Chapter 514: Nothing major happened along the way

Seeing Tao Yaoye still in a daze, another burly man quickly added, "The Merchant Association also offers financial products with an annual interest rate of eight to twelve percent – a guaranteed profit!"

Tao Yaoye now profoundly understood Senior Brother Lu's words about not flaunting one's wealth, lest it invite trouble.

Now, trouble had arrived.

One after another, they started pitching investment and financial management schemes, talk of establishing foundations, low risk, high returns... she didn't understand a word of it.

"No, I don't need it," Tao Yaoye firmly refused.

What was a mere twelve percent interest? If she invested these ten million spirit stones into "Dreamy Mirage" to expand its scale, her profits would far surpass that rate.

"Oh, that's truly a shame," the burly men lamented. Seeing Tao Yaoye's resolute stance, they could only regretfully shake their heads and give up.

"Such a plump duck, yet it wouldn't bite?"

Fortunately, this was just a small interlude; nothing major happened on the journey.

Apart from one instance where officials halted the flying boat, claiming a suspected murderer was aboard and requiring identity verification for everyone. The murderer then violently attacked, only to be subdued by those burly salesmen from the Merchant Association.

The murderer then yelled that he had poisoned the captain and was the only one with the antidote. If they didn't release him, the captain would surely die, leading to the destruction of the boat and everyone on board.

Before anyone could step forward and declare they knew how to pilot a flying boat, the captain himself emerged, calmly stating that he was a poison cultivator and thus immune to poison. He then returned to the helm.

There was also a Golden Core cultivator who attempted to evade the fare. He had been flying while consuming medicinal pills, but eventually grew tired. When the flying boat passed by, he secretly hitched a ride on its tail.

However, his stealth technique wasn't good enough; he failed to bypass the ticket-checking formation, was discovered, and had to purchase a ticket.

Additionally, a pregnant woman went into labor, collapsing unconscious from the pain. Fortunately, an alchemist among the passengers intervened, saving both the mother and child.

"Wife, wake up, we're almost at the station!" her husband cried out, gripping her hand tightly. But the excruciating pain had already caused the pregnant woman to lose consciousness.

The people around them were extremely anxious, yet unsure how to help. With the pregnant woman unconscious, there was fear of losing both mother and child.

"I am an alchemist; I will help," a female voice declared. Lu Yang vaguely recognized the voice.

He turned to see a female cultivator whose sleeves were embroidered with a circle of golden alchemical patterns—the uniform only qualified alchemists were permitted to wear. An identity jade token hung from her waist, indicating she was from the Dao Seeking Sect.

Lu Yang then recalled that this was Senior Sister Jasmine from Pill Cauldron Peak, who had been in the middle of the line when the disciples were queuing up to spar with him.

This implied that among the senior disciples who had engaged him, Senior Sister Jasmine's strength was mid-tier, placing her at the Nascent Soul stage.

Lu Yang did not rush forward to greet her, curious to observe how Senior Sister Jasmine intended to help the pregnant woman.

Senior Sister Jasmine swept her divine sense over the woman, understood her condition, and frowned slightly.

The pregnant woman was too deeply unconscious; she wouldn't awaken without a drastic measure, yet too drastic a measure could harm the child.

Given this, there was only one solution.

Senior Sister Jasmine closed her eyes, and a three-inch tall miniature figure flew out from her spiritual platform, entering the pregnant woman's mind and temporarily taking control of her body.

"Gwaa—"

Moments later, a baby cried out as it entered the world.

"Done."

Senior Sister Jasmine's Nascent Soul returned to her body, and she breathed a sigh of relief.

The husband, seeing his child born and both mother and baby safe, excitedly grasped Senior Sister Jasmine's hand. "Thank you for helping my wife give birth to a child! Thank you so much!" he exclaimed.

Senior Sister Jasmine: "..."

