The more unfamiliar and new the environment, the more crucial it was to seize every moment to increase oneâs strength.
The Heaven and Earth Spiritual Qi in the Eastern Earth Immortal Realm was so abundant that cultivating the Dragon and Tiger Kan and Li Skillâoriginally a Dao Skillâwould have absolutely explosive results.
The allure of longevity and immortality was too great to resist.
Back when he was a Martial Artist in Great Yan, even though he had already made a name for himself, a First Grade Martial Artist would most likely not live past two hundred years.
Now that a real opportunity was laid so tantalizingly before him, Zou Feng was naturally thrilled.
He couldnât wait to go eight hundred rounds with Gongsun Jinghong and break through to the First Grade Spirit Body Realm.
When the rooms were assigned earlier, Zou Feng had deliberately taken note of Gongsun Jinghongâs room.
So he soon found himself at her door and gave it a knock.
"Who is it?"
He could clearly hear Gongsun Jinghong turning over and sitting up, her tone extremely wary.
Despite how wild and arrogant Gongsun Jinghong had been before, she had suffered successive setbacks and was now injured.
Furthermore, she was now in the unfamiliar environment of the Eastern Earth Immortal Realm, and even the Great Yan Royal Familyâs backer here was gone.
These consecutive blows made it impossible for her to adapt so quickly, and she had lost her former composure.
"Itâs me, Zou Feng!"
Gongsun Jinghong let out a small sigh of relief.
"What is it? Do you need something?"
Zou Feng said, "Open up. Itâs time to cultivate the Dragon and Tiger Kan and Li Skill!"
Hearing this, Gongsun Jinghong was truly a bit speechless.
âWeâve all just been through a major upheaval, and my mind is still far from calm. How could I possibly be in the mood for *that*...â
"Iâm a little tired. Some other time..." Gongsun Jinghong refused decisively.
Zou Feng frowned. "Tired? Doesnât matter. With the Dragon and Tiger Kan and Li Skill, the more you cultivate, the more energetic you become. You wonât be tired in a little while!"
Gongsun Jinghongâs patience snapped. "Tch! How can you not understand? Iâm not in the mood!"
After arriving in the Eastern Earth Immortal Realm, she was no longer in the mood to use the imperial "We."
She paused, likely not wanting to truly offend Zou Feng, and continued to explain, "We are now stranded in a foreign land with an uncertain future, and I am still injured... How about we rest for a few days before cultivating the Kan and Li Skill?"
"Rest for a few days?" Zou Feng snorted coldly. "Gongsun Jinghong, are you really that foolish, or just playing dumb?"
"Itâs precisely because weâre stranded in a foreign land with an uncertain future that we must seize the time to increase our strength and cast aside all distracting thoughts."
"With an attitude like this, how can you even talk about seeking the Dao and becoming an immortal? Once we get to the Pinnacle Celestial Immortal Sect, youâll just end up as a stepping stone for others."
Hearing these words, Gongsun Jinghong froze on the spot.
Getting no response, Zou Feng naturally lost his patience. "Of course," he said finally, "I donât like to force people. If youâre unwilling, then forget it."
"Iâve seen plenty of heroic women on this Flying Celestial Ship who would be willing to dual-cultivate to become stronger. Farewell!"
With that, he turned and left without the slightest hesitation.
He even truly intended to approach the other female Martial Artists who had come from the various Earth Realms.
Although dual cultivating with someone who hadnât practiced the Kan and Li Skill meant he couldnât achieve Dragon and Tiger Convergence and the effects would be greatly diminished, it was still far better than not cultivating at all.
He had barely taken two steps when the door behind him creaked open with a "CREAK."
"Well, are you coming in or not!" Gongsun Jinghong looked at Zou Feng with a hint of grievance.
Zou Feng turned around and said calmly, "Are you sure?"
"Hurry up and letâs cultivate! Whatâs with all the talk!" With that, Gongsun Jinghong darted in front of Zou Feng and pulled him into the room.
Seeing that Gongsun Jinghong had come around and accepted the logic in his words, Zou Feng naturally wasnât going to be coy about it.
While it was true he had other options, achieving Dragon and Tiger Convergence with Gongsun Jinghong would yield the best results.
Finally able to cultivate, Zou Feng put in extra effort.
The commotion they made was naturally quite loud.
The rooms were small and the soundproofing was poor, so it was only natural that the neighbors would be disturbed.
However, the others who came from the various Earth Realms were all powerful Martial Artists.
If they truly couldnât stand the noise, they could easily use their own methods to block it out.
But someone, apparently just looking for trouble, rushed over and started banging on the door.
"Damn it, youâre loud as hell!"
Zou Feng naturally shouted a few retorts back.
