Chapter 12 Selecting Martial Arts
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[Congratulations Host for performing Dual Cultivation!]
[Dual Cultivation Death Countdown has been reset!]
[All spiritual power received from this action is currently within the Host's body, it is recommended for the Host to break through within a week before the energy fully dissipates
*Warning*
Do not absorb sources rich in spiritual energy, or else your energy center may overflow and explode.
]
[You have been awarded the Skill {Study}]
"Dual cultivate?… I guess I did that…" He mumbled with an awkward cough as he looked around
'Now that I think about it, I have no techniques for that… I just thought about doing it and I guess the System Auto-Cultivated for me?… I should look more into it so I don't end up in the dark.'
'Also, I should break through as soon as possible as well to make use of this extra energy. With the other pill I have and now the knowledge I gathered, I should be able to make some advanced pills.'
[Study
Description: The ability to retain knowledge and to focus while in the process of learning something new, or revising something you already know.
Improves the speed at which you learn new things and your comprehension of them.
*Has the possibility of growing the more Dual Cultivation the Host performs*
]
[Disclaimer]
[Host is recommended to partake in more Dual Cultivation sessions to gain more rewards!]
[DING]
[Hidden Task: Curious cat lost her flower {Completed}]
'Aha! So that was what it was about… No rewards huh?… Well… I guess this was a good rewards in itself.'
'This means I only have one task left. {Shining Knight comes to bed the princess}… I wonder how I'll solve that one.'
"Anyhow… what a haul… Phew… I feel much better now."
'So it's just like in the Novel.'
'Whenever I partake in Dual Cultivation, I gain a unique trait related to my partner… Perhaps that is the key that was missing. The System may only consider girls with some sort of a unique trait as Dual Cultivation candidates…'
'But before anything, time to clean this…'
As he cleaned the 'dirt' in the room, he continued his thoughts, 'After doing this here, I realized I need a few extra things… Formations to nullify the sounds is something that has been on my mind… else everyone will know every time I have dual cultivation with a girl…'
'And the other thing… Should I become a Playboy, or should I stick with a small group?...'
'I don't know Ei Xingda very well, but there is the chance she may ask for marriage… That isn't really a problem since polygamy is typical here and it would be easy to accept other girls as concubines. I don't have any issues with that since I decided to accept this world's norms.'
'The problem is getting tied down in one place. I can't stay around for too long nor do I think it would be okay to drag around a group of people with me… In short, I don't want to get too attached to this world when there is a bigger one out there.'
'Unless they can keep up with my cultivation. It would be too difficult to bring a lot of people with me, my partners or not… Ei Xingda has her family too, and she seems to like them very much…'
'Its painful to admit it, but they would also become a weakness.'
'The best way for now might be to act relaxed. She isn't the kind of girl to gossip, and if her System analysis is correct, I just need to be careful so as not to cause conflict… I suppose that's the answer…'
'Sigh, I don't want to be a playboy, but I am thinking like one already…'
Lei Bei checked Ei Xingda's favorability one last time before he got up.
[95/100]
'I figured… She almost drowned in love with me. It's actually quite heavy… to know how much someone loves and cares about me…'
Lei Bei was quite good in bed despite his lack of experience, and in one hour, he raised her 50ish favor to 90 just with his bed skills… He wondered if that was because of the nature of the curse pushing his body forward so he could survive… Maybe the Ancient Seal itself had a hand in it as well.
This made him wonder what his favorability was with the girl that 'assaulted' him. Was it good or bad for her?
'On that note, I wonder… how high is my value for each of them?'
…
/Later…/
As he left his room, it was as he expected, Lei Bei did not see even a single girl walking around. Everyone was Cultivating in their own rooms, getting ready for the future…
So it was time for him to do the same.
Lei Bei walked and finally arrived in front of a library ten floors high, although this one only had three actual floors as the rest were false floors used as decoration.
Lei Bei immediately saw his target, an old woman sitting on a chair next to the door. He approached her and bowed as he greeted her. There was no need for him to know who she was; it was a norm that the oldest person in a sect was always some sort of master.
And of course, when he checked with his Skill, her Cultivation realm showed as ???. At the very least, her realm was the same as the Ling Meng's at the Inner Core realm.
That said, he knew who she was; she was one of the protectors of the Sect, this is the name given to disciples that grow and stay in the Sect all of their lives, eventually outgrowing the proper age to be an Elder, slowly disappearing into the shadows of the Sect's history.
