Longevity by Grinding Skills

Chapter 409: Chapter 409: Uninvited Guest

The path of the Immortal Dao was arduous, and every step forward required grueling cultivation.

The ability to significantly raise one’s cultivation through Dual Cultivation was why the disciples of Hundred Desires Peak were considered a major faction within the Primordial Sect.

They would stop at nothing to obtain Human Cauldrons with special constitutions.

A single night’s work could equal half a month of arduous practice.

Xu Yunfan turned to look at Hua Ling, who was slumped on the ground. He slowly rose to his feet, walked to her side, a faint smile touching his lips.

She was petite, but thanks to her cultivation of the Hundred Desires Devouring Essence Technique, her physical tolerance was astonishing. That, combined with her decent cultivation, had allowed him a thoroughly satisfying night.

"Junior Sister Hua, why don’t we rest for a few more days?"

But Hua Ling was not one to admit defeat. As a disciple of the Primordial Sect, one needed a ruthless streak to survive, let alone steadily advance in cultivation as she had.

Most importantly, her risky methods had finally put her into a virtuous cycle. Her future looked bright, and everything had been going smoothly.

Now that she had run into Xu Yunfan, she was naturally eager to test his limits.

At this thought, Hua Ling forced a smile.

"Fine. Great, Senior Brother Xu. Let’s rest for a few more days..."

That night, no words were exchanged.

The next morning, Hua Ling’s cheeks were noticeably gaunt. Her formerly round face was gone, and her expression was listless.

Xu Yunfan asked with concern, "How is Junior Sister Hua?"

Hua Ling gritted her teeth. "Tonight, we continue!"

That night, Hua Ling finally broke, her defenses utterly collapsing.

Watching Hua Ling pass out, Xu Yunfan’s gaze turned cold. He casually tossed her into a corner like a sack of rags.

’This woman has been trying everything to suck me dry. She’s so brazen because she must have sensed I don’t have any powerful backing.’

’She’s a walking Skill Level booster who delivered herself to my door. Of course I wasn’t going to be polite.’

After draining the last wisp of her Primordial Yin Qi, Xu Yunfan had no intention of continuing.

Xu Yunfan glanced coldly at Hua Ling’s body, which still trembled intermittently.

’She has a gambler’s nature. If I’d stopped after the first time, I wouldn’t have had a good way to handle this.’

Before the morning mist had scattered, the three had packed their belongings and were ready to depart.

Hua Ling trailed behind them, her steps unsteady. Her once-radiant cheeks were now sunken, and dark circles hung under her eyes.

Her simple white robes hung loosely on her frame. The Silver Bell at her waist jingled faintly with her faltering steps, its clapper long since knocked askew by his True Martial True Qi. It could no longer produce its bewitching, clear chimes.

Li Ergou led the way, his neck hunched, feeling the palpable weight of Xu Yunfan’s gaze on his back.

’My guts are twisted with regret. If I’d known one of them was a viper from Hundred Desires Peak and the other was a deadly Evil Star pretending to be a harmless pig, I would’ve made any excuse to stay behind and sweep the latrines. I never should have left the sect.’

’Now I don’t even dare to breathe too loudly, terrified of being dragged into another round of their "cultivation discussion."’

Last night, Xu Yunfan had suddenly remarked, ’Junior Brother Li, you have such delicate features. Why don’t you visit the Thousand-Faced Pavilion on Hundred Desires Peak to get rid of those freckles?’

The comment had scared Li Ergou half to death, terrified that Xu Yunfan would drag him over and pin him down.

After all, practitioners who enjoyed both men and women were not just common on Hundred Desires Peak; they were the norm.

"Junior Brother Li." Xu Yunfan’s sudden voice nearly made him jump out of his skin. "According to the map, we should head north at the fork up ahead. You’ve strayed a little."

"Y-Yes!"

Li Ergou nodded his head like a bobblehead, nearly choking on his own spit.

From the corner of his eye, he saw Hua Ling leaning against a tree trunk, dry-heaving. Her slender waist was bent at an angle that looked like it might snap, and the hem of her dress was still stained with moss from the night before.

"..."

「Seven days later, in the Land of the North Pole.」

The three figures were barely visible against cliffs of Ten Thousand Years Profound Ice, their forms wavering in the raging blizzard.

