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

Mo Fei scratched his head and sighed, "Ah! Poor Cousin Shi, look at his dejected appearance, he really couldn't win the argument."

"That's right, that flashy guy is too strong; he definitely crushed Brother Shi."

For a cultivator with highly developed five senses, Mo Fei's voice was not quiet.

Upon hearing this, Shi Shangxu froze, as if someone had stabbed him in the heart again, and remained silent.

Lu Mingyu said helplessly, "Young Master Mo, why did you speak the truth so bluntly?"

"Well... Brother Shi, don't take it to heart. Try to think more positively. Although that senior has a bit of a temper, his cultivation is extraordinary. With Miss Luo Ning by his side, she'll definitely be safe in this secret realm. You don't need to worry."

Shi Shangxu choked up, unable to utter a single word for a long time.

Is it safe for the woman you love to be with someone else?

He felt no comfort at all; instead, he felt even more depressed.

"If you two don't know how to comfort someone, then don't try to comfort them at all."

Lu Feishuang stepped forward, sword in hand, then turned to Shi Shangxu and said...

"Brother Shi, we are all cultivators, so we should broaden our horizons and take a long-term view. This kind of thing is not a big deal in the cultivation world."

"So what if that person is stronger? As long as Luo Ning still has you in her heart, he's just a vessel at best."

"A furnace or cauldron?"

Mo Fei chimed in from the side, "Brother Shi, you've actually shared a bed with Luo Ning, you can't back down. As the legitimate wife, you have to act like one. How can you let a mistress force you to your doorstep?"

The demeanor of an empress?

Shi Shangxu's usually clear and gentle eyes were now filled with disbelief and a sense of absurdity that shattered his understanding.

"You... actually think this kind of thing is nothing?"

After a brief silence, the three of them nodded in unison.

Lu Feishuang said, "Is this kind of thing... such a shocking event? Everyone thinks that a man who is good enough and powerful enough can have three wives and four concubines and have countless confidantes. If that's the case, why can't a woman who is equally good enough and has a family background far superior to the average person find several men?"

Shi Shangxu's breath hitched, speechless at these remarks.

Lu Feishuang added, "You've seen Luo Ning's talent and luck; her future achievements are destined to be unattainable for us."

Shi Shangxu, you are from a prestigious family, and although you usually keep a low profile and don't get involved in family feuds, you must have seen your fair share of the marriage alliances, exchanges of interests, and the practice of keeping male concubines in the inner quarters to consolidate their position within powerful clans, right?

Don't get stuck in these romantic entanglements. On the path to immortality, pure feelings are often ephemeral. Sometimes, a bond of mutual benefit or an exchange of value is a hundred times stronger than genuine affection.

Shi Shangxu's face was pale, and he gritted his teeth.

He understood the reasoning, but when he chose Luo Ning, he didn't consider any benefits at all, not in the past, and certainly not in the future.

Asking him to accept the presence of other men in his life is tantamount to putting his long-held beliefs on the spot.

But he turned away, drew a clear line, and from then on, they went their separate ways, completely withdrawing from her world.

The thought of having no further entanglement with Luo Ning made his heart feel as if it were being steeped in bitter medicine, an indescribable bitterness.

He thought he probably couldn't do it.

Seeing his pained expression, everyone tacitly refrained from making a sound to disturb him.

Lu Feishuang sighed and said softly, "Luoning sent me a message saying he's waiting for us on another mountain. Brother Shi, let's not rush. We'll set off when you've figured things out."

...

Night had fallen before anyone knew it, and all around was quiet.

Several people sat around the campfire, meditating and regulating their breathing, but Shi Shangxu sat silently to the side.

The flickering red flames illuminated his profile.

He was exceptionally handsome, with deep-set brow bones and a straight nose, but his face, which was originally gentle and refined and often had a warm and gentle expression, was now gloomy.

Shi Shangxu slowly opened his hand, and in his palm lay a gray, unpatterned Dao stone, a gift from Luo Ning.

