Chapter 4975 — Raising Her Power

"It's just—that! We're engaged, you know. I know it's a bit improper, but who knows when we'll see each other again? Leaving a child behind is only proper..." Ning Xuefei's voice trailed off smaller and smaller, until at last it was barely audible.

"Leaving a child?!" Thank heavens Wei Zhao had not been drinking tea just then, or he would have sprayed it all over her face again. The girl's thought process truly vaulted clean over the horizon—all he had done was ask her to come by that evening. How had she leapt all the way to *that*?

"Isn't it?" Ning Xuefei, for her part, seemed genuinely puzzled.

"Er—Feifei, you've misunderstood. I really didn't call you here for that. We're not parting forever, it's only a temporary separation. Why on earth would we leave a child behind for no reason..." Wei Zhao was caught between laughter and tears.

"Ah?" Ning Xuefei's already flushed cheeks burned scarlet. She hurriedly covered her chest with her hands and stammered in a fluster: "Then let me go change my clothes..."

With that she turned to leave. Wei Zhao hastily called her back: "Come back here. You're already here—what's the point of changing? You'll have to take them off anyway."

"Take them off?" Ning Xuefei gave a start, staring at him blankly. "Didn't you say we weren't leaving a child?"

"I never said we were. But what comes next is something you can only do with your clothes off. Hurry up—we don't have much time." Wei Zhao gestured with his hand.

"Oh..." Ning Xuefei was thoroughly muddled, but she obediently did as told. Embarrassed as she was, this was hardly the first time she had appeared before Wei Zhao in such a state—why, the very first time they met, on the island in the Far North, it had been exactly like this. Then, pert and pretty, she asked: "So do you have to take yours off too?"

"I'm only raising *your* power, not my own. Why would I undress?" Wei Zhao pursed his lips, half amused.

"Raising my power? So *that's* why you called me here!" Ning Xuefei finally caught on.

She had heard about this from Shangguan Lan'er hundreds of times. Back then she had envied the other girl for being able to shoot up in power without cultivating at all, and had pestered Wei Zhao about it more than once. But Wei Zhao thought the method pulled the seedlings up too fast, doing them no good in the long run, and had never agreed. Who would have thought he would suddenly bring it up today?

"That's right. I know a girl with your temperament could never buckle down and cultivate alone, so this is the only option left—the least of all evils." Wei Zhao sounded a little resigned.

If Ning Xuefei had shown even a shred of diligence, he would never have raised her power this way. After all, only strength won through one's own bitter cultivation could be relied upon. Unfortunately, Ning Xuefei was exactly like Shangguan Lan'er: for all that she had clapped her chest and sworn solemn oaths before, Wei Zhao could state flatly that she would never manage it. It was pure nature. Unless the two of them were driven into a corner, they would never come to such a realization.

As things stood, Wang Xinyan, Huang Xiaotao, and Huo Yudie had all reached the early Xuan Ascension stage, and one day they would surely set out together for the Xuan-tier sea. If Ning Xuefei's power was not raised soon, she alone would be left behind.

True, with Leng Rufeng and Yang Qianshuang standing guard here, Wei Zhao had nothing to worry about—but he could hardly leave Leng Rufeng and Yang Qianshuang on watch here forever, could he?

The resources of a Yellow-tier academy were nowhere near enough to sustain cultivators of the Xuan Ascension stage, and waiting for Ning Xuefei to cultivate her way there on her own would take until the cows came home. To make Leng Rufeng and Yang Qianshuang waste all those years here for her sake—even a genius of the highest order would be ground down into worthless scrap. Wei Zhao would not have that on his conscience.

And besides, come to think of it—with Ning Xuefei's lazy, slipshod nature, even if her innate talent were peerless, the way she worked three days and slacked off for two, it was anyone's guess whether she would ever reach the Xuan Ascension stage at all.

So after turning it over and over in his mind, Wei Zhao had decided to raise her power first. Then she, along with Leng Rufeng and Yang Qianshuang, could join Huo Yudie and the others in heading for the Xuan-tier sea, and he would have nothing left to worry about. As for the lack of a solid foundation, that could be shored up bit by bit later—with Wei Zhao's methods, he would always find a way.

"Wonderful!" Ning Xuefei cheered at once, hopping with joy—utterly forgetting her present state. Wei Zhao turned red to the ears, while she noticed nothing at all and pressed on eagerly: "So what realm can you raise me to? Could you take me straight to the Xuan Ascension stage?"

"Heh. Weren't you swearing up and down just this afternoon that you'd cultivate diligently? That resolve didn't last long, did it? Aren't you afraid I'll smack your bottom?" Wei Zhao laughed.

"Smack away, then—as long as I don't have to cultivate! Think of all the things I could do with all that time saved!" Ning Xuefei chirped, sweet and artless.

Wei Zhao was speechless. If not for the fact that time was short and business came first, a scene like this might well have been too much for his self-control. He could only say: "Straight to the Xuan Ascension stage is impossible. But I can first raise you to the Great Perfection of the Nascent Soul stage, then conjure an artificial lightning tribulation for you, helping you fuse a spirit root and break through to Xuan Ascension. Here—these are two seventh-grade Great Return Pills I just refined. You still have the Thunder Mystic Pill I gave you last time, don't you?"

Ning Xuefei numbly took the two pills. Both were of a peak quality rarely seen. Puzzled, she asked: "I do. But isn't the Thunder Mystic Pill all you need to break through to Xuan Ascension? Why the seventh-grade Great Return Pills as well?"

"The Thunder Mystic Pill can only buffer the lightning tribulation. For ordinary cultivators like Yudie and the others, one Thunder Mystic Pill truly is enough—even if the breakthrough fails, their lives are safe. But you're different. Your power has been raised by external means, and with an insufficient foundation I fear something may go wrong. These two peak-grade Great Return Pills may well come in handy." Wei Zhao explained.

In truth, if seventh-grade Great Return Pills alone would do, he need not have refined them on the spot. But he feared mishaps, and only peak quality refined by his own hand could set his mind at ease. This matter was no trifle, after all; failure was not an option.

Were it not for Chang Minghui watching like a hawk, Wei Zhao could simply have raised Ning Xuefei to the Great Perfection of the Nascent Soul stage, let her consolidate for a few months, and only then had her break through to Xuan Ascension. As things stood, the situation was exceptional, and he could only take a slight risk.

Of course, this too was because Ning Xuefei's aptitude was extraordinary. Had she only been middling-to-good, Wei Zhao would never have done it—for to break through to Xuan Ascension immediately after being raised to the Great Perfection of the Nascent Soul stage was a feat of no small difficulty, one only a true genius could possibly achieve.

Wei Zhao believed Ning Xuefei was just such a genius—only this genius happened to be somewhat lazy by nature, and had never cared much for cultivation.

"Let's begin, then." Wei Zhao delayed no further and set about raising Ning Xuefei's power. The whole process went smoothly, as easily as could be—and apart from the somewhat amorous atmosphere, there was not a single hitch. (~^~)