Cultivation: Beginning with the Heart Reflecting Heaven and Earth

On their way back, they encountered other disciples of the Holy Land, but they were all wary of each other and deliberately kept a safe distance without exchanging greetings.

After all, we were in the wilderness, and no one could predict what would happen. It was best to keep our distance to avoid any misunderstandings.

Only when they were almost at their encampment in the Black Abyss Forest did Mu Dong breathe a sigh of relief, slow his pace, and say, "Brother Lu, how about we divide our battle merits in a 40/30/30 ratio? I'll shamelessly take 40%, and you and Xue'er will each take 30%."

Mu Dong was almost always the main force in dealing with the Iron Corpse.

Mu Xue and Lu Qian's Turbid Wave Corrosion Curse was just a prelude; Mu Dong's Crimson Flame Melting Technique was the real trump card that unleashed its power.

As someone with the Earth Fire Spiritual Root and whose cultivation had reached the eighth level of Qi Refining, Mu Dong's Crimson Flame Melting Technique was extremely powerful, completely on a different level from the spells of Lu Qian and Mu Xue.

Because the strength of the Turbid Wave Corrosion Curse lies only in suppression, erosion, and weakening, while the Crimson Flame Melting Technique is truly heavy and domineering, with extremely strong explosive power!

If it were just Mu Xue and Lu Qian, all they could probably do was use the Turbid Wave Corrosion Curse to restrict the Iron Corpse and then deal with it slowly. But Mu Dong could instantly eliminate the Iron Corpse with the Crimson Flame Melting Technique under such circumstances.

Therefore, Lu Qian absolutely agreed that Mu Dong should receive the most merits, and even felt that Mu Dong should receive a little less. "Brother Mu, how about you and Brother Mu each take 40%, and I take 20%? After all, I haven't contributed much."

Lu Qian's cultivation level was too low; he could only play a supporting role.

Even without Lu Qian, Mu Xue and Mu Dong could still go to the Chaotic Burial Mountains to kill Iron Corpses without having to take care of Lu Qian, and they would have fewer worries.

However, if Lu Qian were alone, it would take him some effort to reach the Chaotic Burial Mountains, given his strength. It would be very difficult for him to deal with the Iron Corpse at the late stage of Qi Refining, and he could easily get injured if he wasn't careful.

Therefore, he genuinely believed that taking 20% ​​of the battle credit was enough.

If it weren't for the ability to detect danger in advance and find the Iron Corpse, Lu Qian felt that taking 10% of the battle merit would be enough.

Upon hearing Lu Qian's words, Mu Dong laughed, "Brother Lu, you are even more useful than you think! If others knew about your pupil technique, they would probably invite you to join them."

"Besides, you have body-refining cultivation, so you don't need much care. You also know the Turbid Wave Bone-Corroding Curse, which can be useful in crucial moments. I think you and Xue'er are about the same level of importance, so please don't refuse!"

Mu Xue nodded repeatedly, blinked her eyes, and said seriously, "Brother Lu, it's still very difficult for my brother and me to find other trustworthy people who can also be of some use, so the three levels of battle merits are what you deserve. I even think it's a bit too little."

She spoke the last sentence in a low voice, but Mu Dong still heard her and glared at her. Mu Xue quickly lowered her head.

Whether Lu Qian truly didn't care about 20% or 30%, it would only amount to a few dozen battle merits, which wasn't a big deal. So he didn't refuse, saying, "Then I'll accept it!"

The three then went to submit the mission. The person from the Holy Land took the storage bag containing the corpse teeth, glanced at it briefly, and said indifferently, "Five hundred and eighty-three battle merits. For your first mission, let's say six hundred battle merits!"

He took Mu Dong's identity jade token and assigned him 600 battle merits. Then Mu Dong assigned 180 battle merits to Lu Qian and Mu Xue respectively, thus completing the distribution.

After this mission was over, they all wanted to take a good rest, but they still needed to agree on a time to see when they could go again next time.

Mu Dong thought for a moment before speaking, "Why don't we go again in half a month? If we go on missions too often, we won't have time to cultivate! For us cultivators, cultivation is ultimately the most important thing; we shouldn't put the cart before the horse!"

Mu Xue hesitated, "Going out only once every two weeks, will I be able to accumulate enough battle merits?"

Mu Dong glanced at her and said calmly, "Is there anything you'd like to exchange for? Can you exchange it in a short time?"

Mu Xue immediately shook her head. What she wanted most to exchange for was definitely the Spirit Stone, but to do so in a short time was nothing short of wishful thinking.

Mu Dong sighed, "Since we can't exchange them in a short time, let's not rush it. Improving our cultivation is the priority! At this stage, we should treat the process of gaining battle merits as training, not just a means to obtain them! Going out once every two weeks, the resources we can exchange for with the battle merits are already sufficient!"

What Mu Dong really wanted to say was, if you stand by the river long enough, you're bound to get your shoes wet.

But thinking that it was an unlucky thing to say, I didn't say it, but the actual facts will not change.

If you frequently go out to exorcise evil spirits, you will eventually encounter danger; the more often you go out, the more dangerous it becomes.

While the goal is to hone one's skills, there's no need to constantly put oneself in danger.

After Mu Dong left, Mu Xue and Lu Qian did not leave, but instead went to Lu Qian's government office together.

Just as Mu Dong was leaving, she gave Lu Qian a wink. Lu Qian knew this wasn't the place to talk, so he naturally led her to the cave.

As soon as she sat down, Mu Xue immediately asked, "Has he contacted you?"

Lu Qian naturally knew who Mu Xue was referring to, only that it was Yun Shanchuan who had threatened them before. So he shook his head and said, "I met him a few times before coming to the Black Abyss Forest, but I haven't seen him since we arrived here."

