Gu Qinghe stepped out of the area, leaving behind the tense atmosphere that had filled it moments ago.
His pace was calm, unhurried, as if whatever had happened inside was no longer worth thinking about. He passed through the stone corridors and returned to the front courtyard of the Gu Clan Mansion.
There, a girl stood alone.
Xiao Mei looked awkward. Her hands were clasped tightly in front of her chest, her gaze constantly drifting left and right.
The Gu Clan's front courtyard was far too vast for her. The towering buildings surrounding it radiated an invisible pressure, making her feel small and out of place, as if she didn't belong here at all.
When the main doors of the mansion opened and Gu Qinghe walked out, Xiao Mei instinctively focused her attention forward.
Her face immediately brightened. A wide smile bloomed before she even realized it, as though a weight on her shoulders had quietly eased.
"Gu Qinghe?" she called out, her voice hesitant yet full of hope.
Gu Qinghe stopped a few steps in front of her. His gaze swept over Xiao Mei briefly.
There was no gentleness, nor any threatening intent. Only cold composure and a confidence born from complete control over the situation.
"I'll take you to your residence," Gu Qinghe said flatly. "Tonight, study the techniques I gave you. Don't waste time."
The words were short and direct, without pleasantries.
It wasn't advice. It wasn't a suggestion.
It was an order, delivered as naturally as breathing, as if things were meant to be this way.
Xiao Mei coughed softly, then nodded quickly. She immediately stored the technique scrolls she had received earlier into her bag of holding.
Although the bag wasn't a high-grade item, its mechanism was simple enough for a low-level cultivator like her to use.
Inside her chest, Xiao Mei felt both nervous and excited.
She knew this opportunity would not come a second time.
Gu Qinghe turned around and began walking. Xiao Mei followed behind him with cautious steps.
They passed through the garden in the front courtyard of the mansion. Smooth stone paths stretched neatly ahead, flanked by well-maintained greenery.
The air was cool. The surrounding qi flowed steadily—dense, yet not oppressive.
This place was clearly supported by a simple formation designed to maintain energy balance.
Before long, they stopped in front of a small house standing slightly apart from the main building.
The house was modest, almost ordinary compared to the grandeur of the Gu Clan mansion. However, the front yard was spacious, and a large tree grew vigorously beside the building.
Its roots burrowed deep into the earth, thick and ancient. Its dense leaves emitted a subtle yet constant natural qi.
If Xiao Mei's perception was sharp enough, she would be able to sense that this place was different.
Gu Qinghe glanced sideways. "This is an empty training residence my younger sister used to use. She's away right now. From today on, you'll live here."
Xiao Mei fell silent for a moment. Warmth spread through her chest.
She knew that a training residence within a major clan was no ordinary place.
The environmental quality here far surpassed that of ordinary houses outside.
The door opened.
The moment Xiao Mei stepped inside, she saw the condition of the interior. Dust covered the floor. Some furniture was in disarray, chair covers dull and faded, the air stale and cold.
She instinctively wanted to apologize or offer to clean up, but Gu Qinghe had already raised his hand.
Qi flowed from his palm, sweeping through the room like an invisible, gentle breeze.
In just a few breaths, the dust vanished. The floor became spotless, the furniture neatly arranged as if it had just been maintained, and the stale air turned fresh.
Xiao Mei stared at the scene with wide eyes. She swallowed unconsciously.
To her, this wasn't simple cleaning.
It was proof of a gap in strength so vast she could hardly imagine it.
"I'll come back tomorrow morning," Gu Qinghe said in the same calm tone. "I'll supervise your training. For today, rest and understand those techniques."
Xiao Mei looked at him, then bowed lightly. A faint smile appeared on her face.
"Alright," she replied sincerely.
Gu Qinghe didn't respond. He turned around and left the house, leaving Xiao Mei alone with a mix of nervousness, gratitude, and resolve.
Once Xiao Mei's arrangements were settled, Gu Qinghe's thoughts immediately returned to the one thing that had weighed on his chest from the beginning—his mother.
The Ice Meridian Curse was no ordinary illness.
It was a curse that gnawed from within, excessively activating yin elements and destroying the balance of yin-qi inside the body.
Meridians that should have been warm and flexible became cold and brittle. Qi struggled to circulate, and every cultivation cycle only worsened the condition.
