He stole my spirit stones, honey, help me kill him

The lanky steward suddenly opened his eyes, a sharp glint flashing within.

An outer disciple?

No backing or connections?

And dozens of spirit herbs?

A commoner's only crime is possessing treasure.

If not you, then who deserves to die?

Did he really think speaking softly would make him inaudible?

To be fair, this outer disciple’s scheming wasn’t half bad.

Pity he was still a greenhorn.

And he had run into him.

The steward sneered inwardly.

Unlike that fat nepotism hire in the Personnel Hall,

he had genuinely reached the peak of Qi Refinement. Only after failing his Foundation Establishment breakthrough had he been exiled to this Contribution Hall to rot.

A mere eighth-layer Qi Refinement cultivator?

He had this in the bag.

Watching Su Ji’s retreating figure, the steward stood and casually instructed a familiar disciple nearby to cover for him briefly.

Then, he silently trailed after.

Ahead, Su Ji wandered aimlessly through the sect like a headless fly.

He circled the outer disciples’ residential area twice,

then plunged into the dilapidated quarters of the servant disciples.

Finally, he even skulked toward the inner disciples’ zone, peeking around like a thief.

Every now and then, he’d whirl around abruptly, tense and paranoid, as if fearing pursuit.

All of this was observed by the steward shadowing him from behind.

The steward grew even more convinced—this kid was definitely hiding something valuable.

With how cautious he was acting, he must be heading to stash his treasures.

A gift from the heavens!

He’d already planned how to use this windfall to buy pills for another shot at Foundation Establishment after killing Su Ji.

After meandering through half the sect, Su Ji finally seemed to settle on a secluded courtyard.

After scanning the area to confirm no one was around, he took a running start and vaulted over the high wall with agile grace.

Without hesitation, the steward followed, landing soundlessly inside.

---

Meanwhile, in an elegant room.

Su Jiu held a brush, writing on a sheet of pristine paper.

"The Eye of the Eastern Sea, the Spring of the Western Desert… these are manageable. The black market has connections, though the price is steep."

"The essences of the Five Elements… Goldspirit Stone, Ten-Thousand-Year Heartwood… this one’s tricky, depends on luck…"

She was mapping out how to gather the materials Su Ji needed for his Heavenly Dao Foundation Establishment.

With no outsiders present, she had shed all her disguises.

Her fluffy little ears twitched suddenly.

Footsteps in the backyard?

Oh…

It was Su Ji.

Su Jiu set down her brush and sighed helplessly.

This guy—instead of sleeping, he was scaling her walls again at night.

Typical Su Ji behavior.

What next?

Coming to peep on her?

Should she go take a bath to ma—

Pah!

Her cheeks flushed as she shook off the absurd thoughts.

Had she been cultivating improperly lately?

Her mind felt increasingly unruly…

But then, her delicate brows furrowed.

Wait—

Why was there another set of footsteps?

And unfamiliar, too.

Had Su Ji picked up another vixen somewhere?

Daring to bring someone to her backyard for thrills?

A surge of inexplicable fury erupted in Su Jiu’s chest.

With a smack, she hurled her brush onto the table.

The half-finished plan in her hands was promptly torn in two with a rip.

---

Elsewhere.

The lanky steward froze the moment he landed, his breath catching at the sight before him.

Ignoring Su Ji for now, he stared greedily at the garden brimming with spirit herbs.

Bathed in moonlight, the plants shimmered with an ethereal glow, their spiritual energy so dense it was nearly tangible.

Some kind of concealment array?

Why hadn’t he sensed anything from outside the wall?

No matter.

What mattered was that he was here now.

If he sold all these… these herbs, he’d easily net over a thousand low-grade spirit stones!

He’d struck gold!

True gold this time!

Suppressing his euphoria, he turned to Su Ji, who stood a short distance away, and flashed a vicious grin.

"Kid, you’re clever, I’ll give you that."

"Too bad everything here—including your life—is mine now."

He advanced step by step, unleashing the full pressure of his peak Qi Refinement cultivation to crush Su Ji.

In his eyes, Su Ji was already a fish on the chopping block.

Su Ji stood his ground, his face a perfect mask of panic: "I was followed?"

"Senior Brother, you… what are you doing? These aren’t mine—"

"Exactly. They’re mine now!"

The steward cackled, raising a hand to unleash a lethal spiritual strike aimed at Su Ji’s vitals.

But then—

Creak—

The wooden door behind him swung open violently.

The steward’s hand faltered as he instinctively turned.

There, under the moonlight, stood a breathtakingly beautiful girl in a plain dress.

It… it was Su Jiu?

His mind went blank with a buzz.

Even an idiot would recognize this rising star who’d gone from servant to inner disciple in just a year.

He… he’d followed an outer disciple into Su Jiu’s courtyard?

And tried to murder and rob someone here?

A chill shot up from his soles to his skull, draining his face of color.

Su Jiu’s gaze landed on the steward, and she blinked in confusion.

Not a vixen? A man?

And judging by his robes, a Contribution Hall steward?

What was going on?

Unlike Su Ji, who had no sense of hierarchy, the steward immediately bowed to strength: "Elder Sister Su Jiu… this is a misunderstanding! Let me explain—it’s a long story—"

But Su Ji had already scampered to Su Jiu’s side, one hand petting her fox ears: "TL;DR—he stole my spirit stones. Wifey, help me kill him~"

Su Jiu, mollified by the ear strokes, nuzzled into his hand: "Okay~"

The steward’s eyes nearly bulged out of their sockets: "You two—?!"

Su Ji grinned fiendishly: "Bet you didn’t see this coming—Elder Sister Su Jiu’s been conquered by my spiritual roots."

Su Jiu: "…"

Honestly?

Right now, she kinda wanted to kill Su Ji first.

The guy was infuriating.

That smug "my fox is scarier than yours" face.

He could’ve easily handled a peak Qi Refinement cultivator himself.

But no, he had to taunt the man like this.

Wait—

Why was she playing along so readily?

Oh, right.

Repaying a debt.