Nuwa, the goddess of immortality, said that cultivating immortality does not require spiritual energ

Time flies, and in the blink of an eye, more than half a year has passed since Qin Le and his classmates graduated from the academy.

The days flowed by peacefully and fulfillingly, filled with meditation, gatherings, and occasional moments of idleness.

With Qin Le's unwavering sermons every two weeks, his companions' cultivation steadily improved.

Besides Li Yanran, Chen Yun, Chu Xiaonan, Luo Qiuyue, Wang Zhiheng, and Lu Qingshuang all deepened their understanding of their own laws and broke through one after another, steadily stepping into the mid-stage of the Earth Immortal realm.

Even Li Yanran is on the verge of a breakthrough. It is estimated that after one or two more sermons, she will be able to successfully cross that threshold.

That morning, Qin Le ate breakfast, said goodbye to her parents, and went out.

When he arrived at the milk tea shop in Baiwei Plaza, he immediately saw Chen Yun with his head down, staring at his phone screen, his fingers flying across the keyboard, and muttering to himself.

Chu Xiaonan, Wang Zhiheng, and Li Yanran, who were standing next to them, were in the same posture, looking focused.

Only Luo Qiuyue and Lu Qingshuang sat quietly to the side, watching the four of them fight.

They were playing a mobile game that had just been released a few days prior.

This game, which had only been online for a few days, was ridiculed by many players as a trash game with unfair 5v5 competition due to its unique balance, or rather, its lack of balance.

In fact, video games as a form of entertainment had been dormant for hundreds of years after the advent of the cultivation era—after all, how could the excitement of the virtual world compare to the immense sense of accomplishment brought by life-and-death battles in real secret realms or breakthroughs in strength?

But perhaps because it had been dormant for too long, the game unexpectedly attracted many people to try it out after its release, and Qin Le and his group were among them.

Seeing Qin Le approach, Chen Yun shouted without looking up, "Old Wang! Stop split pushing! Come over here and push the lane in one wave! After this game, we'll team up with Old Qin for a five-man squad!"

"Here they come! Wait until I clear this wave of minions!" Wang Zhiheng replied hastily.

Immediately, the group scrubbed the screen even more vigorously, as if they wanted to rub sparks off the glass.

Qin Le smiled, sat down in the remaining empty seat, took out his phone, and logged into the game.

Before their battle ended, Qin Le looked at Lu Qingshuang, who was sitting quietly, and asked with a smile, "How's it going? Have you made any progress on that 'Law of Slaughter' you wanted to comprehend?"

During her last sermon, Lu Qingshuang mentioned that she felt her Ice Law was somewhat lacking in pure attack and planned to try to comprehend a law that was more offensive as a supplement.

Lu Qingshuang gently shook her head, a thoughtful look flashing in her cool eyes: "It's still missing a little something. It seems within reach, but I can't quite grasp the key."

"Then when I give the sermon later, I'll see if I can help you capture that spark of inspiration," Qin Le said with a smile.

"Mm." Lu Qingshuang nodded without saying anything more.

Qin Le didn't press the matter further.

Qin Le now generally respects and supports his companions' choices on their cultivation paths.

They have almost unlimited time to try and make mistakes, and moreover, it seems that their choices are all within a reasonable range—whether it is focusing on deepening a single principle in order to reach a higher level more quickly;

Alternatively, like Lu Qingshuang, comprehending multiple complementary laws to enhance overall combat power within the same realm are both viable paths.

The former seeks a higher level of understanding, while the latter seeks broader practical application. There is no right or wrong, only different personal pursuits.

Lu Qingshuang's choice of the latter was clearly preparation for the brutal battles she might face when she ascended to the Heavenly Realm in the future.

Unlike Luo Qiuyue, who has a talent for command, or Chen Yun, who takes the auxiliary route of technological cultivation, or Chu Xiaonan, who is a tough and resilient physical cultivator.

For her, improving her direct combat capabilities was the most pragmatic choice.

As for Wang Zhiheng and Li Yanran?

