Chapter 62: Chapter 60: Xu Ningying’s Sect Entry Assessment

"I can figure it out."

"Press this button, and it will automatically heat the water. This knob here adjusts the water temperature."

"This button turns on the water, and this one adjusts the flow."

After fiddling with it for a moment, Su Qing completely understood how the shower worked.

He now knew how to use everything in the bathroom.

"Oh, so that’s how it works." Xu Ningying watched Su Qing’s demonstration intently from the side.

"Alright, now that the problem’s solved, I should get some rest."

Su Qing nodded at Xu Ningying, glanced at her cheek, and left without a second thought.

"Okay, thank you." Coming from a merchant family, Xu Ningying had a keen eye. She could tell from Su Qing’s attitude, his gaze, and even his subtle movements that he was deliberately keeping his distance.

How could Xu Ningying not notice?

In truth, she didn’t want to dwell on it.

After all, that senior sister had warned her before: when looking for a partner or Dao Companion, it was best not to choose an ordinary person, and even choosing a Loose Cultivator was ill-advised.

At the time, Xu Ningying hadn’t understood why her senior sister gave such advice.

But now, it was starting to make some sense.

’The thought of achieving great things in my Cultivation and staying young while my partner grows old... that would be a truly sad thing.’

’This place... it’s so familiar.’

Su Qing sighed to himself. After a quick wash, he sat cross-legged on the bed again.

He didn’t need much sleep. He needed to cultivate. 𝒇𝓻𝓮𝓮𝙬𝙚𝒃𝒏𝓸𝙫𝒆𝙡.𝓬𝓸𝒎

The Five Qi God Demon Technique was waiting for him to grind it out.

How could he possibly sleep?

Once he was close to reaching Perfection in the Five Qi God Demon Technique, Su Qing planned to synthesize the Five Elements Qi Cultivation Technique next.

Right now, the Great Replenishing Pills had a very low effect on supporting his Cultivation.

At most, they could sustain his body so he didn’t need to eat and wouldn’t feel hungry.

’Should I just synthesize the Five Elements Qi Cultivation Technique first?’

Su Qing had been mulling it over. He was thinking that after he cultivated the Five Qi God Demon Technique +2 to Perfection, he could use his newfound strength to try and replicate it.

Then, he could place it on the Synthesizer and combine it with the Eight Gates Five Elements Qi Cultivation Technique.

He believed that as long as he triggered a forced synthesis, a Cultivation Technique for the Qi Cultivation Stage, equivalent to the +2 version of the Five Qi God Demon Technique, would definitely appear.

That’s why he had never tried synthesizing the Five Elements Qi Cultivation Technique. Even if he did, he would still need to finish cultivating the Five Qi God Demon Technique +2 before he could start on a Qi Cultivation Technique.

After thinking it over again, Su Qing stuck with his original plan: cultivate the Five Qi God Demon Technique to Perfection first, then synthesize.

So, for now, he had to continue his Cultivation.

The moment he began to cultivate, Su Qing felt the world around him.

The Spiritual Qi seemed much richer here.

If the concentration of Spiritual Qi in the Great Yu Dynasty was a 1, then here in Zhengxuan City, it was a 10.

It was an absurd difference.

Su Qing did his best to absorb the Spiritual Qi for his Cultivation.

As a result, the Five Qi God Demon Wheel in his Dantian spun even faster.

The absorbed Spiritual Qi was integrated as nourishment for his Dantian.

Unfortunately, the time it took to complete a Grand Circulation didn’t decrease.

After Su Qing had completed three Circulations...

Just as he was about to continue cultivating, Su Qing was disturbed.

Xu Ningying was knocking vigorously on his door.

"Su Qing! Su Qing! Stop sleeping!" Xu Ningying’s knocking was loud, and she was even trying to open the locked door.

"What is it, what is it!"

Su Qing shouted back in frustration from inside the room.

"Su Qing, get up! You’re coming with me to do the Sect initiation mission."

Xu Ningying said from outside.

Su Qing froze when he heard that.

