Chapter 27 – Preferential Treatment (1)
After the lecture was over, Qi Hong requested Miaomiao to stay behind again. She guided him to the elder elevator, which could access every floor in this building.
In the elevator, Qi Hong pressed [B3]. The lift descended to the underground floor, where only authorized people could access it.
"Senior. Where are we going?"
"Claiming your contribution points, of course."
Miaomiao frowned. He hadn't reported the task that Qi Hong had given him yet, but she took the initiative to give him the CP first.
"Don't' worry about the task. Every room in this building hides at least 20 hidden small cameras. I have seen Liqin's state, so I know that she's completely broken now."
In the modern world, it wasn't uncommon for a triad gang to hide secret cameras in their brothel rooms for various reasons. Miaomiao didn't expect that these cultivators also did the same.
Qi Hong detected Miaomiao's distort expression. She laughed, "Don't get me wrong. Those cameras are there to monitor and record our disciples' behavior. Hard workers like E1053 are usually rewarded with contribution points and better resting quarters, but slackers will be thrown to storehouses."
"But won't my mother discover my deed?"
Miaomiao was afraid that Xu Xiuying might punish him for it. After all, he had ruined one of her disciples.
"She won't."
"What makes you so confident?"
Qi Hong shrugged, "I'm in charge of Joyous Yin disciples, workers, and the securities. I'm the only one that can access CCTV footage, so you don't have to worry. Even your mother has to come to me when she needs my records."
"Oh?"
Unexpectedly, Qi Hong was a big shot in the sect.
*Ding*
The elevator opened. Before them, a gloomy dark narrow passage awaited.
Qi Hong stepped out of the elevator and led the way. Miaomiao followed after her, but he looked around, feeling insecure.
The corridor walls were made of black bricks and concrete. Dim neon light bulbs shone the way for the two, but they sometimes blinked and released static noises as if they were props from a horror movie.
"AAAAAAAHHHHHHH!!"
A man's scream came from the upper floor, but it was audible there, making this corridor creepy and suspicious.
Walking for a minute, Qi Hong and Miaomiao reached a reception lobby. A long wooden counter blocked the only door in this room. No other furniture could be seen other than the counter and the door. Behind the counter, a gargoyle statue stood there, watching Miaomiao and Qi Hong.
The gargoyle's eyes lightened. Its red eyes scanned through Miaomiao and Qi Hong's bodies.
[State your purpose!]
Qi Hong giggled, "I'm here to redeem contribution points for young master Xu Miao."
Miaomiao frowned as something didn't make sense here. If this was commonplace to redeem contribution points, the limited access would prevent disciples from reaching this place. Moreover, underground levels were used as prisons and torture chambers, which was not matched with the sect's layout setting.
Therefore, this place shouldn't be a normal exchange center from Miaomiao's perspective.
[How many points are you going to give Xu Miao?]
"10,000!"
[That will be 100 raw spirit stones.]
Qi Hong's spatial ring flashed as the elder drew out a bag of raw spirit stones. She tossed it to the counter.
[100 raw spirit stones confirmed. 10,000 CP has been added to Xu Miao's account. Anything else?]
"Give him an authority to access the supervisor elevator, so he can come back here on his own."
[… Done. Anything else?]
"That's all."
[Good. Leave this place.]
Listening to the conversation, Miaomiao blinked his eyes several times, confused for a moment. After the conversation was over, he managed to come up with a theory of this place.
"Senior, is this place for secret deals or something shady that you don't want other disciples to know?"
Qi Hong laughed. She pulled his hand and dragged him away from this room, walking back toward the elevator, "Indeed. You're sharp, young master Xu. It is as you said."
"But why here?"
"It's more convenient for elders like me. This place is a common spot for us to transfer contribution points to our favorite disciples without anyone knowing. Well, your mother can still find out eventually."
In other words, elders could use this place for giving preferential treatments to their favorite disciples without anyone finding out.
"Young master Xu. I'm giving you preferential treatment not because of your status, but I'm investing in your potential. I hope that you won't forget me when you become successful."
Miaomiao still didn't believe her, "Tell me the truth, what are you trying to achieve?"
"Ai, Yai, Yai. I'm being honest, you know?"
"I'm sorry, but I have trust issues."
"Hmm."
Qi Hong's eyes opened a bit as she gave Miaomiao a meaningful look. A few seconds later, she stood before him and embraced his waist.
"Let's say, I'm nurturing a handsome young man, so he can become my ideal dual cultivation partner in the future. Right now, you're too weak. You'll die in 2 minutes if you have sex with me with your current strength. Is this enough for you, young master Xu?"
Miaomiao didn't resist Qi Hong's embrace. He raised his eyebrows as he still didn't believe her.
'A lying bitch. She definitely used Zheng Liqin as a guinea pig to test my skills. Xu Xiuying also used Zheng Liqin to harm me. I can't trust anyone here!'
