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Wang Anshi's essay ‘Wounded Zhongyong,’ recounts the story of Fang Zhongyong, a prodigy who once ‘pointed to things and made poetry,’ and finally ‘disappeared’ because he did not continue to learn. He eventually became an ordinary man because he was not educated.
** SSR stands for Special Super Rare. UR is Ultimate Rare.
Ye Anping was sitting under a locust tree, panting heavily with his face flushed. His undershirt was so soaked with sweat that if he wrung it out, it could fill several large bowls.
Compared to his exhaustion, Pei Lianxue, who was his sparring partner, only had a few beads of sweat on her forehead and a slight blush on her cheeks, seeing that she still hadn't exerted all her energy.
Actually, Ye Anping knew a long time ago that there would come a time when he would no longer be able to act as her sparring partner, but still, he didn't expect this day to arrive so quickly.
Rushing ahead on the same road, the gap between the genius and the cannon fodder would only widen.
However, he did not feel discouraged. Rather, he felt quite a sense of accomplishment, as if his daughter had grown up---look, this is what I taught her, see how good she is!
It's a pity that the sense of accomplishment belonged to the one who accomplished himself.
Wang Anshi's 'Wounded Zhongyong*' was known to everyone, and in that respect, neither the Hundred Lotus Sect nor Ye Anping himself had the resources to supply Pei Lianxue.
Her extremely rare single-water spiritual root had very strict requirements regarding the cultivation method and environment. Moreover, she had already completed Qi Refining and was going to enter the Foundation Building stage soon.
Once she entered that stage, whether it was the demand for spirit stones or the need for the extremely cold energy of the land, everything would increase exponentially. At that time, unless Ye Anping could get his father to give Pei Lianxue all of the sect's training resources, she would have a hard time making further progress.
Thinking of this, Ye Anping couldn't help remembering those mobile games he played in the past, where the rarer the character, the more expensive the materials for training. If the protagonist, Feng Yu Die, was an SSR** character, then Pei Lianxue was probably UR.
"Ah, I can't afford it anymore, I can't afford it..."
"What can't you afford?" Pei Lianxue put away her sword, knelt down behind him, and gently squeezed his shoulders to help him relax. "Brother, do you want to keep a little monster as a pet? Why don't we go shopping at the market? Last time I saw a bird seller that looked good."
"Oh, I'm not interested in those little things." Ye Anping shook his head and replied, "What I meant is that soon, I won't be able to support you any longer."
Pei Lianxue puffed out her cheeks, thinking that he must be comparing her to a pet. But on second thought, being her brother's pet was also very good, so she jokingly said, "Why can't you afford it? I'm easy to raise. I just need a place to sleep, three meals a day, and petting and hugging from time to time. It's much easier to raise me than those little monsters and potted plants."
Hearing her words, Ye Anping sighed again and said flatly, "I have spent a lot of spirit stones for you these years."
"How much did you spend on me? I'll give it all back to you. I saved a lot of spirit stones."
"Come on, how much can you have in your little piggy bank?" Ye Anping shrugged, thought for a while, and said, "If I have to do the math, I spent at least fifty thousand spirit stones on you."
"Huh? Fif... fifty thousand?"
"One of the medicines you usually drink is 'Black Ice Lotus.' At the market, one plant costs five or six hundred spirit stones. You've been taking this medicine since you were seven and had to use twelve plants a year. Add in everything else, and fifty thousand may not even be enough."
Pei Lianxue was a little shocked. She knew that her brother gave her some pills every day, but she thought it was only a few thousand spirit stones at most. She really didn't expect him to spend so much.
Seeing her expression, Ye Anping joked, "Sister, I have spent so many spiritual stones on you. What do you have to say?"
"Ah..." Pei Lianxue pursed her lips uneasily and thought for a while before her eyes suddenly lit up. Then, she asked with a smile, "Brother, how much do you think I am worth? Shall I write a deed of sale for myself to pay your debts?"
Ye Anping gave her a blank look and waved his hand. "Who wants your deed of sale?"
"You don't want it?" Pei Lianxue lowered her eyes, disappointed.
"..." Taken aback, Ye Anping frowned and asked, "What? Are you happy selling yourself to me?"
It would be best if she married him, but selling herself worked too... Pei Lianxue raised her index finger and said, "No... it's only natural to pay back the debt. I can't afford to pay back so many spirit stones, so I have no choice but to sell myself to you, no?"
"So, how much do you weigh now?"
"Eh? About forty-two kilos?"
"The market price for pork is four spirit stones per kilo, and you are worth a hundred..."
"Brother!!" Pei Lianxue raised her eyebrows, then reached out and grabbed Ye Anping's face, squeezing it like a big pancake. "You are the pig!!"
Ye Anping laughed and grabbed her hand. "Okay, okay, no more jokes."
"Hmph!"
"I mean it. In the future, if you stay in the Hundred Lotus Sect, you won't be able to improve your cultivation. Yesterday, I was thinking about sending you to the Black Star Sect."
"Black Star Sect?"
"Well, it is one of the five great sects after all, and it has more resources than the Hundred Lotus Sect."
"Okay, then let's go together." Pei Lianxue nodded quickly. "Didn't you say that they will have a meeting in two months? You will definitely rank at the top."
"Well---" Ye Anping tapped her forehead and said, "I can't participate."
"Why not?"
"The Black Star Sect is very strict regarding the aptitudes of its disciples. Being a dual spiritual root, I don't even have the qualifications to participate in the disciple selection."
"In that case... if you can't get in, I won't be able to get in either. It's not a big deal. I will practice slowly in the future, and we'll stay together in the Hundred Lotus, which is also very good."
