Chapter 52: The Vast Heavens Have Not Treated Me (Bonus) Unkindly

After speaking, Ye Qiu gently pinched Xiao Wu's soft cheek and chuckled teasingly.

"Right, Xiao Wu?"

"Mm-hmm… Ye Qiu is always right."

Xiao Wu's face flushed crimson as she gave a small nod. Her heart was beating a little faster. At this moment, all she hoped for was that Ye Qiu would "bully" her a little more… and eventually push that so-called fiancée out of the picture. Her eyes, now tinged with shyness, stared at Ye Qiu longingly.

"Gift?"

Tang San looked at the two who had suddenly become so close, his face full of confusion. Just what kind of gift could make Xiao Wu blush this much with excitement?!

"That's right, a gift!"

Ye Qiu smiled mysteriously.

He knew it was impossible to hide his and Xiao Wu's cultivation levels, so he didn't even bother trying. With a proud tone, he declared, "Xiao Wu has already broken through to level 40!"

"W-what?!"

Tang San was stunned.

Even the other students in Dorm Seven, who had been quietly watching the drama unfold, gasped in disbelief, all staring wide-eyed at Xiao Wu.

"That's impossible! Ye Qiu… are you joking?"

Tang San couldn't believe it. He knew clearly that Xiao Wu had just reached level 32 not long ago!

He even wondered if Ye Qiu had lost his mind.

"Joking?"

Ye Qiu shook his head and laughed, then stretched out his hand toward Tang San with a smile. "Little San, check my cultivation for yourself and see if I'm joking."

Tang San hesitated for a second, half-doubting, half-believing. He grabbed Ye Qiu's wrist and sent his Xuan Tian skill-infused spirit power into Ye Qiu's body.

It was like a pebble falling into a vast lake.

Tang San's pupils contracted violently, filled with disbelief. It was like he'd seen a ghost. He could clearly sense that Ye Qiu's spirit power had already far surpassed level 35. He couldn't help but exclaim, "How is this possible?! It's been less than two months—how could you have broken through so much?!"

"Hehe…"

Ye Qiu subtly pulled his hand back and sat up straight, saying smugly, "Of course it has to do with the gift I gave to Little Bunny!"

As he spoke, he turned and gave Xiao Wu a smile.

Xiao Wu returned the smile gently and dreamily, a trace of sweetness in her gaze.

Even though Ye Qiu had told her not to say much at this point, seeing his joyful expression made her happy too. Just watching him smile filled her with a sense of bliss.

"In short, once Xiao Wu gets her fourth spirit ring tomorrow, she'll officially be a Spirit Ancestor!"

At this point, Ye Qiu couldn't help but feel a little regretful. Once Xiao Wu advanced to Spirit Ancestor, she'd no longer be eligible for the Spirit Hall's stipends. That meant losing out on a decent source of income.

But then again, it didn't matter too much. If he really needed it, he could always rely on his rich sugar mommy, Dugu Yan. And not to mention, Ma Xiu Nuo often slipped him money too.

Looking at Tang San's ever-changing expression, Ye Qiu felt a bit tired of standing and pulled Xiao Wu to sit beside him on the bed.

"Ye Qiu, what exactly was that gift? Don't tell me it came at the cost of potential? If there are any side effects, what will happen to Xiao Wu?!"

Tang San, finally regaining his senses, still wore a look of shock—along with confusion and a hint of concern.

He had read in his teacher's notes about methods that could rapidly boost a spirit master's strength in a short time. Those were often used by fallen cultivators—things like burning life force, sacrificing potential, or even harming other living beings.

But the gift Ye Qiu gave Xiao Wu had boosted her by at least eight levels in just one hour?! Not even those forbidden methods could achieve something like that!

Seeing Tang San rush up to him with concern etched across his face, Xiao Wu frowned.

To her, the Lovesick Heartbroken Red flower Ye Qiu gave her was irreplaceable—a symbol of love. Hearing Tang San speak as if Ye Qiu had harmed her filled her with discomfort. She said unhappily, "Little San, what do you mean by burning potential? Ye Qiu would never give me something harmful!"

