Qiu Ling stepped into the formation and his body disappeared, entering the special dimension. He looked around but couldn’t see the person he was looking for. Ah, so troublesome! He just wanted to get his help real fast and then rush back to his beloved. Was that really so hard? Hadn’t he spent enough time apart from his Jing He already?

"Old geezer! Come out and help me refine a pill!

In the lake in the middle of the dimension, a pair of golden brows twitched. This brat! He couldn’t even be bothered to come over but still expected him to help? And then he had the guts to still call him old? Who had taught him manners?!

His brows twitched again and a smiling face popped up in his mind, the expression saying 'I couldn’t care less'. Well, that question probably didn’t need to be asked. The attitude ran in the family.

Qiu Ling waited but didn’t hear any answer. He started to go forward, grumbling to himself. "Didn’t you hear me? I said I need your help! Come on out!"

Jinde opened his eyes and sighed. Regardless of what he thought of this, that brat wouldn’t leave him alone if he didn’t at least go out to reject him. He leaped out of the water just when Qiu Ling reached the edge.

Qiu Ling got a knock on his forehead. "Damn! What was this for?!"

Jinde raised his brows. Where should he even start? "Is this how you talk to your elders?"

"Tch. Seems like it."

"Mn." Jinde turned around and walked to the boulder where he usually sat. Once again he took a seat and observed Qiu Ling with those golden eyes of his. Normally, he wouldn’t give in this fast but … "You look bad." He really did. Judging from the last time he had seen him Qiu Ling paid attention to his own appearance. Well, which dragon didn’t? But Qiu Ling was especially meticulous about it. Right now though … Even though there was no actual dirt clinging to him, there were wrinkles in his robe and if he was mean, he probably would have called his hair disheveled. Anyway, it did look as if it needed to be introduced to a comb.

Qiu Ling’s brows twitched. "I’m still better looking than you even on my worst day!"

Jinde smiled and wrapped a strand of his golden hair around his index finger. "Naturally."

Qiu Ling gritted his teeth. Somehow, he felt like he had lost that bout. "Anyway, I’m here because I need your help."

Jinde leaned back and sighed. "Ah, this is the second time in your life you’ve asked me for a favor. And the last time was only five years ago." He shook his head. "Is it that I’m getting old so I get preferential treatment now? Or have you grown up enough that you stopped refuting me just to refute me? I don’t know what to think anymore."

Qiu Ling didn’t bother to argue with him. "Are you going to help or not?"

Jinde smiled, his gaze turning gentler. Even though this brat was disagreeable, at least he had learned to ask for help when he needed it. That was already very good. "What is this about?"

"I need you to refine something." Qiu Ling took the herbs out of his spatial ring and put them down on the boulder, then he brought the spiritual beasts out. The beasts trembled seeing the two of them together and threw themselves at the ground.

Jinde’s golden brows raised once more. "A bunch of herbs and some spiritual beasts. Some other hint as to what you’d like me to refine?" He might have been hailed as the best refiner in the dragon realm once upon a time but that didn’t make him a clairvoyant.

"It’s some pill for remodeling the spirit veins of a mortal. It’s called Amethyst Lightning pill."

Jinde sifted through the herbs and nodded. "You did a good job. None of them are damaged and the quality is alright. What about them?" He nodded at the spiritual beasts.

Qiu Ling sat down next to him and handed him the list. "Eh, you should know some way to get those ingredients from them without killing them, shouldn’t you?"

Jinde frowned. "Do I look like a magician to you?"

"Uh … Actually … Yes?"

Jinde sighed. "There are some we can get without problems but … not all of them. It’s impossible."

"Mn. Maybe the humans of the sect would know?"

Qiu Ling earned himself another knock on the forehead. "Didn’t you listen just now? I said it’s impossible."

Qiu Ling rubbed his head with a dark expression. Who the fuck dared to treat him like this?! "Maybe you just don’t know!"

"Tch. What do you mean by that? You were the one who came here and wanted my help, weren’t you?"

"Hmph, maybe I shouldn’t have done that after all."

"Oh, please, go ahead and find someone else. I’d like to see what kind of price you’ll have to pay to get a mortal alchemist to refine that pill for you." Jinde put down the herbs and smiled. Did this brat really think he wouldn’t be able to deny him a favor? He could be proud as well!

"Damn. You’re too calculating! Don’t you feel like you owe me anything?"

Jinde lowered his head, his eyes closing halfway. Did he owe him? Maybe he did but then again, it wasn’t his fault. "I’ve warned him though. It was your father who didn’t want to listen to me."