Longevity starts from having a daughter in old age

“I have a favor to ask of Friend Qiao!”

Clad in a blue robe and with a composed demeanor, Xu Mu made his request with a respectful bow.

“Hmm! Friend Xu distinctly remembers me only when he has something he needs!”

Qiao Qianqian snorted coldly and was about to turn away.

Xu Mu quickly seized her arm and yanked her into his embrace.

This sudden gesture startled Qiao Qianqian and she tried to break free from his hold.

“What, what are you doing?!”

“You are unique and irresistible. I couldn’t help but act upon my feelings!” Xu Mu chuckled.

“You… how… how dare you!!!”

Qiao Qianqian flushed red, whether from anger or embarrassment, her porcelain face taking on the shade of rouge.

She had initially wanted to skilfully reel in Xu Mu, but she didn’t expect him to be so assertive and forthright.

In view of him preparing to make further advances, Qiao Qianqian finally managed to break free.

What cannot be obtained is always the most desirable; once you possess it, its worth diminishes.

“If you behave like this next time, I will not hesitate to report you to the princess!” Qiao Qianqian fumed.

“Haha! I was merely joking. Do not bear a grudge, Friend Qiao!”

Xu Mu burst into laughter, appearing as if he had indeed been jesting.

Qiao Qianqian huffed, cast Xu Mu a glance, and her mood remained a mystery.

“May I enquire if Friend Qiao could assist me?” Xu Mu inquired in a good-natured tone.

This one time I will let you off! Now, what’s the matter?”

Qiao Qianqian still appeared somewhat irate; however, it seemed more indicative of a lovers’ spat.

“Might Friend Qiao invite me inside first? Standing at the doorstep is somewhat inconvenient!”

“Hmph! You think it’s inconvenient!”

Even the act of embracing could be accomplished by you; yet you claim to feel awkward.

Huffing coldly, Qiao Qianqian permitted Xu Mu to enter and led him to the main hall. She personally brewed Spiritual Tea and arranged fruit and refreshments for him.

“These Spirit Fruit and refreshments are presumably all courtesy of Friend Qiao’s efforts, truly an unparalleled delicacy!”

“Cut the flattery and get to the point!”

Xu Mu’s sudden behavioural shift left her struggling to adjust.

“I’d like Friend Qiao’s assistance in procuring a batch of medical ingredients!”

Xu Mu passed several Pill Recipes to Qiao Qianqian; these were what he had collected himself, including tier seven Blood Sun Pill, tier eight Red Blood Pill, Hundred Sun Pill and tier nine Jinsui Dan.

“Except for Jinsui Dan, which might be a bit troublesome, the primary ingredients for the other three are commonly available medicines. They can be collected within three days!”

Qiao Qianqian’s declaration was no boast; she had a broad network and this was the Dayuan Imperial City, possibly the most prosperous city worldwide. There were abundant supplies; even rare treasures elsewhere were commonplace here.

“Please don’t rush, Friend Qiao; I don’t just want a single batch, I want a thousand batches of each!”

Hearing this, Qiao Qianqian almost sprouted water.

Do you think this is the lowest-grade Fasting Pill? You want a thousand batches!

“You must be kidding! One thousand batches of Blood Sun Pills would have been enough, but having such a quantity of medicine like Jinsui Dan can produce five to six hundred bottles. Even a large sect wouldn’t use it all in a hundred years! These are energy-supplementing pills, not cultivation-enhancing pills. Once they’re prepared, it would be challenging to sell!”

Within Qiao Qianqian’s words, there seemed to be a hint of concern for Xu Mu.

“Feel free to procure these materials, Friend Qiao. Here is the deposit. We’ll settle the bill each time we do a transaction!”

Xu Mu directly took out a thousand high-quality Spirit Stones and placed them in front of Qiao Qianqian, almost dazzling her. As an initial-stage Golden Pill cultivator, her entire net worth might not even amount to these many Spirit Stones.

“No wonder you chose Spirit Stones over ancient treasures! Seeing how sincere you are, I’ll help you this one time. But let’s get things straight; if you change your mind when the time comes, I’m not responsible for a refund!”