Tang San quickly explained, "Xiao Wu, I didn't mean it like that. I'm just worried about you both. If there are any side effects, it might affect your future cultivation…"

"Haha, alright, that's enough."

Ye Qiu gently stroked Xiao Wu's back to calm her down, then turned to the still-worried Tang San and said calmly, "Little San, I get why you're concerned. Our improvement does seem absurd. But I can assure you, there's nothing wrong with it."

"Why?" Tang San frowned. He didn't understand why Ye Qiu was so certain.

Ye Qiu rolled his eyes.

Why? I took it myself—of course I know it's fine! What, you want me to give you a dose too? Wouldn't that be a dream come true for you?

Though Tang San was being annoying, Ye Qiu still tried to explain patiently. Remembering that time he almost got killed by Dugu Bo made him shiver a bit.

He closed his eyes, took a deep breath, and spoke in a solemn tone: "Because… that thing saved my life. It wasn't easy to obtain."

"It saved your life?" Tang San looked confused. What did that have to do with their cultivation boost?

"That's right!" Under Xiao Wu's puzzled gaze, Ye Qiu suddenly stood up, clasped his hands behind his back, and began telling the story. "As everyone knows, I'm still just a kid! Being out in the world is dangerous enough. Not long after leaving Nuoding City, I ran into bandits!"

"Bandits?"

Everyone in Dorm Seven perked up their ears.

Seeing the fear on Ye Qiu's face, Tang San—based on his understanding of human behavior—felt like he wasn't faking it.

He couldn't help but ask, "And then? What does this have to do with your cultivation skyrocketing?"

"Everything!" Ye Qiu shouted, like he was reliving old grievances. His voice turned cold with anger and then softened with relief as he spun his tale: "After being hunted down for days, I fell off a cliff. I should've died, but by some miracle, I survived… and stumbled upon a divine herb!"

"Divine herb? Boss, that's it?"

Zhang Wei, who had somehow walked over, stared at Ye Qiu curiously, completely engrossed in the story.

Ye Qiu gave him a sideways glance.

Then he looked upward at a forty-five-degree angle, gazing at the sky with a sentimental smile, the earlier anger on his face replaced by a faint melancholy.

"Of course not. That was just the beginning of my legendary vacation."

With that, Ye Qiu looked solemnly at Tang San and continued, "At the bottom of the cliff, I found two glowing herbs. I was badly injured, on the verge of death, so I took a gamble and ate one. Not only did it heal me completely, but the residual medicinal power boosted my cultivation to level 38!"

Ye Qiu's face lit up with admiration, as if marveling at the wonders of the universe.

"The vast heavens have not treated me unkindly! Later, I met an old man who was out gathering herbs. He nearly kidnapped me to use in his alchemy. Luckily, my charming personality won over his granddaughter, and I escaped death—gaining a fiancée and a mountain of riches in the process!"

"As for the remaining divine herb, it was my kind-hearted, beautiful fiancée and her moody grandpa who allowed me to bring it back—for Xiao Wu."

At those words…

Xiao Wu, who had been holding in her laughter and pinching her thigh to stay quiet, suddenly couldn't smile anymore.

If all that were true, she would've rather not accepted the herb.

The herb was nowhere near as important as Ye Qiu himself.

Xiao Wu huffed quietly, her face showing a bit of grievance and disappointment. A shimmer of tears appeared in the corners of her eyes.

Tang San, who had just turned his head, caught the sight immediately.

He knew Xiao Wu well. Or, at least, her personality. She wasn't the type to fake this level of emotion. This made Tang San start to believe Ye Qiu's story—at least partially.

At the very least, the existence of the divine herb and the mysterious fiancée didn't seem to be lies.

After all, in his past life, the world had many strange herbs. The Douluo Continent wasn't inferior to his old Tang Sect world. Finding miraculous plants wasn't entirely impossible.