Chapter 399: Emotions Arise Without Knowing Why

She unfolded it to see.

It was an ancient-looking copper coin.

She recognized the coin's extraordinary nature at a glance, exclaiming, "A magic artifact for ninth-level Core Formation defense?"

"You... why are you giving this to me?"

How incredibly valuable was this item? How could he give it to her?

Jiang Fan smiled faintly, "The jade pendant you gave me last time saved my life."

"I didn't realize that the gift Miss Yue gave me before we parted was a magic artifact for ninth-level Core Formation defense."

"I was foolish not to have seen Miss Yue's profound kindness and deep affection then."

"I am truly ashamed."

A flood of grievances welled up in Yue Mingzhu's heart.

You knew, and yet you still angered me so much?

Didn't I ask you to stay at the Joyous Union Sect because I wanted to keep you by my side?

I even took matters into my own hands, but you refused to yield.

Did you... did you want me to beg you?

At this thought, a misty veil of tears gradually rose, covering her bright eyes.

"Why are you crying?"

Jiang Fan was at a loss, saying, "Miss Yue, have I perhaps offended you in some way?"

Yue Mingzhu gritted her silver teeth. She wanted to scold him fiercely and vent the grievances she had harbored for days.

But seeing his anxious expression, her heart softened again. The anger that had built up for days suddenly couldn't be released.

She secretly cursed herself for being weak-willed. She stomped her delicate foot and threw the copper coin back to him, "I don't want your thing."

"And I won't forgive you."

"From now on, we'll never see each other again!"

Jiang Fan was utterly confused. What had he done to provoke her?

They were perfectly fine when they parted last time, weren't they?

Seeing her wipe away tears and turn to leave, Jiang Fan quickly grabbed her arm and said, "Miss Yue, please wait."

Yue Mingzhu said angrily and with embarrassment, "Let go! What kind of behavior is this in public?"

Fortunately, no one knew her true appearance. Otherwise, if word got out that the Joyous Union Sect Master was pulling and tugging with a man in the street, she wouldn't be able to explain herself.

"Let me finish what I'm saying," Jiang Fan said.

Yue Mingzhu snapped, "What else do you want?"

She had already let Jiang Fan go. Why was he still pestering her?

Yet, as if by some strange impulse, she did not pull away from Jiang Fan's hand. She stopped, her bright eyes, misty with tears, staring at him.

Jiang Fan said sincerely, "Miss Yue, if I don't repay your kindness to me, my heart will not be at peace."

"Please accept this copper coin."

"Also, I'm about to refine a batch of spirit pills, and I'll give you some."

"Please don't dislike them."

She had originally intended to shake her head and refuse. But suddenly, she blinked. Had Jiang Fan just said something very strange?

She asked uncertainly, "If I heard correctly, you said you were going to refine a batch of spirit pills?"

Did you really say 'refine'? Not 'buy'?

Jiang Fan looked a bit helpless. If it weren't absolutely necessary, he wouldn't want another person to know his secret as a Soul Master.

He immediately leaned close to her ear and whispered, "Just know this, and absolutely do not tell anyone else."

"Only a few people know about this."

Jiang Fan was also a Soul Master? Yue Mingzhu was utterly astonished.

Any Soul Master held a transcendent status among the Nine Sects. Jiang Fan already possessed so many unique skills; how could he also hide the identity of a Soul Master?

She thought that having spent so long together at the bottom of the cliff, she understood Jiang Fan well enough. Only now did she realize that what she knew was merely the tip of the iceberg!

If his identity as a Soul Master were to be revealed, it would definitely be an event that shook the Nine Sects. Such a young Soul Master had boundless prospects and would surely attract the covetous gaze of many factions. It was fortunate that Jiang Fan had always been so cautious, keeping it so well-hidden.

But she quickly came to her senses.

"Then why are you telling me?" Yue Mingzhu pouted, "Aren't you afraid I'll betray you?"

Jiang Fan chuckled, "You even gave me a cherished ninth-level Core Formation defensive magic artifact."

"This shows your sincerity towards me."

"Why would you harm me?"

He trusts me that much? Yue Mingzhu's heart felt sweet. The corners of her mouth couldn't help but turn up. The resentment that had accumulated in her heart for so long unknowingly vanished into thin air.

"Hmph! You're just a Soul Master apprentice, or at most a one-star Soul Master; it's nothing impressive."

"I'm too lazy to tell anyone else."