Ye Anping hadn't officially explained to Pei Lianxue about her spiritual roots, so she still thought she was a three-spiritual root.
Anyway, letting Pei Lianxue stay in the Hundred Lotus Sect was also a good idea. Now that Wu You was dead, once Feng Yu Die entered the Black Star Sect, the main plot would speed up. Not only Pei Lianxue, but he too would need a lot of resources in the future.
Getting some benefits from going to such a great sect was, without a doubt, the most effortless way to obtain resources.
But the problem was, neither he nor Pei Lianxue could enter the Black Star Sect.
Pei Lianxue's unique water spiritual root was so special that most Black Star Sect elders couldn't see her real value while he only had dual spiritual roots, which didn't meet the requirements.
But he remembered that the newly received disciples could bring a companion with them.
Therefore, it could be a way for him or Pei Lianxue to go as Feng Yu Die's companion.
However---
He really didn't want to get too close to Feng Yu Die.
Cannon fodder getting close to the protagonist, wasn't that a recipe for disaster? And if he sent Pei Lianxue with her, he was afraid that Feng Yu Die would lead his little sister, whom he brought up through many hardships, astray.
Pei Lianxue was the younger sister that he cultivated for more than ten years of painstaking efforts! How could he give her to Feng Yu Die, that philandering bitch?
In the middle and later stages of the game, Feng Yu Die first robbed the Black Star Patriarch's daughter's first night and then flirted with the princess and five or six other beautiful girls.
Just as Ye Anping was thinking about Feng Yu Die, her voice suddenly came from the side.
"Miss Pei... and Young Master Ye."
"..."
Ye Anping turned his head while Pei Lianxue subconsciously clenched her sword.
With the support of Xiaodie, Feng Yu Die limped toward them from the edge of the training ground.
Walking up to them, she nodded her head and bowed to Ye Anping, saying, "Thank you, Young Master Ye, for the medicinal porridge you prepared for me. After drinking it, I feel a lot better."
Hearing this, Pei Lianxue's eyes widened, and she gripped her sword even tighter.
Ye Anping was a little puzzled. He didn't give Feng Yu Die any medicinal porridge, and also, why was she wearing his mother's old clothes?
Glancing at Xiaodie's eyes, he immediately understood that the porridge was probably prepared by his mother. It seemed that Kong Yulan had misunderstood his act of bringing Feng Yu Die home.
"Well, you're welcome. By the way, Miss Feng, weren't you resting in the room? Why did you come to the training ground?"
"I heard that you and Miss Pei are training with swords here, so..." Feng Yu Die glanced sideways at Pei Lianxue and smiled brightly. "Can I watch from the sidelines?"
"We have just finished practicing. However, I was going to see you later. There is something I want to discuss with you."
"To discuss with me?" Feng Yu Die lowered her head awkwardly, wondering if this person really had a crush on her.
"Well, there's something I need to ask you." Ye Anping paused, looking at Xiaodie beside him, "Xiaodie, go and make us some tea."
Xiaodie nodded, but with a twinkle in her eyes, she hastily added, "Young Master, Miss Feng can't walk alone now, she needs to be supported. Would you please help her?"
"No need, no need." Feng Yu Die declined politely but then paused, looked at Pei Lianxue again shyly, and said, "Well, men and women are different... Let's not bother Young Master Ye. Perhaps... Miss Pei could help me."
Seeing her gaze on Pei Lianxue, Ye Anping instantly understood what she was thinking. She had probably already taken a fancy to his sister.
Immediately ignoring Feng Yu Die's polite refusal, he stepped forward, grabbed her arm, and dragged her to the gazebo nearby.
"Miss Feng, let me help you."
"Ah?!" Feng Yu Die subconsciously wanted to get away but was pulled even tighter by Ye Anping, "Young Master Ye, this..."
Ye Anping leaned to her ear and smiled coldly. "Miss Feng, please rest assured, I don't care about you at all, but I can tell..."
Feng Yu Die's gaze slowly turned to his face, only to see that his previously serene expression suddenly showed a trace of a mischievous, eerie smile.
She swallowed and asked, "What can you tell?"
"For others, there's the difference between men and women. But for you, it should be the difference between women and women." Ye Anping gave her a cold look and said through his gritted teeth, "If you dare to hit on my little sister, you will regret it."
Feng Yu Die didn't expect to be exposed, so she chuckled in embarrassment, "Ah, ha, ha..."
However, hearing her chuckle, Ye Anping's gaze became even more profound. In the game, whenever Feng Yu Die had a guilty conscience, she giggled like this.
"Miss Feng, don't think your silly laugh is fooling me. I'm serious."
Feng Yu Die paused for a moment and quickly retorted. "Young Master Ye, this... I just admire Miss Pei very much, you really misunderstood."
"It's fine if I misunderstood." Ye Anping smiled back. "I saved your life, so don't bite the hand that fed you."
Feng Yu Die gulped and smiled fearfully. "No... I won't, I won't."
Right now, she felt that this person was terrifying.
He was obviously just a cultivator in the Qi Refining stage and a mediocre person with dual spiritual roots. No matter how you looked at it, he should be a pretender, but still, he exuded an aura similar to her master, the Great Taixu.
Floating above her head, Xiao Tian looked at her being actually scared, and was once again impressed with Ye Anping.
From her impression, Feng Yu Die had never had such a fearful expression towards anyone except in front of her master, Taixu.
How could he see at a glance that Yu Die liked women? The young master of the Hundred Lotus Sect was really good; he was actually able to handle her!
No one noticed Pei Lianxue standing there and staring blankly with bloodshot eyes at Feng Yu Die's back.
The sword in her hand was squeezed until it made a 'click.'
"Tsk, this vixen..."