: Poor

Han Zhou couldn't help but glance sideways, his puzzled expression seeming to say, "Friend Ning Zhuo, didn't you just say you wanted to build a good relationship with Hua Guzi? Why are you now acting so distant and unapproachable?"

Sensing Han Zhou's confusion, Ning Zhuo offered no explanation and simply walked around Hua Guzi.

Han Zhou: ?!

He inwardly gasped, feeling rather bewildered.

In his view, Hua Guzi clearly wanted to befriend Ning Zhuo and mend their relationship, but surprisingly, Ning Zhuo was the one putting on a cold face.

"Given Hua Guzi's temperament, coming over so humbly and even bringing dumplings is already breaking her usual behavior."

"Young Master Ning Zhuo treating her like this is practically rubbing her dignity in the dirt."

"Young Master Ning Zhuo is being rather unwise."

"Ah... what a mess."

Han Zhou felt this situation could have been handled much better. But Ning Zhuo was acting quite strangely.

He instinctively moved farther away from Hua Guzi, fearing she might erupt in anger and attack.

Hua Guzi remained in her bowing posture, with her upper arms, upper body, and face parallel to the ground.

Her face was flushed red with a mix of anger, embarrassment, and confusion.

"Rejected! I went to all this trouble, and he still rejected me!"

"I was rejected! I was actually rejected!!"

"Ahhhh!"

"This is so humiliating, too humiliating."

"Not only was I rejected, but an outsider saw it too. I want to die!"

"I want to die! Is there a crack in the ground? I want to crawl into it!!"

"Hehehe, hahaha, gugugu..."

"Why? Why would Young Master Ning Zhuo reject me? How could he bear to reject someone as adorable and beautiful as me?"

"Why? Why do I feel a little happy about it?"

"Even being rejected by Young Master Ning Zhuo makes me feel somewhat happy."

"Why is that?"

"That brat trampled my dignity into the mud—he deserves to die, he should be killed!"

"But, but, but... why can't I bring myself to hate him?"

Hua Guzi herself felt confused.

Ning Zhuo felt even more so.

"This female cultivator is insane!!" Sensing the overwhelming joy in Hua Guzi's heart, Ning Zhuo felt an increasing chill and quickened his pace.

"This half-demon has a very twisted temperament, absolutely abnormal!"

"Staying away from her feels safer."

Ning Zhuo warned himself inwardly.

Han Zhou remained highly vigilant the entire way.

Only after putting enough distance between them did he glance back from afar, seeing Hua Guzi still suspended in place like a statue. His sense of dread grew even stronger.

It felt like Hua Guzi was a thunderblast talisman, ready to explode at any moment!

Returning to his cave dwelling, Ning Zhuo temporarily put Hua Guzi out of his mind and began his daily routine cultivation.

Mirror Platform Spirit Communication Art, Five Elements Qi Rhythm Art, Demonic Blood Tendon Technique!

He practiced the three techniques in rotation, steadily advancing his cultivation.

Inside the cave dwelling, abundant spiritual energy had accumulated into a mist. Spirit food was readily available, and Ning Zhuo chewed handfuls of it, quickly converting it into vitality and spiritual power.

A calming incense burned quietly, and the sitting mat, a reward from the three families of Huoshi Immortal City, still provided excellent benefits.

After finishing his cultivation, Ning Zhuo slowly opened his eyes and transmitted a message to Sun Lingtong with a sigh, "Big Bro, is there any way to speed up my cultivation? Even now, my cultivation is only at the early Foundation Establishment stage—it's too slow!"

Sun Lingtong, who was drinking water, nearly spat it out upon hearing this: "Xiao Zhuo, why do you think it's slow?"

"You have talent, a Five Elements spiritual root, and all kinds of resources. Your progress is visible every day—this speed is already top-tier, far surpassing mine back in the day. And you still think it's slow?"

Ning Zhuo sighed, "I feel like I'm still very far from the mid Foundation Establishment stage."

Hearing this, Sun Lingtong was speechless. He rolled his eyes, looked up at the ceiling, and transmitted back, "That's just how it is at the Foundation Establishment stage."

"Every time you advance to a higher major realm, your cultivation speed slows down several times, or even more. This is because after a qualitative change, the foundation needed for each major realm often increases dozens or even hundreds of times!"

"The better the cultivation technique, the deeper the foundation required. That's why cultivators who practice superior techniques often surpass others of the same level."

"Think about what level your three supreme techniques are. They're among the best of the best, top of the top."

"So, stop dreaming about the good old days of the Qi Refining stage and take it slow. Cultivation is like this—it requires persistence and diligence."

"It'll take you at least a few years to advance to mid Foundation Establishment."

"Don't be impatient—you need to adjust your mindset!"

Ning Zhuo sighed, "Ah, Big Bro, I know you're right, but I can't help feeling anxious and urgent."

"Maybe it's because I want to improve my cultivation and strength so badly, so I can save my mother sooner."

"Big Bro, I often think that if I had combat power at the Nascent Soul level, I could simply go and negotiate with Lin Bufan. Why bother competing on Little Struggle Peak?"

