My Golden Core is a Star, do you call this cultivating?

Chapter 384: Sisterhood, Deep as the Sea

“When Ice Mountain Queen wakes up, make sure to tell her that I’ve reached the Purple Mansion!”

Qi Yuan left this message in the Divine Flower Society group and then exited the chat.

As he walked through the Shenguang Sect, all the cultivators, whether disciples or elders, looked at him with reverence.

It was clear that Qi Yuan had now become a legendary figure within the Shenguang Sect.

“Is that the senior brother?”

“I’ve heard he’s even stronger than Senior Brother Kang Fulou!”

“Didn’t Senior Brother Kang make it onto the Eastern Lands Heaven’s Chosen List?”

Some disciples exclaimed in awe.

Forget the Eastern Lands Heaven’s Chosen List—even the Great Shang Heaven’s Chosen List was something they could only dream of.

“The Eastern Lands Heaven’s Chosen List is nothing. Senior Brother Qi Yuan has made it onto… the Canglan Heaven’s Chosen List!”

“Huh? What’s that list?”

“Heh heh, you don’t know, do you? My uncle’s nephew’s brother told me he personally saw Qi Yuan make it onto the mysterious Canglan Heaven’s Chosen List!”

“I don’t believe it. That’s definitely a rumor. Senior Brother Kang Fulou is the true number one prodigy of Shenguang Sect. He dared… to peep at a junior sister bathing!”

“Senior Brother Qi Yuan is the true one. He dared to steal the undergarments of a beautiful elder!”

The group of disciples suddenly started arguing.

Seeing this, Qi Yuan felt helpless. “Hey, I’ve never stolen the undergarments of a beautiful elder. Stop spreading rumors!”

“Senior Brother!” The disciples quickly bowed their heads in respect.

The female disciple who had spoken in defense of Qi Yuan then smugly added, “Senior Brother Qi Yuan didn’t steal the beautiful elder’s undergarments; they were delivered to him at night!”

She was proud of her cleverness, thinking she had successfully cleared Qi Yuan’s name, so he wouldn’t be seen as a thief.

“Uh…”

Qi Yuan was speechless.

Such things… actually did happen.

However, it had been during a time when he was refining the Five Elements Qi, causing some madness and chaos within the Shenguang Sect.

It couldn’t be taken seriously.

“You… you’ve grown a bit in the past three years. You’ve become a formal disciple now, so don’t go spreading nonsense anymore!

As a formal disciple, you represent the Shenguang Sect.”

Qi Yuan glanced at the fan and casually gave her some advice before his figure disappeared.

Seeing this, the young woman’s eyes lit up with joy. “Senior Brother Qi Yuan… remembered me!”

Back then, she had been a servant disciple on the Divine Medicine Peak, responsible for reception. When Senior Brother Qi Yuan came to the peak to seek medicine, she was his guide and recommended that he visit Elder Xuanchong.

Later, Qi Yuan had even pointed out a cultivation issue with her body, which helped her resolve it and grow stronger, eventually becoming a formal disciple.

---

Back on the Seven-Color Peak, Qi Yuan was in a great mood.

After reaching the Purple Mansion, his status and prestige naturally had to rise.

He couldn’t allow any building in the Shenguang Sect to be grander than his own.

Sect Leader Kumu had already taken Qi Yuan’s design plans and was seeking workers to begin construction on his new mansion.

“With a proper mansion, it will match my status.

The wives can move in, and they won’t have to worry about not having their own private bedrooms!”

Qi Yuan mused.

Of course, there was also his daughter, Qi Jianjun, who was always running around, fishing wherever she pleased.

Right now, who knows where she had gone to fish.

As for Shen Wushen, he was likely still in the upper realms. According to his calculations, Shen Wushen should return to the lower realm soon to deliver a divine technique to Qi Yuan.

