“Brother, that Sister Ning you like is really a master,”
at dusk by the canal field, Li Muyang, who had just opened his eyes, saw his adopted sister Li Yuechan, who had returned carrying roast chicken, say so.
“Although I had met her several times on the way to the Sect, our interactions were not deep.”
“It was only after spending a day with her today that I realized how amazing Sister Ning truly is.”
The young girl, holding the fragrant roast chicken, spoke with an undeniable sense of awe.
“Your decision to give up on her was absolutely the right one.”
“I suspect if you continued to fancy her, you’d be caught hook, line, and sinker.”
As the girl spoke, she watched Li Muyang’s reaction with a mischievous grin.
Li Muyang, however, swallowed hard, his gaze totally fixed on the roast chicken in the girl’s hands, unresponsive to her words.
This was not entirely an act; the chicken was truly emitting an irresistibly delicious aroma.
Li Muyang’s eyes widened as he asked, “What kind of roast chicken is this?”
Why does it smell so good?
The mere aroma uncontrollably whetted his appetite.
Li Muyang subconsciously thought of a delicacy from Yunxiao City.
And the girl’s giggling response confirmed Li Muyang’s guess.
“This is Yunxiao City’s famous Ginseng Wood Roast Chicken. It’s cooked over a charcoal fire made from ginseng wood that contains spiritual energy, sealed together with the chicken in a clay oven to perfectly stimulate and lock the spiritual essence and aroma into the meat,” she explained.
“It’s said even the gods above the nine heavens can’t resist the aroma of this ginseng chicken!”
The girl cheerfully handed over the roast chicken to Li Muyang, saying, “Bro, eat it while it’s hot. The roast chicken can retain its warmth for two hours after coming out of the oven; this is the best time to eat it for the best flavor. It loses its charm once it cools down.”
Li Muyang unhesitatingly accepted the fragrant roast chicken, and as he tore into it, he commented, “The gods above being unable to resist is probably an exaggeration, but I’ve indeed heard of this famous roast chicken.”
He hadn’t expected it to be truly so magical; indeed, the cultivation world does not follow ordinary rules.
Li Muyang had previously thought it was all hype, “It’s just a roasted chicken, how could it mesmerize someone so completely?”
Now, reality proved that this ginseng roast chicken really was magical.
Without caring about his image, he simply sat down on the field ridge and began tearing into the chicken, savoring big bites.
The well-roasted meat, crispy on the outside and tender inside, melted in his mouth, releasing a delightful flavor unlike any ordinary food, explosively tantalizing his taste buds. Li Muyang ate and marveled simultaneously.
Good things are truly everywhere in the cultivation world, he thought.
He glanced at the young girl standing beside him, who smiled sweetly, “Bro, just eat. I’ve already tried it with Sister Ning; this chicken was specially brought for you.”
“Alright,” Li Muyang simply replied, unapologetically savored the entire roast chicken by himself.
After briefly chatting with the girl about their experiences in Yunxiao City, Li Muyang realized how different this city was from his original hometown of Jiuyuan City.
Jiuyuan City, a remote and small town viewed by many as a backwater, greatly matched Li Muyang’s imagination of an ancient society.
The streets were dirty, dust filled the air, and the smell of excrement was everywhere.
However, Yunxiao City, a large city inhabited by a million people, was clean and tidy everywhere, with street lights and sewers, more reminiscent of the fantastical towns in the video games Li Muyang played in his past life.
Listening to his adopted sister talk about this, Li Muyang felt a strong urge to explore Yunxiao City and broaden his horizons.
However, Li Muyang eventually calmed his emotions and did not go to Yunxiao City.
His progress in the game had reached a critical moment.
Little Wild Grass’s favorability was now at 39. He was just short of reaching a favorability of 40 to claim the rewards of the Second Phase.
Li Muyang had no intention of wandering around the city and wasting time at this juncture.
Meanwhile, his adopted sister Li Yuechan and Miss Ning Wan’er from Ning’s residence often went to the city together.
The Sect was about to close its gates, which meant a year of seclusion was ahead.
For the girls, there were too many things to prepare.
The sparse lifestyle of the outer gates was incomparable to the vibrant and bustling Yunxiao City.
And every time Li Yuechan returned from the city, she would bring some food for Li Muyang and talk about interesting events that had happened there.
The latest hot topic in Yunxiao City was about a terrifying mysterious figure.
This enigmatic figure, whose origins and appearance were unknown, had killed many demon cultivators in the city.
Each demon cultivator had been drained of all blood and essence, losing all their demon cultivation, and died a horrific death, their bodies reduced to terrifying mummies.
This form of dreadful death had a significant deterrent effect, and although not many had died, rumors and chaos abounded in Yunxiao City.
Li Yuechan clicked her tongue in astonishment, “Even the stronghold of the Refinement Demon Sect has been turned upside down by a mysterious figure. I heard that the Elders are furious and have sent direct disciples into the city to hunt the perpetrator.”
“Brother, what level of cultivation do you think this mysterious person has?”
Li Yuechan, who was just stepping onto the path of cultivation, was very curious about the world of cultivators.
She blinked her eyes, looking at Li Muyang sitting on the field ridge, and asked.
Li Muyang, while tearing into the delicious roast chicken, replied, “To stir up trouble in Yunxiao City… must be at least a high-level master of fourth or fifth rank, right?”
