A Gift of Cultivation Method

She suspected Xiao Bai had obtained some special inheritance, and that delighted her greatly.

Originally, even if Xiao Bai's future cultivation did not reach great heights, she had already prepared herself to shelter him from all storms. But what woman did not hope her future husband would be a powerful figure renowned throughout the world?

However, she would not tell anyone these things. If Xiao Bai Gege truly carried an inheritance from the Upper Realm and it was exposed, even she would not be able to protect him.

"All right, Old Ling, you may leave for now. From now on, I don't want to hear anything bad said about Xiao Bai Gege!" Xiao Xun Er said, her voice a little cold.

"Yes, Miss. Ling Ying takes his leave!" Ling Ying let out a breath of relief. In his heart, he silently decided that from now on, as long as Xiao Bai did not go too far, he would pretend he was blind and had seen nothing.

After Ling Ying left, Xiao Xun Er lowered her head and looked at the plain letter on the table. She reached out and stroked the handwriting on it, murmuring softly, "Xiao Bai Gege!"

But as though she had thought of something else, an unreadable look appeared in her eyes, and she gave a soft scoff.

"Hehe~ Four female leads, is it? Xun Er would like to see who the other three are."

When Xiao Bai told her the story today and mentioned several female leads in it, his eyes had inadvertently watched her reaction. Did he think she did not know?

She was only pretending to be foolish, not truly foolish.

"Huo Ling'er's Childhood Sweetheart, Yun Xi's silent companionship, Yue Chan and Qing Yi's talent—Xun Er has them all and can do them all. Is having Xun Er still not enough? Does he still want to imitate that Imperial Emperor with three wives and four concubines?"

Xiao Xun Er rubbed her brow with her jade-like fingers and sighed.

"What a fickle, bad gege!"

When Xiao Bai woke up, it was already the next morning.

Sunlight passed through the window, forming specks of golden light on the floor.

Xiao Bai got up and stretched. With the matter that had weighed on his mind finally settled, he had slept very soundly. It was the most comfortable night's sleep he had had in the ten years since crossing over.

After Xiao Bai got up and washed, he brewed a pot of tea and sat by the table, thinking over his future cultivation plans. Suddenly, he heard a knock sound from outside the courtyard.

Knock, knock, knock.

"Xiao Bai Gege, are you up?"

When Xiao Bai heard that clear, crisp voice, he knew who had come.

"Why has this girl come so early? Does she still want to hear the story I didn't finish yesterday?"

He was puzzled. With Xun Er's personality, even if she wanted to hear it, she would not be this impatient.

He opened the courtyard gate and saw the young girl standing there prettily. When she saw him, she waved and smiled.

"Xiao Bai Gege, good morning! Xun Er didn't disturb you, did she?"

Xiao Bai looked at the girl with a gentle gaze and said, "As long as it's Xun Er who comes, it's never a disturbance, no matter when. Come in!"

Hearing this, Xiao Xun Er's eyes curved slightly, and she followed Xiao Bai inside.

After they came into the room and sat down by the table, Xiao Bai poured her a cup of freshly brewed tea and teased, "Did Xun Er come so early because she wants to continue listening to the story?"

Hearing this, Xiao Xun Er did not answer. She only smiled mysteriously and waved her jade hand lightly, and a scroll appeared on the table.

The scroll was black, and faintly, some complex silver patterns could be seen along its edges. At a glance, it did not look like an ordinary item.

Looking at the scroll that had appeared on the table, Xiao Bai was thoughtful. Could this girl have come to deliver a cultivation method to him?

Though he had a guess in his heart, Xiao Bai still put on a puzzled expression and said, "Xun Er, what is this...?"

"This is the Low-Grade Earth Rank cultivation method, 'Thunder Spirit Art.' Xiao Bai Gege just broke through to Dou Zhe, so you need a cultivation method before you can begin your subsequent cultivation. You have the Lightning attribute, and the Xiao Clan doesn't have any outstanding lightning-type cultivation methods. It just so happens that Xun Er has one in her possession. Isn't that a coincidence?"

