Cultivating In Secret Beside A Demoness

“Master.”

As Jiang Hao was about to leave, the beast leaped to his side.

“What’s the matter?” Jiang Hao asked.

At this moment, Xiao Li caught a fish in the water.

He didn’t know how the beast persuaded her.

“Lin Zhi has some news,” the beast said as it shook off the water.

“About Zhao Qingxue?” Jiang Hao asked.

It was almost a year, and finally, there was news about that.

“Yes, they said a lot happened in the tomb. Lin Zhi’s other friend went in halfway through. He finally found Zhao Qingxue. And then, the two of them encountered the guardian and, by a twist of fate, obtained some inheritances. The White Moon Lake finally has control over the tomb,” said the beast.

Jiang Hao was quite moved. Their luck was not bad. It was just that Lin Zhi seemed to be excluded.

He was only a burden to them.

Sighing, he asked, “Has he returned?” “He has returned.” The spirit beast nodded.

“Does Lin Zhi know?”

“He knows.”

“Did he go too?” “He did but didn’t meet her.”

Jiang Hao nodded.

That was to be expected. It was not easy for an outer sect disciple to enter the White Moon Lake.

Sometimes, it took great courage just to just attempt to go there.

With Lin Zhi, it would be like a poor boy visiting a rich manor.

Everything seemed out of place.

“How is Lin Zhi?”

“Not in a good state.”

Jiang Hao nodded. He could go and check in on him.

Jiang Hao reached the outskirts of the sect, where the outer sect was located. Then, he walked straight into the woods.

Lin Zhi was in there.

On a grassy area in the woods, moonlight blanketed everything.

At the edge, Lin Zhi was sitting against a big tree. He was lost in thought as he gazed at the sky. ‘He has indeed grown up.’

Jiang Hao walked to him.

When he first met Lin Zhi, he was just a little, frail boy. Now, he was much stronger in his twenties.

Jiang Hao was used to seeing Xiao Li, and he thought Lin Zhi and the others hadn’t changed much from before.

Lin Zhi was startled. He stood up and saw Jiang Hao. Then, he greeted him.

“Greetings, Senior.”

“What are you thinking about?” Jiang Hao asked.

“About my cultivation realm, ” Lin Zhi said.

Jiang Hao looked and confirmed that Lin Zhi was still in the first stage of the Lifeblood Refinement Realm. “Have you been slacking off?” “I dare not slack off.’

Lin Zhi looked sad.

“Feeling confused about the future?” Jiang Hao asked.

“Yes,” Lin Zhi said with a bitter face. “They say the heavens reward the diligent and that every effort yields a harvest. But I can’t even protect the people around me. Everyone is moving forward, but I’m mired in a quagmire and can’t free myself. My mother died after I left, and the old lady died in front of me. She believed I was an immortal disciple right till the end. I was powerless to do anything, but I thought that even if I couldn’t save the people around me, at least I wouldn’t bring trouble to them. Because of me… Senior Sister Zhao…” Jiang Hao listened quietly.

Lin Zhi had been in the sect for ten years, and he had been stuck in the Lifeblood Refinement Realm forever.

Being able to persist until now was already very remarkable. He had faced ridicule and insult and powered through it anyway.

Yet, in the eyes of everyone, he was an irredeemable waste. Ten years at the same stage. It was unbelievable.

“Senior brother, what should I do?” Lin Zhi looked down at the dirt.

He was nothing, and he could do nothing.

Jiang Hao looked at him. “You must learn to calm your state of mind even if you are despised or humiliated by others. Though the road is long, you will eventually arrive. Though the task is difficult, you will achieve it by doing it consistently. That is who you are today.”

Jiang Hao turned and left, but halfway through, he turned back and said,

“Remember, you are different from before.”

Lin Zhi looked at Jiang Hao in confusion. ‘Different? How was that possible?’

But he didn’t think about it further. Instead, he thought about what Jiang Hao had said earlier.

‘You must learn to calm your state of mind even if you are despised or humiliated by others.’

Lin Zhi gradually calmed his breathing, and under the moonlight, he felt refreshed.

Then, he started the Star-Moon Lifeblood Refinement Technique.

Though the road was long, he would eventually arrive.

Though the task was difficult, he would have to keep trying.

His steps moved with the stars, and his movements swayed with the wind.

The light of the stars surrounded him.

Unconsciously, the pure moonlight shone on his brow.

The brilliance of the stars and moon illuminated everything.

In a moment, the moonlight moved with Lin Zhi’s steps, and the breeze blew with his hands.

The spirit beast and Xiao Li, who were hiding in the shadows, were astonished.

“Spirit beast, what happened to Junior Brother Lin Zhi? Why do I feel that he’s different from before?” Xiao Li asked softly as she held the spirit beast close.

“His cultivation realm is changing.” The spirit beast observed carefully.

With the appearance of moonlight, Lin Zhi’s cultivation started loosening from the first stage of the Lifeblood Refinement Realm.

Next came the second stage and then the third. He was now at the fourth stage.

Xiao Li also noticed this. She covered her mouth in astonishment.

Fifth stage.

Sixth stage.

Seventh stage.

Eighth stage.

Ninth stage.

At this moment, moonlight covered the surroundings, and then began pouring into Lin Zhi’s body.

By early morning, all the moonlight entered Lin Zhi’s body.

And at this moment, his cultivation underwent a change.

He was now at the early stage of the Foundation Establishment Realm.

He was at the first stage of the Lifeblood Refinement Realm for ten years. Then, he advanced to the Foundation Establishment Realm in one night.

By now, Xiao Li was already lying on the ground, asleep. The spirit beast struggled out of her hands and then floated to Lin Zhi’s side.

As the process ended, Lin Zhi, who had opened his eyes, was surprised to see the majestic aura of the spirit beast.

“Do you still remember what I said back then?” the spirit beast said. “Before you is the future Demon Overlord. You, who are destined to travel with the Demon

Overlord, are destined for greatness.”

“Lord Beast, I…” Lin Zhi lowered his head.

The spirit beast had said it many times, but he had felt very ordinary.

“You must learn to face yourself. Come, follow me, and sense your own realm.” The spirit beast’s voice carried some mystery.

In an instant, Lin Zhi felt as if he were covered by a mysterious force.

At the same time, he began to sense his own realm. However, he stood still. He was in disbelief. He felt that everything was just an illusion.

“Don’t doubt yourself. Don’t deny yourself. This is the real you. Those who can travel with me, the spirit beast, are the destined ones,” the spirit beast declared with a majestic aura.

Lin Zhi looked at the spirit beast before him and knelt on the ground.

Tears dropped from his eyes.

The spirit beast looked at him. “Follow me, and you will not disappoint your loved ones. Perhaps you can’t imagine what kind of existence is standing in front of you. But one day, you will surely know.”

In the distance, Jiang Hao watched them and finally turned away.

He deactivated the Heavenly Cauldron.

Lin Zhi’s journey had just begun. Whether he could walk on it depended on his fortitude.

Jiang Hao couldn’t help with that. It was his own path..