Chapter 37

The Melon-Eating System didn’t stop at one mention; it repeated the message twice, then a third time.

【Explode gold coins!】

【Dog bastard, explode gold coins!】

The Melon-Eating System’s name for the cultivator had changed from “ugly thing” to “dog bastard.” Wasn’t it this “dog bastard” who was robbing low-level cultivators on the road? If this rogue cultivator had encountered other low-level cultivators today, wouldn’t they have innocently and pitifully perished here?

The rogue cultivator looked around, feeling cautious.

Could it be that there was more than just these two low-level cultivators in front of him? Was there someone hiding in the shadows, waiting for the right moment?

If that were the case, then he had acted rashly today!

The strange and eerie voice made the cultivator start to feel a sense of retreat in his heart.

Although this was the first time he had heard the words “explode gold coins,” he somehow understood what they meant.

A cultivator only exploded gold coins under what circumstances?

Only when they fell!

In other words, he wanted to rob the other party, but the other party had the same idea!

Just as the rogue cultivator was about to retreat, Innocent Cultivator spoke up, “We can’t let him go.” Once he discovered the secret of the Melon-Eating System, his fate was sealed.

Saying that, Innocent Cultivator was the first to draw his sword. The heavy black rock sword looked ordinary, but as it swung, the wind rose silently, and the thick killing intent rushed toward them. The sword intent surrounded the cultivator from all sides, trapping him in a dense, impenetrable circle.

The cultivator was startled and quickly raised his sword to defend.

Wasn’t this person at the third layer of Qi Refining?

How could he possess such skilled swordplay and such a fierce killing intent?

Seeing that Innocent Cultivator had already made his move, the Melon-Eating System impatiently chimed in: 【Host, kill!】

The person in front of them was a cultivator with flesh and blood, not a spiritual mouse.

But Ning Xu hesitated for only a moment. From the moment she entered the cultivation world, some beliefs had to change.

She swiftly drew the Mingyue Sword, joining Innocent Cultivator in attacking the Qi Refining seventh-layer cultivator. In the cultivation world, weakness, hesitation, and pure goodness were fatal. Her first lesson was to adapt to the survival laws of this world.

【The basic sword technique taught by Wu Chi-chun is enough to deal with this cultivator!】

【Basic sword technique, first move—Autumn Water Flows East!】

【Basic sword technique, second move—Ink Never Stains the Dust!】

【Host, kill, kill, kill!】

A fighting spirit rose in Ning Xu’s heart. After all, the rogue cultivator had provoked them first. She and Innocent Cultivator became bolder with each strike and quickly cut the cultivator down.

A thud.

The sound of the cultivator falling heavily to the ground.

Ning Xu looked down at the cultivator lying there, motionless with wide-open eyes, falling into long silence.

She hadn’t expected that her sword would be stained with the blood of a cultivator so soon after entering the Secret Realm.

Killing, competition, and ranking formed the brutal cultivation world.

As Ning Xu adjusted her mood, trying to quickly adapt to the survival of the fittest in the cultivation world, a basket of steaming dumplings suddenly appeared in front of her.

The continuous aroma of food forcefully drove away the bloody scent in the air.

Innocent Cultivator looked at her with anticipation and asked, “Want some?”

Ning Xu replied, “Yes!”

After finishing the dumplings, Ning Xu’s mood had mostly calmed.

She picked up the cultivator’s storage bag, erased its spiritual imprint, and evenly divided the contents with Innocent Cultivator.

The Melon-Eating System expressed its disdain: 【The gold coins dropped by this ugly thing are too few!】

Ning Xu replied, “He’s just a rogue cultivator.”

This cultivator wasn’t from a major sect, and having a few hundred middle-grade spirit stones was already considered wealthy. Who knows how many people he had robbed to get them?

Today, she and Innocent Cultivator had cut him down, which was also eliminating a threat for other cultivators.

Ning Xu stood in place and asked the Melon-Eating System, “Where should we go next?”

The Melon-Eating System replied, 【There’s a spiritual spring with dense spiritual energy to the north. Meditate in the spring, and I’ll pass you a Heavenly-tier cultivation technique.】

“Okay!”

The next stretch of road was calm, with Ning Xu and Innocent Cultivator not encountering any more robbers. However, they did see several groups of cultivators in conflict along the way. Various-colored spells exploded around them.

Ning Xu didn’t have the habit of getting involved in other people’s business, and Innocent Cultivator was even less inclined to. So, they didn’t stop and simply left.

After walking for three hours, Ning Xu finally found the spiritual spring the Melon-Eating System mentioned.

It was hidden and required a winding path to reach it, but by the time they arrived, two cultivators were already meditating by the spring.

A male and a female cultivator were seated in the spring, cultivating.

Ning Xu paused slightly, tightening her grip on her sword.

