Translator: CinderTL
"Use your Divine Sense to explore the circulation between your Lifebound Flying Sword and Essence Qi..."
Li Chunjun was momentarily stunned.
"Alright."
Jiang Wanyu responded.
Her fair cheeks carried a faint blush.
However, she casually brushed aside the smooth strands of hair at her temples and spoke with ease, "On the entire Flaming Phoenix Peak, only the three of us have awakened the Flaming Phoenix Bloodline. As your Senior Sister, it's only natural that I spare no effort in helping you, Junior Brother."
She emphasized the words "Senior Sister" and "Junior Brother."
Then, Jiang Wanyu smiled at him, the corners of her eyes curving into a beautiful crescent, "I'm still waiting for you, Junior Brother, to refine your sword into a core as soon as possible, showcasing the true demeanor of the Flaming Phoenix Sword Prodigy and making a grand display of your might on the Evil God Battlefield."
"..."
Li Chunjun averted his gaze once more.
His reaction, however, made Jiang Wanyu relax.
The earlier tension dissipated.
She leaned forward, closing the distance between them, and examined him with a smile.
The unique fragrance of a woman enveloped him, leaving Li Chunjun unsure of how to respond.
"Junior Brother, as cultivators, we shouldn't be so reserved."
Jiang Wanyu spoke with a bright smile.
Cultivators.
Seek immortality.
Prove the Great Dao.
Become True Immortals.
At that moment, Li Chunjun looked at her and nodded slightly, "Alright."
Seeing him agree so readily, Jiang Wanyu's body stiffened slightly.
"I'm entering."
Li Chunjun acted immediately.
He directly activated his Divine Sense and entered Jiang Wanyu's body.
The moment she sensed the Divine Sense entering her, her body couldn't help but tremble slightly.
Cultivators are intelligent beings.
Their consciousness instinctively resists the probing of other mental forces, creating resistance.
Forcing through this resistance would harm the other person.
However, since things had come to this, she had no choice but to cooperate with Li Chunjun's actions. Her cheeks flushed as she actively guided him, allowing him to immerse himself in this perception.
"Can you feel it?"
"It's very warm."
Li Chunjun said.
The depth of the Flaming Phoenix Blood within Jiang Wanyu's body surpassed his own, and its gentle yet intense heat was also greater than his.
"Don't move around; focus on the Lifebound Flying Sword."
Jiang Wanyu nudged him.
"Alright."
Li Chunjun quickly concentrated his mind.
Using Divine Sense to delve into another person's body to explore their Lifebound Flying Sword, or rather, the "Core Formation" formed by the convergence of Essence Qi, Spirit, and Divine Sense, was something he had never experienced before.
Naturally, the entire process was carried out with great care.
His demeanor made Jiang Wanyu feel helpless.
She told him not to move, and he truly didn't move much.
"This way, you won't feel much."
Jiang Wanyu bit her lip, "Go deeper, faster. I'll cooperate with you."
"Alright."
Li Chunjun responded.
He fully extended his Divine Sense, penetrating into Jiang Wanyu's Lifebound Flying Sword, delving deep into it. Through the Lifebound Flying Sword as the "central" control system, he sensed the relationship between the circulation of Essence Qi, Flaming Phoenix Power, and the Lifebound Flying Sword within her body.
Jiang Wanyu was willing to help him like this, so he naturally couldn't let her down.
The entire process was carried out with utmost seriousness.
He even allowed his Divine Sense to follow the "central" control system of Jiang Wanyu's Lifebound Flying Sword, experiencing how the Lifebound Flying Sword controlled every part of her body.
Touching every corner of her being.
This process lasted nearly half an hour.
Li Chunjun was fully immersed throughout, losing himself in the experience.
Until Jiang Wanyu's somewhat weak voice sounded in his ear again: "Junior Brother, are you done?"
Li Chunjun was startled, sensing that something was off with Jiang Wanyu.
Not only were her cheeks and arm skin slightly flushed due to the activation of the Flaming Phoenix Power, but she also appeared extremely exhausted.
In that moment, Li Chunjun realized something.
Using Divine Sense to probe someone's body was inherently prone to triggering a counterattack from their own Divine Sense.
Yet, Jiang Wanyu had done this to help him understand the relationship between her Lifebound Flying Sword and the Flaming Phoenix Power, forcing her to suppress this instinctive counterattack.
This process was naturally very taxing.
Fortunately, she was a cultivator who had refined her sword into her Core and could control her instincts; otherwise, she would have long since succumbed.
"Sorry, Senior Sister Jiang."
Li Chunjun quickly withdrew his Divine Sense: "I didn't consider your condition."
"It's... it's fine..."
Jiang Wanyu smiled weakly, but her eyes remained bright as she asked the crucial question: "How was it?"
Li Chunjun quietly reflected on what he had just gained...
"Very good."
He said sincerely: "Exceptionally good."
"Mm, that's good."
Jiang Wanyu said, glancing at her long skirt, which was slightly damp with sweat: "I'll go change my clothes..."
As she spoke, she tried to stand up.
But as soon as she rose, she felt an intense wave of weakness.
Her body went limp, and she didn't even have the strength to stand straight, collapsing back down.
Li Chunjun hurried forward to support her.
"You..."
"It's fine, I... I just need to rest."
"I'll help you back."
Li Chunjun said.
"No need, I'll be fine after resting for a bit, just sit for a while."
Jiang Wanyu murmured softly.
Seeing this, Li Chunjun didn't dare let go and helped her sit down.
Jiang Wanyu leaned against him, breathing lightly.
The Core Formation was where a cultivator's Essence Qi, spirit, and vitality converged.
After a Great Spirit Refinement Cultivator's conscious mind took over their subconscious, overusing the power of the Core Formation could truly exhaust someone to death.
