Mortal: Traveling Between Two Realms with Mei Ning to Pick Up Trash

Early the next morning.

Zhou Yu got up, not because he was particularly diligent.

The main reason was that I couldn't sleep; the stone bed was too hard, the pillow was too low, and Mei Feng's snoring was too loud.

I found a flat rock near the cave entrance, sat cross-legged, and faced the sea.

Following Mei Ning's teachings on the "Azure Sea Technique," I began to circulate the technique and sense the spiritual energy.

This time it's different.

Reiki.

It wasn't the faint, ethereal feeling of the past, like a breeze brushing against the skin; it was a real, tangible sensation, like warm water flowing through the meridians to every part of the body.

Zhou Yu opened his eyes.

It was already daylight, and the sun was rising above the sea.

Zhou Yu could feel something different; there was something new inside his body, quietly circulating in his dantian.

Level 1 of Qi Refining.

Zhou Yu took a deep breath, suppressing his excitement, and took out the storage bag from his pocket.

Although I don't know how to use this thing, directly infusing it with spiritual energy should be fine.

Soon, a look of surprise appeared in Zhou Yu's eyes.

In a flash of inspiration, two bottles of pills and a knife appeared in his hand.

"This is?"

Zhou Yu looked at the pill. "Why does this thing look so much like the Heaven-Mending Pill?"

Although I've never seen it before, this elixir is colorful and does resemble the description in the original work; it's certainly not an ordinary object.

Opening the second jade bottle, the color of the pills that came out was much more normal, a pale yellow, and they smelled of medicine. Although they weren't as amazing as the first bottle, they probably weren't cheap stuff from a street vendor.

As for that knife...

It resembles a horizontal sword, with a black scabbard of unknown material and no decorations.

Zhou Yu gripped the hilt and drew the knife from its sheath.

The blade was silver-white, without any patterns, and the edge didn't even appear to be very sharp.

But the moment the blade was fully drawn, a strange feeling welled up inside me—an intuition that "this thing is powerful."

He couldn't explain why.

Just like when you see a Ferrari, you know it's fast without even sitting inside, this knife gives him the feeling that he can chop things, and chop them very cleanly.

Zhou Yu sat cross-legged on the rock, watching them.

The storage bag was retrieved from the battlefield on the other side of the rift, which seemed to be much more complex than he had imagined.

What level of being felled on that battlefield?

What level of battle would it be to have something that allows these things to be thrown on the ground like trash?

He picked up the storage bag again and tried to put the three items back. With a thought, the knife and two bottles of pills disappeared into thin air and returned to the storage bag. He tried to take them out again and succeeded once more.

After trying it a few times, Zhou Yu was having a great time.

Storage bags are indeed convenient.

He was having a great time when he heard footsteps behind him.

"You're up so early?"

Mei Feng's voice came as he yawned and walked out of the cave, his hair a mess like a bird's nest and his collar still open.

Then he saw Zhou Yu sitting cross-legged on a rock, with the storage bag in front of him.

Mei Feng's eyes lit up immediately.

"Hey!" He strode over, squatted down, and stared at the storage bag for a moment. "You have a storage bag? Aren't you an ordinary person? Wait a minute."

He suddenly leaned closer, his nose almost touching Zhou Yu's face, and took a deep breath.

Zhou Yu was startled by his action and instinctively leaned back.

"You've reached the first level of Qi Refining?!" Mei Feng's voice rose an octave as he turned and shouted into the cave, "Sister! Come out quickly! Zhou Yu has reached the first level of Qi Refining!"

Mei Ning's voice came from inside the cave. It was hard to hear clearly, but her tone was something like, "What are you yelling about so early in the morning?"

"As expected of a Heavenly Spiritual Root, its cultivation is indeed fast," Mei Feng exclaimed in amazement.

"Where did you get this bag? I didn't see it when I came yesterday."

Zhou Yu opened his mouth, but was speechless for a moment.

He hadn't figured out how to explain the origin of the storage bag. Saying "I found it on an ancient battlefield" would reveal the secret of the calligraphy brush. Saying "I always had it" wouldn't make sense either.

Fortunately, Mei Feng did not ask any further questions.

It wasn't because he was considerate, but because he was distracted by something else.

"Wait, did you take something out of there?" Mei Feng's eyes lit up like two light bulbs. "What did you take? Let me see!"

Zhou Yu hesitated for a moment.

He didn't know Mei Feng well enough, but after spending time with him yesterday, he felt that although Mei Feng was talkative, gossipy, and had an excess of energy, he wasn't a bad person at heart. Besides, he was Mei Ning's brother after all.

With a thought, Zhou Yu took out the horizontal sword from his storage bag.

The knife, sheath and all, appeared in his hand, and Zhou Yu handed it over.

Mei Feng took it, and his expression changed the moment he held it.

His playful expression vanished instantly, replaced by a serious and focused look. He held the scabbard in one hand, and with the other, he slowly drew the sword out, revealing its silvery-white blade.

Mei Feng stared at the section of the knife for several breaths.