Xiao Xun Er spoke in a brisk tone, looking charmingly naive.

Xiao Bai was speechless inside and secretly rolled his eyes.

"Don't tell me you just so happen to have one for metal, wood, water, fire, earth, wind, and darkness too?"

If he had not known this girl's identity, he might really have been fooled into limping along.

Xiao Bai picked up the scroll and opened it. He was not planning to cultivate this method; rather, he wanted to use it to determine the rank of the Nine Heavens Divine Thunder Scripture he cultivated.

In the Xiao Clan, one could not enter the Cultivation Method Pavilion to select a cultivation method without first undergoing a test to confirm that one had broken through to Dou Zhe.

The Dou Technique Pavilion, on the other hand, could be visited at any time. The Low-Grade Yellow Rank Body Tempering Technique he used as a cover had been obtained from there. Perhaps because its rank was too low, the Cultivation Method Pavilion had looked down on it.

So strictly speaking, this was the first time Xiao Bai had come into contact with a true cultivation method after arriving in this world.

After Xiao Bai carefully finished reading the "Thunder Spirit Art" scroll in his hands, he fell into deep thought, his fingers unconsciously tapping the tabletop again and again.

Through comparison, Xiao Bai clearly knew that his Nine Heavens Divine Thunder Scripture was indeed stronger than this Low-Grade Earth Rank "Thunder Spirit Art." In fact, the two could not even be placed on the same level.

"Thunder Spirit Art" had very much the characteristics of the Dou Qi Continent. It was purely about accumulating the quantity of Dou Qi, while also possessing unique aspects in controlling lightning.

The "Nine Heavens Divine Thunder Art" was more like a Daoist cultivation method from his previous life, emphasizing the unity of essence, qi, and spirit.

Although it currently followed the same advancement system as the Dou Qi Continent, Xiao Bai guessed that this was because the Divine Edict had modified the method to adapt to the rules of this world, cutting it down once or perhaps even several times.

Otherwise, this cultivation method could not be cultivated on the Dou Qi Continent at all. It required a higher-grade energy—spiritual qi.

Just like that Flame Mantra. If the Dou Qi Continent had not had Heavenly Flames, then with the energy intensity of the lower planes, it could only have been a low-grade Yellow-tier technique and could not evolve.

From that perspective, Heavenly Flames should contain something like the source of the laws of fire, while dou qi was derived from the laws' source of the Dou Qi Continent after decomposition, one or two—or even several—levels lower in energy intensity than the source itself.

So in the lower planes, the Flame Mantra could only evolve by devouring the source of laws; dou qi would not do.

Xiao Bai believed that while he did not know the grade of his Nine Heavens Divine Thunder Art, its performance should not be inferior to Xiao Huohuo's in the original work—especially since he also had the Divine Edict.

Of course, Ghost Possession was the exception. That thing was like inviting a god to take over your body; it could not count.

Thinking of this, Xiao Bai closed the scroll and handed it back to Xun Er.

"Is Xiao Bai Gege not satisfied with this technique?" Xiao Xun Er asked softly when she saw that after looking at it for a while, he had handed the technique back to her.

Xiao Bai shook his head, winked at Xun Er, and said with a smile, "The technique is very good, but I already have one more suited to me. You're not allowed to overthink it, little girl!"

A trace of understanding flashed through Xiao Xun Er's eyes. Sure enough, just as she had guessed, Xiao Bai Gege had his own fortuitous encounter, so she did not try to persuade him further.

"What about combat skills? Xun Er still has a few scrolls of combat skills here. Would Xiao Bai Gege like to take a look?"

Xiao Xun Er silently put away the technique scroll, then pretended as though she had just remembered something, lightly touching her lower lip with her index finger as she continued to ask with a smile.

Xiao Bai quietly watched her performance. Though he felt a little like laughing, warmth filled his heart. In this strange yet familiar world, only this girl was truly good to him.

He stroked Xun Er's little head. Her black hair was smooth and silky, pleasant to the touch, and he smiled.

"As it happens, I don't have any suitable combat skills yet. Then thank you, Xun Er!"