[A/N:
Hi... I hope you're doing well. I'm sorry that the chapter that was supposed to be released yesterday didn't appear. So, I apologize, and I hope you'll enjoy this one. That's all from me... Sorry!]
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As he was walking, David suddenly stopped, quickly crouched down, and with a slight smile said, "Alright, get down... I'll explain everything in a moment." He remained crouched, feeling Evan climb off his back.
Now standing on the grass, Evan looked around, taking in his surroundings. Within a radius of approximately thirty meters, there was nothing but grass—grass that looked barely alive. As he saw David standing up, he turned to him and asked curiously, "Do you train here?" His thoughts raced, "Everything in such a large area is destroyed, except for the grass... which itself looks like it's barely surviving..." He was slightly amazed by both the place and David.
Hearing his words, David smiled at him once more and replied, "Yeah... I found this place about a year ago... but I don't use it too often." He started walking forward, then crouched again, extending his hand in front of him and... using Qi to pull something from the ground.
Evan, watching David's actions, felt even more excited because, before his eyes, a massive boulder slowly emerged from beneath the earth, previously hidden beneath layers of soil. However, what truly caught his attention was something else—a single, clean-cut line running straight through the entire boulder.
Seeing this, Evan's mouth slightly opened in astonishment, and he asked, "What is this?..." His voice carried both curiosity and amazement. Hearing the question, David, still focused on lifting the boulder, turned his head toward him and said with a smirk, "This, little brother, is where your older brother hides his things." He spoke confidently, continuing to lift the boulder using Qi.
Evan, now even more shocked, thought to himself, "You hide things... inside a boulder?... What even is this?" He wasn't sure what to think about it, but one thing was certain—the cut running through the rock had been made in a single, precise stroke.
After fully pulling the enormous five-meter-long boulder from the ground, David slowly began rotating it in the air, positioning it so it would lie flat on the grass. Once he had carefully placed it down, he separated one half from the other, revealing a spacious cavity inside. The hidden compartment was nearly two meters long and about one meter wide.
Inside this secret space were various objects.
[Ding!]
[System has detected two lowest-grade spiritual plants.]
Hearing this notification, Evan's eyes widened slightly, immediately realizing that David possessed these rare plants. David, noticing his younger brother's surprise, smirked and said, "What's the matter, little brother? Surprised that I've been hiding so many things?" He then stepped toward the boulder, bent down, and retrieved two wooden swords. Straightening up, he turned toward Evan and, without warning, tossed one of the swords to him.
"Catch!" David shouted.
Evan barely managed to react in time, fumbling as he caught the wooden sword. "Damn it!" he cursed in his mind, a grimace forming on his face. He knew his body had been intentionally weakened, but he hadn't expected to feel this weak.
Seeing Evan struggle, David chuckled slightly and said, "Shall we begin?" He approached Evan, gently ruffling his hair before looking at him expectantly.
Hearing these words, Evan nodded eagerly, unable to contain his excitement.
.........….
An hour and a half later…
"Hah… Hah… Hah… Haaa…"
Evan lay sprawled on the ground, completely exhausted. His muscles ached, his chest rose and fell with heavy breaths, and he could barely keep himself composed. After a moment, he managed to speak in a quiet, fatigued voice, "Why... is this... so... hard?" He turned his head slightly to look at his brother, who was smiling down at him, pleased with Evan's determination.
"You know, Evan, as Dad always says, nothing comes easy without effort," David replied, still smiling. He then stood up and said, "Maybe we should call it a day?"
Evan tried to process what he had just heard, but his mind struggled to keep up. The only thing dominating his thoughts was the overwhelming pain in his muscles from all the training. Seeing that Evan was barely responsive, David made the decision himself. "Alright, that's enough for today," he said, sitting back down on the grass to wait for Evan to recover from his exhaustion.
..........
The next day…
Without saying a word, Evan continued training with the wooden sword—just the basics. Just like yesterday, all he did was perform downward slashes, swinging the sword from above his head down in front of him. As he trained, countless thoughts filled his mind, but the most persistent one was, When will this torture end? Torture—it was the only word that fit. David had ordered him to complete one hundred consecutive swings, with only a two-minute break afterward. And by now, over an hour had passed with no sign of the training ending anytime soon.
Sweat dripped from his forehead, stinging his eyes as it fell. His damp hair stuck to his skin, but despite it all, Evan didn't stop. He couldn't stop. The only thing keeping him focused was David's steady counting.