A pill capable of completely destroying the curse was far beyond Gu Qinghe's current reach.
But he wasn't out of options.
"For now, the Yin-Yang Balancing Pill will be enough," he murmured softly.
That pill couldn't remove the curse, but it could suppress its effects, balance yin and yang elements, and prevent Wang Yunxi's condition from deteriorating further.
As long as time could be bought, there was still a chance to find another solution.
Gu Qinghe returned to the main Gu Clan mansion and headed straight for the treasure hall.
The moment he stepped inside, the atmosphere changed. Several guards on duty were startled.
They exchanged glances, then instinctively straightened their posture.
"Gu Qinghe?" one of them spoke up, clearly surprised.
A woman in charge of managing the treasure hall stepped forward.
Shock flickered across her face, quickly hidden behind a professional expression.
"What is your purpose for coming here?" she asked.
"I want a spirit-grade furnace," Gu Qinghe replied without beating around the bush. "And a bottle of Muyan Demon Flame."
The woman fell silent for a moment. Her brows lifted unconsciously.
"A furnace… for pill refinement?"
Gu Qinghe's gaze shifted to her, cold and flat.
She immediately nodded, not daring to ask further.
The request was clearly strange.
Everyone in the treasure hall knew Gu Qinghe's reputation.
He was known for being lazy, uninterested in alchemy, and almost never seen anywhere near a pill furnace.
Yet now, he was asking for a spirit furnace and the Muyan Demon Flame—an infamous flame that was notoriously difficult to control.
"Hurry," Gu Qinghe said.
The woman moved at once. It didn't take long before she returned with a spirit-grade Red Lotus Furnace and a tightly sealed bottle of Muyan Demon Flame.
"Anything else?" she asked cautiously.
"Warm Fire Root, Gentle Moon Leaf, and Qi Crystal."
A man who heard the request immediately stepped closer. His expression tightened.
"You want to make a pill for Second Madam Gu?" he asked in a low voice.
Gu Qinghe turned his head. Their gazes met.
The man took a sharp breath. He knew those three ingredients were indeed sufficient.
"Prepare them," Gu Qinghe replied briefly.
No one dared to delay. The materials were quickly handed over.
Gu Qinghe stored them away and left without looking back.
Inside his room, he placed the Red Lotus Furnace atop the cultivation altar. His hand patted his bag of holding.
It's been a long time since I refined pills.
He opened the furnace lid and inserted the ingredients one by one in the correct order. Then he gripped the bottle of Muyan Demon Flame and crushed it.
Black-red flames burst forth, carrying violent qi fluctuations. Intense heat pressure instantly spread throughout the room.
Demonic flames are indeed different… but I need their efficiency.
Gu Qinghe channeled qi into his palm, suppressing and stabilizing the raging flames. Slowly, the fire submitted.
His right hand controlled the flames. His left hand guided qi into the furnace.
The fire melted the ingredients. Qi fused their essences.
Time passed slowly.
Backlash struck again and again. Blood trickled from the corner of Gu Qinghe's lips.
He merely forced several meridians wide open, maintaining stable qi absorption through sheer will.
When night fell and the furnace lid was opened, a single gleaming red pill lay inside.
He succeeded.
Gu Qinghe stored it away and stepped outside.
Many people were already waiting in front of his room, including Gu Yanxue.
"The Yin-Yang Balancing Pill?" Gu Yanxue said. "That formula belongs to the Yin-Yang Sect. A difficult spirit-grade pill."
"I found it on the road," Gu Qinghe replied briefly.
He didn't care about their reactions. He walked straight toward his mother's room.
Wang Yunxi was awake. Her complexion looked better, though still pale.
"Qinghe?" she called softly.
Gu Qinghe sat at the edge of the bed and took out the red pill.
"Take this, Mother."
Without hesitation, Wang Yunxi swallowed it.
A red aura spread through her body. Gu Qinghe activated his cultivation sight.
The cold meridians began to warm. Qi absorption stabilized once more.
It worked… even if only temporarily.
"The effects aren't permanent," Gu Qinghe said. "But for now, it's enough."
Wang Yunxi sobbed quietly.
Gu Qinghe didn't turn around. His hand slowly clenched into a fist.
He had seen enough of the pill's reaction to confirm one thing.
This curse originated from the Yin-Yang Sect.