Chapter Twenty: Reunion of Friends

  That night, at the dinner table in the Zhengqi Gang's living room, a short-haired, flat-chested, pseudo-tomboyish Xiao Xiao sneered with a sly smile:

  "All the delicious food is served, you rascal! Looking at you eating all these good things for so many days, I'm dying of envy! Alright, you young fellow has a prosperous business now!"

  The lovely little beauty covered her small mouth and giggled: "Xiao Dou, you're so amazing! You know, originally, it was the three of us who were supposed to do all this, but no matter how hard we tried, we just couldn't gather enough people from our sect. Who would have thought that you, a clumsy fool, would actually be lucky and succeed? Just like Shui Xian said, you really can do it!"

  "That's not so simple, the outer disciples of the sect often come to inspect us. The leader of the alliance said that we should kill him and make him the vice leader, but he's still not honest and always causes trouble, so we should get rid of him. But because of those stupid rules of the cultivators, we can only be good people and can't be bad people!"

  Slender and elegant, with a cold smile on her small mouth, the water fairy said: "Don't worry, with me and Xiaoxiao here, he won't live for many days... Ha ~ No need to mention these trivial matters, Xiao Dou, you're really amazing! Even I couldn't do what you did, and you actually did it better than me and that good guy Leng Lao Da. Good job!"

  "I? What's my ability? I'm just leading a group of cultivators to bully ordinary people, and it's all messed up. If you hadn't suddenly appeared to help me, everything might have been ruined by me. Ugh, Xiaoxiao, when you have time, you must teach me some negotiation skills. I almost died from speaking my mind!"

  A flat-chested woman said: "You kid have a good eye, no problem, follow me and learn, I guarantee you won't lose out. Later on, you kid will soar to great heights!"

  Xiao Mei laughed and said: "I think you three are all very capable, it's just that each of you has your own strengths. Ren Jie is a master strategist, able to win with wisdom from a thousand miles away. Xiao Xiao is a fierce and decisive fighter, while Xiao Dou... haha, I didn't expect him to be such a great talent!"

  "Xiao Mei, you're also amazing! You can handle even the smallest things with care, and you always pay attention to everyone's feelings. Everyone is happy when you're around. Thinking back to our childhood, we survived such a harsh environment, and that in itself is remarkable. I was wrong about Xiao Dou's abilities, though. Xiao Dou, how did you manage to bring together over 200 cultivators, regardless of whether they were cunning or narrow-minded, kind-hearted or honest? And yet, they're all so united! Heaven knows how incredible you are!"

  "Huh?" Xiaodou said with a embarrassed face: "What's so great about me? Back then when I chose Yuan Fei as my master, I already had these junior brothers and sisters..."

  Before long, Xiao Dou told the three girls about her situation without reservation, including the missing lock, and said it all in one go. Shui Xian listened and covered her forehead, sighing:

  "Are you going to let over two hundred brothers and sisters follow you to life and death? This is really exaggerated, you despicable little bean, you know that I was completely surpassed by you. I, several years ago, reached the late stage of Qi training, then widely recruited inner sect disciples to form a team to collect heavenly materials and earthly treasures. However, the team couldn't be assembled at all, with a maximum of only twenty-seven people at most. They came today and left tomorrow, almost driving me mad. What can I do? How could I have done it differently? I almost knelt down for them. And here is a great business opportunity, I saw it early on. With just one hundred people, I could take over this place. But no one dares to follow me and risk being punished by the sect. How can you be brave enough to venture into the Jianghu with such little courage?"

  Xiao Mei smiled and said: "Xiao Dou is really a talent, in my opinion, Xiao Dou is even better than that old big shot when he was young. Look at that cold and arrogant young master's team, they are all full of nonsense every day, while Xiao Dou's team is surprisingly so united, this is what it means to have a leader with cohesive power!"

  "Alright, stop flattering me, tell me quickly, how's my brother? Is he okay?"

  Little Sao pouted and said, "Don't keep calling him 'Old Big Brother', when he was young, he treated you well, we all heard Shui Xian say so. Xiao Dou, don't be foolish, that's what his family taught him to do when he was young. Can't you understand after all these years? Why did those aristocratic descendants come to our midst back then? Wasn't it to win people over and have someone help him in the future when competing for the best resources?"

  Xiao Dou shook his head and said hastily, "Leng Lao Da is not that kind of person, he has been very good to me. Right, didn't you all say that this bracelet is a treasure? A treasure! Would I use it on such an useless little brother?"

  "Alas, human hearts are indeed hard to fathom," sighed Shui Xian. "No matter how much I think about it, I just can't see through it. Maybe he really does treat you like a brother!"

