Lu Beixue was a bit bewildered.
She, a beautiful woman, had personally come to deliver something, only to be met with a closed door.
Where could she possibly go to reason with this?
Lu Beixue touched her exquisite face, doubting her own charm for the first time.
On the other side of the door.
Li Qinghai, hands behind his back, was whistling without a care.
As he walked into the house, he muttered to himself.
"Hmph, no one will become a stumbling block on my path of rebirth!"
Hmm?
Why was the Book of Good Fortune reacting now?
Li Qinghai took a look.
The Book of Good Fortune read:
[You refused the opportunity gifted by others, clearly showing you do not favor such chances.]
[Your actions have influenced the evolution of fortune, weakening your destiny as the favored one.]
[In your next cycle of rebirth, you will receive fortune, but as a minor favored one, with the ability to seek fortune and avoid calamity.]
Li Qinghai was stunned on the spot.
My destiny as the favored one.
Weakened.
Damn it!
I'll take it, I'll go and take it, alright?
Li Qinghai quickly turned around, sprinted back to the door, and flung it open.
Having just shut her out, he now had to take her elixir.
Even with his thick skin, Li Qinghai felt a bit embarrassed.
"Ahem..."
Li Qinghai cleared his throat twice, organizing his words a bit.
"Earlier, I closed the door because I truly didn't want to accept your elixir, Dao Companion. But leaving you waiting outside, I couldn't bear it. Ah, well, I'll accept it."
Lu Beixue blinked, dazedly extending her hand to pass over the elixir.
The narrative has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the infringement.
Li Qinghai took the elixir, "Alright, Dao Companion, you should hurry back. It's dangerous outside; don't linger."
With that, Li Qinghai shut the door again.
Lu Beixue looked at the tightly closed door once more, but this time, a slight smile appeared on her lips.
So, you came back for the elixir because you were worried about me, afraid I'd be in danger outside.
Hmph, at least you know how to care for a beauty, showing some conscience.
With a hint of delight in her heart, Lu Beixue finally turned and left.
After obtaining the elixir, Li Qinghai returned to his small wooden house.
He kept his eyes on the Book of Good Fortune, hoping for his destiny as the favored one to return to its original state.
But after waiting for a long time, the minor favored one status remained unchanged.
Li Qinghai was utterly disheartened and casually tossed the Qi Condensing Elixir onto the ground.
"Ah, my fortune."
Just then, the Book of Good Fortune reacted again.
Li Qinghai was thrilled, had it returned?
He opened the Book of Good Fortune for a look.
[You treat opportunities like dirt, discarding them like old shoes, clearly showing you do not favor such chances.]
[Your actions have influenced the evolution of fortune, and your destiny as the favored one has completely vanished.]
[In your next cycle of rebirth, you will receive fortune, with the ability to seek fortune and avoid calamity.]
"!!!"
Ah!
My protagonist's halo!!
Li Qinghai was so enraged that he blacked out and fainted.
***
Elsewhere.
Liu Yaoyao ran all the way, pushed open a door, and rushed into a room.
Liu Daoyuan, who was meditating, opened his eyes and lightly scolded.
"You're a girl, you should be more reserved, not always so hasty."
"I must have something urgent." Liu Yaoyao pouted.
"Did something happen to that young man?"
Liu Yaoyao propped herself on the bed edge with her small hand and sat down.
"Father, let me tell you. That Ye Feng is a big bully; he was picking on a female disciple named Lu Beixue. No one dared to stand up for her, and I was about to step in to save her. Then Li Qinghai stood up, and he wasn't afraid at all..."
Liu Yaoyao spoke animatedly, full of excitement.
Despite her limited vocabulary, Liu Daoyuan listened attentively, playing the role of a good listener.
Liu Yaoyao chattered on for quite a while before finishing the story.
She added one last thing.
"Father, you should send someone to lock that bad guy Ye Feng up at Reflection Cliff."
Liu Daoyuan smiled slightly, patted Liu Yaoyao's little head, and changed the subject.
"Is Li Qinghai really that righteous?"
"Of course, I saw he wasn't even afraid of death, and I admire him."
Liu Daoyuan pondered slightly.
Honestly, if these words had come from any other disciple, he wouldn't believe a word.
He didn't believe anyone would truly be unafraid of death, willing to sacrifice for justice.
But these words came from Liu Yaoyao, and she wouldn't lie; things are as they are.
Liu Daoyuan was moved, no wonder even Junior Brother Jian Jiu looked at Li Qinghai differently, it seemed he truly was a righteous person.
Perhaps, he really was suited to practice that secret method.
With that thought, Liu Daoyuan willed a book into his hand.
The cover bore five large characters.
"Five Element Breathing Method"
This "Five Element Breathing Method" was not the true secret method.
The true secret method was the "Five Element Longevity Scroll," which consisted of five volumes.
The Five Element Breathing Method was merely the first volume, its name secretly changed to avoid attention.
Jian Jiu had previously said that the secret method was gathering dust in the secret chamber, never practiced, which wasn't entirely accurate.
Only the sect's ancestors and successive sect masters knew they had always been searching for a cultivator with the Five Element spiritual roots to practice the secret method.
Every decade or so, the current sect master would find a disciple with the Five Element spiritual roots to practice the first volume of the Longevity Scroll and observe the results.
But since the founding of the sect, no disciple who practiced the Longevity Scroll had survived.
This Longevity Scroll seemed not to grant longevity but rather to be a scroll of short life.
Such secrets were not even known to the sect elders.
Liu Daoyuan looked at the manual in his hand, hesitating.
He could tell that Junior Brother Jian Jiu liked Li Qinghai very much.
If Li Qinghai were to die because of this, he would feel guilty towards Jian Jiu.
But he couldn't reveal the secret of the Longevity Scroll to Jian Jiu.
And Jian Jiu wanted Li Qinghai to learn the Longevity Scroll.
Forget it, let the boy decide for himself.
Liu Daoyuan opened the "Five Element Breathing Method," took a brush from his Storage Bag, and wrote a few lines.
[For a cultivator with Five Element spiritual roots, the path to the great Dao is extremely difficult.]
[However, this technique is precisely suited for such cultivators, a fortune that defies the heavens, not tolerated by the world.]
[Anyone who practices this technique, unless blessed with great fortune, will constantly face crises and ultimately perish.]
[Exercise utmost caution if you wish to practice this method!]
After writing these lines, Liu Daoyuan closed the book.
The words he wrote were similar to the warning recorded at the beginning of the Longevity Scroll.
The general meaning was that if a practitioner's fortune was insufficient, they would suffer backlash.
If not for Jian Jiu's regard for Li Qinghai, Liu Daoyuan would never have opened this back door.
Liu Daoyuan handed the manual to Liu Yaoyao beside him.
"Find a chance to give this technique to Li Qinghai."
"Okay!" Liu Yaoyao, thinking of the opportunity to secretly observe Li Qinghai again, grabbed the manual and dashed out of the room.
Liu Daoyuan sighed softly, speaking to himself.
"Hopefully, you'll know when to retreat and not practice this short-lived scroll."