The next day, Li Yuan decided to celebrate this major win by taking a day off. He promised himself he would do nothing productive. No cultivation, ho hunting spirit beasts, nothing.

  He slept late and woke only after sunlight had crept through the cracks in his warped shutters. For a while, he simply lay there, listening.

  Birds chirped outside. In the distance, a few disciples spoke to one another. Beyond that, after last night's violent storm, the world felt… still.

  Inside, something had finally eased. A weight he had carried ever since learning that the Shu family might one day destroy the Li family had loosened at last.

  Shu Dong was dead.

  And his halo had remained pristine white ever since.

  Which meant that whoever the Shu family sent to investigate the brothers' deaths would likely find nothing at all.

  After all, while Shu family was a powerful family, it also meant that they had a lot of enemies. Once they make a list of all their enemies, his name might not even appear at the bottom of the page.

  Which was a great thing in his mind.The last thing he needed was to start a feud with the Shu family.

  He had always feared that kind of cliché escalation the most.

  You kill the young master—his elder brother comes for revenge. You kill the brother—his family sends someone to take revenge. You survive that—an elder steps in. After the elder, the Sect Leader appears. Then the Grand Elder.

  And finally, when you've killed the Grand Elder and are on the verge of destroying their clan, their ancestor would rise from his coffin like fucking Undertaker and kick your ass all the way from Sunday to Monday.

  Worse, once you've killed the Ancestor and destroyed the clan, you'll then learn that the clan's daughter was married off to an even more powerful family. The daughter would then instigate her husband (the young master of that clan) to take revenge for her family. The young master would then come after you and die at your hands.

  And the entire cycle begins again.

  Nah. Fuck that shit. He did not want to spend the next few decades fighting battles after battles after battles and destroying families after families just because they kept coming after him.

  With his Fortune and the Stele, he would probably survive that kind of escalation. Trial after trial would temper him, harden him, push him higher.

  But... he did not want that life.

  He would rather stay on his bed, feeling lazy. And do things at his own pace. Slow and steady.

  If all went well, he would live a very, very long time. So why rush?

  He remained in his bed for a while, enjoying the rare comfort, until boredom finally nudged him upright. A satisfied yawn escaped him as he rolled his shoulders, stretching until his joints cracked softly.

  A faint smile lingered on his face as he washed up and stepped outside.

  And then paused at the sight of his courtyard. The grass, already unruly before, had grown even taller after last night's rain.

  He sighed. Fine. Since he has a free day, he might as deal with it and make it seem like someone actually lived in this hovel.

  He took out his sword, and knelt down before using Mountain-Splitting Stillness sword. A crescent blade of Qi emerged from his blade and passed through the grass in his courtyard, cutting through them as if someone had taken a giant, invisible scythe to their base.

  He then repeated the process on the left side of the courtyard before he got up and looked at the end result, feeling quite proud of himself, and just a tad bit sad.

  'I could've grown a beautiful garden here,' he thought. 'If I hadn't been so busy with cultivation… and everything else.'

  The thought stirred something unexpected in him. For a moment, he wondered if endlessly chasing higher realms and greater strength had truly been the right path.

  Back when he had lagged behind—when he needed power just to survive among his fellow disciples—the urgency had made sense.

  But now? His situation had improved. He was stronger than nearly every Outer Sect disciple. Surely he could afford to slow down.

  He nodded to himself and added a few things to his mental list: grow a proper garden, repair the roof so it no longer leaked, lay a cobbled path so the courtyard wouldn't turn to mud each time it rained.

  Simple things.

  Then, with a calm smile, he stepped out of his courtyard and wandered through the sect without any particular destination in mind.

  As he had promised himself, he had nothing productive to do today. He simply wanted to relax and enjoy the quiet.

  So he wandered, hands tucked loosely into his sleeves, posture unguarded as he took in his surroundings.

  In the distance, he could see where the landslide had torn through a row of Outer Sect residences, reducing them to rubble. He paused, quietly grateful that his own house had survived the storm—despite the leaks and all.

