She had come to give a gift, to win hearts and demonstrate royal grace. And yet, her "subject" had turned around and given her something even more valuable. What was she supposed to do in a situation like this? Her father had never prepared her for this. Still, despite the internal awkwardness.

Li Feihuang found herself even more satisfied with Ye Chen. Being able to present Phoenix Blood Crimson Gold showed that—even when not at her side—Ye Chen had kept her in mind.

His strength was already formidable. Not too far beneath her own. His future prospects were bright. And now, he was even this considerate, shouldering burdens on behalf of his liege. A minister like this... truly rare. Once she reclaimed the imperial throne, she would reward him a hundredfold.

"Fellow Daoist Ye, you are most thoughtful! This item will indeed be of great use to me. I thank you. When I return to Great Chu, I will see you rewarded a hundredfold."

Li Feihuang spoke with magnanimity and poise.

Ye Chen smiled. Not because of her hollow promise. But because, in his mind, the system's notification rang out:

"Gift delivered successfully…"

"Item gifted: Phoenix Blood Crimson Gold!"

"Processing 300x feedback…"

"Detected item has extreme relevance to the recipient. Critical hit triggered!"

"Reward: Black Yellow Primordial Essence!"

"Black Yellow Primordial Essence, also known as the Materia Prima of All Things. Formed from the Mother of Heavy Earth and the Essence of All Creation. A supreme treasure for refining. It holds no fixed attribute, yet encompasses every attribute—capable of evolving into all things, and forging all tangible essence."

Upon reading the feedback, Ye Chen was stunned.

Black Yellow Primordial Essence? Even something like that could be triggered? Absolutely insane. Black Yellow Primordial Essence, capable of replacing any refining material, able to evolve into all things. Even immortals sought after it.

To use it as the primary material for refining one's lifebound spiritual artifact? In the future, it would undoubtedly evolve into an immortal-grade weapon. And even among immortal weapons, it would stand at the peak.

Ye Chen glanced at his storage ring. The Black Yellow Primordial Essence given by the system was floating inside, almost forming a small mountain. The sheer quantity was staggering.

This completely unexpected harvest made Ye Chen's gaze toward Li Feihuang noticeably softer. As expected of a triple-hundredfold multiplier-level female cultivator.

With such a high base feedback, plus a critical hit, the rewards were absolutely insane. If he got his hands on phoenix blood, he wouldn't even hesitate. He'd definitely give it to Li Feihuang.

...

Li Feihuang, sensing Ye Chen's increasingly gentle expression, responded with a mix of nods and helpless sighs.

The nod was because she had once again confirmed her own value, being able to earn the recognition and support of a genius like Ye Chen proved she truly possessed the bearing of a future empress.

The helplessness, however, stemmed from the fact that Ye Chen, after just a few meetings, was already offering her unconditional support, even giving away treasures as rare as Phoenix Blood Crimson Gold. Surely, he had other thoughts about her.

To that, Li Feihuang had no real solution. Her beauty was what it was. For Ye Chen to fall for her was only natural. But once she reclaimed the throne, Ye Chen would understand the vast gulf between them and gradually let go of such ambitions.

This text was taken from Royal Road. Help the author by reading the original version there.

After a few more casual exchanges between them, Li Feihuang returned to her ordinary appearance and figure. She was ready to head back and begin meditating on the Phoenix Blood Crimson Gold she had just received.

...

Just as they stepped out of the courtyard, Ye Chen and Li Feihuang both spotted a young female cultivator standing on the street outside. Her features still carried a trace of girlish innocence, but her figure was outrageously bold and curvy. She stood with a frown, staring at the two of them. It was An Yuyi.

Li Feihuang glanced at her once, then left without a word, drifting away with elegance. Of course, she recognized An Yuyi. The niece of the Divine Will Sect's Grand Elder, a fellow direct disciple. But she was a royal princess, why would she care?

...

