"Guaranteed to make you've ascended to heaven!"
The shopkeeper's tone was laced with sleazy cheer as he led Song Wanníng to a shelf lined with bottles and jars. Every single one was related to a very particular kind of… recreation.
An array of bizarre items unfolded before her eyes, shattering her expectations.
In both her past and present life, most of her time had been spent on cultivation and alchemy, or traveling for tempering trials. She knew people liked to indulge in pleasures, but this was the first time she had seen such things first-hand.
Here, in this Secluded Land, people no longer had the goal of ascending. Their minds were fixed entirely on entertainment. Some, worn down by endless years and confined to a small world, found life so tedious and hopeless that they indulged in shocking, even outrageous acts.
By contrast, the treacherous outside world suddenly seemed preferable to her—at least there, people had something to strive for. Her expression shifted slightly, but she forced herself to mimic Feng Youming's temperament and buy a few things.
Feng Youming wasn't as wanton as Peng Yu, but he certainly had no shortage of lovers. Each one was as beautiful as a celestial maiden, with grace to match.
Song Wanníng curled her lip. He really did have it good. She had just picked up her purchases and was about to leave when a figure suddenly walked through the door.
"Boss, you're back!"
The shopkeeper rushed forward to greet the newcomer with a respectful bow.
At those words, Song Wanníng glanced up—and met a flawless face.
Peng Yu.
Her features were exquisite and unearthly, her full figure tightly wrapped in a revealing dress that outlined every alluring curve.
She was the kind of beauty that could stir a man's blood at a glance.
But her sharp, cutting eyes carried none of the expected warmth or charm.
It was… a strange contrast.
Peng Yu, for her part, was also sizing Song Wanníng up. Her gaze fell to the bottle in Song Wanníng's hand, and the corner of her lips curved faintly.
"So, Elder Youming likes this sort of thing?"
She stepped forward, reaching as if to take Song Wanníng's hand.
Song Wanníng's brows sank. She pulled back sharply, her voice cold. "Peng Yu, stop trying to make a move on me. I'm not falling for your tricks!"
Long ago, Peng Yu had once tried to seduce Feng Youming. She hadn't succeeded, but the attempt had humiliated him deeply. From that day, the two had been at odds.
Judging by her behavior now, she clearly hadn't given up.
"Tsk. Elder Youming, you're still as petty as ever. Why hold onto the past?"
Peng Yu swayed closer, her waist moving with fluid grace. "Just recently, I invented a drug that can make someone feel both in heaven and on the brink of death. Why don't we try it together?"
Her gaze turned molten, her eyes glittering with starlit whirlpools that could draw a person in.
Song Wanníng's strong Primordial Soul saved her—she broke free of the spell almost instantly, though she grew more wary.
Those eyes were unnatural. Peng Yu must have learned some kind of bewitching technique.
Stepping back quickly, Song Wanníng's voice dropped into steel. "Put away your disgusting tricks, or don't blame me for showing no mercy."
With that, she turned and left in a huff.
Peng Yu watched her go, her expression darkening.
Her lips twisted downward as she tossed her items to the shopkeeper before heading inside.
The shopkeeper caught them with a grin and returned them to the shelf without surprise, then cast a glance toward the back room.
Lately, the boss had been visiting every day. Who knew what she was working on in there?
…
Meanwhile, Song Wanníng wandered out of the shop and casually strolled into other stores.
Aside from Xianting Residence, most of the other shops hadn't changed. She browsed aimlessly, buying rare seeds, magical treasures, and even long-lost pill formulas unavailable in the outside world.
Her excitement grew.
Originally, she had only been casually looking for pill recipes, but now she was determined.
Since she was already here, she might as well gather up legacies that didn't exist beyond the Secluded Land. Even if she couldn't use them herself, her family could.
Over the following days, she roamed as if on a leisure tour, visiting several cities and acquiring many rare treasures.
She even attended a few auctions, bidding on several valuable items.
Eventually, she decided it was time to return to the Feng family, report to the Patriarch, and find a way to learn how to awaken the dragon vein.
One day, as she was passing through a forest, a startled cry caught her attention.
Someone was here.
She froze and sent her spiritual sense sweeping out.
Within the trees, two figures were locked together, bodies bare, clutching one another tightly.
At first glance, it seemed to be a pair of lovers in the throes of passion.
But then she noticed the man's bulging eyes and trembling body, his voice hoarse with cries for help. His contorted face made her pause for two seconds before she recognized him—the Sima clan's young prodigy.
The other face came into view, and it was no surprise—Peng Yu, the Peng clan's Elder Yu.
Song Wanníng's brows drew together ever so slightly. This woman was shrewd, but there was something especially dangerous about those eyes.
She stayed hidden, watching to see what Peng Yu was up to.
At first, she thought Peng Yu was a demon cultivator. But the longer she observed, the more uncertain she became.
Peng Yu's hands slid over the Sima prodigy's body, leaving a trail of frost. Yet when that frost touched him, it turned into black flame, burning his flesh to char.
"Ah—!"
The Sima prodigy's moans were filled with agony, his body twitching violently. Strangely, his cultivation was climbing rapidly.
Song Wanníng's brows twitched. Was this some kind of dual cultivation art unique to the Secluded Land?
Yet Feng Youming's memories held no trace of such a thing…
Time passed. Before her eyes, the young man's skin shed like a snake's, his cultivation breaking through to the next realm.
Even the golden little sword in her sea of consciousness was gaping in disbelief.
"So this is how easy cultivation can be?"
No wonder the Sima prodigy was so eager to marry into her clan. To break through so quickly from nothing but bedroom arts… this was a shortcut indeed.
When the pair finally finished and rose to dress, the Sima prodigy helped Peng Yu with a shy, almost timid expression.
"Yu, have you thought about me marrying into your clan? I truly can't stay in the Sima family anymore." His eyes were slightly red, full of wounded appeal.
Peng Yu's expression didn't change. She brushed his hand away with cool distaste. "We'll talk about that later. Go back for now."
Her coldness seemed nothing new to him. He only paused, then slunk away in silence.
Once he was gone, Peng Yu's face turned grim. She raised her hand and destroyed everything in the vicinity, then clutched a tree trunk and began to vomit.
Song Wanníng: "…"
The golden sword was equally speechless. "If she hates it that much, then why even do it?"