Thinking of Shen Wushen, Qi Yuan’s eyes drifted to the pavilion at the peak of Seven-Color Mountain and the towering ancient Qichun tree beside it.

“Shen Wushen once said that it would take three years for the letter to reach Jinli. It’s already been two and a half years…”

In another six months, Jinli would receive his letter.

A faint ripple stirred in Qi Yuan’s heart.

He recalled the small figure of Moon Lady by the July Lake and the empress, Jinli, whom he had never met.

“Senior Brother, run!”

At that moment, an urgent voice called out, and Jiang Lingsu, dressed modestly, rushed over to Qi Yuan, clutching his arm tightly.

Her voice jolted Qi Yuan out of his melancholy.

“What’s going on?” he asked. “Why are you in such a hurry? Did the sky fall?”

Now that Qi Yuan had become a legendary Purple Mansion cultivator, he naturally had to maintain his composure—facing even a collapsing mountain without panicking.

“My dad is coming!” Jiang Lingsu said, her face full of worry.

In Qi Yuan’s mind, the image of the overly enthusiastic uncle surfaced.

Back then, on the spirit boat, that uncle had been very warm toward him.

For the sake of his grand plan, Qi Yuan had “tricked” everyone into joining the Divine Flower Society and uploading their cultivation techniques. He even personally used his Origin Heavenly Venerate persona to spin a story.

A story about being of humble birth, looked down upon by his senior brothers, and scorned by others.

Then, through uploading techniques to the Divine Flower Society, he exchanged them for powerful techniques, attracting many admirers. The aloof senior sister began casting flirtatious glances, and the well-endowed junior sister started sneaking into his room at night.

At that time, Jiang Ruhua had believed the Origin Heavenly Venerate’s story to be true and personally offered advice based on his own experiences, encouraging Qi Yuan to choose the well-endowed junior sister.

And if the junior sister’s father objected?

Just go ahead and make sure the rice was cooked—once the junior sister was pregnant, her father would have no choice but to accept it.

Sharing advice with the younger generation and feeling like a mentor was incredibly satisfying.

But… when the well-endowed junior sister’s father turned out to be himself, Jiang Ruhua had lost his composure.

He abandoned his business and moved directly to Great Shang.

As soon as he heard that Qi Yuan had woken up, he immediately rushed over.

Hearing that Jiang Ruhua was coming, Qi Yuan felt uneasy as well. “We really should run, or this is going to get way too awkward!”

Qi Yuan wasn’t good in social situations, and the thought of seeing Jiang Ruhua again made him anxious.

It would be incredibly awkward.

“Let’s go!” Qi Yuan grabbed Jiang Lingsu and vanished in a flash of light.

Outside Seven-Color Peak, Jiang Ruhua, dressed in a green robe, saw the streak of light in the sky and couldn’t help but curse, “You little rascal, why are you running?!”

He wanted nothing more than to slice that streak of light with his sword.

But his daughter was there!

“Little brat! And he even had the nerve to mute me in the Divine Flower Society. No respect for his elders at all!”

Jiang Ruhua fumed.

Originally, he had planned to spread rumors about the Origin Heavenly Venerate on the Divine Flower Society forum. But as soon as he cursed the Origin Heavenly Venerate, he was silenced.

“Sigh, poor planning. I taught that brat the dragon-slaying technique, only to find out that I’m the dragon!”

---

Helan Continent was located to the north of the Eastern Lands and ranked slightly below average among the thirteen continents of the Eastern Lands.

At this moment, on a pavilion, a man in a blood-red robe leaned against the railing, occasionally glancing at the cultivators passing below, his eyes filled with contemplation.

Beside him, Jiang Lingsu was tapping away on her communication jade, seemingly venting her frustrations to someone.

After some time, Qi Yuan stretched and said, “I’m working too hard.”

After arriving in Helan, Qi Yuan had spent every day using his eyes to “peek” at the world’s cultivators.

Anyone at the Foundation Establishment stage or above had a mark inside their body.

