Dual cultivation makes you stronger, everyone else is a prodigy, and I'm the only one slacking

Yu Luoning followed the gaze of the crowd.

Feng Qiguang stood quietly, his back straight. His eyes revealed no emotion, yet something seemed to be hidden within them, something deeply suppressed.

A young man dressed in fine clothes stood by the corridor pillar, watching him with an air of anticipation.

This person was Feng Qiyang, Feng Qiguang's cousin.

Both of them were originally highly regarded in their families, but Feng Qiguang always surpassed him.

So one focused solely on cultivation, while the other had to take over family affairs early on.

Since becoming involved in family affairs, Feng Qiyang has had very little time to cultivate. His mind and body are exhausted, and his cultivation has stagnated.

He is currently only at the fifth level of Qi Refining.

He watched as the money and resources he had painstakingly earned by managing his family flowed into Feng Qiguang's cultivation.

He had been dissatisfied for a long time.

Seeing a once-proud prodigy fall from grace fills me with indescribable joy.

Everyone was looking at Feng Qi; some whispered among themselves, while others gloated.

Feng Qiguang seemed completely unaware of the situation. After a moment, he walked over, sat down at the desk, and didn't say a word.

Feng Qiyang was very displeased with this scene and gave a wink.

A servant boy brought over an inkstone, and the moment he got close to Feng Qiguang, ink splashed onto his robe, staining it black.

A moment of silence fell over the entire room.

Feng Qiyang shook his head: "You clumsy servant, hurry up and apologize to the young master!"

The servant bowed repeatedly, saying, "Young Master, I was wrong."

Feng Qiguang kept his head down and didn't move.

In the past, he would have already fought with Feng Qiyang.

Feng Qiguang kept his head down and didn't move. He stared at the ink stain on his sleeve and remained silent for a moment.

"Feng Qiyang, you went through all that trouble? Is this all you've got?"

"You don't think I've been tolerating you because I'm afraid of you, do you? I'm only giving you face because of your years of hard work and dedication to the family. If you keep bothering me, get out of Phoenix Perch City."

Feng Qiyang scoffed, "That's truly laughable. A good-for-nothing like you, what can you do to me? Do you still think you're some cultivation seed everyone's adoring, the future prodigy of the Purple Mansion?"

"You'll never have a chance to turn your life around. Losing your Dao heart for a woman—I despise you!"

Feng Qiguang ignored him and picked up his pen to register.

Feng Qiyang's mouth was dry from talking, but he realized he had punched cotton. His face immediately turned ugly, and he was about to say something when...

Feng Qiguang didn't even glance at him, and said, "Next!"

Yu Luo watched this scene quietly before turning her gaze away.

He said to Song Ci and Wenshu, "Let's go, let's test our spiritual roots."

She stopped watching the farce in the corridor and turned to walk to another spot.

Before the spirit testing platform, the steward placed the spirit stone in Song Chi's palm. After a short while, the spirit stone emitted an unusual light.

The golden light, like a blazing flame, made everyone instinctively squint.

"This...this is actually a pure Yang fire root? And a single root at that!"

The deacon paused for a moment, then his voice suddenly rose.

Along with this sound, a collective gasp rippled through the surrounding area.

The crowd gathered around, eager to see which family's genius it was.

To their surprise, they saw a boy who looked about fifteen or sixteen years old and dressed simply.

Three months of cultivation had made him much fairer, but beneath his handsome face lay a cold and aloof demeanor that kept strangers at bay.

He had long, narrow eyes with an unfathomable gaze, unlike a child at all.

At this moment, Song Chi stood still, looking down at the spirit stone that was still emitting a blazing light, without saying a word.

His expression wasn't exactly excited; he just watched quietly, as if it were all expected.

Yu Luoning stood next to him, glanced at him, and pursed her lips.

Pure Yang Dan Gen, an ultimate genius.

However, it's easy to go astray and, in the end, become obsessed and fanatical.

Thinking of this, her heart sank for a moment.

Hopefully, he's not a prematurely deceased genius; otherwise, she'll have wasted her time as an angel investor, since she wanted to make a fortune along with him.

The documents were lined up at the back. When it was her turn, the spirit stone emitted two beams of light, one dark blue and one brown.

