Stealing Luck from the Heavenly Dao's Favorite

When the news of Wei Yunqing's successful qi intake reached the cultivation hall, Wei Yunxi joined the other Wei children in a chorus of "wow"s, their voices full of awe and envy.

As she rubbed her chubby chin, she muttered silently to herself:"As expected of the female lead. She really does have some luck and strength. That only means I have to keep my head down even more!"

That afternoon, after returning to Zhuóhuá Courtyard, Wei Yunxi pretended to be "diligent" and meditated for half an hour longer than usual. In the end, she leaned to one side and fell asleep again, wasting yet another night.

Zhenzhu, who was guarding the door, didn't make the slightest attempt to urge her to continue cultivating. In fact, she even blocked Chunyu and the other maids from entering, using the excuse that their young mistress was sensing spiritual energy and shouldn't be disturbed.

After the incident where Xiamo fell asleep during night watch, the other three maids—Chunyu, Qiutao, and Dongmei—had all experienced the same inexplicable drowsiness. They didn't need to be told who was behind it.

Even though they knew the truth, they couldn't do anything. They weren't a match for Zhenzhu. So, following Wei Yunxi's instructions, they simply tried to avoid conflict and focused on taking care of their mistress's daily needs.

The day after Wei Yunqing succeeded in her qi intake, the two sisters ran into each other again at the entrance of the cultivation hall. By now, Wei Yunqing's features had grown more refined and elegant. A trace of Du Ruolan's beauty could be seen in her face, while her eyes resembled Wei Lingyue's—she had inherited the best of both parents. No wonder Wei Lingyue favored her.

Wei Yunxi greeted her with a bright, cheerful smile. "Congratulations on your success, Sister. I still can't seem to get the hang of it. Could you teach me your methods?"

Wei Yunqing had heard so many flattering words over the past two days that she'd already become numb to them. She had no intention of giving her little sister any real advice. The last thing she wanted was to be surpassed.

So she gave a perfunctory reply. "I don't have any secrets. I just followed the Sixth Elder's instructions. The most important thing is to calm your mind and clear your thoughts. Have you done that?"

Wei Yunxi looked down, rubbing her fingers together in embarrassment. Her cheeks reddened."I… my legs always go numb when I sit for too long…"

That was all she needed to say—everyone knew exactly what she meant. They'd all experienced the same struggle.

Wei Yunqing spread her hands as if helpless. "Well, there's nothing I can do about that. If you can't even endure meditation, there's not much point in me giving advice."

Watching the disappointment on her sister's face, Wei Yunqing felt her mood lift. She patted Wei Yunxi's shoulder. "Don't worry, Sister. I've already asked Father and Mother. When I go to cultivate at Haoran Sect, I'll bring you with me."

Wei Yunxi's heart skipped a beat. This is bad. But she quickly replaced the look of dismay on her face with one of joy. She grabbed Wei Yunqing's hand and asked in confirmation, "Sister, really? You'll really take me to Haoran Sect? But I only have three spirit roots, and I haven't even succeeded in drawing qi into my body yet…"

All the other children in the cultivation hall had their ears perked, listening closely. A few of the older ones were starting to catch on, and their expressions turned sour. Discontent was already brewing.

Wei Yunqing was pleased with herself but feigned reassurance. "Of course it's true. I told Father I didn't want to be separated from you. Even if you haven't succeeded in qi intake yet, I'll make sure you join Haoran Sect with me."

Wei Yunxi's heart sank even deeper, but on the surface, she clutched Wei Yunqing's hand tightly, face lit up in joy. "Thank you, Sister. I'll work hard. I'll do my best to succeed before Haoran Sect starts accepting disciples!"

Before Wei Yunqing could respond, Wei Yunxi let go and scurried into the hall on her short legs. She picked a spot and immediately sat down to meditate, looking every bit like someone determined to cultivate.

But beneath her closed eyes, Wei Yunxi was mentally cursing up a storm."This damn Heavenly Dao! Even after everything I've done to change the story, you still want to drag me back into being the female lead's treasure boy"

Her original plan was to split from the protagonist right away. She didn't want to give the girl any chance to leech off her resources. Wei Yunxi firmly believed that if she could just stay far away from the protagonist, her own natural luck would carry her down a smooth and prosperous path.

But now the female lead clearly wanted to latch onto her. Wei Yunxi would need a new strategy. If they both ended up in Haoran Sect, she'd face more challenges—but at least she'd be able to monitor the girl's every move. She could only hope her uncle would be able to help her when the time came.

That evening, back in Zhuóhuá Courtyard, Wei Yunxi threw herself into "hard work," meditating half an hour longer than usual. Her closeness with the spiritual energy particles grew stronger. She could already sense that they would enter her body the moment she reached out.

But she had to endure.

Zhenzhu, seeing Wei Yunxi doze off again, quietly left the courtyard under cover of darkness and made her way to Hǎitáng Courtyard to see Du Ruolan.

Du Ruolan frowned deeply after hearing Zhenzhu's report and questioned her several times."You checked all of Zhuóhuá Courtyard?"

"I did, Madam. I even inspected the living quarters of the four maids—there was nothing unusual."

"Did you try probing them?"

"They don't talk to me much, but I heard Chunyu mention that Miss Yunxi spent some time at the Feng household. Most of what her mother left behind might've been stored there."

Du Ruolan's face darkened with fury."Shameless Feng family," she thought. "No wonder Zhenzhu found nothing."

Waving her hand to dismiss the maid, she immediately went to find Wei Lingyue.

Wei Lingyue had just finished his cultivation session. He had hit a bottleneck recently and was struggling to break through to the late stage of Foundation Establishment.

He took out Feng Jiayun's storage pouch, hoping to find a suitable pill to aid his breakthrough.

At that exact moment, Du Ruolan arrived. She relayed what her maid had "accidentally overheard."

Wei Lingyue felt some discontent rise in his heart. In his view, all those things belonged to the Wei family. Of course, he couldn't say that out loud—it would make him look greedy and petty.

Du Ruolan's eyes gleamed as she shifted the conversation. "Lingyue, I heard from Yunqing that Yunxi still hasn't succeeded in qi intake. Wouldn't it be inappropriate to send someone with her aptitude to Haoran Sect?"

Wei Lingyue shot her a glance. "Weren't you the one who said Yunqing wanted Yunxi to accompany her, so you asked me to send both girls to the sect together?"

Du Ruolan gave a gentle smile and spoke bluntly. "I didn't know the Feng family would pull something like this. I was counting on Yunxi having her mother's pills. Even if she relied on pills to cultivate, she wouldn't fall too far behind Yunqing. The two of them could support each other and preserve the Wei family's reputation.

But now she's just a little girl who was duped by the Fengs. She probably left all the valuable items there. How is she going to cultivate in the sect? We can't expect Yunqing to share her own resources with her!"

Wei Lingyue responded calmly, "Wei family doesn't covet what belongs to the Fengs. Yunxi is still young. Once she begins cultivating, she'll come to understand how important resources are."

"…So, about Yunxi going to Haoran Sect…"

"I'll think about it."