True Heir of Chaos: From Villainess to Empress

"In the next fifty years, the cultivation world will see the emergence of rare spiritual materials, immortal abodes, and newly formed secret realms. Mo Yue Jūnshàng, this is quite the generous offering."

Hua Kun raised his brows. From his tone alone, Jian Dan could tell that he didn't fully believe the information she had provided.

She didn't mind. It wasn't like she expected to earn anyone's trust at their first meeting.

"Patriarch Hua, I am a demon cultivator. Some opportunities are of no use to me. I give them to you because I have a request. Consider it my compensation. Whether it is true or false, time will reveal everything.

As for whether the Hua clan can secure any of it, that depends on your own abilities. I'll take my leave." Jian Dan said no more. She had done all she could. The rest was up to fate.

In the cultivation world, opportunities were not something one could force. She believed the Hua clan would investigate. As long as one of the listed opportunities was real, they would treat it seriously.

She didn't know when she would return from the Ming Valley. These things should not end up in Du Yanran's hands.

Bit by bit, she would destroy Du Yanran's advantage of foresight. Even if the Heavenly Dao tried to compensate her from another angle, Jian Dan believed that if she could foil it once, she could do it again, until Du Yanran was crushed completely.

"Jūnshàng, here are the peach trees you liked. I informed the clan head and had a hundred of them transplanted."

Hua Shisan respectfully presented her with a mid-grade storage pouch.

"Well done. My thanks to Patriarch Hua."

Gong Yi stepped forward to accept it. Jian Dan waved her hand and tossed a low-grade storage pouch back to Hua Shisan.

By the time he caught it, Jian Dan had already boarded her golden carriage. With a piercing neigh, the unicorn horse rose into the sky and soared away from the Hua estate.

"Brother, can we trust what this Mo Yue said?" Hua Qian voiced her doubt.

"What she said about the Ancestor is probably true. If she inherited the legacy of the Mo Mei Zhūnzhǔ, it's not strange that she would know."

"Why?"

"Because our ancestor once pursued the Mo Mei Zhūnzhǔ."

This time, it was Hua Qian's turn to choke on her words. It was better to know less about their ancestor's romantic history.

"What about the information in the jade slip?"

"I don't know. But we can wait. Time will prove it right or wrong."

"And her request?"

"We'll comply. It's not a big deal for our clan. She probably mentioned it just to test us."

"Brother, weren't those three promises you gave her a bit reckless? What if the elders ask about it?"

"I never planned to tell them. Right now, ensuring the Ancestor's safe recovery is what matters most. You know what will happen if we lose the Ancestor. Better than I do. So, set everything else aside. Let's deal with what's in front of us."

"That bastard child of Hua Gen really showed up at the perfect time."

Hua Kun and Hua Qian exchanged a glance. A decision had already been made between them.

—

Meanwhile, Hua Po was fantasizing about all the ways he would rise to power in the Hua clan. Next to him, the middle-aged female cultivator kept nagging, urging him to win his father's favor once he joined the clan.

Suddenly, the air around them seemed to freeze. A female cultivator appeared before the two. They both froze in place, then smiled when they noticed the twin-lotus pattern on her dark robe.

"Senior—"

Before he could finish, Hua Qian raised a sleeve. The two of them collapsed unconscious.

She summoned her spirit flower. Looking at the reluctant Red Blossom, she said softly, "Be good, Red Blossom. Take out his Soul-Nurturing Flower. Don't damage his foundation. I want it intact."

Seeing the seriousness on her master's face, Red Blossom knew this was no joke. It darted into the unconscious man's dantian. He began to sweat and frown, the veins on his forehead bulging, but he did not wake.

Hua Qian did not intervene. She trusted her own spirit flower.

Sure enough, half a moment later, Red Blossom emerged from the dantian, dragging out a nearly translucent, palm-sized white flower.

"This Soul-Nurturing Flower is clearly malnourished. Its owner must have been draining it of its essence. If he had formed his core, it would've withered entirely."

"I know. He doesn't have the Hua clan's cultivation arts. Naturally, he doesn't know how to properly care for his plant companion. It's both his partner and his strength, but he treated it like a burden and did something this foolish."

Hua Qian carefully sealed the flower in a jade box and stored it in her bracelet. Then, she tossed a mid-grade storage pouch at the unconscious man. Inside were enough resources to reach the late Nascent Soul stage, including pills for forming a core and nurturing a nascent soul.

This was the Hua clan's compensation. She would never agree to let him join the family. Someone who could be so cruel to a spiritual companion that had grown with him could never be loyal to the Hua clan.

Just in case, she altered their memories. What needed to be erased was erased. What needed to be changed was changed. When they woke, all they would remember was that they had sold the spirit plant that was hindering their cultivation for better resources. Nothing else.

Before meeting the boy, Hua Kun and Hua Qian had discussed it. If his character and aptitude were acceptable, they would consider taking him in. But the intelligence network's report had revealed something interesting.

This young man was a diligent cultivator. Though his resources were limited, he was steadfast and didn't fuss over minor gains or losses. He frequently went out to temper himself and often teamed up with others to collect resources.

The strange part was this: every single person or team he worked with had met their end. Not once or twice, but every time.

That was why Hua Qian decided to take the Soul-Nurturing Flower directly. Once could be a coincidence. But every time? That was no accident. When patterns become consistent, the cause is usually deliberate.

This was someone calculating and skilled at shaping appearances. It didn't make him evil, but since stepping into Divine Transformation and gaining insight into the Heavenly Dao, Hua Qian understood this much:

The Heavenly Dao is fair. Some things can be fought for. Others can be seized. But too much scheming will always have a price.

This is the path of cultivation—defying fate, yet abiding by the Dao's rules.

—

At the same time, Hua Kun turned to the steward, Hua Gen, and said,

"If your son is a good person, I don't mind bringing him into the family and giving him protection. For the Ancestor's sake, I would do that much. But as a father, you have failed. Here is everything our intelligence network uncovered. Take a look."

A jade slip floated before Hua Gen. But hearing the Patriarch's words, his heart had already gone cold. After reading the contents, he could only confirm his worst fears.

He had been blind. Upon seeing his child, his only thought had been how to restore his lineage. Especially since a child born with a plant companion was usually recognized as direct bloodline. He had ignored everything that had come before.

"Hua Gen. What do you want to do?"

Snapping out of his daze, Hua Gen gritted his teeth and said, "I ask that the clan show mercy. He's still a child. Please give him a chance. Let him return to the family, even as an offshoot branch. The past is behind him. He only did what he had to in order to survive and cultivate."

He tried to plead once more. Children with plant companions were typically assumed to be part of the main line. Their potential was considerable.

But just then, Hua Qian returned to the estate. Hearing Hua Gen's words, her brows knit into a frown. Without a word, she appeared before him and brought her palm down on his head.