Hua Ling knelt inside an ice cave, her fingers purple with cold, mechanically harvesting Snow Lotuses.

A Jade Box sat before her. Each time she collected ten stalks, she would form a hand seal to magically seal the box.

"Ninety-seven, ninety-eight..."

Her voice was choked with sobs as she counted, her lips split and bleeding from the cold.

’That Xu Yunfan isn’t human! He has no compassion for a woman at all. He just dumped all the harvesting work on me and Li Ergou.’

’If I could beat him, I’d fight him to the death. But I can’t. And whenever I even think about harming him, a terrifying premonition washes over me.’

’Daring to fight and kill is a basic requirement for any disciple of the Demon Sect!’

Xu Yunfan stood at the edge of the ice cliff. Crushed Ice Crystals from under his boots trickled silently into the abyss.

He appeared to be standing guard, but in reality, he was using his Martial Arts Celestial Eye to observe the surging, jet-black streams of energy flowing beneath the ice.

This was the Gang Qi of the Northern Profound Ice Abyss, as recorded in the True Martial Demon Suppressing Scripture.

If he could guide this qi into his body and cultivate the Arctic Demon Vibration Qi, he would naturally fulfill one of the conditions for Foundation Establishment.

In this world, achieving Foundation Establishment was incredibly difficult.

Some cultivation paths could only support a few people at the Foundation Establishment realm. For a junior disciple to break through, a previous Foundation Establishment Daoist Master on that path would have to die first. Otherwise, it was a lifelong, hopeless wait.

Worse yet, a Foundation Establishment Daoist Master could reincarnate up to five times. They could disperse their Foundation Establishment before death, and upon awakening their Innate Wisdom in a new life, they could rebuild their Dao Foundation in an astonishingly short time.

However, he didn’t need to worry about that. The paths cultivated by the Primordial Sect were grand, capable of accommodating many at the Foundation Establishment realm. Even so, those who could actually meet the conditions were few and far between.

He looked to the sky. He planned to make his move on the night of the Big Dipper’s alignment.

According to his calculations, a celestial alignment of the Beidou Star System’s Seven Stars would occur in three months.

"Senior Brother..."

Hua Ling shuffled over, clutching the Jade Box. The bruises on her wrists, still not faded, were starkly visible against the bright snow. "I have one hundred stalks."

Her eyes darted about like a frightened bird. While picking the last stalk, she had deliberately cut her fingertip. The resulting Blood Bead had frozen into a tiny shard the instant it formed.

’Right now, all I want is to hand this over and get away. When I get back to the sect, I’ll take on ten or so Human Level missions and lay low for a few years.’

Just as Xu Yunfan was about to speak, his brow twitched. He turned his head, his Martial Arts Celestial Eye suddenly detecting four distinct auras.

In the distance, a blast of Sword Qi tore through the curtain of snow. A young man in opulent purple robes flew toward them on a Jade Ruyi. Behind him, three Black-robed Cultivators fanned out in a triangular formation. The ’Profound’ character Tokens hanging at their waists pulsed with a bloody light.

It was the same richly dressed young man who had bullied Li Ergou.

A glint appeared in Xu Yunfan’s eyes as he shot a seemingly casual glance at Li Ergou, who was cowering at the edge of the group.

’There’s a high probability they’re after him.’

’He must be hiding a huge secret!’

Only after the three Black-robed Cultivators had taken their positions, sealing off Xu Yunfan’s escape routes, did the richly dressed young man slowly descend.

"Well, if it isn’t Junior Sister Hua," the purple-robed youth said, flippantly lifting Hua Ling’s chin. "I heard you took the mission for the Celestial Heart Snow Lotus. I came all this way just to offer some ’support.’"

Hua Ling went rigid. This was Zhao Ti, the legitimate grandson of a Foundation Establishment Elder from Profound Nether Peak. He was infamous for using his family’s three "Profound Nether Guards"—all at the Peak of Qi Cultivation—to rob fellow disciples of their mission rewards.

She had slighted him in the Hundred Affairs Hall before; this was not going to end well.

Last year, a disciple he robbed of a Foundation Establishment treasure had dared to report him to the Punishment Hall, only to have his own cultivation crippled in retaliation.

"You must be joking, Senior Brother Zhao."

She forced a smile, her fingers digging into her palms inside her sleeves. "We were just..."

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