"Wait... are you sure?" Su Qingyue asked, shocked as she received the seed.
Mu Chen nodded in confirmation. There was not the slightest bit of hesitation in him about giving the seed to Su Qingyue. After all, Mu Chen felt that he needed to do it.
The woman smiled brightly, moving as fast as lightning toward Mu Chen, and before he could expect it, Su Qingyue raised her arms and pulled him into her embrace.
The two held each other intimately. The fragrant scent of Su Qingyue's body reached Mu Chen's senses, stirring the hidden desire within him.
Su Qingyue released the embrace and kissed Mu Chen, not a simple peck, but an aggressive kiss that forced Mu Chen to part his lips.
They were so close to one another, Mu Chen's eyes closed as he enjoyed the pleasure Su Qingyue gave him.
Their tongues met and intertwined, each drawing the other in, savoring one another.
A blush spread across the woman's cheeks. She had cultivated for thousands of years, passed through hundreds of wars, and ignored countless cycles of human life, until the obsession in her heart had transformed into a special attachment to Mu Chen.
So much had happened, and Mu Chen's growth had captured Su Qingyue's attention.
She wanted to remain by his side, wanted to witness miracle after miracle come true, things she had never once imagined before.
When the kiss ended, their gazes met at close range, their breaths brushing against each other's faces.
A wide smile bloomed on Su Qingyue's face, her heart beating rapidly as her soft hand rose to touch Mu Chen's handsome face.
"How many women have ever received a kiss like that, Mu Chen?"
"None," Mu Chen said softly. "I've been a good man my whole life."
"In that case, forgive me... it seems I've made you bad."
Mu Chen smiled and let out a soft laugh, raising his hand to brush against Su Qingyue's red, parted lips.
He had never once imagined that he would become this close to Su Qingyue. If the Tianyin Sect ever found out, they would undoubtedly hunt Mu Chen to the ends of the heavens.
"I'm going to cultivate. Will you be alright after I leave?" Su Qingyue asked.
"Probably. You can see my condition through this crescent moon mark, right?"
Su Qingyue's gaze lifted to the mark, and she nodded with a smile. What Mu Chen said was true. She could see what Mu Chen was doing and where he was going.
Feeling relieved by Mu Chen's decision, Su Qingyue left the area of the Baiyin City Spiritual Qi Vein.
Mu Chen looked outside, watching as Su Qingyue flew far away to another location on her flying sword.
If she keeps doing this, I'll never be able to get away from her.
I should focus on my goal again.
He took a deep breath and stepped out of the Spiritual Qi Vein. The gatekeeper turned his head and looked visibly shocked.
Previously, Mu Chen had arrived when his cultivation was at the 4th Layer of Qi Condensation.
But everything had changed. Not even a week had passed in the Baiyin Spiritual Qi Vein, yet Mu Chen had already reached the 7th Layer of Qi Condensation.
The man was confused and astonished, unable to believe it. However, because Mu Chen had a Core Formation cultivator as a companion, he assumed that Mu Chen's cultivation speed had certainly been influenced by his friend.
Mu Chen walked alone along the city's main street. Not a single cultivator seemed suspicious of him, even though he had been involved in a battle with cultivators from another sect yesterday.
It seems... news of yesterday's fight hasn't spread among the other cultivators.
He continued walking until he arrived at the center of Baiyin City. What struck Mu Chen as strange was the steadily increasing number of visitors.
The cultivators who had come wore the robes of their respective sects. From Mu Chen's cultivation sight, their spiritual qi aura was on par with his own.
"Come here and register with our sect, Yunzong Sect."
"You there. You have a solid cultivation foundation. Join Nangong Sect, and you could become a powerful cultivator one day."
"We have many beautiful female disciples. The Sect Master of Hanxiao Sect possesses beauty beyond the heavens. You'll be extremely fortunate if you join us."
Mu Chen listened to their words as they endlessly offered recruitment into their sects.
He narrowed his eyes and examined their qi auras. The leader of each recruitment team was a Foundation Establishment cultivator.
He had absolutely no business with them. His steps stopped in front of an equipment shop that was not crowded.
If what Su Qingyue said was true, then this shop should definitely have that pill.
"Welcome, Fellow Daoist."
"Do you need something?" the man asked, the shop owner.
"Give me five mortal-grade pills."
"Of course. Which pills? One mortal-grade pill costs five low-grade spirit stones."
Mu Chen took out twenty-five low-grade spirit stones, asking the shop owner to give him the best pills available. The man understood immediately and selected the pills for Mu Chen.
Not long after, five wooden boxes were laid out on the table.
According to the shop owner's explanation, two pills were useful for recovery, one was for widening meridians, and the other two were for increasing strength.
Mu Chen opened the boxes and looked at all the pills.
He had no intention of consuming them all immediately. The five pills were meant for the Heavenly Refinement mission.
"How is it, Fellow Daoist?"
"It's fine. I'll take them all."
He handed over the spirit stones to the man, then extended his hand and stored all the pills into his bag of holding.
After finishing his business, Mu Chen clasped his hands and prepared to take his leave. However, his steps halted when an old man with a long white beard blocked his path.
"You have the potential to become a Heavenly Emperor in the future, Fellow Daoist."
"I can help you reach that realm," the old man said.
Mu Chen's eyes glowed with golden light as he examined the old man's spiritual qi aura. His spiritual qi was indeed strong, but not at the same level as Su Qingyue.
In fact... Mu Chen felt that the man's qi aura was similar to that of a Foundation Establishment cultivator.
"There's no need... I'm not interested in..."
"You don't need to be afraid. I'm not a fraud. See this? This is the token of Hongyan Sect."
"I can show you that I am a member of the sect..."
"You'd better not listen to him," a woman said firmly as she came to Mu Chen's side.
She wore a white and sea-blue robe, both hands resting on her hips as she glared sharply at the old man in front of Mu Chen.
"Aren't you ashamed of deceiving a Qi Condensation cultivator like him, old man?!" the woman shouted.
"Who are you? How dare you interfere in my business?"
"I am Yun Mei, a member of the Grand Temple of Mu."
"Grand Temple of Mu?!" the man exclaimed in shock.
"Perhaps I should ask the Hongyan Sect about..."
"No. That won't be necessary. I'll leave."
With hurried steps, the old man quickly ran away from Mu Chen. Mu Chen had been successfully saved, even though he had already been somewhat suspicious.
He turned and clasped both hands, bowing his head in respect.
"Thank you for helping me, Senior Daoist."
"It's nothing. The principle of the Grand Temple of Mu is to spread compassion and virtue according to the Dao."
"Perhaps helping you was already an unavoidable line of heavenly fate," Yun Mei replied.
"Be careful. There may be more deceivers that you do not notice, Fellow Daoist."
Yun Mei walked away gracefully, her cultivation at the Foundation Establishment realm.
At first, Mu Chen had assumed that all cultivators were tied to sects or clans. To his surprise, there were also grand temples, such as The Grand Temple of Mu.
The Grand Temple of Mu... it seems I need to ask Yue'er about them.