  A landslide like that would not normally kill someone in the Qi Condensation Realm. But losing one's home would still be miserable.

  He studied the wreckage for a moment longer, reminding himself to appreciate small mercies, then moved on.

  Disciples passed him without paying attention. Outer Sect members filled the paths—running errands, hauling baskets, arguing over merit points, grumbling about cultivation resources they could never quite obtain.

  Amid the noise and movement, he noticed something he had never paid attention to before.

  Everyone was in a rush. They hurried past one another as if chasing a departing carriage, afraid of being left behind.

  It made him pause.

  'Do I look like that on normal days too?' he wondered.

  The answer was probably yes.

  He once read a line: He who hurries through his life, hurries to his death.

  He had never felt it resonate as strongly as he did now.

  Ironically, the words had come from a pirate in a novel. Though "pirate" hardly did the man justice, as he had commanded more than thirty ships under his banner.

  'A mortal pirate had more wisdom than most cultivators,' Li Yuan mused with faint amusement. He smiled and began observing the disciples around him more carefully.

  And what reached his ears—

  was gossip.

  So much gossip.

  He slowed his steps, letting conversations wash over him.

  "…did you hear? Core Disciple Zhang tried to break through last night."

  "Golden Core?"

  "Are you stupid? Of course Golden Core. If it was Nascent Soul, then the entire sect would've gone on a complete lockdown."

  "I heard he failed to break through. Is that true?"

  "Yeah. But the elders intervened and saved his life at the last moment."

  "Still… failing a tribulation like that. His foundation must be damaged."

  "Better damaged than dead."

  Li Yuan kept walking as he mulled over that piece of information. 'A Core Disciple breaking through. So that's what happened last night.' He thought.

  Unauthorized usage: this tale is on Amazon without the author's consent. Report any sightings.

  Once, he would have felt envious of that disciple—even though the man had failed to break through. He would have wondered when his own chance would come.

  Or if it ever would.

  Now, that anxiety was gone. No more rushing. No more quiet panic. When his time came, it would come. And when it did, he would be ready.

  He listened more closely to the surrounding conversations. Most of the disciples were discussing the same topic—the core disciple who had failed his breakthrough the previous night.

  Much of what he heard was useless. But a few details were worth noting.

  Apparently, each year, the Inner Sect held a competition. And the three disciples who showed the greatest talent were selected as core disciples.

  Core disciples were heavily invested in by the sect. They were groomed as its future pillars. And each of them was granted a formal opportunity to attempt a Golden Core breakthrough.

  Succeed, and you became a minor elder of the sect. Fail… and there was always a next attempt. Though after one failure, the difficulty increased, and you would have to gather the resources for the next breakthrough yourself.

  Of course, not everything was as simple as it seemed. From what he had heard, becoming a core disciple required renouncing your family name. From that moment on, the sect would become your only family.

  He wasn't sure he could make that sacrifice. Power mattered in this world. But his family had stood by him when the sect had barely acknowledged his existence.

  If he hadn't possessed his cheats, perhaps he might have considered it—assuming he had even survived long enough to reach that stage. Now, though, the answer was clear.

  No.

  He would not abandon his family for a sect that had never truly cared about him.

  And besides, it was only the Golden Core Realm. Such a cultivation level might seem Impressive here, but in the wider world? He doubted Golden Core cultivators were anything rare.

  With his cheats, was there really any doubt that he would not reach a realm like that given enough time?

  He shook his head and kept walking.

  Then someone called out behind him. "Senior Brother?"

  His steps slowed, then stopped. Li Yuan turned to face the person who just called him.

  A girl stood a few paces away, hands clasped tightly in front of her, shoulders stiff with nerves.

  She was an outer disciple, judging by her plain robes. Her cultivation was at 3rd stage of Qi Condensation. The same as his had been when he first arrived in this world. Though she did have quite an incredible figure. Heavy breasts that strained to fit inside her robes, a slim waist, and… child bearing hips, as some people would call it.

  He'd just call her thick. Or stacked. Either word suited her, really.

  The girl bowed quickly. "Thank you, Senior brother."

