Chapter 147: The Mysterious Mother Qiu (Part Two)

Although Ji Mo was now a Core Formation cultivator and had slept for a hundred years within the Five Elements Spiritual Coffin—the supreme treasure of the Azure Moon Divine Palace—her body had long since become pure and untainted, rendering tea largely useless to her. Yet, upon swallowing this brew, the comfort that surged from the very depths of her soul still took her completely by surprise. Her gaze involuntarily locked onto the elderly woman, and she blurted out, "Splendid tea! But surely the Madam's hospitality is far too heavy a favor to bestow upon us!"

"The Madam's hospitality is indeed exceedingly heavy. If I am not mistaken, this tea must originate from the Heavenly Secrets Valley, the most mysterious sect in the ten directions of the cultivation universe! It is rumored that within the Heavenly Secrets Valley, there exists a tea known as the Heavenly Heart Soul-Nourishing Tea. It requires the valley's successor to perform the Heavenly Secrets Soul-Pacifying Art, compounded with seventeen varieties of ten-thousand-year-old spiritual herbs that grow exclusively within the valley. Only a few ounces are produced every ten thousand years."

"Generally speaking, anyone fortunate enough to drink this tea—provided their innate talent is sufficient—can cultivate all the way to the Integration Realm without ever encountering inner demons before their ascension. Because of this, the Heavenly Heart Soul-Nourishing Tea is hailed as one of the ten great wonders of the ten directions' cultivation world. The appearance of even a single ounce would provoke frantic competition among major sects and factions. For the Madam to entertain us with such a precious treasure, I wonder what she might ask of us in return?" Su Ye asked, his expression exceptionally grave as he stared at Mother Qiu.

Su Ye's knowledge was clearly far superior to Ji Mo's. After swallowing a mouthful of the tea, he felt his sea of consciousness and soul boil with energy. The constraining bottleneck of transforming his core into a nascent soul seemed to have already begun to loosen, yet he had no time to ponder the myriad benefits surging through his body. His expression had turned solemn to a degree never seen before.

Ji Mo was inwardly startled as she observed him. In all the years she had known Su Ye, she had never seen such a grave expression on his face. Even back when their sect faced imminent destruction, anger and sorrow had crossed his features, but never this profound gravity. It seemed that this Heavenly Secrets Valley was truly an extraordinary existence.

"You are quite knowledgeable, young master. Not only do you know of the Heavenly Secrets Valley, but you are also aware of the existence of the Heavenly Heart Soul-Nourishing Tea. However, to me, no amount of Heavenly Heart Soul-Nourishing Tea compares to asking a favor of the two of you." A strange light flashed in Mother Qiu's eyes, though it calmed down an instant later. She chuckled as she took over Su Ye's words.

"I wonder what kind of favor the Madam wishes to ask of us? If even the Heavenly Secrets Valley cannot accomplish it, I fear we two siblings would be even more powerless. With the Madam's discernment, you can naturally see that we are merely minor cultivators in the Core Formation realm," Su Ye said.

"Since the young master knows of the Heavenly Secrets Valley, you should know that our strong suit is not brute force, but rather the mystical arts of destiny and divination," Mother Qiu replied unconcernedly, keeping a smile on her face.

"Although the Heavenly Secrets Valley is not renowned for its combat strength, with your valley's methods, if you desire anything, all you need to do is speak a word, and there would be no shortage of first-tier sects—or even those supreme-tier factions within the ten directions' cultivation world—willing to step forward and serve you." Su Ye clearly could not accept Mother Qiu's rationale.

"Mother, you... what are you all talking about?" Qiu Hanyun asked, completely bewildered. Although he had yet to step into the cultivation world, he could vaguely discern from the conversation between Mother Qiu and the two immortals that his mother hailed from an extraordinarily prominent background.

"Hanyun, Lier, do not interrupt. Everything you ought to know, you will know today. Just listen quietly to the side," Mother Qiu said, turning her head to glance at her two children.

"Young master, the name of the Heavenly Secrets Valley is nothing more than an empty reputation. If it were truly as formidable as you claim, how could I have ended up in my present state? The two of you can surely see that the injuries upon my body are beyond medical cure; the days I have left to linger in this world are already very few." Having given instructions to her children, Mother Qiu shifted her gaze back to Su Ye and Ji Mo, slowly continuing her previous thought. Her tone was tinged with an ineffable desolation and self-mockery.

"Madam, if my eyes do not deceive me, the weapon that injured you is called the Purple Meteoric Soul-Burning Sword. Am I correct?" This time, it was Ji Mo who took over the conversation instead of Su Ye.

"Indeed, I was wounded by the Purple Meteoric Soul-Burning Sword. If this old woman calculates correctly, the Fairy has also been injured by it in the past?" Mother Qiu's gaze shifted to Ji Mo.

"The Madam has keen eyes, though my injuries healed completely long ago. I wonder how the Madam managed to perceive it?" Ji Mo's eyes flickered slightly.

"The Madam did not perceive it; she calculated it." The one who answered was not Mother Qiu, but Su Ye.

"Calculated?" A trace of suspicion flashed across Ji Mo's eyes. Could the Heavenly Secrets Valley truly be this mysterious? Naturally, she had heard what Su Ye said just moments ago: the so-called Heavenly Secrets Valley specialized in the deductive arts of destiny and divination. This point had already been confirmed by the situation when they first entered the door. In truth, the art of deduction was hardly unfamiliar to cultivators; as their cultivation levels increased, all cultivators would gradually perceive the secrets of heaven, developing faint premonitions regarding many people connected to them.

Yet this Madam Qiu before them seemed to possess the ability to foretell the future and foresee events before they happened. It was as if she had known beforehand that her two children would inevitably bring the two of them home today, and the moment she laid eyes on Ji Mo, she could tell she had once been wounded by the Purple Meteoric Soul-Burning Sword. If Ji Mo herself had not been certain of these events, there was simply no way Mother Qiu could have known. She had even begun to suspect that this was all a carefully laid trap.

A person who could see through human destinies at a single glance, possessing the ability of foresight and omniscience? Thinking of this, Ji Mo could not help but shudder involuntarily. Even to cultivators, such a person was an utterly terrifying existence.

"Heh heh, as someone who walked out of the Heavenly Secrets Valley, if I could not even perceive this much, I would hardly be worthy of being called a member of the valley." Mother Qiu watched the suspicion in Ji Mo's eyes, a faint smile flashing through her own.

"It is merely Ji Mo's ignorance, making the Madam laugh. Yet up to this point, the Madam still hasn't told us what kind of favor you wish to exact from us." Having had her thoughts seen through, Ji Mo's pretty face flushed slightly. However, her skin was thick enough that she felt no great embarrassment, and she smoothly resumed the previous topic.

Since the Heavenly Heart Soul-Nourishing Tea was so precious, and they had drunk it unwittingly, they now owed Mother Qiu a massive favor. If they failed to repay this kindness, karmic entanglements would be forged. For cultivators, nothing was more terrifying than inadvertently becoming entangled in karma.

"I hope the two of you will take my two children as your disciples." Mother Qiu looked into their eyes, then turned her gaze back to the Qiu siblings, her face filled with maternal affection.

"Take them as disciples? Your daughter and son possess extraordinary aptitudes. Leaving aside minor cultivators like ourselves, even the bigshots of first-tier sects would fight tooth and nail to recruit them if they laid eyes on them. You surely didn't think the Madam hoped for..." A trace of astonishment flashed across the eyes of both Ji Mo and Su Ye. They truly had not expected Mother Qiu to raise this particular request. (To be continued...)