Chapter 216: A Pie in the Sky.

Almost all of the women who followed Ye Xiu received their monthly rewards, each receiving a slight increase in strength, though the magnitude varied.

Qu Feiyan, the little girl, had been with Ye Xiu for so long, and her favorability had increased significantly. She often sought to gain attention from him—in short, she was always trying to get in his way.

So, at this point, Ye Xiu's favorability towards this quirky little girl had reached 69. After all, what guy would dislike a cute, pretty girl who constantly tried to save up money to treat herself to a brothel?

With this reward, Qu Feiyan's strength had successfully increased to the third level of the Xiantian realm.

As for Yue Lingshan, thanks to Ye Xiu and Ning Zhongze's relationship, Ye Xiu's favorability towards her had increased significantly, reaching 76 points.

Therefore, according to the monthly review, her cultivation had been raised to the sixth level of the Xiantian realm.

Yi Lin, the young nun who spent her days chanting Buddhist sutras, praying to the Bodhisattvas or atonement for her sins with the Buddha, had already become a master of the second level of Xiantian. If she were still a disciple of the Five Mountains Sword Sect, her prowess would have surely drawn countless admiration.

However, Yi Lin had little in mind for martial arts; she was more focused on the Buddhist scriptures and Buddhist teachings.

As for Zhong Ling, after spending so much time with Ye Xiu, Ye Xiu gradually became less wary of her, and his favorability rating increased slightly, reaching 50 points. However, her cultivation level remained at the first level of Grandmaster, and her internal energy improved slightly, but not significantly.

As for Yao Yue's younger sister, Lian Xing, Ye Xiu's favorability rating actually increased to 72 points, thanks to her older sister. After all, a sister-in-law is half the brother-in-law's back. Of course, this was also partly due to Lian Xing's arrival at Huashan, where she spent more time with Ye Xiu.

Consequently, Lian Xing's cultivation level was raised to the second level of Grandmaster.

Meanwhile, Jiang Yuyan, a woman who was completely obsessed with being Ye Xiu's maid, tending to his daily needs and practically crippling him, had already gained Ye Xiu's favorability rating of 79 points. Her cultivation had also been raised to the third level of the Xiantian realm, and she had also acquired a martial art, the Hundred Flowers Chaos Fist. However, Jiang Yuyan didn't particularly care for this technique, as Ye Xiu had already taught her several powerful martial arts, and she didn't particularly value the Hundred Flowers Chaos Fist.

In fact, given Jiang Yuyan's intelligence, she wouldn't even consider practicing the martial arts gifted by the diary, unless they were incredibly effective, like the Mind Control technique she had previously acquired.

Otherwise, if she practiced other martial arts and Ye Xiu discovered it, would he suspect her or harbor other concerns?

In short, Jiang Yuyan would never do anything that would arouse Ye Xiu's suspicion or concern. This was one of the reasons why Ye Xiu's favorability rating had already reached 79 points before they even developed a more intimate relationship.

And Liu Sheng Piaoxu, the woman who, until now, hadn't revealed her true identity to Ye Xiu and still referred to herself as Liu Xu, had successfully advanced from the seventh to the eighth level of Grandmaster Realm after receiving several monthly summary rewards.

...

[Monthly summary: You were mentioned less than ten times in your diary this month, earning a guaranteed one-month internal cultivation boost. The diary owner's favorability towards you reached 47, granting you an additional 10% bonus. Ultimately, you earned one month and three days of internal cultivation.]

Lian Nishang's face darkened as she observed her meager rewards.

"Lin Shiyin, Shui Sheng, as you can see, if we don't find a way to get to Ye Xiu's side, there's no way to improve our favorability, and we won't even be mentioned in his diary. The monthly rewards we receive are merely a meager one-month internal cultivation boost," Lian Nishang said to Lin Shiyin and Shui Sheng.

