Chapter 118: I Ask You to Seek Elsewhere

“Engagement...”

Xiao Jihan uttered just one word, then suddenly fell silent. He glanced at Yan Shu before continuing, “I have some understanding of our sect’s situation. Senior Sister and our uncles are family to me, and naturally, so am I.”

He paused briefly, then added, “I have inherited the Medicine King’s pill techniques and medical skills, while Senior Sister has received the Vital Soil. She plants the spirit herbs, and I refine the pills. That was our agreement long ago.”

Upon hearing this, Wen Changhe, Bing Shien, Liu Zhiqing, and Shi Wanqing exchanged glances.

Wen Youhe nodded, and Liu Zhiqing accepted the porcelain bottle.

Upon receiving the bottle, Liu Zhiqing’s expression immediately brightened, and he even smiled as he said to Xiao Jihan, “Xiao Han, if in the future any uncle has questions, we’ll have to consult you.”

Xiao Jihan slightly nodded. “Uncle flatters me. I will share everything I know and nothing will be withheld.”

Yan Shu nearly choked on Liu Zhiqing’s casual address of “Xiao Han.”

Just moments ago, Liu Zhiqing had been stern and accusatory, and now, after a mere bottle of eighth-rank pills, he was already calling him by a familiar nickname.

Could he at least show some dignity?!

But then again, why did Xiao Jihan suddenly speak of family ties and voluntarily treat her four senior brothers as kin?

Yan Shu glanced at the “Familiarity Level 18 (First Meeting)” hovering above Xiao Jihan’s head and felt puzzled.

Could such a small familiarity score have such a remarkable effect? Had her mission to change the fate of the Xuanyuan Sect already been accomplished?

Yet she quickly dismissed this thought.

Yan Shu clearly knew that Xiao Jihan’s attitude toward the Xuanyuan Sect ultimately hinged on his feelings toward her. With the familiarity score positive, he felt a sense of belonging; if it ever dropped into the negative, the original story’s resolution might very well play out.

In the end, it all came down to raising familiarity.

Since the familiarity score turned positive, she had loosened up, her spirit soaring, forgetting that a father is always a father, and the male lead isn’t someone she can manipulate at will.

While Yan Shu was reflecting on herself, Liu Zhiqing and Xiao Jihan had already started conversing.

At first, it was only Liu Zhiqing speaking with Xiao Jihan, but gradually Bing Shien and Shi Wanqing joined in.

---

When Yan Shu snapped back to attention, the group had been talking for some time. Though not overly joyous, the atmosphere was harmonious.

Apart from the eldest brother, Wen Youhe, whose expression remained unchanged, her three other senior brothers’ eyes sparkled as they looked at Xiao Jihan, as if he were a hen laying golden eggs.

Yan Shu felt a pang of discontent. She was supposed to be the one holding the “doting favorite” script, so why was Xiao Jihan basking in the limelight while she was left aside?

Unwilling to be overshadowed, she said, “Three senior brothers, I also obtained the Vital Soil! I have many spirit seeds and have planted numerous spirit herbs!”

Upon hearing this, Liu Zhiqing finally tore his gaze away from Xiao Jihan and looked at her. “Oh, don’t forget, the herbs you cultivate—Xiao Han refines those into pills. An eighth-rank pill’s effect and value can be multiplied dozens or even hundreds of times!”

Yan Shu: ...

“Enough—let’s get to the point!”

Wen Youhe interrupted the conversation, fixing a cold gaze on Xiao Jihan. “Where did you get the formula for Beast-Attracting Powder?”

Yan Shu’s heart skipped a beat. She knew she couldn’t hide it from her senior brothers.

Although she only found out today about the peril Xiao Jihan had faced, and despite her confident declarations that Xiao Jihan had only dabbled in pill refinement for about two months and couldn’t have made the powder, she knew deep down that what Sun Changfeng said was true.

Because Xiao Jihan was just that kind of man.

In the original story, Xiao Jihan was cunning and vengeful.

He had few moral constraints or behavioral codes; refining Beast-Attracting Powder was not unusual. The truth was just as Sun Changfeng said: Xiao Jihan had refined the powder to sell on the black market and happened to encounter Sun Changfeng.

Knowing Sun Changfeng’s ill intentions, Xiao Jihan had given him a fake formula.

In the dense forest, he had already anticipated this, having always been someone difficult to trust, especially given his grudges against Qiu Shuoran and Sun Changfeng.

Leaving behind an image with a Shadow Stone to lure Sun Changfeng step by step was routine. What surprised Yan Shu was how meticulously he had calculated even how much the Shadow Stone could record.

The book described Xiao Jihan’s intellect and cunning: once he decided to scheme against someone, he did so thoroughly, never leaving a chance for them to recover.

Reading this was satisfying, but witnessing it in reality was genuinely chilling.

Perhaps this was what they called a “lover of dragons” — fascinated by the very thing one fears.

---

But he is the male lead! What else could she do but spoil and favor him?

Fortunately, Xiao Jihan had his own code of conduct and sense of right and wrong, sparing her from becoming an accomplice.

Though she knew the male lead was extraordinarily talented and possessed divine abilities, Yan Shu remained curious about where he had gotten the formula for Beast-Attracting Powder during his time secluded on the Supreme Peak.

Yan Shu opened her mouth, “Senior Brother, there must be some misunderstanding...”

Wen Youhe shot her a cold glance, and she immediately shut up.

Xiao Jihan pursed his lips but said nothing, clearly unwilling to speak.

Wen Youhe’s expression grew colder. He said harshly, “Sun Changfeng’s fate is his own doing. Had he no ill intentions, he wouldn’t have ended like this. Your scheming was only for self-preservation. On the contrary, I admire your methods—each step linked, carefully planned. Such intellect and strategy are beyond ordinary.”

“But one matter is one matter. Beast-Attracting Powder is explicitly forbidden. Without caution, you will surely bring calamity. If today you can open your heart and explain clearly, that’s fine. If not, the Xuanyuan Sect is small, and I suggest you seek another place. Now that you’re an eighth-rank pill master, you will be revered wherever you go.”

Hearing that Xiao Jihan might be expelled, Yan Shu panicked.

She had just thought the sect’s fate might have changed, but in the blink of an eye, it was heading down the old path again!

Yan Shu was about to speak when Liu Zhiqing suddenly stood up. Stepping back two paces from his seat, he cupped his fists and bowed deeply, seeming somewhat ashamed. “Senior Brother, the formula for Beast-Attracting Powder was probably given by me.”

Everyone was taken aback.

Yan Shu was stunned. “Third Senior Brother, you gave it?”

Liu Zhiqing glanced at Yan Shu, his expression complicated, and said softly, “It was... when I gave Xiao Han the Blaze Furnace last time.”

“That Blaze Furnace—I had intended to pass it on to a disciple I deemed worthy. Inside the furnace, I placed a manual detailing my years of pill refining experience and some researched formulas. The Beast-Attracting Powder was among them.”