Cultivating Immortality: What kind of cheat can you use if you don't have money?

Chapter 69 You're so dirty!

A sudden, loud shout, like a morning bell or evening drum, instantly jolted Li Qingyi awake from her daze.

He felt a chill run down his spine, realizing what had just happened, and quickly shut down the light screen in front of him.

At that moment, he felt his heart pounding wildly in his chest, and a fine layer of cold sweat had broken out on his back.

Li Qingyi dared not even imagine what terrifying things would happen if Ling'er were not by her side.

"I've actually been bewitched by this damn thing!" Li Qingyi cursed inwardly.

He stood in the bright sunshine of an open space outside the city, surrounded by light and a gentle breeze, yet he couldn't help feeling a lingering fear, a chill creeping up his spine.

"Didn't they say you have to stare at something for a long time to get lost?!"

He felt like he'd been tricked by the system...

"Is it because my willpower is too weak?"

Seeing that Li Qingyi was stunned again, Ling'er used the secret technique she had just used once more.

In an instant, Li Qingyi felt a powerful voice rushing straight to her mind, and her ears were ringing like drums.

He was so frightened that he shuddered.

"Ling'er, I'm alright..."

Ling'er saw that he was indeed awake, but the worry in his beautiful eyes had not yet faded.

She carefully examined Li Qingyi's face and asked softly, "What... exactly were you bewitched just now?"

Li Qingyi glanced around and saw that there were still a few passersby walking by the official road, occasionally casting curious glances at them.

His heart tightened, and he immediately grabbed Ling'er's slender wrist, leading her to the back of an old locust tree in the distance.

After making sure no one was around, he slowly began to speak:

"Just now... I was studying a newly acquired treasure, and without realizing it, I was captivated by it," he explained in a low voice, still shaken.

Ling'er tilted her head, her face filled with even more suspicion, and looked Li Qingyi up and down:

"A treasure? Could it be... some kind of erotic book?"

"I'm not that kind of person!" he immediately straightened his back and retorted.

Ling'er snorted lightly, "Who told you to have a good friend who manages a brothel? You become like those you associate with."

Li Qingyi: "..."

He really wanted to say that this friend was me.

But as the words reached her lips, the image of Ling'er's tearful, disappointed eyes after she learned she had been deceived by Qing Kui immediately flashed into her mind...

All the words were swallowed back down.

Seeing that he was speechless, Ling'er became even more certain of her guess.

She extended her right hand, palm open, left hand on her hip, head slightly tilted, glancing at Li Qingyi with a look that said, "I've seen through you."

"What incredible treasure is it? Let me see it."

Li Qingyi subconsciously twisted her neck from side to side and looked around, looking somewhat guilty.

Seeing his reaction, the suspicion in Ling'er's eyes almost materialized, and her tone gradually lowered, carrying a hint of danger:

"Could I have guessed right?"

Seeing her like this, Li Qingyi really wanted to raise her hand and give her a good whack on the head!

He took a deep breath, finally managing to hold back, and said helplessly, "I'm really not that kind of person!"

Upon hearing this, Ling'er nodded vigorously and quickly.

Li Qingyi finally couldn't help but roll her eyes.

"This thing of mine is a bit eerie, you'd better not look at it."

"I don't believe it..." Ling'er's disdain deepened, and she even subconsciously took a small step back, creating some distance between them, and muttered softly:

"Brother in blue, you're so dirty..."

Li Qingyi: "??????"

"That's invincible..." Li Qingyi covered her face, speechless.

To prove her "innocence" and to stop Ling'er from continuing to imagine those unbearable scenes, Li Qingyi made a tough decision.

With a slight thought, Li Qingyi retrieved the resentment crystal, which exuded an ominous aura, from the system's temporary storage space.

The moment crystallization occurs.

The temperature around the two people dropped sharply.

Despite the blazing sun overhead, it felt as if we had instantly stepped into a chilly autumn night.

A chilling aura permeated the air, making even the sunlight seem dimmer.

Ling'er's gaze was instantly drawn to the dark purple crystal with an eerie purple glow and wisps of white smoke swirling around its surface.

At first, her eyes were filled with curiosity, but they quickly became unfocused, and the clarity in her eyes rapidly faded, as if her soul was being drawn into the depths of that crystal.

Seeing that she had achieved her goal, Li Qingyi immediately put the resentment crystal back into her storage ring.

The chilling aura then diminished sharply.

Without hesitation, he raised his hand and flicked his finger on Ling'er's smooth forehead, giving her a solid thud!

A crisp "clang" rang out, sounding particularly clear in the suddenly quiet environment.

"Ah!" Ling'er cried out in pain, immediately covering the spot where she had been hit with both hands, her eyes instantly welling up with tears from the pain.

She glared at Li Qingyi, accusingly, "You're taking revenge on me!"

"I didn't," Li Qingyi raised her head, her gaze drifting towards the sky, her tone utterly innocent.

"I only stepped in to pull you back because I saw you were almost in trouble."

"You do have it!" Ling'er pouted, her face instantly darkening as if covered with a layer of frost.

I'm ignoring you!

Before she finished speaking, she lightly touched the ground with her toes and leaped up gracefully.

Like a nimble swallow, its toes tapped repeatedly on the treetops as it sped off towards Lingtai Mountain, leaving behind a huffy silhouette.

Seeing this, Li Qingyi dared not delay and immediately activated her magic power to follow.

How could Ling'er, who was at the third level of Qi Refining, possibly be faster than Li Qingyi, who was at the fifth level of Qi Refining?

In just a few breaths, Li Qingyi easily caught up with her and walked alongside her.

