15. Thunder rumbled across the heavens, enveloping the scene in an ethereal, Qiong-style aesthetic.

"Why is Junior Brother Xiao so calm? Did we not already tell him everything he needs to know?" The two Yunxiao Palace disciples responsible for receiving the newcomers were named Liu Haoxing and Lin Chunyi. It was Liu Haoxing who spoke first.

Lin Chunyi, upon hearing this, wore an equally puzzled expression as he analyzed aloud, "His spiritual sense is innately strong—we know this from the entrance sigil. Yet he shouldn't be able to tell that we are aware of it. The spot we picked to talk should have been just right. Moreover, we know he has a clear sword heart, but we bear him no malice whatsoever from start to finish."

"Could it be... he's simply too timid to dare?" Liu Haoxing hesitated.

"Too timid?" Lin Chunyi laughed at this. "Xu Jiansheng and the others were all beaten unconscious. Do you really think Junior Brother Xiao is that sort of coward? Among rogue cultivators, which one who manages to reach Foundation Establishment isn't ruthless and vengeful?"

"I suppose I let my thoughts wander," Liu Haoxing sighed lightly. "So what should we do? Our uncle-master is still waiting for us to bring back news!"

"Let's wait a little longer. Perhaps Junior Brother Xiao is busy refining the treasure given to him by the sect. Most rogue cultivators like him wouldn't have a treasure to call their own. Now that he has one, he's probably overjoyed, fully absorbed in its refinement!" Lin Chunyi said, his words tinged with a trace of mockery.

Liu Haoxing naturally caught the subtle undertone and couldn't help but laugh out loud.

...

Xiao Qingpei truly was refining the treasure. Having decided to remain passive, there was nothing else for him to do but focus on this task.

Refining a treasure, especially at the outset, required twelve consecutive hours of concentration, until the faintest sense of connection was formed.

Yet the treasure in Xiao Qingpei's hands seemed peculiar. He had been refining it without pause, but that faint sense of connection still eluded him.

"Is it done?"

Just then, a slight stir awakened in Xiao Qingpei's mind as the outline of the treasure appeared in his consciousness—a sign that the connection had finally formed.

"At last! It actually took this long..." Xiao Qingpei was not exhausted, only slightly surprised by how much time it had taken to establish the initial bond with the treasure.

"Regardless of a treasure's quality, the initial connection should always take twelve hours. This one is truly unusual," he mused, but soon set the matter aside.

When he first entered the sect, he had intended to thoroughly review the plot concerning the first 'female protagonist,' hoping to deduce some answers. Although the girl and the two disciples responsible for the reception had already cleared most of his doubts, Xiao Qingpei decided to read through it again.

After all, he was now inside Yunxiao Palace!

Though the story arc of the first 'female protagonist' would not unfold for another ten years, some of the information from a decade later was still relevant now.

For example, the preferences and aversions of certain powerful cultivators.

Thus, Xiao Qingpei unlocked the first batch of information he had sealed away.

He hadn't been able to examine it thoroughly before, but now, as he read in earnest, his expression grew increasingly strange.

"Stop asking me whom I truly love. Your constant questioning makes me miserable. Do you really want to see me suffer? Can't you just love me silently and protect me? Let me be a happy fairy, and you the most handsome, powerful cultivator always watching over me."

Repeating a certain line from the first 'female protagonist,' Xiao Qingpei felt his mind was about to overload.

"I suddenly feel like thunder is rumbling in my head..."

Still uncertain, he decided to keep reading.

Then he saw—

"Why do you need me to respond to your feelings? Isn't it enough for you to give quietly? Since you like me, you should accept everything about me!"

"Though you weren't my first physically, you were always my first in my heart!"

"You always get angry when I get close to others, but he's just a friend! A very good friend! Can't I have friends? You're so domineering. How can you be like this? I am me, not your personal possession!"

"......"

Xiao Qingpei decided to stop reading. If he continued, he feared he might be 'struck dead by lightning' from the absurdity.

"How did I not realize this before?"

He began to reflect.

"Oh, it's because there was simply too much information flooding out of that system..."

Having found the culprit, Xiao Qingpei decided to act.

He had considered relocating the system before, but had been delayed by the overwhelming influx of astonishing information, forgetting the matter entirely.

Now, however, it was back on his mind.

Without hesitation, Xiao Qingpei let his spiritual sense once again approach the system.

Immediately, he felt pain akin to childbirth.

A torrent of information was forcibly stuffed into his mind—just like last time, all of it redundant.

Fortunately, Xiao Qingpei had experience handling this.

Spiritual sense segmentation and memory sealing—these were secret techniques found in every major sect, even widely practiced among rogue cultivators, primarily to assist in comprehension. The results were modest but useful enough that most cultivators learned them.

After a while, having processed the influx, Xiao Qingpei's face turned slightly pale. "Could it be... that any attempt to approach with spiritual sense triggers another flood of this information?"

He was both shocked and uncertain.

Such a system truly defied common sense.

"It seems moving this system, or extracting it from my body, is currently impossible."

"However, it's said that the divine sense of a Golden Core cultivator is at least ten times stronger than that of Foundation Establishment. When I reach Core Formation, I’ll try again..."

Resolving thus, Xiao Qingpei meditated briefly to recover. Once he felt completely restored, he stood, opened the door, and stepped outside.

Despite being all but 'struck by lightning,' he had discovered something interesting.

The Sword Dao Stone.

It was rumored to have been the training ground of an ancient Sword Immortal, imbued with his sword intent. In truth, however, this was a misconception—the stone actually sealed an evil sword.

That evil sword was destined to become the first 'female protagonist's' treasure!

But Xiao Qingpei had no intention of claiming the sword for himself. Why? Because the sword spirit within was a sickly, coquettish maniac—with the same taste in partners as the 'female protagonist'!

So, his plan was to break the seal on the evil sword... and then hand it in!