"Eighty-nine," David said, closely observing each of Evan's swings and correcting him whenever his form was sloppy.
"Ninety."
"Ninety-seven."
"Ninety-eight."
"Ninety-nine."
"One hundred!" David called out more loudly.
The moment Evan heard those words, he collapsed onto the grass, gasping for air. But deep down, he knew—he still couldn't fully relax.
"Haa… Haa… How… much… more?" Evan managed to ask in a weak, breathless voice.
David, who had been training alongside him—his own cultivation suppressed just like Evan's—had only taken five breaks throughout the session. He continued his practice, but upon hearing Evan's question, he smirked and turned his gaze toward the surrounding fields.
"You can stop now… and talk to Vivian," David said casually.
Evan's eyes widened slightly. "Huh?" he muttered, his exhausted brain struggling to comprehend. Vivian is here??... Where? he thought, immediately turning his head to look around. But he didn't have to search for long.
Upon hearing David call her out, Vivian, who had been hiding in the tall grass, flinched slightly before stepping out, her face slightly flushed with embarrassment.
Evan, still breathing heavily, stared at her in surprise. "What… are you… doing here?" he asked, his voice strained from exhaustion.
Vivian fidgeted awkwardly, clearly embarrassed. After all, just the day before, she had told him she wouldn't play with him anymore. Yet, while walking around the village earlier, she had spotted Evan and David heading toward the fields. Curiosity got the best of her, and she decided to follow them, secretly watching their training with growing amazement.
"Hahaha…" she let out a nervous laugh, scratching her cheek. "Well… I saw you two walking this way, and I was… curious… about what you were doing…" she admitted softly.
Hearing her words, Evan wasn't sure how to respond. The first thought that popped into his tired mind was, "Stalker…" And before he even realized it, he had said it aloud.
Vivian's face turned bright red, and she stomped her foot on the grass, shouting, "I AM NOT!!"
Watching the scene unfold, David simply smiled as he continued training. But an idea crept into his mind—"Maybe she should train too?" He smirked even more. After all, when he left for the sect, Evan would need someone to train with.
With that thought, he stopped his sword swings and approached them. Just as Evan and Vivian were arguing, they suddenly felt a shadow cast over them. Their eyes widened as something began wrapping around them.
"What are you doing?!" they both shouted at David in unison.
David simply smiled at them, his expression filled with amusement.
.........
Five days later
"WHY DO I HAVE TO DO THIS TOO!?" Vivian shouted while swinging her wooden sword, sweat dripping down her face as exhaustion weighed heavily on her. Seeing her struggle against fatigue, Evan smirked and suddenly called out, "Vivian... watch out for the bee!" while pointing in a random direction.
"WHAT? WHERE!?" she shrieked, instinctively jumping to the side and frantically searching for the insect. However, all she found was Evan's mischievous grin. Realizing she had been tricked, irritation flared on her face as she snapped, "Can you stop that!?"
Evan only grinned wider. "Not my fault you keep falling for it!" he teased, clearly enjoying her frustration.
"Enough, both of you. Evan, it's your turn now," David interjected, his tone firm. Upon hearing those words, Vivian immediately cheered, "Finally!" before flashing a triumphant smirk at Evan. His grin disappeared instantly, replaced by a look of pure exhaustion as he sighed in defeat.
.........
Six days earlier
"But you know, Livia... I have a proposition for you," Loki said, his voice suddenly more serious. The change in his tone made everyone in the room—including Livia—slightly wary.
Hearing his words, Livia narrowed her eyes before responding. "And what exactly is your proposition?" she asked, still irritated by his presence but also... unsettled by the idea of facing a cultivator in the Mystical Tribulation Realm. If she had to choose between her pride and survival, she would undoubtedly pick the latter.
Loki remained composed, his expression calm as he continued. "You see... I have an item I no longer need. It won't be of any use to me, but for you... it might prove invaluable." His voice carried a subtle lure, carefully designed to pique her curiosity.
Livia and the two other men in the room visibly reacted, their eyes widening slightly in intrigue. After a brief pause, she asked, "What kind of item are you talking about?" Her voice was measured, though a note of caution lingered. She had known Loki for some time and understood the need for wariness when dealing with him.
"A small artifact," Loki replied, his tone light, almost casual. "A Grand High-grade one."
The moment those words left his lips, the atmosphere in the room shifted. The eyes of everyone present widened even further, their surprise impossible to conceal.