  Xiao Mei smiled bitterly: "During the Qi Refining stage to the Sword Cultivation stage, one uses magical tools. During the Core Formation stage to the Great Way stage, one uses low- to mid-grade magical treasures. During the Nascent Soul stage to the Tribulation stage, one uses high-grade magical treasures. And during the Heaven Human stage, one uses spiritual treasures. All of this is clearly stated in the scriptures. I just don't understand how a cultivator like Xiaodou, who hasn't even reached the Qi Refining stage, can use magical treasures."

  Narcissus sighed and said, "It's still because of this guy when he was a kid trying to please me, learning that 'wheel eye' from that cold young master. Don't worry, the energy of the treasure can't kill him, but...he won't be able to use this treasure against his enemies either. He'll just absorb the energy of the treasure, and one day when the treasure runs out of energy, he's done for!"

  "Xiao Dou, what's wrong with you? You're learning those ancient, useless spells too? Ahh, you're driving me crazy! Oh, Xiao Mei, you're such a clever kid, don't let Xiao Dou ruin our only treasure!"

  Xiao Mei frowned and said: "It's not that it can't be destroyed, but this thing is indeed useless. In my opinion, it's a mid-grade magic treasure. The energy left is only one-fifth, and it can still be used for several decades at most. If used in a spiritual place, it can repair itself, but it can only be used for about 100 years. Not bad, right? With this thing, your cultivation speed will be 10% faster than others within 100 years! Later, when there's time to recover, it can still be used, but don't expect too much from it, its recovery speed is very slow. However, if you use a spirit stone to forcefully replenish it, it can recover, but that would be a waste of resources. It's better to buy dan medicine for cultivation!"

  Shuixian smiled and said: "Xiaomei's forging skills have reached a certain level, the appraisal of the treasure is also very clear and organized, it's really impressive!"

  The little jumping creature shouted: "I'm also very powerful, I can do both array and puppetry, two high-difficulty skills! Uh... at least the basics, I can all do them. If there are materials, I must be able to make an array disc and a small puppet soldier. Waaa~ I want so many spirit stones, so many materials~"

  Xiao Dou scolded with a disdainful face: "Xiao Xiao, don't make trouble, those things can be obtained by many people, but they are all exchanged for countless materials and experience. Otherwise, I would directly cultivate a clever junior brother or sister, why bother calculating Qing Song Shibo, provoking the sect to be unhappy, now it's simply dancing on the tip of a knife!"

  Narcissus smiled confidently: "Xiaodou, you can rest assured and do it boldly. I'll give you advice and strategies, absolutely nothing will go wrong. Wealth and honor are sought in danger, and in the future, each of us must master a skill to last long on the path of cultivation. I've already thought about it: I'll study alchemy, Xiaomei will study forging, Xiao will study array techniques and puppetry. As for refining equipment and making talismans... hmm, let's not have Xiaodou learn those two things. We can find a good partner later and have them join us!"

  Xiao Dou thought for a moment and said: "This is quite a big bet, but if it's Shuixian, I'll put my money on Shuixian, you will win. Alright, let's talk about what to do next!"

  Xiao Mei's eyes widened in surprise and she exclaimed: "Xiao Dou, you're really clever! Maybe, just maybe, you're the true ruler here!"

  Xiao Xiao grasped her hair and exclaimed: "Ah~ Stinky little bean, can't you just make up your mind? One minute it's heaven and the next it's hell! You're driving me crazy!"

  "Alright, I've said it. Here's what I'm thinking: first, we need to take care of the sect's affairs. As long as we do it quickly and waste some money on good deeds for the sect, that's fine. It's not a big deal. However, in the next few years, we need to be more low-key. Let's stabilize our power and earn enough money, but instead of going back to the sect, let's go to the market in the immortal realm and exchange large amounts of gold and silver for small amounts of spiritual stones. Although it won't make us rich quickly, this is a long-term business. Then, we'll open a large pharmacy in the mortal world to collect spiritual herbs that people unintentionally gather. With Qing Song Shibo's guidance, Xiao Dou's team will become even stronger. After that, we'll venture into dangerous territories to collect materials for the Qi-gathering Dan. If everything goes smoothly, I'll be able to refine the Dan and support a group of people!"

  "Despicable!" The small, angry voice shouted: "In any case, cultivation is the first step. If it's said that after this, everything will have to yield to the Water Immortal, then what about my formations and puppets? I won't accept it! I am the absolute mainstay. You know, how many people in the sect praise me as a stunning rising star? If there were a small family, they would definitely support me to become a great talent!"

  Xiao Mei puffed out her chest and said: "I'm not either? Not to mention the small sect, even our Jiuhua Mountain wants me to stay behind. If it weren't for this childhood affection, I absolutely wouldn't have come out!"

  Xiao Dou smiled and said: "Alright, you three are all absolute mainstays, no need to argue. Our development is smooth sailing, we do what we need to do, there's no before or after, just be at ease with our mindset!"

  He finished speaking, and the three girls looked at him with eyes as if they were looking at a monster...