Golden Core is a Star, and You Call This Cultivation?
Chapter 81: "When Ning Tao Grows Up, She Will Be the Most Beautiful Girl in the World"

Jiang Lingsu naturally didn’t believe in heavenly foundation establishment. If Senior Brother had indeed established his foundation with the heavens' help, there would have been extraordinary phenomena.

Birds should have sung, and flowers should have bloomed in the cold winter.

Yet, in the past few days, there were no such beautiful phenomena. Instead, it had been snowing continuously with thunderstorms in the sky.

Rather than heavenly foundation establishment, Jiang Lingsu even thought a demon might have been born.

Of course, continuous thunderstorms were not considered extraordinary phenomena.

Jiang Lingsu would naturally be happy for Senior Brother’s successful foundation establishment.

At this moment, Qi Yuan showed a worried expression in his eyes: “Junior Sister, you are knowledgeable. After establishing the heavenly foundation, could there be any side effects?

I don’t know why, but I have been feeling muddled recently and occasionally hear hallucinations.”

“Hmm?” Jiang Lingsu frowned, “These symptoms shouldn’t occur after a successful foundation establishment, Senior Brother. I think you should see a doctor or consult an elder.”

Qi Yuan hesitated upon hearing this.

At that moment, those strange murmurs entered his ears again.

“I’ve finally reached the third level of Qi Refining. Will Senior Sister look at me more favorably now?”

“Ugh, no! It stinks!”

“The Xuan Yuan Technique has seven levels. Reaching the seventh level allows one to step into the realm of the Yuan Dan Real Person!”

These sounds, like buzzing mosquitoes, continued to echo in Qi Yuan’s ears.

Hearing these voices, Qi Yuan’s eyes suddenly brightened.

“I get it!”

Jiang Lingsu blinked, internally filled with question marks.

“My golden finger has arrived!” Qi Yuan said earnestly.

When he stepped into Qi Refining, Qi Yuan’s eyes could see hidden information invisible to ordinary people.

Now that he had established his foundation, his ears could hear strange things. Wasn’t that normal?

His golden finger had indeed arrived.

Jiang Lingsu, upon hearing this, thought that even after establishing his foundation, Senior Brother still had some mental issues.

However, recalling something, Jiang Lingsu said, “Senior Brother, didn’t you want to join the Divine Flower Society?

Now that you have established your foundation, I can recommend you for membership. What do you think?”

Qi Yuan nodded and smiled, “Sure, thanks a lot, Junior Sister.”

Now, he and Junior Sister had killed Zhu Lianhua of the Guangming Palace.

That day, the generous Junior Sister took the blame for him, and Qi Yuan still felt uneasy.

Joining the Divine Flower Society would add a layer of protection to himself.

That was Qi Yuan’s thought.

Moreover, as someone from a small village cultivating immortality, making connections with university-level immortals early on would be quite prestigious.

“Your application will take some time to be approved,” Jiang Lingsu said, looking expectantly at Qi Yuan, “I’ve helped you a lot. How do you plan to repay me?”

Qi Yuan glanced at Jiang Lingsu’s chest.

Hmm, the petite and cute Jiang Lingsu was wearing a loose, light green dress today, which still couldn’t hide her ample bosom. A glimpse of her smooth, white cleavage was faintly visible through the thin fabric.

Very impolite to say, quite substantial.

Qi Yuan suddenly recalled the voices he had heard before.

The bra is too small, very annoying.

Offering timely help, solving Junior Sister’s problems, wasn’t that a form of repayment?

He subconsciously said, “I’ll buy you a larger bra.”

Jiang Lingsu heard this and looked down, her hand instantly covering her chest.

Just now, she had hurriedly dressed upon learning that Senior Brother had emerged from seclusion. In her excitement, she had worn a small bra carelessly and quickly put on the nearby thin dress.

With a slight exposure, her face instantly reddened: “Shameless.”

After saying that, she quickly ran into the house.

Qi Yuan looked at Jiang Lingsu’s back, puzzled, then reflected on himself: “Too abrupt.”

Feeling he had spoken too insensitively, he vowed to be more tactful in the future.

Seeing Junior Sister return to her straw hut, Qi Yuan also went back to his room.

Sitting in his room, the emptiness from completing the game had not dissipated.

Especially seeing the heavy snow on the Seven-Color Peak, he felt nostalgic, recalling the snow on July Lake in the game.

He sat alone on a green stone, accompanied only by Moon Lady.

Qi Yuan stretched out his arm.

The crescent mark on it had disappeared.

“Life is but a dream.”

Qi Yuan took out the game jade slip and his consciousness delved into it.

However, all he saw was a vast expanse of white.

He couldn’t enter Moon Watching Continent as he did before.

“After completing the game, can’t I enter anymore?” Qi Yuan walked out of the straw hut and looked up at the sky.

The stars above were dense, no different from the stars seen on the Moon Watching Continent.

“The stars in the sky are all projections, so the Moon Watching Continent and the Canglan Realm still see the same sky.”

