Chapter 112: A High-Handed Loan

Chapter 112: Chapter 112: A High-Handed Loan

Liu Wenying listened to her master’s assessment, her lips pouting slightly. She was unconvinced but didn’t dare to retort.

She knew her master’s judgment had always been precise and rarely wrong. If her master said that Chen Yue possessed such talent, then there was probably some truth to it.

Meng Yu Jin continued, "Furthermore, he told me he can perform alchemy. If what he says is true, then he also has considerable attainments in the Alchemy Dao."

"A young man who displays such talent in both the Martial Dao and the Alchemy Dao... We should definitely find out his background."

Liu Wenying took a deep breath, processing the information from her master. ’He can also perform alchemy? Just where did this guy pop out from?’

Meng Yu Jin waved his hand. "Go investigate and you’ll find out, won’t you? Off you go."

Liu Wenying snapped back to reality, an eager smile returning to her face. With a hint of competitiveness, she grinned and said:

"Understood, Master! I suspect he’s a fake genius. You just wait, I’ll dig up some dirt on him!"

With that, she bowed to Meng Yu Jin, then turned and left the small courtyard as swift as a gust of wind, clearly anxious to carry out the investigation her master had assigned her.

Meng Yu Jin watched his disciple’s departing figure and picked up his teacup again, but he didn’t drink. He just stared at the gradually cooling tea, his gaze profound, his thoughts a mystery.

...

Meanwhile, Chen Yue had already returned to the Dan Peak area.

He walked into the Hundred Herbs Pavilion, his gaze habitually sweeping toward the desk where Zhao Weiyuan usually sat. However, he found that the one presiding over the Hundred Herbs Pavilion today was not Zhao Weiyuan, but another, more taciturn middle-aged Steward.

Chen Yue didn’t break his stride. He walked forward and clasped his hands in a customary bow. "Disciple Chen Yue, greetings, Sir."

The Steward, He Bingwen, merely glanced up at Chen Yue and gave a slight nod in acknowledgment before lowering his head to continue reading the book in his hands, clearly not in the mood for conversation.

Chen Yue didn’t mind. After his bow, he walked over to the Pill Furnace he usually used.

Just as he had for the past nine days, he began to prepare the medicinal ingredients, light the fire to warm the furnace, and skillfully started refining Solid Essence Pills.

Nearly two hours later, Chen Yue finished refining his three batches of Solid Essence Pills for the day, once again producing a stable yield of eleven Upper Grade pills at Pill Formation. He handed in the elixirs, exchanged them for Contribution Points, packed his things, and left the Hundred Herbs Pavilion.

Returning to his small courtyard on Panshi Peak, Chen Yue bolted the gate and sat down cross-legged.

He didn’t begin cultivating immediately. Instead, he first sat quietly for a moment, then focused his Heart Spirit, took out a Dan Yang Pill and consumed it, and began to circulate the Vast Rock Skill, immersing himself in his daily cultivation.

Outside the window, the sun climbed higher, and the mountain ridges of the Panshi Sect appeared exceptionally serene under the sunlight.

A short while later, the medicinal power of the Dan Yang Pill was fully digested. Chen Yue glanced at his panel.

[Immune to Hundred Poisons (98/100)]

This nascent talent, the first he had started to form, would be fully complete by midnight tomorrow.

At that time, his resistance to poisons would undergo a qualitative leap, and many insidious methods he previously had to be wary of would no longer pose a threat to him.

The other two nascent talents, Copper Skin Iron Bones and Strengthening and Healing, were also steadily progressing. Although it would still be some time before they were fully formed, they were growing stronger with each passing day.

In terms of cultivation, [Bone Forging Realm (1293/2716)], his progress was about to reach the halfway point. At his current speed, he would be able to touch the threshold of the Marrow Refining Realm in just over a month and break through in one go.

Chen Yue dismissed the panel and stopped thinking about it. He calmed his mind and began to practice the Great Vajra Palm in the courtyard.

