Just over a month had passed since the move. Although Wang Sheng had already returned to his cultivation routine, he still felt restless over several consecutive days. After all, his mother was about to give birth to his younger sibling. There were several times when he nearly left the house. He had even been ready to call Xi Lian to go with him, but he restrained himself each time. With the Special Investigation Unit secretly providing support and his mother in excellent health, she wasn't facing any of the risks that were typically associated with older pregnancies. Years of careful conditioning with alchemical pills further strengthened her condition. Wang Sheng knew he had to avoid direct contact with his parents, but he could not stop worrying about them. Thankfully, his father had intentionally told him a later due date. Just as Wang Sheng's anticipation and anxiety grew strong enough for him to finally decide to buy a plane ticket and visit secretly, a video call came in with good news. His father, mother, and their newest family member appeared on the screen of his phone. Outside the door of the private hospital room, a member of the Special Investigation Unit—disguised as his father's friend—stood guard. His mother, still under the effects of anesthesia, forced herself to stay alert. She looked full of gentle warmth as she smiled. —Meet your little sister. "A little sister. That's great..." Wang Sheng grinned from ear to ear, not even sure what he was saying. He turned and shouted, "Senior Sister! Big Sister! Come look! It's my sister! My own little sister!" One after another, two graceful figures rushed into his room and jumped onto his large bed. Mu Wanxuan's eyes were almost melting with tenderness. She clutched Wang Sheng's phone and could not bear to let go. The half-immortal fox beside her remained calm and composed. With the air of a true expert, she smiled. "Not bad. Quite pretty for a baby." His father, who now looked much more youthful, offered him reassurance. —Little Sheng, don't worry about us. Focus on your cultivation. Your dad is still strong and capable. I will take good care of your mom and sister. "Dad, if it gets too hard, get help." —We already did. Don't worry. "Have you picked a name for her?" His father scratched his head with a sheepish smile. —I was going to name her Little Cai. You know, promotion and wealth[1], but your mom didn't agree. His mother immediately scolded him. —Wang Cai here, Wang Cai there. It sounds ridiculous! His father laughed in response. —Alright, alright. Let Little Sheng and Little Xuan pick a name. I think that's a solid plan. Let's go with that. You and your senior sister should think of a good name quickly. We'll need it for the birth certificate before she's discharged. Seeing how exhausted his mother looked, Wang Sheng quickly agreed. He told her to get some rest, then ended the voice call. I'm a big brother now! Wang Sheng grinned and bounced up from the bed. He began pacing back and forth beside it. "What kind of name would sound nice? For a girl, should it be one character or two? Senior Sister, Big Sister, do you have any good ideas?" Mu Wanxuan immediately pulled out her phone and started searching. After careful consideration, she came up with a few suggestions. Bing[2], Shuang[3], Mei[4], Xue[5], Lan[6]... "Little Xuanxuan, those are too common, and they're not the least bit imposing," the half-immortal fox commented. She summoned her own phone and soon displayed a large Chinese character. She showed it proudly to Wang Sheng. "Use this character!" It was the rare character "Zhao," which was written with the "sun" character and "moon" character above the "sky" character. Wang Sheng's mouth twitched. "That name is too grand. Let's keep it simple. Peace is a blessing." The three entered a long debate. After much deliberation and hesitation, they finally gave up the struggle and settled on a character everyone liked. A rare and refined girl could be called a "Miao" beauty. Hence, Wang Sheng's little sister was named Wang Xiaomiao. About two months later, Qing Yanzi secretly visited the home of Wang Sheng's parents and assessed Wang Xiaomiao's aptitude. He then gave Wang Sheng an honest report. Wang Xiaomiao was not a prodigy in cultivation, but she had above-average talent. Walking the path to immortality would be no problem for her. Wang Sheng felt relieved. He had actually been worried that his sister would turn out to be a genius born with immortal veins. If she truly had that level of talent, he would have started suspecting that she was the reincarnation of that immortal corpse... Judging by her aptitude, however, his previous worries were completely unnecessary. The immortal corpse was the daughter of the Immortal Emperor. Her reincarnation could not possibly have just an above-average aptitude. From that moment, Wang Sheng became even more diligent in his cultivation. Although his master and mistress had already arranged everything with his parents, he still wanted to be a good role model for Wang Xiaomiao. At the very least, he wanted to be the kind of brother his little sister could rely on. That was the minimum he expected of himself. Another year passed quickly. His parents focused entirely on raising Wang Xiaomiao, who was growing up healthy. Meanwhile, Wang Sheng and Mu Wanxuan's cultivation life remained undisturbed. The events involving Sakura Island developed just as they had predicted. Its officials began to openly protect those who cultivated, and a major conflict between cultivators from both countries seemed inevitable. However, Wang Sheng was not too worried. The Daoist sects were steadily growing in strength. Although new recruitments had stopped, more and more Daoist elders had broken through and reached the Golden Core Realm over the past year. The foundation of Hua Republic's cultivation world had also stabilized. These Daoist elders carried a strong desire to protect their nation. The domestic environment had become increasingly stable, and the power of corrupt cultivators was still being suppressed. The Yin-Yang All-Creation Sect, which had caused chaos for five or six years in his past life, had completely vanished. In fact, many innocent people had avoided tragic fates this time around. Some things, once started, became difficult to stop, such as Mu Wanxuan's breakthroughs, Xi Lian's drinking habits, and the hardworking hands of Wang Sheng