This stone bears the unique mark of the two of them.

The little fish loves rulers. But that's not its only love.

Lu Feishuang, sitting opposite, glanced at the stone unintentionally, and her pupils suddenly contracted the moment she saw it clearly.

Dao-patterned stone? A storm raged within her.

This priceless, top-tier treasure was actually used as a token of affection?

In an instant, Lu Feishuang's gaze towards Shi Shangxu changed.

Mo Fei was poking at the fire with a stick when he suddenly stopped. Looking into Lu Feishuang's burning gaze, he couldn't help but ask, "What are you looking at?"

Lu Feishuang transmitted her voice, "The one in Brother Shi's hand is a Dao Pattern Stone."

Dao-patterned stone?

Mo Fei's expression changed instantly. He looked over sharply, his eyes gleaming with the same intense light.

He could come and go freely in his grandfather's storeroom.

His grandfather wouldn't let him look at the Dao Pattern Stone more than a few times, but now Shang Xu was holding this very treasure.

Mo Fei's eyes widened like saucers: "Brother Shi, is that really a Dao Pattern Stone in your hand?"

Shi Shangxu blinked and nodded. "Luoning gave it to me."

"A token of love? I see a design engraved on it."

Shi Shangxu's long eyelashes covered the bottom of her eyes, and a trace of warmth quietly swept over her.

"Yes, it's our token of love."

Mo Fei suddenly stood up, darted to the other side, exaggeratedly grabbed Shi Shangxu's shoulder, and howled in a split voice, "Cousin, my dear brother, you need to make sure you walk on the right path."

Everyone immediately looked at Mo Fei, only to see him winking and making ambiguous faces.

"Luoning is willing to give such a priceless treasure to Brother Shi so casually, which shows that Brother Shi holds a very important place in her heart."

"She is a bit fickle, but just based on this Dao Pattern Stone, let alone becoming the main wife, even if Brother Shi were to become a concubine, it would be a sure thing. There's no need for him to be so sentimental."

"If a woman is this good to me, I'd be willing to take care of her during her postpartum period, let alone if she wanted to have several lovers."

"..."

Lu Mingyu shook his head repeatedly, saying, "How could you just say such things? You have no shame at all."

Mo Fei glanced at him and said, "You're so noble. I hope you never end up living off a woman."

What a vicious curse!

Lu Mingyu was speechless after being rebuked again, so he simply ignored him.

After finishing his sentence, Mo Fei turned to Shi Shangxu and said earnestly, "Cousin Shi, Luo Ning truly cares about you. Instead of dwelling on her love, you should enjoy the preferential treatment she gives you."

This tangible benefit is far more worthwhile than monopolizing her affections.

Lu Feishuang was silent for a moment, then suddenly spoke, "Mo Fei is absolutely right. Words of liking don't count. Wherever preferential treatment is shown, that's where true feelings lie."

Shi Shangxu remained silent for a long time, his tone full of struggle, "I understand the reasoning, but... what I've always hoped for since I was a child is a lifelong, monogamous relationship..."

The surroundings quieted down.

Seeing this, everyone knew that trying to comfort them was useless.

Mo Fei scratched his head in distress and asked softly, "Brother Shi, given the current arrangements for the secret realm, should we separate from Luo Ning, or go find her and continue traveling together?"

The night wind stirred up the ashes from the campfire.

Shi Shangxu lowered his eyes, his fingertips gently rubbing the salted fish rolling its eyes on the Dao Pattern Stone, his mind filled with memories of his acquaintance with Luo Ning.

Luo Ning has feelings for him, otherwise she wouldn't have given him such precious treasures one after another.

Since he has her, how could he be willing to completely give her up to someone else?

Shi Shangxu clenched his palm, pressed the Dao Pattern Stone close to his heart, and the confusion and struggle in his eyes faded away.

He slowly stood up, his gaze intense. "I'm going to find her."