Every day, when his eyes scanned someone’s mark, he received a notification with some information.

So, his daily “peeping” was all about finding a way to eliminate or seal these marks.

“Luckily, I’m doing this from a distance. Otherwise, if this were the subway, I’d probably get caught and put on the internet.”

Qi Yuan was relieved to live in a world without subways.

Otherwise, with his intense level of surveillance, he’d definitely be arrested and labeled a perverted stalker.

Of course, Qi Yuan wasn’t a pervert—he only peeked at the marks and nothing more.

During these days, he had seen many marks, but the results were not particularly fruitful.

Still, he had some ideas and backup plans.

“Senior Brother, how’s it going?” Jiang Lingsu asked, noticing that her senior brother was no longer deep in thought.

In truth, she was bursting with the urge to complain, just waiting for Qi Yuan to finish his business.

She didn’t know exactly what her senior brother was doing, but she was willing to be a listener.

“I have two potential plans to deal with sealing the marks.

The first plan involves using my innate divine ability, the Great Forgetting Sutra, to chant over the marks every day, making them forget they’re poisonous.

The second plan is a bit cruel: I could kill everyone with the marks. When they die, the marks will disappear, right?

Then I’ll build a Netherworld, revive them in my Netherworld, and all will be well!”

Jiang Lingsu froze for a moment, looking at Qi Yuan seriously. “Senior Brother, did you come up with these two plans yourself? They don’t sound like something your brain could come up with!”

“Ahem, the Origin Heavenly Venerate never plagiarizes!” Qi Yuan retorted, but then added, “Both plans carry a lot of risks. A small mistake could be disastrous.”

“Senior Brother, are you still going to observe more marks?” Jiang Lingsu asked, eager to move on.

“No need. I’ve already seen all the cultivators in Helan Continent. Time for a break.” Qi Yuan had been thorough in his observations.

He hadn’t just observed the cultivators wandering the city; he had peered at every Foundation Establishment or higher cultivator across Helan Continent.

“Senior Brother, you’re such a braggart. You’re worse than Qiong Yunting!” Jiang Lingsu shot him a sideways glance.

Even if Qi Yuan had reached the Purple Mansion stage, there was no way he could just glance at all the cultivators in Helan Continent.

“What’s your friend been bragging about?” Qi Yuan chuckled.

Over the past few days, the painter they were seeking was out of town, so Qi Yuan and Jiang Lingsu had been staying at one of her family’s properties in Helan.

One of Jiang Lingsu’s “friends” had heard she was in town and kept inviting her to hang out. On the surface, it seemed like friendly visits, but in reality, this friend—Qiong Yunting—was constantly bragging about her powerful fiancé.

At first, Qiong Yunting had been all smiles when she saw Qi Yuan, assuming he was Jiang Lingsu’s significant other.

But after learning that Qi Yuan came from a small region without even a Purple Mansion, her friendly demeanor turned into disdain.

She now visited frequently, mainly to boast about her fiancé’s achievements.

“What a fake friend!” Jiang Lingsu grumbled. “Her fiancé recently emerged from seclusion and reached the Nascent Soul stage.”

“Aren’t you friends?” Qi Yuan was puzzled. “Didn’t you two seem to get along well before?”

He recalled seeing Jiang Lingsu and Qiong Yunting meeting up earlier.

Qiong Yunting had praised Jiang Lingsu’s ability to eat without gaining weight, saying she was jealous of her figure. She herself ate less and maintained a strict diet, weighing under a hundred pounds, yet couldn’t achieve such a figure.

Jiang Lingsu had also complimented Qiong Yunting, saying she was cute and had very fair skin.

The two had seemed to be happily exchanging flattery.

“Get along? Ha, she’s just a green tea b*tch!” Jiang Lingsu retorted angrily.

She had learned the term “green tea b*tch” from Qi Yuan.