  Eh!?

  He frowned slightly. "For…?"

  Her head snapped up, eyes widening in realisation and shame. "You don't remember me?"

  He studied her again, then searched backward through memory—after a long moment, he remembered something. A Vision and a black halo.

  Ah…

  Recognition clicked into place.

  "You were the girl who almost died to that Silver Chest Direbear a month ago." he said.

  Her breath hitched, and her face lit up with relief. "You do remember!"

  He gave a small nod.

  In truth, he had helped more people than he could easily recall. Not out of pure kindness—he had no illusions about being a saint—but to balance out his Karma.

  He might look down on the cultivators of this world, but he still felt a trace of guilt whenever he took an opportunity meant for someone else.

  Yes, cultivators were selfish by nature. But they still had their own lives. Lives he had, in some cases, made harder by claiming something that would have been theirs.

  So when he saw grey halos drifting toward misfortune, or black halos spiralling toward death, he stepped in.

  Not always, as it wasn't always possible for him to do so due to various circumstances. But he tried his best to do so as often as possible.

  This girl was someone like that who had gone to the edge of the forbidden forest to look for herbs, and had become a Silver Chest Direbear's lunch. Or she would've had he not take a short detour during his hunt to save her life.

  The girl bowed again, deeper this time, and he did his best to not peek down her deep cleavage. "I wanted to thank you properly. I didn't get the chance back then. I was injured, and you left so quickly…"

  Her cheeks flushed. She hesitated, then forced the words out. "If you'd allow it, Senior Brother… I could take you to my room, and… um… show you my gratitude."

  It took him a moment to register those words in his mind and realise what she meant. The girl was proposing to him. For sex.

  That… had never happened to him before. And now that it did, he wasn't sure how to feel about it. Or how to react, to be frank.

  It wouldn't be a lie to say that he blue screened for a moment.

  Li Yuan blinked once, gaze drifting over her face, her lips, the faint tremor in her fingers. She was beautiful. More so than most other female disciples in the sect. And considering that cultivators in themselves were almost all beautiful by nature… that easily made her a 10/10.

  A part of him wanted to accept her offer immediately, and lose himself in those bountiful breasts of hers, or clap those cheeks from behind.

  The mere thought of doing all that to the girl in front of him gave him a hard on.

  But then… common sense and wisdom prevailed.

  He did not know the girl. And as much as he did not want to be overly suspicious, this world had taught him caution.

  For all he knew, it could be a trap. She might be practicing some obscure dual cultivation technique that would bind him to her, drain him dry while leaving him helplessly dependent.

  Or she could simply be ambitious—looking to attach herself to someone stronger through intimacy.

  There were too many possibilities.

  He had read enough stories to know that getting involved with a stranger (especially a beautiful one) rarely ended well.

  The worst part was this:

  Even if she was sincere about her feelings, he still could not accept.

  With his cheats, he was destined to climb far on the path of cultivation. He did not want to grow close to someone whose talent would leave her far behind.

  He could already picture it. Her hair turning grey. Her cultivation stagnating. Her body weakening with age while he remained unchanged. And in the end... him standing alone before her grave.

  He shook his head. "No," he said quietly.

  Her face fell.

  "I don't…" She swallowed. "Did I offend you somehow senior brother?"

  "No. I just… want to focus on cultivation and don't want any distractions." He lied.

  She stared at him for a moment, and then nodded. Disappointment settled into her features—not anger, not resentment. Just a quiet ache.

  After a moment, she stepped forward anyway, rose onto her toes, and pressed a brief kiss to his cheek.

  "Still," she said softly, pulling back. "Thank you for saving my life senior brother. And if you ever need my help, know that Chen'er will be there for you."

  Then she turned and walked away, shoulders straight and stiff as she did her best not to look back.

  Li Yuan watched her go until she disappeared into the crowd. Then, he sighed and facepalmed himself.

  "Fuck! What the fuck is wrong with you? Focus on my cultivation? What kind of bullshit excuse is that?" He cursed himself once the girl had left. "A beautiful, sexy, stacked girl proposed to you, and you turned her down. The fuck are you… Dalai Lama?"