This slightly comforted Qi Yuan.

He returned to his room.

“Since I have completed one game, will a second game be opened?”

Qi Yuan’s consciousness roamed within the white game jade slip.

Suddenly, Qi Yuan saw a light, like a game app icon.

“A new game?” Qi Yuan looked delighted.

His consciousness kept approaching the game app icon.

But the game app icon seemed extremely repellent, and Qi Yuan’s consciousness couldn’t get close.

“Stupid game, not letting me play!” Qi Yuan was angry.

He tried hard to approach, but still couldn’t get close.

Qi Yuan’s face turned pale: “Could it be insufficient memory, unable to download?

Or perhaps, the level of this game is too high, and I can’t play it now?”

Qi Yuan remembered when he first played Moon Watching Continent. As an ordinary person, he could only stay for less than an hour before being forced out due to the great mental strain.

As his strength grew and his soul became stronger, he could play the game for a long time.

“So, my soul is too weak to enter the second game?”

Qi Yuan felt very dissatisfied.

Even though he had established his foundation with the heavens’ help and could extend his divine sense, increasing his soul power significantly, it was still too weak to enter the second game.

“Either this game is too large, or it has blacklisted me.”

Thinking this, Qi Yuan stopped pushing forward.

Suddenly, a murmuring voice entered his ear.

“When Ning Tao grows up, she will be the most beautiful girl in the world.”

Qi Yuan froze.

“Is my hearing so awesome? Can it even hear the sounds from the game icon?”

This voice was undoubtedly coming from the game icon.

The voice was clear and carried a faint childlike tone, indicating the speaker was young.

She seemed to live a happy life.

Qi Yuan couldn’t help but say, “Little Ning Tao, I believe you.”

After saying this, he showed a helpless expression, not knowing if the NPC in the game could hear him.

...

Flowing Wind Realm.

Amidst colorful forests and the sound of pine waves, on a green stone covered with moss.

Black hair covered half of Ning Tao’s face, her pupils were dark, and she wore a sweet smile.

Her black dress clung to her body in the wind. Perhaps due to malnutrition, her body was somewhat thin, her exposed hand skin was excessively pale, with a sickly beauty, showing the blue veins inside.

The girl’s appearance was extremely beautiful, though not fully matured, she was a beauty in the making.

The only flaw was a scar on her face with a strange character carved on it, adding a sense of brokenness to her beauty.

The girl sat on the mossy green stone, looking at her reflection in the water, a sweet smile in her eyes: “When Ning Tao grows up, she will be the most beautiful girl in the world.”

As her words fell, she thrust the dagger in her hand into the neck of a man lying beside her.

Blood splattered, staining Ning Tao’s black dress and splashing on her face.

Around her, six men in black, each holding different weapons, looked at Ning Tao with grim expressions:

A man with a sword said in a deep voice, “You, little demon girl, are so ruthless at such a young age. How will you be when you grow up?”

A man with a leaky mouth and an axe said coldly, “You have the mark of a demon girl on your face, you are hideous!”

“Demon girls, everyone will kill them on sight, ugly and evil like devils!

Even the purest and kindest saints wouldn’t replace you beautiful. Who in this world would dare to think so?”

“Haven’t tasted a woman for a long time, chop the head off, and still…”

Ning Tao suddenly sat still.

She remembered her mother.

She was once a saint and had said that Ning Tao would grow up to be the most beautiful girl in the world.

But...

Young Ning Tao tightly gripped the dagger, looking at the six men slowly approaching her, she squinted her eyes.

However, she was too badly injured to break the situation.

At this moment, suddenly, it seemed as if thunder roared from the sky.

A heavy yet ethereal voice entered everyone’s ears.

“Little Ning Tao, I believe you.”

The vast voice, like a bell, struck everyone’s hearts.

In Ning Tao’s ears, it felt like a breeze brushing her face.

“Who?”

“Who is it?”

“Which expert is speaking? We are here to kill a demon girl; please do not interfere!”

“Encountering a demon girl, we must kill her!”

The six men, holding their weapons, turned pale. They warily scanned their surroundings, their hearts filled with fear.

Because the voice was vast, like that of an immortal master.

If the owner of this voice attacked them, they couldn’t imagine the consequences.

At this moment, Ning Tao moved. She was like a black mandrake, her dagger stabbing into the chest of one of the black-clad men.

Blood sprayed, staining her black dress. The bright red blood contrasted sharply with her excessively pale hand.

“Watch out!”

“Be careful of the demon girl!”

The black-clad men finally reacted. Ning Tao, like a ghost, moved among them, killing swiftly.

After a moment, all the black-clad men lay on the ground, lifeless.

Ning Tao stood in the center of the corpses, her body covered in blood. The blood on her arm dripped onto the ground.

She had also suffered significant injuries.

She bent down, holding her dagger, and walked towards the corpses. Even though they were already dead, she still cut off their heads.

