Immortal and Martial Dual Cultivation

If one got interrupted while refining the White Nascent Fruit, the consequences could be dire. At best, one would get off with just severe injuries. At worst, one might even die.

Unexpectedly, Xiao Chen still faced so much trouble after obtaining the thousand-year-old White Nascent Fruit.

The initial joy in his heart cooled off. He now felt conflicted. The two clans were very familiar with the area. No matter how well he hid, they would be able to find him in no time.

Xiao Chen already experienced the tension of being chased continuously three days ago.

Ao Jiao urged, Stop worrying and quickly refine it. Otherwise, its effect will become even weaker.

Taking counsel of his fears was not part of Xiao Chen’s character. Steeling himself, he looked around and found a copse of dense bushes.

After setting up some simple camouflage to hide himself, he sat down cross-legged and took out the thousand-year-old White Nascent Fruit.

Normally, White Nascent Fruits would only live for five hundred years. One that survived for a millennium was definitely a mutated fruit, a rare and attractive treasure no less valuable than Dragon Marrow.

After Xiao Chen calmed himself, his expression turned peaceful as he swallowed the White Nascent Fruit whole.

The white fruit tasted fragrant and sweet. It melted the moment it entered his mouth. Before he could savor the taste, the White Nascent Fruit turned into a warm stream of energy flowing quickly within his body.

“Boom!”

The Medicinal Energy immediately took effect. Xiao Chen’s flesh and hair turned sparkling and translucent, each part glittering magnificently.

This radiance held especially true for his black hair, which danced around all sparkling and translucent, like ancient top-quality jade, filled with boundless charm.

The inside of Xiao Chen’s dantian became a spectacular mess. The energy from the thousand-year-old White Nascent Fruit fell into his dantian like torrential rain.

Every drop of the liquid pouring down contained surging Spiritual Energy. His cultivation rose continuously without any signs of stopping.

Soon, Xiao Chen reached the formless bottleneck leading to Superior Grade Martial Monarch.

The Spiritual Energy contained in the thousand-year-old White Nascent Fruit exceeded his expectations tremendously. It would be quite apt to compare it to a sea of energy.

Now, Xiao Chen felt some regret at using this thousand-year-old White Nascent Fruit to break through to Superior Grade Martial Monarch. Doing so was simply using a sledgehammer to crack a nut.

It might have been better for him to use the White Nascent Fruit to break through to half-Sage.

However, this thought was fleeting. After all, not to even mention the fact that this thousand-year-old White Nascent Fruit could only be found and not sought, the amount of Quintessence needed for the Purple Thunder Divine Incantation, which Xiao Chen cultivated, far surpassed the ordinary. The White Nascent Fruit that could help others break through to half-Sage might not have the same effect on him.

“Boom!”

A vast Spiritual Energy rushed around like a raging river. After crashing into the formless bottleneck to Superior Grade Martial Monarch a few times, it managed to break through.

However, the jadelike glow of Xiao Chen’s body did not dim. His hair flickered with light and danced in the air.

Energy surged through Xiao Chen’s body, making him feel very carefree. He had finally advanced to Superior Grade Martial Monarch.

What gave Xiao Chen even more joy was that he had not fully consumed the Spiritual Energy in the thousand-year-old White Nascent Fruit yet.

Rain continued to pour in his dantian. Each drop of rain equaled a day’s worth of cultivating.

Xiao Chen’s cultivation continued to advance. After one hour of refining the Medicinal Energy nonstop, he firmly stabilized his cultivation as Superior Grade Martial Monarch.

Even so, he still had Spiritual Energy from the thousand-year-old White Nascent Fruit left over. So he quickly decided to use this chance to break through to peak late-stage Superior Grade Martial Monarch.

After making up his mind, Xiao Chen started to refine his Quintessence, turning all the surging but slightly diffused Spiritual Energy into a pure and dense purple lightning-attributed Quintessence.

Time slowly passed. With the aid of the White Nascent Fruit, his Quintessence became pure and dense in less than an hour, growing as heavy as a mountain.

Without hesitating, Xiao Chen took out a Quintessence Gathering Pill and swallowed it, starting to refine his vast and dense purple Quintessence a second time.

His carefree feeling disappeared, replaced by the tremendous pain that came with refining one’s Quintessence twice again.

Bean-sized beads of sweat rolled down his forehead. He clenched his teeth tightly and pressed his tongue against them, silently enduring the agony that came with using the Quintessence Gathering Pill.

Even though Xiao Chen already experienced this twice, undergoing this again made even his soul shudder. Pain filled every spot of his body, making him wish that the torment would stop.

Since ancient times, many people had thought of refining their Quintessence twice again. A large portion of them could not tolerate the pain and gave up. The bodies of a small portion could not endure the stress, and they died from it.

A strong physical body and an unwavering will. Only when one had both could they successfully refine their Quintessence twice again. Otherwise, even if one were a rare genius seen only once every ten thousand years, one would still fail.

The heart-wrenching pain seemed to be questioning Xiao Chen at every moment, asking if he understood what he was doing, if he really knew that he wanted.

The path of cultivation was filled with thorns and countless pitfalls. Even if one put in a lot of sweat and blood, they might not be able to reach the peak.

Will your heart be shaken? Do you have the courage to endure this boundless agony?