The wind from his palms howled, and his Power was heavy and focused. Every palm strike carried a ferocious intent capable of shattering stone tablets.

[Great Vajra Palm (Great Success 4512/5967)]. It was just a step away from the Perfection Realm. With another seven or eight days of practice, he would reach it, and his Palm Force would surely improve even further.

Half an hour passed in a flash. Just as Chen Yue was retracting his palms to regulate his breathing, preparing to switch to practicing Celestial Demon Dissolution, a steady, unhurried knock suddenly came from the courtyard gate.

Chen Yue’s brow twitched. In all his days at the Panshi Sect, aside from Yao Jin occasionally coming by to relay a message or deliver something, almost no one ever visited him.

He walked to the gate and pulled it open.

Outside stood two men dressed in the attire of outer sect disciples. The one in front was about twenty-five or twenty-six years old, a warm smile on his face, looking quite enthusiastic.

The other man was slightly older, in his early thirties. He had a burly frame and a solemn face, and he stood behind the first, calmly sizing up Chen Yue.

When the young man in front saw Chen Yue, his smile widened. He clasped his hands and said, "Junior Brother Chen? My name is Liao Xunzhen, an outer sect disciple. This is Senior Brother Cheng Jun. We hope you don’t mind our unannounced visit."

Chen Yue returned the bow. "Senior Brother Liao, Senior Brother Cheng. May I ask what brings you two here today?"

He stepped aside to let the two men into the courtyard, but his mind was already on high alert. ’People don’t just show up for no reason.’ These two senior brothers he had never met before, visiting together out of the blue, were definitely not here for a friendly chat.

Liao Xunzhen walked into the courtyard and glanced around the simple little space, his smile never faltering. His tone was cordial as he said:

"You’re too kind, Junior Brother Chen. We wouldn’t dare presume to ’instruct’ you. To be frank, Senior Brother Cheng and I have come today because we have some good news to discuss with you."

’Good news?’ Chen Yue remained impassive.

Liao Xunzhen nodded, then sighed, a wistful look on his face.

"The Martial Dao is difficult, and so is the Alchemy Dao. The Sect has rules for Contribution Points to encourage disciples to train diligently, but due to differences in individual aptitude and circumstances, one often runs into the dilemma of resource shortages and poor cash flow, even with the best of intentions."

"Many junior and senior brothers have wasted their years or even had their path cut short because of this."

Liao Xunzhen glanced at Chen Yue and continued:

"In light of this, some of the more kind-hearted senior brothers in the sect took the lead and organized a small Mutual Aid Association, inviting like-minded and trustworthy brothers to join so we can support each other and overcome difficulties together."

Chen Yue frowned slightly. "A Mutual Aid Association? How does it offer mutual aid?"

Cheng Jun, who had been silent until now, spoke up, his voice flat and betraying no emotion:

"It’s simple. After joining the Mutual Aid Association, if you find yourself short on Contribution Points or urgently need a resource you can’t afford, you can ask for help from other brothers in the association and borrow some Contribution Points to tide you over."

"Once you’re better off, you can pay it back. We are all from the same sect; we should help each other through tough times."

Hearing this, Chen Yue’s frown deepened. "I recall the Sect Rules explicitly state that Contribution Points are recorded under an individual disciple’s name and cannot be transferred between members. This..."

Liao Xunzhen laughed and waved his hand dismissively.

"Junior Brother Chen is as meticulous as I thought. The Sect Rules do indeed have such a provision; Contribution Points themselves cannot be transferred directly."

"But we can be flexible. For example, you could use your Contribution Points to redeem the elixirs or ingredients you need, and then lend those items to a brother in need. That wouldn’t violate the Sect Rules, would it?"

"Once they’re better off, they can use their Contribution Points to redeem an item of equal value to give back to you, or they could just repay you with silver taels. This way, we help a fellow disciple without breaking the Sect Rules. Isn’t that the best of both worlds?"

Chen Yue understood immediately. ’So that’s how they "lend" things.’

