Ye Zhaozhao suddenly felt like crying, but she couldn't help saying,"Master, the people at the Spiritual Weapon Pavilion are completely unreasonable! My suggestions were all good, and their sales have gone up a lot, haven't they? Now that something's gone wrong, I'm the one taking the blame."
She was so aggrieved she could hardly speak.
In her previous world, many people had done exactly the same thing—and nothing had happened to them.
Sheng Yuan said softly,"Junior Sister, your idea was indeed clever. But you took it too far. Like that blind box event—what would have happened if you hadn't hidden the grand prize? Even if someone else had won, they'd still have made a profit. But you chose to hide it. This is…"
He stopped himself from saying anything harsher.
She had already been punished, and he couldn't bear to scold her further.
Still, he sighed inwardly.
From what Manager Qiu had said, Zhaozhao was actually a natural-born business talent.
But she was too young, without anyone to properly guide her, so it was inevitable that she would stray off the right path.
Her novel ideas—if carried out honestly—would certainly attract attention and make plenty of money.
But she always had to add a deceptive twist, which ruined her reputation.
Ye Zhaozhao pursed her lips, her heart still unwilling to accept it. A pitiful look appeared on her face."Big Brother, you blame me too, don't you? I just wanted to earn more spirit stones so I could help everyone!"
She bit her lip."Or… are you blaming me for framing Big Sister? I was just angry in the moment and wanted to teach her a little lesson!"
Her eyes turned red, brimming with unshed tears, making her look even more pitiful.
"Big Brother, don't blame Little Junior Sister! She's so young—how can she know all these things?" Chang Le'an said anxiously.
When he saw her tearful eyes, he couldn't bring himself to say a word of reproach.
Not long after he became a true disciple of Lingxu Zhenren, Ye Zhaozhao had joined too.
They'd entered the sect around the same time, so naturally they'd spent more time together.
Among everyone in the sect, Chang Le'an was closest to Ye Zhaozhao.
He even had a faint admiration for her.
Seeing her in such a state now, his heart ached, and he couldn't think of anything else.
At that moment, Lingxu Zhenren finally spoke."Regardless of everything else, this amount of spirit stones must be returned. Within seven days, Zhaozhao, you must hand them over to the Law Enforcement Hall."
Ye Zhaozhao's voice trembled."Master, I really don't have that many spirit stones…"
She only had a little over half left.
Lingxu Zhenren sighed."The Headmaster has spoken. I can't say much more."
"Master, you…" She looked at him expectantly.
"I'll go check on your second senior brother." With that, Lingxu Zhenren turned and left.
Ye Zhaozhao clenched her teeth.
She had given him so many gifts in the past, yet now that she was in trouble, he wasn't even willing to help.
With a master like this, how had Li Shuang endured him for so long?
Her jaw tightened again when she thought about how Li Shuang no longer had to endure it.
She had snatched and schemed—but what had she gained?
Forcing herself to calm down, Ye Zhaozhao looked toward Sheng Yuan and Chang Le'an.
Thankfully, they hadn't disappointed her.
"Junior Sister, I'll give you everything I have," Chang Le'an said without hesitation.
"I'll think of a way for you," Sheng Yuan added.
That made her feel a little better—but how much could the two of them have combined? Thinking about the missing spirit stones made her frown again.
She was still brooding when the system's voice suddenly rang out:
"The host's cultivation is about to regress to the early Nascent Soul stage. Please work hard to earn more cultivation."
Her expression changed instantly.
She'd been so focused on the spirit stones that she hadn't noticed—her cultivation really had dropped again!
She and Li Shuang's fortunes were like a seesaw: when one rose, the other fell.
If her cultivation was regressing… what about Li Shuang?
"Due to significant loss during absorption and dissipation, Li Shuang's cultivation has now recovered to the eighth level of Qi training," the system reported.
The eighth level of Qi training…
Ye Zhaozhao clenched her fists.
It wasn't much yet—but Li Shuang had only just begun rebuilding her cultivation.
Her current level was the result of her own hard work—hard work that should have been hers!
Thinking about it made her chest tighten painfully.
If Li Shuang hadn't fallen for the Lingbao Pavilion trap, none of this would have happened.
Li Shuang!
Li Shuang!
Was she born just to ruin her?!
"Reminder: If the host's cultivation drops below the Nascent Soul stage, the system will impose a penalty."
Ye Zhaozhao shuddered.
She had never been penalized by the system before—and instinct told her it was something she must never experience.
"I know!" she said through gritted teeth.
The system went silent again.
Her cultivation must not drop any further.
Li Shuang was already at the eighth level of Qi training. Once she reached the tenth, she could prepare for Foundation Establishment.
Ye Zhaozhao would not allow her to get that far. This time, she would finish her before she even touched Foundation Building.
Kill her—take her luck—and she would no longer have to live in fear.
But this time, she would have to plan with extreme care.
No loose ends. No evidence.
For now, she was still injured, and even with elixirs, she had to rest in bed for several days before she could move around.
The moment she got up, disciples from the Law Enforcement Hall came to collect the spirit stones.
She emptied her own pouch, then Sheng Yuan's and Chang Le'an's—but still didn't even have half the amount.
Sheng Yuan even went so far as to use his position to take resources from ordinary disciples of Lingxu Peak, trading them for spirit stones for her—but it was still not enough.
With no choice, Ye Zhaozhao reluctantly took out some modern business ideas she had planned to save for later.
The Spirit Weapon Pavilion was more than happy to accept these ideas as payment, closing the matter.
But Lingxu Peak had been drained dry for her sake.
As eldest disciple, Sheng Yuan could clearly feel the resentment from everyone toward him. He smiled bitterly, but there was nothing he could do.
It was true he had diverted their resources for Ye Zhaozhao's sake—resentment was only natural.
Still… he couldn't just stand by and watch her reputation be destroyed.
But the pressure was crushing.
Without Li Shuang, everything fell on his shoulders. Food, clothing, training, daily needs—things Li Shuang had handled effortlessly while keeping everyone focused on cultivation—were now his burden.
He felt like he was sinking into a swamp with no way out.
After trying to calm the other disciples, Sheng Yuan was still thinking about how to replenish their resources when Ye Zhaozhao and Chang Le'an entered.
"Big Brother, Zhaozhao and I have a way to make up the shortfall," Chang Le'an announced.
"What method?" Sheng Yuan asked, surprised.
A glint of excitement flashed in Ye Zhaozhao's eyes."Big Brother, have you forgotten? The Langya Secret Realm is about to open. It's filled with spiritual herbs and treasures. Third Brother has amazing luck—he could easily pick up plenty. With that, are you still worried about the shortfall?"