CHAPTER 165: 165-13TH CAVE

Fang Yuan chuckled at the stark contrast between the two elders’ expressions.

Well, it wasn’t a big loss anyway. He earned faith points faster than most people breathed.

With fifty caves in total, each well costing a hundred points to restore, that was only five thousand faith points for the lot, each lasting at least a week before needing another refill.

And that was barely a dent compared to his current income.

Ever since the Lin and Gu incident, his daily earnings had swelled to a steady three thousand faith points a day.

At that rate, keeping all fifty caves flowing was more an act of convenience than a strain.

The only downside though... Fang Yuan sighed as he stepped out of the twelfth cave. I still have to refill them one by one.

The faint echo of dripping water faded behind him as he strode along the stone corridor. Still, it’s a worthy trade. A little legwork for a steady tide of faith points? I’ll take it.

His gaze sharpened, a flicker of amusement crossing his face. Besides, there are plenty of tempting treasures in the system’s vault. If I have to earn them step by step, so be it.

He walked into the thirteenth cave, ready to begin again.

His thoughts cut off abruptly when he saw that in the center of the cave, cross-legged and bathed in the faint, dying luminescence of the walls, sat a young Fang disciple.

Sweat beaded on the boy’s forehead, his chest rising and falling in a rhythm.

Beside him, Fang Joshua and Fang Chen exchanged a brief glance, just a flicker, but one loaded with meaning.

Do we interrupt him? The unspoken question lingered between them. Better to send him away quietly than risk him glimpsing what the Clan Head is doing.

The thought wasn’t born of paranoia alone. Every elder knew the truth that clan rivalry was constant.

Just as the Fang Clan had risen sharply under Fang Yuan’s hand, there was always the chance another clan could find their own prodigy... and catch up

Fang Yuan’s gaze slid to them, his expression unreadable, yet his eyes carried a glint of quiet amusement.

He could read the concern in their faces as clearly as if they’d spoken aloud.

Fang Yuan held up a single hand, palm outwards, a silent command for stillness.

His gaze remained fixed on the young cultivator.

"Look at him, Elders," Fang Yuan murmured, his voice barely a whisper yet carrying perfectly in the cavern’s stillness.

He tilted his head, observing the faint tremor in the boy’s hands, the subtle intensifying glow around his dantian.

"See the energy coiling around him? He is on the edge of a breakthrough."

He finally turned, his eyes meeting theirs, calm and utterly certain.

"If we disturb him now and shatter this fragile moment... then we earn not just a setback, but a lifetime of bitter resentment."

He paused, letting the gravity sink in. "But if we let him seize his ascension, aided by the well we restore... even if gratitude isn’t his nature, hatred surely won’t be."

He finally turned, his gaze meeting theirs, calm, steady, and utterly certain.

"If we disturb him now and shatter this fragile moment... we won’t just cause a setback. We’ll plant a seed of bitterness that will grow for a lifetime."

He let the words hang in the cool, still air of the cave, voice low but edged with quiet authority.

"But if we let him take his step forward and helped him, by the well we restore while he’s in this state, then even if gratitude is not in his nature... hatred will not be either."

Fang Joshua’s jaw tightened. His voice was blunt, unflinching.

"Clan Head, a clan’s rise is built on secrets and corpses. Cultivation itself is defiance of Heaven. I say we wake him, send him away, and keep our work unseen. What if he’s a spy for another clan? I’d rather offend him than risk bleeding our secrets."

Fang Yuan tilted his head slightly, listening without interruption. The reasoning was sound, yet something about it scraped against his instincts.

Fang Chen’s expression was more calculating.

"Nephew," he said, his tone measured, "if him harboring ill intent is what you’re worried about, then we can simply remove him... and his family. That is the cleaner solution and we also make sure there’s no loose ends."

For a moment, silence stretched.

Then Fang Yuan smiled, a slow, unreadable curve of his lips that seemed to both acknowledge and dismiss their concerns.

Without a word, he lifted his hand in an easy, almost careless gesture.

Beside him, the now-familiar golden screen bloomed into existence.

A flicker of will.

—100 Faith Points.

A soft pop rippled through the chamber, as though the very air had swallowed the sound whole.

Vibrant spiritual energy erupted from the cave floor where the old well had been, a visible wave of golden light that washed over the stone, reigniting the walls with pulsing luminescence.

The air thickened instantly, rich and potent.

The young disciple, immersed in his trance, instinctively drew a deeper breath, the lines of strain on his face smoothing slightly as the abundant qi flooded his senses.

Fang Yuan didn’t wait for the elders’ reaction. He turned on his heel, his robes swirling softly.

"It doesn’t hurt to be kind," he stated simply, the words hanging in the newly charged air like a quiet pronouncement.

He strode purposefully towards the cave entrance, the crunch of gravel under his boots the only sound breaking the profound silence.

Fang Joshua and Fang Chen scrambled after him, exchanging another bewildered, awestruck glance over their shoulders at the revitalized cave and the oblivious disciple bathed in its renewed glory.

Fang Chen opened his mouth, perhaps to question, but seeing Fang Yuan’s retreating back he swallowed his words and simply followed, the Clan Head’s enigmatic philosophy echoing in his mind.

When Fang Yuan stepped out of the cave, a smile tugged at his lips.

Not because he’d just done something noble but because the golden screen floating before him was flashing a new message.