The female cultivator opened her eyes, glanced at them, and then quickly closed them again, seemingly indifferent to their presence, as though she didn’t mind sharing the spring.

The Melon-Eating System sighed, 【These two are both at the ninth layer of Qi Refining. You can’t beat them.】

Ning Xu said, “As long as they don’t make trouble, it’s fine.”

Along the way, Ning Xu hadn’t encountered any spiritual beasts guarding the spring, so it was likely these two cultivators had dealt with them.

In any case, the spiritual spring here was large enough, and she didn’t mind the presence of others.

Ning Xu stepped into the spring and soon felt a difference.

This spiritual spring, certified by the system, was indeed extraordinary, with spiritual energy far beyond ordinary.

The spiritual energy continuously circulated through her body, making her pores seem to open.

Ning Xu sat down to meditate.

She looked at Innocent Cultivator, and after he met her gaze, he smiled lightly, “I’ll guard you.”

With two cultivators of unclear morals nearby, it was important to remain alert and not let her guard down.

Ning Xu replied, “After you finish, I’ll guard you.”

“Okay.”

Ning Xu quickly fell into her cultivation.

The Heavenly-tier cultivation technique—“Unmoving Seven Killing Swords” continuously flowed into Ning Xu’s sea of consciousness.

The obscure characters automatically transformed into comprehensible words as they entered her mind.

Ning Xu immersed herself in this Heavenly-tier technique, greedily absorbing the knowledge.

When she opened her eyes again, four hours had passed.

At this point, more cultivators had arrived at the spring. Everyone found a spot to meditate, and the atmosphere was harmonious.

Ning Xu stood up and said to Innocent Cultivator, “I’m done. You can cultivate for a while.”

The secret realm would last for a month, so there was no rush to seek opportunities. With the spiritual energy here so dense, missing out would be a pity.

Innocent Cultivator replied, “Okay, can you stay within half a meter of me?”

Ning Xu blinked. Although Innocent Cultivator seemed a bit clingy with his request, he had asked “Can you?” so she naturally had to agree.

Ning Xu said, “Sure.”

While Innocent Cultivator meditated, Ning Xu stayed by his side to guard him.

With the two of them, there were now nine cultivators in the spiritual spring.

There were no troublemakers among the cultivators, so for now, everything was peaceful. But if more people arrived, there was no telling what might happen. In crowded places, conflicts were inevitable, but Ning Xu wasn’t afraid.

As she quietly observed the group, the Melon-Eating System casually said, 【Host, your post has indeed gone viral.】

【One of the parties involved, Nascent Soul True Monarch, personally left a comment under your post.】

Ning Xu asked casually, “What did he say?”

【He said, “Where did this rodent come from? All it can do is hide in the shadows and spread rumors about me and my disciple. He said he’ll drag you out and see who’s behind all this trouble.”】

Upon hearing this, Ning Xu took out her disciple token, intending to reply personally.

But she unexpectedly found that the token didn’t work in the secret realm. She couldn’t connect to the “Three Thousand Realms Cultivator Exchange Area,” let alone reply to posts.

The Melon-Eating System reminded her, 【In the secret realm, all tokens are suspended.】

Then it chuckled, 【Although you can’t reply in the secret realm, I can do it for you!】

Since she couldn’t connect to her token, Ning Xu had lost interest in replying and casually said, “Then go ahead and reply for me.”

As for those two, she couldn’t be bothered with them.

Handing the task of replying to the Melon-Eating System was the best solution.

Hearing this, the Melon-Eating System immediately grew excited, 【I’ll reply now!】

Ning Xu granted it permission, “Go ahead.”

The Melon-Eating System fell silent for a moment, and on this side, Ning Xu finished surveying the other cultivators.

She couldn’t discern their cultivation levels, which meant they were all stronger than her.

But encountering stronger cultivators was very normal in the cultivation world.

Ning Xu wasn’t too nervous, since she had the token given by Elder Wu Chi-chun, which could withstand a full-force attack from a Nascent Soul cultivator. In this situation, the best thing was to focus on improving her strength.

After a while, the Melon-Eating System returned after posting the reply.

It spoke, 【Host, I’ve replied to the post for you.】

Ning Xu asked, “How did you reply?”

【I said, ‘If you have the guts, come find me, dung boy! If you can find me, I’ll lose. What are you and your disciple even worth?’】

After saying that, the Melon-Eating System chuckled, 【Cultivators who commented all say we’re impressive and that we’re someone to watch!】

Ning Xu, “…”

Fine.

She couldn’t stand those two anyway, and the Melon-Eating System’s reply was to her liking.

As for whether she had offended the duo? Who cares!

Now she had a Heavenly-tier cultivation technique, and she wasn’t afraid of anyone! Not only was she not afraid, but she was also going to expose their secrets! The bigger the secret, the better!