Mortal: Junior Sister Song Yu

At the age of twenty-five, Li Xiao encountered his first inner demon since he began his cultivation.

That day he was refining a batch of Golden Flame Pills—although he wouldn't need them himself in the future, he could sell them to other disciples of the sect to earn a large amount of spirit stones, which he could then use to exchange for useful pills.

The elixir was about to take shape, and its fragrance filled the entire quiet room.

At the most crucial moment of condensing the elixir, his vision suddenly went black, and he fell into an illusion.

In the illusion, Song Zhi, surrounded by demonic cultivators and critically injured, didn't look at Elder Zhao. Instead, she stared intently at him, her eyes filled with disappointment and resentment: "Xiao'er, why... are you so weak..."

The kidnapped Song Yu had empty eyes, tears of blood streaming down her face, and murmured to herself, "Senior brother, it hurts so much... Why didn't you come to save me..."

The parents, who had fought a bloody battle, turned around, their faces not filled with encouragement, but with a desperate roar: "The hope of our Li family has been ruined in your hands! You good-for-nothing!" These words were like the sharpest knife, piercing straight into Li Xiao's heart.

"It's because you're too weak that you can't protect them."

A voice echoed in his mind, identical to his own, yet brimming with irresistible allure: "Become stronger, become stronger at all costs! Slaughter all enemies, slaughter everyone who might threaten you!"

Li Xiao's eyes were bloodshot, and the golden fire spiritual power within his body surged wildly. His sword automatically unsheathed, and he slashed wildly in the quiet room, the blade's light radiating in all directions.

The alchemy furnace exploded under the impact of the out-of-control spiritual energy, and fragments flew like hidden weapons, leaving several bloody marks on his face.

Outside the quiet room, Song Yu paced back and forth, his mind uneasy.

For some reason, ever since her senior brother started refining pills, she had felt a strange palpitation.

Suddenly, the previously stable spiritual energy fluctuations in the quiet room became violent and chaotic, filled with an aura of destruction and slaughter!

"not good!"

Song Yu's face turned deathly pale. Ignoring the restrictions, he summoned his flying sword and cleaved open the door to the meditation room before rushing inside.

What came into view was the sight of his senior brother, his eyes bloodshot, wildly swinging his knife.

"Senior brother, wake up!"

Song Yu's voice came, and she rushed over, disregarding the danger, and hugged Li Xiao tightly, recklessly pouring her water-attribute magic into his body.

Li Xiao suddenly awoke to find that he had almost gone mad and become a demon who only knew how to kill.

Looking at the mess on the ground, and then at Song Yu's pale face and reddened eyes, he felt a pang of guilt: "I'm sorry, junior sister, I'm fine."

"You need something!"

Song Yu was unusually angry; this was the first time she had ever lost her temper with Li Xiao. "Do you know that if I hadn't discovered it in time, you would be a cripple by now! Your divine sense would be shattered, your cultivation completely destroyed, and you might even... you might even be dead!"

Trembling, she took out the blue jade pendant that Fairy Ziyuan had given her when she was a child. The pendant was teardrop-shaped, with swirling clouds inside, radiating a warm aura: "This Ice Heart Pendant can suppress inner demons and stabilize your consciousness. From this day forward, you must wear it close to your body and never take it off!"

Li Xiao wanted to refuse, as this was a gift from Fairy Ziyuan, and it held great significance for her.

But seeing Song Yu's reddened eyes and unwavering gaze, he finally nodded and accepted.

The moment the jade pendant was placed on the chest, a cool sensation penetrated directly into the sea of ​​consciousness, instantly calming the previously restless mind like a mirror.

After overcoming his inner demons, Li Xiao reflected on his experience and realized that his spiritual practice had gone astray.

He was too focused on combat strength and neglected the cultivation of his mental state.

It's good to continuously increase one's cultivation level, but if one's mind is only focused on cultivation, one will lose oneself and become a killing machine.

From that day on, he voluntarily adjusted his cultivation plan, setting aside an hour each day to study scriptures, brew tea, discuss the Dao, and talk about the ultimate principles of heaven and earth with Song Yu.

He discovered that although Song Yu possessed a Heavenly Spiritual Root and cultivated at an astonishing speed, his mind was extremely pure and clear.

In her view, cultivating immortality is about exploring the ultimate principles of heaven and earth, not about fighting and being fierce.

She enjoys quiet and loves flowers. She often plants orchids and raises butterflies in her yard, watching them grow from birth to death and contemplating the cycle of life.

This pure Daoist heart is precisely what Li Xiao lacks.