Their power is normally high, but their stamina is not. If things get bad, at most they can fight for a while or hold someone of their level down.
"Disciple Lei Bei greets the senior."
She opened her old and tired eyes slightly, smiling as she looked at him, "So it is you, the one that has caused chaos to this place."
Lei Bei felt a bit awkward, "That wasn't purely my fault…"
She smiled and chuckled, finding him amusing.
"True, however, all recent changes have been connected to you, have they not?… Even if they didn't start like that, they are now… And you seem quite 'relaxed' for someone who was working day in and night, no?"
Lei Bei saw her cheeky and smug smile and he smiled like her, "Erm… Ahem… I was lucky…"
"KEKEKE!"
She laughed loudly before coughing, and after a little while she continued, "Just don't go too far, kid! You may be a good man, but these girls are too pure for you! Try to keep it in your pants, otherwise, their parents are going to skin you alive!"
"Oi! I'm not that perverted, okay! It wasn't me who approached first!"
"So she came to you?! How weak for a man!"
Lei Bei retorted as his face grew a little red, "She was too fierce!"
"KEKEKEKE! That's a first! You made me remember my husband… Good old times…"
She gave him a wink and said:
"Don't worry, kid, I will keep this a secret. This old lady had enough gossiping for a lifetime." She smiled, "So? What will it be? I already know that you are here for some Martial Arts, so just ask away… Oh, in fact, you are free to get any technique in this library; this was that little girl's order."
"Oh, really?!"
/BONK!/
Before he could walk in, she lifted her wooden rod and dropped it on his head. It was neither fast nor slow, but Lei Bei couldn't evade it, and it hurt!
"Humph! Not everything at once, boy! Right now, you can either get 5 Yellow Grade Martial Arts from the second floor down, or 1 Profound Grade on the third floor. Once you master those, you can return and ask for more. We'll talk about that when it comes."
She snickered, "Despite the incredible thing you did, I still think it's too much. I know you need to be rewarded, and I hope you can understand my meaning."
He bowed to her, "Of course I do; quantity is not equivalent to quality, and a Profound technique may not be as significant as a well thought out Yellow art…."
She smiled with a nod, "I know now why those girls are falling for you. You're too much of a smooth talker… Now, go! You have until midnight to read what you wish. That should be enough for you, right?"
"If you can't even do that much, I'll be disappointed."
Lei Bei smiled awkwardly, "I should be able to memorize their contents, but mastering it should be hard…"
'Now that I have Study, I should be able to do both… But I have to time my training well.'
"If that is the case, you can always bring them out, but one book at a time; you know the rules, right? I just need the techniques in my hand before nightfall to mark them. You can come collect them whenever you feel the need for a refresh."
Lei Bei nodded. He knew most of the rules as a certain lady in charge shoved them down his throat as he made the pills…
/Creak…/
The doors to the library opened, and he made his way inside…
…
There weren't that many books in the library, but the number of System prompts was overwhelming.
[Wind Cutter, Fast Fist, Yellow-Low]
[Bell Crush Stomp, Yellow-Low]
[Violet Blossom Qi, Yellow-Average]
[Gush Fist, Yellow-Inferior]
[…]
All sorts of Martial Arts and their ranks were displayed for him, making him quite confused about what to get.
And funny enough, most of the techniques of the Sect had wind as their base… curious…
"... Hum… The yellow books are martial techniques of the Yellow Grade. Red books are notes made from previous martial artists, so they aren't techniques per se; they are here to help with comprehension."
'And the Brown books are modifications of normal techniques made by the people who trained in them, some are better, some are worse, but you can only practice one of them… Still very good for reference though.'
'It's really a hard choice. Do you stick with the classic, or do you follow your predecessor's steps and learn his variation of the technique?'
'Anyhow, I already know what I want… But it doesn't hurt to look around the place and see if I can find something good… I doubt that would be the case since the previous Mc never came here, so the author had no plans for this place.'
"Let's start with this bookshelf…"
…
One by one, Lei Bei checked the books. He memorized the Yellow Grade ones that were of High Quality and above, paying attention to all Profound Grade ones he found and the few that were Semi-Profound Tier…
The quality of a technique merely meant how strong/complex it was within its given tier. The grading followed the same method as before. Trash/Inferior -> Low -> Average -> High -> Peerless and so on…
In fact, even herbs were divided into grades… Human -> Yellow -> Profound -> Earth -> Heaven and so on…
Mid-way through, a thought came into his mind… what about the Human Grade Martial Arts? Although they were martial arts of mortals, they represented the basis of everything…
So he went back to the old lady…
"Human Tier? Do you perhaps wish to enrich your mind with the basis of Martial Arts?"