taking care of the household. The immortal light that the female corpse had gifted Mu Wanxuan was still providing insights and helping Mu Wanxuan raise her cultivation level. In just a year of living in this mountain villa, Mu Wanxuan's cultivation neared the middle stage of the Golden Core Realm. Her successive breakthroughs left Wang Sheng feeling increasingly frustrated. They also contradicted Xi Lian's earlier conclusion that the Yin-Yang Tai Chi path would make it difficult to break through once the Golden Core had been formed. The immortal light was not infinite, however. After a year, it was finally completely exhausted. By then, Mu Wanxuan was already just half a step away from reaching the middle stage of the Golden Core Realm, which meant she was soon to be a full major realm ahead of her junior brother. Wang Sheng said nothing about it; he simply focused on cultivating. Xi Lian couldn't cultivate since her devilish nature hadn't been purified yet. If she wished to pursue cultivation, she would have to cleanse herself fully, or else she would surrender to the devilish path. Over the past six months, since both Wang Sheng and Mu Wanxuan often secluded themselves to cultivate, Xi Lian had initially felt bored. She began drinking alone and eventually grew attached to alcohol. After getting drunk, she would sleep deeply. When she woke, she eagerly watched dramas, anime, or read manga. Once bored again, she would drink, fall asleep, and repeat the cycle. This indulgent life of intoxication and leisure, complete with regular meals, was far too comfortable. Given her well-behaved and disciplined conduct, the Hua Republic officials sighed in relief. The Special Investigation Unit had originally planned to send a cleaning lady, but they feared disrupting Wang Sheng and Mu Wanxuan's cultivation. In the end, Wang Sheng took the initiative and handled all the household chores in the villa himself. Before each sword practice session or session of Dao comprehension, he would put on an apron and gloves and thoroughly clean all the bottles, jars, and snack wrappers that Xi Lian and occasionally Mu Wanxuan left behind. Sometimes, he and Mu Wanxuan would cook meals together to give Xi Lian something new to enjoy. It was clear that Xi Lian sometimes wanted to go out and explore. However, she held herself back and never caused Wang Sheng any trouble. Throughout that year, perhaps due to not using alchemical pills, Wang Sheng's cultivation did not advance as quickly as expected. However, his Daoist realm kept rising. In fact, describing his progress as a rapid breakthrough would not be an exaggeration. In just over ten months, his Daoist realm had reached the peak of the Illusory Core Realm, although his actual cultivation level remained at the mid-stage of that same realm. This was certainly a good thing, but to be cautious, Wang Sheng consulted the half-immortal fox who had been watching over him. "This continuous growth in comprehension is probably related to your past experiences," Xi Lian said, stroking her chin in thought. "It might be that your yang qi is too abundant. That's why the Pure Yang Immortal Mantra works especially well for you. Still, being around both me and Little Xuanxuan every day... you'd better be careful not to burn yourself out." Wang Sheng was at a loss for words. After staying cooped up for so long, the half-immortal fox had somehow started turning dirty-minded again. The influence of shut-in culture was truly terrifying. He decided to call his master, Qing Yanzi, and consulted him. After careful thought, Qing Yanzi came to a different conclusion. —This is likely connected to your senior sister. "Huh?" Wang Sheng was even more confused. "Master, Senior Sister has already embarked on the Dao of Balanced Yin and Yang. That has nothing to do with my Dao." —Are you sure Daoist paths cannot influence each other? If that were the case, why would 'companions' rank ahead of blessed lands in the phrase 'methods, wealth, companions, and location'? —When you and your senior sister are in secluded cultivation, you are only separated by a couple of walls. As she balances Yin and Yang, she naturally influences you. If you don't believe me, try cultivating together in the same room. You might see even greater results. Wang Sheng ended the call half believing, half skeptical. Still, he began to take the matter seriously. A few days later, late at night, Mu Wanxuan woke from her cultivation. Wang Sheng immediately used voice transmission to explain the situation and knocked on her door. Mu Wanxuan had no objection. She even arranged two meditation cushions near the window, and the two sat facing each other and began their Dao comprehension together. Wang Sheng focused completely on his own Dao. He had not yet sensed his senior sister's Dao of Balanced Yin and Yang when he suddenly felt soft lips brush lightly against his cheek. He opened his eyes. Mu Wanxuan sat calmly across from him as if nothing had happened. When he swept through the house with his spiritual consciousness, he found the half-immortal fox playing video games in the entertainment room. "Mm?" Mu Wanxuan kept her eyes closed, hands forming a meditative seal, but her cheeks were inexplicably flushed. Wang Sheng's throat tightened. He felt that he should reciprocate, but before he could, a strange ripple passed through his mind. He gazed at the night sky outside the window. Mu Wanxuan suddenly opened her eyes, stood up, and opened the window. She summoned her white ribbon and soared into the sky. Wang Sheng followed her closely. Xi Lian was even faster. She was already hovering in the air and gazing toward the east. Within a thousand li of the origin point, nearly every Golden Core Realm cultivator also sensed the violent surge of primal qi and turned toward the same direction. Beams of radiant multicolored light then appeared under the night sky. Each beam stretched ten thousand zhang long, as if they had torn the heavens apart. The ground began to tremble, and deep rumbles echoed from beneath the earth. Wang Sheng calculated the distance to the source of the immortal light. That location seemed to be... Xi Lian had already identified the origin of the light. 1. Wang Sheng's "Sheng" means promotion, "Cai" means wealth ☜ 2. Bing means "ice." ☜ 3. Shuang means "frost." ☜ 4. Mei means "plum." ☜ 5. Xue means "snow." ☜ 6. Lan means "orchid." ☜ 7. Miao means "wonderful." ☜