartbroken. He doted on Du Yanran even more afterward.
But she was not willing to stop. Her eyes turned toward the soon-to-open Chengli Secret Realm. She was determined to enter and steal another opportunity.
What she didn't know was that Jian Dan had already assigned Cao Chenfeng to secure the treasure inside.
For thirty years, Du Yanran pursued every rumor and treasure, but each time she came up short. Eventually, she began to realize something was wrong.
Only then did she think of Jian Dan. If she had knowledge of these major opportunities, then Jian Dan surely did as well.
Pacing inside her residence, she finally made her way to Thousand Questions Pavilion and used spirit stones to inquire about Jian Dan's whereabouts.
The answer was disappointing. The only news was that Lord Mó Yuè had taken a sect mission and vanished thirty years ago.
Because of her inquiry, Bai Jue Zhūnzhu received the alert. Upon looking into Du Yanran, it became clear she was not someone to be easily tolerated.
Bai Jue Zhūnzhu immediately used her authority as a Zhūnzhu to issue a command to the beast clans under her jurisdiction. Every store was to cease all business with Du Yanran, and no information was to be sold to her under any circumstances.
With that, every layer of Jian Dan's contingencies fell into place. Even without her direct involvement, Du Yanran was crushed—more thoroughly than she had expected.
Ming Valley
It had been a full month since the group had joined the team led by the Sword Dragon Ming Beast. They'd fought through over a dozen battles and were finally granted a day of rest.
"These bugs just never end!"
Mo Yi grumbled from the side.
"Their breeding and parasitic rates are too fast," Mo Qi said with a tired sigh.
"Cut off the source."
Mo Su, ever the quiet one, said only what needed to be said.
"That means going deeper... though I feel like I'm about to break through again."
Mo Yi responded this time. He was the third among them on the verge of stepping into the Divine Soul stage.
Jian Dan turned and glanced at the unstable demonic energy flickering around him. Then she turned to Mo Qi.
"Senior Sister, I think Mo Yi is about to advance. We should rest a few days before we press forward."
"I agree. It looks like Mo Su might hit a small breakthrough too."
Mo Su gave a nod in confirmation. They had just reached an agreement and were about to report to the Nether Beast when a disturbance broke out behind them.
Before long, Mo Jiu arrived, wounded and bleeding, supported by the Black Robe Guard commander.
Mo Su frowned and stepped forward.
"What happened?"
Mo Jiu looked pale and sour. He was the weakest among the Black Robe Guards, but still at the early Divine Transformation level. Being injured like this was infuriating.
"I am ashamed, Lord Mo Su. I received a task and delivered the orders from the two Lords to the rear squad. Then I rushed straight for the exit and passed the jade slip to Lord Mo Xuan."
He paused, his teeth clenched.
"On the way back, I ran into the rear troops. That was fine, but Tang Jian, that idiot, killed a Ming Beast just to harvest its demon crystal..."
"Pfft." Jian Dan couldn't hold it in and laughed. "He really had to ask for it. Now what, a hundred of them are trapped?"
"Yes. I risked my life to break through and report back. I await the Lords' decision."
"Hmph. What is there to decide? Kill him."
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If you didn't know, Cause and Effect = Karma