Awkward Smiles and Gazes

The moonlight was like water, with countless stars scattered in the sky.

Without the strong light pollution from the concrete jungle, the night sky was breathtakingly beautiful.

Sitting cross-legged on the cloud bed, Luo Jing silently cultivated.

The spiritual energy in his body had undergone a tremendous amount of purification after the challenges of the twelve demon altars.

However, even for cultivators at the Qi Refinement stage, there would still be impurities left in their bodies no matter how much they purified themselves.

Luo Jing had now successfully condensed a dim true flame in his Qi Sea, and was constantly using it to purify the Yin energy flowing through his meridians.

In theory, the purer the spiritual energy, the higher the success rate of breaking through to the next level of cultivation.

However, even with pure spiritual energy, there was still a chance of failure when attempting to breakthrough.

After all, breaking through to the next level depended on many factors, with the purity of spiritual energy being just one of them.

As he silently cultivated until the late hours of the night, Luo Jing vaguely sensed a calling from his soul.

He knew that his wife on the side of the Soaring Clouds Immortal Sect was also ready.

With a slight thought, he suddenly felt his body float up, and in the next moment, he found himself in the midst of the clouds, face to face with the white-clothed fairy.

Upon seeing each other again, they both subconsciously smiled at each other.

However, after that, it seemed like there wasn't much to say.

The two of them were silent in the midst of the clouds.

Despite the fact that Luo Jing had a very eventful day and many thoughts to share with his wife, sitting across from the white-robed fairy, he found himself at a loss for words.

The expression on the fairy's face was cold and lacked warmth, with a slightly haughty and pursed mouth.

Although she would smile every time their eyes met, the more he saw that smile, the more he felt a sense of distance between them.

"Um...let's synchronize first," Luo Jing said hesitantly, not knowing what else to say. He closed his eyes and entered a synchronized state.

Shen Qingxuan, who was sitting in front of him, hesitated for a moment before also entering a synchronized state.

The couple in the clouds floated up slowly, surrounded by silent white mist swirling around them.

Their training results for the day were being combined.

Luo Jing could feel that the spiritual energy in his body had become more refined. However, he was a little puzzled as to why his wife's progress was slower than his.

He wondered if something had happened on her side.

In his mind, he saw Shen Qingxuan standing under the moonlight for half a night before walking outside the bamboo garden to find her master.

When she arrived at her master's residence, she found a letter saying that her master would not return for two days.

"The Foundation Establishment Pill is already prepared for her in advance."

Shen Qingxuan, who got the Foundation Establishment Pill, returned to the Green Bamboo Garden and seemed to have practiced a set of sword techniques.

Later, at noon, the woman returned to the cloud bed to meditate and cultivate her qi.

Afterwards, she remained in this state, without moving.

This...

Luo Jing opened his eyes and was slightly surprised.

She had been sitting and practicing for an afternoon and a half, but her progress was so slow?

Luo Jing was worried: "Qingxuan, have you encountered a bottleneck?"

With Shen Qingxuan's aptitude after crossing over and her cultivation techniques, it was impossible for her to make slower progress than Luo Jing.

Unless she had encountered some kind of bottleneck or unexpected situation.

This situation, where she sat still for an afternoon and a half but made little progress, was not right.

"Could it be that you are already being disturbed by your inner demons?" Luo Jing's expression became serious.

Inner demons are common in the path of cultivation. Generally, they are encountered after reaching the Foundation Establishment realm.

As the saying goes, "the higher the path, the stronger the demon," which refers to the disturbance of inner demons. The higher the cultivation level of a cultivator, the stronger the inner demons and the greater the impact they cause.

Could it be that Qingxuan, because of her high talent, already had inner demons disturbing her even though she had only reached the completion of Qi Refinement?

Luo Jing's eyes were full of concern.

Shen Qingxuan, sitting in the sea of clouds, was also slightly startled.

"Inner demons?"

She hesitated, thinking about her whole day of confusion and complicated thoughts.

Indeed, there are signs that seem to be caused by inner demons.

After all, her cultivation is not high right now, even if she has inner demons, they wouldn't be able to materialize and interfere with her. Inner demons disturbing her unconscious mind is already the limit.

The white-robed fairy hesitated slightly and said, "Indeed... there are signs of inner demons."

Shen Qingxuan thought about it and felt that this possibility was indeed very likely. Her symptoms were too similar to those caused by inner demons.

The sudden chaos in her mind and the inability to calm down for no reason... weren't these symptoms caused by inner demons?

She frowned and said, "It seems that I should wait for my master to come back and ask her for advice."

Encountering inner demons in the Qi refining stage is extremely rare and has already touched on the blind spot of both of their knowledge.

They can only seek advice from high-level cultivators to solve the problem.

Fortunately, the inner demons encountered in the Qi refining stage are very weak, and the impact on their thoughts is already at its limit.

Luo Jing smiled and said, "Your master is an elder of the Soaring Clouds Immortal Sect, with profound cultivation. She can definitely help you solve the problem."

The five major cultivation realms are Qi refining, Foundation Establishment, Awakening spirit (Core formation), universe (Nascent soul), and celestial/immortal (Deity/Divine transformation). The elders of the Soaring Clouds Immortal Sect should all be at least high-level cultivators at the Universe Realm (Nascent Soul stage).

With such a master, there is indeed a great sense of security.

Luo Jing also put down his worries about his wife and said, "I have already obtained the Foundation Establishment pill on my end."

"I didn't expect the sect to distribute three pills for free. I used two pills and have one left. I plan to try to break through tomorrow."

"'Qingxuan, you can also try to break through. Even if you fail, you won't be injured in the Qi Refining Realm. You can also refine spiritual energy and make the next breakthrough easier during the process.'"

"'If possible, I hope we can both succeed in breaking through.'"

"'Then I will go to the White Tiger Hall to receive a task to leave the mountain, and raise young demon beasts in the ancient mountain ranges to avoid trouble.'"

"Luo Jing said, 'The unexpected visit from Luo Yan Yin today made me feel a little anxious.'"

"'But as long as I avoid her, there shouldn't be a problem.'"

"Luo Jing smiled and said, 'Qingxuan, you can focus on your cultivation and ask your master for help to remove the inner demons.'"

"'You don't need to worry about me anymore.'"

Entering the inner sect, theoretically, Luo Jing no longer had to worry about his life.

The only thing to be worried about was being involved in the power struggle among the upper-level disciples because of Luo Yan Yin's reasons.

But as long as he went out to hide for a while, he could avoid trouble.

Although evasion is shameful, it is very useful.

Shen Qingxuan smiled slightly and said, "'Indeed, it is your way of doing things.'"

At this point, she seemed to have thought of something interesting and chuckled.

"'When I was in synchronous state, I saw that little girl come to you, and I thought you would choose to leave the mountain to avoid her.'"

"'As a follower of an upper-level disciple, although you can gain enough resources and benefits for cultivation in a short time...'"

"However, with your personality, you must be unwilling to be a servant of that kind of overbearing little girl."

In the midst of the sea of clouds, the white-robed fairy's mouth curved slightly, her smile light and cheerful.

"As a result, you are indeed unwilling to follow her."

"After all, you hate people who rely on power and act recklessly the most."