Miaomiao pretended to be friendly and obedient, feinting that he could be manipulated. Still, his hands reacted to Qi Hong's soft body and groped her butt. The bulking mushroom in his pants also poked Qi Hong's lower abdomen. Using his pervert move as a disguise, Miaomiao changed the subject to avoid that matter for now, trying not to stir the grass to startle the snake.
"Just curious. How old are you?"
"It's rude to ask a lady her age, you know?"
"I need a reference. I just want to know how long it will take me to reach your level."
Qi Hong laughed, "51. I started cultivating when I was 12, and I'm stage 5 level 10. Happy now?"
"You look like you're still in your early 20s."
"Haha, you're too sweet. You should release your hands before I can't stop my urge. This old woman might ravish you at this rate. By the way, your meat has been poking my belly. Are you into me that much?"
"You've woke it up, so can I ask you to calm it?"
The two teased each other as if they were boyfriend and girlfriend. But after they got inside the elevator and the door closed, Miaomiao and Qi Hong started exchanging kisses. Their hands reached for the other's private part, massaging them with their hands.
*DING*
A few seconds later, the elevator door opened as it reached a new destination, the 9th floor. Qi Hong stopped molesting Miaomiao and pushed him away.
"That's enough, young master Xu. If you wish to continue with this old lady, increase your strength to the 3rd stage or higher. As I said, you're too weak for me."
"Can't I even get a proper handjob? Are you going to leave me hanging?"
"Ask those guards to be your partners, then. Hahaha!"
Qi Hong ignored Miaomiao's erected mushroom and led him to a new area. The latter corrected his clothes and followed her. Of course, his boner was killed.
This 9th floor partitioned into two parts; the resident zone, and the contribution hall.
Black glass walls and the vinyl signboard could be seen from afar. When Miaomiao followed Qi Hong to the interior, he recalled the scenes of adventurer guilds from various Japanese Anime.
Two long wooden counters made an L formation, the same arrangement as modern banks. Nine workers sat behind the counters, talking to the disciples that sat across them.
On the bulletin boards on the east side, several pinned printed papers could be seen. There were the tasks or requests that any disciple could accept as if they were quests from a fantasy world's adventurer guild.
Not many people were still hanging around the contribution hall as it was 6PM, the usual dinner time. Everyone either returned to their rooms or went out for food.
When one of the staff spotted Qi Hong, she rushed out to greet her.
"Master Qi, welcome to the contribution hall. Are you here to issue requests as usual?"
"Nah, I'm here to show young master Xu the ropes. Also, he wants to redeem his points for rewards. Show him the exchangeable item list."
The staff gazed at Miaomiao's face. As soon as she recognized the similarity between Xu Xiuying and his face, her body shook because of the nervousness. The staff wasn't used to dealing with a noble, especially a relative of the sect's vice master.
Miaomiao got the list of exchangeable items and his available contribution points right away. It was an orb that projected a hologram image, similar to his system menu. He could scroll the menu up and down by sliding his finger as if he was using a smartphone.
In the hologram, Miaomiao had 10,000 points that Qi Hong had transferred to him via the secret channel. As for the purchasable items, the price varied.
The cheapest item on the list was a raw spirit stone, which cost 200 CP, double the price that Qi Hong had exchanged. But what attracted Miaomiao's attention was something else.
Refined Yang Stone – 5,000 CP
Miaomiao had seen a refined Yin stone that Zheng Liqin had always used when she had free time. That girl simply placed it in front of her and drained its energy for days. Just one stone, it lasted her 3 days, and she said that she acquired at least 5,000 strands of Yin Qi from it.
'Can I get 5,000 strands of Yang Qi from this stone? If so, this will be helpful.'
He turned to Qi Hong, "Senior Qi, is it possible to collect Yang Qi from a refined Yang stone? I saw Zheng Liqin cultivating, and she used a Yin stone."
"Yes, you can. But if you're aiming for a Yang Stone, I suggest that you should request a staff here to use a fireproof room or have an elder to monitor you. Whenever we use a yang stone, the room temperature will rise and all wooden furniture will catch fire. We don't want you to burn our building."
Miaomiao broke a cold sweat again as he recalled that Yang was the opposite of Yin. If a Yin stone could turn his bedroom into a freezer, then a Yang stone might turn his bedroom into a human-BBQ sauna.
"Also, there're risks that you'll end up burning yourself. Before you cultivate this stone, you should master the basic techniques first. Look at the recommended section. There should be available second-handed manuals there."
Miaomiao flipped through pages and explored the recommended items. Several second-handed items were sold here. Surely enough, many items were listed here for low prices, including refined Yang stones and many technique manuals.
(10% Used) Refined Yang Stone – 2,000 CP
(30% Used) Refined Yang Stone – 1,000 CP
(80% Used) Refined Yang Stone – 100 CP
(60% Used) Refined Yang Stone – 500 CP
Succubi Sense Manual (With Xiong Zhenzhen's handwritten notes) – 500 CP
Double Yin Dantian Manual (With Qiao Qiu's handwritten notes) – 500 CP
Frost Phoenix Swordsmanship Manual (With Deng Ehuang's handwritten notes) – 1500 CP
"What's with these notes and the price?"