Anti-fraud manual for the cultivation world

Li Gu organized his thoughts, trying to make his words sound reasonable so they wouldn't suspect that he already knew.

He whispered, "Just now, I used the Sorrowful Breeze to make the two demonic sect disciples weak all over, and they could only use 30% of their power. I then fought them again, intending to sever their meridians. But after my cultivation entered their bodies, for some reason, a strange phenomenon suddenly occurred. It seemed that my cultivation was devouring their cultivation... Then Senior Sister Zhang came out to fight Zhou Shijie, and the rate at which I devoured their power increased. By the time you finished fighting, I had actually absorbed all the power of the two demonic sect disciples into my own body."

"Huh?" Zheng Xiaodong exclaimed in surprise, "Devouring? There's such a thing?"

Zhang Yi, however, had a look of sudden realization: "So that's how it is! I understand now, I understand everything all at once."

Zheng Xiaodong: "Why? You understand after hearing so little? I don't understand anything at all!"

Meng Ting wanted to speak, but following Li Gu's instructions, she kept her hands covering her mouth, muttering, "Mmm! Mmm!"

Zhang Yi grabbed Zheng Xiaodong's hand: "Xiaodong, relax, don't try to resist. Let me absorb some of your energy and see."

Zheng Xiaodong: "???"

In the next instant, Zhang Yi's spiritual energy had already invaded Zheng Xiaodong's body.

Zhang Yi immediately sensed that his cultivation technique was opening its blood-red maw, devouring Zheng Xiaodong's cultivation power. Logically, Zheng Xiaodong should have countered or used his protective qi to defend himself at this point. However, Zheng Xiaodong showed no intention of resisting at all. His spiritual energy was loosely distributed throughout his body, without any intention of gathering it for a counterattack. He just stared blankly at Zhang Yi, looking like he was saying, "Go ahead and eat, whatever makes you happy."

Zhang Yi quickly withdrew his spiritual energy: "Damn it, this technique really does have the ability to absorb other people's cultivation. No wonder, no wonder there was the birth of Flower Valley, no wonder there is a rule to graduate at the seventh level of Qi Refining, no wonder the real disciples of the Demonic Sect called us livestock. It all makes sense, it all makes sense. My biggest question is, what benefit would creating Flower Valley bring to Hua Qianfang? Only now have I suddenly understood the most difficult motive to comprehend."

Zheng Xiaodong: "???"

Meng Ting: "Mmmmmm!"

"Xiao Dong, I'll explain to you slowly later. Let's talk about business first." Zhang Yi turned to Li Gu: "Junior Brother Li, you just absorbed the power of two demonic sect disciples, so your strength must have increased significantly now, right?"

"Hmm!" Old Li nodded honestly, "I feel, it seems... it's possible that I can break through to the Foundation Establishment stage."

Zhang Yi's face lit up with joy: "That's great! You've become more capable, which is good for all four of us. At least our ability to protect ourselves has improved a lot."

Li Gu breathed a long sigh of relief. The system didn't alarm, so his senior sister was genuinely happy for him and wasn't lying. He was so afraid of hearing the system notification at a time like this.

The ship of friendship hasn't capsized!

Zhang Yi frowned and said, "No wonder my junior brother looked so strange when I said we should switch to another technique at the search for Erpo earlier. It seems we're unlikely to give up this technique."

"Yes! Don't give up. This is the supreme demonic scripture of the demonic sect. It would be a great pity to give it up."

Honglin's voice suddenly rang out beside the four of them, startling them.

Meng Ting, in particular, was almost scared out of her wits. Fortunately, she had been obedient to Li Gu and had covered her mouth with both hands. When she was frightened, she only made a "uh" sound.

As if he had anticipated Hong Lin's arrival, Li Gu turned around, looked at Hong Lin emerging from behind the tree, clasped his hands in a fist salute, and sincerely said, "Lord Hong, could you please explain to us what this cultivation method is all about?"

Honglin walked to the stone table, which had four stone stools, but there was no seat for her.

The two men and Zhang Yi stood up at the same time to give up their seats. Only Meng Ting was slow to react and stood up half a beat late. She only realized it after seeing others stand up. She was too young and did not understand social etiquette.