Lei Bei nodded.
"That is a good thinking process to have, but I recommend you to master at least one or two Yellow Grade Martial Arts first before trying to do that, else you may get confused or waste your time, and time is precious for youngsters like you."
Thanking the old lady, Lei Bei continued to check the martial arts…
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Notes
Chapter 13 Infinite Power!
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Amidst his efforts to find good martial arts, cultivation techniques, Skills to add to his status, materials to collect, medicine to forge, changing the plot, and improving his relationship with everyone…
A whole month passed!
Just one week left until the conference, a lot had happened!
Lei Bei himself did not stop for once! One month ago, after much look-around, he took two Yellow techniques and later he chose two more before calling it a day.
There was no need to master a lot, nor a need to master everything.
They were…
A famed technique of the Sect, the Cloud and Wind Fist, Yellow-Average rank fist technique.
Another famed technique, the Cloud and Wind kick, Yellow-Average rank kick technique.
Rising Wind Step, the modified version of the Semi-Profound movement technique Gale Walk Stride! Despite being considered a Yellow Grade technique by the Sect, the System measured it as Profound-Average!
And lastly, a killing move, Tempest Wind Palm, Semi-Profound palm technique.
He reached 1st Mastery for them all within a single day, but he divided the times he reported his progress so he wouldn't gather even more attention to himself.
He wanted to make people think he was talented in alchemy because of the story he told them, and not a monster of cultivation as well... things like that needed time.
Then again, his story wasn't a lie. One of the Mc's late great-grandfathers was indeed a famed pharmacist…
Unfortunately, that happened in the center of the continent, and he never came back to give the things to his son that he left here in the Lei Family ancestor grounds… He died to the Lei Family curse and left his inheritance for his bloodline... His wife was a normal person, a woman he impregnated on the village before he left for his journey.
The only reason he made it so far was that his curse triggered only late in life. And if he weren't someone so loyal to his wife he left behind, he might've figured out how to break the cycle by having Dual Cultivation with anyone, but he didn't know…
But now that he had reached 1st Mastery, what was he supposed to do with the rest of the month?… Well, he did exactly what he was supposed to do.
He stocked himself with pills and other medicinal products and raw materials. He found a better cultivation technique, the continuation of the one he currently had, Starburst Heart Art, a Profound-High Cultivation Technique!
He didn't find it by mistake. He found it after cruising the Sect's Library and finding it tucked away in the corner. He knew that it was the best one this Minor Sect had to offer. He wouldn't find anything better than that.
He found it on his third day after visiting the library and reporting he had mastered one of the techniques to the old lady. She allowed him to take another technique, and this was the one he chose after visiting the third floor.
He even sneaked onto the fourth floor but found nothing better. Even if he had, he wouldn't have been allowed to read them given the old lady observing him from afar… Even if she couldn't see him, she could sense his every movement.
With that technique, he broke through Foundation Establishment in the following days after reaching sufficient mastery over it.
In the meantime, he would give advice to the girls that went to his house in the herb garden, focusing his all on reading it.
The Pavilion Lord also visited him to inform him she would give him a proper house later. Unfortunately, since she needed him to make a big impact for her plans to bear fruit, it was best for him to remain there for now.
He complied… he liked that home, anyway. Why would he even try to leave when he had peace and constant visits from the pretty girls? Even if he did nothing, it was enough for him to constantly work on raising their affection.
Until the time arrived, he focused all of his efforts on making himself and the pavilion stronger. He knew that with all his efforts, it would be quite a spectacle next week… although that fame would most likely be short lived.
After a month of pill making and hard training, the current average cultivation in the Medicine Pavilion was… Foundation Establishment, 8th Level!
Lei Bei himself was at the peak of this realm after much hard work! But he had no intention of having a breakthrough anytime soon… Or at least he would've had… If it wasn't for a big problem.
The Medicine Pavilion… ran out of herbs!
Because the pavilion had been sealed a few weeks prior, this also meant they had nearly ceased collecting materials from outside. This greatly troubled Ling Meng as she never expected such a thing to occur…
But she was fine with it since Lei Bei paid her with many pills and stronger disciples. In time, the pavilion's strength would only rise!
