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

"Now that we have obtained the Nine Nether Cauldron, the final challenge of the secret realm is the legendary Primordial Origin Qi."

As Shi Shangxu slowly spoke, his gaze swept over Yu Luoning's jade-like hand resting on Cui Xiu's hand, and the light in his eyes dimmed involuntarily.

He turned his head away, no longer looking at the glaring scene, his voice somewhat cold.

"We've already wasted too much time; we need to get to the main artery of the central nervous system as soon as possible."

"Cousin is right, let's go quickly." After Yu Luoning finished speaking, she gently touched Shi Shangxu's arm with her fingertips.

Shi Shangxu's eyes trembled slightly, and a bright light shimmered in them.

The entire group once again mounted their swords and sped towards the central main vein.

~~

And in the ruins of the destroyed Wanqingdao.

Cheng Min, the sect leader of Dongbao Shangzong, personally led several foreign cultivators dressed in dark blue robes to investigate.

Seeing the pile of bones on the ground, and among those bones were tokens belonging to core members of the family, the faces of the group of cultivators from other regions turned ashen.

No wonder the people sent out to find the Path of Ten Thousand Loves never returned; they all died here.

The price to come to Dongbao Upper Sect was considerable: each person received one Aurora Spirit Stone, and their cultivation level was reduced by two realms.

A middle-aged male cultivator with a gloomy face suddenly turned to Cheng Min and said, "The Path of Ten Thousand Loves is a demonic and evil path. The disappearance of this palace means that the Path of Ten Thousand Loves has also found a successor. If we don't quickly find out the demoness who obtained the inheritance, she will be more than we can handle once she grows up."

Cheng Min tucked her hands into her Daoist robe, feigning contemplation. "It's not that my Eastern Treasure Continent is uncooperative. The Myriad Emotions Dao Treasury is in this secret realm. You've searched for it for thousands of years without success. Now, you think you can make me search the entire world for someone just with a Nine Domains Sacred Decree? Where am I supposed to conjure up a successor for you?"

The elder stared at Cheng Min with a gloomy expression, his body radiating murderous intent, and terrifying spiritual power began to overflow.

Cheng Min laughed nonchalantly, "What? Do you all want to make a move against me, the legitimate sect leader, on Dongbao's continent? I bear a portion of the continent's fortune. If you want to take on the consequences, you should think twice."

Just as the atmosphere became tense, another powerful figure from another region grabbed his companion's shoulder and stepped forward.

He said calmly, "Sect Master Cheng, please don't be offended. He was just in a fit of anger. However, the Eastern Treasure Continent has already been protected by the seven great families who have a blood feud with the Myriad Love Path. It is impossible for that successor to leave this continent silently."

As he spoke, the elder took out an ancient stone platform inscribed with the symbol of karma and curse from his robes.

The stone platform was about the size of a millstone, and was blood red all over. It was covered with ancient runes, and one could feel the chilling karmic force emanating from it with just one glance.

He added, "This Cursed Stone can reveal the cultivation lineage of the Path of Ten Thousand Emotions. That demoness will definitely want to leave this secret realm once she gets the lineage. However, we have laid a net outside the secret realm. Any cultivator who tries to leave must be tested by this stone. Once that demoness shows her face, she will be unable to escape."

Cheng Min glanced at the stone that was glowing with a reddish light.

He said, "Alright, everyone, you've even brought out such an ancestral treasure, how can I not cooperate? I'll immediately send someone to assist you at the exit of the secret realm."

/

Meanwhile, Yu Luoning and the others also arrived near the central main vein.

She stood on the flying sword and couldn't help but sneeze.

"A lot of people have been talking about me lately," Yu Luoning said with a smile, rubbing her nose.

Cui Xiu crossed her arms, raised an eyebrow, and snorted coldly, "Others may be lovesick, but those who are interested in you are probably looking to settle scores later."

Yu Luoning glared at Cui Xiu with a deep look in her eyes.

There was a warning in his eyes; Shi Shangxu was still there.

Shi Shangxu only knew of Cui Xiu's existence and was unaware that Feng Qiguang was ahead of him.

He had suffered a series of blows in the past few days, and Yu Luoning did not want the delicate balance he had finally achieved to be destroyed.

Noticing Yu Luoning's disapproving look, Cui Xiu snorted, her deep purple eyes concealing an unyielding darkness.

But how could this person hold his temper?

In front of everyone, he directly transmitted his thoughts to Yu Luoning, saying, "Are you that worried about your little cousin being sad?"

Yu Luoning secretly transmitted her voice back, "Your pH level is definitely less than 7 now."

