Progress

After wavering and agonizing time and again, Su Jinxuan seemed decisive once she finally made up her mind. "I can agree to the first two points, but this third..." Pausing, Su Jinxuan narrowed her lovely peach-blossom eyes slightly, staring unblinkingly at Xu Yuan. "You want to dual cultivate with me?" Even with her sea of consciousness sealed and the majority of her physique's charm suppressed, the sheer allure of that single glance was intoxicating. The Bewitching Soul Fiend Physique was truly terrifying. After locking eyes for two seconds, Xu Yuan let out a soft chuckle—wincing as the movement pulled at the bruises across his face—and waved a dismissive hand. "Miss Su, you jest. Even if you took the initiative to offer, I wouldn't dare accept. I could never handle a Bewitching Soul Fiend Physique." Su Jinxuan lowered her gaze, gently fiddling with the tea set for a moment before a faint smirk curved at the corner of her lips. "Heh... I thought you didn't have the guts." "..." Xu Yuan's fist suddenly clenched. Yet a moment later, he relaxed it. This woman had nothing left now except a sharp tongue and a death wish. After pouring herself a cup of tea, Su Jinxuan said, "Xu Changtian, do you want to use my bewitching soul seeds to cultivate that demonic art of yours?" "Clever." Xu Yuan gave her a thumbs-up. Bewitching soul seeds—that was the proper scholarly name in this world for those spores she had previously used to control his body. Su Jinxuan took a delicate sip of the fragrant tea, her tone giving away neither joy nor anger. "If you consume an ordinary person's intent-soul, it's very difficult for them to recover it. But my bewitching soul seeds are different. As long as I have sufficient rest and resources, my sea of consciousness can condense them on its own. Did you know that?" "Of course," Xu Yuan replied. It was recorded in ancient texts. While Xu Yuan didn't understand the exact details or underlying principles, observing Su Jinxuan confirmed that things indeed aligned with the records. Back then, when he had drained her dry on the bed, she had fainted on the spot, her little face deathly pale. Yet ten days later, when he brought her out of the secret chamber, her complexion had already returned to normal. If she cooperated, those bewitching soul seeds would be the finest nourishment for his soul cultivation. Su Jinxuan smiled faintly, her voice soft and husky. "You want to use me as a cultivation cauldron?" Xu Yuan smiled and shook his head. "Su Jinxuan, isn't that putting it a bit harshly? This young master is helping you to such an extent; don't you harbor even the slightest desire to repay the favor?" "..." Su Jinxuan said nothing, though a hint of disdain flitted across her lovely eyes. Xu Yuan tapped the tea tray, speaking with righteous indignation: "You tried to spiritually control me and got caught. That's a mortal grudge. "Despite such a mortal grudge, I turned around and helped you uncover the truth behind the deaths of your kin. That is immense benevolence. "Next, my Chancellor's Manor will help you kill Qin Weijiu. Miss Su, don't you think you should take some practical action to compensate for your offenses and repay my benevolence?" "..." Su Jinxuan fell silent for two seconds. Exhaling a long breath, she spoke with a trace of wry amusement. "To twist concepts so deftly... Xu Changtian, I have never seen someone as shameless as you." "Thank you for the compliment." "That wasn't a compliment." "I'll take it as one anyway." "Truly shameless." "Thank you." "..." Su Jinxuan was speechless. Xu Yuan tapped the tea tray, meeting the disdain in her eyes with a smile. "Sophistry aside, is anything I said incorrect?" Su Jinxuan gave him an aloof glance. "It isn't. Which is why I never planned on refusing you." "Heh." Hearing that, Xu Yuan's lips curled into a grin. With a flip of his hand, a small jade bottle appeared in his palm. Through the translucent bottle, five pills could be seen resting quietly inside. Setting the small jade bottle on the tea tray, Xu Yuan smiled. "Take it. These pills offer considerable benefits for nourishing the intent-soul." Seeing the pills, Su Jinxuan's eyes narrowed. Once she recognized the variety, her dark pupils contracted slightly. "This is... a Soul Cleansing Pill?" A flash of surprise crossed Xu Yuan's eyes. "You recognize it?" Though Xu Yuan popped Guangling Pills by the bottle, ordinary cultivators had no access to pills of this caliber, let alone knew their names. Su Jinxuan reined in her gaze and said softly, "I took two when opening my sea of consciousness with a secret technique. Are you sure you want to give this to me?" Xu Yuan offered a faint smile. "I, Xu Changtian, have never been stingy with my own people." A trace of hesitation surfaced in Su Jinxuan's gaze. "I count as your own?" "Naturally, my prisoner also counts as one of my own." "..." Su Jinxuan fell silent. Setting down the jade bottle, Xu Yuan slowly rose to his feet. As he walked toward the door of the wing, he said, "Ying'er will come by to unseal your sea of consciousness. She'll question you personally about Qin Weijiu; just tell her everything directly." "And... the cultivation?" "Come to my room tonight." Xu Yuan did not hold high hopes that Ying'er would extract anything particularly useful from Su Jinxuan. It wasn't that Su Jinxuan would withhold the truth, but rather that her knowledge was simply too limited. To the former Su Jinxuan, Qin Weijiu was the savior who had pulled her from hell. But Qin Weijiu knew the exact nature of their relationship, making it unlikely