If only Lei Bei could tell her the truth…
In any case, with his increase in cultivation, he was finally able to visualize Ling Meng's cultivation. She was a Foundation Refinement Level 7 cultivator. She was just shy of reaching Inner Core, the highest realm of the Sect!
The only one above that was the Sect Master. But he was an old monster who had been around for… centuries.
With that in mind, Lei Bei tried his best to improve her realm. After some trial and error, he made her a Flesh and Bone Refinement Pill so she could reach the peak of her realm.
With this Ling Meng went from Level 7 to Peak! And after stabilizing her cultivation for a week, she broke through with a Core Condensing Pill Lei Bei made moments after…
Ahhh, the power of doping was quite great, wasn't it?… That said, it was quite a pain to make it even with his knowledge, but he succeeded after a few tries as always.
With it, she became one of the few Inner Core Cultivators of the Sect and the youngest of them all!
Lei Bei still thought that wasn't enough, but he had to accept the fact that he only had so much time and resources to work with. During the month, he also made a few tasks that popped up, and with that, he actually reached high Levels of favorability with several of the apprentices on an individual level, but he was not pressed for time as he still had a month before his timer ran out.
He had learned to be frugal and to keep it in his pants. He only had so much time, and he had to make the most of it... A few of the girls made attempts at him, but he courteously refused them, but this only seemed to increase their hunger for him…
The thing is, had his first "girlfriend" come to him, he would've done it without issue, but she did not visit him after their first time together.
He thought it was strange, but when he visited her, she just fled in embarrassment... He knew how she felt; he was no different… Besides; she wasn't the only one like that, several other ladies, including the lady in charge now acted like that around him, which was quite a bother since it made him feel he had done something wrong.
How was he supposed to act when half of the girls just fled when they saw him? Well… if he grew desperate, he always knew who to go to…
With all of that combined, the current average favorability in the Medicine Pavilion was that of 85… That was the power of someone who made use of his gifts to their maximum instead of being a fucking idiot like the original Mc.
The only one he had issues raising favorability with was Ling Meng herself, but thanks to his efforts, her favorability had already reached 75, over double of what it was a month ago!
With his extra time, he also asked her for permission to leave the pavilion. Despite her immense protest given her plans, he asked only to be given access to the general libraries of each pavilion so he could expand his horizons.
After much thought, she refused his request but said she would bring some books from the other libraries whenever she could so they would fill his interest.
It wasn't what he wanted exactly, but with that he did manage to gain a few extra Skills.
As all of that happened, he also tried to sneak in some physical training as well. Due to his low vitality thanks to curse and… well… dying, he needed to recover some of that lost energy somehow.
Pills worked until a certain point. For him to reach tip-top condition, he'd need lots of training, treasures, and above all, dual cultivation to stimulate his lingering energy!
Only then would he truly recover to the pinnacle of his body…
…
/Poof…/
"Haaa… I'm tired…"
As he lay on the bed and rested, Lei Bei muttered:
"Status Screen."
[Name: Lei Bei {Cursed}
Realm: Peak of Foundation Establishment
Cultivation Method: Starburst Heart Art 3rd Mastery
>General Skills: Identification; Spatial Awareness Lv6; Qi Flight Lv1;
>Alchemy Skills: Intermediate Pill Refining {Incomplete} LvMax; Intermediate Herb Cultivation LvMax; Basic Herb Appraisal LvMax; Basic Herb Handling LvMax;
>Refining Skills: Intermediate Material Refining {Incomplete} LvMax; Intermediate Forging Method LvMax; Basic Hammering Technique LvMax
>Formation Skills: Elementary Formation Creation {Incomplete} LvMax
>Combat Skills: Basic Knife Proficiency Lv4; Elementary Grappling Proficiency LvMax; Elementary Throwing Proficiency LvMax
Martial Arts:
Cloud and Wind Fist 3rd Mastery; Cloud and Wind Kick 3rd Mastery; Rising Wind Step 3rd Mastery; Tempest Wind Palm 3rd Mastery
]
"I'm already a monster… This is so easy…"
'Oops, I shouldn't have said that out loud…'
'But to be honest, as long as you can use your head, it's so easy to succeed with the cheats. I don't even have to do much. As long as I work hard, even if its tiring work that'll make me sore all over for days, I'll succeed.'
'Still… how strong am I?'
'The Starburst Heart Art is probably among the strongest techniques of the Sect if not the one. Coupled with my 3rd Mastery, unless someone has an Earth Grade Cultivation Art, I'll never be suppressed from that alone.'