"Not bad, it has two roots, one in Yin water and one in Yin soil."

The deacon nodded. "This aptitude is quite good."

Upon hearing this praise, the clerk stood there, his eyebrows curving involuntarily, and turned to look at Yu Luoning.

Yu Luoning returned her an encouraging look.

Looking at the two children, she couldn't quite describe the feeling in her heart—a mixture of envy and relief.

Turning to the elder deacon, she said, "Why don't you give me a reading too?"

The elder looked up at her, somewhat surprised, but still gave permission.

As a result, the moment Yu Luoning's hand touched the spirit stone, the spirit stone lit up. Unfortunately, it was not one light, nor two; ten thin, weak filaments of light appeared at the same time, half yin and half yang, intertwined together.

Yu Luoning had taken the test once before when she was at the Li family's house, but she was unwilling to accept it. She did not expect to take the test again and get the same result. She was extremely disappointed.

A chorus of boos rose from the surrounding crowd, and a few couldn't help but chuckle.

The next second, Song Chi had them all knocked to the ground. "Laugh again, try it?"

The clerk, like a wolf cub protecting its cub, stood in front of Yu Luoning.

"What are you laughing at? Are you guys so great?"

The group stumbled to their feet, looking at the murderous-looking youth before them with a sense of unease.

After only a few words, this young man wanted to kill someone; he's a living devil.

He's only at the Qi Refining Realm now. If he were to cultivate to a higher level, wouldn't he be quick to kill someone at the slightest provocation?

The group exchanged glances, their eyes flashing with murderous intent.

Just as tensions were about to rise between the two sides...

Upon receiving the news, Feng Qiguang rushed over.

"Stop! If you dare to make a move on my Feng family's territory, then think carefully about the consequences." His voice was not loud, but it carried an indescribable pressure.

Those people said, "He attacked first! What, that woman has a useless spiritual root, and people aren't allowed to laugh at her?"

"Exactly, if I had this spiritual root, I wouldn't even have the nerve to stay here any longer."

Feng Qiguang looked over and frowned.

He paused for a second.

The woman being discussed was none other than the one he had fought with at the Treasure Pavilion.

A woman like his lover.

Feng Qiguang had indescribable feelings.

He took a step forward, and something seemed to float by in the air. He closed his eyes to sense it; it was the aura of a human soul fire, but it was too far away for him to be sure.

He took another step forward.

Yu Luoning was in a panic.

No, is Feng Qiguang, the town's garrison commander, really that free?

Why is he everywhere? He's there at night, and he's there during the day too.

She has been using the Illusionary Breath Technique frequently these past few days, which has not only consumed a lot of spiritual energy, but the technique is also currently in cooldown.

If Feng Qiguang gets closer, he will definitely be able to discern the aura of his own soul fire.

Even though he is often blind.

Yu Luoning glanced down at the direction of Feng Qiguang and estimated the distance.

Fifteen steps, twelve steps...

Without hesitation, she threw herself into Song Chi's arms in front of everyone.

He even let out a loud howl.

"Little brother! Let's get out of here."

Song Chi: "..."

Suddenly, a warm, soft body bumped into him.

Song Chi froze on the spot, unsure of what to do with his hands.

Fortunately, he still had the ice silkworm jade that Yu Luoning had given him hanging on his chest.

The slight coolness made his bright red ears less noticeable.

Before he could react, another clip sounded in his ear.

"It's all my fault, I've dragged you all down. You all have such great talent, why am I so bad? I don't want to stay here anymore, I don't want to cultivate anymore..."

This time the commotion was even greater, and Song Chi's back stiffened even more.

The scribe's face flushed red with anger: "Well, sister, let's go. The thought of becoming fellow disciples with someone like this and spending every day with them is absolutely disgusting."

Song Chi nodded.

He didn't speak, but gently pulled Yu Luoning behind him, took Wenshu's hand, and turned to leave.

The steward panicked. Both of them were promising talents, especially the young man whose spiritual root talent was comparable to that of the young prince.

He caught up with them. "Wait a minute, gentlemen. These disciples are my fault for failing to maintain order. They will no longer be allowed to stay at the clan school."

Despite the deacon's attempts to stop them, the three did not turn around.

Feng Qiguang stood still, watching the direction the three had left in.