that he had ever allowed her access to core secrets. Of course, that wasn't an absolute rule. Su Jinxuan had lived in his manor for over a decade, treated like an aristocratic young mistress. Perhaps an incidental opportunity had allowed her to learn some critical piece of information. After all, she possessed the Bewitching Soul Fiend Physique. Ordinary stewards might have inadvertently leaked details they considered trivial yet were actually crucial—such as whom Mister Qin had met on a certain day. Still, nothing was guaranteed. Rather than placing hope in chance, it was better to trust the professionalism of the Black Scale Guards. Compared to that, what Xu Yuan valued far more was utilizing Su Jinxuan to feed false intelligence to Qin Weijiu down the line. Played correctly, that card could send Qin Weijiu straight into the eighteenth level of hell. For now, however, none of this concerned Xu Yuan directly. Specialized tasks were best left to specialists; Xu Yuan had no intention of meddling in the plan against Qin Weijiu. Amateurs directing professionals was always a recipe for disaster, especially when this matter concerned his very life. *** As the days slipped by, Xu Yuan grew increasingly adept at employing the Blood Yuan Heart Calamity Art. For those walking the Way of Qi, combat was an immense test of one's state of mind—a composure that remained unshaken even if Mount Tai collapsed before one's eyes. At the very least, one could not be panicked by an opening strike. The tide of battle shifted in the blink of an eye, and a Qi cultivator needed to circulate Source Qi through specific meridians to unleash techniques. At low cultivation, an error was manageable, but once one attained higher realms, complex moves meant that a single mistake in meridian circulation could trigger qi deviation and cause one to self-detonate before the enemy even landed a blow. Xu Yuan's current combat practice was focused primarily on overcoming this hurdle: maintaining elegance under pressure. Just like right now. At the edge of the martial arena, the burly woman opposite Xu Yuan used clever leverage to flick aside his guarding arms. His defenses wide open, he had no time to recover before a whip-kick tore through the air, aimed directly at the Third Young Master's head. With Zhou Chen watching from the side, these Eighth Rank guards held nothing back. In an instant, the Blood Yuan Heart Calamity Art surged at high speed. Along with a wave of blood-red Source Qi, a thin, crimson mirror materialized beside Xu Yuan's head. It worked. Just like the Ice Cloud Steps from Ran Qingmo's cultivation method, the Blood Mirror was one of the defensive techniques available to the Eighth Rank in the Blood Yuan Heart Calamity Art. The next instant, the woman's thick, muscular leg slammed heavily against the Blood Mirror. *Crack—* A crisp shatter rang out. The ferocious force behind the woman's kick instantly spread a web of fractures across the newly formed Blood Mirror. Before she could follow up with her next assault, Source Qi swirled around Xu Yuan, and several more crimson mirrors condensed into shape. Steeling her resolve, the woman unleashed a flurry of heavy, booming punches, but every strike was intercepted by the bizarre blood mirrors, failing to harm the Third Young Master in the slightest. Watching the scene unfold, Xu Yuan felt an inexplicable sense of satisfaction rise in his chest. After brawling hand-to-hand with these hulking brutes for nearly a month, he finally resembled a proper Qi-refining mage. *Now this is what cultivation is supposed to look like!* Just as the thought surfaced, his extended intent-soul sensed a sudden tremor of dread. Three Extremes Collapse! Veins bulged along the woman's left arm as she took a violent step forward. *Bang!* The specially crafted arena flagstones dented beneath her heel. Immediately following was a suffocating fist hurtling straight toward the blood mirror before Xu Yuan's chest. Seeing this, Grandmaster Zhou merely drooped his eyelids and yawned. The watching martial apprentices and guards all wore varying degrees of astonishment. Using a martial technique against the Third Young Master? Had she lost her mind? Xu Yuan hastily collected his focus, pushing his technique to its limit. *Smack—* With a sharp crack, the first blood mirror shattered like paper. Then came the second, the third, the fourth... Weakened layer by layer by the small crimson mirrors, the woman's fist finally ground to a halt right against Xu Yuan's chest. Silence reigned for a fraction of a second. *Bang!* A burst of blood-red force blasted out through the air, striking the burly woman's abdomen. Drained of strength, she flew straight off the martial arena. Standing alone on the stage, Xu Yuan quietly reflected on the sensation. If his Source Qi reserves hadn't far exceeded those of ordinary martial apprentices, that strike might have overturned him completely. In this world, he wasn't the only one who possessed combat techniques. With that realization, Xu Yuan let out a soft sigh and said in a deep voice, "Next. Continue." Once he broke away from close-quarters grappling, Xu Yuan's combat efficacy soared to a whole new level. Yet precisely because of this, the guards no longer relied solely on standard punches and kicks; whenever an opening presented itself, they greeted Xu Yuan's head with full-fledged martial techniques. Even so, the Blood Yuan Heart Calamity Art lived up to its crimson-grade status—formidable, potent, and insidious. *Boom!