Confusion

"Tsk tsk, hugging and embracing in broad daylight like this, Master would probably be furious if she saw it." Just then, the voice of the person who brought Ling Tian to find Hua Min'er suddenly sounded beside them, with a hint of teasing.

Ling Tian and Hua Min'er hastily separated, staring at the suddenly appearing woman, feeling extremely awkward.

"Senior Sister Yun Ying, you were eavesdropping on us, hmph." Hua Min'er was the first to recover, pulling on Yun Ying's sleeve, acting a little spoiled.

"How could I be? You two were too engrossed in your embrace; I've been here for a while and you didn't even notice," Yun Ying said with a smile in her eyes, explaining, though it seemed more like teasing.

"Hmph, Senior Sister Yun Ying, you're teasing me, I'm ignoring you now." Hua Min'er pouted, pretending to be angry.

"Really ignoring me? Master originally asked me to pass on a message, but it seems I don't need to. Sigh." Yun Ying pretended to sigh and turned to leave.

"Sister, what did Master want to tell me? Why didn't you say so earlier?" Hearing that it was a message from Master, Hua Min'er quickly grabbed Yun Ying.

"How can you blame me? It's because you were acting spoiled the moment you arrived," Yun Ying retorted.

"Alright, alright, it's my fault. What did Master say?" Hua Min'er said anxiously.

"Master wants you to go over. She has something to tell you," Yun Ying finally remembered the main point.

"Oh, I know. Go back and tell Master I'll be there shortly." Hua Min'er said, then glanced at Ling Tian beside her, seemingly wanting to say something to him.

Yun Ying looked at the two of them, understanding that they had something to discuss, and left to fulfill her master's orders.

"Brother Ling Tian, I..." After Yun Ying left, Hua Min'er looked at Ling Tian, her eyes full of apology, hesitating to speak.

"It's alright. Since your Master summoned you, she must have something to instruct you on. You should go." Although Ling Tian was reluctant, he knew what was more important.

"Okay, I'm going then, Brother Ling Tian." Hua Min'er looked extremely reluctant. Although she said she was leaving, her feet refused to move.

"Silly girl, it's not like we're never going to see each other again. Go on, I'll come visit you again in a while." Seeing Hua Min'er's equally reluctant expression, Ling Tian felt a slight sweetness in his heart.

"Mhm, then I'm really leaving." With Ling Tian's promise, Hua Min'er finally turned and headed towards the Great Hall of Qingdie Peak.

Ling Tian stared motionlessly at Hua Min'er's retreating back, his expression lost in a daze.

After walking a few steps, Hua Min'er suddenly seemed to remember something. She quickly turned back and saw Ling Tian gazing at her foolishly. Her face flushed, but a deep sense of sweetness bloomed in her heart.

"Hehe, silly brother, in three days, Master is taking me to Qingyun Peak. Can you come to Qingyun Peak then..." Hua Min'er said with a beaming smile, looking at Ling Tian expectantly.

"Mhm, I definitely will." Seeing Hua Min'er turn back, Ling Tian's heart suddenly leaped with joy, and he agreed without thinking.

"Hehe, it's a deal, silly brother. Don't you dare lie to me, or else, hmph..." Hua Min'er was overjoyed at Ling Tian's promise, but still worried he might not come. She playfully bit her teeth, threatening Ling Tian, looking incredibly cute.

"Since I've said it, I will definitely do it." Ling Tian's expression was solemn, not like he was lying.

"Really?" Hua Min'er was very pleased. Then, as if remembering something, she said with renewed anticipation, "Including what you said on Qingyun Peak?"

"What I said on Qingyun Peak? Which sentence?" Ling Tian paused for a moment, then quickly understood, but still pretended to be confused.

"You, hmph, you said you'd do what you say, and now you've forgotten it." Hua Min'er's pretty face pouted, almost on the verge of tears.

"Hehe, look at you, silly girl. How could I forget? I said I would protect you from now on, and I meant it." Ling Tian's expression was solemn and dignified, with none of his earlier confusion. It was clear he had been pretending and deliberately teasing Hua Min'er.

"Brother Ling Tian, you're bullying me, hmph, I'm ignoring you." Hua Min'er felt very sweet inside but was a little annoyed that Ling Tian was teasing her. She turned and continued towards the Great Hall.

"Silly girl, you say one thing and mean another. Hehe." After Hua Min'er left, Ling Tian smiled faintly.

"In three days, Min'er's Master... isn't her Master Peak Master Ye Feidie? Could that genius be..." Ling Tian suddenly recalled Hua Min'er's words and began to form his own judgment.

"It must be so. To trouble a Peak Master... Min'er must be that genius. If that's really the case, then that's wonderful." Ling Tian started to feel happy for Hua Min'er.

"It's just that I, this 'genius', might be..." Ling Tian's heart sank slightly at this thought.

"Whatever. The cart will find its way when it reaches the bridge. There will always be a way. Besides, Father once said..." Ling Tian recalled Lingyun mentioning someone giving him a Cultivation Method, thinking there might be a turn of events.

"I refuse to believe I can't cultivate. Even if my meridians are congenitally blocked, so what? If heaven blocks me, I will Slay Heaven." Ling Tian looked as if he had gone mad, Sha Qi faintly appearing, his resolve gradually strengthening.

After Hua Min'er's figure completely disappeared, Ling Tian withdrew his reluctant gaze, his belief firm. His entire demeanor changed. Then Ling Tian strode away from Qingdie Peak, feeling unspeakably free and unrestrained.

The brief meeting thus ended, but Ling Tian's longing for Hua Min'er grew even stronger.

