Chapter 118: The Anticipated Event

Ji Yao’s words made Jue Chen feel slightly uneasy, a subtle but unusual emotion that Ji Yao naturally detected.

“Perhaps you could elaborate, Daoist friend. Since this matter involves that woman, and given that she is still unconscious, and you have seen her before, there must be some minor details that we can use to speculate.”

From a distance, Jue Chen sat watching Ji Yao frown in deep thought, clearly very concerned about the matter. After a moment of reflection, he began to speak.

“Previously, I was commissioned to track down a Qi Refining stage cultivator. Following the trail, I learned that this cultivator last appeared voluntarily following a woman into a certain forest for experience. When I arrived, they were in a cave, engaged in intimate relations. However, inside the cave were several other Qi Refining male cultivators, all unconscious, concealed by a hidden formation.”

At this point, Ling Ru also sensed something unusual and asked, “Could it be that those two did not notice the formation? Or perhaps the formation was set up by them? That would be...”

Ji Yao helped finish the thought, “If that were so, it would be very problematic. They acted so recklessly, not even worried that those inside the formation might awaken. That reveals something important.”

Jue Chen nodded. “At first, I merely swept my divine sense over it and did not enter the cave for a detailed inspection. I only detected that a formation blocked my divine sense and did not notice anyone inside. So I called out to them to leave quickly. Unexpectedly, when the two came out, they did not mention the formation at all, as if they had not noticed it. According to them, the man inhaled pollen from a poisonous flower and hurried to the cave to detoxify, without further investigation.”

After hearing their explanation, Jue Chen suspected something was amiss in the cave and decided not to provoke trouble, escorting the two out of the forest.

Unexpectedly, upon exiting, a Golden Core stage cultivator, said to be the woman’s senior brother, appeared and took the woman away without a word. Jue Chen saw them heading back into the forest and, recalling the formation, grew suspicious.

After arranging for that Qi Refining cultivator, he cautiously returned to the cave and discovered the unconscious cultivators inside.

When Jue Chen returned, only the woman remained in the cave; her senior brother was absent. She would occasionally dispel the formation to check on something inside. Because of this, he saw the cultivators within the formation.

It then dawned on Jue Chen that he had been deceived by the woman. Noticing she made no move against the unconscious cultivators and seemed more like a guard, he refrained from rash action.

Until the woman’s senior brother returned, noticed Jue Chen’s presence, and used strange means to capture him, handing him over directly to the woman for disposal.

“So?” Ji Yao thought the monk’s story missed the point. Since he was caught, what happened afterward was the crux; the earlier details were irrelevant.

---

Jue Chen glanced at the two women before continuing, “The woman did not harm me but brought me out of the forest. I saw that she was somewhat kind-hearted and intended to inquire further, only to learn that her senior brother had handed me over to her as a furnace vessel.”

“I immediately sensed danger, struggled to break free, and fought the woman. Only then did I realize she was mid Foundation Establishment stage, though outwardly she appeared only as a Qi Refining cultivator.”

“So you escaped? And never returned to check on those unconscious in the cave?” Ji Yao asked, not to mock but because in the cultivation world, one’s own survival always comes first.

“After escaping, I went back to the cave once more,” Jue Chen looked at Ji Yao, then shook his head. “But nothing remained there—no clues at all. I was powerless.”

“Upon leaving, I saw the woman named Xuan Yi again, this time with a wealthy young man at Qi Refining third layer. Because of the strange events earlier, I advised the young man not to associate with her.”

“As for what happened next, you can probably guess...”

“Wait!” Ji Yao interrupted, surprised. “Did you say the woman’s name was Xuan Yi?”

Jue Chen was puzzled, touching his bald head. “Her senior brother called her Xuan Yi, but she said her name was Xuan Yi. Why? Daoist Ji, have you heard this name before?”

Ji Yao was certainly familiar with the name from the first time he heard it—it left a deep impression—but he could not reveal this now.

“It sounds familiar, but I can’t quite place where I heard it,” Ji Yao answered ambiguously.

“People and names can be similar; that’s normal,” Ling Ru explained confidently, then pointed to the person on the bed. “Daoist Jue Chen means this Xuan Yi woman, uh, may have absorbed his essence, causing him to become like this?”

Jue Chen found it astonishing that these two women could calmly analyze such a matter in front of him, hardly typical behavior for female cultivators.

“Hmm, I have considered that possibility.”

“No way!” Ji Yao suddenly denied it. “You said the wealthy young man was at Qi Refining third layer from the start, and he still appears to be at that level. If he had been absorbed, how could his cultivation remain unaffected?”

“Perhaps it’s because he has a pure Yang body!”

---

“A pure Yang body?”

“Also?”

Ling Ru and Ji Yao focused on different aspects of Jue Chen’s words.

Jue Chen was confused by their simultaneous questions, looking first at Ling Ru, then at Ji Yao, before deciding to explain.

“I was handed over to Xuan Yi as a furnace vessel precisely because of my pure Yang body.”

“Ah?” Ling Ru exclaimed.

“Oh!” Ji Yao’s expression showed realization.

Jue Chen sighed at their reactions and elaborated.

A pure Yang body, like a pure Yin body, not only facilitates smoother cultivation but also is an excellent vessel for dual cultivation. For this reason, some cultivators seeking shortcuts covet such bodies as ideal furnace vessels.

Because his special constitution was discovered early, Jue Chen was spared exploitation by being taken to the Nine Buddha Temple and entering monastic life.

He was reminded by Xuan Yi’s words, so upon seeing the wealthy young man, he believed Xuan Yi sought to exploit his pure Yang constitution and tried to dissuade him. Yet the young man refused to listen and acted recklessly.

Now, seeing this man appear as he does, with all his vital passages checked and no injuries or toxins found, Jue Chen could not help but suspect.

The events happened in close succession, making it easy to connect the dots.