He had too many things weighing on his mind—family blood feud, the obsession of a transmigrator to become stronger, and the fear of death. These burdens made it hard for him to breathe.

"Senior brother, look at this orchid." One afternoon, Song Yu pointed to a newly blooming orchid in the courtyard.

"It absorbs the essence of the sun and moon every day, yet it neither competes nor fights, but simply grows quietly. When it blooms, its fragrance can intoxicate the entire valley. Cultivating immortality should be like this, letting things flow naturally and effortlessly. Being too attached will only lead to a lower level."

Li Xiao seemed to be deep in thought.

Looking back on his years of spiritual practice, he realized he had indeed been too impatient.

It took him fifteen years to go from the first to the twelfth level of Qi Refining and to condense his magical power to such a level. This speed is already top-notch among dual-spiritual-root individuals.

But the price was that he had almost no friends his own age. All he did was cultivate, and his life consisted only of swords, not flowers or the moon.

"Junior sister is right."

He spoke softly, his eyes gentler than ever before.

"I took the wrong path."

Since then, he has slowed down, but not slacked off.

When refining pills, he no longer pursued a high success rate, but instead carefully savored the characteristics of each medicinal herb and felt their changes in the flames, as if conversing with an old friend.

When practicing with his sword, he no longer pursued power, but rather felt the rhythm of the sword and the wind, the trajectory of the blade as it cut through the air.

When meditating, he no longer forced himself to break through, but instead enjoyed the feeling of spiritual energy flowing through his meridians.

Strangely enough, after he let go of his obsession, his cultivation progressed even faster.

Previously, he forcibly compressed his magic power, which caused the magic power to resist, resulting in slow progress.

Now that he is at peace, his magical power is flowing more smoothly, and the fusion of his metal and fire elemental powers is a natural outcome.

For a time, when he was refining the Golden Flame Pill, he unintentionally entered a state of enlightenment where he forgot himself and the world. When the pill was completed, each pill in the furnace was crystal clear, with dragon-like patterns, and all of them were top-grade.

His cultivation level also broke through to the thirteenth level of Qi Refining, and the liquid mana in his body naturally split into twelve drops during his enlightenment, without any pain.

The twelve drops of liquid magic, each as clear as amber, contained flickering gold and red flames, as if a flame had been sealed within.

He didn't deliberately cultivate; he simply meditated normally every day, and his magical power increased on its own, naturally and effortlessly.

This astonished Song Yu, who exclaimed, "Senior Brother, you've attained enlightenment!"

That year, in late autumn, Song Zhi emerged from seclusion.

After six years of seclusion, she finally succeeded in condensing a pseudo-core, and was only one step away from forming a true core.

That day, she stepped out of the meditation room, her aura deep and profound, and her eyes flashed with a sharp light as she opened and closed, clearly indicating that her skill had greatly improved.

She looked at Li Xiao, who was instructing Song Yu on swordsmanship in the courtyard, her eyes filled with satisfaction: "Xiao'er, you've grown up."

She personally tested Li Xiao's cultivation level and even sparred with him.

After three moves, she stopped in surprise: "Your swordsmanship already possesses some of the essence of the Foundation Establishment stage. The level of your mana refinement far surpasses that of others at the same level. If you can break through to the thirteenth level of Qi Refining, you might truly be able to threaten early Foundation Establishment cultivators."

Elder Zhao stroked his beard and nodded, "If this boy achieves Foundation Establishment, his combat strength will be among the top in his level. Although his path is risky, he will go further."

After discussing it, Song Zhi and his wife made a decision—to send Li Xiao and Song Yu on a three-year journey.

Reading ten thousand books is not as good as traveling ten thousand miles. If a cultivator always stays behind closed doors, he will never achieve great things.

Moreover, Li Xiao's obsession runs too deep, and he needs a wider world to resolve it.

Although Song Yutian has a strong spiritual root, he lacks practical experience and needs to be trained.

"You two, brother and sister, one with the heart of a tiger and the other with the temperament of still water, complement each other perfectly."

Song Zhi held their hands and said earnestly, "In these three years, travel around the Xi Kingdom, see the mortal world, and also see other forces. But remember, safety comes first. If you encounter someone you can't defeat, run away immediately. Yu'er, you must keep an eye on your senior brother and not let him act impulsively; Xiao'er, you must protect your junior sister. She is simple-minded and easily deceived."

Li Xiao and Song Yu exchanged a glance and nodded simultaneously.

They all knew in their hearts that the true path to immortality was about to begin here.

The two siblings will join hands to face this cruel yet magnificent world of cultivation.