Crossing the Cultivation Realm: Two Souls Coexist

The three of them endured three days of training under the old tortoise's seemingly casual but actually extremely rigorous methods.

As evening approached, the setting sun painted the horizon a magnificent orange-red.

As expected, Lin Feng appeared in front of the wooden house right on time, carrying a wine jar, with his signature slightly lazy smile on his face.

Tonight's meal was noticeably better – Old Turtle had caught a large, robust rock sheep from some nearby mountain valley.

It is said that this kind of sheep feeds on rocks containing a faint demonic energy, and its meat is firm and its blood and energy are vigorous, which is very beneficial to cultivators.

The whole sheep roasting over the campfire had a golden-brown, crispy skin, and the fat dripping into the fire made an enticing sizzling sound.

The rich aroma of meat, mixed with the scent of some strange spices, permeated the small campsite.

Hu Qing, Gu Yang, and Xiao Zi had no time to savor any "nutritious" food. The enormous energy they had expended during training had left them ravenous, and they were currently tearing into the fragrant mutton in their hands without any regard for appearances, their mouths dripping with oil.

The old tortoise remained lazily reclining on its bamboo chair, sipping the wine Lin Feng had brought.

A pair of beady eyes gazed at the night sky where stars were gradually appearing, their gaze deep, as if they were plotting some new way to "torture" someone.

After finishing a rib, Little Purple, still wanting more, picked up the remaining roasted lamb leg, jumped off the chair, and ran to the old turtle with her short legs.

Standing on tiptoe, she tried her best to hold the fragrant lamb leg to the old turtle's mouth, saying in a childish voice, "Grandpa Turtle, you have some too! It's so delicious!"

The old tortoise took a swig of wine, looked at Little Purple's oil-stained face and bright eyes, and couldn't help but smile. He stretched out his rough front paws and ruffled Little Purple's soft hair, his tone unusually gentle:

"You eat it yourself, little one. I'm too old to eat such greasy food."

It paused, as if seeing through Little Purple's little scheme, and said teasingly:

"However, even if you stuff the whole leg of lamb into my mouth, tomorrow's training schedule won't be any lighter."

"Hahaha!" Lin Feng, Hu Qing, and Gu Yang, who were standing nearby, couldn't help but burst into laughter upon hearing this.

Xiao Zi's little scheme was exposed, and she sullenly hummed. Holding the lamb leg, she turned around, fiercely tore off a large piece of meat, stuffed it into her mouth, and chewed it forcefully, as if she were biting into the flesh of an old turtle.

Hu Qing smiled and shook his head, took out a clean cloth, walked over and wiped the oil off Xiao Zi's face, saying helplessly:

“You… Senior Turtle is, after all, a… well, a senior beastman. It’s not appropriate for you to make him eat mutton, which is also a beast.”

Little Purple, with meat in its mouth, blinked its big eyes blankly, clearly not yet fully understanding the "ethical" issues involved.

The old tortoise nonchalantly waved its paw, placed the empty wine jar on the table, and said in a calm tone:

"It's alright. In the world of demon beasts, the law of the jungle prevails. The small get eaten by the big, the big get devoured by the even bigger, and who knows, an old one might even appear later to seek revenge..."

The workings of heaven and earth, the generation and restraint of all things—this is the natural order.

As it spoke, it glanced at Hu Qing meaningfully and added, "Don't always try to teach him your human way of etiquette and rules."

Dragons are not exactly gentle, kind, or docile creatures.

Let him follow his nature and do whatever he wants, as long as he doesn't violate basic moral principles.

Upon hearing this, Hu Qing nodded thoughtfully.

Indeed, ever since Xiao Zi transformed into human form, he has unconsciously treated and educated her as a human child.

But they almost forgot that Xiao Zi's true nature is that of a dragon with ancient blood and an innate love of power and freedom.

Humanity's moral code, especially some modern concepts brought into their subconscious, may be a kind of constraint for the dragon race.

Just then, Lin Feng suddenly exclaimed, "Holy crap! Brother Gu, you...you've mastered the Qilin Arm?!"

Gu Yang was gnawing on a lamb leg when he was taken aback by the question and subconsciously looked at his arm.

Beneath the sleeves of his arms, a clearly visible crimson light, like flowing lava, shone through!

The light was not dazzling, but it carried a scorching and powerful aura, as if a dormant power was awakening.

Immediately afterwards, Hu Qing, who was sitting opposite him, also felt an indescribable heat in his arms. Looking down, he saw that his arms were also radiating a fiery light, which complemented Gu Yang's!

Seeing this, the old tortoise's beady eyes instantly lit up with surprise. It sat bolt upright on the bamboo chair and let out a low growl:

"Good! It's finally starting to look promising! It's a day later than I predicted!"

It moved with lightning speed, swiping its front paws and pushing the wooden table in front of it, along with the leftover food on it, far away.

With its other claw, it grabbed out from the air, and a gentle yet irresistible force swept up Lin Feng and Xiao Zi, taking them to a safe distance.

"Concentrate your mind and introspect! Guide this power to break through the shackles of the Nascent Soul stage!"

The old tortoise's voice carried an unusual seriousness and anticipation, "Let's see how many cleavages we can tear apart this time!"

Before he finished speaking, Hu Qing and Gu Yang had already sat cross-legged on their respective chairs, their eyes closed, completely absorbed in the sudden opportunity for a breakthrough.

Their aura fluctuated violently, and the crimson light grew stronger and stronger.

The old tortoise dared not be negligent, and quickly formed hand seals in the air, as if kneading something invisible.

The ground beneath Hu Qing and Gu Yang trembled slightly as the pure and abundant earth vein energy was forcibly extracted and gathered.

Like living soil, it surged upwards, quickly enveloping the two people and forming two airtight, perfectly round spheres of earth, each about ten feet in diameter.

They were temporarily isolated from the outside world, leaving only a channel for pure energy.

Immediately afterwards, the old tortoise took out several top-quality spirit stones, brimming with spiritual energy, from its magical shell.

With a gentle rub of its claws, it transformed them into the purest spirit powder, which was then evenly sprinkled onto the surface of the two earthen balls.

The spiritual powder melts upon contact, seeps into the earthen ball, and provides a continuous source of energy for internal breakthroughs.

After doing all this, the old tortoise seemed to breathe a sigh of relief and returned to its leisurely state, slowly lying back in the bamboo chair.

However, his gaze remained fixed on the two earthen spheres radiating energy fluctuations.

Lin Feng was still holding half a piece of mutton in his hand, having long forgotten to chew it. His face was full of shock and envy as he murmured:

"This...this is way too fast...it's inhuman..."

Although he complained, he was genuinely happy for Hu Qing and Gu Yang.

After all, he had personally experienced a fraction of that hellish training and knew how terrifying it was.

Their ability to make rapid progress under such hardship is a well-deserved reward.

Thinking back to his own pathetic state when he first entered the mud pit and was knocked unconscious by rolling logs, Lin Feng couldn't help but shudder, and his admiration for the two people in the mud ball grew even stronger.

Little Zi forgot her anger, hugged the lamb leg, and looked nervously at the two dirt balls, her little face full of anticipation.

The camp fell into a brief silence, broken only by the crackling of the campfire and the faint, thunderous sound of energy surging from inside the earthen sphere.