'It might even be one of the highest in the region, surpassing most techniques seen at the start of the story.'
'All of my martial arts have been mastered and perfected, thus surpassing their 2nd Mastery. I have also begun to understand the innermost layers that compose them. If my cultivation was higher, I would've been able to manifest their unique energy, also known as Intent.'
'I have many pills hidden on me. If I take all of them, I can temporarily increase my cultivation to the next stage like those young masters do in these kinds of story.'
'Since I'm almost at Foundation Refinement, I have almost been granted the power of flight. Once someone reaches that realm, they can use their own energy to propel themselves off the ground and fly, but it's not true flight… for one to fly unrestricted, they need to go beyond Inner Core.'
'I have also practiced my combat skills more. These are exceptionally important if I wish to dominate my opponents or to keep up with the talented ones.'
'On that note, I pursued extra knowledge and got my hands on the most basic information on Formations. This way I won't be utterly ignorant if I'm ever faced with one while also being able to employ them if needed.'
'The same goes for Refining. The previous me didn't pursue these fields until way later in the story. Getting them early is a boon that will keep on giving if I play my cards right.'
"Put it all together… I am definitely strong enough to beat someone above my realm."
'But above that is unrealistic… Maybe if I face someone who isn't good at fighting… but I'm certain that once I reach Foundation Refinement, I'll likely be able to face a 3rd or even 4th Level right then and there.'
'If I can train more and gather more knowledge, I may be able to face even higher Levels. And with the right equipment, pills, and if you get more experience… maybe even higher.'
'What matters is the pacing. I'm as strong as the previous me was in his first three months. Right now, it's been… a bit over fifty days since I awakened in this shabby body… pardon, great body… At this time, he was still at the 9th Layer of Qi Formation and he was still mostly useless.'
'The issue is the progression of things… Can I alter the fate of the story with my current power?… I think I'd only have a chance if I reached Inner Core, and even then I would barely qualify.'
"I'll have to be creative to take the reins…"
/Knock knock/
He heard someone knock on his door, waking him up from his ponderation…
"Give me a moment!"
/Creak!/
"Hum… Pavilion Master? Welcome!"
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Notes
Chapter 14 Fire Demon
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Rather than greeting him back, Ling Meng raised an eyebrow at his words.
"... Is that how you welcome your superiors? Aren't you getting a bit too cocky, boy?" She asked with a smile as she got inside
/Clack!/
Closing the door behind him, Lei Bei laughed, "Sis Ling, what brings you here so early in the morning?"
[DING]
[Special Task: Fire Demon Suppression has been generated]
The System prompt made his eyes twitch. But thankfully, she didn't notice.
He knew this task. It might've been quite some time since he came to this world, but in his first few days, Lei Bei wrote a long diary with all the key events he remembered, and over the days, he added more and more.
At the same time, as his cultivation increased and his memory grew stronger, certain events he couldn't remember were also slowly returning to him. Albeit it was impossible to bring forth some events cleared from his mind unless he went into his Soul where all of his life was imprinted.
'This task was only supposed to start way in the future after the Mc reunited with the others following the Sect's destruction… I can tell why it happened though. With her breakthrough ahead of time and her high affinity for me, the event must've been brought forward.'
"It's simple, I came here to ask you for a favor." She asked as she put her right hand on her chin
Lei Bei touched the back of his head with a faint smile, "I haven't been doing much recently, to be honest. As you can see, I've reached the Peak of the Foundation Establishment and am now reinforcing my cultivation so I can enter Refinement."
"I'm a little bored, so just say the word. I would never refuse helping you, sis."
Hearing this, she smiled faintly. Her hands slid onto her shoulders as she took off her clothes.
This, however, did not fluster him in the least… or so he tried to show… some part of him was reacting without his consent, and no matter how much he tried to hide it, she could see it.
She did not show what she thought of that, though.
She removed a part of her top dress and showed her back to him. There, he saw a strange and complex red symbol imprinted on her back.
It was similar to the seal on his chest, albeit the shape and its contents were utterly unique and held no resemblance to his… in the end, it was also something completely different in nature to his curse was.
"When I was small, my father sealed a powerful red demon within my body in order to raise my fire affinity and help with my cultivation. But because of some events, he and I got separated, and now there is no one to suppress the fire demon within me."
"Before we parted ways, he suppressed most of the demon, but as I grew stronger, it also grew stronger, and now that I have broken through, it has started to cause trouble."
"I have solidified my foundation, but I can't go to the conference without taking care of it for now, so I need help… But I have no one apart from you for this."
