Chapter 421: True Immortal

“I…”

Fang Rui looked at Yu Yunlan’s matter-of-fact expression and felt a wave of exhaustion.

He found that this girl, who seemed so cold and aloof, was in some ways a complete novice, making communication impossible.

“Didn’t you agree to ‘let it be’ before?”

“That’s what my main body agreed to.”

‘So, what your main body agreed to has nothing to do with you?’

Fang Rui rubbed the bridge of his nose. “Where is your main body?”

“Gone.”

“She split you off from herself and just left?”

“Mhm.”

“COUGH, COUGH, COUGH, COUGH!”

Fang Rui was speechless once again.

What was she thinking, splitting off her Upper Qing Body and leaving? Wasn’t this… giving her free rein to come find him?

The original Yu Yunlan was a bit sly, but this Upper Qing Body was even more emotional and a little mischievous.

‘No, I’m getting confused. They’re clearly the same person!’

Fang Rui complained inwardly, then continued to ask, “Let’s be direct. Can you not follow me around, or stay near me?”

“I can’t.”

Yu Yunlan emphasized, “I need to break through.”

“Is a breakthrough that important?”

“Only with my Three Pristine Ones’ Body at Perfection can I commune with the heavens and earth and inspect the state of the Celestial Path.”

Fang Rui fell silent.

He couldn’t beat her, couldn’t drive her away, she was as clingy as taffy, and she held the moral high ground. There was really nothing he could do!

—That was right. Although this Upper Qing Body of Yu Yunlan’s only had energy fluctuations at the Source Technique Realm, he might not actually be able to beat her in a one-on-one fight. Who knew what tricks the main body had left for her?

“How about this? Stop following me in secret and just stay by my side openly. But, we’ll have to agree on three rules…”

Fang Rui changed his mind. He felt it was better to have this girl out in the open than to have her watching him from the shadows.

It was a matter of feeling secure. After all, this Upper Qing Body was only at the Source Technique Realm. Once he broke through to the Profound Realm Level, she wouldn’t be much of a threat.

As for his own secrets… this woman wasn’t an unreasonable person. If they discussed it properly, it should be fine.

“What does ‘agree on three rules’ mean?”

“‘Agree on three rules’ means making a gentleman’s agreement: no prying into each other’s secrets; no prying into each other’s secrets; and still, no prying into each other’s secrets!”

“Alright.” As expected, Yu Yunlan readily agreed.

“Uncle, it’s time to eat…”

Just then, Xin Xue’Er came in and saw Yu Yunlan at a glance. “Sister, you’re back?”

“Mhm.”

“She’s going to stay and live with us for a while.”

“Oh!”

Xin Xue’Er nodded her little head in understanding. “So from now on, Uncle, Sister, and me, we’ll be a family.”

‘You’re good with words, kid. So maybe don’t use them.’

Fang Rui tapped the little girl’s head and led her away. “Come on, let’s go eat. Fellow Daoist Yu, would you care to join us?”

“There’s no need.”

Yu Yunlan refused. At her Realm, she had long since transcended the need for food and drink. Being a clean freak, she naturally wouldn’t eat out here.

After the meal, Fang Rui sought out Yu Yunlan and found her meditating.

“What can I do for you, Fellow Daoist Fang?”

“I’m about to break through to the Profound Domain Realm.”

Living together day and night, it was something he couldn’t hide anyway. Telling her voluntarily would seem sincere, and besides, Fang Rui planned to ask Yu Yunlan for some advice.

Since he was letting her stay by his side, he might as well take full advantage of such a prime opportunity.

“Breaking through to the Profound Domain Realm?”

A flicker of light crossed Yu Yunlan’s cold eyes. This kind of breakthrough was an extremely private matter. The experience of being trusted so openly by Fang Rui felt strange to her.

Putting herself in his shoes, she was also mindful of her boundaries and didn’t voice the questions on her mind.

“Do you have any warnings for me, Fellow Daoist Yu?”

“I do.”

Yu Yunlan thought for a moment before confirming, “Fellow Daoist Fang, you walk the path of an Ancient Spirit Cultivator, correct?”

“Yes.”

“Then that’s trouble.”

Yu Yunlan’s lovely brows furrowed slightly. “A breakthrough to the Profound Domain Realm involves a metamorphosis of the Divine Soul. Ancient Spirit Cultivators only absorb Heaven and Earth Spiritual Qi, but that Spiritual Qi is tainted. It will contaminate the Divine Soul during this process…”

“Unlike with the Source Technique Realm, this is an irreversible contamination at the very root. If you absorb Heaven and Earth Spiritual Qi to break through to the Profound Domain, you will very likely fall into depravity.”

This very point was one of the main reasons the Great Yu officials cracked down on Ancient Spirit Cultivators back then.

“Oh?!”

Fang Rui frowned deeply. “Then you, Fellow Daoist…”

“I walk the path of an Imperial Spirit Master, supplied by a massive amount of Qi Fortune and shielded from the outside world by an Innate Supreme Treasure to prevent the instinctual absorption of Spiritual Qi.”

From Yu Yunlan’s words, one could infer that to walk the path of an Imperial Spirit Master and break through to the Profound Domain Realm, two conditions had to be met: first, a massive amount of Qi Fortune, and second, an Innate Supreme Treasure for insulation.

In a way, this directly allowed the Great Yu Royal Family and the Purple Cloud Pavilion to monopolize all Profound Domain Cultivators.

‘The energy for my breakthrough is supplied by Tribulation Points, not drawn from the outside world. So this biggest hurdle isn’t a problem for me.’

‘However, the instinctual absorption of Heaven and Earth Spiritual Qi during the breakthrough is unavoidable. So, does that mean I also need an Innate Supreme Treasure to shield me from the outside world?’

Even though the one-time age reversal from his Divine Technique ‘Immortality’ could most likely cleanse the contamination, Fang Rui didn’t want to take the risk.

“Although I walk the path of an Ancient Spirit Master, I don’t need to absorb Heaven and Earth Spiritual Qi for my breakthrough. But about that second point… is your ‘Map of Mountains and Rivers’ still around, Fellow Daoist Yu?”

“My main body took it with her.”

“Then never mind.”

Fang Rui had already thought of a new method. ‘I don’t necessarily need an Innate Supreme Treasure. The ‘Heaven-Sealing Earth-Locking Spirit-Banning Array’ seems like it could work, too.’

‘The Heaven-Sealing Earth-Locking Spirit-Banning Array forbids Spiritual Qi, creating a spirit-free environment. In that case, I naturally wouldn’t have to fear the instinctual absorption of Spiritual Qi.’

‘Perhaps this was the real reason the Half-Immortal Family, the Liao Family, created the ‘Heaven-Sealing Earth-Locking Spirit-Banning Array’ in the first place?’

‘It’s just a shame that the Array Jade Talisman was used up today. It will take some time to refine a new one.’

Fang Rui sighed to himself.

Yu Yunlan wasn’t stupid. What Fang Rui could think of, she naturally could as well. “Are you planning to use that Spirit-Banning Array, Fellow Daoist? There’s no need to go through the trouble of refining a Jade Talisman. After seeing it today, my Lifebound Spiritual Treasure, the ‘All Heavens Star Map,’ has already recorded the array. I can form it with a single thought.”