“Is that so?” Qi Yuan didn’t dwell on it too much.

After all, thinking about it too deeply required effort.

And that was tiring.

Just then, a soft, coquettish voice called out, and a woman in a palace dress appeared. “Lingsu, I knew you’d be here.

Oh my, that burgundy dress really suits you today.

But you’re still a bit young for it. Once you grow a little more, mature a bit, you’ll look truly stunning!”

Jiang Lingsu’s face wore a friendly smile, but inwardly, she gritted her teeth and sent a mental message to Qi Yuan.

“She’s saying I’ll look good when I grow up, which really means I don’t look good now and that I’m trying to look more mature!”

While transmitting her thoughts, Jiang Lingsu sweetly replied, “I can’t compare to you, sister. You’re so adorable for your age.

This dress is really nothing special. Honestly, you wouldn’t even be able to wear it in this lifetime.

If you tried, you’d look like a little girl wearing a big coat, not knowing which way is the front or back!

But I really admire you. You don’t even have to worry about sizes when buying dresses.

You could just take the robes of those male tribulation cultivators you’ve slain and wear them yourself!”

Qiong Yunting’s smile froze for a moment, but she quickly regained her composure and smiled even wider. “I may not have been born into a family as prestigious as yours, but I got lucky and found a great husband.

As for the tribulation (unlucky) cultivators’ robes, well, they’re beneath me now.

Sigh, it’s such a burden. I miss the old days when I was struggling, and slaying a tribulation cultivator and finding a few dozen spirit stones in their storage bag would make me so happy.

But now, it’s just not the same.

So, I envy you. You can still kill a tribulation cultivator, open their storage bag, and be happy for days.

Sigh, sometimes having money isn’t all that great. It takes away all the little joys in life.”

Qiong Yunting said this with an air of casual superiority.

Jiang Lingsu was mentally rolling her eyes.

She was sure that Qiong Yunting was subtly calling her and Qi Yuan poor.

But outwardly, she maintained a friendly smile, carefully crafting a response.

Just then, Qi Yuan spoke up. “I love killing tribulation cultivators! They’re my enemies, my white moonlight!

An ancient saying goes, ‘Time flows endlessly, unceasing through day and night.’

I hope my enemies are like that, dying day and night, pouring their accumulated wealth into my hands.

I’m so broke that I can’t even afford a piece of land.”

Qiong Yunting was taken aback by Qi Yuan’s words.

She didn’t quite understand most of it.

But she did grasp a part of it, and inwardly, she looked down on him even more.

People from small places truly had narrow horizons.

He was still talking about lacking money.

“Qi Shidi, how many spirit stones do you need? My husband’s family in Yuntian City is quite wealthy. We could easily lend you tens of thousands or even hundreds of thousands of spirit stones.

For the sake of my friendship with Lingsu, I’m more than happy to lend you some spirit stones.”

“Really?” Qi Yuan looked genuinely excited.

He truly did need money.

He needed funds to buy land for the Netherworld and to buy Gongsun Xing.

“By the way, my husband is hosting a Nascent Soul banquet tonight. If you two bring some decent gifts and say a few flattering words, I’ll whisper in his ear, and I’m sure he’ll lend you enough spirit stones.

With the bond Lingsu and I share, do you really think I’d deceive you?”

“You two have a sisterhood as deep as the sea!” Qi Yuan said happily. “We’re free tonight anyway, so we might as well go to the Nascent Soul banquet and borrow some money.”

Seeing Qi Yuan so eager, Qiong Yunting felt even more smug.

Later, during the banquet, she and her husband would play good cop, bad cop, and toss a few thousand spirit stones their way as pocket change.

“This Nascent Soul banquet will have quite a few big names from Helan Continent attending.

Your Jiang family’s business here hasn’t been doing well lately, and you’re almost being driven out of Helan.

If you can meet a powerful cultivator, maybe you’ll be able to solve your family’s troubles!”