Twelve Years of Bitter Cultivation, One Moment of Enlightenment?

The next day, Ma Feifei got up very late. With two dark circles under his eyes, he yawned nonstop as he opened the shop.

Last night, he had stared fixedly at that reading count all night, and the 0/1 had never changed.

Only then did he finally realize that this so-called reading count did not merely mean taking a glance at the book—it meant finishing the entire book!

Several million words. It was insane.

Ma Feifei felt as though his mentality had already collapsed. He sat lazily in the doorway, basking in the sun. He felt that he no longer had any ambitions. As for the system, it could do whatever it wanted.

"Huh? Why does that figure look a little familiar?" Ma Feifei looked toward the end of the street, where a flash of azure passed by.

It was honestly a little too far away. Ma Feifei was somewhat nearsighted and could not see clearly. He rubbed his eyes, then narrowed them again.

"In this world, could there still be someone I recognized?"

Well, Old Man Wang, who sold steamed buns across the street, barely counted as one. But the man was busy selling buns, and he wore a gray linen short-sleeved shirt. He was broad-shouldered and burly, completely unlike that slender azure figure Ma Feifei had glimpsed earlier.

Wait, an azure figure?

That tomboy who stole books?

At once, Ma Feifei perked up.

Over the next half hour, Ma Feifei watched Zhao Xiaodao walk back and forth along this street no fewer than ten times. Every time she passed his Bookstore, she would glance inside. Though she did so very casually, Ma Feifei had been watching her with narrowed eyes the whole time and saw it all clearly.

"What do you want?"

At last, Ma Feifei could not hold back any longer.

Zhao Xiaodao found those words somewhat familiar. She stopped, glanced into the Bookstore, then looked at Ma Feifei. "Are you talking to me?"

"Who else? You've wandered back and forth in front of my door more than ten times. Every time you pass by, your steps slow down, and your eyes drift into my shop. If I'm not talking to you, who am I talking to?"

Ma Feifei would have to be stupid not to know what the tomboy wanted after she had wandered around so many times.

Zhao Xiaodao's face reddened, though the mud on it hid it from Ma Feifei.

"I'm just passing by. Is that not allowed? Is it any of your business?" Zhao Xiaodao snorted coldly and lifted her leg to leave.

"Ahem. Actually, you can keep reading," Ma Feifei reminded her.

Although Zhao Xiaodao had stolen his book, he did not really hold any ill feelings toward her. Perhaps it was because of what she had done afterward that made him feel much better. Besides, Zhao Xiaodao was the first reader of this book. If she could continue reading and finish it, that would be ideal for Ma Feifei.

Zhao Xiaodao was tempted, but after touching the small fragrant pouch at her waist, she dismissed the thought. Glancing at Ma Feifei, she said, "Who cares about reading your lousy book?"

Now it was Ma Feifei's turn to be dumbfounded. She had clearly been tempted! Why did she suddenly refuse to read it? All he asked was that she read inside the Bookstore. Was that too much?

Looking at Zhao Xiaodao's retreating back, Ma Feifei could not help sighing. "Women truly are mysterious creatures."

"Well... I'll give you five Spirit Crystals if you let me finish this book. How about it?"

In the end, Zhao Xiaodao still could not resist the temptation of Andersen's Fairy Tales. It could not be helped—the book was simply too good. Those little stories had entranced her, making her feel as though she had secretly hidden outside the schoolhouse as a child to listen to the teacher's lessons.

"This is all I have." Seeing that Ma Feifei said nothing, Zhao Xiaodao lowered her head and added another sentence.

Heaven pity her. She had worked for an entire month to earn ten Spirit Crystals. She had spent four on cultivation these past few days and given Ma Feifei one yesterday. These five Spirit Crystals had emptied her purse.

Giving everything she had just to read a book, Zhao Xiaodao felt that she had gone mad too.

Ma Feifei stared blearily at the Spirit Crystals Zhao Xiaodao held out to him, completely bewildered.

Didn't I tell her this book could be read for free?

Did I?

I probably did!

At that moment, Zhao Xiaodao appeared increasingly noble in Ma Feifei's eyes. What was a gentleman? A gentleman did not ask for things carelessly, and if he did ask, it would be for a just cause. This was what it meant to be a gentleman!

Though Zhao Xiaodao was a girl, that was not important.

Though Ma Feifei had no immediate use for Spirit Crystals, he had heard passing pedestrians mention them several times over the past few days. Spirit Crystals were used by cultivators to improve their cultivation, and they were extremely precious. If ordinary people happened to acquire one, they could not use it to cultivate, but they could sell it. A low-grade Spirit Crystal was worth one thousand gold coins at market price.

What could one thousand gold coins buy? These days, pork in the Great Chu Kingdom cost five copper coins per jin, while beef cost ten copper coins per jin. A thousand copper coins equaled one gold coin, so one thousand gold coins could buy a whole lot of cattle!

Huh! Why was I using cattle as an example?

With these five Spirit Crystals, plus the one from last night, Ma Feifei felt that even if the Mysterious Bookstore vanished, he could exchange them for money, buy a few mu of land and several cows, and muddle through the rest of his life in this magical world.

Like a salted fish.

"So I can go in and read now?" Seeing Ma Feifei accept the Spirit Crystals, Zhao Xiaodao asked calmly.

