A life of leisure is worse than a life of flowers and splendour

Everyone decided to head towards a place with rich spiritual energy. Du Shuangshuang gave everyone a general overview of the world of immortal cultivation. Of course, she didn't know the details, after all, that woman had been dead for so long, so long she couldn't even tell how many years had passed. But some common sense about the world of immortal cultivation was universal, and with the small bracelet as a helper, everyone could grasp the most basic information. Therefore, everyone agreed that it would be best to stay near a large market town affiliated with a sect. For one thing, the spiritual energy was rich there, the security was relatively better, and they could also start a small business. Even if the Du family had left a foothold in the world of immortal cultivation, they could slowly develop and perhaps even become a large family.

For safety reasons, those who could use spiritual power used the Shapeshifting Technique to change their bodies and appearances. They also put makeup on everyone. Given Second Uncle's special physique, it was too easy to attract trouble, so it was better to be cautious. Although it couldn't hide his physique, it at least concealed his appearance. Even if others found out, they could just change their faces next time. Who would have thought they could change faces and bodies at will? However, thinking that they would be easily hunted down and flee everywhere, it would be better to find a place with slightly better spiritual energy to practice and improve their cultivation first. It would be better to move to a place with more spiritual energy after they have a certain level of self-protection. So they temporarily adjusted their plan, but they still had to move to a place with more spiritual energy first.

It sounds like it'll be arriving quickly, but the world of immortal cultivation is vast, and Daxia is just the tip of the iceberg. Even if you fly a shuttle for months, you might not be able to reach a city. There's supposedly a teleportation array, but you need to find a city first, and most large cities have one. There aren't many resources here, so most immortal cultivators don't come here, and there aren't many powerful ones. It's much safer for them, but ever since Du Shuangshuang taught everyone some common sense about the immortal world, everyone's wary and on high alert.

They didn't know this place was also known as the Land of Exile. Many who committed offenses were likely to be cast away here, their cultivation stripped. Some impoverished families sought refuge there, but no matter how difficult the situation, most people would choose to stay here if they had the means. The spiritual energy here was so thin that entering would practically cut off their path to immortality. Coming from a land rich in spiritual energy, one would likely struggle to advance even a fraction. Separated from the true realm of immortality was a vast desert, a land devoid of spirits and where flight was forbidden. Crossing this vast expanse would likely take a year or two, making it a difficult journey for ordinary people, even for cultivators in the Qi Refining stage. This desert was unlike any other. The poisonous creatures here were demonic beasts. While low-level, their physiques were inherently formidable. Once a cultivator's spiritual energy was depleted and unable to replenish it, they could easily perish.

The daytime heat was extremely hot, with temperatures reaching 50 to 60 degrees Celsius above zero, while the nighttime temperature could reach 40 to 50 degrees below zero. The environment was extremely harsh, with strong winds howling all day long, like countless ghosts and wolves howling.

Du Shuangshuang wore a cassock underneath, the same one she'd stripped from the skeleton. Second Aunt and her cousin also gave them one each. Second Uncle and her cousin also picked out two men's cassocks for them to wear underneath, and of course, Grandfather had one inside. While these cassocks weren't very effective, they were better than nothing; at least they were sturdier than ordinary clothing and could protect them from damage.

Du Shuangshuang felt that as a rookie in Qi training, she had no chance of offending any big shot. The spiritual energy here was relatively thin, and no big shot would appear under normal circumstances. The only thing she wore was to take precautions.

Everyone was on their way, probably towards the world of immortal cultivation. That night, they happened to come across a dilapidated temple and stayed there. Du Shuangshuang, her second uncle, and her cousin Du Zhengze took turns keeping watch.

Du Shuangshuang didn't dare practice while on night watch, so she could only choose to practice magic. Not only did her magic become more refined, but her control over her spiritual energy also became more refined. The casting time was constantly compressed, almost instantaneous. In addition to the method she had previously devised to repel mosquitoes, which Du Shuangshuang named the Fire Clothes, Du Shuangshuang also tried to compress the fire spiritual energy of the Fireball Technique. The fireballs released were very small, and exploded instantly when they were out of control. The power increased with the increase in spiritual energy used and the degree of compression, and the lethality was over three times that of the Fireball Technique. Du Shuangshuang called it the Explosive Flame Technique.

Du Shuangshuang's spiritual energy was exhausted, and she meditated to restore it. Every time her spiritual energy was exhausted, the speed of her next absorption would be slightly faster. This was something she had discovered over time. Moreover, the spiritual energy she absorbed again would become a little more condensed and durable. Du Shuangshuang had just started meditating to restore her spiritual energy when she was startled by a scream. She opened her eyes and glanced in the direction of the sound.

Du Zhengze was curled up on the ground, writhing in agony like a boiled shrimp. Veins bulged on his forehead and neck, and the meridians hidden beneath his clothes bulged like worms, his body radiating aura. Du Shuangshuang was bewildered. "What's wrong with you?" She couldn't get any answers. Aside from the scream, he was completely silent. His body continued to swell, seemingly on the verge of rupture, and traces of blood oozed from his skin.

Everyone was terrified. Second Aunt Du was crying breathlessly and wanted to go forward to hug the child, but Second Uncle Du pulled her away in time and reached out to support Du Zhengze. Then Second Uncle Du was also supported up, but it was obvious that Du Zhengze had slowed down. But Second Uncle Du's body had already begun to bleed. It was obvious that Second Uncle Du was desperately trying to help his cousin share the burden. Second Uncle Du even shared most of the burden, fearing that his son would explode accidentally. Even if he exploded, he would not let his son explode. Second Aunt Du was anxious and cried, but she didn't know what to do. If she hadn't been stopped, she would have lost her mind and rushed forward.