After all, such cultivators had essentially lost their so-called "survival instincts."
They had trained their "instincts" into a controllable part of their power.
Because of this, Jiang Wanyu appeared so weak and drowsy.
In this state of drowsiness, coupled with...
Both of them belonged to the Flaming Phoenix lineage, being the only two among the younger generation to have activated the Flaming Phoenix Power, and sharing the experience of being abandoned by their parents, Jiang Wanyu naturally held a deep trust in Li Chunjun.
So much so that she leaned against him, and within moments, she fell into a deep sleep. Li Chunjun sat there.
Looking at Jiang Wanyu, who was leaning against him, her hair brushing against his right cheek.
So close.
He could even see her curved eyelashes.
This feeling left Li Chunjun momentarily dazed.
He lowered his head, gazing at her intently.
Asleep, she was different from when she was awake.
But, just like the first time he saw her.
Her face was like jade, pure and exquisite.
Very beautiful.
Really, very beautiful.
And he also knew very well what it meant when someone could fall asleep peacefully by your side.
Trust.
Peace of mind.
Li Chunjun just watched her like this.
After a while, he reached out, seemingly wanting to tidy the hair at her temple.
But as his hand touched her cheek, and his fingertips felt that soft sensation, he suddenly stopped.
At this moment, Jiang Wanyu's figure overlapped with a certain image in his eyes.
In a daze, these scenes seemed to transcend time and space, arriving at an afternoon several years ago.
It was a similar scene.
Only, their roles had been reversed.
During those days when they relied on each other for survival, someone had also combed his hair like this.
Back then, were her hands the same as now?
Li Chunjun's hand froze in place.
In his eyes, a flame seemed to flicker.
A raging fire.
Fiercely sweeping and burning, turning this warm and beautiful scene into ashes.
Instantly, he withdrew his hand.
Turning his head, his gaze gradually became calm.
Even cold.
He controlled himself, not looking at her.
Instead, he immersed his mind in the insights and experiences he had just gained.
Although this process inevitably brought back memories of those half an hour, bit by bit...
He forcibly restrained his thoughts, pouring all his focus into summarizing.
Little by little, he clearly mapped out the path from Qi Refining to the first stage of the Spirit Refinement Great Realm—Refining Sword into Core.
He sorted out all the confusion, uncertainty, and doubts in his heart, strangling and extinguishing them.
Until...
There was no more hesitation.
...
Two hours later.
Jiang Wanyu woke up in a daze.
"Mmm..."
As if finding this position quite comfortable, she snuggled in a little more.
It was at this moment that a voice reached her ears.
"Senior Sister, you're awake?"
Jiang Wanyu, still somewhat groggy, instantly became much more alert.
Why is Junior Brother in my room?
Is there something urgent? I need to get up quickly.
Thus, she fully woke up.
"Junior Brother?"
She opened her eyes.
Only then did she realize that she wasn't sleeping in her own bed, but... leaning against Li Chunjun.
Memories slowly returned to her somewhat muddled mind.
Jiang Wanyu gradually recalled what had just happened and quickly lowered her head.
She hurriedly got up: "Junior Brother... I just remembered something urgent, I need to leave."
"Mm."
Li Chunjun acknowledged.
Immediately, Jiang Wanyu left quickly.
However, after taking a few steps, she seemed to remember something and paused: "Junior Brother, did you gain anything?"
"Yes, a lot."
"That's good. If there's anything you don't understand, feel free to ask me."
After saying this, Jiang Wanyu quickly left.
As Li Chunjun watched her leave, he also stood up, stretching his limbs that had been immobile for two hours and feeling the sluggish blood flow, then headed towards his own courtyard.
...
Over the next three months, Li Chunjun took Pills to gradually advance his life level towards the 23rd rank.
At the same time, he maintained regular communication with Jiang Wanyu to understand the detailed process of Refining Sword into Core.
Compared to the progression from the first to the ninth level of Qi Refining, which, although perilous, generally did not pose a life-threatening risk, Refining Sword into Core...
Failure almost always meant death.
There was no turning back.
Not even a Pill to ensure survival.
To survive, one had to spare no effort, leaving no detail overlooked.
During these three months, the conflict between the Taixu Sword Sect and the Chiyang Sword Sect did not escalate further.
The reason...
Lay in the Mirror Divine Kingdom that Li Chunjun had seized.
The Chiyang Sword Sect's Mirror Divine Kingdom still existed.
It was being kept safe by them.
Subsequently, based on the meticulous investigation by the Taixu Sword Sect, numerous pieces of information all pointed to the Wu Ji Sect as the force that handed the Mirror Divine Kingdom to the Evil God's Chosen.
The Wu Ji Sect! It was the primary rival of the Taixu Sword Sect on Blue Star.
Even during the era of the Flaming Phoenix Sword Prodigy, the Taixu Sword Sect had not been able to suppress the Wu Ji Sect.
In terms of the entire population of Blue Star, the Taixu Sword Sect accounted for one-quarter, and the Wu Ji Sect also accounted for one-quarter, with the remaining half being divided among the other seven sects.
The reason for this lay in the strength of the Wu Ji Sect's main sect, which allowed their disciples to surpass those of other sects by half a step.
The Taixu Sword Sect, renowned for its combat prowess and unparalleled killing ability, could not gain much advantage over the Wu Ji Sect.
With the matter involving this force, the Taixu Sword Sect had no choice but to proceed with caution.
Li Chunjun paid no heed to the changes in the outside world.
At this moment, after seeking Jiang Wanyu's advice on the experience of Refining Sword into Core for the last time, he entered his cultivation chamber.
After three months, the 985 points of experience were finally completed.
(End of the Chapter)
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