"I see."
'Even after all this, she still refuses to admit her past… It is true she has separated from her father, but the way it happened was certainly not as she hinted at. She makes it seem as if they separated due to some event… well… it can be seen as that.'
'She was essentially cast out of her family residence to cultivate and prove herself. Sent across half the continent to the middle of nowhere and tasked with the challenge to return home with some power or never to return.'
'In other words, she was abandoned… Same for Qiu Yinghan. But in her case, Qiu was given protectors since she was believed to have the talent to return… If she can awaken her bloodline, her guards will take her back, otherwise, she's being left to rot in the middle of nowhere.'
'The guards also have another goal… to prevent them from procreating. If they have children, the guards are to kill them so their bloodline does not spread outside their clan. There are some conditions where the children won't be killed, though.'
'It's truly a complicated issue…'
"Have you been captivated by my shoulders? I'll have to disappoint you here. That wasn't my goal this time." She said with a faint, seductive smile as she turned to look at him
"Uhh!… My apologies. I was just thinking about what you said… I don't know much about demons, apart from a few pills that can help with that… Do you need me to make one?"
She shook her head, "That is only a temporary method, and I already did my best in that regard. Don't forget that I am the Pavilion Master, I am the best at refining demons and medicine in the Sect!"
"What I need is a measure that will last this entire realm so it doesn't get in my way in the future… And I already have it… I just need someone's help to suppress the demon while I do it."
Lei Bei smiled. Nothing out of the ordinary.
"Just tell me what to do!"
Seeing his enthusiasm, she turned back to look at her hands.
"We can do it here. Once I start, if the demon tries to materialize, you only need to smack it away."
"Seems simple enough… but are you sure we can do it here? This is a wooden house in the middle of a herb field. A fire demon doesn't seem to fit here…"
Ling Meng thought for a while before nodding. She grabbed his arm and pulled him as she left the house and flew in the sky! Pulling Lei Bei like a rag doll.
Feeling depressed, he muttered, "Sigh, is it my fate to be pulled around by you?…"
"At least you are being pulled around by a pretty girl. Keep working like that, and I'll pull you with me a few more times."
"How about a simple hug or holding my hand instead?"
She chuckled, "Still a bit too short, perhaps in another 90 years."
"You sure do have high standards, sis. Only ten years after all that? Can I get a discount? I'm afraid that long is too much…"
She smiled as her glasses shone under the sun.
"No can do."
"Then what are your standards? I'm a flexible man… in more ways than one…"
"Pffft! Haha… Figure that out yourself." She said with a hearty laugh as Lei Bei frowned
"And I thought those books were complicated…"
…
They eventually arrived at an enormous cavern at the top of the nearby mountains. Inside, Lei Bei saw a room made out of stone and covered in tapestry.
/Shua…/
Not long after they arrived, Ling Meng took out the top section of her clothes and turned her back to him like before, sitting down on the ground at the center of an already written formation
With a nod, he sat down next to her, preparing for the inevitable, 'Now that I think about it, she already prepared this place so why did she come to my home and caused that ruckus?… Did she want to check out my reaction or something?'
Rolling his eyes, Lei Bei gave her a few pills in order to increase her strength, and she took them without even asking.
Now, within a minute of their arrival, she started the process…
"..."
'I didn't expect to get involved in this so soon… This may seem simple, but it's far from that. The moment I help her, I will be offending several groups at once.'
'The one I need to worry about the most is the clan this demon belongs to. They're quite powerful and hail from another world that will only become part of the story later down in the plot.'
'I'm not willing to get involved with them quite yet, so this must end perfectly so I'm not affected.'
/Crackle!/
As he observed Ling Meng's smooth back, the symbol on her back shone as fire rose into the sky and into the formation inscribed in the ceiling.
/Shine…/
As it ignited, the faint outline of a demonic hammerhead shark formed in the air, devouring the flames without end…
"Finally, I…"
/BANG!/
Lei Bei did not hesitate and punched with his killing move, making the demon shadow scatter and turn to ash… The ashes were then devoured by the shark, leaving nothing behind.
/Form…/
"YO…"
/BANG!/
The demon formed again, and Lei Bei punched it down without mercy. Immediately after, he began condensing his energy, waiting for it to form again.
/Form…/
"MORT…"
/BANG!/
Each time it formed, it seemed to grow a little stronger. But at the same time, the symbol on her back also began to change. It seemed to move on her skin, spinning around and rewriting itself as Ling Meng strengthened the foundations of the formations and seals inscribed onto her body.
