CHAPTER 42: CHAPTER 40: LOVE IS NOT THE ONLY THING IN LIFE

July 10th, on the Longjiang River, Lin Qianxuan rented a small boat and sat on it, fishing.

The afternoon sun was rather scorching, but for Lin Qianxuan, it was nothing.

Green mountains flanked both sides, and a cool breeze occasionally blew by. Lin Qianxuan felt quite leisurely, planning to bring Chen Long’Er here for a stroll later.

This river section was the most spiritually abundant area Lin Qianxuan had found in the city in the last two days.

Just how abundant is it?

To put it simply, compared to the neighborhood he lives in back in Cai County, it’s hundreds of times stronger.

Just casually practicing breathing here would absorb a lot of spiritual energy.

Practicing "Spirit Absorption Technique" here for an hour is probably much stronger than arduous cultivation for ten, twenty days at home.

Lin Qianxuan’s fishing hook dangled on the river surface, attracting a large gathering of fish, nibbling at his bait.

"This fish is quite big, come over and bite the hook." Lin Qianxuan pointed at a fish and said.

The fish, upon hearing Lin Qianxuan’s words, obediently swam over and bit the hook.

This was a new ability Lin Qianxuan had discovered.

He found that he could have some simple communication with the fish in the water.

As long as he extended his spiritual power, he could sense their naive consciousness.

The instructions he gave, these little fish couldn’t resist at all; instinctively, they would obey.

Even if he commanded them to bite the hook and commit suicide, they wouldn’t refuse.

That’s the dragon for you!

The uncrowned monarch of the waters.

After photographing the fish and sending it to the fan group, Lin Qianxuan tossed it into the fishkeeper, deciding to have it steamed for dinner.

The spiritual energy here was abundant, the fish seemed particularly plump, and their taste unique without any fishy smell, instead, a hint of freshness.

At this moment, replies flooded the fan group.

Most expressed jealousy at Lin Qianxuan’s beginner luck.

A few asked about the fishing spot.

Lin Qianxuan did not respond.

For the time being, he had no intention of sharing this location with anyone.

Such abundant spiritual energy, he decided to enjoy it alone.

After two days of cultivation here, Lin Qianxuan’s Qi Vortex had now taken considerable form.

He could already perform "Protective Art," "Jumping Art," and "Impact Art" with ease.

Spiritual power gathering in the palm, a complex spiritual pattern quickly appearing, he lightly pushed his palm through the water, unleashing an invisible shockwave, causing a hollow bubble explosion on the surface.

This is "Impact Art."

It can be freely attached anywhere on the body.

The best part is, there’s no recoil.

It’s simply a burst of impact.

"Protective Art" and "Jumping Art" follow the same principle, differing in coverage—the former envelops the whole body, while the latter produces thrust locally.

Currently, Lin Qianxuan expends considerable spiritual power using these basic magic, even in this spiritually abundant place. He needs about twenty seconds of absorbing spiritual energy to release one spirit art’s mana.

"Let’s try ’Profound Light Art’."

Lin Qianxuan pursed his lips, preparing to release the most difficult spell among the basic four arts.

Compared to the previous three spirit arts, this "Profound Light Art" is a tier higher in complexity.

Its spiritual patterns are quite intricate.

Lin Qianxuan mobilized spiritual power, forming patterns in his palm; soon, an extremely complex glowing spiritual pattern appeared.

With additional spiritual power injected, a thread-thin light shot forth.

Swish~!

Plop~!

A splash arose some distance away on the water, then disappeared.

Lin Qianxuan felt it was less powerful than throwing a small stone.

Yet he didn’t use full strength; primarily because spiritual power is limited, accumulating mana is hard, casual use feels wasteful.

This spirit art’s potential is actually very high.

From what Lin Qianxuan read, spirit cultivators reaching Condensing Essence Realm could, when fully exerted, fire a thumb-sized profound light directly, effectively reaching distances up to a kilometer.

