After transmigrating into the body of the protagonist's childhood friend, he was targeted by a

"However, you don't need to worry too much. Although Yu Linzhou's actions are absurd, he still has a sense of proportion, and your friend will not be in any danger."

Luo Yiyan pursed her lips and did not reply.

Yan Lingcang glanced at him, then changed the subject, saying, "I called you here today because you have broken through to the sixth level of Qi Refining. Your progress is even faster than I expected."

He raised his hand, and a jade bottle and a magic manual appeared out of thin air in his palm. "Here are some pills and a set of magic manuals that you will need when you reach the Foundation Establishment stage."

Luo Yiyan quickly accepted the gift with both hands and thanked her in a low voice.

Just as he was about to say something, Yan Lingcang closed his eyes again.

Seeing this, Luo Yiyan tactfully bowed and withdrew from the cave.

No one will help him, so he'll rely on himself!

He simply doesn't believe this world belongs to the Yu family!

……

Lin Zhixu sat on the futon, his eyelids as heavy as lead.

He hadn't slept for seven days, and his consciousness was beginning to waver intermittently.

Even the words Yu Linzhou spoke in his ear seemed to be separated by a thick layer of water, making them indistinct and hard to hear clearly.

"Concentrate!" Yu Linzhou flicked his forehead with his fingertip, the force just enough to make him feel pain but not hurt him.

Lin Zhixu frowned and forced himself to refocus.

The day of the newcomer competition was drawing ever closer, but his cultivation level remained stuck at the fifth level of Qi Refining.

Yu Linzhou was extremely anxious and even wanted to use pills to help him force a breakthrough.

If Lin Zhixu hadn't threatened to kill himself this time, he might have actually succeeded.

The price of not taking pills was that the intensity of his cultivation would double again and again. Yu Linzhou forced him like a madman, not allowing him to sleep or rest.

He felt that if things continued like this, he would die suddenly before the new talent competition even started.

He silently asked himself, "System, why can't I break through?"

System: [The host's foundation is too weak. Innate spiritual roots are insufficient, and acquired strengthening is inadequate. The desire for quick results only leads to failure.]

Lin Zhixu: [Is there any way to fix this? If this continues, I'm really going to be tortured to death by Yu Linzhou.]

System: [The quick way to achieve success is to use medicine to accumulate strength, but the side effects are too great, so it's not recommended. An unstable foundation will only make later advancement more difficult. The host should already be feeling this; it's already this strenuous at the Qi Refining stage, and it will only get worse after Foundation Establishment.]

Many people are stuck at the Foundation Establishment stage for centuries, unable to form their core in this lifetime. The root cause is that they mostly built a poor foundation during the Qi Refining stage.

Noticing Lin Zhixu's absent-mindedness, Yu Linzhou flicked his finger again, this time with more force than before.

Lin Zhixu winced in pain.

【You're an omnipotent system! Isn't there any other way?】

The system's voice was filled with joy: "Host, this is the first time you've praised me! I'm so happy! Don't worry, I'll try to find out if there are any other solutions!"

Seeing that Lin Zhixu still couldn't concentrate, Yu Linzhou sighed and, unusually, took the initiative to say, "Alright, that's enough for today."

Lin Zhixu felt as if he had been granted a pardon. His tense nerves relaxed, and he fell straight down. He didn't even have the strength to move to the bed. He just lay on the futon and closed his eyes.

Seeing his expression, Yu Linzhou flicked his sleeves in exasperation and finally turned and left.

He needs to find a way to help people break through quickly.

If he loses to Yan Lingcang in the newcomer competition again, he will never be able to swallow this insult for the rest of his life.

That damned Yan Lingcang is still in seclusion, constantly trying to break through to the Nascent Soul Realm. If he really gets there first, I'll never be able to turn the tables.

Lin Zhixu seized this rare break to catch up on sleep, fearing that Yu Linzhou might have another attack and he would never have another chance to close his eyes.

He slept for about two hours when the system suddenly woke him up.

The system's voice brimming with pride: [Host! I've found a safe, legal, and minimally invasive breakthrough method!]

Lin Zhixu groggily opened his eyes: [What?]

System: [The Hehuan Sect possesses a secret manual that uses dual cultivation to achieve perfect harmony and intertwined spiritual consciousness between two individuals, reaching a profound state. With the support of spiritual energy, this is the optimal time for a breakthrough.]

Lin Zhixu instantly woke up: 【…Is it the Hehuan Sect I was thinking of? Couldn't you have found a more reliable one?】

The system retorted: "Host, you're wearing tinted glasses. The secret methods of the Joyful Union Sect are perfectly legitimate. Consensual dual cultivation that increases cultivation level—how many people would kill for that?"

Lin Zhixu was silent for a moment. Okay, it was his stereotype.

But here's the problem: [Who can I cultivate with? In my current state, I can't even leave the courtyard.]

He sat bolt upright, a terrible thought flashing through his mind: [You don't want me to go find Yu Linzhou, do you? Am I crazy?]

The system, realizing the predicament, immediately softened its tone: "[...Actually, the best candidate is Luo Yiyan. He is the chosen one of Heaven, possessing the strongest destiny. Cultivating with him even once would be more effective than ten years of arduous cultivation on your own.]"

Lin Zhixu remained expressionless: [Luo Yiyan has an official partner. You want me to be the other woman? What a vicious thought.]

The system hurriedly protested: "I didn't! I was just providing the best candidate. Even Heaven wouldn't allow you to harm the protagonist!"

"So your suggestion is pointless." Lin Zhixu rewound the page. "We'll discuss this further. Look for other good ideas. Don't bother me now; I need to sleep."

Dawn was approaching, and if he didn't hurry up and get some more sleep, another day of torment was about to begin.

System: [Okay.]

……

Back in the main courtyard, Yu Linzhou went straight to the rockery in the backyard, waved his hand to release a hidden restriction, and a door silently appeared on the stone wall.

He slipped inside, and the door closed behind him.

Inside was a huge secret vault, filled with his wealth accumulated over thousands of years.

Spirit stones, spirit artifacts, spirit medicines, and some other strange items whose names I don't know are casually tossed in a corner.

Any one of these items would be enough to make cultivators outside fight tooth and nail for them, but now they're just piled up here collecting dust like junk.

Yu Linzhou began searching for suitable spiritual artifacts or techniques for Lin Zhixu.

I flipped through it again, but I still couldn't find anything suitable for Lin Zhixu.

He does have a few bottles of good medicine for cleansing the marrow and strengthening the meridians, but after the Fire Essence Pill incident, that brat is now wary of him like a thief. If he tries to force-feed him more medicine, he might really fight him to the death.

His treasure trove contained nothing of low quality; Lin Zhixu couldn't use anything of too high quality, or he would explode and die.

He never imagined he would take on such a useless apprentice.

Standing amidst a pile of rare and precious materials, Yu Linzhou experienced for the first time what it meant to hold such a powerful treasure yet have no use for it.

He rubbed his temples, feeling a headache coming on, and was just wondering whether he should shamelessly ask at another peak when he suddenly caught a glimpse of something under the table leg.

He reached out and pulled it out. It was an old, dusty booklet with an enchanting and ambiguous pattern of intertwined branches on the cover.

He couldn't quite remember where he had stolen or borrowed it from.

As soon as Yu Linzhou casually flipped through two pages, his expression turned disgusted.

He remembered.

This is a secret manual that an elder of the Hehuan Sect gave to him hundreds of years ago in order to please him and to cultivate with him.

He didn't even look at it before putting it under the table as a footrest.

I never thought this disgusting thing would see the light of day again.