Su - The King of Slacking Off - Ji, is now online.

The man paid no heed to the stormy waves crashing in Su Ji's heart and continued speaking at his own pace.

"I know you have questions for me."

"But I am merely a wisp of a remnant soul."

"And I have absolutely no idea what you're asking."

Before his voice faded, the blurred figure of light suddenly raised a hand and gently tossed something in Su Ji's direction.

A streak of light flashed across the room, shooting straight toward Su Ji's face.

Su Ji instinctively reached out and caught it.

It felt cold and heavy in his hand—it was actually an ancient, pitch-black token.

He couldn't quite figure it out; how did a projection throw a physical object?

On second thought, they were cultivating to immortality here, so it didn't seem too hard to understand.

"Originally, I planned to have someone pass this item to you."

"But since we happened to meet, there's no need for extra steps."

The voice of the man in the light continued.

"With this token, you can participate in... a trial for sword cultivators. You may choose a wisp of sword soul to forge your sword bones."

"If you manage to forge it..."

The figure of light paused, seemingly organizing his words, but eventually gave up.

"Just go, we'll talk about it when the time comes!"

"Anyway, that's not the main point."

"The point is, if you want to leave in half a year..."

"You can only leave the Great Xia with a cultivation base at the first level of the Golden Core realm."

Saying this, his phantom seemed to tilt, glancing in Su Jiu's direction.

"The same goes for her."

"Wait, what?"

Su Ji finally couldn't hold back and interrupted directly.

"Didn't you just fucking say you were only a remnant soul and couldn't interact? Then how do you know to look at my junior sister?"

However, the figure of light completely ignored him.

Or rather, it simply couldn't hear him.

The voice continued at its unhurried pace, as if it had long anticipated Su Ji's interruption.

"I know you're getting suspicious, but I really am just a remnant soul and cannot answer your questions."

"These are all pre-recorded messages."

"Alright, shut up for a second."

Su Ji: "..."

Watching Su Ji's deflated expression from the side, the corners of Su Jiu's mouth couldn't help but curl up slightly, though it was quickly replaced by solemnity.

First level of the Golden Core realm... to leave?

The voice of the light figure continued.

"It's not that I don't want you to be stronger, it's just..."

"If you go out with a Great Perfection Golden Core cultivation, you will inevitably attract the prying eyes of great terrors."

"Only by ascending from this place at the first level of the Golden Core realm will you have a sliver of hope to survive."

"Moreover, you must possess the strength to fight above your realm and slay a Nascent Soul cultivator while only at the first level of the Golden Core, without relying on any external forces."

Hearing this, Su Ji's eyelids twitched wildly.

First level of the Golden Core, killing a Nascent Soul?

And without external forces?

Then what was the point of his pile of Destiny traits?

Were they just for decoration?

"Remember, I said without relying on any external forces."

The voice of the light figure, as if seeing through his thoughts, repeated itself.

"I know you have many tricks up your sleeve."

"But many times, when it comes down to the very end, the only person you can rely on is yourself."

"It's not that you can't use them, but you shouldn't rely on them too much."

"The higher your realm gets in the future, the stronger the enemies you will face."

"By then, there will be more people capable of countering your methods."

"At the very least, you can't just stand there and wait to die once your tricks are countered, right?"

"Besides, I don't even know where exactly you will be sent."

"It will probably randomly send you to the ascension passage of another world whose limit is only the Foundation Establishment realm, disguising you as a cultivator from that world."

"Therefore, you can only be at the first level of the Golden Core."

"Otherwise, your cover will be blown."

"Even so, you'd better be prepared for a fierce, bitter battle."

"Outside..."

The voice suddenly paused here, eventually turning into a long, drawn-out sigh.

"Alas."

As the voice faded.

The blurred figure within the curtain of light began to dissipate inch by inch, like a candle in the wind.

From its feet, to its torso, and finally its head.

Finally, it turned into a sky full of dancing blue motes of light, completely vanishing from the quiet room.

Leaving only Su Ji and Su Jiu to look at each other in dismay.

A deathly silence.

Su Jiu looked at Su Ji, her clear eyes filled with worry.

The Upper Realm, ascension, fighting above one's realm to slay a Nascent Soul...

Each of these words felt like a heavy mountain, pressing down on her so hard she could barely breathe.

As for Su Ji, after a brief moment of astonishment, the expression on his face gradually turned peculiar.

He looked down at the black token in his hand, then looked up at the now-empty curio shelf.

He suddenly felt as if he had been scammed by these fellow transmigrators.

Each one was better at making empty promises than the last.

Each one had higher demands than the last.

The point was, at least the previous ones had given him swords to show off with.

But with this guy, he couldn't even get a taste of the empty promises being made.

"Senior Brother..."

Su Jiu finally couldn't help but speak softly, wanting to say something to comfort him.

However, Su Ji suddenly slapped his thigh. There wasn't a trace of solemnity left on his face; instead, it was replaced by a look of absolute heartache.

"My reaction was too slow."

Su Jiu was taken aback. "Huh?"

"If I had known, I would have cursed him out a couple of times just to see if he'd talk back."

Su Jiu was a little dumbfounded by his sudden and outrageous stunt.

She just took it as Su Ji's way of venting his stress.

After all... first level of the Golden Core, slaying a Nascent Soul.

If it were the Great Perfection of the Golden Core realm, perhaps there would still be a slight possibility...

But crossing an entire major realm...

This was no longer something that could be described with the word genius.

It was an absolutely impossible task.

Su Jiu's eyes dimmed a little.

"Senior Brother, how about... we just don't leave."

"Staying here in the Great Xia is pretty good too."

Su Ji's eyes suddenly lit up.

"Right!"

"With our strength, it's more than enough to live a carefree life for a hundred years."

"How did I not think of that?"

He excitedly grabbed Su Jiu's hand.

"Didn't that bro say that people wouldn't come looking for trouble with me until a hundred years from now?"

"Then why the hell are we still cultivating!"

"Think about it, mortals don't even live to be a hundred."

"Calculating it like that, I've actually earned an extra dozen years or so."

"Let's go, Junior Sister. Your Senior Brother will take you to experience the magnificent rivers, mountains, and local customs of the Great Xia!"

"Let's set a small goal first: spend all those one million high-grade spirit stones before doing anything else!"

Su Jiu: "..."

Looking at Su Ji's face, which was written all over with excitement, she only felt a wave of mental exhaustion.

Why was this guy's thought process always so incredibly bizarre?

"Senior Brother, be serious."

"I am being very serious."

Su Ji looked innocent.

"When hopes are met in life, enjoy your fill; never let your golden goblet face the moon empty."

"We're going to die anyway, so should we die happy or die miserable? Do we even need to choose?"

Su 'The Slacker' Ji was now online.

Su Jiu took a deep breath. She decided not to stoop to this guy's level.