He opened the door.

He glanced at Xu Ningying. Today, she was wearing something that looked like a Martial Arts uniform, but the cuffs on her sleeves and pants were tightly bound. She had also tied her hair up in a ponytail. This sudden change to a style typical of someone from Zhengxuan City made Su Qing pause for a second.

Su Qing said calmly, "Wait for me to get ready. It’ll just be a moment."

Xu Ningying found it strange that Su Qing’s hair wasn’t messy and he didn’t look drowsy. ’Didn’t he sleep at all?’

"Hurry up."

Xu Ningying said, exasperated.

"Mhm."

Su Qing just went to the bathroom to splash some water on his face, then got dressed and came out.

He hadn’t bought any new clothes in Zhengxuan City, so he was still wearing his usual all-black, close-fitting attire.

"Where exactly are we going for this initiation mission?" Su Qing asked.

"To eliminate a Demon Fiend."

Xu Ningying took out a Compass, and... a cell phone?

No, that wasn’t right.

It wasn’t a cell phone.

It was a square-shaped map. For a moment, Su Qing had thought cell phones were common here too.

"This is a Magical Artifact from the Sect. I can accept missions on it, and it will also guide me to the mission location."

"And this is a Resentment Seeking Compass, used specifically to find Demon Fiends."

Su Qing nodded. "Do you need me to make a move?"

"Of course not. I don’t."

Xu Ningying held up the square map and said, "This is for recording. It will document my first assessment for joining the Sect."

’So, a prototype of a cell phone really does exist here.’

"Outer Disciples must earn Contribution Points at least once a year, no matter how many."

"It’s such a pain," Xu Ningying said with a wry smile, shaking her head.

Su Qing popped a Great Replenishing Pill into his mouth, then took another one from his pocket and offered it to Xu Ningying. "Have you eaten? If not, have one of these."

"What is this?"

"A Great Replenishing Pill. I made them myself."

Xu Ningying froze. She looked at Su Qing, her suspicious gaze sweeping over him from head to toe. "No, thank you. I’ll just buy some food later."

"Alright then."

Su Qing didn’t insist. The main reason he ate them was just to save time.

「A while later.」

Aboard a white, bullet-shaped Flying Magical Artifact, Su Qing was eating a roasted leg of lamb.

Xu Ningying, on the other hand, was sipping a bowl of meat congee with goat’s milk. She also had some sort of fried pastry, golden-brown on the outside and filled with what was said to be a green jam made from a local fruit.

"The Demon Fiend is in a city outside Zhengxuan City, so it’ll take at least half a day to get there."

Su Qing nodded and continued gnawing on the lamb leg. He was surprised by the variety of spices used here.

The key was the green jam, which was also slathered on the lamb. The skin was crispy, spicy, and had a sweet and sour flavor with a fresh aroma. The meat inside was tender and juicy, leaving a delightful aftertaste that lingered in Su Qing’s mouth.

He wouldn’t feel satisfied until he finished the entire leg.

People said the jam was unique to Zhengxuan City and couldn’t be found anywhere else.

He finished the lamb leg quickly.

Su Qing glanced outside; they were still flying over the city. Luckily, there was a trash can on the artifact, otherwise he wouldn’t have known what to do with the bone in his hand.

"Finished eating?"

"Yeah."

"Then listen up. To be honest, this initiation assessment usually isn’t too difficult."

"The reason I asked you not to get involved is that I want to earn more Contribution Points."

"If someone else helps, the Contribution Points will be less than 10, and the Cultivation Techniques you can exchange for are the lowest quality. For the first initiation assessment, the maximum is 100 Contribution Points."

"So I hope you’ll only step in if I’m in real danger."

Su Qing frowned, annoyed. "You’re overestimating me. When you’re in danger? In a fight, danger can strike at any moment. It happens in an instant. It’s very possible that in a flash, your little life will be gone, you know?"

"Unless I’m within three meters of you, how could I possibly save you?"

Su Qing’s blunt truth instantly left Xu Ningying speechless.

...