"This knife..." His voice trailed off, as if he were talking to himself, "I can't sense any aura emanating from this knife."

"Where did you get this?" Mei Feng asked, his tone much more serious this time.

Zhou Yu thought for a moment.

"I found it..." Zhou Yu said, the details of which were somewhat complicated. "I found it... before I came here."

Mei Feng stared at him for several seconds.

He then handed the knife back to Zhou Yu, nodded, and didn't ask any further questions.

"Keep it safe," he said, his voice returning to its usual casual tone, but the serious look in his eyes remained. "Don't show this to just anyone. In this Chaotic Star Sea, there are plenty of people who are greedy for money."

Zhou Yu took the knife, put it into his storage bag, and nodded.

Mei Feng stood up, stretched, yawned, and reverted to his usual carefree and talkative self.

"Let's go, let's go inside and have breakfast. I caught two crabs yesterday, they're still alive, I'll steam them this morning."

After saying that, he crawled into the hole, leaving behind a shout of "Little sister, are you up yet?"

Zhou Yu sat at the cave entrance, carefully put the storage bag inside his body, patted his clothes, and stood up.

The sea breeze was still blowing, and the sun was already high in the sky, shimmering with golden light on the sea.

He glanced back into the cave, where Mei Feng was frantically fiddling with the two crabs, while Mei Ning stood by, watching her brother's performance with a blank expression.

Zhou Yu couldn't help but chuckle.

Then he went into the cave, preparing to eat his seventh breakfast in the world of cultivation.

"Oh, right," Mei Feng mumbled, his mouth full of food, "I found some ruins, wanna go take a look?"

Zhou Yu paused for a moment while gnawing on a crab leg.

Mei Ning also stopped skewering the skewers in her hand, looked up at Mei Feng, and frowned slightly.

"Relics? What relics?"

Mei Feng swallowed the food in his mouth, took a sip of water, and wiped his mouth.

"It should be the cave dwelling of a Golden Core cultivator," he said. "It's located on a small island about two hundred miles to the east. I discovered it by chance when I went out for a stroll last month. The outer restrictions have deteriorated significantly. I reckon even a Qi Refining stage cultivator could get in."

He broke off another crab leg.

"I reckon this Golden Core senior has either left or passed away peacefully. His cave dwelling has been on that island for who knows how many years, and the restrictions are almost gone."

"Isn't anyone else watching?" Zhou Yu put down the crab leg and asked Mei Feng.

"I don't see any." Mei Feng shook his head, took a bite of crab meat, "That kind of godforsaken place, there's not a soul in sight for miles around. Besides, if a Golden Core cultivator's cave was going to be broken, the restrictions would have been broken long ago, and it wouldn't have been left for me to discover now."

What he said made sense, but Zhou Yu was still a little apprehensive.

Even if the restrictions on a Golden Core cultivator's cave have deteriorated to the point where a Qi Refining stage cultivator could enter, no one can say for sure what dangers might be inside.

A bunch of "what ifs" instantly popped into Zhou Yu's mind.

Mei Ning was clearly thinking about the same question. She put down the thin skewer in her hand, looked at Mei Feng, and spoke in a more serious tone than usual.

"Brother, are you sure the restriction has deteriorated to that extent? Have you tested it yourself?"

"Of course I tried," Mei Feng said. "I went to the outermost layer of the barrier and explored it. The pressure wasn't great. For a Golden Core Cave to degenerate like this, it must have been untouched for at least several hundred years."

He paused, then added.

"Besides, I'm not asking you to go first. I'll go in first, and you can come in after I've confirmed it's safe."

Zhou Yu glanced at Mei Ning. Mei Ning's expression remained unchanged, but she did not continue to object.

Mei Feng turned to look at Zhou Yu, blinked, and asked, "Are you going or not?"

Zhou Yu remained silent for a few seconds.

Having only reached the first level of Qi Refining and not even having learned any spells, he relied entirely on instinct in fighting. Going to a Golden Core cave, even if the restrictions had deteriorated, would still be a high-risk operation for him.

But on the other hand...

I'm too poor right now.

Cultivation requires pills, spirit stones, and cultivation techniques. Although he currently has two bottles of pills taken from his storage bag, one of them is likely a Heaven-Mending Pill, something he dares not use or exchange for now. The other bottle of pale yellow pills is still unsure of its nature, so he cannot use it rashly.

Moreover, he couldn't always rely on Mei Ning and Mei Feng for help; they had already helped him a lot. He had to find his own way to get resources.

Even if he only collects scraps from a Golden Core cave, it would be enough for him, a minor Qi Refining cultivator, to use for a long time.

"Go," Zhou Yu said.

"Then it's settled!" Mei Feng slammed his hand on the table. "We'll set off first thing tomorrow morning. You all prepare well today. Sister, take Zhou Yu to your place to practice a couple of simple spells, so he'll at least have some ability to protect himself. I'll pack my things here."

Mei Ning put down the thin skewer in her hand, stood up, and glanced at Zhou Yu.

"Let's go."