Come, Strike Me

Lu Changsheng stood before his cave mansion, a hint of confusion in his eyes.

In his perception, the Heaven and Earth Spiritual Energy within the cave mansion had grown noticeably denser. Was it an illusion?

No!

He knew his cave mansion inside and out.

The spiritual energy around it was now at least three times its usual level.

When something was amiss, there had to be a reason!

Lu Changsheng instantly grew more alert.

He stepped inside.

The moment he entered the cave mansion, he froze in place.

There was someone else inside.

A woman clad in white robes.

Her nearly perfect figure traced alluring curves beneath the Daoist garb, and paired with her breathtaking face, she was utterly captivating.

Yunxiao!

Lu Changsheng never expected Yunxiao to appear in his cave mansion at this hour.

The reason for the denser spiritual energy around the cave mansion was also found.

Yunxiao had set up an array within the cave mansion to gather spiritual energy.

At that moment, Yunxiao sensed his presence as well.

Turning her head, the moment she saw Lu Changsheng, a look of stunned disbelief spread across her pretty face.

She almost couldn't recognize him.

Lu Changsheng was now covered in charred black from head to toe, his flesh curled and bloody—a truly gruesome sight.

"What happened? How did you get so badly injured?!"

Yunxiao appeared before him in a single step, her eyes filled with urgency.

Setting aside their relationship as Dao Companions, they were still fellow disciples.

Who would dare to injure a Jie Sect Disciple like this?!

Lu Changsheng looked at the anxious Yunxiao and smiled.

"I'm fine. It's just some flesh wounds."

That was the truth.

Although the Lightning Body Tempering of the Indestructible Thunder God Body hadn't been fully completed, most of it was done.

His physical body, tempered by lightning, had recovered several times faster.

In the time since returning from Lingganhu, his injuries had already healed considerably.

Right now, it looked more terrifying than it actually was—far less severe than it appeared.

"Did you come looking for me so suddenly because you missed me?"

Lu Changsheng's words made Yunxiao's expression freeze for a moment.

Her fair earlobes flushed with a hint of red within a few breaths.

"Don't talk nonsense!"

What did he mean by missing him? How could Lu Changsheng say such a thing?

"Then why have you come to see me this time?"

Yunxiao was taken aback.

In truth, she had come to Lu Changsheng to discuss dissolving their Dao Companion relationship.

After all, there was no real affection between them.

And because of this Dao Companion matter, she hadn't been able to focus on her cultivation lately.

To make up for it, she had even set up a Spirit Gathering Array for Lu Changsheng.

Though this array couldn't compare to the one on Three Immortal Island, it was more than enough for an Earth Immortal like him.

She had planned to use the array as compensation before bringing up the Dao Companion issue.

But she never expected Lu Changsheng to be so badly injured.

Under these circumstances, she didn't know how to broach the subject.

No, this matter had to be resolved!

Yunxiao bit her red lips.

"I came to..."

"Right, wait a moment!"

Lu Changsheng suddenly remembered something.

A pale yellow flower appeared in the palm of his right hand with a flash of light.

"This flower is for you."

In truth, thinking back on it, Yunxiao's arrival came at just the right time.

The system reward required improving his Dao Companion's affection.

Even if Yunxiao hadn't come, he would have had to visit Three Immortal Island again anyway.

As for how to raise affection while courting, giving gifts was certainly an indispensable part of it.

Wasn't the Xuanlinghua just the thing for this occasion?

Lu Changsheng's gesture caught Yunxiao off guard.

She stood frozen in place, staring at his right hand.

The bloody, black-tinged red palm formed a stark contrast with the pale yellow petals.

A gift from Lu Changsheng?

"Given your cultivation level, most of my things are useless to you."

"Flowers for a beauty—this Xuanlinghua is a token of my sincerity."

Lu Changsheng smiled.

[Ding, System Prompt: Because you have given a gift this time, the system's Hidden Function, Critical Strike Rebate, has been activated]

Critical Strike Rebate?!

Lu Changsheng's mind stirred, and he summoned the System Panel.

[System functions already opened: Insight, Treasure Hunting, Critical Strike Rebate]

The previously unreadable question mark had now given a Specific Answer.

Could this Critical Strike Rebate be what he thought it was?

