Chapter 61: The Path of Cultivation
Si Er grabbed at his hair, looking completely exasperated.
Guagua, you actually tricked me!
[I did not! I’m innocent! What did I trick you about? I’ve always been an honest Xiao Bai rabbit who tells the truth!]
But didn’t you say before that I only needed to block Si Ran’s path and didn’t have to do anything else?
Why do I now have to switch cultivation systems and open an ascension passage?
[You’re not switching! Haven’t you always cultivated both soul and spirit simultaneously?]
[So you don’t have any extra burden—you were already going to cultivate according to that system anyway!]
[Besides, your constitution is special. You can absorb light energy just by basking in the sun, moon, or stars. That’s much easier than ordinary spirit cultivators.]
But I still have to open up… that passage…
[Opening it up isn’t that hard either. Once you reach that level of cultivation, you’ll naturally know how.]
[And if you really don’t want to open it, when you become so strong that ascension is inevitable, the Heavenly Dao of the Upper Realm will directly lay down an ascension path for you.]
Si Er was speechless.
You make it sound easy, but…
[Don’t worry, Er’er. You and Xuanxuan are chosen by heaven. Cultivating is as easy for you two as drinking water.]
…It’s not that easy.
Even if he could absorb energy just by being exposed to light, he still had to circulate his technique afterward to digest it.
If I can absorb energy just by being in the light, does that mean Xuanxuan can absorb energy as long as there’s no light?
[Yes. What he mainly absorbs is the power of darkness. He can also digest various kinds of negative energy.]
[But although absorbing too much negative energy will make him stronger, it will also affect his mind.]
[To prevent him from going mad like a baleful beast, Er’er should clear his head from time to time.]
How?
[Like you did yesterday—just smack him with a clump of your own energy.]
[You two complement each other well. Purifying consumes your energy, and if you exceed a certain limit, it will harm your body.]
[He grows stronger by absorbing energy, but if he exceeds a certain limit, it harms his mind.]
[If he absorbs the negative energy while you only purify him alone, you’ll both have it much easier.]
The more Guagua thought about it, the more feasible the plan seemed.
But Si Er didn’t think it was a good idea.
Wouldn’t that make Xuanxuan work very hard?
[Anyway, there’s no point thinking about it now. Whether purifying or absorbing, with our current strength, it’s just a joke.]
Si Er had already guessed that the baleful energy problem in this world would most likely fall to him and Yu Beixuan to resolve.
He could purify baleful energy. Yu Beixuan could absorb it. If each of them handled half, they could greatly reduce the other’s burden.
But neither of them had grown strong yet. For now, it was better to focus on cultivation.
Si Er decided that once he returned to the academy, he would discuss it with Yu Beixuan. The two of them should at least have a tacit understanding.
When Si Er got up, it was still early. City Lord Si and Si Xu were already in the courtyard doing their morning training with their respective soul pets.
Si Xu’s soul pets matched his name—both were wood-attributed feathered birds.
One was called Qingfeng, the Sky-Shrouding Roc he often used before, mainly for combat and as a mount.
This roc had dual wind and wood attributes. Previously, it had disguised itself as a high-grade mid-tier Wind-Riding Roc, and Si Xu hadn’t noticed anything unusual.
The other was called Qingye, an exquisitely beautiful little bird with emerald-green plumage, a spirit bird with a rather special bloodline.
This bird was called a Medicine Spirit Bird. It was born able to identify herbs and could also enhance the quality of potions, making it Si Xu’s best partner when refining medicine.
Moreover, its grade could improve along with Si Xu’s progress in alchemy.
As long as Si Xu became a high-level alchemist in the future, the bird could advance into a top-tier soul pet.
Si Xu’s morning training routine was to let the Sky-Shrouding Roc fly outside on its own while he refined three batches of potions.
After observing for a while, Si Er felt that Si Xu resembled those cultivators in xianxia novels who entered the Dao through alchemy.
Every time a batch of medicine was successfully refined, Si Er could see a cluster of medicinal energy flowing into both Si Xu and the Medicine Spirit Bird. The higher the potion’s quality, the more medicinal energy they received.
After finishing, Si Xu looked refreshed, and the Medicine Spirit Bird wore a blissful expression.
Si Er asked curiously, “Second Brother, do you feel yourself getting a little stronger every time you refine a potion?”
Si Xu laughed. “What feeling could one potion give? I need to refine at least ten a day before I can sense my strength increasing.”
Si Er pondered. “So your power doesn’t rely entirely on soul power and your soul pet, right?”
Si Xu sighed. “The medicinal energy improves my physical cultivation and also lets me practice healing arts.”
“But when it comes to attacking, I still have to rely on soul power and my soul pet.”
Si Er smiled. “That’s still good. At least part of your cultivation belongs to you—it’s not entirely dependent on external forces.”
He had always felt that cultivation on the Ten Thousand Beasts Continent was too illusory, relying completely on shared power with soul pets.
If someone maliciously killed your soul pet, your cultivation would plummet by more than half.
But if part of your cultivation came from your own efforts, the situation would be much better.
“So do other alchemists also receive this medicinal feedback?” Si Er asked curiously.
Si Xu shook his head. “Not necessarily. It seems you have to focus on the Dao of Alchemy and have a certain level of talent to receive feedback.”
“For example, Father is more focused on the Martial Dao. He improves his strength every day through martial practice. But no matter how well he refines medicine, he receives no feedback from it.”
“And Si Ran—his alchemy skills are decent, but his mind is too scattered, so he doesn’t receive medicinal feedback either.”
Si Er asked again, “Besides the Dao of Alchemy and the Martial Dao, are there other Daos?”
Si Xu nodded. “Of course. Everything has its Dao.”
“Those who specialize in cooking can receive feedback each time they complete a dish—that’s the Culinary Dao.”
“Those who specialize in music can receive feedback of sound energy—that’s the Music Dao.”
“Those who love writing storybooks have the Literary Dao. Those who love doodling might comprehend the Painting Dao.”
“Someone who simply enjoys spinning in circles might even spin out a Dao unique to themselves.”
“Though spinning in circles is…”
Si Xu didn’t quite know how to describe it.
“In short, it’s very difficult for a normal person to comprehend a Dao from spinning in circles. Usually, they just develop a unique technique.”
“Comprehending a unique technique isn’t bad either,” Si Er said with a smile. “But must one specialize to comprehend a Dao?”
Si Xu nodded. “Under normal circumstances, yes. For instance, Father’s alchemy talent is outstanding, but his martial talent is even better. Since he prefers the Martial Dao, he can’t receive feedback from alchemy.”
“But if someone had talent in all areas surpassing most geniuses, theoretically they could receive feedback from every Dao.”
“That’s just a theory, though. There’s no real example yet.”
Si Er laughed. “There probably won’t be. That kind of person sounds more like Long Aotian from storybooks.”
Si Xu looked puzzled. “What’s Long Aotian?”
Si Er thought for a moment. “It’s the kind of protagonist who’s ridiculously strong in every aspect, masters everything they learn, and can turn the tables no matter what danger they face.”
“They might have had their meridians, dantian, or spiritual roots crippled. They might have been dumped by a fiancée. Their parents might have died, and they’ve been oppressed by enemies all along…”
“Or maybe one parent just went missing, then returns years later in a powerful comeback, giving the protagonist an overpowered background.”
“And if beauties keep throwing themselves at him along the way, then the flavor’s even stronger.”
Si Xu: “…”
He suddenly had the feeling that his little brother read no fewer storybooks than Lu Taiping—perhaps even more.