Honglin then set her sights on Meng Ting: "Go sit in Li Gu's lap and give me the chair."

"Hmm?" Meng Ting covered her mouth with both hands, her face flushed red. "Mmm, mmm, mmm!"

Honglin: "I don't understand what you're saying. Can't you take your hand away?"

Meng Ting: "Mmm!"

Honglin turned to look at Li Gu.

Li Gu was both amused and exasperated. "You can't take my words like this!" he said. "Take your hand away and speak properly."

Meng Ting then moved her hands away, blushing, and said, "Senior Brother Li and I don't have that kind of relationship. Men and women shouldn't be like that. How could I just sit on his lap? You can have the stone bench. I'll stand."

Honglin chuckled: "Standing won't do, everyone has to sit. If you don't sit on his lap, I will."

Meng Ting was shocked, her eyes filled with confusion, and she even forgot that she should be jealous and angry at this moment: "!!!"

Just then, Zhang Yi swayed and first pressed Zheng Xiaodong down to sit, then casually sat on Zheng Xiaodong's lap: "Lord Hong, please take my seat."

Zheng Xiaodong's face flushed red instantly. With someone sitting on his lap, he didn't know what to do with his hands. He really wanted to put his arms around Zhang Yi's waist, but he didn't dare. His hands rose and fell repeatedly.

A smile crept into Honglin's eyes, seemingly quite satisfied with the situation. She suddenly realized that teasing Zheng Xiaodong and Zhang Yi was acceptable; she didn't necessarily have to keep a close eye on Li Gu and Meng Ting.

It's all the same whether we're playing around or not, isn't it?

She sat down on the stone bench that Zhang Yi had given up, and everyone else followed suit to listen to Honglin tell her story.

More than a thousand years ago, there were five brothers named Fu Yiyang, Fu Erhai, Fu Sanjiang, Fu Sihe, and Fu Wuhu. They found a few common martial arts manuals and embarked on the path of cultivation.

None of the five brothers possessed exceptional talent, and coupled with their family's poverty, they couldn't afford elixirs, magic weapons, or talismans, so their cultivation progress was slow.

Cultivation is an extremely cruel process. Only one Foundation Establishment cultivator emerges from every thousand Qi Refining attempts, one Golden Core cultivator emerges from every hundred Foundation Establishment cultivators, and one Nascent Soul cultivator emerges from every hundred Golden Core cultivators...

In the process of striving towards the great path, countless people will be eliminated.

The five brothers knew that with their aptitude, they would likely find it difficult to ascend to the Great Dao, and that before the day they could transcend tribulation and ascend to immortality, their lifespans would run out, their bodies would perish, and they would fall behind and be eliminated.

The five brothers were unwilling to face such an ending.

They made an agreement that if anyone fell behind on the long road of cultivation, their cultivation would be given to the other brothers, who would then carry on their will and continue the journey.

To this end, they racked their brains and desperately created a cultivation technique that could transfer their cultivation level to others who practiced the same sect and the same technique.

During their arduous cultivation over hundreds of years, the five brothers indeed fell behind one after another. As agreed, before their lifespans were about to run out, the fallen brothers would give their life's cultivation to their surviving brothers so that they could inherit their last wishes.

After the four brothers passed away one after another, only Fu Wuhu remained. Carrying the last wishes of his four elder brothers, he ascended to the Immortal Realm and attained the Great Dao.

The five Fu brothers created and perfected their martial arts technique with their lives, naming it the "Common Path Demonic Scripture." The sect they founded was called the Lotus Sect.

After telling the story, Honglin sighed softly and said, "The original intention of the [Common Path Demonic Codex] was for brothers to unite as one, with the dead accompanying the living in another form on the path to enlightenment. Its original intention was good, carrying a noble spirit of dedication. Unfortunately... after the Lotus Sect lost to us and entered the mortal world, the new generation of disciples went astray. They changed 'giving' to 'absorbing,' turning noble dedication into greedy plunder, all in order to achieve the goal of reviving the Lotus Sect as quickly as possible."