Xiao Chen’s conviction did not waver. His heart became even more determined through this questioning. He had never doubted his path, not in the past, not now, and he never would in the future!

---

“Dong! Dong! Dong!”

“Check everywhere! The Clan Head said that we just need to find that brat. There is no need to deal with him. After that, we can obtain a great reward!”

Urgent footsteps approached. At this crucial moment, cultivators from the Situ and Liu Clans actually arrived.

If someone injured Xiao Chen while he was refining his Quintessence with the Quintessence Gathering Pill, he would inevitably enter into a state of Berserking Qi Deviation.

Xiao Chen quickly thought about it and made a decision, preparing to give up on this opportunity. Although he would suffer a big loss, it would be much better than undergoing Berserking Qi Deviation.

Don’t move. Just focus on refining your Quintessence. Absorb all the Medicinal Energy from the thousand-year-old White Nascent Fruit. I will help you deal with these people!

Without waiting for a reply, Ao Jiao, who was within the Immortal Spirit Ring, flew out and immediately tore a crack in the simple camouflage Xiao Chen had erected.

The two clans’ cultivators immediately discovered Xiao Chen’s glowing body in the dark forest.

“Found him! Quickly inform—”

The person who spoke sounded very excited, attracting the attention of the search party.

However, before this person could finish speaking, a petite figure flashed by, and blood spurted while his head went flying.

Only then did the others realize that a petite girl with a frosty expression had arrived in the air at some point in time.

Wielding two beams of light in her hands, Ao Jiao charged at the remaining people without saying anything.

The search party was made up of only Martial Kings. How could they be a match for Ao Jiao? As the lights flashed, the members of the party fell in rapid succession.

This sudden development startled the leader. He quickly turned and ran. Then he activated an alarm hidden in his sleeve.

An ear-piercing buzz immediately tore through the surroundings, like a ripple sweeping through the towering trees. In a moment, all the cultivators within fifty kilometers heard the commotion.

“Pu ci!”

The beam of light in Ao Jiao’s hand flew out and pinned this person, who successfully sounded the alarm, to a towering tree.

A search party of eleven people all died in a few breaths. The danger had passed for now. However, an even greater danger would be arriving soon.

Ao Jiao felt two strong auras rushing over. She could not help but frown with worry.

Two beams of light descended from the sky, giving off horrifying energy ripples. They blasted the trees into wood splinters and filled the air with dirt and dust.

Situ Lei and Liu Chen both held their weapons as they walked out of the dust cloud expressionlessly.

The two looked around and immediately discovered the glowing Xiao Chen. Rage instantly flared up in their eyes.

This brat is actually refining the thousand-year-old White Nascent Fruit. As it is, even if we kill him, we will not be able to get the thousand-year-old White Nascent Fruit back!

In their rage, the two flew forward, wanting to cut Xiao Chen into pieces to ease their anger.

“Qiang! Qiang!”

Ao Jiao calmly descended from the sky and swung the two beams of light around, blocking the attacks of the two and exhibiting exquisite technique.

A cold light flashed, forcing back the two unprepared people in the exchange.

“Weapon Spirit?!”

After Liu Chen and Situ Lei landed on the ground, they exchanged strange glances. They immediately rejoiced and revealed an avid gaze as they looked at Ao Jiao.

Situ Lei’s spear trembled as he smiled faintly. “I had long felt that this brat’s saber was strange. Unexpectedly, it managed to birth a Weapon Spirit.”

Liu Chen smiled sinisterly and said, “A treasured saber with a Weapon Spirit…even if we split it, it would be sufficient to make up for our losses.”

Naturally, as half-Sages, they had seen more of the world than most people and discerned Ao Jiao’s identity right away with one glance.

Ao Jiao quietly floated above the ground and saw the greedy gazes of the two. She could not help but smile coldly and say, “Who do you think you are? Do you think that just anyone can wield the Lunar Shadow Saber, the saber wielded by someone who received the Thunder Emperor’s inheritance?”

Situ Lei’s eyes lit up as he laughed loudly. “No wonder this brat is so strong! It turns out that he is the inheritor of the Thunder Emperor. Looks like we really obtained a big profit. Watch how I subdue you!”

“Xiu!”

Situ Lei’s figure flashed as his spear sent out a flame dragon at Ao Jiao, charging at her. It contained a strong state of fire and vast Quintessence, possessing a powerful aura.

Not wanting to look inferior, Liu Chen quickly rushed over with a blue glow on his sword.

Since the Thunder Wood Sword broke, Ao Jiao had never truly recovered her strength. After being reborn in the Lunar Shadow Saber, she barely managed to obtain the combat prowess of a Medial Grade Martial Monarch.

Regarding cultivation, Ao Jiao definitely lost out to the two. Fortunately, her technique and combat experience far surpassed theirs. She could still contend with them for a short while.

However, as time passed, the situation slowly turned unfavorable. Ao Jiao found it increasingly difficult to endure as she recklessly expended Quintessence to deal with the two’s attacks.

“Bang!”

Ao Jiao revealed an opening, which Situ Lei caught hold off. Situ Lei swept his spear across and sent Ao Jiao’s soft body flying.

“Little girl, do you still dare to boast? Is this old man qualified to wield the Lunar Shadow Saber now?”

Situ Lei laughed madly, pressing on while he had the advantage. Flame dragons circled the spear, forcing Ao Jiao to retreat.