The Transmigrator’s Cultivation

Arc 22: Affairs At Sword Conference | Chapter 409: Aftermath

In the faint morning light, inside a residence.

On a bed, a handsome young man lay asleep, his bare body sprawled beside another man, equally unclothed, resting his head on the other’s shoulder. Both appeared tranquil, their fingers intertwined, and the man’s arm draped over the young man’s waist, almost holding him tightly, their breaths mingling.

Their long, dark hair flowed like water, entangled together, creating an alluring scene.

Before long, the young man’s eyelids fluttered, gradually waking up.

At the same time, the man beside him also opened his eyes.

Their gazes met; the young man’s expression was gentle, and the man’s eyes softened slightly.

Xu Ziqing looked at his shixiong’s face and suddenly recalled the events of the previous night… He vaguely remembered that after their dual cultivation, he seemed to have seen his shixiong’s Nascent Soul enter his dantian… Then, he felt as if struck by lightning and fainted. Remembering this now, he felt his face flush, and his ears turned bright red.

Yun Lie reached out to stroke his cheek, saying, “It’s normal to feel discomfort during your first union of Nascent Souls; you don’t need to worry about it.”

Xu Ziqing composed himself, though his feelings of embarrassment hadn’t completely faded.

Fainting during dual cultivation was rather shameful, and it even made his shixiong offer him comfort… This truly left him feeling quite ashamed.

Yun Lie said little, merely applying gentle pressure to Xu Ziqing’s brow, waiting for his junior brother to calm his emotions.

Xu Ziqing was not one to be overly sentimental. Once he steadied himself, he raised his eyes and replied, “Yes, shixiong.”

The two shared a tender moment before getting up.

After dressing, Xu Ziqing checked the state of his body.

The dual cultivation from last night had brought him many benefits. In his realm of ten thousand trees, there had been a significant disparity between deathly energy and vitality, but during the dual cultivation, his shixiong’s killing intent had entered him, further helping to stabilize his Small Universe. His inner cycle of life and death had transformed into a green dragon, merging with the black-gold dragon formed from his shixiong’s ruthless killing sword path, creating a mutual complementarity. Many concepts and realms have progressed significantly through their exchanges and integrations.

Not only had his Nascent Soul realm been solidified, but his cultivation had also advanced, reaching the pinnacle of the early Nascent Soul stage. With just a thin line separating him from entering the mid-Nascent Soul stage, he began to realize that it was likely due to his recent formation of his Nascent Soul and the numerous improvements within his inner world that made this dual cultivation so beneficial. However, compared to him, his shixiong must have gained even more.

Thinking this, Xu Ziqing looked at Yun Lie and asked, “Shixiong, how are you?”

Yun Lie replied, “I have reached the late Nascent Soul stage.”

Xu Ziqing was taken aback. How could he have suddenly risen a whole realm? Originally, his shixiong had only just entered the mid-Nascent Soul stage not long ago; this shouldn’t be the case.

Yun Lie explained, “After your Nascent Soul formation, the Heavenly Dao’s gifts are still within you. Since we’ve been married for many years, it has also helped me.”

When they had first sworn their alliance, it had been sincere and genuine, leaving a mark from the heavenly path. Xu Ziqing himself had gained enlightenment through legendary techniques; although he had been relatively weak in the early stages, once he reached Nascent Soul, his power surged instantaneously. Within his Small Universe, the ten thousand trees exhibited a cycle of yin and yang in the form of Tai Chi, generating countless vitality.

In this situation, Yun Lie’s dual cultivation with him allowed him to absorb everything Xu Ziqing found difficult to process. Moreover, when their Small Universe merged, they complemented some oversights within the sword domain and, for the first time, received genuine energy feedback from Xu Ziqing.

Through these various effects, Yun Lie had advanced a whole realm. However, this benefit would likely not occur again in future dual cultivations, as this was a typical transformation for practitioners after reaching Nascent Soul.

Once past this hurdle, a practitioner’s path to immortality would become considerably smoother and distinctly extraordinary.

After exploring their internal cultivation, the two did not linger in the room and walked outside.

Yun Lie went to seek out the Qiu Jian Hall as usual, and Xu Ziqing followed him. Many sword cultivators had already been discussing sword techniques for some time, and when they saw the two approaching, they greeted them warmly.

In the next moment, someone noticed and exclaimed, “Daoist Yun’s realm…”

The others also realized it, all expressing their astonishment.

Jiwen Jing remarked, “After two days, Brother Yun has actually broken through again. Truly a cause for celebration.”

Yun Lie and Xu Ziqing took their seats. “Thank you,” Yun Lie said.

Although the crowd didn’t ask many questions, they quickly came to understand.

Since Daoist Yun and Daoist Xu were dual cultivation partners, their absence from the room for the past two days could easily be explained… After a moment of thought, they all had their suspicions.

And naturally, Daoist Yun’s sudden surge in cultivation was also related to this matter.

Some among them felt a hint of ambiguity, but they kept those thoughts to themselves and didn’t jest about it.

It was Jiwen Jing who observed the two closely. He noticed that the typically cold Yun Lie softened whenever his gaze fell on Xu Ziqing, appearing much more approachable compared to when he looked at others. After scrutinizing them, he couldn’t help but sigh inwardly.

It seemed these two truly were dual cultivation partners, and their bond ran deep, already sworn to one another. With that being the case, his sister could not marry Yun Lie after all.

A bit regrettable.

