THE RULE KING

Only Xu Shan and Lu Xiangjun were left standing there, looking at each other. The atmosphere was a bit delicate for a moment. After a while, Xu Shan said, "Senior Brother... I didn't mean to deceive you. You won't hold it against me, will you?"

Lu Xiangjun felt a bit embarrassed. In the final analysis, this matter could be attributed to him. If he hadn't randomly found someone to catch the person cooking and it happened to be Xu Shan, Xu Shan's spiritual root aptitude wouldn't have declined like this.

"I can understand. I also thought something bad was going to happen... Junior Brother, about your spiritual root... Are you really not bothered by it?"

"It's impossible not to be bothered, but it has already happened, so let it be... Senior Brother, you don't have to think too much about it. Everyone has their own destiny."

Hearing these words, Lu Xiangjun was quite surprised, and his mood immediately became much warmer.

"Junior Brother, you're really straightforward. We get along quite well... Come on, I'll take you to the Inner Sect to arrange your accommodation. If you have any questions, just ask me."

... The two walked side by side on the path. The scenery around them changed with every step, far surpassing that of the Outer Sect.

Lu Xiangjun said, "Now that you've entered the Inner Sect, the first thing is to recover as soon as possible and be ready to take the Foundation Establishment Pill to break through to the next realm."

"Yes, but what about our Master..."

"Master is indeed a bit unhappy, but don't worry. Master is definitely a good person. You can tell from the atmosphere in our sect. He treats his disciples very well." Lu Xiangjun sighed softly, "It's just... you've given him hope and then let him down several times. It's really hard for him to accept. You'd better go to see him after some time."

"You might not know this. Master only has me as his disciple. He raised me since I was a child. But Senior Brother, I... have really let him down a bit. To be honest, I don't like cultivation. I was completely forced to practice. I wish I were an ordinary person. Reading books and such would be more interesting than this, right? There's nothing wrong with it except for having a shorter lifespan."

Xu Shan was speechless in his heart... Truly, everything is like a walled city. People on both sides envy each other. He didn't expect that even in the world of cultivation, it's the same.

Lu Xiangjun continued, "Let's get back to the main topic."

"Only when you successfully establish the Foundation can you be considered a true cultivator, completely setting yourself apart from ordinary people. That's why the Foundation Establishment realm is called so. Once you successfully establish the Foundation, you can start learning the introductory mental method of the Xinglan Sect, the Star Summoning Technique. At the same time, the sect will distribute five low-grade spirit stones to you every month to assist with your cultivation."

"Besides the spirit stones distributed by the sect, you can also go outside to hunt demonic beasts and gather spiritual herbs. The sect will take a portion, and the rest can be exchanged for spirit stones to obtain cultivation technique jade slips and magical artifacts in the Sutra Pavilion or the Weapon Pavilion."

Xu Shan nodded repeatedly. This sounded very much like the electronics factory in his previous life, where you earn money in the factory and spend it in the factory. Essentially, there's not much difference. The fact that Inner Sect disciples generally won't be expelled already indicates that they have started to be able to generate positive benefits for the sect.

"The cultivation techniques in the Sutra Pavilion must be very expensive, right? If some senior brothers or sisters have already learned a certain spell, can't I go and ask them for advice?" Xu Shan asked.

"Smart!" Lu Xiangjun snapped his fingers and praised, "But that depends on your ability. After all, no one's cultivation technique comes for free."

"You've already become a disciple now. Logically speaking, you can ask our Master for advice when you have questions. But many elders also give public lectures to their disciples, and you can go and listen and ask questions..."

"Spells, pills, and magical artifacts are classified into four ranks: Heaven, Earth, Profound, and Yellow, with each rank having nine grades. Since you've entered the Inner Sect, you can receive a magical sword of the first or second grade of the Yellow rank..."

The two chatted happily until half an hour had passed. Suddenly, Lu Xiangjun stopped, looking a bit hesitant.

Xu Shan asked curiously, "Senior Brother, is there something wrong?"

"Well... Junior Brother, I've told you so much already. There's a question I don't know whether I should ask or not?"

"Please go ahead, Senior Brother?"

"I've observed your appearance. You must have had quite a few Taoist companions, right? Did you have a Taoist companion when you were in the Outer Sect?"

"I've never had a Taoist companion, but I've seen no less than a thousand or eight hundred women without clothes on. Senior Brother, do you have a problem in your love life?"

"Hiss... You... are so powerful?!" Lu Xiangjun nervously looked around. Seeing that there was no one around, he said, "The one who knows more is the teacher! I'll just tell you directly. Senior Brother here is pursuing Junior Sister Li Ting. Everyone in the Inner Sect knows about this. Since you have rich experience in this regard, can you give me some advice?"

"Oh~~ It's a small matter. Senior Brother, I'm not boasting. If I hadn't chosen to cultivate, I would have been a playboy no matter what in the outside world."

Although his body was in pain, Xu Shan was in a very good mood at the moment. The hidden danger in the sect had been resolved, and he had successfully entered the Inner Sect. As long as he got on well with everyone in the Inner Sect in the future, his path ahead would be much smoother. This was a great opportunity now.

"It's playboy, right... Did I learn it wrong?" Lu Xiangjun murmured to himself.

"That doesn't matter! Senior Brother, I have in-depth research on this matter. You won't go wrong if you listen to me."

"Tell me quickly!" Lu Xiangjun said eagerly.

"How do you usually treat that Senior Sister?"

"Just... showing concern, sending cultivation techniques and pills. I've been doing this for two years, but she still hasn't shown any response. She won't even let me touch her hand." Lu Xiangjun said worriedly.

"The more you give, the more wrong you are! She's just leading you on! You mustn't fawn over her blindly!" Xu Shan said firmly. He didn't expect that there were gold diggers even in the world of cultivation, and Senior Brother Lu was actually quite innocent.

"Fawn over? What does this word mean? I haven't even held her hand yet. How can I fawn over her?" Lu Xiangjun looked full of reluctance.

"Um... It doesn't mean literally licking. It means to please someone without any limits or principles." Xu Shan couldn't help but give him a sidelong glance.

"People are like this. They're just difficult to please! If you're always nice to her, she'll think it's normal. So from now on, you can't do such things anymore. You have to do the opposite."

"How do I do the opposite?" Lu Xiangjun asked curiously.

"Suppress her! Completely overwhelm her both in words and in cultivation level. Show your strong demeanor and conquer her! Everyone admires the strong. The more you please and show weakness, the more others will look down on you. Only by making her realize that you're a strong person is there a possibility that she'll fall for you."

"Right!" Lu Xiangjun slapped his thigh hard, looking suddenly enlightened, "How could I not have thought of such a simple truth? I'll go and give it a try later."

Xu Shan smiled and asked, "Senior Brother, aren't we cultivators supposed to be pure-hearted and free from desires? Why are you so persistent in pursuing a Taoist companion?"

"Are cultivators pure-hearted and free from desires? That's just something imagined by ordinary people." Lu Xiangjun waved his hand, "It's not wrong to pursue being pure-hearted and free from desires, but it's precisely because we can't achieve it that we always emphasize it."

"You'll understand once you break through to the Foundation Establishment stage. That kind of transformation will comprehensively transform your body and spirit, and all your desires will increase accordingly! The higher the realm, the stronger the desires!"

"That's why we pursue being pure-hearted and free from desires. Once our Taoist heart gets out of control, we'll go to extremes and fall into the demonic path."

Xu Shan said, "Then may I ask, Senior Brother, is there anything I need to pay attention to if I'm going to break through to the Foundation Establishment stage? For example, will I encounter problems like inner demons?"

....