Sun Lingtong rolled his eyes again: "You're daydreaming!"

"If I had Nascent Soul level—no, even Golden Core level cultivation—I'd be confident enough to steal all of Lin Bufan's possessions."

"Our ages are what they are. With your current cultivation, you're already ahead of ninety-nine percent of your peers. Don't be too hard on yourself, Xiao Zhuo."

Ning Zhuo sighed again: "Big Bro, I know it's unrealistic. Demanding too much progress too quickly would be rushing and short-sighted. Cultivation requires a solid foundation and steady footing."

"A towering building rises from the ground. If the foundation is unstable, no matter how high it is, there's a huge risk of collapse."

"I'm just feeling frustrated and wanted to share it with you."

Sun Lingtong fell silent for a moment before comforting him: "I've seen your rapid progress recently. You improve visibly every day. If you're still frustrated, that's just unreasonable. If word got out, countless geniuses and true disciples would be ashamed beyond measure."

"Little Struggle Peak is a treasure land for you. You should stay and make good use of it."

After a pause, Sun Lingtong added: "However, if you want Nascent Soul level combat power, it's not entirely impossible."

"You're so skilled in mechanics. If you can create a mechanical construct with Nascent Soul level combat power, wouldn't that work?"

Mentioning mechanics, Ning Zhuo's tone immediately brightened, and his expression relaxed with pleasure.

He said: "Big Bro, my experimentation with martial mechanics has been well validated with Hua Guzi."

"This gives me great inspiration for designing Meng Yehu's mechanical body!"

"I can first select a cultivation technique for it, then design the mechanical body based on that technique."

"It practiced the Flesh Tank Blood Devouring Demonic Technique in its previous life, but that technique definitely won't work—it's hard to integrate with mechanical materials."

"Actually, the Suffering Scripture would work."

"The mechanical limbs I used in battle this time were mainly made from Bitter Water and Lone Sapling Wood. The former was thanks to Han Zhou's support, and the latter came from the market on Little Struggle Peak."

"The mechanical limbs made from these materials are somewhat similar to Han Zhou's physical body and can even enhance the martial art Suffering Body."

"The Suffering Scripture isn't compatible with Meng Yehu's talent. But if the Suffering Scripture can do it, other techniques should be able to as well."

Sun Lingtong rubbed his chubby chin with his plump hand, thinking seriously: "Xiao Zhuo, given your current relationship with the Ten Thousand Medicine Sect, it might be difficult to obtain a technique from them."

Ning Zhuo said: "I've thought about it. We can go to an immortal city—there's bound to be a Complete Book Pavilion there. We can select a technique suitable for Meng Yehu."

Sun Lingtong: "Meng Yehu was at the Golden Core level in its previous life. If you want to pick a technique, it should probably be at least at that level, right? That won't be cheap."

Ning Zhuo's expression shifted slightly.

Sun Lingtong added: "I should remind you, we spent a large sum earlier to rush the production of the spirit plant pod."

"Next, to create Meng Yehu's mechanical body, even the lowest-level Golden Core technique will cost a lot."

"We need to cultivate the Hidden Spirit Willow well. The spirit soil and spirit liquid in the spirit plant pod are almost depleted."

"Also, our daily cultivation expenses are beyond what most rogue cultivators can imagine—on par with the true disciples of major sects. Calculating just three months, it's already a huge amount."

"Finally, there's the Thousand-Mile Roaming Dragon! The fire essence is running low and needs replenishing in large quantities."

"The belongings I stole from Li Jingqing are just a drop in the bucket compared to this deficit."

Ning Zhuo's expression grew increasingly troubled.

The Nascent Soul level Thousand-Mile Roaming Dragon is truly comfortable to use, but the cost is too high.

The resources Ning Zhuo accumulated earlier in Huoshi Immortal City are already struggling to support the Thousand-Mile Roaming Dragon.

The spiritual energy, spirit food, and other resources Ning Zhuo consumes daily to advance his cultivation translate to a high standard in spirit stones.

Then there's the Hidden Spirit Willow.

Ning Zhuo's face turned somewhat pale.

This is another major resource drain. Cultivating the Hidden Spirit Willow properly requires significant investment!

"Such heritage treasures are typically sustained by the collective strength of a sect or clan. Relying on ourselves alone is truly difficult."

Ning Zhuo sighed sincerely.

Through deception and trickery—no, through hard work and careful planning—he had acquired many cultivation resources.

But compared to the demand, these accumulations are far from enough!

For the short term, the two of them can still manage.

But not for long.

If you don't worry about the future, you'll soon have worries close at hand. This issue must be considered now. Otherwise, when it becomes urgent, it will be hard to solve.

Ning Zhuo frowned deeply.

These past few days, he had been immersed in his special training and hard cultivation, indulging in the satisfaction and sense of achievement from his rapid progress, and hadn't paid attention to these problems.

Reminded by Sun Lingtong, he immediately realized that this issue is becoming more serious as time passes.

If it really erupts, it will be too late!

(End of )