Based on the preliminary calculation of Xu Mu’s requirements, at least tens of thousands of high-quality Spirit Stones would be needed. If Xu Mu suddenly changed his mind, she certainly couldn’t afford to bear the loss.

“Friend Qiao, rest assured! How could I bear to deceive you!” Xu Mu said with a smile.

“Friend Xu, it’s just been a few days, and I didn’t expect you to become such a sweet talker. I even suspect whether you’ve been possessed by someone!”

“It’s just that I had an epiphany that life is short, and we should seize every joyous moment which is the right way!” Xu Mu chuckled.

“Then I must congratulate you, my friend, on your grand enlightenment!”

As soon as Xu Mu lightened up, Qiao Qianqian became more restrained. After a short conversation, she sent him away.

Upon returning to his residence, Xu Mu saw Xu Ling tending to the plants and flowers in the yard.

“Senior!”

Seeing Xu Mu, Xu Ling quickly got up and saluted, her smile somewhat restrained.

“Why are you here? Didn’t the princess arrange a place for you?” Xu Mu asked in confusion.

He had simply saved her spontaneously, finding comfort in clearing his conscience and didn’t expect her to repay the favor. Therefore, after reaching the imperial capital, he had Li Youlan grant them ordinary identities so they could live freely.

“No, it’s not the princess! I asked to stay to serve you, to repay your life-saving grace!” Xu Ling said, flustered.

“…”

Xu Mu slightly furrowed his eyebrows.

Could it be another trap set by Li Youlan?

As their trade was about to end, he could leave at any moment. Certainly, Li Youlan would go to great lengths to keep a powerful ally like him around.

It shouldn’t be, well, whatever!

If he wanted to leave, no one could stop him!

“Alright then! Continue with your work! If you need anything, you can directly tell me or Xiao Rou and Xiao Xin!”

“I understand! Thank you, senior!” Xu Ling expressed her gratitude.

After parting ways with Xu Ling and instructing Rou’er not to disturb him, Xu Mu entered his cultivation room.

Purple flames burned fiercely on his body, emitting an indescribable aura, which was eventually consumed entirely.

With the disappearance of the mysterious power, Xu Mu felt a sudden relief in his soul, as if a layer of dust had been wiped away.

“It was her who did it!” Xu Mu said softly, opening his eyes.

The reason why he was so proactive today was to test Qiao Qianqian and see if she was the one behind this power.

Now, his suspicion was confirmed, because he had already expelled this power once before setting off.

“Do you know what this is?” Xu Mu asked in his mind.

“Invisible and intangible, it should be wish power! I didn’t expect that people still cultivate this now!” The Black YuanYing exclaimed.

“What is wish power?” Xu Mu demanded to know.

“It is a kind of spiritual power. To put it simply, it’s called the power of faith or telekinesis. It is related to the God Spirit System that flourished in ancient times. There are still a few remnants of the divine spirits in the Extreme Western Land. This energy is quite peculiar, creating a reality with words, even more mysterious than the Curse Skill! It is said that in that era, a divine spirit could rule a country, with everyone being its believer, utterly insane!” The Black YuanYing explained.

“No wonder she dared to lay her hands on me. If it wasn’t for the extraordinary nature of the Purple Thunder Scroll, I might not have noticed the anomaly in my body, and it could become a significant problem in the future!” Xu Mu stated.

Such power, being invisible and intangible, could easily deceive people.

If he wasn’t cultivating the Purple Thunder Scroll, an ancient martial method with peculiar characteristics, he might not have discovered it.

Xu Mu speculated that the creator of the Purple Thunder Scroll might have lived in an era where divine spirits still existed, hence included elements to combat such forces in it.

“No need to worry, you have a much higher cultivation level than her. Unless she specializes in wish power, all she can do is make you feel a bit good towards her, it won’t affect your sanity! However, this ancient system with its mysterious methods indeed makes one hard to defend against!” the Black YuanYing stated.

“She used this form of attack on me out of nowhere, I wonder who is behind her?”