Without time to think, "Quick, quick, practice the exercises, organize that spiritual energy, and use it for your own benefit!" Du Shuangshuang shouted loudly. Second Uncle could still control himself, but Du Zhengze was already in so much pain that he was about to lose consciousness. There was no way he could do it. He had already lost consciousness before, and Second Uncle had just reached out to help him share the burden. Although it had slowed him down for a moment, the thing inside him continued to ooze spiritual energy. Soon, his whole body swelled up to the point of exploding, and blood began to ooze out of his body again.

"Aunt, cousin, let's help them together. If, if you can't hold on, just let go. Aunt, you stay behind Uncle, Yunyan, you stay behind me. I will try my best to control the spiritual power transmitted to you. If you really can't bear it, just let go." Du Shuangshuang reminded them that their own lives are more important, so just try their best.

"Hey, okay, Shuang'er, I'll do whatever you say." As Second Aunt spoke, she put her hand on Second Uncle's back.

Du Shuangshuang also quickly took action. If they didn't rescue him, the spiritual energy would explode them both. Du Shuangshuang didn't have time to think further. Her hands had already been placed on Du Zhengze's body, helping him share the violent spiritual energy. Du Shuangshuang practiced the skills, trying to guide some of the spiritual energy into her body, at least to help him share some of the burden. As long as he could hold on and sort it out, even if his body couldn't use it for its own benefit, the sorted spiritual energy could be released directly, and he would be fine.

The spiritual energy seemed to have found another outlet, rushing towards Du Shuangshuang crazily, completely out of control. The violent spiritual energy entered her body, stretching her meridians and causing pain, and Du Shuangshuang's tears became uncontrollable again. The crazy spiritual energy violently collided with her meridians, and her whole body swelled up, causing her to tremble with pain. But Du Shuangshuang didn't dare to let go. As soon as she let go, she felt that Du Zhengze and her second uncle were about to explode. In order to prevent them from exploding, she could only endure the pain, try her best to straighten out the spiritual energy, and try her best to help them share the burden. Every minute and every second was torture for Du Shuangshuang, but she couldn't give up.

The cousin's hand also rested on her back, and the second aunt also placed her hand on the second uncle as Du Shuangshuang finished speaking. Du Shuangshuang controlled herself, trying to guide most of the violent spiritual power into her meridians, leaving only a small amount in her body to flow through the cousin's hand and into her body.

The cousin couldn't help herself, groaning from time to time. Du Shuangshuang could feel the hands on her back trembling. Anyone would tremble. It hurt, it really hurt, like my whole body was being torn apart. How could it not hurt? Even if the violent spiritual power was small, it would still hurt when it rushed into the meridians. The pain was probably no less than being tortured by slicing.

The others gathered around, carefully observing the few people, even breathing softly, afraid of disturbing them. He stared at them intently, his mind on edge, his heart in his throat. He was anxious, like an ant on a hot pan, unable to help, he could only watch and fret. For the first time in his life, Grandpa Du hated himself for not having spiritual roots, unable to cultivate, and being useless at this crucial moment.

Du Zhengze had simply gotten up to use the restroom, but on his way back, he stumbled beside the altar, bumping into the mountain spirit. Something then burrowed into his body, then traveled to his dantian. It rapidly unleashed a surge of violent spiritual energy, nearly shattering his meridians and threatening to explode. Luckily, his father helped him recover, and Du Shuangshuang, his mother, and his sister also came to his aid.

But even so, the spiritual energy released by that thing was not something the two of them could withstand. Several times, he felt that he could not hold on any longer. They all knew how afraid Du Shuangshuang was of pain. She was the kind of person who would burst into tears when she had a small cut on her hand. She would cry so hard even if she had a minor skin injury. She was afraid that someone in the general's mansion would not know. Now she was helping him despite the heart-wrenching pain. Although she had become much more sensible since she fell into the water, and he had gradually accepted her and felt that she was not bad, this time his previous prejudice against this elder sister completely disappeared. He even felt that his elder sister was the best person in the world besides his parents and younger sister. If he could survive, he would follow his elder sister's lead in the future. After Du Zhengze regained consciousness, he quickly started to practice the exercises. He heard everything his elder sister said, but he was groggy before and could not do it.

The torment that had lasted all night finally ended when the first rays of morning light shone across the earth. The substance in Du Zhengze's dantian finally calmed down, and Du Zhengze advanced three levels in a row, breaking through to the seventh level of Qi Refining. His second uncle also broke through directly to the ninth level of Qi Refining, and his second aunt and cousin also broke through to the third level. Although they were also at the third level, the spiritual energy they shared was indeed very small. Mainly because they were just beginning their cultivation, no one dared to give them too much spiritual energy, otherwise it would easily damage their meridians and the loss would outweigh the gain. Du Shuangshuang also broke through to the ninth level of Qi Refining, and it felt like she was just a little bit away from breaking through to the tenth level of Qi Refining, the great perfection of Qi Refining.

Thinking about it, although several people gained a lot that night, they almost lost their lives. It was only because of the fate-changing technique that they survived, but they were on the verge of explosion several times. Although they survived, Du Zhengze, his second uncle who had direct contact with him, and Du Shuangshuang all looked like bloody people. They can be said to have survived a disaster.