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

Zhaixing Palace.

Auspicious light and celestial energy surrounded the palace. Xing Qi sat by the window, a stack of papers in front of him.

Words cannot express the depth of my feelings, and I am worried that writing too much might disturb Ningning.

He edited and revised, finally putting pen to paper on a new sheet.

Then I started folding paper cranes.

He folded the paper crane in no time, held it in his palm for a long time, and then used his magic to tie a conch shell to the bottom of the paper crane.

/

One of the spiritual veins is already showing signs of deterioration.

The elders of the Taiyu Cangqiong Sect were all alarmed and gathered in the main hall. As a result, the female cultivator who had trespassed into the Zhaixing Palace became known to everyone.

"This woman is truly despicable. She corrupted the divine child's mind and led him away from the holy land. She is unforgivable!"

"The Grand Elder is absolutely right. We will set up a killing formation in the Star-Picking Palace. Once she uses that Void-Breaking Technique to send a message over, we will definitely be able to detect it immediately. Then we will execute her on the spot."

The ethereal woman, her voice as clear as a spring, said gently, "The Divine Son is of pure heart and now he cherishes this woman. If any of you were to kill her on the spot in front of him, I fear the Divine Son would not be able to bear it."

"So what do you suggest we do?"

"Change the killing formation to a forbidden formation, so that the technique of crossing the sky cannot use the Star-Picking Palace as a landing point. In this way, the two will never have the chance to meet again."

"No," another elder said, his voice filled with anger, "I cannot let that woman go like this. That spiritual vein is exhausted, and the spiritual energy within a thousand miles of it has been severely dissipated. And this place is also where a peach tree once stood. That peach tree has been growing for four hundred years and was about to blossom and bear fruit. Now it is completely destroyed. How can we appease the people if we do not avenge this? I think we should kill that woman."

His Highness responded with a chorus of agreement.

At the bottom, Yue Qi, who had been silent all along, slightly raised his eyes. "I disagree!"

"Xing'er has already fallen in love with her. If you kill her, Xing'er will be heartbroken one day."

"Moon, you're so foolish!"

Yue Qi stood up, his voice still calm: "Everyone here is welcome to try. My sword shows no mercy."

After saying that, he turned and walked out of the main hall.

As the radiance faded, Yue Qi stood with his hands behind his back on the suspended platform of the Star Palace.

Behind him were the guardian meteors.

Upon seeing Yue Qi, he immediately bowed and greeted him: "Lord Yue Qi."

Yue Qi nodded, his gaze falling on Zhaixing Palace. "How is Xing'er?"

"As usual, except that he hasn't stepped out of the palace gates even once in the past few days, nor has he uttered a word. It seems he's waiting for that woman to come looking for him again."

Yue Qi remained silent, standing on the edge of the platform, watching the distant surge of spiritual energy.

"knew,"

No sooner had these words been spoken than a small paper crane flew out of the window of the Star-Picking Palace.

Although the paper crane was invisible to ordinary people, it could not escape the eyes of Yue Qi and Liu Xing.

This paper crane was carrying a spinning top.

Yue Qi frowned.

Meteor said in a deep voice, "Lord Yueqi, this is a paper crane with a message from Lord Xingqi. It contains the Spirit Rhinoceros Spinning Top that you gave to Lord Xingqi."

"Lord Xingqi, to whom are you trying to communicate?"

A moment of silence fell over the air. Suddenly, Meteor realized that perhaps Lord Xingqi had used such divine power for that female cultivator from the barren continent.

The two continents are separated by tens of thousands of miles. Even if the paper crane wants to fly over, it has to avoid thunderstorms and birds at sea, and even stop to replenish its spiritual energy in places where the spiritual energy is too thin.

This process is time-consuming and laborious, and there's no guarantee that the product will even reach the other party.

Meteor shook his head, a strange sense of emotion welling up inside him.

Remembering the instructions of the elders, Meteor raised his hand to knock the paper crane down.

A flawless hand blocked his way.

It is Yueqi.

Meteor was taken aback: "Lord Yueqi..."

Yue Qi looked at the spot where the paper crane had disappeared and said, "Let him be willful one more time. Go down."

"Yes."

The meteor faded away, and there was no one around.

Yue Qi transformed into a stream of light, chasing after the direction the paper crane had left in.

He shattered the void and used his great supernatural powers to send the paper crane to the Eastern Treasure Continent.

~

Meanwhile, Song Chiwen's life returned to normal.

Yu Luoning thought that since they couldn't say goodbye silently, it would be better to hold a proper farewell party for them on their next day off.

She got up from the bed. She had been meditating for six hours. Her back ached, but she was captivated by the feeling of being filled with spiritual energy and couldn't bear to stop.

Just then, the treasure-hunting mouse popped out of his pocket, turned its little head left and right, and twitched its nose.

During the day, Yu Luoning put the rat in the jade bracelet space, but later realized it was a bit of a waste.

The rat's specialty is treasure hunting. Since there are no powerful cultivators in Phoenix Perch City, it's safe to let it roam around.

This guy would occasionally bring her little surprises, and he brought back quite a bit of gold and silver.

Spirit stones cannot be brought back. Cultivators all have storage bags. Yu Luoning was not comfortable letting the rat provoke cultivators, so she had no choice but to give up.