Through that distance, penetrating a head with a profound light.

Ordinary pistols couldn’t achieve this level.

Moreover, once mastered, it could be stealthy and instant.

After all, this thing doesn’t necessarily need to be triggered by hand; any body part capable of gathering spiritual power can release it.

Truly undefendable.

Apart from these spirit arts, Lin Qianxuan wished to learn other spirit arts to diversify his techniques, but the spiritual arts in the "Scripture Pavilion" were quite pricey.

Lin Qianxuan considered constructing two spirit arts himself over the past two days.

But after browsing the community forum, he gave up.

Nowadays, few personally construct spirit arts bit by bit.

Officially they suggest directions, letting AI combined with quantum computers directly run spirit art models.

For spells like "Profound Light Art," AI could construct hundreds in ten seconds.

Whereas Lin Qianxuan found "Profound Light Art" somewhat challenging.

This is with an enhanced brain; without enhancement, he’d estimate not understanding the logic.

Starting from scratch to construct a spell, time-consuming and inefficient, pales in comparison to AI.

Better just buy from the "Scripture Pavilion."

Incidentally, the "Scripture Pavilion" allows customized spirit arts.

Customization is based on the four tiers: Heaven and Earth Profound Yellow.

Yellow Rank spirit arts cost one hundred points each.

Profound Rank a thousand, Earth Rank ten thousand.

Celestial Rank isn’t ten thousand. Celestial spirit arts require special arrangements with the Otherworld Bureau for customization, and the conditions aren’t clear; the "Scripture Pavilion" doesn’t specify.

Leisurely times passed while fishing.

Lin Qianxuan released the other fish from the fishkeeper back into the river, keeping only one he intended to eat.

Fishing was permitted in Longjiang, but multiple rods and net fishing were not allowed.

In the following two days, Lin Qianxuan spent leisurely time on the river, cultivating and fishing.

His Qi Vortex grew rapidly, reaching a notable scale.

Estimating, he could effortlessly cast "Impact Art" thousands of times.

Additionally, Lin Qianxuan felt his middle dantian seemed larger than others’.

Because based on the descriptions he read, ordinary people can fill their chest with Qi Vortex, for example, using [Impact Art], they can release it at most just one or two hundred times.

But now Lin Qianxuan can release [Impact Art] thousands of times with his Qi Vortex, which at most fills less than one-third of his chest.

Lin Qianxuan couldn’t quite understand the situation, anyway, he just attributed it to the Dragon Bloodline.

After all, human physiques are ultimately different.

Through the past two days of cultivation, Lin Qianxuan felt that the spiritual energy seemed very satisfying.

After absorbing the spiritual energy by the river, he didn’t feel hungry even if he didn’t eat anything.

He didn’t even need to drink water.

Moreover, Lin Qianxuan clearly felt that absorbing the spiritual energy seemed to benefit his body considerably.

He felt entirely delighted, and after absorbing so much spiritual energy, he discovered that his ability to control water had significantly enhanced.

Although the "Spirit Absorption Technique" clearly states that spiritual energy can gradually nourish and strengthen the body, isn’t the effect a bit too obvious?

Was there some magical chemical reaction happening with the Dragon Bloodline?

Keeping this curiosity in his heart, Lin Qianxuan planned to ask Chen Long’Er later.

After all, she’s in a similar situation and works in the Otherworld Bureau; she should be well-informed about these things.

.....

July 15th.

Chen Long’Er got another day off.

Lin Qianxuan took her to have fun at the upper reaches of the Long River.

Chen Long’Er was already getting involved in missions within the Otherworld Bureau.

The department she worked in specifically handled cases related to humans, so her activity range was near the city; usually, she was fully armed, so it wasn’t too dangerous.

"How has Senior Jiang been lately?" Lin Qianxuan asked.