Lian Nishang had recently been trying to find more help. She approached Qi Fang and the woman who used to be Xiyu, now going by the alias Zeng Jing. Unfortunately, both of them were living at home with their own men and never got the diary.

Later, Lian Nishang even sought out Lin Xian'er, hoping to see if she had the diary, since Ye Xiu had mentioned her in his diary.

Of course, if Lin Xian'er was the promiscuous woman described in Ye Xiu's diary, Lian Nishang wouldn't have formed an alliance with her.

When Lian Nishang found Lin Xian'er, only to discover she was ravishing a rickshaw driver, she didn't even bother asking if she was the owner of the diary. She simply killed her with a single blow of her sword.

That's right, Lian Nishang killed Lin Xian'er!

Lin Xian'er herself died without even understanding the true story.

Lin Xian'er, with Long Xiaoyun's help, had already falsely accused Li Xunhuan of being the Plum Blossom Thief, and she was already waiting for the fruits of her labor. Instead, she was inexplicably murdered, and she didn't even see who killed her before her death.

It was only because word of Lin Xian'er's death hadn't spread yet, otherwise the

martial arts world would have been in chaos. After all, Lin Xian'er had slept with so many men.

While many of them were ordinary waiters, coachmen, and even street beggars, there were also some ruthless and highly skilled thugs and gangsters. There were also some elders, leaders, and even junior leaders of prestigious and respectable sects.

Most of these people maintained close ties with Lin Xian'er.

If they learned of Lin Xian'er's murder, while they wouldn't overturn the martial arts world, it would certainly cause quite a stir.

However, Lian Nishang didn't mind it at all. She even considered killing Lin Xian'er with a single, easy strike a mercy.

Most importantly for Lian Nishang, however, was that she had only found two women, Lin Shiyin and Shui Sheng, as allies.

"Actually, the monthly reward is quite good. Combined with my daily practice, my training speed has doubled," Shui Sheng whispered.

When Lian Nishang heard Shui Sheng's words, she rolled her eyes.

"Dongfang Bubai was just a master of the seventh or eighth level of the Grandmaster Realm at the beginning, and her martial arts skills were not even as good as mine, but now, she is already a Grand Master. Not even an ordinary Grand Master, she may be a Grand Master of the Profound Realm."

"Yao Yue was stuck at the ninth level of the Grandmaster Realm at the beginning. If nothing unexpected happened, she would have been like this for the rest of her life. Now she has become a Grand Master with strength no less than Dongfang Bubai."

"And that Zhong Ling, she was also a post-natal master, but now she has become a Grand Master."

"And Huang Rong, she was also in the post-natal realm at the beginning, but now she has become a Grand Master. Who knows when she will transform into a Grand Master."

"This situation is all because they stay by Ye Xiu's side and have gained Ye Xiu's favor."

"Think about it, you are secretly happy about the internal strength you gain for one month every month, but others can increase their internal strength by a year, ten years, or even decades in a month."

"You have spent ten years or even more to finally become a Grand Master, but others may have become celestial beings or even land immortals by that time. Are you willing to accept that?" Lian Nishang couldn't help but say to Shui Sheng.

Shui Sheng had originally been quite pleased with herself for having gained a month's worth of internal cultivation for nothing, but after hearing Lian Nishang's words, she suddenly couldn't help but feel a surge of jealousy towards the women around Ye Xiu, and a hint of resentment grew within her.

Shui Sheng had always envied Dongfang Bubai and the others,

but her shyness and reservedness had made her subconsciously overlook certain things. After all, Ye Xiu rarely mentioned in his diary the rapid progress of women like Dongfang Bubai. Of course, this was also partly due to the fact that Huang Rong and the others didn't readily display their skills in front of Ye Xiu, so Ye Xiu wasn't quite sure of their specific abilities.

Now that Lian Nishang had pointed out the rapid progress of the women around Ye Xiu, Shui Sheng's feelings naturally shifted.

The same was true for Lin Shiyin, who was standing beside her.