It was a barter system, designed to circumvent the restriction on directly transferring Contribution Points. The method certainly exploited a loophole.

Cheng Jun looked at Chen Yue and said in a low voice:

"Everyone falls on hard times. The purpose of the Mutual Aid Association is to unite everyone so we can help each other, ensuring that no brother in the Panshi Sect is left isolated and helpless."

"We’ve been observing you for a few days, Junior Brother Chen. We see that your Alchemy Skill is solid and that you are a steady and low-key person. We feel you meet the criteria for our Mutual Aid Association, so we came today specifically to invite you."

Chen Yue looked at the two senior brothers before him. One played the good cop, the other the bad cop. Their words were eloquent, seemingly considering the welfare of their fellow disciples at every turn.

If this Mutual Aid Association was truly as pure as they claimed, offering simple mutual assistance, then for a newly arrived disciple, it would indeed be a good way to deal with unexpected needs.

’But the question is, is this Mutual Aid Association really so pure?’

’What if someone used the association as a front to intimidate others, forcing them to lend things and never returning them, or even to control the members? What then?’

’What are the internal rules of the association? Who arbitrates disputes? Can lent resources be recovered on time?’

Liao Xunzhen and Cheng Jun hadn’t mentioned a single word about these issues.

Moreover, Cheng Jun’s remark about observing him for a few days sent a slight chill through Chen Yue’s heart.

’Observing for a few days... they probably weren’t just watching to see if my alchemy technique was stable. They were more likely digging into my background to see if I fit their "criteria."’

Now that they had come to his door, it was obvious they had already figured out his background: an ordinary outer sect disciple from a remote county with no connections in the Celestial State Prefecture.

A person like that, who also demonstrated a stable and efficient ability to refine Solid Essence Pills on Dan Peak, was probably seen by some as a juicy piece of meat, ripe for the taking.

Chen Yue’s thoughts raced. He had previously thought the atmosphere within the Panshi Sect was decent, with everyone minding their own business and living in peace.

Now it seemed that was only because others hadn’t yet figured out his background and were still in a wait-and-see mode.

Once they found out he was just an ordinary disciple with no roots or backing, yet possessed a highly efficient alchemy skill, trouble would naturally come knocking.

Chen Yue’s mind jumped to Yao Jin’s earlier advice for Lin Quan to go directly to the apothecaries in Celestial State Prefecture City instead of coming to Dan Peak.

At the time, he had only thought Yao Jin was being considerate of Lin Quan’s situation. Thinking back now, it was probably also a way to protect him.

An old Alchemy Master with no proficiency in Martial Arts and no ability to protect himself, if he were to get entangled in these convoluted mutual aid associations or small cliques within Dan Peak, would likely become a pushover who was constantly "borrowed" from and could never refuse.

Chen Yue’s vigilance was at its peak, but not a trace of it showed on his face.

He pondered for a moment, his face showing the perfect blend of gratitude and difficulty, and clasped his hands toward Liao Xunzhen and Cheng Jun.

"I appreciate the kind intentions of you two senior brothers. It’s just that, at the moment, I don’t need to borrow any Contribution Points or resources. For now, I’m quite content with my daily routine of alchemy and cultivation. As for this Mutual Aid Association... I’ll pass on joining for now."

The moment these words were spoken, the atmosphere in the courtyard instantly froze.

Cheng Jun’s already expressionless face grew colder as his eyes narrowed, his gaze turning sharp.

The smile on Liao Xunzhen’s face also faded. Although the corners of his mouth were still turned up, the expression held no warmth.

He looked at Chen Yue, his tone still gentle but now carrying an undertone that brooked no refusal:

"Junior Brother Chen, you can’t put it like that. We’re all fellow disciples; we should look out for and help one another. It’s your good fortune that you don’t need to borrow Contribution Points right now."

"But what about our other brothers? They might be in urgent need of help. You can’t just think about looking out for yourself. We are all disciples of the Panshi Sect; it’s only right to do your part for your fellow disciples."