  He cursed himself for a bit longer before he decided that there wasn't much point crying over spilled milk. And thus, he moved on. This time, with a look of someone who didn't know whether to cry at his own wisdom or laugh at his own foolishness.

  'Ah. Ignorance truly is bliss.' He thought to himself. Because if he hadn't been wiser to the ways of women, he would've surely accepted her offer.

  He might've died, yes. But it would've been a worthy death. A death via snu-snu.

  —————

  Li Yuan cut his walk short after that exchange.

  Not because he was tired. But because he could feel it. Every time he slowed near the outer courtyards or training grounds, curious glances followed him. Lingering looks. Quiet whispers.

  Over the past month, he had submitted the ears of spirit beasts at the Merit Hall without bothering to conceal his face. As a result, his name had begun to circulate among the Outer Sect disciples.

  And because he kept Veil of Borrowed Heaven active so often, no one could sense his true cultivation. They only knew him as the disciple who regularly claimed bounties for mid- to late-stage spirit beasts.

  In their eyes, he was likely at the peak of Qi Condensation. Someone destined to enter the Inner Sect sooner or later.

  Before Shu Dong, he had been too preoccupied with survival to notice such things. Too rushed. Too tense. Now that he slowed down, he saw them clearly. The calculating glances. The appraising looks.

  Noticing all this, the idea that the girl had come to because of his fame and strength became even more apparent to him.

  It was like how those hoes chase after wealthy and famous celebrities. Because if anyone told him that those women chased after those guys purely for their personality, he would laugh at their face.

  And he did want to believe this side of the story as well.After all, if that girl had truly been genuine about her feelings and about wanting to repay him for saving her life, then wouldn't he just be an idiot for rejecting her.

  With his fragile peace disturbed and no desire to endure another awkward confession, he chose to leave the area.

  He did not want to return home just yet. So, with no better destination in mind, he turned his steps uphill.

  The path to the Scripture Pavilion was a mess.

  The storm last night had truly ravaged the sect mountain.

  Those xianxia novels he had read always focused on the hardship a protagonist faced during a Lightning Tribulation. They never mentioned the damage such a tribulation inflicted on everything around it.

  Trees lay snapped like twigs, torn apart by the wind. Roots had been ripped from the earth and left exposed. Blackened scars streaked across the stone paths where lightning had struck, the rock melted and warped into glass.

  One stretch of the slope had simply vanished—collapsed into a slurry of mud and rubble that sect servants were struggling to clear.

  He found himself wondering how many Golden Core elders the sect possessed. How often they endured scenes like this. Whether all tribulations were so destructive, or if this one had been unusually violent.

  Eventually, Li Yuan reached the Scripture Pavilion.

  Unlike the surrounding grounds, the building stood untouched—its protective formations having shielded it from the worst of the storm.

  He gave a respectful nod to the old disciple sitting at the gate and passed through the entrance array. He felt the world quiet down the instant he crossed the threshold.

  This time, he was here to look for Cultivation Techniques. A dangerous task, by any measure.

  Picking a cultivation technique without an elder's guidance was how idiots crippled their foundations or died screaming in sealed rooms.

  After all, picking a cultivation technique that didn't suit you could lead to a series of problems in the future. Qi deviation. Internal backlash. Meridians torn apart by incompatible circulation paths. And a whole host of problems you wouldn't know about till they slapped you in the face.

  Beauties who suffered from too much clogged Yin energy in their meridians, and required the 'Yang Essence of the Protagonist' to overcome this problem came to his mind first and foremost.

  Yeah. It was a cliche in many of the of the Xianxia novels he'd read. But it was a cliche for a reason. Shit like that actually happened to people who did not pick the right Cultivation technique to cultivate with.

  Li Yuan knew this. Which is precisely why he had been content with using his old cultivation technique till this point.

  But over the past month, he had come to know of something else.

  That there existed a rare, boring, and often overlooked class of cultivation techniques, known as Neutral Cultivation Techniques.

