Monster! Quickly Help Me Cultivate!

"Ah!"

Facing the sharp blade energy, the woman cried out in alarm and instantly shrank back into the array disk.

Chen Dengming, who was about to cleave the array disk in two with a single strike, changed his aim. The blade energy slashed through the curtains opposite, scattering shredded fabric everywhere.

"Come out!"

Chen Dengming grunted, holding his blade steady at the array disk. He didn't dare approach this seemingly timid, yet still unknown entity, finding himself in a rather awkward predicament.

It had hidden inside his Spirit Seizing Array Disk, and he truly didn't dare to smash the disk itself.

After all, times were tough. He wasn't sure if the second batch of Gu creatures would sell well and bring him a profit.

If another one of these array disks were to be destroyed, it would cost Jiang Qiang quite a few Low-grade Spirit Stones to remake it, not to mention the delay in his own cultivation.

"F-Fellow Daoist, if, if you promise to spare me, I'll come out. I won't deceive you."

Chen Dengming frowned. "Let you out just to harm me again?"

"I, I didn't mean to. It's just that, back when I was alive, I was born with a Charm Bone. Even now, as an array spirit, I, I still, still have some allure."

"Charm Bone?"

Chen Dengming was surprised.

Did such things really exist in the Cultivation World? He had thought it was just something from novels.

It seemed it wasn't that he couldn't resist beauty, but that she came with a built-in charm buff.

"If you won't harm me, and I won't hurt you, then come out. But if you dare to harbor any ill intentions towards me, I'll cut you down immediately."

Chen Dengming softened his stance and temporarily lowered the Ice Spirit Blade behind him.

"I, I wouldn't dare to have any ill intentions towards you, Fellow Daoist."

The woman transmitted a message akin to a mental wave, and her spirit form floated out of the array disk once more.

This time, she was even more stunning. Her forehead was as clear as jade, her face tender and smooth like fine porcelain. Her delicate, coin-shaped ears sparkled under the spiritual light. Though she wore no makeup, she wasn't conventionally beautiful, yet possessed an elegance and grace that exuded an extraordinary charm.

Chen Dengming steadied his mind, telling himself a man must be fierce, and then asked coldly, "You say you're an array spirit? What's going on?"

The woman drifted ethereally, her appearance celestial and radiant. When her beautiful eyes met Chen Dengming's, he felt as if he understood all her thoughts, a peculiar sensation like telepathy.

This kind of mental communication was undoubtedly more concise and clear than spoken words.

Chen Dengming soon learned the woman's origin and current situation.

It turned out she had once been a cultivator. She was gravely injured during a battle and tragically died. Her soul lingered, and she was captured by a cultivator from the Yin Ghost Sect, who refined her into an array formation to become an array spirit.

Later, that Yin Ghost Sect cultivator also met a grim end, and she became completely lost within the Spirit Seizing Array Disk. Her memories of her past life grew increasingly blurred, and she had truly become a muddled array spirit.

"So, you've been watching me cultivate for nearly two months?"

Chen Dengming frowned. "Why didn't you show yourself earlier?"

The array spirit timidly replied, "I, I was afraid."

"Afraid? Do I look that fierce?"

Chen Dengming scoffed, but then he considered it. After all, her soul had been captured and refined into an array spirit after death, so it was natural for her to be afraid of people, especially cultivators.

However, the fact that her soul didn't dissipate after death suggested she must have been quite powerful in life. He wasn't sure if what she said was entirely true or if she was hiding something.

He decided to probe further, adopting a more aggressive attitude to pressure the female cultivator and see if she would reveal any flaws.

"Are you a stutterer?"

"Wh-when I'm nervous, a little."

"Alright, enough talk. Cultivation is important. Demon, quickly assist me in my practice!"

The array spirit woman floated in the air, bewildered. "???"

"What are you spacing out for? Aren't you an array spirit? Don't you have intelligence? Show me, activate the formation now and help me cultivate!"

Chen Dengming feigned ferocity.

Did he have to shout, 'Little AI, activate cultivation mode?'

This array spirit seemed rather dull and simple-minded.

"Oh, oh—I understand now."

The array spirit woman realized and began to dance. Her movements were graceful and enchanting. Even her captivating eyes, paired with her alluring figure and pitifully cute expression, darted towards Chen Dengming.

Chen Dengming froze.

Hiss—

What was this little array spirit doing?

Testing him, a cultivator at the third level of Qi Cultivation?

She had shown her true colors as soon as he tested her, and now she dared to be so brazen!

Just as Chen Dengming was about to lose his temper, his brow twitched as he sensed something was amiss.

The surrounding formation flags unfurled, and streams of gold-attribute Spiritual Energy were being drawn in, just as he had wished.

The water, wood, fire, and earth spiritual energy were all blocked outside the range of the formation flags, not a single trace penetrating into the formation's area.

Such efficiency, such spirit-seizing capability!

Chen Dengming couldn't help but be secretly astonished. The formation spirit was indeed extraordinary.

He had used the Spirit Seizing Formation so many times before, yet it was difficult to achieve such efficiency.

