A wave of hunger interrupted Xie Yushu's cultivation. She looked at the dimming sky outside the window.
"I've already reached the third level of Qi cultivation?"
The mysterious entity in her dantian, which had been continuously absorbing spiritual energy, was now gone, allowing Xie Yushu's innate talent to fully manifest. Since the establishment of Luofu Mountain, only three people, including Xie Yushu, had reached the hundredth step of the white jade staircase. It was unheard of for someone to ascend to the third level of Qi cultivation within a single day.
Obviously, there was a gap even among the geniuses. While others could climb the hundred steps due to exceptional talent, Xie Yushu managed it simply because there were only a hundred steps.
With such cultivation talent, she wished she could directly reach the Foundation Establishment stage. Unfortunately, her mortal body still required sustenance, so Xie Yushu headed to Xu Sui's small bamboo building to invite him for a meal.
As long as cultivators hadn't formed their Nascent Soul, they were still bound by the need for physical nourishment.
However, upon arriving at Xu Sui's bamboo building, Xie Yushu found it empty, as if he had been gone for quite some time.
"Use divine sense to find him."
Xie Yushu left the bamboo building and walked into the depths of the bamboo forest. Simultaneously, she released her divine sense to detect any movements within a radius of ten yards.
However, this level of consumption was enormous for Xie Yushu, who had just started cultivating.
At that moment, a fluctuation of thunder attribute spiritual energy reached her. Being naturally attuned to thunder spiritual roots, Xie Yushu sensed it immediately.
Following the source of the thunder attribute spiritual energy, Xie Yushu quickly found Xu Sui's trace.
"Senior Brother Xu, have you encountered an enemy?"
Xie Yushu observed the scorched bamboo forest around Xu Sui and the lifeless spiritual beast mountain pig nearby, growing concerned about the safety of Luofu Mountain.
Originally intending to check if Xu Sui was injured, a premonition made her stop three yards away from him.
"It's fine. I just thought that since it's Junior Sister's first day, I'd hunt a spiritual beast to celebrate."
Xu Sui's words were half true and half false. Besides cooking, hunting spiritual beasts was also a test of the power of the Thunder Pool in the Palm. Unfortunately, he misjudged the strength and ended up plowing through the entire ten-yard area with thunderous force.
Even with the defensive thunder technique spreading around him, if it had been a concentrated thunder in his palm, the destruction would have been more horrifying.
Worried about Xie Yushu's cultivation level, Xu Sui retracted the last line of defense within ten yards to avoid accidentally hurting her.
After retracting the technique, Xu Sui sensed a surge of spiritual energy from Xie Yushu. It seemed that she had reached the third level of Qi cultivation.
"Junior Sister Xie, is this..."
"I don't know either. After practicing the Luofu Seed Jade Scripture, my dantian gradually started storing spiritual energy. After some hard work, I reached the third level of Qi cultivation."
Xie Yushu scratched her head in embarrassment. Although she was initially proud of her cultivation speed, seeing the terrifying scene around Xu Sui gave her a start. The mountain pig showed no signs of struggling; it was a single fatal blow.
Spiritual beasts had tough hides and strong bodies. Even Foundation Establishment cultivators would need some effort to kill them.
Now that Xie Yushu's strange illness had inexplicably healed, it provided Xu Sui with an opportunity to kill two birds with one stone. Instead of showcasing his abilities at the upcoming sect competition, he could let Xie Yushu take the spotlight, improving the situation for Asking Sword Peak. Thinking about it, Xu Sui decided to give her a legacy.
"Take this jade..."
Accepting the spirit communication jade, Xie Yushu felt a familiar sensation, and a thought flashed in her mind.
This thing originally belonged to me.
Despite the fleeting thought, Xie Yushu felt ashamed of her greed. She infused spiritual energy into the jade, and the scenes Xu Sui had witnessed appeared in her mind. Even as a princess, she had never seen such profound techniques.
Thinking of returning the jade, she was stopped by Xu Sui.
"Junior Sister Xie, as you've seen, Asking Sword Peak is not in a good position. With the sect competition approaching, I alone cannot bear the burden. I'm giving you this legacy in the hope that you can shine during the competition, improving the situation for Asking Sword Peak. Please don't refuse."
"Senior Brother... I understand. I will cultivate diligently and not let Senior Brother down."
Feeling the residual warmth of Xu Sui on the spirit communication jade, Xie Yushu suddenly had a premonition that she might never forget this evening in her life.