In truth, everyone here was a Martial Artist. Never mind dual cultivation, many other training methods also created a great deal of noise.
As a result, many people practicing their skills in their rooms were making quite a racket.
Yet this person chose to come here specifically to cause a scene, clearly looking for trouble on purpose.
Unexpectedly, after a few retorts, the person banging on the door suddenly stopped. After a few cold snorts, they left on their own.
âAll that menacing door-banging, only to give up so easily.â
Gongsun Jinghong, however, sat up and said, "The one next door is from an Outer Realm and cultivates some sort of Witchcraft. The way he looked at me earlier wasnât right."
As she spoke, her voice was laced with killing intent.
Gongsun Jinghong was no pushover. She might get along with Zou Feng, but in reality, she was extremely ruthless and known for her violent temper in the Great Yan Dynasty.
"Donât be impulsive yet. We havenât even arrived at the Pinnacle Celestial Immortal Sect. Killing someone wantonly would be too blatant a disregard for the rules."
Gongsun Jinghong frowned. "Itâs said that Witchcraft is bizarre and unpredictable. If you donât understand it, itâs easy to fall prey to it without even realizing."
Zou Feng, however, didnât think it was that mystical. After all, the others from the Outer Realms didnât possess any truly Immortal Technique-level abilities either.
ăThe next morning.ă
Zou Feng emerged from Gongsun Jinghongâs room feeling refreshed and invigorated.
He had only taken a few steps when a gray-haired man with sunken eyes darted out from the next room. A single glance told Zou Feng he didnât practice any orthodox Cultivation Skill.
As the man suddenly blocked his path, Zou Feng immediately realized this must be the guy who was banging on their door last night.
"Can I help you?" Zou Feng spoke first.
The gray-haired man sized Zou Feng up for a moment before speaking. "The one in that room... she your woman?"
Zou Feng nodded. "You could say that."
After receiving an affirmative answer, the gray-haired man broke into an extremely ugly smile. "Good. Name your price!"
âName my price?â Zou Feng didnât immediately understand what the guy was getting at.
"Thatâs right. Name a price and sell your woman to me!" the gray-haired man said casually.
This gray-haired man had clearly grown accustomed to lording over others in his home Earth Realm. Even after arriving in the Eastern Earth Immortal Realm, his attitude hadnât changed, and he clearly had no intention of laying low.
Of course, this was also related to the Pinnacle Celestial Immortal Sectâs seemingly relaxed atmosphere.
After they had boarded the Flying Celestial Ship, Chen Zifan and the other Immortal Sect disciples responsible for receiving the Martial Artists from the Outer Realms had rarely shown themselves. They never explained any of the Immortal Sectâs rules or restricted their activities.
This caused the people from the Outer Realms, who were originally quite apprehensive, to gradually shed their caution. They began to leave their rooms more frequently and interact with one another.
"Hold on, I think youâre mistaken."
"Putting aside the fact that itâs not my decision to make, even if it were, why would I sell her to you?"
The gray-haired man said impatiently, "Thatâs why Iâm telling you to name a price! You want Magical Artifacts? You want my Maids? As long as itâs not too outrageous, anything goes!"
âMagical Artifacts and Maids?â
âThis guy brought Maids with him to join the Pinnacle Celestial Immortal Sect?â
Perhaps sensing Zou Fengâs confusion, the gray-haired man grinned. "The Maids are new acquisitions since I got on the ship. Top-quality goods from the Wulan Realm. I guarantee you wonât be disappointed!"
âHuh? So he attacked his âfellow disciples-to-beââpeople who came from the Outer Realms to seek the Dao at the Pinnacle Celestial Immortal Sectâand forcibly made them his Maids?â
âIt seems they really donât manage things much before you officially enter the Pinnacle Celestial Immortal Sect...â
âIt also means this gray-haired man is not to be trifled with. The Witchcraft he cultivates must really be something.â
âBut no matter how troublesome he is, can he be more troublesome than my List of Gods?â
"Not for sale!" Zou Feng couldnât be bothered to waste any more words on the guy.
The gray-haired manâs pupils constricted. "Are you sure?"
"Am I to understand that youâre opposing me?"
Zou Feng replied, "You can think that if you want. But let me give you a piece of advice: once youâre at the Pinnacle Celestial Immortal Sect, itâs best not to think too highly of yourself!"
"Heh heh heh..." the gray-haired man cackled. "It seems you have no idea whatâs going on. Fine. Weâll just wait and see!"
With that, the gray-haired man turned and left.
Zou Feng, meanwhile, silently opened the List of Gods.
And just as the man had said, it was time to wait and see. Sure enough, a name now shone brightly on the list: Yuan Fang.