But then, the guy pointed out the window and said, "I smell the scent of a magical treasure."

Yu Luoning glanced at it.

"You're not lying to me, are you? You said you smelled the scent of the magic treasure the last few times. And what happened? There was nothing there."

"This time is different, there's absolutely no chance of anything going wrong. Trust me!"

Yu Luoning stared at it for a while, then decided to trust it one more time.

She carried the mouse over the windowsill and flew to the eaves. Looking up, she saw a small figure flying towards her from the horizon.

It turned out to be a paper crane.

The paper crane landed in Yu Luoning's hand and slowly opened, transforming into a letter. On the letter was a strangely shaped conch shell, with seven-colored light flowing through it, lustrous and beautiful.

A hole was drilled at the mouth of the conch shell, adorned with tiny stars.

Yu Luoning was stunned for a moment.

Is it Xing Qi's letter?

Upon seeing the letter, she felt a pang of melancholy.

She promised to wait for Xing Qi, but she only waited on the island for three days, and then didn't go to the Star-Picking Palace again for several months.

Because she didn't dare.

Now, in the eyes of Xingqi's family, she is probably a blond guy who stole a rich and beautiful girl, and no one would give her a good look.

If we were to actually go to their door and run into them, the consequences would be unimaginable.

Yu Luoning was afraid of being beaten up, so she kept hiding and didn't go, and later she forgot about it.

She was surprised that Xingqi had been thinking about her all along, and she couldn't wait to unfold the letter.

"Greetings. It has been many days since we parted on the island. My longing for Ningning is as strong as the tide."

"Many things have happened since I returned to the sect, and I am unable to visit you for the time being, so I have entrusted a message to a paper crane..."

"I present you with a Spirit Conch. This object was collected from a spiritual cave in the deep sea and can break through the limitations of time and space. As long as you hold it in your mind, it can resonate and transmit messages, even across thousands of mountains and rivers."

"Furthermore, the elders have already laid a net of heaven and earth in the Star-Picking Palace to prevent all external forces from entering. It seems that from now on, any news from Ningning can only be entrusted to this snail... We await your news and hope you take care."

"Huh~"

The little mouse perched on Yu Luoning's shoulder and read the letter from beginning to end.

"You humans, how cheesy! How can you say such nonsense, like 'My longing for you is like the tides of the sea'?"

Yu Luoning's eyes were icy as she glanced at Shushu.

The mouse immediately fell silent.

Yu Luoning put away the letter and the conch shell, her ears burning slightly.

I never expected Xingqi to care about me so much. It feels so good to be remembered.

Fortunately, she didn't rush to the Star-Picking Palace.

It goes without saying who Xingqi's family was trying to protect against by laying a tight net.

That's it, the blond guy is confirmed.

Yu Luoning stared at the palm-sized fantasy mobile phone for the elderly and fell silent.

She tried it, gently tapping the conch shell three times. The next moment, a clear sound came from inside the conch.

It was a magnetic, clear, and pleasant male voice. With a hint of barely suppressed urgency and surprise, it asked, "Ningning, is that you?"

Yu Luoning: "Mm."

"I didn't expect the paper cranes to arrive so quickly?"

Yu Luoning asked softly, "Xing'er, are you alright?"

Meanwhile, in the Star-Picking Palace, Xing Qi's hand holding the conch shell trembled slightly. He had never known that his longing was so deep.

He hasn't had a good time these past few months.

He wanted to see Ningning, he wanted to see her day and night.

Now, just hearing her voice brings out all those long-suppressed feelings.

Xingqi took a deep breath, her eyes slightly reddening. "I'm fine. How about Ningning?"

"Me? I'm doing fine, but I've gone to a city in the human world to cultivate. I've also taken on a younger brother and sister. They're cultivating too."

"Is it the clerk and that boy?"

Yu Luoning: "Yes, the boy's name is Song Chi."

"I saw a fierce determination in that young man, so I introduced him to the path of cultivation. I never expected him to be such a genius, with top-tier spiritual root talent. In just three months, he has already reached the third level of Qi Refining."

"When we first met him, he was dark-skinned and skinny. Now, after his cultivation, he's completely transformed, even prettier than a young girl. The funniest thing is that he gets shy. He deliberately smears his face with black paint, it cracks me up."

A woman's silvery laughter came from the conch shell.

Xing Qi lowered his eyes, his voice muffled: "Really? It seems you like him quite a bit..."

"Of course! I'm his angel investor, and I'm just waiting for him to take me to new heights someday."

Yu Luoning recounted with great interest the events of the past three months.

Xing Qi listened quietly. In just three months, he had missed so much time. The boy named Song Chi was mentioned frequently.

Xingqi: That's great. Ningning, you've always had good taste. The person you choose must be extraordinary.

"Um... the spiritual energy in the conch shell is almost dissipated. If there's nothing else, we can talk again next time."

Xing Qi's voice gradually faded, and for some reason, he felt a little wronged.

The aurora-inlaid spirit stones on this conch shell could sustain an entire sect even in barren lands. It's impossible that its spiritual energy is almost depleted; it's just an excuse he found.

Xingqi put down the conch shell and walked step by step to the Xuantai outside the hall.

He slowly squatted down, hugged his knees, and watched the daily ebb and flow of spiritual energy.