  Cultivation Techniques that didn't favour any specific element, bloodline, physique, or sect inheritance. They were safer and compatible with nearly anyone.

  Of course, considering that everyone was not using a higher grade neutral technique meant that they had problems of their own. And this is precisely why he was here. To see if he could overcome these problems.

  So… he got to work, combing through the shelves for hours.

  Technique after technique passed through his hands. He skimmed the introductions, traced circulation diagrams, and discarded any technique that was not neutral in nature.

  In the end, his hard work paid off and he found it.

  The manual in his hands was old, the jade slip dulled from centuries of neglect.

  Heavenly Star Refining Sutra

  A cultivation method that drew upon the power of the stars to cultivate.

  Li Yuan read further and quickly grasped the flaw in the technique. There were two main issues.

  The first was the quality of the star energy it absorbed. It was thin and diluted—far weaker than the Qi drawn from spirit lakes or underground spirit veins. To compensate, the practitioner had to set up a formation before using the technique.

  The formation itself was simple enough. Its components could be purchased from the Treasure Exchange Hall and assembled without much difficulty.

  The real problem was cost. Formation plates and flags were expensive. A complete set would require thousands of spirit stones. That kind of wealth was usually reserved for disciples from powerful families.

  The thing was… this was the lesser problem of the two. And the greater problem with this cultivation was that you require immense comprehension ability to use this cultivation technique.

  After all, once you've gathered the star energy in your body, the next thing you need to do is convert it into Qi before absorbing it within your body.

  Except no one. Not a single person has been able to accomplish that in the past… 400 years. Yes. The last time someone used this technique successfully was 400 years ago.

  Most would stop reading right there.

  After all, even for those disciples who came from wealthy families, a few thousand spirit stones were not nothing. Plus, they would then have to spend months or even years trying to comprehend this technique. And if they failed… then they were fucked.

  Even the boldest disciple would think twice before choosing something like this.

  But he chose it and did so without hesitation. Where others saw obstacles, he saw opportunity.

  Even after giving most of his wealth to his father, he still had more than enough merit points in his identity token to purchase the formation several times over.

  As for comprehending the technique... the Stele would handle that.

  In fact, the method suited him so well that he briefly wondered if it had originally been meant for Xu Chen—the so-called Son of Heaven he had killed to obtain the Stele.

  Then he snorted inwardly.

  That guy would've probably gotten his hands on a ring with a hidden elder inside (maybe even a beautiful waifu), and through that elder, gain a cultivation technique that was hundreds of times better than this. But that was neither here nor there.

  Li Yuan took the technique from the shelf, a faint smile tugging at his lips as he did so. Because aside from being far faster than the sect's basic cultivation technique, this cultivation technique had another benefit. An almost absurd benefit."

  The real benefit was this: Practicing the technique gradually healed and repaired the body. Even beyond simple recovery, it carried a secondary effect—it reduced the body's need for sleep.

  Ordinarily, cultivators using even basic techniques would eventually reach a realm where cultivation replaced sleep. In time, it could even substitute for food, water, and eventually air itself.

  There was a reason higher-level cultivators could meditate for years—or decades—without dying. A reason why ancient ancestors could remain sealed inside coffins for generations without suffocating.

  But that level of self-sufficiency only began at higher realms, starting from the Golden Core stage.

  Even Foundation Establishment cultivators still required sustenance. At the very least, they needed to eat and drink once every week or so to maintain their health.

  Those in Qi Condensation realm didn't even have that benefit, and were required to eat, drink, sleep and shit like ordinary mortals.

  With this technique, however, he would no longer need sleep.

  While others his age lay asleep at night, he would be cultivating. And when they spent their days in meditation, he would be free—to hunt, to study, to do whatever he wished.

  It would make him efficient. Dangerously so.

  Li Yuan carried the manual to the counter, paid without hesitation, and stored it in his Spatial Ring.

  Then he turned and walked deeper into the hall, scanning the shelves for books on spirit herb cultivation.

  It was time he learned how to grow them properly.