I Can See Through All Things' Information Chapter 1417 Chapter 857: Star-Crossed Lovers, Daoist Wubao's Request (Happy New Year) (Part 2)

Clouds drifting across Spirit Mountain have beheld their shared days and nights, laughter resounding beside the waterfall, while the spiritual peach orchard planted preserves their vows of youth.

"Back then, everyone in the sect said I was a toad lusting after a swan."

With a self-deprecating chuckle, the Five Treasure Taoist spoke, though redness rimmed his eyes. "Yun Shu gleamed as the sect's most radiant jewel, her cultivation surging forward at breakneck pace, attaining flawless Foundation Establishment before turning twenty, her visage so pristine and captivating that not a single young disciple—from the Inner Sect Elders' direct heirs to the latest recruits—escaped her allure."

Lu Qing attended in silence, his eyes fixed upon the Five Treasure Taoist's countenance. He envisioned Yun Shu's look from those days and grasped the emotions that had gripped the Five Treasure Taoist back then.

In the world of cultivation, talent alongside beauty frequently dictates one's launchpad.

For a star like Yun Shu to pair with an average cultivator such as the Five Treasure Taoist, that devotion outshone any spirit artifact across existence.

"But she never cared about those things."

A tender warmth filled the Five Treasure Taoist's voice, as though he drowned in cherished recollections.

"Once, a prodigy among the sect's disciples sought her hand in marriage, presenting a millennium-old spiritual herb as dowry, but before the crowd, she declared, 'In this life, I will marry no one but him."

That moment, he lurked behind a peach tree; those words thrilled him so fiercely that the spiritual peach tumbled from his fingers.

Bolting forward, he seized Yun Shu's hand and stammered his vow: "Junior Sister Shu, wait for me, when we both cultivate to the Golden Core, I will ask Master to officiate for us and become Dao Companions, and I will protect you for life."

Blush colored Yun Shu's cheeks as she nodded gently, slipping a hand-carved peach wood sword pendant into his palm: "Senior Brother, I trust you, no matter how long it takes, I will wait."

The Five Treasure Taoist kept that peach wood sword pendant ever near, enduring all ensuing tempests without ever letting it go.

In the midst of his tale, he drew forth a peach wood trinket from within his robes, time-smoothed to a lustrous shine, its sword form exquisitely detailed, etched with a tiny "Shu" mark.

"For this vow, I hurled myself into cultivation with utter fervor."

The Five Treasure Taoist clenched the peach wood pendant fiercely, knuckles blanching.

"Even with a poor talent, I toiled day and night, and Yun Shu always stayed by my side, sharing her cultivation insights with me without reservation.

At that time, I thought that as long as we worked hard enough, we would one day achieve our wish and stay together for life on this Spirit Mountain."

Little Yan nestled against Lu Qing, her eyes rimmed red upon hearing this segment.

Little Li shelved her habitual mirth, lingering mute nearby, long ears sagging low.

None foresaw the jovial, rotund Taoist bearing such a profound, indelible history.

Yet fate decreed otherwise; destiny's chariot veered unseen when Yun Shu hit late-stage Foundation Establishment, on the cusp of Golden Core breakthrough.

"Yun Shu's physique is the Innate 'Spirit Charm Furnace Body."

A sudden chill deepened the Five Treasure Taoist's voice, radiating frigid menace.

"This physique is extremely rare, and ordinary people have no way of knowing it. I only found out later."

The Spirit Charm Furnace Body differed utterly from the crude cauldron mortals misconstrued; it stood as a rare innate constitution.

Possessors wielded spiritual charm of utmost purity.

Through dual cultivation, they could bestow thirty percent of their spiritual charm upon their Dao Companion, aiding meridian alignment and bottleneck shattering,

with zero detriment to themselves.

Far from harm, dual cultivation allowed mutual enhancement, advancing in tandem.

This body type ranked as supreme treasure in cultivation circles, its revelation sparking endless envy from hordes of cultivators.

Yun Shu's master—shared teacher with the Five Treasure Taoist—spotted it early and clamped the secret tight.

He confided solely in a handful of esteemed sect elders, beseeching utmost secrecy to let Yun Shu cultivate undisturbed and fulfill her aspirations swiftly.

"Master said, once both Yun Shu and I form our cores, he would officiate our Dao Companion ceremony, and at that time, he would inform us of this, so that we may support each other and ascend the great path together," the Five Treasure Taoist's voice was filled with regret, "but despite all our precautions,

we couldn't guard against people's hearts."

Shao Sidao, sole offspring of the Sect Master, entered life swathed in boundless indulgence.

Boasting peerless talent and his father's unyielding tutelage, his cultivation outstripped all peers.

He forged his Golden Core shortly past twenty, claiming title as the sect's youngest Golden Core expert.

Projecting refinement, civility, and Daoist propriety, sect disciples hailed him as paragon.

The Five Treasure Taoist himself once revered the Young Sect Leader, blind to his petty, vicious core.

Yun Shu's luster inevitably snared Shao Sidao's notice.

Like fellow disciples at first, he coveted her, wielding Young Sect Leader status to woo relentlessly.

He lavished elite manuals, scarce elixirs, even his sire's sway for cultivation-suited spirit goods, desperate for her fleeting regard.

Yet despite lavish gifts, Yun Shu stood resolute, untouched.

"Shao Sidao first confessed to Yun Shu in the peach grove."

Cold edged the Five Treasure Taoist's tone.

"That day, I had just returned from a sect mission and saw from afar him standing in front of Yun Shu, holding a top-grade elixir, saying that if Yun Shu agreed to be his Dao Companion, the elixir would be hers, and that the Master would take her on as a direct disciple."