But it was a done deal, and Jiwen Jing didn’t dwell on it too much. His sister was expected to arrive in a couple of days, and they could still attend the sword conference to see what was happening. If any young talents were worthy of matching, it wouldn’t be too late. If not, there was no need to rush.

Women from the Jiwen family were never short of admirers.

Having considered this, the group resumed their discussions about sword techniques.

Xu Ziqing listened for a while, but since he wasn’t a sword cultivator and didn’t practice sword arts himself, he could only understand some parts, and it wasn’t his forte.

After accompanying them briefly, he bid farewell to his shixiong and left the hall—despite having Nascent Soul cultivation, he still needed to diligently practice.

The city was filled with the essence of swords, with many sword cultivators emanating an aura that converged into a torrent, forming a long dragon of sword intent above the city, embodying countless realms.

This wasn’t a deliberate act, yet it greatly benefited those discussing sword techniques within the city. Conversely, it had a certain restraining effect on cultivators who weren’t sword practitioners.

Given Xu Ziqing’s current realm, this restraint didn’t significantly affect him, but it would certainly be advantageous for secluded practice in a tranquil place.

After pondering for a moment, Xu Ziqing walked directly outside the city.

There, mountains were shrouded in greenery, brimming with the essence of wood. The sword intent of the city wouldn’t reach this area, making it the perfect spot for him.

Moreover… after last night’s dual cultivation, the connection between him and his shixiong was stronger, allowing them to easily sense each other’s presence within a hundred miles.

So he didn’t need to worry too much.

He soon found a densely wooded area on a mountain, arriving at the base of a few large trees where he sat cross-legged.

After setting up several barriers around him, he closed his eyes and focused on refining his cultivation.

He had gained quite a bit from last night and needed to digest it well.

Once in meditation, a substantial amount of wood essence surged from the mountains and air, forming a conical vortex that poured directly into Xu Ziqing’s head. Within his dantian, his Nascent Soul spun continuously. He held a top-grade spirit stone in each hand, constantly absorbing and compressing the spirit energy within to transform it into true essence, flowing through his meridians like a roaring river.

At this moment, each of his training sessions, under the operation of his legendary technique, had already multiplied in speed by dozens or even hundreds of times compared to before. As the spirit energy circulated, the wide meridians within him howled like a gust of wind through a corridor, pulsating with the sound of rolling thunder. Soon after, he became like a withered tree, silent and still.

Unknowingly, several hours passed.

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In the jungle, there was a rustling sound as two sisters emerged from the grass and vines, hurriedly dashing deeper into the forest. Both were stunningly beautiful, but their steps were a bit unsteady, as if they had been injured and were panicking without knowing where to run.

Just then, a thunderous shout rang out from above: “You two little wretches, where do you think you’re running to?”

The sisters became even more flustered. With a quick wave of their delicate hands, they unleashed several talismans, forming layers of formations behind them to hide their traces.

However, a shadow of a sword surged toward them. A flying sword radiated with dazzling light, and after several strikes, all their formations shattered. Standing there was a middle-aged man with a beard, exuding an overwhelming aura and a hint of malice in his eyes. He glanced at the broken formations, took a whiff of the air, and immediately pursued deeper into the forest.

The aura ahead was clear; there was no way he could be deceived.

The two sisters ran desperately, using their escape techniques to weave through the woods.

But their escape method wasn’t the wood escape technique, and the trees offered them little assistance. Moreover, being gravely injured made their faces pale, and they struggled even more.

The sharp figure behind them grew closer and closer, pushing them toward despair.

Finally, after running several miles, the man caught up!

With a flick of his hand, five or six precious needles, like spirit snakes, shot through the air, forming a barrier in front of the sisters. If they wanted to escape, they had to pass through this formation. But with the pursuer already upon them, how could they possibly break through that barrier?

They were completely cornered.

The two sisters let out a bitter laugh. “Heaven refuses to protect us; it seems we’re destined to die here today.”

Seeing the two stop, the middle-aged man revealed a sinister grin. “You two little wretches managed to escape, but now you’ve still been caught by me, haven’t you? Hand over the items, or else…”

The elder sister clenched her fists and cursed, “You scoundrel, dream on!”

The younger one added, “Even if we die, we will never let you succeed!”

As soon as she finished speaking, the elder sister swallowed a pill, her cultivation suddenly recovering and surging several times over as she charged toward the barrier of needles, shouting loudly, “Sister, escape! Protect the items and take revenge for me one day!”

Tears welled in the younger sister’s eyes, but she gritted her teeth and immediately sprinted away!

The middle-aged man, furious, pointed with his finger, and the flying sword instantly lunged toward the younger sister. “Where do you think you’re escaping to?”

Seeing this, the elder sister immediately turned back to block the flying sword.

At the same time, the younger sister grew even more resolute and continued to flee. She would never let her sister’s sacrifice be in vain!

The middle-aged man was entangled with the elder sister, his anger flaring as he struck brutally. In just a few breaths, he had injured the elder sister further. His patience wore thin, and he unleashed several powerful blows, finally sending the elder sister flying, crashing heavily to the ground, unable to move. Without a second glance, he hurriedly chased after the other sister.

The younger sister fled desperately, but her sister had bought her only a brief moment of time. In less than half a minute, she was being pursued again.

Filled with hatred yet feeling helpless, she saw that she was about to be caught—

Suddenly, she spotted a figure ahead. Without taking a closer look, she shouted, “Senior, help me! Senior, help me! I will repay you generously!” She could no longer afford to think of anything else.

Translator: Lynn

Translations are not 100% correct. Please let me know if there are typos/mistakes in the chapter.

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