"Teacher has gone to the Otherworld to cultivate, she said it would be half a month before she returns," Chen Long’Er replied.

"Is she still working so hard on cultivation despite being so strong?" Lin Qianxuan sighed.

Jiang Mengli has reached Celestial Rank Nine Heavens, officially the top of the ladder.

If she still works this hard on cultivation, it’s probably hard for others to catch up.

Wait, maybe that rank isn’t entirely accurate either.

Jiang Mengli being Celestial Rank Nine Heavens might be due to Xuan Country currently having only up to Celestial Rank Nine Heavens in classification, rather than her power being limited to that level.

What comes after that, in terms of ranking?

The Vast Universe, perhaps?

"How’s your cultivation going recently?" Lin Qianxuan asked Chen Long’Er.

"I’m at the Peak of the Qi Vortex Realm, almost breaking through," Chen Long’Er said.

"So fast?" Lin Qianxuan raised an eyebrow, somewhat puzzled.

"Because I can freely use the cultivation room provided by the teacher and the spirit crystals distributed by the Otherworld Bureau..." Chen Long’Er explained.

The cultivation room is probably a facility designed for gathering spiritual energy specifically for cultivation.

Spirit Crystals are refined stones that have absorbed a large amount of spiritual energy, crystallizing it; they store a high concentration of spiritual energy that can be easily guided out for absorption and use.

"That’s pretty good." Lin Qianxuan said dryly.

A bit envious, perhaps.

Should I get a job too?

Lin Qianxuan’s resolve slightly wavered.

But then the thought of overtime popped into his mind, instantly making him feel uncomfortable, almost making him want to vomit.

Flashbacks of working overtime for twenty-seven consecutive hours seemed right in front of his eyes, truly unbearable.

"Any good Spirit Arts? Can you teach me a couple?" Lin Qianxuan asked Chen Long’Er.

"Sure." Chen Long’Er nodded.

Immediately, she shared all the Spirit Arts she had learned.

Indeed, a top student, mastering over thirty Spirit Arts.

If Chen Long’Er knew them, Lin Qianxuan knew them.

He was utterly unburdened in milking the resources of the Otherworld Bureau.

After spending the day exploring the mountains and rivers, the two of them returned home and entwined with each other again.

Chen Long’Er had complied with Lin Qianxuan’s last request by wearing black stockings.

Lin Qianxuan felt he understood the appeal of leg enthusiasts.

He couldn’t resist wanting to lick them.

In fact, he did.

It’s bizarre, especially from Chen Long’Er’s gaze, which seemed to see something peculiar.

"I’m just a bit curious," Lin Qianxuan powerlessly explained.

The explanation was evidently useless; she continued to look at Lin Qianxuan with that peculiar gaze.

Lin Qianxuan immediately felt a bit embarrassed and unleashed his full combat power, once again pushing Chen Long’Er back to her original form.

He even felt a bit curious in his heart about what it would feel like if Chen Long’Er transformed into a dragon too.

Shouldn’t think about it... The more he thought, the more curious he became... He wasn’t a pervert!!!

After a while, when their passion faded, they embraced each other, savoring that warmth.

"What if we break up in the future?"

For some reason, Lin Qianxuan asked this question.

"A misunderstanding? Or no longer in love?" Chen Long’Er looked at Lin Qianxuan and asked.

"Both are possible." Lin Qianxuan said.

"Then resolve the misunderstanding. If the love is gone, then I’ll work to make you fall in love again." Chen Long’Er said.

"What if effort doesn’t work?" Lin Qianxuan asked.

"Then I won’t love you either." Chen Long’Er replied calmly.

Lin Qianxuan smiled.

He felt it was nice.

Life is full of surprises; love shouldn’t be the sole focus.

Even if they liked each other, if they parted ways, they should strive to live well.

"Long’Er..."

"Yes?"

"I really like you."

"I know."

"No, you don’t know..."

"What... hmm..."