Returning to Qingyou Peak, Ling Tian began to feel lost. What should he do next?

Cultivate Mental Power?

He had already merged into Spiritual Sense, and his Mental Cultivation had reached the late stage of Qi Condensation. According to Lingyun, without breaking through to the Golden Core, his Mental Cultivation would not advance any further. He had already compressed and refined his Mental Power to its limit. It was like a bottle; initially filled with gas, it condensed into liquid after compression and refinement. The bottle was full of liquid, which was the limit for this bottle.

Cultivate the Illusory God Phantom Shadow Movement Technique?

His father had told him that this movement technique eventually required Spiritual Energy support. He had already reached his limit with just physical energy; his current physical cultivation could not advance further.

Run mountain paths?

He hadn't done such childish exercises for a long time.

Cultivate Object Flight?

Although he had developed Spiritual Sense and could communicate with objects, firstly, he didn't have any good artifacts yet, and secondly, and most importantly, he lacked Spiritual Energy support, so he couldn't cultivate it.

Alchemy?

He didn't even have a Golden Core yet, let alone Alchemy Fire. He had already learned a lot of basic knowledge from books, but he couldn't practice it yet.

Go to Qingdie Peak to see Hua Min'er?

Uh, he had just returned from Qingdie Peak.

For a moment, Ling Tian thought of many things he could cultivate, but he rejected them one by one. It was either because he had already reached the peak of his cultivation or because the subsequent cultivation required Spiritual Energy, which he couldn't access yet.

Thus, Ling Tian was lost, unsure of what to do next.

"Heh, Father told me to arrange everything myself from now on. So he knew about my current situation. He probably doesn't know what I should do next either," Ling Tian gave a wry smile, missing his father's arrangements a little. He had to admit he had a masochistic tendency.

"No, Father is incredibly knowledgeable and his studies are vast. He must know what to teach me next. He wants me to arrange things myself for a reason, probably to teach me independence so I can't rely on him for everything." Ling Tian thought back. His father's methods were always endless. How could he not know what to teach him? Knowing his father, he quickly understood his father's good intentions.

"But what should I do now? Sigh, I've relied on Father for too long, and I've become lazy. I'm lost and don't know what to do when faced with even a small problem." Ling Tian sighed, further confirming his previous judgment.

"Father said cultivation is about strengthening one's strengths and compensating for one's weaknesses." Ling Tian's eyes lit up, then he thought, "But what are my strengths and weaknesses?"

"My talent is the strongest, and I can complete the Heavenly Road. But I have Congenital Meridian Blockage. This strength has become my greatest weakness, but there's nothing I can do about it for now." Ling Tian mocked himself slightly. He now knew what kind of talent it meant to complete the Heavenly Road, but this talent had become his biggest flaw. Still, he had to continue analyzing.

"My Mental Cultivation is nearing the Golden Core Realm. I estimate no one among the younger generation will reach it. But without a Golden Core, no matter how much I cultivate, I won't make any progress." The problem of not being able to cultivate again. Ling Tian shook his head, feeling speechless.

However, Ling Tian suddenly slapped his forehead and said, "How can I be so stupid? Mental Cultivation must have other uses. I'll ask Father about this later. It would be a waste not to utilize this major advantage."

"It seems I don't have any other advantages. I guess I really am weak. Two slightly stronger advantages aren't even being used much," Ling Tian mocked himself slightly, thinking to himself.

In reality, Ling Tian was being too self-deprecating. His current physical cultivation was probably the strongest among the young disciples who specialized in physical cultivation at Qingshi Peak. Furthermore, few could match his movement techniques. And disciples his age had no understanding of formation cultivation at all. It was just that Ling Tian himself didn't know these things.

"Weaknesses? Quite a few, I suppose. I can't cultivate, can't fly, Alchemy is a failure, formations are no good, and other Daoist arts are even worse." Ling Tian's wry smile deepened.

"Not being able to fly is a big problem. Father said the Qingyun Sect's grand disciple competition, held once every ten years, will start in three years. Although I don't need to participate, as the only disciple of Qingyou Peak, I'm afraid I'll be ridiculed then. It's better to participate. Also, I heard this competition is a bit different. I wonder what's different? Moreover, with Hua Min'er's talent, she'll definitely represent Qingdie Peak. How can I not go?" Thinking of Hua Min'er, Ling Tian felt a trace of sweetness.

"If I participate, I can't lose. Although I don't fear shame, I absolutely cannot tarnish my father's reputation. Even though Father doesn't care much about empty fame, I can't disgrace him." Ling Tian's expression turned serious. His father might not care, but he had to.

"I can't fly. It'll be terrible if I encounter people who can fly then. I'll likely be defeated. This problem must be solved." Ling Tian secretly made up his mind. This problem must be solved before the grand competition.

"Alchemy is out of the question. I've learned the basics, and only practice is missing. I can't think about this for now." Ling Tian quickly ruled out Alchemy.

"I need to strengthen my formations too. I can't even see Qingming Peak's mountain protection formation, let alone break it. However, I've finished reading that book, The Complete Book of Formations. Father said it only covers the superficial aspects. I'll have to seek his guidance on this later. Furthermore, Father mentioned that a powerful mind can make formations more potent and easier to set up." Ling Tian's heart rejoiced. He finally knew what he could do now.

"As for other things, as long as I can cultivate Spiritual Energy and Dao methods, everything else will naturally fall into place. I can't rush this." Ling Tian thought.

"But am I really suffering from Congenital Meridian Blockage? Also, why does my body absorb the energy that enters it? Where does all this energy go?" Ling Tian asked, full of doubt.