Li Yanran has a powerful background and no shortage of resources;

Wang Zhiheng, on the other hand, had a ten-year agreement to become a Celestial Immortal, so he had to prioritize the in-depth exploration of one law and improve his realm as soon as possible.

At this moment, Luo Qiuyue asked with a smile, "Where do you plan to take us during today's sermon? Have you thought about it yet?"

"Hmm, I've thought of a place." Qin Le pondered for a moment, then smiled and said, "Perhaps it can give Qing Shuang a different understanding of concepts like 'killing'."

"Okay, I'll do as you say." Luo Qiuyue readily agreed.

After graduation, Qin Le continued his practice of giving a sermon every two weeks, but the location was no longer fixed.

He would intentionally choose different environments, attempting to use the inherent power or intent of the environment itself to help his partners comprehend the corresponding laws.

For example, last time, he led everyone deep into a mountain range and preached amidst the surrounding mountains, which greatly benefited Chu Xiaonan, who majored in the Law of Mountains.

Qin Le himself couldn't be sure how effective this environmental teaching method was.

But since everyone has plenty of time after graduation and there's no urgent pressure regarding resources, trying different methods can't hurt.

In his words, "I'm just idling around anyway."

"Damn it! Support! Where are you?! Protect the backline!" Chen Yun's exasperated shout suddenly came from the side.

"Protect him my ass! This marksman has a 0-18 score, does he even deserve protection? I'd be better off protecting a minion!"

From Chen Yun's phone receiver came a furious female voice, even more irritable than his own—clearly a random teammate he had been matched with.

"..."

Wang Zhiheng's face instantly turned bright red, so embarrassed he wished he could disappear into the ground.

Because that marksman with a terrible record, who was ridiculed by his teammates as being worse than a minion, was him.

Even Li Yanran sighed and looked helplessly at her partner, "Zhiheng... you should play support from now on, listen to me. At least... support doesn't die so many times."

After playing this game for a few days, the positions that each player is good at and not good at have become clear: Chu Xiaonan is a tough guy in the top lane, believing that he will never roam until the first tower is lost;

Li Yanran played the mid-lane mage skillfully; Wang Zhiheng, on the other hand, was an all-rounder who messed up every role, and in the end, everyone unanimously decided that he could only play support, responsible for vision control and taking damage.

Chen Yun and Qin Le, on the other hand, are true prodigies, capable of dominating in all five positions, and are the absolute carry players for their small team to climb the ranks.

"I...I understand." Wang Zhiheng hung his head dejectedly, unable to refute.

In the gaming world, being bad at games is the original sin.

He was actually quite frustrated himself. He had decent hand speed and knew hero skills and equipment attributes by heart, but when he started playing, he would inexplicably feed the enemy.

He also humbly sought advice from the two masters, Qin Le and Chen Yun.

The experts all agreed: psychological warfare. You need to know what your opponent is thinking and anticipate their predictions.

He understood the principles, but when it came to actual combat, Wang Zhiheng's brain couldn't keep up with his opponent's ever-changing thoughts. Often, when I thought he was on the first level, he was actually being brutally beaten by the fifth level of tactics.

Therefore, he currently holds a firm position as the team's weak link—of course, this does not include Lu Qingshuang and Luo Qiuyue, who do not play games.

After their opponent seized the opportunity and turned the tide, Chen Yun quickly exited the results screen and immediately sent a team invitation to Qin Le: "Old Qin! Hurry! Come on in! I can't carry this team by myself!"

"Coming." Qin Le smiled and nodded in agreement.

So the group sat outside the bubble tea shop, playing video games together and chatting about all sorts of things.

Although Lu Qingshuang and Luo Qiuyue did not participate in the game, they watched with great interest their lively expressions of cheering, frustration, and blaming each other, finding it even more interesting than the game itself.

Time slipped away quietly amidst laughter and the flickering lights of the screen, and before we knew it, it was almost noon.

Another game ended, and the group logged off, discussing where to have lunch.

At this moment, Li Yanran looked at the victory icon on her phone and, seemingly out of nowhere, whispered:

"If... those battlefields in the celestial realm were like this game, where you could restart after losing, that would be great."

Qin Le's finger, which was swiping the screen, paused slightly.