'Now that I think about it, alchemy is only a field she's proficient in, not what she majors in. Demon Refinement isn't the same as alchemy, and it can be considered a form of Material Refinement.'
'She is probably the most proficient in demonology, curses, sorcery, formations, refinement, and so on before she alchemy… This position of hers truly is making light of her abilities.'
'That said, given she's been here for over ten years, maybe almost fifteen years, it makes me imagine just where she takes her education from?… Do the guards provide her with supplies from the family just so she can keep learning? That would break the pact of the proving grounds though…'
'Urg, another plothole not responded in the story… I assume she might have a backer in the family that isn't exactly found of her and Qiu Yinghan's situations.'
/Form…/
"PATHETIC…"
/BANG!/
This time, the demon did not die in a single strike…
"… MORTAL!"
/BANG!/
Even so, it wasn't fast enough for it to defy Lei Bei.
'That last strike probably carried the full might of a Foundation Refinement 4th Level… Maybe even higher. Come on, Ling Meng… get it over with…'
/Form…/
This time, the full form of the demon took shape. A tall creature with a broad serpentine shape and fiery red scales. Black deer antlers rose from its forehead as multiple pairs of eyes stared down at him from above.
"Your efforts are futile…"
/BANG!/
"Mortal… Your limited power can not…"
/BANG!/
"ENOUGH!"
"I think the same. DIE FOR ME!"
'Even if I have to shatter this whole mountaintop!'
The full might of the Tempest Wind Palm!
Tyrannic air currents formed around his palm, fusing together into an air drill where the air was so thick his hand couldn't be seen anymore.
"MORTAL! DO YOU KNOW NOT THE CONSEQUENCES OF YOUR ACTIONS?!"
/BANG!/
His palm struck the demon's chest, pushing it back into the hammerhead shark formation.
"I only know that you're between me and her! So get the hell out!!"
/PRESS!/
He pressed forward with his whole body, using every reserve of energy to reinforce his attack!
"URRRG!! If only I weren't bound!! I wouldn't be so easily pushed back by a mere human!"
"REMEMBER MORTAL! I know your scent! I will take my revenge! And above all… I WILL TAKE OVER THIS BODY!" The demon exclaimed as its body turned to ash once more
"Huff… I'm sorry… But I already booked her… she's mine, asshole…"
/Dim…/
Soon enough, Ling Meng's back returned to normal as the runes stopped moving and the fire extinguished. With that, the formations turned down, and she took a deep breath, balancing her cultivation.
At the same time, Lei Bei could feel her cultivation rise rapidly. He already knew she was at the 2nd Layer of the Inner Core, but right now, her energy kept rising and without rest!
As the demon's power was broken down and incorporated into her body, her constitution changed as her bloodline was refined!
/Boom!/
3rd Layer!
/Boom!/
4th Layer!
/Boom!/
5th Layer!
/Boom!/
6th Layer!
/Boom!/
7th Layer!
/Boom!/
8th Layer!
It was only then that her cultivation stopped rising… and in good time as Lei Bei couldn't stand the heat emanating from her body anymore.
'This is insane… I knew the demon inside of her was immensely powerful, but just a tiny fragment of its power being broken down resulted in this much of an increase? If she had risen just a bit more, she might've had the power to prevent the fall of the Qinguan Sect alone!'
'The biggest issue would be taking down the Sect Master whose body is being controlled by the Vice Master. But with this much power… she may have the strength to push down and thwart their plans!'
He thought deeply… 'If the Iguinio Sect's plan for this Sect can be repelled, then it may be possible to save all disciples and the Sect itself. While we'll have to flee regardless since the Iguinio Sect is only part of a greater issue, at least the people can be saved!'
'This would alter the fate of things considerably… I'll have to rethink my plans one more time.'
It had been around half an hour since they had begun the ritual and fifteen minutes since the demon's subjugation. As the heat died down and Ling Meng recovered her breath, she got up from the ground and turned to face Lei Bei who was still thinking deeply.
/HUG!/
"!!"
Forgetting she had the upper portion of her dress down, she hugged him tightly, pressing her chest against his! But he did not get flustered, and instead, he congratulated her and he hugged her back.
"Congratulations sister. please accept this pill as a gift." He said as he gave her a blue pill, it glowed fairly, and there were even some blue clouds moving around it…
'I was saving this for me but I'll go all in! No time to explain things to her… If she can break through the next realm… Then there might be a chance to alter the fate of this Sect!'
