He came to sit back down only after the lightning was neutralized.

I got rid of the barrier since it was no longer useful.

"Your jar is useless. What else do you have?"

From his storage ring, he brought out some weirdly shaped containers, but none of them was any stronger than the jar.

"It seems like we'll have to postpone business until you can find something better. I cannot allow strangers to buy my qi as well. That would be inviting trouble."

Elder Jun got up. After giving a fist-palm salute, he said, "I won't rest until I find something that will satisfy you, sect leader. If you'll allow it, may I take this with me and show them that it does exist? Of course, your identity will remain a secret even to them. Only I will carry such information, so if anything happens, I'll be fully responsible."

I didn't answer right away. Took a moment to think it through.

What guarantee did I have about this deal? Oh right, he was from Soul Sect. If he betrayed me, I'd just go for compensation from those elders. Maybe they'd give up their hidden treasures. Although I preferred compensation in money.

"Okay then. But, this is not for sale. Once you find something suitable, bring this-" my gaze fell on the jar,"-with you."

He gave a frantic nod before grabbing the jar. His faith in my shield was touching. I didn't have that much faith in it myself, especially since it'd be miles away from me.

With one last nod, Elder Jun turned and instantly covered his body with his qi for take off. He soared into the sky with agility for a body like his.

Once I was by myself, I sighed and leaned back on the reclaimer chair that I had custom-made from my vague memory of Earth. Even though made from nothing but wood, it was still comfortable. All I had to add was some unused fabric as padding to avoid bruising my body from sitting on it too much.

"Aaa, the sun is warm," I yawned stretching out like a cat as I basked in the glory of the morning warmth.

It sure felt nice to be lazy in this world. What else was I supposed to do when in my free time? 'Being lazy is comfortable. I should be more lazy.'

Just as I was about to close my eyes to enjoy my lazy time, Liuyue reached out to me.

"Master, we need some advice."

"What is it? I'm trying to rest here."

"We came out to explore the mountains nearby and ran into disciples from Soul Sect. They are blocking our path and demanding we give them everything we have. Will you be angry if we beat them up?"

I chuckled to myself while throwing the heels of my legs on the table to find a much more comfortable position. "Do what you want. Kill them if they try to kill you."

"Thank you Master!" There was excitement in her inner voice as if she was eagerly waiting for my permission to go ahead and cause me some trouble.

"This little girl."

Ah yes, I was old enough to be her ancestor, which made me feel both proud and too old. I had lived for seven centuries without any interaction with humans. I had lived that long just trying to make sure I didn't die in the forest. I wondered what would have happened if I actually did die on that mountain. Would this whole vengeance be over before it even started?

This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road. If you spot it on Amazon, please report it.

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3RD POV

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Standing opposite each other were two groups; one trying to dominate while the other just wanted to be left alone.

"What are you waiting for? Give us your storage rings and kneel for forgiveness!" One disciple in a white uniform yelled at Liuyue's group with a baleful glint in his eyes.

He didn't have any particular features that made him stand out other than a mole under his eye, which was one of the primary reasons he always felt the need to bully others to get noticed.

Being the strongest among the outer disciples who had joined Soul Sect a year ago, Mole Eye would force his junior brothers and sisters to follow him like dogs and aid him in his terror reign.

Occasionally, they would sneak out of the sect and rob weaker disciples from other sects who would come to hunt monsters in the mountains, or even mortals who would be here to pick some herbs.

He thought because his lucky star was shining brightly the previous night, these three disciples from an unknown sect with no influence at all were his fortune for the day.

"Give 'us' your rings and kowtow. Maybe we will let you-"

Before Liuyue could reflect their words at them, Wu Tao dashed forward, his steps lighter than a feather and his speed made it seem as if he was barely touching the ground.

"Shadow Steps!" Liuyue marveled as Wu Tao's fist plunged into the face of the disciple closest, flinging him backward.

"You! Good! Good!" Mole Eye unsheathed his sword to attack Wu Tao.

"Ah, these idiotic brothers of mine. They should have let me finish my speech," Liuyue grumbled sending out her sword to block the attack.

When she glanced over at Liu Ming, she was surprised to see him leaning against a tree, looking unbothered, a crooked grin on his lips. She could only glare at him before focusing on the enemies as the whole group jumped in to fight them.

Wu Tao used the combat skills he had been polishing over the weeks without needing his soul ability. He groaned excitedly punching and kicking them like the training dummies in their sect. The rush of adrenaline was thrilling, especially when the opponents weren't guarding against his blows like in the arena.

He had overestimated them because, after only five minutes, he had knocked six of them unconscious while Liuyue took care of the other two, who were the most proficient in sword skills in the group.

"Your bones are still stiff, old man," Liu Ming taunted approaching Wu Tao.

"What have you said?" Wu Tao hissed spinning to face him.

With a smirk, Liu Ming repeated, "I said, your bones are stiff, old ma-"

Wu Tao thrust his fist forward to strike Liu Ming's abdomen, but he ducked easily. He thrust another one, but each time, Liu Ming would jump out of the way, almost as if he knew where the next attack would hit.

Angry, Wu Tao opened his palm and gave Liu Ming's soul a blast of his qi to weaken him. Still, he did a backflip and hopped into the air, summoning his sword to stand on it.

"You need a few years before you can best me, old man."

Wu Tao began channeling a large amount of his qi, ready to teach Liu Ming a lesson when Liuyue placed her hand on his shoulder. "Don't waste your energy fighting that idiot. Even though both my juniors are idiots, you're more sensible than him."

Wu Tao turned his head to frown at Liuyue confusedly. He couldn't decide whether her words were meant to praise or scorn him. Either way, they seemed to work as the qi flowed backward into his meridians.

"Brother Wu, where did you learn Shadow steps from? I do not recall Master giving us such a technique," Liuyue enquired as the three of them pulled out the storage rings of the unconscious disciples.

"True, Master did not give us. I happened to find it."

His answer didn't convince Liuyue who was staring at him with endless doubts in her eyes. "You 'happened' to find an expensive technique? How lucky you must be."

Wu Tao didn't say anything more. He couldn't let them know that he had to participate in an embarrassing competition in the city; dressing up as a woman and acting in a play just to entertain an audience full of snobbish women.

He had had his doubts initially, but when he saw a man stronger than him by far joining, he had grown a little confident.

He was certain that no one would recognize him under the heavy layers of makeup they had painted on him.

In the end, his acting skills(which he didn't know existed) surpassed all the men in the competition.

While the women had done it just to embarrass the cultivators and entertain themselves, Wu Tao overlooked all that and focused on the main picture; to grow stronger and stronger so he'd feel worthy of following Ren.

"My name is a peach; peaches represent good fortune, so of course, I'm fortunate at all times."

"Hmm..."

"I'm tired. Can we go back?" Liu Ming voiced his thoughts which were unrelated to the topic his peers were discussing.

They both darted him sharp gazes that scolded him without the need for words. "We must find out if the Heavenly grass does grow on this mountain. Clay cannot keep consuming Master's body."

Liu Ming and Liuyue exchanged an odd glance when Wu Tao said the last sentence. While he meant Ren's roots, the meaning interpreted by their minds was out of place and morality.

"What?" Wu Tao questioned noticing the odd air spreading between the three of them.