Shui Sheng was, after all, a gifted young prodigy, having achieved a mastery of the Xiantian realm through her own cultivation at a young age.

But Lin Shiyin was different. Her cultivation aptitude wasn't particularly strong, and she only began practicing at such an advanced age.

Normally, she felt that cultivation was extremely difficult. If it weren't for the reward from the diary, she didn't know when she would be able to reach the third level of acquired cultivation.

In addition, Lin Shiyin now realized the importance of martial arts. So she really wanted to get stronger quickly.

But as a woman, and a woman who already had a ten-year-old son, out of a woman's modesty and a mother's modesty, she couldn't do anything out of the ordinary. So before Lian Nishang found her, she still just stayed in the backyard of Xingyun Manor, practicing hard alone.

"Well, you can't let us, let us go, go, go--" Shui Sheng couldn't say the rest of the words, but the meaning was very clear, that is, to sleep with Ye Xiu.

"Do you think sleeping with Ye Xiu is a simple thing?" Lian Nishang sneered.

Shui Sheng's face turned red.

"Ye Xiu has Dongfang Bubai and Yaoyue by his side. Other women don't stand a chance of sleeping with him. Take Murong Qiudi, for example; she only gets a chance when Ye Xiu is out on his own. As for the others, with Dongfang Bubai and Yaoyue watching over them, they never have a chance." Lian Nishang seemed to mock Shui Sheng for taking the idea of sleeping with Ye Xiu so lightly.

"Isn't Ye Xiu with his master's wife—" Shui Sheng couldn't help but mention Ning Zhongze, but shyness prevented her from saying it.

"Ye Xiu's master's wife, Ning Zhongze's case, is clearly an exception," Lin Shiyin said. As she spoke, she couldn't help but wonder if Ye Xiu had a special preference for wives or mothers. Lin Shiyin blushed as she thought of her own identity.

"Anyway, you two, find a way to get me to sleep with Ye Xiu. That's your current mission—" Despite being a woman, Lian Nishang possessed a decisiveness unmatched by any man. In matters of love and sex, she even displayed a greater strength than the average man.

After hearing Lian Nishang's words, Lin Shiyin and Shui Sheng couldn't help but look at her with a touch of admiration.

At least, they couldn't express such words.

In reality, Lian Nishang had already lowered her expectations; after all, she had originally wanted Ye Xiu to be her heir-in-law.

...

"I never thought that Wuyazi's skills would be passed down to you," Tianshan Tonglao sighed, looking at the girl who looked so much like Li Qiushui and Li Canghai.

"You—" Wang Yuyan, knowing her true identity, looked at Tianshan Tonglao with a touch of fear.

"Call me Grandmaster," Tianshan Tonglao said, her tone mild.

Despite her eccentricities, Tianshan Tonglao couldn't be stern with Wang Yuyan, Wuyazi's heir and granddaughter, even though Wang Yuyan was still Li Qiushui's granddaughter.

"Grandmaster," Wang Yuyan called out sweetly.

"Have you looked for the other people mentioned in the diary within the Great Song Dynasty?" asked the Tianshan Child-Grandmother.

"No, Master," Wang Yuyan shook her head.

"Okay, then I'll continue looking for them."

...

Shi Feixuan and Wanwan, who were heading towards the Mongol Yuan Dynasty, were constantly engaging in verbal and physical combat.

Their faces were filled with surprise, even horror.

First, the two women discovered that their diaries could automatically update with new entries.

This alone was enough to astound them. Even more astonishing was the discovery that they had received a reward from the diary.

[Monthly Summary: If you were mentioned fewer than ten times in your diary this month, you will receive a guaranteed one-month increase in Internal Qi cultivation. If the diary owner's favorability towards you is 46, you will receive an additional 10% bonus. Ultimately, you have gained one month and three days of Internal Qi cultivation.]

After discovering this information, Shi Feixuan discovered that her internal Qi had actually increased, and the increase was exactly what she could achieve with one month and three days of dedicated practice.