“Anyway, not someone small fries like us can afford to provoke.”
Li Muyang said, glancing again at Li Yuechan, “You know there’s a mysterious person causing trouble in the city, yet you go there every day… Aren’t you afraid of dying?”
Li Yuechan replied with a giggle, “I’ve checked it out; that mysterious person only kills demon cultivators of Qi Condensation Stage and above. Someone like me without any cultivation won’t even get a glance.”
After speaking, seeing Li Muyang’s unconvinced expression, she sighed.
“Actually, I don’t really want to go every day; it’s exhausting.”
“But when we left home, my uncle mentioned he has a friend who will come to Yunxiao City during the grand opening period of our Sect. He will ask his friend to bring some things over for us to use.”
“My uncle said those items are very valuable, and he was worried it’d be dangerous for a young girl like me to carry them on the road, so he could only ask a friend to bring them,”
the girl said innocently, shrugging her shoulders. “So, I went to the city every day just to wait for my uncle’s friend.”
The girl explained the reason, and Li Muyang furrowed his brow.
“My father trusted someone to bring things over? A rural martial artist like him, what valuable things could he possibly send?”
At most, it would be some lower-tier Spiritual Artifact level cultivation materials.
A rural martial artist of Li Damu’s caliber couldn’t amass anything noteworthy.
Li Muyang was utterly indifferent towards the things sent from his home.
A little leak of top-grade Spirit Rice from between his fingers was enough to make his cheap father, Li Damu, pop his eyes out.
After sending off his cheap sister and cooking a dinner with top-grade Spirit Rice, Li Muyang continued his monotonous but regular life.
When night enveloped the mountains, he closed his eyes and entered the game.
The presence of his cheap sister these days had indeed interfered with his progression in the game.
The time spent chatting with Li Yuechan seemed to grow longer, resulting in a slower game progression.
At the small square of Black Cloud Fort, Li Muyang sighed as he looked at the Little Wild Grass in front of him.
Li Muyang, oh Li Muyang, you can’t continue this way any longer.
Although chatting with Sweet Sister was relaxing and helped the usually isolated and introverted Li Muyang feel less lonely and more joyful,
important matters mustn’t be delayed!
Tomorrow, I must not chat with my cheap sister for such a long time again—must muster up energy, must stir myself!
Looking at the affection meter in the top right corner of his vision: [Little Wild Grass: 39].
Li Muyang clenched his fists.
From today onwards, I must stir myself to return to my former self who devoted all time and energy to the game!
Now only one step away, I could break through the Second Phase of cultivation and claim the reward.
At this juncture, how could I indulge in chatting with Sweet Sister?
Li Muyang decided to change himself.
So the next day when his cheap sister came back from the city, the time Li Muyang spent chatting with her was finally…a few minutes less than usual.
Once again watching her figure leave, Li Muyang sat on the ridge and scratched his head.
“Have I been alone too long that I can chat about such trifles for so long?”
Li Muyang, who had intended to end today’s chat quickly but failed, felt rather disheartened and dejected at this moment.
He realized he might genuinely have been alone too long, making it hard to stop once he started chatting with his cheap sister.
It seemed he was yearning for this kind of conversational feedback.
“Humans really are social animals; staying alone too long could indeed cause issues,”
Li Muyang muttered to himself.
He no longer attempted to terminate his chats with his cheap sister.
Progressing through the game could be slower, but developing a mental illness from isolation would be a greater loss.
Fortunately, aside from chatting with his cheap sister daily, he devoted almost all his time to the game.
As the saying goes, diligent work reaps rewards, and he did receive a reward.
On the third last day before the Refinement Demon Sect closed its gate, Li Muyang successfully completed the Second Phase of cultivation, raising Little Wild Grass’s affection level to over 40.
[Little Wild Grass: 40 (She sees you as a cherished friend… or perhaps a relative?)]
The moment this affection level appeared, Li Muyang clenched his fists and swung them energetically.
This Second Phase really was a time-killer!
It had taken him almost a month, during which he had maintained his cultivation level at the Sixth Layer of Qi Condensation just by eating Spirit Rice, to increase Little Wild Grass’s affection level to 40 points.
But, despite the torturous daily tasks over the month, seeing the sweetly smiling Little Wild Grass in the game now, Li Muyang genuinely felt happy.
Because in his view, a system reward prompt appeared.
[Little Wild Grass affinity for the first time breaking 40, cultivation progress entering Third Phase (out of five phases)]
[Congratulations Host, Second Phase cultivation reward available for claiming]
[Please choose your Second Phase cultivation reward (choose one from three)]
[Cultivation +1 (from Sixth Layer of Qi Condensation to Seventh Layer of Qi Condensation)]
[Three Lower Grade Taiyi Separation Talismans]
[One Ordinary Flying Sword]
…
The system’s pop-up rewards made Li Muyang thrilled.
Lower Grade Spirit Talismans… Damn!
The system’s reward pool contained not only secret techniques and weapons but also rare items like Spirit Talismans… Though Spirit Talismans were one-time use items, their power was tremendous!
Even the lowest-grade Spirit Talismans could effortlessly eliminate Cultivators at the Qi Condensation level.
The system truly knew how to surprise him, offering such a diverse and desirable array of rewards.
Li Muyang stared at the option for the Lower Grade Spirit Talisman and chose it without hesitation.