Ye Chuan glanced at his status and was surprised to find that the time required to reach the late stage of Qi Refining had been reduced to just one day?
Free cultivation boost?
“Is this for real? Getting beaten up actually increases my strength?” Ye Chuan muttered in astonishment. It seemed the effects of the Indestructible Chaos Body were far more overpowering than he had imagined. Without hesitation, he chose to take another beating.
“Fellow cultivator, hit me again and help me break through!”
[You chose to spread your arms and continue taking hits. Endless fire-attribute spiritual energy was completely absorbed by your body. The cultivator witnessing this frowned tightly. “A mere Qi Refining practitioner of the unorthodox path has such an ability?” With that, he summoned his weapon—a blade-type magic treasure gleaming with cold light. The opponent’s Crystallization-stage strength effortlessly sliced your body in half.]
[You died.]
[Adventure concluded. Items retrievable: 2.]
“Couldn’t you have cast a few more spells?” Ye Chuan sighed regretfully as his phone screen turned gray.
Still, reaching the late stage of Qi Refining tomorrow was excellent news.
He checked his backpack, which contained a modest amount of spirit stones—just enough to feed the Money Tree.
But there was also… gold?
[Item: Gold Fragments
Gold, totaling 21.5 grams.]
Huh?
Holding it in his hand, Ye Chuan confirmed it was genuine gold before silently pulling out his phone to check today’s gold buyback price.
702 yuan per gram.
“Zero. 21.5 times 702 equals—”
“Fifteen thousand?!” Ye Chuan was slightly taken aback. He hadn’t expected this trip to net him 15,000 yuan—all from a handful of gold fragments.
Seemed like he should squeeze in more adventures whenever possible. Not only could he grow stronger, but he could also make money.
Though the randomness was a bit too high—landing straight into a death trap was always a possibility. At the end of the day, it all came down to luck.
He still had some time left. Should he go for another round?
But Ye Chuan also noticed that each adventure left him mentally exhausted, as if he had truly crossed over and experienced it firsthand.
“Eek!!!!!!!!” Just as Ye Chuan was considering washing up before deciding, a sudden scream from outside made him freeze.
Huh?
Opening the door, he immediately spotted a white-haired girl trembling in the corner, while opposite her stood Bai Qianshuang, dressed in an ultra-short nightgown and wielding an immortal sword like a goddess of slaughter.
“Ye Chuan, be careful. There’s some unknown ghost here,” Bai Qianshuang said coolly upon seeing him.
“I—I told you I’m a tenant!!!” Lan Xiaoke zipped behind Ye Chuan in a flash, her voice quivering. “S-so scary… I’m gonna die!”
Bai Qianshuang’s voice remained icy. “Yet you couldn’t even say Ye Chuan’s name. Wraiths excel at deception.”
“I only met him yesterday! How was I supposed to know his name?!” Lan Xiaoke retorted before frantically shaking Ye Chuan’s arm. “Say something, will you?!”
Meeting Bai Qianshuang’s gaze, Ye Chuan explained, “Uh, Qianshuang, put the sword away. She’s not lying.”
“We saw you were still cultivating when we got back yesterday, so we didn’t disturb you.”
Hearing this, Bai Qianshuang silently observed Lan Xiaoke cowering behind Ye Chuan. Realizing her mistake, she slowly sheathed her sword. “My apologies.”
Lan Xiaoke immediately snapped, “I don’t accept your apology!”
“Shh, that’s enough. If she really wanted to kill you, a single flick of her aura would make you explode,” Ye Chuan remarked, crossing his arms and giving Lan Xiaoke a sidelong glance. “Instant annihilation.”
After experiencing the text adventures of the Tianxuan Continent, Ye Chuan could understand Bai Qianshuang’s cautious nature—those who weren’t careful simply didn’t last long.
“?!” Hearing she could be obliterated in an instant, Lan Xiaoke froze before suddenly forcing a smile at Bai Qianshuang. “Ahaha, just a misunderstanding~ No big deal, no big deal.”
Bai Qianshuang, who seemed to dislike ghostly entities, wordlessly walked over to the dining table.
“Hmph, what’s with the attitude? I’ll definitely surpass you someday,” Lan Xiaoke grumbled, flailing her arms dramatically beside Ye Chuan.
Ye Chuan gave her a quiet look. He had clearly warned her last night not to wander out of her room—after all, he hadn’t even mentioned her to Bai Qianshuang yet.
“Alright, why did you leave your room?” Ye Chuan asked Lan Xiaoke.
She blinked, guiltily poking her fingers together.
“I found out my phone number got deactivated, so I couldn’t register for any game accounts. I was waiting for you to wake up and ask, but then I heard noises outside and thought it was you…”
Ye Chuan now understood how the earlier incident had unfolded.
“Phone number, huh?” he said.
Lan Xiaoke nodded vigorously, her chin practically bobbing toward her backpack.
“I can help, but you’ll have to do something for me,” Ye Chuan said with a smile.
Lan Xiaoke paused, then floated back a few steps with sudden realization. “So we’ve finally reached this point? But I’m a ghost, you know. Ice-cold.”
“I just want you to get along with Qianshuang,” Ye Chuan clarified.
Bai Qianshuang lacked common sense in many areas, and since Lan Xiaoke didn’t need to go outside, she could be the perfect tutor for her.
“Get along?!” Lan Xiaoke shook her head vehemently. “No no no no, I wanna live a little longer.”
“If you agree, I might occasionally top up your games,” Ye Chuan offered.
After all, it’s your own dropped gold anyway.
The proposal seemed to hit Lan Xiaoke like a critical strike. She floated in place, wrestling with herself, before finally gritting her teeth. “Leave it to me!!”
……
During breakfast, Ye Chuan prepared simple steamed buns for Bai Qianshuang.
She nibbled delicately on a fist-sized char siu bao, her gaze lingering on Lan Xiaoke nearby.
After a moment of hesitation, she turned to Ye Chuan and said,
“If she stays here long, she’ll absorb your spiritual energy.”
Ye Chuan chuckled. “It’s fine.”
His spiritual energy automatically replenished daily. Supporting a little ghost was no issue—especially since Lan Xiaoke could drop both gold and items. She was practically a hidden gem.
“Oh, right. This is for you.” Ye Chuan took out a few spirit stones.
Bai Qianshuang seemed surprised at the sight of the familiar stones. “This…”
How did Ye Chuan get more spirit stones?
“You need these, right?” Ye Chuan smiled.
Bai Qianshuang’s strength hadn’t fully recovered yet, and there was still the possibility of her regaining memories and transforming into that so-called Empress. Best to raise her favorability now.
“I do, but what can I do for you in return?” Bai Qianshuang asked.
“Marry him, of course.”
The suggestion came from Lan Xiaoke, who was hovering nearby.