Chapter 4218 — Raising Their Strength

What Wei Zhao had not expected, however, was that Shangguan Lan'er came to the Number One Mansion every single day, witnessing the whole process of these people having their strength raised from beginning to end. The girl had never been fond of cultivation, so when she saw such a splendid opportunity to boost her strength with no effort at all, she naturally could not resist the itch to give it a try.

As a matter of fact, Shangguan Lan'er had already known that Wei Zhao could raise others' strength ever since Huang Xiaotao's power had surged in the past. Only at that time she too had wanted to become a Golden Core expert, and Wei Zhao had had no Ten-Thousand Crossing Golden Core Fruit on hand, so there was no way to accomplish it in one step.

Be that as it may, Shangguan Lan'er was absolutely one of their own, utterly trustworthy. Since she had raised the request once again, even if Wei Zhao felt put on the spot, he could not simply turn a deaf ear to her.

Last time, besides the lack of a Ten-Thousand Crossing Golden Core Fruit that made a one-step breakthrough impossible, there had been another worry—the fear of arousing Shangguan Tianxia's suspicions. But thinking it over carefully now, although his dealings with Shangguan Tianxia had not been many, the man had always been helping him. Even if he had guessed something from the changes in Shangguan Lan'er, it was hardly likely he would do him any harm.

Once he had reasoned this through, Wei Zhao stopped making excuses and nodded his agreement. "Little Senior Sister, it's not that I can't raise your strength for you—but during the process, you'll have to take off your clothes..."

"What? Take off my clothes?" Shangguan Lan'er was instantly dumbstruck, her mouth falling open in disbelief. "What's that supposed to mean?"

Shangguan Lan'er gave Wei Zhao a dubious look, and before he could answer, she turned to Huang Xiaotao at his side. "Senior Sister Xiaotao, did you take yours off too?"

"That's right, the clothes have to come off," Huang Xiaotao said with a nod.

"Really?" Shangguan Lan'er was still somewhat unconvinced. She stood frozen for quite a while before saying to Wei Zhao with a thoughtful air, "So one has to become Little Junior Brother's woman before this secret can be shared? Fine then. Little Junior Brother, if you've got designs on your senior sister, just come out and say it—you actually dare to make excuses and threaten me? You're terrible!"

"Uh, that really isn't an excuse—it's simply how it has to be..." Wei Zhao said with a wry smile.

"Then by your logic, Ku Zhongle, Xiao Che, Qiao Hongcai, and Li Zhengming—do all four of them have to take their clothes off too?" Shangguan Lan'er asked, her eyes rolling this way and that.

"Yes, they all have to take theirs off as well..." Huang Xiaotao answered on his behalf.

"Pfft..." Shangguan Lan'er sprayed out on the spot. The very image of several grown men sitting there stark naked sent a chill running through her, and with an expression of sheer shock, as though her entire worldview had collapsed, she said, "Little Junior Brother, your tastes are a bit off—this won't do at all! Could it be that seeing how Xu Lingchong and Meng Zhou are always together, so loving and devoted, you suddenly had a whim and decided to sample something new? Take a word of advice from your senior sister—that sort of thing is not to be sampled..."

Shangguan Lan'er's flair for the dramatic, paired with the exaggerated expression of a seasoned veteran, promptly reduced Wei Zhao to laughter. He had known before that Shangguan Lan'er was endearingly slow on the uptake, but he had never guessed the girl had this comedic streak in her as well. He laughed until he could barely catch his breath, doubled over and clutching his belly.

Huang Xiaotao, standing off to the side, was also laughing so hard she could not straighten up, pointing at Shangguan Lan'er and failing for a long while to get a single word out. As for the long-suffering senior brothers, they were off to one side desperately holding back their laughter, though every one of them was shaking from head to toe—anyone who did not know better would have thought they were all having convulsions at once.

It was just as well that Little Curly Bear was off by itself, romping about in the courtyard outside. Add this living treasure with her oversized scissors to the mix, and there was no telling what antics the two of them—one person, one pet—might get up to. They could probably go and put on a comedy show.

"What are you all laughing at? Don't you think this is a serious matter?" Shangguan Lan'er, still oblivious, went on scolding Wei Zhao with her hands on her hips. "Your senior sister has high hopes for you, Little Junior Brother—whatever you do, don't go astray! Xu Lingchong and Meng Zhou, those two pests, are being whispered about and mocked behind their backs by who knows how many people now. Only his grandfather is still kept in the dark—how pitiful! Oh no, wait—his grandfather has probably noticed too, but he doesn't dare face the truth, so he just plays deaf and dumb!"

Hearing the girl wander further and further afield the more she talked, Wei Zhao finally forced down his laughter and explained, torn between amusement and exasperation, "Little Senior Sister, you're really overthinking this. The reason the clothes have to come off is simply that during the process of raising your strength, your true qi surges so fast you can't control it at all—even if you were clothed, they'd burst right off. So it's better to go without. There's really no other meaning to it."

"Mm, so that's how it is. Then I really was overthinking it?" Shangguan Lan'er stuck out her tongue in embarrassment, then patted her small chest in relief. "Thank goodness, thank goodness—Little Junior Brother, you're still normal. You scared me half to death just now..."

"We're the ones about to die laughing..." Wei Zhao, Huang Xiaotao, and the rest all said, each struggling to stifle a grin.

"Hehe, all right, all right, I admit I let my mind wander!" Shangguan Lan'er said, blushing, and hastily changed the subject. "Little Junior Brother, stop laughing—hurry up and raise my strength for me!"

"Little Senior Sister, this is no small matter. Have you really thought it through?" Wei Zhao was slightly taken aback. This was a grave matter for any girl; even a naive, charming girl like Shangguan Lan'er ought to think it over carefully for a while.

"Of course I've thought it through. I'm completely serious." Shangguan Lan'er wrinkled her nose cutely, her face wearing the bold, straightforward expression of a true tomboy.

"Then... all right." Wei Zhao shrugged. Since Shangguan Lan'er had already said as much, it would hardly be fitting for a grown man like him to keep hemming and hawing.

Seeing this, the long-suffering senior brothers and Xiao Che and the others tactfully excused themselves and dispersed. Wei Zhao led Shangguan Lan'er into the inner chamber reserved for cultivation, while Huang Xiaotao followed them in with a smile.

Once the inner chamber door was shut, Wei Zhao adjusted his condition a little, then turned to Shangguan Lan'er. "Little Senior Sister, are you ready? We'll begin now."

"What? So soon?" Shangguan Lan'er, who had been all bold bravado a moment ago, now that the moment to undress had truly arrived, began to squirm. Blushing, she said to Wei Zhao, "Little Junior Brother, then... turn around first..."

"All right." Wei Zhao obligingly turned his back, secretly amused. She had put on such a bold front just now—and now she couldn't carry it off after all.

After waiting a moment, he heard a rustling begin behind him, and then all fell quiet. Wei Zhao asked, "Are you ready?" (To be continued) R466