[Host, if you help Mo Qingqui break through by giving her the Perfect Grade Qi Refining pill and then dual cultivate with her, your cultivation will also reach the 1st level of Qi Refining Realm]
Long Xiaoyao raised an eyebrow. 'Qi Refining by simply fucking someone just like that huh'
[Correct]
'It's tempting, the kind of shortcut I enjoyed.'
However, Long Xiaoyao wasn't a man who thought with his lower body. Well at least not entirely.
He rubbed his chin, staring at the woman swinging a sword in the distance.
'I don't know anything about her character or her background. I might be unrestrained, but I'm not desperate nor stupid'
[Please don't lie host, you died trying to outrun a train remember]
'Well at least not in this life.'
[I hope so]
'Let's find out who she is first before I start handing out magical pills and hopping into bed with her'
He swiped the notification away for the moment, stretching his arms high above his head and letting out an exaggerated groan.
"Aiyah... what a tiring day," Long Xiaoyao sighed loudly, rubbing his neck as if he had just carried a mountain. "Yuan Gui! Fetch this Prince some tea and pastries. My energy is completely drained."
Three eunuchs and the two maids froze. Eunuch Yuan Gui, his face flushed red and beads of sweat dripping from his chin, turned to look at Long Xiaoyao with wide, incredulous eyes.
The other two eunuchs and the two maids, still panting, looked equally astonished, their mouths hanging slightly open.
"Tiring day" they murmured as they looked at each other
They had been the ones swinging swords under Long Xiaoyao's training' while the Prince had simply sat in the shade, watching them with a bored expression. The only muscle Long Xiaoyao had exercised was his mouth
"Well?" Long Xiaoyao urged, feigning annoyance. "Do you want your master to starve to death while you lot play around?"
"N-No, Your Highness! This servant will go immediately!" Yuan Gui quickly abandoned his sword, wiping his brow with his sleeve as he scrambled toward the kitchen to prepare the refreshments. The other 4 also followed
[+5 Domination Points]
Moments later
A plate of cakes and a pot of high-grade tea were placed before him. Long Xiaoyao picked up a pastry, taking a leisurely bite as he looked toward the center of the courtyard.
"Mo Qingqui. Stop swinging that thing. Come here."
[+9 DominationPoints]
Mo Qingqui halted immediately. She sheathed her practice sword with a fluid, disciplined motion and turned toward him.
Unlike the stumbling eunuchs, her movements were sharp and controlled. Her expression was cold, her eyes serious and void of the usual fawning adoration the other two palace maids displayed.
However, the rigorous training had taken its toll.
Because she had been exercising nonstop under the midday sun, her palace maid's uniform was soaked through. The thin fabric, usually modest, now clung tightly to her body like a second skin.
It outlined the curve of her waist and the swell of her chest, her skin glistening with a sheen of perspiration that made a few loose strands of black hair stick to her neck.
She walked over, and the scent of orchids permeated the air. Her sweat drifted toward Long Xiaoyao. She clasped her hands and bowed stiffly. "Your Highness."
Long Xiaoyao chewed his pastry, his gaze sweeping over her figure unashamedly before landing on her stoic face.
"Sit."
"This servant does not dare," she replied, her voice cool and detached.
"I didn't ask if you dared, I told you to sit" Long Xiaoyao poured a cup of tea and pushed it to the opposite side of the small table.
Mo Qingqui hesitated for a fraction of a second, biting her lower lip, before sitting down across from him. She did not touch the tea.
[+9 Domination Points]
"Mo Qingqui," Long Xiaoyao said, leaning back and crossing his legs. "Your sword form is decent. You're almost a cultivator. So, tell me... why is someone half a step to being a cultivator wearing the robes of a palace maid?"
Suddenly Eunuch Gui and the other looked at Mo Quingqui with astonishment
In this world, even low-level cultivators were usually treated with respect, and seen by many as immortals, cut from a different cloth from mortals like them
And even a half step one, it was rare to find one scrubbing floors or serving tea in the palace unless they were specifically highly paid royal guards
Mo Qingqui's eyes dimmed slightly. She looked down at the steam rising from the teacup, her cold mask cracking just enough to reveal a trace of bitterness.
"Reporting to Your Highness," she said, her voice steady but low. "I... I was not always a maid."
"Go on," Long Xiaoyao encouraged, grabbing another cake.
"In my youth, my clan considered me a genius," Mo Qingqui explained, her hands clenching into fists on her lap. "I cultivated rapidly, surpassing all my peers. By the age of fifteen, I had reached the Half-Step Qi Refining realm."
Long Xiaoyao nodded. "Not bad."
"But that was where it ended," she whispered. "I became stuck. No matter how hard I tried, I could not take that final half-step to truly enter the First Stage of Qi Refining. My family... they didn't want to give up on their investment."
She took a deep breath, the fabric of her uniform stretching tight across her chest.
"Although my family is poor, they still bought spirit herbs, spending nearly half the family's fortune trying to help me break through the bottleneck. But year after year, I failed. The resources were wasted."