As for Ye Chen, after seeing Li Feihuang off, he turned his gaze toward An Yuyi and raised an eyebrow. Clearly, she had come to find him. But where was her aunt?

An Yuyi pursed her lips at the sight of Li Feihuang leaving, then walked up to Ye Chen and said bluntly: "You should stop hanging around Li Feng from now on. I don't like her."

Ye Chen: "???"

Who even are you? You, someone with a mere 100x feedback, telling me not to associate with someone who gives 300x? Where did your courage come from?

Faced with An Yuyi, who had never triggered a critical hit, Ye Chen's enthusiasm was minimal. His tone was flat.

"Where's Senior An?"

An Yuyi frowned slightly. It had been so long since they last met, and this was how Ye Chen greeted her? So indifferent? Could he still be angry? What kind of man held grudges like this? I already apologized—what more does he want? Besides, it's not like he hadn't been in the wrong too!

Still, despite her growing dissatisfaction, when Ye Chen asked about her aunt, An Yuyi didn't overthink it. Ye Chen had always shown proper respect when facing her aunt.

Obviously, he was just trying to make a good impression on the elders. After all, he was going to become her Dao Companion sooner or later. Gaining the elders' favor was essential.

"Auntie said she needed to cultivate and couldn't come with me. But she asked me to bring a thank-you gift for what you did at the Divine Will Pool..."

At the mention of the Divine Will Pool, much of An Yuyi's resentment faded. That pool was incredibly precious, no cultivator would willingly give it up.

Yet Ye Chen, even while angry, had offered it to her without hesitation. That alone proved his sincerity. So, yes… maybe Ye Chen was a little petty. But for now, she would just bear with it.

Thinking of this, An Yuyi smiled and offered a jade box. She waited, anticipating that once Ye Chen opened it, he would light up with surprise and delight.

But Ye Chen had already used today's gift-feedback opportunity with Li Feihuang. And after hearing that An Miaoli hadn't come along, his interest vanished completely. He accepted the jade box casually.

"Please thank Senior An for me. I still have matters to attend to, so I won't trouble Fellow Daoist An to come in."

An Yuyi's expression immediately darkened. So Li Feng got invited in for a sit-down, but the moment she arrived, Ye Chen had something urgent to do?

Still, remembering how she had once misunderstood and even threatened him, An Yuyi forced down her temper and tried to soften her tone.

"Why don't you at least take a look at the gift?"

Inside the jade box was a core-forming spiritual item, capable of forming an eighth-grade Golden Core. Her aunt had spent a considerable amount of personal resources and sect contribution points to exchange for it from the sect's treasure vault, just for this thank-you gift.

Ye Chen opened it for a glance. Another core-forming spiritual item. That made two in one day. He nodded briefly.

"This item looks extremely valuable. Thank Senior An again on my behalf. Fellow Daoist An, let's leave it at that for now. Until next time."

With that, Ye Chen turned crisply and headed straight into the back courtyard of the store, leaving the gate shut behind him.

An Yuyi stood there, glaring at the tightly closed door. Her chest heaved violently in fury, trembling with indignation. Even her face flushed red.

Ye Chen, you've gone too far!

She gave a sharp flick of her sleeve and stormed off in a huff.

Ye Chen, of course, couldn't care less. A 100x multiplier might've been something he'd yearned for three years ago. But now? It was mediocre at best.

More importantly, An Yuyi never triggered critical hits. She acted like everything others gave her was only natural.

With so many better options, Ye Chen had no intention of wasting time on her. Once he confirmed that all preparations were complete, he promptly left the courtyard and set off for the Divine Will Mountains to retrieve the phoenix blood. That was his true objective.

Phoenix blood was already a top-tier core-forming item. Combined with Li Feihuang's 300x feedback and critical hit potential, what kind of core-forming treasure would he receive? And what kind of Golden Core would he ultimately form?

Ye Chen was very excited.

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