Chapter 73: On Leek Behavior

The Azure Flame Phantasmagoria left a trace of its power within Su Xiaomei to help suppress the raging anger in her body. It then returned to Li Fan's sea of consciousness.

Even after such a short time, Li Fan already felt a wave of fatigue. The nascent phantasmagoria, born from the *Netherworld Spirit Illusion Art* which had not yet reached the late Qi Condensation stage, was still somewhat weak. Furthermore, he had to concentrate and carefully control the intensity of the phantasmagoria's output to avoid harming Su Xiaomei's young body. This was by no means an easy task for Li Fan.

Fortunately, everything concluded without mishap despite the scare. This intervention ensured her safety for the next ten years. If Li Fan could successfully retreat from the Cloudwater Heavenly Palace in this life and acquire the *Cloudwater Diagram Scroll*, he would naturally come for her earlier. Should Li Fan meet with misfortune, she would still be able to journey to the cultivation world with Su Changyu and others after ten years.

After recovering his spirits, Li Fan walked out of the basement. The dignitaries of Dali were still waiting outside. After informing them that Su Xiaomei had been cured, Li Fan dismissed them, keeping only Scholar Su to inquire about Su Xiaomei's situation.

Scholar Su's face flushed, and after a long hesitation, he stammered out the full story. It turned out that Su Xiaomei was not his daughter, but the daughter of his younger sister, Su Yuqing. Su Yuqing was much younger than Scholar Su; she was only sixteen years old when she became pregnant with Su Xiaomei last year. At the time, her mysterious pregnancy caused a huge stir in the Su Manor because she was not yet married!

Pregnancy out of wedlock was already a complete scandal. What angered Master Su even more was that Su Yuqing absolutely refused to reveal the child's father. She insisted that she had done nothing unchaste, merely feeling tired one day while strolling in the garden and deciding to take a short nap. Soon after waking, she noticed something unusual about her body. But as an unmarried maiden living in seclusion, how could she possibly bring up such a matter to others? Only when her belly grew larger day by day could she no longer conceal it. Of course, the Su family did not believe such an absurd explanation.

An enraged Master Su wanted to abort the child. However, feeling the heartbeat of the fetus within her, Su Yuqing displayed a mother's strength. She utterly refused to abort the fetus, even threatening to take her own life. Although Master Su was furious, he wouldn't actually kill his own daughter. He could only lock Su Yuqing in her room, preventing her from going out to avoid the news from spreading. And so, the day of labor finally arrived. It took a great deal of effort to give birth to Su Xiaomei.

Su Yuqing's body was inherently delicate, and she had not received good care throughout her pregnancy. Such an ordeal proved too much for her already weak body. Therefore, just a few days after giving birth to Su Xiaomei, she passed away with regret. Before her death, she tearfully pleaded with the Su family to take good care of Su Xiaomei. The Su family were not heartless people. After Su Yuqing's death, the entire family doted on this little one who had lost her parents so early, wishing for her to grow up safe and happy. Who would have thought that shortly after Su Xiaomei's birth, she would contract a strange illness? Her entire body would burn with fever, to the point where she needed constant ice packs for relief. The Su family sought out all the famous doctors in the capital, but none could cure her—until Li Fan arrived.

After listening to Scholar Su's account, Li Fan looked up at the sky of this world, deep in thought. "Born by the will of Heaven, perhaps this explains why Su Xiaomei's talent is so exceptional," he mused. "However, according to the original historical trajectory, even with her extraordinary talent, she could not escape death in the face of calamity. In the entire cultivation world, how many people with such boundless talent as Su Xiaomei have died in obscurity, just like ordinary people? From this perspective, the Heavenly Dao truly treats everyone equally."

With matters concluded, Li Fan let out a long sigh, summoned the Taiyan Boat, and departed swiftly. It didn't take long before he safely returned to Glazed Island. Indeed, as He Zhenghao had previously stated, the entire journey took about twenty-five days. Even at this point, the Concealment Talisman he had activated earlier was still effective. "As long as there's no conflict with others, a single Concealment Talisman can last this long. It's truly good value for money. When I return to the island, I might buy some for backup," Li Fan thought to himself.

Inside the Mountains and Rivers Star-Fighting Array, Li Fan handed the storage ring to He Zhenghao. He Zhenghao seemed distracted; he merely glanced at the storage ring before putting it away. His attention was focused instead on an ancient mirror in front of him. From its appearance, it was somewhat similar to the Heavenly Profound Mirror. Li Fan followed He Zhenghao's gaze and saw a line of small text displayed on the mirror: "Spirit Mist Grass: Current price 15 contribution points per stalk." The number "15" was constantly changing, sometimes becoming "16" and then quickly "14". "Rise, just rise!" He Zhenghao stared intently at the mirror, as if possessed, continuously muttering.

"Fellow Daoist He, what are you doing?" Li Fan asked curiously.

"Ah, Fellow Daoist, you don't know," He Zhenghao sighed, still not taking his eyes off the mirror, and spoke gloomily. "A few days ago, shortly after you left, I received reliable news. The island where Spirit Mist Grass is cultivated was attacked by a sea beast, and most of the Spirit Mist Grass on the island was destroyed. As I told you before, Spirit Mist Grass is the main raw material for making Concealment Talismans and is extremely rare. Now that so much has been destroyed, the price is bound to skyrocket. At the time, this news hadn't spread yet, so I wanted to seize the opportunity to make a fortune. I invested heavily in the Heavenly Profound Mirror and hoarded a large batch of Spirit Mist Grass..."

This operation sounded somewhat familiar. Li Fan looked at He Zhenghao, puzzled: "Isn't that a good thing? Why do you look so dispirited, Fellow Daoist?"

"Alas, it was a good thing, but I rejoiced too soon," He Zhenghao sighed, his eyes still fixed on the mirror. "At first, the price of Spirit Mist Grass did rise a bit, from 20 points per stalk to 25 points. But who would have thought that before I even had a chance to sell the Spirit Mist Grass in my possession, its price suddenly plummeted? It plummeted all the way from 25 points to 13 points, almost halving!" He Zhenghao said, heartbroken. "Fortunately, the price has rebounded recently, rising back to around 15 points."

Listening to He Zhenghao's words, Li Fan couldn't help but say, "Then why don't you take the opportunity to sell all the Spirit Mist Grass you have, Fellow Daoist He? At least you could recover some of your capital."

He Zhenghao quickly shook his head: "How could I? My savings of nearly a hundred years are invested in this. I must at least wait until the price rises back up before I sell..." He stopped midsentence and suddenly exclaimed, "Why is it falling again? Thirteen? Twelve? Ten? Eight?... Still falling?!" In the blink of an eye, the price of Spirit Mist Grass crashed like an avalanche, falling from 15 points per stalk to 6 points per stalk before finally stabilizing with difficulty.

"It should... rise back up, right?" After a long silence, Li Fan could only offer this consolation to the dispirited and bewildered He Zhenghao.