"Uh... uh..." Zhang Xiaomei was momentarily stunned, her face flushed as she fiddled with the hem of her clothes, repeating "uh" several times without giving a clear answer.
Suddenly, she remembered something and said, "Can I see your face? You always wear a mask when you come."
Hearing this, Sun Yufeng also realized she had never seen the face behind Alchemist Wuhen's mask.
She immediately became interested and said, "Alchemist Wuhen, that's not fair. If you like Junior Sister Zhang Xiaomei and want to marry her, shouldn't you at least let her see what you look like? Discussing marriage while wearing a mask, what kind of behavior is that?"
Guo Feilong replied, "Taking off the mask is not impossible, but you two should be prepared, so you don't get startled."
Upon hearing this, Zhang Xiaomei thought, he must be extremely ugly, otherwise why would he warn us not to be scared?
Sun Yufeng thought, although Alchemist Wuhen's voice is hoarse, it carries a hint of age. He shouldn't be an old man, right? Yes, Alchemist Wuhen must be an old man; the skin on his hands is a bit loose, unlike that of young or middle-aged people.
At this moment, Guo Feilong placed his hand on the pig-head mask, removed it, revealing a head full of white hair and a face that looked like a man in his sixties or seventies.
However, his appearance was quite handsome.
Even though he had the appearance of an elderly man, he was a charming old gentleman. The years had given him a refined and gentle look, yet he still exuded a certain strength.
He was the kind of person whose smile felt like a spring breeze, making people think of him as a kind and amiable elder.
But when he was serious or solemn, he resembled a high-ranking official with an innate authority that commanded respect.
Despite his aged appearance, Guo Feilong's looks and demeanor were top-notch, very pleasing to the eye.
Zhang Xiaomei breathed a sigh of relief; at least he wasn't hideously ugly.
However, for someone her age, he was still too old.
In her heart, she would never agree to marry him.
Seeing Alchemist Wuhen's appearance brought back a flood of dusty memories.
Back then, she was very young and would cling to a very handsome uncle all day.
Even though at that time, the uncle already had the appearance of a man in his forties.
But even as a middle-aged man, that uncle's demeanor and looks were the best she had ever seen.
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When she was a few years old, she loved to cling to that uncle to tell her stories.
When she was in her teens, she still loved to cling to that uncle to tell her stories.
She had heard those stories countless times since she was little, but she just loved using this way to cling to that handsome uncle.
After becoming a closed-door disciple of a sect elder, she saw that handsome uncle less and less.
The last time they met seemed to be twenty years ago, when she was burying her father.
Time flies, and now she was forty-five or forty-six, still unmarried, because of that shadow in her heart.
She would always compare other men to that figure in her heart.
Never satisfied, she remained single.
"Uncle Guo... is that you?" Sun Yufeng raised her hand in shock and joy, wanting to touch that familiar yet somewhat unfamiliar face, but midway, she put her hand down.
The uncle was still the same uncle.
But he was no longer the incredibly handsome uncle in her memory.
After all, the difference between a forty-something appearance and a sixty or seventy-something appearance is significant.
"Yes, it's me."
Guo Feilong nodded.
"Uncle Guo, you've aged..."
Sun Yufeng walked over, somewhat complaining, "Uncle Guo, since you recognized me, why didn't you let me know it was you ten years ago?"
Guo Feilong said, "Haven't I aged?"
He knew very well that Sun Yufeng had liked him since she was a child.
But back then, he was focused on breaking through the seventh-level Qi Refining, aiming to enter the Foundation Establishment stage, become a Golden Elixir, then an Elemental Infant, and eventually become immortal, living as long as the heavens and earth.
Unfortunately, those beautiful thoughts were mere fantasies under his poor spiritual root.
Moreover, Sun Yufeng was a little girl he had watched grow up.
Even rabbits don't eat the grass by their burrow; he couldn't possibly make a move on someone familiar.
With all these reasons combined, he never revealed his true appearance in front of Sun Yufeng.
After catching up for a while, Sun Yufeng asked many questions, mainly about how he suddenly became so skilled in alchemy and where he was living now.
Regarding alchemy, Guo Feilong simply said he had studied it for decades, and one day he suddenly had an epiphany, continuously improving his alchemy skills.
Such situations, while rare, were not unheard of in the Cultivation World.
Out of a thousand people with no alchemy talent, one or two might suddenly have an epiphany after decades of study, rapidly advancing in alchemy skills.
Though rare, given the vast number of cultivators, such occurrences were frequently heard of.
Not only in alchemy, but also in crafting, formation, and talisman making, there were people who suddenly had epiphanies.
Guo Feilong also told Sun Yufeng where he currently lived and invited her to visit whenever she had the chance.
After chatting and reminiscing, Guo Feilong looked at Zhang Xiaomei standing beside Sun Yufeng and smiled, "Would you like to marry me? Listen to my bride price first, then decide."
Female cultivators in the Cultivation World were very pragmatic. With his rich experience, Guo Feilong knew how to win their hearts—by using money.
If he couldn't win a woman over with money, he wouldn't waste time, as the same money could be used to win over other young and beautiful women.
"If you agree to marry me, I'll give you 5,000 spirit stones as a bride price, along with a ninth-rank flying spiritual beast. I'll also provide the elixirs and spirit stones you need for cultivation."
It's said that money moves hearts; a ninth-rank flying spiritual beast is worth 150,000 spirit stones, a fact known to all cultivators.
Zhang Xiaomei, as a servant disciple in the Spirit Creek Sect, earned only three spirit stones a month, with elixir subsidies, amounting to an annual income of 50 spirit stones.
Fifty spirit stones a year.
Five hundred spirit stones in ten years.
Five thousand spirit stones in a hundred years.
Fifty thousand spirit stones in a thousand years.
She would need to work as a servant disciple in the Spirit Creek Sect for 3,000 years to earn 150,000 spirit stones.
Just moments ago, Zhang Xiaomei was determined not to marry this old man, Guo Feilong. Now, her heart raced as she asked, "Is the bride price you mentioned real? Will you really give me a ninth-rank flying spiritual beast?"
"Of course, it's real. If you agree, I'll give you a ninth-rank flying spiritual beast right now." Guo Feilong patted the spiritual beast bag at his waist, and a ninth-rank flying spiritual beast appeared in the room.
He wasn't being generous by giving a ninth-rank flying spiritual beast to a female cultivator he was marrying; he gave each of his female cultivator wives a ninth-rank flying spiritual beast.
His wives and concubines each had a ninth-rank flying spiritual beast and one or two ninth-rank land spiritual beasts.
Instead of giving the ninth-rank flying spiritual beast after marriage, it was more enticing to offer it as a bride price.
Zhang Xiaomei looked at the ninth-rank flying spiritual beast with stars in her eyes and said, "I... I'm willing to marry you."
She comforted herself, thinking, what's wrong with marrying an old man? As long as this old man has money and can give me the life I want, it's fine.
Guo Feilong was a man of his word. He handed the Beast Command Token of the ninth-rank flying spiritual beast to Zhang Xiaomei, along with 5,000 spirit stones.
Sun Yufeng, watching enviously, suddenly said, "Uncle Guo, why don't you give me a ninth-rank flying spiritual beast as a bride price too, and I'll marry you as well?"