Even if he could seize a large area of single spiritual energy from his surroundings, some of the other spiritual energies would still seep in. Especially the wood spiritual energy, which would still cause some depletion to the gold spiritual energy, failing to achieve a state of perfect, lossless absorption.

But now, the efficiency had increased by more than a little bit?

Chen Dengming relaxed slightly, but remained vigilant, began to strike a pose, and seized the time to cultivate.

Half an hour later.

Sweat poured down his body like rain. He switched to another pose, the "Golden Rooster Stands on One Leg," and shouted in a low voice.

"Monster! Keep dancing!"

Another half hour passed.

"Continue, keep dancing!"

"Continue."

"..."

"Fellow Daoist. This servant really can't go on. I've never danced for so long. Please let me rest for a bit."

"No!"

"Fellow Daoist. Please, please spare this servant."

"You can't even do this..."

Chen Dengming glanced at his cultivation progress, still feeling unsatisfied. He glanced at the formation spirit's body, which seemed to be becoming increasingly transparent. It seemed this strange spiritual entity had indeed reached its limit.

With his fierce coercion, the other party hadn't played any more tricks, and seemed temporarily trustworthy.

However, a book he had read said that women, especially beautiful women, were the best at deception when they disguised themselves. He would still need to be wary of her in the future.

"Forget it, forget it. You rest for a while, and we'll continue tomorrow."

He waved his hand, feeling a sense of anticlimax. After sending the little formation spirit back into the formation disk, he went to the adjacent room to boil water for a bath, preparing to wash off the sweat.

As if the weather was cold and the humidity was heavy, the firewood was damp. He struggled with saltpeter for a long time but couldn't ignite it.

Chen Dengming shook his head. Indulging himself, he cast a Great Fireball Technique, controlling the fireball to ignite the firewood and begin boiling water with a 'gurgling' sound.

"Now that I'm a cultivator, I still have to boil water myself to bathe. I'll have to look for some purification spells later."

He sighed inwardly. Back in the mortal world, there were many maids to attend to things.

In fact, with his current status as the Chief Chen of the Golden Character Workshop, it would be easy to borrow a few maids from Zanhua Tower on credit, but he decided against it.

He had only been in the Cultivation World for a short time, and had only just managed to establish a foothold at the bottom rung of rogue cultivators. Moreover, he was already considering whether to give up his share of the second batch of Gu and withdraw before the Lüo Family and Zhu Family completely engaged in battle.

"It's winter, and the mortals in the gathering place are having a hard time. The demon beasts in the mountains will come out to forage. Even if I withdraw now, where can I go besides the gathering place?"

Chen Dengming pondered, feeling a headache coming on. Suddenly, there was a knock on the courtyard gate.

"Is Immortal Master Chen at home?"

Chen Dengming was surprised. He put on his cloak and went to the door to open it.

He saw a honest-looking man standing outside the door, who bowed respectfully to him and handed him a package.

"Immortal Master Chen, I am a settler from the foot of Lüo Family Mountain. Yesterday, Immortal Master Xu from the Lüo Family entrusted me with this package of clothes to deliver to you. Immortal Master Xu said that winter is approaching and instructed me to remind you to add clothes when it gets cold!

Also, things have been uneasy lately. Immortal Master Xu said that if you need to contact her, you can leave a message at Lüo Family Mountain. This is my temporary address."

A settler, meaning someone without a fixed residence, who couldn't afford to live in the gathering place, wandering and living precariously.

"Xu Wei."

Chen Dengming took the clothes, feeling a warmth in his heart. He felt that the Immortal Way was not lonely, and there were always colors worth remembering on the path to longevity.

As for whether there would be changes in relationships in the future, whether youth would fade, and witnessing the scene of friends and relatives leaving, that would be for the future to decide.

All kinds of scenery had to be experienced.

He smiled and took out a Spirit Grain, intending to send the man away.

The honest hunter quickly waved his hand and refused, saying that Immortal Master Xu had already paid him. After bowing, he turned and left.

They were all honest and kind people, but they also represented the myriad aspects of life, adding some human warmth to this cold Cultivation World.

Not long after the hunter left.

Wu Chen from the Golden Character Workshop, who hadn't bothered him for many days, arrived. He informed Chen Dengming that a batch of Gu at the Gu refining grounds seemed to have encountered problems due to the cold weather and needed him to go and inspect it.

"The Bamboo Slice Gu has a problem?"

Chen Dengming was a little surprised.

If the Bamboo Slice Gu had a problem, it was quite possible.

He pressed for more information, confirming multiple times that only the Bamboo Slice Gu had issues and the Stone Gu was fine. His suspicion eased somewhat.

Even so, he remained cautious. After putting away his clothes, he wrapped the Ice Spirit Blade in cloth and slung it over his back. He donned his bamboo hat and left discreetly through the back door, heading to the Gu refining grounds with several Cultivators guarding him.

Ever since the Iron Forest Hall and Flower Rain Gate had openly plundered goods, he had been staying indoors for a long time.

This time, venturing out again, he decided to observe the situation. At the same time, he had already made up his mind and was considering temporarily leaving this place of trouble.

(To be continued, with more updates in the morning!)