[Ding, System Prompt: You have gifted your Dao Companion one Xuanlinghua, triggering a hundredfold Critical Strike Rebate. You have obtained one Spirit Capturing Pearl]

The system's Reward Prompt Sound had already confirmed Lu Changsheng's guess.

And after reading the Related Introduction for the Spirit Capturing Pearl, Lu Changsheng was overjoyed.

This Spirit Capturing Pearl was a Xiantian Lingbao!

With the Spirit Capturing Pearl, all nearby Heaven and Earth Spiritual Energy could be gathered together.

When it came to gathering spiritual energy, the Spirit Capturing Pearl was far superior to Yunxiao's formation.

Moreover, gathering Heaven and Earth Spiritual Energy to assist in cultivation was only one of the Spirit Capturing Pearl's functions.

It would also store spiritual energy within the pearl, and at a Crucial Moment, that stored energy could be activated to form a life-saving Spirit Shield.

In short, this was a Xiantian Lingbao that combined both cultivation and self-preservation.

He had only intended to give a Xuanlinghua to test how difficult it would be to raise affection.

He never expected such a pleasant surprise.

Wait...

If he gave the Xuanling Fruit to Yunxiao as well, what would the system rebate give him?

Another Xiantian Lingbao?

[Host, please note: Critical Strike Rebate has a certain probability. Not every gift will trigger a rebate]

The system's reminder instantly doused Lu Changsheng's beautiful dream.

Forget it, he'd better keep the Xuanling Fruit for his own cultivation first.

After all, he needed the effects of the Xuanling Fruit right now to break through to True Immortal.

If he gambled and got the Critical Strike Rebate, fine—but if he didn't, he'd lose everything.

And Lu Changsheng, immersed in the thrill of the Critical Strike Rebate, completely failed to notice how much shock his Xuanlinghua had brought to Yunxiao.

Though she had never seen a Xuanlinghua before, she had certainly heard of it.

The Ten Thousand Years of cultivation and enhanced insight from the Xuanling Fruit were remarkably effective for anyone below the Primordial Unity Golden Immortal realm.

While the Xuanlinghua wasn't as precious as the Xuanling Fruit, its value depended on the person.

Its effects of clearing distracting thoughts and calming the mind were useless for cultivators who could already control their focus and cultivate single-mindedly.

But for those who couldn't control themselves and were easily distracted, the Xuanlinghua worked wonders.

In other words, this Xuanlinghua could perfectly solve the problem Yunxiao was currently facing in her cultivation.

Beyond her shock, Yunxiao's heart was now filled with even more guilt and gratitude.

It was clearly her own inability to concentrate and her restless mind that had hindered her cultivation.

Yet what had she done?

She wanted to dissolve the Dao Companion relationship with Lu Changsheng.

And Lu Changsheng?

He gave her the Xuanlinghua!

Then she looked at the wounds on Lu Changsheng's body.

Yunxiao suddenly understood.

These injuries must have been sustained while obtaining the Xuanlinghua.

It seemed that besides his handsome appearance, Lu Changsheng had other appealing qualities.

[Ding, System Prompt: Your Dao Companion Yunxiao's favorability has increased by thirty. Current stage favorability: thirty (Indifferent)]

Lu Changsheng felt a surge of joy inside.

The favorability had gone up!

Originally, in his understanding, as the leader of the Sanxiao, Yunxiao should have been a mature, assertive, and confident cold beauty.

This kind of beauty wasn't easy to pursue—otherwise, he wouldn't have chosen Bixiao as his confession target from the start.

But now, it seemed he had some misunderstandings about Yunxiao.

Though her cultivation was high, she was still a novice when it came to matters of the heart.

If that was the case, raising her favorability would be much easier than he had imagined.

"Thank you!"

Yunxiao accepted the Xuanlinghua. She had no reason to refuse.

"The main reason I came this time was to see if you had any difficulties in your cultivation—anything I could help with?"

The idea of dissolving the Dao Companion relationship was gone. She needed to find a reason for her visit; it certainly couldn't be that she was actually missing Lu Changsheng.

Lu Changsheng's eyes lit up. As it happened, there really was something he needed Yunxiao's help with.

"Yes!"

"Do you know the Shangqing Divine Thunder?"

Yunxiao nodded instinctively.

"Of course."

"Good. Then come outside with me."

Yunxiao followed Lu Changsheng out of the Cave Mansion.

Lu Changsheng: "Come on, strike me with lightning."