"Don't be angry, it's my fault." Li Qingyi softened her tone. "I have a gift for you."

Ling'er seemed completely deaf to everything. No matter how gently Li Qingyi apologized and explained beside her, she kept a tight face and looked as if she hadn't heard a word.

Seeing this, Li Qingyi could only sigh inwardly:

"A woman's heart is like a needle at the bottom of the sea; how can this little girl be so hard to coax..."

They remained silent the entire way until they arrived at the foot of Lingtai Mountain.

Perhaps it was the tranquil air of the mountains that calmed her mind, and Ling'er's anger subsided somewhat.

She glanced at Li Qingyi, who looked slightly awkward beside her, and extended her hand, her tone still somewhat cold:

"Where's my gift? You can take it out now, right?"

"Cough cough..." Li Qingyi coughed dryly, his brain working at a rapid pace. He didn't have any gifts prepared in advance.

"You lied to me again?" Ling'er narrowed her eyes, a dangerous glint flashing beneath her long eyelashes.

Li Qingyi's mind immediately raced through all the treasures she possessed: pills, talismans, materials...

Only then did I realize that I was truly pitifully poor, and I didn't have a single thing I could offer as an apology gift.

Suddenly, a thought struck him, and he immediately said seriously:

"Actually, the gift I want to give you is a piece of crucial intelligence."

"Oh?" Ling'er let out a cold laugh that was hard to decipher, crossing her arms. "In that case, Brother Qingyi, why don't you tell me? Ling'er... is really looking forward to it."

Li Qingyi's lips twitched.

Her expression, combined with her sarcastic tone, instantly reminded Li Qingyi of his ex-girlfriend's angry face in his past life.

It's not that they're completely unrelated, but rather that they're exactly the same...

It made him feel inexplicably uneasy.

"Zhao Mengxi, the eldest daughter of the Zhao family, is searching for you everywhere," Li Qingyi said in a deep voice, suppressing the strange feeling in her heart.

Upon hearing this, Ling'er's expression changed slightly, and she pressed for an answer: "Where did you get this information?"

"When we talked about your background last time, my mind was filled with complicated thoughts and I was worried. So when I got back, I asked some friends to find out more information."

Li Qingyi continued to fabricate lies without changing her expression.

"This investigation turned out to be quite significant, unexpectedly attracting Zhao Mengxi's attention."

Upon hearing this explanation, Ling'er's icy expression softened somewhat, but her doubts remained:

"If that's the case, why didn't you tell me sooner?"

"Haven't things been piling up one after another lately? There's just too much going on." Li Qingyi spread her hands, making a helpless expression.

"Moreover, most of my energy was spent studying that strange magical artifact from earlier, and as you saw, I was even distracted, which is why I was delayed."

Ling'er looked at Li Qingyi with suspicion, feeling that something was off about her explanation.

But upon closer examination, I couldn't find any obvious flaws.

She had intended to let the matter drop.

But I still feel that tightness in my chest hasn't dissipated, making me feel irritable and very uncomfortable.

Li Qingyi, observing the expressions and demeanor, knew that this was a crucial moment.

His mind raced, and without a care for saving money, he quickly took out three golden talismans imbued with spiritual light and solemnly handed them to Ling'er.

"Look, this is the protective talisman I've been painstakingly drawing for you these past few days. It might protect you from harm in a critical moment."

Seeing these three talismans containing pure magical power, Ling'er's resentment lessened by a third.

She didn't bother to ask about the specific effects of the golden talisman; she simply hummed softly, took it from her, and carefully put it away.

Ling'er, as a true disciple of the Purple Mansion, possesses many similar, or even more advanced, methods of self-preservation.

But what truly calmed her agitation was not the talisman itself.

It was the words "drawn especially for you" that Li Qingyi mentioned.

The girl's delicate feelings were soothed by these simple words.

Finally, she spoke slowly, her tone much gentler and filled with concern:

"Where did you get that thing? How could it be so sinister?"

Looking back now, Ling'er still feels a little scared.

She considered herself to have a fairly strong will, yet she could instantly lose her mind over an inanimate object.

Li Qingyi had already prepared her explanation: "It was given to me by my master."

Upon hearing this, Ling'er indeed stopped asking questions.

In her opinion, she wouldn't be surprised if Li Qingyi, as a disciple of a Golden Core True Monarch, brought out anything.

The atmosphere between the two finally eased.

They turned their gaze toward the majestic Lingtai Mountain in the distance.

Lingtai Mountain soars into the clouds, its body shrouded in a light mist, creating a myriad of breathtaking scenes.

A road, seemingly paved with white jade and hundreds of feet wide, winds its way up from the foot of the mountain, reaching into the clouds and disappearing into the distance.

The road is flanked by vast, boundless foothills and forests, and even with thousands of cultivators ascending at the same time, it does not feel crowded at all.

Looking at the densely packed cultivators at the foot of Lingtai Mountain, dressed in various styles and with varying auras, he couldn't help but sigh inwardly at how terrifying the allure of major sects was, drawing people to them like moths to a flame.

But how many of them can rely on their own perseverance and talent to cross this long road to heaven and successfully join the Dao Sect?

He recalled the scene when he first entered the Dao Sect, and it seemed that... there were only two or three people there, right?

Just then, a deep, thunderous roar came from the heavens.

The entire road to heaven trembled slightly, and an invisible pressure began to spread.

Suddenly, Ling'er belatedly realized what was happening.

She clearly never told Li Qingyi that she was coming to Lingtai Mountain.

How did he manage to head towards Lingtai Mountain while he was lost in thought in the city?

How did you know I was coming to Lingtai Mountain?