*If you don't know how to express gratitude properly, perhaps it's better to say nothing at all.*

Despite Senior Sister Jasmine's best efforts, she couldn't convince him not to send a banner of gratitude.

"Senior Sister Jasmine," Lu Yang said, stepping forward to greet her once the matter was resolved.

"Junior Brother Lu? And Junior Sister Tao, isn't this Junior Sister Lan Ting from the Moon Laurel Immortal Palace? How are you three together?"

Senior Sister Jasmine had a favorable impression of Lu Yang, considering their "intimate physical contact" and the fact that blood was drawn during their previous encounter.

"Junior Sister Tao and I were on a mission and happened to coincidentally meet Junior Sister Lan Ting, who was also on the same mission."

"So that's how it is."

"And you, Senior Sister Jasmine, are you also on a mission?"

Senior Sister Jasmine slightly shook her sleeve, a hint of pride in her voice: "I was taking my alchemist qualification exam. Look, this is the uniform I just received."

"Senior Sister, weren't you already an alchemist a long time ago? You're already at the Nascent Soul stage, how is this your first time?"

"Oh, that's just recognized within the sect. Outside, it's not acknowledged, and practicing medicine without official credentials is considered illegal, making it easy to get arrested. Whenever I went on missions, I had to secretly treat people."

"A few days ago, I figured, instead of all this hassle every time, I might as well just get the official alchemist qualification."

"Congratulations, Senior Sister, on becoming an alchemist certified by the Alchemist Alliance," Lu Yang said, cupping his hands in salute. Tao Yaoye and Lan Ting followed his example.

Senior Sister Jasmine waved her hand dismissively, recalling the troublesome exam process. "What's there to congratulate? Taking that exam was a huge bother. I mixed up the exam date and then went to the wrong testing hall. Only after finishing did I realize it was the Alchemist Alliance Branch President selection exam. I wondered why there were so many high-level cultivators there, nearly on par with me."

"I even placed first! But when I confirmed my identity after the exam, I discovered I wasn't an alchemist and therefore wasn't qualified for *that* exam."

"So, I had no choice but to go to the probationary alchemist's testing hall. I was refining pills at the front, and a whole group of master alchemists were standing behind me, studying my technique. It was quite annoying."

Lu Yang couldn't help but think, *Senior Sister, perhaps you should consider the immense pressure the probationary alchemists taking the exam with you must have felt.*

"But as you can see, I successfully became an alchemist."

"The Alchemist Alliance even asked if I would serve as a branch president, but I thought it would be too much bother, so I declined. In the end, they insisted on giving me the title of Honorary Branch President."

Senior Sister Jasmine then produced a golden cauldron badge from her identity jade token; the name "Jasmine" was engraved on its back.

Lu Yang: "..."

*Truly, she's a Senior Sister from Pill Cauldron Peak,* Lu Yang thought. *Her approach to things is certainly unlike that of ordinary people.*

Fortunately, after the successful delivery of the baby, no further incidents occurred, and the flying boat arrived smoothly at the Dao Seeking Sect.

"Goodbye, Junior Sister Lan!"

"Goodbye!"

Lu Yang and Lan Ting waved goodbye.

This particular flying boat made stops at both the Dao Seeking Sect and the Moon Laurel Immortal Palace.

Upon arriving at the Dao Seeking Sect, as they entered the core area, they saw Junior Brother Meng Jingzhou passing by.

"Is your seclusion over?" Lu Yang casually called out to Meng Jingzhou.

"Seclusion?" Meng Jingzhou was confused.

Tao Yaoye smiled and said, "Senior Brother Meng, have you forgotten? A few days ago, I was embarking on a mission and wanted to invite both you and Senior Brother Lu. However, you were in seclusion at the time, so Senior Brother Lu and I ended up going together."

Meeting Tao Yaoye's calm gaze, which held a subtle hint of threat, Meng Jingzhou quickly adopted a look of sudden realization.

"Oh, right! I was indeed in seclusion those days. I've just come out, so my mind is a bit hazy."