It was a legendary pill! One of the few he had made during his pill-making spree around a month ago! It was one of three pills he made, with the other two becoming high-quality "failures".
It has to be mentioned that Inner Core materials are hard to procure for this Sect, much less for a small pavilion whose budget was stretched thin…
These materials were tucked away at the highest security points of the pavilion… Just to make these three pills, it took all the respective materials the Medicine Pavilion had.
"!!!"
Seeing the Pill, Ling Meng almost lost her composure, but she smiled widely and took it, nonetheless.
"You truly never cease to impress me, Lei Bei…"
"Well… I did use all relevant materials in the warehouse… Some of those needed the permission of the Vice Masters to be used…"
'I took them because I knew the sect was going to be destroyed. So why care if I was committing a crime or not? No one was going to check, and even if they did, it would be the disciples of the pavilion whose favorability is already high!'
But as expected, she didn't seem to mind, shaking her head, "It doesn't matter. One success already pays it off even if you were to fail ten times over…"
'He's given me so much… I can tell he was holding this for himself. It makes me feel bad to eat it, but... since he said all of that, he won't mind if I take a bit more~…'
And as she said that, she noticed her big breasts were out in the open. She looked at Lei Bei with a half-embarrassed smile.
"Why didn't you say anything?"
But Lei Bei looked at the ceiling with a serious expression, "The Sun rises and the Moon falls, what can I do towards the beauty of nature if not appreciate it?"
His words made Ling Meng's eyebrows twitch.
[DING]
[Special Task: Fire Demon suppression has been completed]
[Ling Meng Favor +20]
She sighed as she saw his carefree smile, "I'll stay and use the pill then. I am sure the Sect Master will have quite the surprise when he sees me at the next conference. You, on the other hand… Good job; there isn't much for you to do now."
"Speaking of that… here. I still have two more of those pills… although they are of lower quality."
"Really… I'll accept then…"
"These are not for you, I'm afraid… That pill alone will overflow you with power… These are for the Vice Master."
"Oh? Already trying to play politics? It's barely been two months and yet here you are trying to gather favor with the higher authorities."
"You could say that's the case… well, it never hurts to share. It helps advertise my expertise! If she takes charge, then I doubt I'll ever run into trouble. It doesn't cost much anyway…"
'If the Vice Master can raise her power ahead of time… then the tide of battle might just tilt!'
"You say that knowing the materials all came from my pavilion… I'll give these to her soon enough. I'll make sure she knows they came from you… Now then, you can go… unless you have more for your sister~"
Lei Bei raised an eyebrow, "No rewards?"
"Didn't you just get it?"
Lei Bei looked into her eyes and said with a dramatic voice:
"No one asks for the sun to come up, and no one asks for the night to pass. I…"
/BONK!/
She knocked on his head, "Stop with your fancy way of saying that it was an accident. I get it…"
"I didn't say I didn't like it… !!"
She bent down and kissed him on the cheek, and with a smile she added, "Done, now leave."
He got upset as he raised his hands to fight, "... Tsk! That is just because you are stronger you treat me like a pushover! Wait till I become…"
"Hum… I think I heard you say something rather strange about 'owning me' before… did I hear that right? I don't quite remember…"
Lei Bei puffed his chest proudly, "That wasn't exactly what I said. But if you've already forgotten, then I shall say it again with pride! I, Lei Bei, do not take back my statements! I said that you're mine!…"
/SHUAAA!!/
She raised her hand and threw him outside with nothing but the air pressure of her hand moving in the air.
"L-Let's talk again when we can, sister!…"
/CLACK!/
With the large stone doors closing behind him as he flew down the mountain, her face blushed slightly as her heart started to beat faster.
"This boy doesn't hold back at all. I… am I?... Sigh…"
She looked at the doors with some regret, "I can't pull him into my matters… Although… He is already involved in everything now… The demon won't let him be… he's marked by his tribe."
"I've asked too much of him and given him almost nothing. He calls me master, but how can I call myself that?… What am I truly?…"
'Does he mean what he says or is he trying to uplift my spirit?… This playboy… making me think about such things given my circumstances… Is my little sister not enough? Hell… the whole pavilion?'
"When the time comes… I will leave it to fate. If by then he still wishes to follow me… I…"
With a smile, Ling Meng sat on the ground and focused… She needed to reinforce her cultivation now and press onwards to a greater realm.
…
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Notes