"Read. As long as you don't take them away, you can read any book in the Bookstore." Ma Feifei waved grandly, and the five Spirit Crystals slipped into his pocket.

Looking at Ma Feifei's manner, anyone unaware of the truth would think his Bookstore held tens of thousands of books.

Zhao Xiaodao rolled her eyes, having no interest in dealing with him. She took one small step, then another, then skipped inside. Her playful appearance left Ma Feifei staring blankly.

By the time he recovered, Zhao Xiaodao was already sitting upright by the table, holding Andersen's Fairy Tales and reading.

"Where did I get to yesterday?"

"Was it The Little Match Girl?"

Inside the Bookstore, there was only Zhao Xiaodao's quiet muttering and the soft rustle of turning pages.

Andersen's Fairy Tales was a collection of fairy tales written by the Danish author Hans Christian Andersen. It contained a total of 166 stories and was roughly more than seven million words long.

How long would it take to read more than seven million words? Ma Feifei remembered reading a novel of more than four million words before he had crossed over. It took him five days, and he still had over a million words left unfinished. It was not that the story was bad; Ma Feifei had simply suddenly grown tired of it. How should he put it? It was like doing it with your partner for five consecutive days—by the end, it would probably lose all appeal.

Huh! Was I driving already?

But that was not important.

What mattered was that Zhao Xiaodao had actually persevered and finished this massive work! In half a month! Ma Feifei was rather impressed with himself as well, for watching over Zhao Xiaodao for half a month!

Other than going out to pawn a Spirit Crystal on the first day, he had spent the rest of the half month in the shop watching Zhao Xiaodao and counting gold coins...

At last, after all that bitterness came sweetness.

Ding! Congratulations, Host, for completing the Grand Opening task. You have received one copy of Half a Mu of Flower Fields. Your cultivation level has been raised to Peak Spirit User Stage Nine.

Ding! A journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step. Please obtain ten reading points.

Time limit: One month Reward: The Legend of the Condor Heroes, My Fair Princess Part One, and a certain amount of cultivation.

Hearing the system's voice, Ma Feifei immediately imagined golden light continuously flashing around his body as he leveled up again and again!

Spirit User Stage Nine... Hmm, what kind of realm was that? He had never heard of it, but it sounded impressive. Just look at it—it even had the words "Peak" attached to it.

Whether it was psychological or due to his cultivation improving, Ma Feifei felt that his eyesight had gotten better, his ears had become sharper, and his entire body was full of strength while also feeling light and airy, as though he could fly if he merely rose onto his toes.

Whoosh!

Suddenly, a white light burst from Zhao Xiaodao's body as she sat there, spreading outward like a ripple.

It was very magical. It was Ma Feifei's first time seeing something like it.

But it did not seem to have any power. The white light passed through Ma Feifei, then dissipated.

Only Zhao Xiaodao's aura suddenly became much stronger. Her headscarf vanished, her beautiful long hair drifted without wind, and the mud on her face had disappeared as well, leaving it clean and spotless.

"So beautiful!"

That was Ma Feifei's first impression.

How beautiful? Hadn't Ode to the Goddess Luo described it? Cloudlike hair, eyebrows like distant hills, red lips, and white teeth. Yes, that was exactly how beautiful she was.

While Ma Feifei was pondering how to describe Zhao Xiaodao's beauty, she slowly opened her eyes. She stretched out her hands in disbelief and murmured, "I broke through?"

"This... it seems I skipped realms?"

"Spirit Master Stage Five!"

"From Peak Spirit User Stage Eight straight to Spirit Master Stage Five! Six consecutive jumps?"

Zhao Xiaodao could scarcely believe it, but the dense spiritual power within her told her that she really had skipped realms!

Cultivation on the Azure Dragon Continent followed the rules of spiritual power cultivation. Starting from the lowest rank of Spirit User, one advanced through Spirit Master, Spirit Sect, Spirit King, Spirit Venerable, Spirit Emperor, and Spirit Saint. Each major realm was further divided into nine minor stages.

Crossing from one realm to another was inherently difficult. For example, going from Spirit User Stage Nine to Spirit Master First Stage was as difficult as cultivating from Spirit User Stage One to Stage Nine combined.

Thus, people said there was a minor hurdle every three stages and a major hurdle every nine stages.

Zhao Xiaodao had cultivated for twelve years since the age of eight. Despite her outstanding talent, she had only reached Peak Spirit User Stage Eight. Her greatest dream in life had merely been to cultivate to the Spirit Sect realm and extend her lifespan somewhat.

Yet now, she had done nothing at all and jumped six stages in a row?

Oh, no. She had spent half a month reading a book.

Although Zhao Xiaodao had vaguely sensed the spiritual energy in her body fluctuating while reading, she had only assumed that her Earth Element Cultivation Method was taking effect. After all, she had always cultivated barefoot, using the earth element beneath her feet.

However, Zhao Xiaodao had possessed this Earth Element Cultivation Method for twelve years. It was the lowest-grade cultivation method, and there was no way it could make her jump six stages in a row. Therefore, the only explanation was Andersen's Fairy Tales.

Thinking this, Zhao Xiaodao picked up Andersen's Fairy Tales and began reading from the first page, yet she never felt that spiritual power fluctuation again.

"Did I guess wrong? Was it really because I was extraordinarily gifted, cultivated bitterly for twelve years, and suddenly attained enlightenment?"