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

The group rode their swords and followed the direction pointed out by the rat to a deep abyss.

There was a vertical crack at the mouth of the abyss. Looking down, the group saw thick fog rolling below, obscuring the bottom and vaguely indicating a drop of thousands of feet.

"Is the Nine Nether Cauldron really down there?" Mo Fei frowned and muttered a question.

The mouse patted its chest and said, "I am a treasure-hunting mouse. I have a natural sense for treasures. The aura coming from below is definitely not wrong."

Everyone nodded, and they all stepped onto their swords, intending to fly towards the bottom of the abyss.

At this point, the mountain crevice was extremely wide, and the deeper one went, the more intense the gale and mist that rushed up from the bottom became.

The group could only slow down, braving the violently shaking air currents to stabilize their flying swords.

Shi Shangxu remained at the forefront, struggling to maintain his balance. He formed hand seals, and a protective light shield rose up in front of everyone.

Shi Shangxu shouted a reminder, "Everyone, keep your balance and don't get scattered by the airflow."

But what you fear most is what happens. The airflow below grew heavier and heavier, carrying a strange, almost eerie, attraction.

The group was immediately scattered by the force of the impact. Yu Luoning felt her feet suddenly give way and she plummeted to the ground.

In the blink of an eye, Shi Shangxu, who was closest to her, suddenly pounced on her and held her tightly in his arms.

After a dizzying moment, Yu Luoning landed on a soft human flesh cushion.

Before she could even react, she felt a hand suddenly grab her collar and roughly pull her up.

She got up in a daze, only to find that the person who pulled her up was none other than Cui Xiu, who had followed her without her noticing.

And the soft, pressed flesh on the ground was actually Shi Shangxu.

The surroundings were dark, and Lu Feishuang and the others were nowhere to be seen.

Before Yu Luoning could come to her senses and figure out what was going on, she saw Cui Xiu, who had just been pulling her with a cold and arrogant expression, suddenly stumble and almost fall flat on her face.

Cui Xiu's face darkened, somewhat exasperated. "The bad luck from that lousy picture of yours is truly persistent, repeatedly setting me up for failure..."

As fate would have it, Cui Xiu had been following Yu Luoning and the others without leaving a trace. When they reached the bottom of the abyss, a suction force from below caused everyone to be swept away.

With Cui Xiu's cultivation level, he naturally wasn't afraid of this amount of power.

But just as he was about to use his magic to forcibly pull Yu Luoning and the others up, he was surprised to find that his spiritual power was blocked once again.

Just like last time, when Bai Rongling threw him into the Yuling Spring, his spiritual energy seemed to have been forcibly paused.

As the saying goes, when you're down on your luck, even drinking cold water can cause you to choke.

At this moment, even the mighty body of a monstrous corpse could not withstand the gravity of the mortal world.

That stumble just now almost made him lose face.

At this moment, Yu Luoning also felt dizzy and looked around.

A strange, aged medicinal fragrance floated in the air, imperceptible even to the slightest spiritual power.

At this moment, Shi Shangxu also slowly awoke.

Once he had a clear look around, he became alert again and immediately stood up. He instinctively reached for the sword at his side, but the sword did not respond to his wishes and instead sounded like a piece of ordinary iron.

Cui Xiu dusted off the hem of her clothes and snorted coldly, "Don't bother. Spiritual energy is sealed here. You can't even use the tiny bit of spiritual energy to open a storage bag."

Upon hearing the sound, Shi Shangxu's already pale face paled even more upon seeing Cui Xiu.

An awkward silence fell over the two of them, and Yu Luoning felt extremely embarrassed.

Shi Shangxu finally figured things out. The two of them were in the process of getting back together when Cui Xiu suddenly appeared, blocking the relationship that they had worked so hard to repair.

Seeing her unease, Cui Xiu sneered, "If you think I'm in your way, fine, then I'll leave."

After saying that, Cui Xiu made a move to leave.

Seeing this, Yu Luoning quickly reached out and grabbed him, "Look at you, overthinking again. When have I ever thought you were in my way? Now that we've all lost our spiritual power and the road ahead is fraught with danger, the three of us should look after each other..."

"You stupid fish. You look worried about me and want to keep me here, but it's just that you don't understand the terrain or how to survive in dangerous situations. If you want me to be your bodyguard, just say so."

Cui Xiu glanced at her sideways, his tone filled with undisguised mockery.

Yu Luoning felt exhausted and didn't know how to defend herself.

Shi Shangxu took a deep breath, suppressing the bitterness surging in his heart.

He stepped forward and walked up to Cui Xiu.

"Senior, since we are all trapped here, our most urgent task is to work together to find a way out."

"Senior's cultivation is extraordinary and you have seen and experienced much. Ningning is now in a mortal body. There are countless traps and poisonous insects at the bottom of the abyss. Although I want to protect her, I have no spiritual power now and I am afraid that I will not be able to protect her properly."

"The more people there are, the more confident we will be in protecting her. For Ningning's safety, please set aside your prejudices for now and come with us."

Cui Xiu stared at Shi Shangxu's gentle and refined face, and after a long while, she let out a soft hum, which was taken as tacit agreement.

He followed her all the way here, precisely because he was afraid that Yu Luoning might be in danger.

But this silly fish is heartless; from the moment she woke up, her eyes were glued to her cousin.

Yu Luoning breathed a sigh of relief when she saw that Cui Xiu had stayed.

The bad luck buff on "A Panorama of Rivers and Mountains" is truly formidable.

She naturally remembered the kindness Cui Xiu had shown her.

Although this person has a sharp tongue, he is now just like them, unable to use any spiritual power.

He still carries that unlucky buff, and if he were to encounter something unforeseen in a desperate situation, Yu Luoning would find it difficult to feel at ease.