* Knocking another burly man off the stage, Xu Yuan prepared to carry on, only to notice that beside Su Jinxuan—who routinely came to watch—another slender silhouette had appeared beside the arena. Ying'er had arrived. Exchanging a glance with her, Xu Yuan halted his movements. Leaving behind the words, "Everyone who stepped onto the stage gets a Bone Tempering Pill," he hopped down from the arena. Approaching Ying'er, Xu Yuan asked, "What is it?" Ying'er handed Xu Yuan a small booklet and said softly, "This is the secret technique Lady Lou Ji sent for you." "So soon?" Xu Yuan raised an eyebrow. Taking the precious secret technique, he skimmed through it briefly before storing it into his Sumeru ring. "Anything else?" "Yes." Ying'er nodded, lowering her voice. "The Eldest Young Master has reached Kaifeng City. It will likely take him only a few more days to arrive in Jingjiang." "Is that so?" Xu Yuan felt a sense of relief wash over him. Calculating the time, Qin Mo was probably about to emerge from that secret realm instance. If circumstances aligned, he might even be able to bring his elder brother along to ambush the story's protagonist. Having delivered her concise report, Ying'er flickered and vanished into thin air before Xu Yuan could say another word. Xu Yuan clicked his tongue. Over the past several days, Ying'er's attitude toward him had improved considerably, but on the whole, she still wasn't very obedient. Whenever he felt like giving her a slap, she would seamlessly slip away. As for Si Ziyu, Xu Yuan had barely caught a glimpse of him throughout this entire time. It was still the middle-aged Zhou Chen who was the most down-to-earth. A Grandmaster following behind him every day as an attendant without feeling the slightest bit humiliated. The thought brought a faint smile to his face. Having no desire to continue training, he turned his gaze toward the two women standing beneath the long corridor beside the martial grounds: Su Jinxuan, dressed in plain white robes, and the maidservant assigned to attend to her. Ever since reaching an agreement, Su Jinxuan had been granted permission to move freely within the vast Xu Manor. Recently, she had taken to coming here every afternoon to watch him train. She never spoke; whenever his session concluded, the succubus lady would simply depart. Today was no exception. Seeing that Xu Yuan had finished his practice, the two slender figures rose and began walking toward the exit of Wuxuan Courtyard. Xu Yuan hesitated for a moment before deciding, for the first time, to follow them. Catching up to her side, he heard Su Jinxuan ask in an indifferent tone, "What is it?" Dressed in plain white robes, her complexion was not particularly rosy, tinged with a delicate, sickly fragility from Xu Yuan's diligent nightly siphoning. Although bewitching soul seeds replenished on their own, the speed could not match the rate of Xu Yuan's consumption. Xu Yuan remained silent, casting a glance at the little maidservant beside her. The maidservant curtsied at once and tactfully withdrew a dozen meters away. Seeing this, Xu Yuan pointed toward the stone path ahead, indicating that they should talk as they walked. Su Jinxuan gave a slight nod. The Xu Manor was truly immense. Beyond the clusters of courtyards housing the servants lay tranquil wetlands and lakes. The winter lake breeze brushed against their faces with a slight chill, lifting the strands of hair flowing behind her. Sometimes, one could criticize a hit game's planners for having dog brains, but one could never question the art team's grasp of aesthetics. The traditional attire of this world was not as bulky as that of his previous life, carrying a tailored elegance reminiscent of modern designs. Beneath the plain white robes, the woman's graceful curves were faintly discernible. Amidst the quiet, Xu Yuan broke the silence: "You don't need to come to my room tonight." Su Jinxuan glanced sideways at him, surprised. "Why?" Xu Yuan shrugged. He had to prioritize sustainable development. "You've grown weaker by the day over the past half-month. Rest for a few days before we continue." Hearing that, an ambiguous smile lit up Su Jinxuan's lovely eyes. "Then Jinxuan thanks the young master for his tender consideration." Xu Yuan let out a dry laugh. "Su Jinxuan, you'd better just call me Xu Changtian. Hearing 'young master' from you gives me the creeps." "Very well." The corners of Su Jinxuan's mouth curved slightly, accepting the request readily. "Did you seek me out for anything else?" Xu Yuan looked out over the shimmering lake. "You've been coming to watch my martial training these past few days?" During their nightly cultivation sessions, the two rarely spoke a word. Entering the room, attaching the bewitching soul seeds, Xu Yuan refining the soul, and leaving once it was finished. By tacit understanding, neither had brought up her attendance. Su Jinxuan lowered her gaze, trying to look at her toes but finding her view blocked. "I had nothing to do, so I took a stroll." Xu Yuan paid it no mind, asking casually, "Having watched for so many days, how do you think my strength compares to Qin Mo's?" Su Jinxuan froze. She glanced at him, her voice tinged with playful teasing. "Xu Changtian, are you jealous?" Xu Yuan was left momentarily speechless. "Interpret it however you like. Perhaps I am." Su Jinxuan chuckled softly. After a brief pause for recollection, she spoke with earnest gravity: "Well... I don't know whether he can cross realms to slay a Seventh Rank, but among those of the same rank, he should be invincible. If you were to face him right now, you might die the moment you cross paths."