Choi Soo was taken aback, clearly not understanding what this strange word meant. "What are you babbling about?"

Yu Luoning chuckled: "What I mean is, you're jealous."

"Jealous? Haha, is our relationship one of jealousy?" Choi Soo retorted stubbornly.

Yu Luoning said, "Look at you, saying such hurtful things again. If you say anything more, I'll tell everyone that you only have the time it takes to snap your fingers."

Cui Xiu's purple pupils suddenly contracted, and he froze on the spot. The tips of his ears quickly turned a thin red, and the air pressure around him fluctuated.

"Five days and five nights, have you forgotten? Who was begging for mercy beneath me?" Cui Xiu said through gritted teeth.

Yu Luoning raised her hand and scratched the tip of her nose.

The way to deal with a man's inexplicable jealousy is to find a new topic to divert his anger; wouldn't that be a tactic of using vulgar language to provoke him work?

Cui Xiu was furious. The jealousy she felt earlier had long since vanished. Now, all she could think about was that absurd thing. No man in the world could bear a woman questioning his abilities, let alone a woman like him, an arrogant and wicked corpse.

That is, you absolutely cannot admit that you are incapable.

Yu Luoning couldn't help but smile when she saw his seemingly cold but actually angry and embarrassed appearance.

Knowing when to stop, she quickly and gently coaxed him, "Okay, it's all my fault, alright?"

"You... I'll be driven crazy by your mouth one day."

"Be angry, but don't secretly plot against my sharp tongue."

"..."

Completely defeated, Cui Xiu simply shut his mouth and remained silent.

Yu Luoning breathed a sigh of relief and patted her chest, finally managing to tame this jealous person who was about to explode.

However, before he could fully relax, the void above the calm central artery began to tremble violently without warning.

A burst of extremely loud laughter rang out.

"You dare call yourselves a sect from some backwater? The cultivators from Dongbao aren't that strong either. I suppressed 20% of my cultivation."

The speaker was a young man dressed in fine clothes and brocade robes, with an arrogant expression on his face.

He stepped on the broken sword of an inner disciple of Dongbao Sect, his eyes filled with contempt. "You young generation of Dongbao can be called geniuses? Trash, you couldn't even withstand three of my moves. How boring."

Opposite him stood several inner disciples of the Dongbao Upper Sect, all wounded and covered in blood, yet none dared to refute him.

Feeling the awe-inspiring gazes around him, Ling Tian laughed even more unrestrainedly.

He was toying with a radiant, spirit-locking lotus lamp in his hand, which contained a wisp of extremely rare primordial energy.

"Treasures have always belonged to the capable. This Primordial Origin Qi is mine now. Does anyone object?"

His gaze swept around with amusement, and the young masters from various families and disciples from various sects who were watching all felt a chill in their hearts.

The man in front of her looked excessively young, yet he had already reached the Golden Core stage, and his cultivation was even being suppressed.

In some small cultivation families, a Golden Core cultivator is already capable of ruling over a region and can be called an ancestor.

Faced with an absolute disparity in strength, a deep sense of despair rose in the hearts of the local cultivators of Dongbao.

Seeing everyone trembling in fear, this proud son of the Xuan Tian Sect from another region laughed even more wildly and gleefully.

"What a bunch of noobs, what a waste! I thought that even if the Dongbao Upper Sect was poor, it would still have some decent people. Turns out, there isn't a single one who can fight."

After saying that, he directly crushed the natal magic weapon of one of his disciples.

"No!" the disciple cried out in anguish.

Ling Tian sneered, "Weakness is your original sin. You're a piece of trash who can't even protect your natal sword. Just die already."

The other Dongbao disciples had red eyes and clenched their fists, but the disparity in strength meant they could only be humiliated and slaughtered.

Just then, a calm female voice drowned out all the noise.

"You steal someone's opportunity and humiliate their sect—who gave you the audacity?"

The crowd looked in the direction of the sound and saw a group of people flying through the air. At the head of the group was a beautiful woman with delicate features and an ethereal air, like a fairy descending to earth.

A hint of amazement flashed in Ling Tian's eyes as he looked Yu Luoning up and down, feigning regret. "Another clueless girl. Does your Dongbao Sect have no one else? You actually sent a woman like you to take the lead. You have some looks; if you obediently kneel down, you might be able to become my personal concubine."

"If you serve me well, I might as well reward you with a few cultivation manuals..."

Yu Luoning's eyes were deep and unfathomable, but before she could make a move...

The next moment, a terrifying pressure, powerful enough to distort the void, descended upon Ling Tian.