The loud thud of her fall immediately drew the attention of passersby.

Yang Qing looked up and glared at him fiercely. "Why are you doing this to me?"

But she hadn't expected his reaction. Xu Ke shook his head, feigning a panicked expression. "What's wrong? Is your illness acting up again? Someone, please, call a doctor!"

As soon as he spoke, Yang Qing's eyes widened. What illness?! She didn't have any illness!

But the kind-hearted pedestrians immediately gathered around. "What happened?"

"Please help her up!"

Xu Ke looked frantic. "My friend has had an accident! I'm going to pack her things for the hospital. Please, help me call an ambulance. Thank you!"

Yang Qing's face paled. "Don't listen to him!"

Seeing her state, however, the bystanders began to make calls. Xu Ke, meanwhile, turned and slipped away. As he left, he mouthed to Yang Qing, "Good luck."

Yang Qing gritted her teeth. She desperately wanted to chase after him, but she first had to stop the pedestrians from calling for help. In the end, she could only watch helplessly as Xu Ke ran off into the distance.

…

Xu Ke couldn't help but chuckle, having already seen the brief flash of a camera lens from a hidden corner by the road. I see what she was planning. A setup.

Yang Qing's execution was indeed flawless. She started with Siao Jia, used Wong Teng as a shield, and even delivered those bitter, resentful words to tug at my heartstrings. Finally, Siao Jia stated her intention to curry favor with the powerful. It was all meant to lower my defenses, one layer at a time.

If I had embraced her or made any other ambiguous contact, the cameras would have captured it. Wong Qifu would have seen the photos by tonight. I wonder if it was the Ye Family or the Huang Family behind this. To think they'd stoop to such a dim-witted scheme just to distract me from my cultivation. Did they really expect Wong Qifu to fly into a rage just from seeing a photo?

Xu Ke thought for a moment. Actually, Wong Qifu would likely get angry. That's why I pointedly chose not to even help her up. I just wonder if Yang Qing managed to get out of that mess.

…

By the time Xu Ke returned with dinner, the crowd gathered downstairs had dispersed. It seemed Yang Qing had successfully escaped.

However, Xu Ke saw another familiar face.

Wang Wu was standing by a car.

"Uncle Wu!" Xu Ke greeted him.

"Mister Xu, I had a feeling you were out," Wang Wu said. "I just went up to knock, but no one answered."

"Oh, that's right. I went out to buy dinner," Xu Ke replied. "Did you need something, Uncle Wu?"

Wang Wu smiled slightly. "The Young Miss asked me to bring something for you."

Something? What could it be?

Xu Ke was puzzled. Wang Wu then turned, opened the car's trunk, and handed a large box to Xu Ke. "This is what the Young Miss instructed me to bring over."

"This is…" Xu Ke's eyes widened in surprise.

The box wasn't fully closed, allowing Xu Ke to see the contents at a glance. The rich scent of medicinal herbs wafted out. It was filled with high-quality ingredients.

"The Young Miss spent all day looking for these," Wang Wu explained. "She said you would need them."

"And this piece of Inner Armor…" He took out a piece of scale armor that shimmered with a silver light, clearly of immense value.

"This…" Xu Ke's expression changed.

Seeing his reaction, Wang Wu added, "The Young Miss said that this cannot be refused. Please, Mister Xu, just accept it."

Hearing this, Xu Ke sighed in resignation. "All right then."

"I shall take my leave now," Wang Wu said with a smile.

"Okay. Thank you for your trouble, Uncle Wu."

"It's no trouble at all."

With that, Wang Wu drove away.

…

Xu Ke carried the Inner Armor and medicinal materials upstairs. After returning to his room, he carefully laid everything out and quietly observed each and every herb.

"Such thoughtfulness..." he couldn't help but murmur.

There were many ingredients here, but without exception, they were all gentle and nourishing in nature. Wong Qifu knew he couldn't handle potent herbs of advanced age right now, so she had carefully excluded them.

As for the Inner Armor, Xu Ke was startled after examining it for a moment. This was a top-quality Fish Scale Inner Armor. It wasn't called that because it was made from actual fish scales, but because the material used in its construction closely resembled them. This piece of Inner Armor could block at least thirty percent of an opponent's True Qi attack, regardless of their level.

In the world of the Martial Path, this was considered a masterpiece. Ordinary inner armor could, at most, stop blades and spears, but it struggled to defend against True Qi and firearms. This Fish Scale Inner Armor, however, not only feared no blade or piercing weapon but was also resistant to True Qi attacks.

Ouyang Shuang's greatest advantage was her significantly larger reserve of True Qi. But with this Inner Armor, that advantage would also be reduced by thirty percent.

Xu Ke looked at the armor, silent for a long time.

"I will win."

「The next evening.」

Today's medicinal bath was far more tolerable than the last. This was partly because his endurance had grown after the previous two days of torment, and partly because the herbs Wong Qifu had provided made the concoction significantly gentler.

After the bath, Xu Ke sat by the window, quietly regulating his breathing. He wasn't cultivating, however; he was adjusting his mindset.

Tomorrow at noon, in the Tianhai Martial Alliance Underground Arena. I will face Ouyang Shuang in a decisive battle.

Xu Ke deeply understood the principle that one must remain calm in the face of major events. In this situation, exhausting himself with more cultivation would be pointless. Maintaining a peaceful state of mind would be more beneficial for increasing his combat strength.

Besides, there was another reason. He had hit a ceiling in his cultivation.

During today's medicinal bath, I thought I could leverage the effects from the past three days to charge straight through to the Postnatal Late Stage. But when I tried to make the breakthrough, I found that my cultivation wouldn't budge. It felt as if a stopper had been jammed into a bottle. This wasn't a bottleneck, though. I've been sealed!

He finally realized this with a sinking heart. It's probably because of the Oath of the Medical Path. Even though I dispelled it, there are lingering effects. Under these conditions, without finding more Dragon Essence to help me, I simply can't advance my cultivation. I'll be stuck at the peak of the Postnatal Late Stage for the rest of my life.

At this thought, a ripple of unease washed over him. This was bad news. However, he quickly suppressed the feeling with his practiced mental discipline.

Just then, his phone rang.

Xu Ke was taken aback; it was an unknown number. He answered, "Hello?"

A voice came through the line. "Hello, I'm a reporter from Tianming News. May I ask if you are Mister Xu?"

A reporter? What's this about?

"What can I do for you?" Xu Ke asked.

"We'd like to ask you a question… How does it feel to be Wong Qifu's fiancé?"

Upon hearing that, Xu Ke's pupils constricted.

"Mister Xu, how does it feel?" the reporter pressed. "Do you feel inferior because you're marrying Wong Qifu? Do you feel like you're living off a woman?"

Seeing Xu Ke's silence, the reporter continued his assault. "Sir, was my question offensive? Sir?!"

BEEP...

Xu Ke hung up, opened his phone, and his pupils suddenly constricted. The news apps had exploded. His relationship with Wong Qifu had been fully exposed.

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