Of course, her words were still sharp. Jiang Fan just smiled without speaking.

He then rented a secret chamber with her and set up his equipment to refine pills.

Soon after, Yue Mingzhu gazed at the bottle of greenish pills in her palm, her eyes unfocused: "Rejuvenation Pill... you refined these?"

How could she not know of the famous Rejuvenation Pill?

Back then, at the Heavenly Secret Pavilion's traveling auction held by the Azure Cloud Sect, it made a stunning appearance and was bought by the Ten Thousand Swords Sect for an astonishing price of 200,000 per pill. Perhaps some initially thought it was too expensive. But after witnessing the dangers of the beast tide, who would still think 200,000 wasn't worth it? Possessing it was like having a spare life!

Unfortunately, it was sold only once, and the Rejuvenation Pill never appeared on the market again. It disappeared completely. Even money couldn't buy it.

What Yue Mingzhu never expected was this: The Rejuvenation Pill was actually from Jiang Fan's hands! This was a third-grade spirit pill, one of the nine great ancient healing spirit pills!

Her heart pounded. Only now did she realize that Jiang Fan was not merely a small Soul Master. He was a grandmaster who could shake the very foundations of the Nine Sects with a mere stomp of his foot!

Jiang Fan smiled mysteriously, "Haven't you eaten it before?"

"What's there to be surprised about?"

Yue Mingzhu froze for a moment, then remembered that she had fallen off a cliff back then. She should have been shattered to pieces and undoubtedly died, yet Jiang Fan had miraculously saved her.

"So, you gave me the Rejuvenation Pill that day!" She suddenly understood. But then she asked doubtfully, "But we were strangers; you just used such a valuable pill to save someone?"

Jiang Fan said calmly, "If pills are gone, I can refine more."

"If I had left you to die, your life would truly be gone, and there would be no remedy."

"Alright, I'm going to start refining other pills now. Please help me bottle the remaining Rejuvenation Pills."

Watching Jiang Fan return to his focused pill refining, Yue Mingzhu gazed at his face, her eyes slowly softening.

In a chaotic world, where people constantly scheme for resources, it was the norm in the martial arts world. How many others like Jiang Fan were there?

As she watched, she suddenly came to her senses. Her pretty face flushed slightly. She couldn't deny that she truly admired someone like Jiang Fan.

However, as if remembering something, her expression dimmed. She touched her eighteen-year-old face and let out a low, drawn-out sigh: "If only it had been ten years earlier..."

Her appearance was that of an eighteen-year-old, but in reality, she was already thirty.

Half a day later, Jiang Fan had finished refining all three types of spirit pills. One hundred Rejuvenation Pills, one hundred Spirit Replenishing Pills, and one hundred Three-Step Drunk Pills. These were what remained after he had given some to Yue Mingzhu.

Yue Mingzhu, having received the three types of spirit pills, beamed, "These are all such good things!"

"Thank you!"

Jiang Fan smiled, "Not angry anymore?"

"So, do you want this copper coin or not?"

He took out the copper coin again. Yue Mingzhu boldly snatched it, saying, "Of course I do!"

"Why wouldn't I want something you gave me?"

She found a red string, threaded it through the coin's hole, and hung it around her fair neck as a pendant. She even happily showed it off, saying, "Does it look good?"

Jiang Fan was speechless, yet amused. "It looks good. A beautiful person makes anything look good."

Yue Mingzhu rolled her eyes at him, "No sincerity at all." But the corners of her mouth couldn't help but curl upwards.

However, she quickly stopped smiling.

"Miss Yue, then we shall part ways here." Jiang Fan, relieved, cupped his hands and said, "I hope we will have a chance to meet again in the future."

Yue Mingzhu's kindness had been repaid. He had also prepared the spirit pills properly. It was time to set off for the Northern Reaches.

The sudden departure made Yue Mingzhu feel inexplicably uneasy. She complained mournfully, "Are you in such a hurry to leave?"

Jiang Fan said, "My senior sister has gone missing, and her whereabouts are unknown."

"I must go."

Only then did Yue Mingzhu understand. She nodded, "Then go quickly."

"If you have time, come find me at the Joyous Union Sect."

Jiang Fan hesitated for a moment, then said, "I'm afraid I cannot go to the Joyous Union Sect."

"From now on, whether we meet again will depend entirely on fate."

Yue Mingzhu froze. "Why can't you go?"