In the past few days, everyone has been busy adapting to the situation here. It is estimated that Yun Shanchuan is not in the mood to make a move against Lu Qian for the time being, or rather, he is too busy to deal with it. However, we must be wary of him in the future.

Seeing Mu Xue deep in thought, Lu Qian continued, "Actually, I don't think we need to pay attention to his threats. When he didn't come out to expose us immediately, his situation wasn't much better than ours, so he probably wouldn't dare to do such a thing."

If this matter were truly exposed to the public, both Lu Qian and Yun Shanchuan would at least be accused of knowing but not reporting it. Therefore, Lu Qian was not afraid of Yun Shanchuan's threat at all, and could even be said to not care much.

As for Mu Xue, she would probably care more, because her situation is different.

However, since we've determined that Yun Shanchuan won't easily expose this matter, there's no need to rush.

Upon hearing Lu Qian's words, Mu Xue calmly replied, "It's precisely because we don't need to worry about him now that we need to act as soon as possible, because he didn't expect us to make a move so quickly!"

"Besides, don't forget his abilities; many people will definitely want to befriend him. Once he's settled here, will we still have a chance to make our move?"

Lu Qian recalled Yun Shanchuan's reputation: a master of both alchemy and formations, he must have some skill. Moreover, he was a genius with a special physique. Who wouldn't want to befriend someone like that?

Actually, alchemists are alright, since they can exchange battle merits for pills, and the disciples of the Holy Land don't have that strong a need for alchemists.

But array masters are different. They are superior everywhere, especially in a place like the Western Continent. If a team has an array master, they can set up arrays in advance and control the arrays during battle. What an advantage that would be!

Therefore, Mu Xue's words actually make some sense. If they don't act now, they may not have another chance.

However, Lu Qian knew very well that Mu Xue wanted to make a move as soon as possible for more than just these reasons.

More importantly, Yun Shanchuan possesses a divine body and is naturally strong in spirit. If Mu Xue can refine him into a demon puppet, her cultivation will also advance by leaps and bounds under the feedback of the demon seed!

For cultivators, cultivation level is always of paramount importance!

Even after thinking all this through, Lu Qian had no intention of backing down. After all, he and Mu Xue shared a secret, and it was basically impossible for them to get off the ship. Even considering the closeness of their relationship, there was no need to think about what to do.

As he pondered, Lu Qian suddenly remembered something. "Have you figured out how to approach him? How to find out if he left?"

It's definitely impossible to take action within the base; that would be suicidal. And in the wilderness, tracking someone's movements is quite difficult.

When faced with Lu Qian's question, Mu Xue smiled slightly and said, "This is the last thing you need to worry about."

Lu Qian was taken aback at first, but he immediately understood. The Heart Demon Manual could divide demonic thoughts and invade the mind, and the victim would hardly be able to detect it.

If Mu Xue could find an opportunity to plant a demonic thought in Yun Shanchuan or someone near him, it would be easy for her to track his movements.

The only concern is that we must not be discovered by the people of the Holy Land.

So Lu Qian asked, "Could it be...?"

Before Lu Qian could finish speaking, Mu Xue understood his meaning and replied naturally, "Nascent Soul True Monarchs travel around most of the year and only return at crucial moments. There is usually a Golden Core cultivator stationed at the camp, but with people coming and going, it is impossible to keep an eye on everyone."

Unexpectedly, Mu Xue had already found out all of this, it seems she was determined to do this.

Lu Qian didn't have much to say, only replying, "Just do what you think is best! Call me when you need me!"

Mu Xue nodded, said nothing more, and left.

Lu Qian didn't think too much about it. After all, cultivation was the most important thing. He started taking pills and refining them again. Now he just wanted to break through to the fifth level of Qi Refining as soon as possible. He felt that he was getting closer and closer, but unfortunately, he still needed time.

Midway through, Lu Qian ran out of all his Qi-Nourishing Pills, so he went and exchanged eighteen bottles of them in one go. He didn't bother to explain himself in the face of the strange looks he received.

Anyway, the battle merits are in his hands, and how he exchanges them is up to him to decide, so there's no need to explain anything.

Explanation is cover-up, cover-up is lying, and telling one lie often requires covering up more lies.

Half a month has passed in the blink of an eye.

In half a month, Lu Qian refined nearly twenty bottles of Qi Cultivation Pills, feeling that he was getting closer and closer to the bottleneck of the fifth level of Qi Refining.

However, it's not without its problems. The effects of Peiyuan Pill are getting weaker and weaker. Although it can still work, the efficiency of taking Peiyuan Pill has also decreased significantly.

"Even if the erysipelas can be cleared, drug resistance still exists. Perhaps next time I should exchange for a bottle of Qi-Strengthening Pill to try!"

The Qi-Strengthening Pill is a pill used in the later stages of Qi Refining cultivation. One bottle costs fifty battle merits, which is five times the price of the Qi-Nourishing Pill.

Lu Qian planned to try out the effects of the Gu Yuan Dan first. If the cost-effectiveness was acceptable, he would exchange for the Gu Yuan Dan; otherwise, he would continue to use the Pei Yuan Dan for the time being.

Even with some drug resistance, it doesn't mean that the Peiyuan Pill is useless; it can still help Lu Qian improve his cultivation.

"If all else fails, then we'll have to find some pill formulas to refine pills. I've found some non-heretical pill formulas that are perfect for use here."

He had some ideas in mind, but now was not the time to put them into practice.

But as long as there is a sufficient supply of pills, his cultivation level can be improved rapidly, and that is enough.

Previously, Lu Qian estimated that it would take him several more months to break through to the fifth level of Qi Refining, but now he felt that if he went into seclusion for another half month, he should be able to do so, or even in less time.