She looked up at Long Xiaoyao, her eyes hollow. "Eventually, the clan elders decided I was a bottomless pit. To recoup the massive amount of resources they had 'wasted' on me, they sold me to the Imperial Palace as a servant. The gold they received in exchange was... substantial."
Long Xiaoyao swirled the tea in his cup, his expression unreadable. "So, you're a failed genius sold off to balance the ledger."
"Yes, Your Highness," Mo Qingqui replied.
Long Xiaoyao looked at her. He saw the pride hidden deep beneath that cold exterior, and the desperation of someone who had been standing at the door of power for years, unable to turn the handle.
'A bottleneck, huh?' He smirked internally, thinking of the Qi Refining pill sitting in his system inventory.
"Well," Long Xiaoyao said, his tone shifting back to his usual carefree attitude
"Investments are tricky things. But, maybe, you just need a different kind of investor."
Confusion was evident in her clear eyes. Mo Qingqui asked, "This servant is dull. May I ask... what kind of investment are you referring to?"
Long Xiaoyao looked down at her, a faint, imperceptible smile playing on his lips. The atmosphere in the courtyard suddenly grew heavy, charged with a strange intensity.
"The investment is simple," Long Xiaoyao said, his voice smooth but carrying an undeniable weight. "I will pave the way for you. I will shatter your mortal shackles and help you break through to the Qi Refining Realm."
Mo Qingqui's breath hitched. For a mortal to step onto the path of immortality was a dream usually reserved for the nobility or the extremely talented, not someone a commoner from a poor family like hers could achieve. Especially in her age which is in her 30's
But before she could express her gratitude, Long Xiaoyao leaned forward, his gaze locking onto hers like a predator snaring its prey.
"But in return," he whispered, his finger reaching out to gently tilt her chin up, forcing her to look at him, "I want everything."
"Everything?"
"Your eyes must only see what I want them to see," Long Xiaoyao listed, his voice hypnotic.
"Your lips must speak only the words I desire. Your body, your thoughts, your heart, and your entire future... everything will belong to me. You will harbor no secrets, no desires, and no loyalty other than to me."
Mo Qingqui looked at Long Xiaoyao with sincerity "Your Highness, this servant... I already belong to you. From the moment I entered the palace, my life has been yours to command."
Long Xiaoyao shook his head slowly. "No. You misunderstand."
He released her chin and stood up, his hands clasped behind his back, exuding a regal aura.
"I do not want a palace maid who simply sweeps floors, pours tea, and warms the bed. I want you to walk the path of cultivation. I need you to be with me on this journey not as a servant, but as a cultivator. A weapon. A shadow. A part of my soul that stands by my side against the heavens."
With a flick of his wrist, a small jade bottle appeared in his hand. He popped the cork, and instantly, a rich, medicinal fragrance permeated the air around them, making the air feel vibrant and sweet.
He tipped the bottle, and a round, glowing pill rolled into his palm. It pulsated with a soft, azure light.
"Take it," he commanded.
Mo Qingqui's eyes widened until they were perfectly round. Her body went rigid.
She recognized the description from stories she had heard as a child. The spiritual energy radiating from it was suffocatingly pure.
"A... Perfect Grade Qi Refining Pill?" she gasped.
Her mind reeled. For a mortal, a low-grade pill was already a treasure worth fighting over. But a Perfect-Grade one? This was a product of the immortals. In her hometown, even if the Mo clan sold their ancestral lands, their house, and sold every single clansman into slavery, the pile of gold they raised wouldn't be enough to purchase a single Qi refining pill much less a Perfect grade one
"Your Highness, I... I couldn't!" Mo Qingqui fell to her knees, her forehead touching the floor. The value was too immense; it was too heavy a burden.
"This is too precious! This servant is unworthy! This is a heavenly treasure!"
"Get up," Long Xiaoyao said, his voice dropping to a dangerous chill.
He reached down, took her hand, and slapped the pill into her palm, closing her fingers over it.
"Did you not hear what I just said?" Long Xiaoyao looked down at her with domineering possessiveness.
"You belong to me. Your body is my property. If my property remains a weak mortal, it is of no use too me. You breaking through will greatly benefit me. Do not reject my investment."
Mo Qingqui clutched the pill to her chest, overwhelmed by a mix of fear, gratitude, and awe.
Meanwhile, Eunuch Yuan, along with two other junior eunuchs and two young palace maids, stood frozen like statues.
Eunuch Yuan's mouth hung slightly open, his usual composure shattered. He stared at the glowing pill in the maid's hand with disbelief.
'A Perfect-Grade Qi Refining Pill... given to a servant? Oh heavens. I knew it. I should have called the Doctor as soon as the 6th prince woke up. I need to find a cure for his damaged brain.. My poor 6th prince' as he became teary
The other maids exchanged terrified, envious glances.
That pill was enough to start a war between two small noble families because even talentless nobles will be able to break through with it. Yet the 6th Prince tossed it out as if it were candy