Furthermore, the pure and profound Qi awarded for the month was identical to what she had cultivated herself.

This shocked Shi Feixuan so much that she even questioned whether it was real or not.

A month's worth of internal cultivation seemed like a piece of cake.

Shi Feixuan didn't believe such a thing could happen, and she couldn't help but wonder if the Demon Sect had used some trickery.

Shi Feixuan spent almost the entire night awake, constantly checking herself, her body, and her Qi, but she couldn't find anything unusual.

Wanwan was in a similar situation.

[Monthly Summary: You were mentioned less than ten times in your diary this month, and you've received a guaranteed month's worth of internal cultivation. The diary owner's favorability towards you is 47, which grants you an additional 10% bonus. Ultimately, you've received one month and three days of internal cultivation.]

After receiving one month and three days of internal cultivation, she also exhausted every possible means to check, but again, nothing was found.

Wanwan's inspection methods were even more ruthless than Shi Feixuan's.

After all, she came from the Yinkui Sect, a demonic sect. She didn't believe in free lunches; she even believed that anything she desired had a price tag already stated. She

had seen more than once in the Yinkui Sect receive seemingly unbelievable gifts, such as elixirs, weapons, or martial arts skills, but without exception, these individuals never gained anything, and often ended up dying miserably. It was all a trap set by someone within the demonic sect.

So, after receiving a month's worth of cultivation, Wanwan immediately suspected that it was the work of that old man, Bian Bufu.

After all, within the entire Yinkui Sect, Bian Bufu held the greatest malice towards her.

After a night of tossing and turning, Wanwan had achieved nothing, and she even realized that the extra month of internal cultivation seemed to have had no real downside.

Even her cultivation level, which was originally stuck at the sixth level of the Grandmaster Realm, was able to break through the bottleneck and reach the seventh level of the Grandmaster Realm, the late stage of the Grandmaster Realm, thanks to this month of internal cultivation.

If it weren't for the fact that the internal energy she'd cultivated over that month had completely merged with Wanwan's own zhenqi, revealing no flaws, she might have simply destroyed it, even at the risk of injury.

After studying it until dawn, Wanwan and Shi Feixuan were still unable to pinpoint the cause.

"Huh?"

Wanwan and Shi Feixuan were staying in the same inn, even sharing adjacent rooms.

That morning, they opened their doors almost simultaneously and saw each other. They noticed a hint of fatigue on each other's faces.

Though the fatigue was fleeting and concealed, they both noticed something was amiss with the other.

And, although they couldn't pinpoint the reason for the sudden extra month's internal energy, at least their hands had grown, their cultivation had broken through.

With their own breakthrough, could they now easily defeat the other?

This thought crossed Wanwan and Shi Feixuan's minds almost simultaneously.

Without a single word, they attacked each other.

The Heavenly Demon Slash and the Color and Void Sword collided!

"Huh? You've achieved a breakthrough?" Wanwan and Shi Feixuan asked almost in unison.

Originally, their strength was similar, neither able to defeat the other.

But then, for some unknown reason, they gained a month's worth of internal cultivation, a breakthrough, and thought they might surpass the other. Unexpectedly, the other's strength had also increased, and by a similar amount.

"Did you also receive the diary as a reward?"

Recalling their own experiences, Wanwan and Shi Feixuan asked tentatively in unison.

Then, both were shocked.

They stared at each other in equal shock, then almost simultaneously pulled out their diaries.

"You actually have this diary too!" the two women exclaimed

in unison, their voices overlapping so closely that they sounded as if they were one person.

"So, this isn't something from the Demon Sect?"

"So, this isn't something from the Saint Sect?"

They both said in unison, Shi Feixuan referring to the Demon Sect and Wanwan to the Saint Sect.

"It seems that we need to have a good talk!" The two said in tacit understanding.

The main reason was that they were too curious and confused about this diary of unknown origin.