After finishing, Ning Tao walked towards the pool she had been at earlier.

The water was clear but devoid of any fish or other life.

The water reached her knees as she waded in. She looked up, her voice childlike and cute: “Uncle, are you still there?”

Ning Tao stood quietly, waiting.

But there was no response.

“Uncle, if you are still there, answer me. I’m about to... take a bath.”

She continued to wait, but there was only silence, with the scent of flowers and blood in the air, and not even the sound of insects.

“Uncle, Ning Tao is going to take a bath now, don’t peek, okay?”

“If you peek, you’ll have to marry me when I grow up. If you don’t, then...”

Her black dress slowly fell away as she slid into the water, leaving only her small head above the surface. She wore an innocent expression, but her vigilance had not completely faded.

Eventually, after some time, Ning Tao emerged from the water.

She looked at the sky, her dark pupils devoid of any emotion, but her voice was still deliberately cute: “Uncle, I’ll remember you.”

She felt only fear for the unknown voice. Her earlier actions were merely a bid for survival.

Her mother had said that if you told a man you were going to marry him, he would probably hesitate for a moment.

"Achoo!" Qi Yuan sneezed as the cold wind blew into the dilapidated straw hut, chilling him to the bone.

Qi Yuan, who was reading a cultivation manual, stood up: "I’ve achieved heavenly foundation establishment, and I’m a supreme foundation establishment cultivator. Yet, I’m still living in a straw hut—this is too lowly. Tomorrow, I'll move to a wooden house."

Qi Yuan felt that with his increased strength, his status should also rise.

Continuing to live in a straw hut was too frugal.

"Sigh, even if I change to a wooden house, it won't change my hard-working fate." Qi Yuan sighed helplessly.

In the past, although he worked hard on cultivation and studying manuals during the day, he could still play games at night.

It was like the blue planet's working people who worked hard from 9 to 9, six days a week, but could still play games and watch short videos for leisure and entertainment after work.

But now, with no games and no more "entertainment," every day was just arduous learning. It couldn’t be more miserable.

"Should I resign from my position as the chief disciple of Seven-Color Peak and go to the mortal world to become a wealthy landowner, lording over everyone?" Qi Yuan’s eyes brightened at this thought.

But soon, he dismissed this idea.

"Without Shen Guang Sect as a shield, if the Black Chicken Old Demon replaces out I destroyed Black Mountain Sect and comes after me, I won’t be able to escape."

"If I become a wealthy landowner, I’ll surely marry a dozen concubines, and end up with a family full of money-draining children. If they get into trouble, I’d have to clean up their messes. If they offend cultivators, it would be even more troublesome.

Wouldn’t I become a babysitter then?"

"Mortals have their own difficulties. I should just continue my cultivation."

Qi Yuan abandoned this sudden idea.

He started to read the cultivation manual seriously.

Currently, he had three important tasks to do.

The first task was to supplement the subsequent cultivation techniques of "Qi Yuan's Manual."

At present, "Qi Yuan's Manual" only allowed cultivation up to the foundation establishment stage. The techniques from foundation establishment to golden core were not yet complete.

This required Qi Yuan to slowly supplement.

The second task was to enhance his soul.

With a strong soul, he could enter the game and escape the monotony of daily cultivation.

The third task was to acquire more high-grade techniques.

Ordinary techniques were too slow in practice. Even having thousands of techniques was not as beneficial as having one high-grade technique.

But, high-grade techniques were not easy to come by.

"Thinking about Zhu Lianhua’s first hundred days, when will I meet another bright and handsome man like Zhu Lianhua, my white moonlight."

Qi Yuan missed Zhu Lianhua’s mysterious technique.

The night was deep, and outside the straw hut, everything was white.

"I’m having game withdrawals."

Qi Yuan took out the game jade slip, but still couldn’t enter the game icon.

He listened carefully, but there was no sound from the game.

"I want to play games, I want to kill, kill, kill."

Qi Yuan was helpless.

At this moment, his hand touched another jade slip.

"Is this the game jade slip Dong Xian gave me, with the cold and proud female sword fairy?

This female sword fairy must be strong. I wonder how many moves she can withstand from me."

With this thought, Qi Yuan’s consciousness entered the game jade slip.

Suddenly, a phantom of a cold and proud female sword fairy appeared in front of Qi Yuan.

"Defeat me!"

Qi Yuan saw this and swung his hand.

A sword light flashed, and the female sword fairy’s sword broke.

"So weak, boring." Qi Yuan thought of giving this game a bad review.

At this moment, a tear rolled down the cold and proud female sword fairy’s face.

"I have been defeated by you, do as you wish!" The female sword fairy said, humiliated, and started to undress, "Even if you have my body, you cannot have my heart. My heart will always belong to Senior Brother."

As the female sword fairy’s clothes fell, her face filled with humiliation, she crawled towards Qi Yuan like a dog.

"Hey, that's dishonorable, using seduction?" Qi Yuan slashed the female sword fairy with a single strike, cursing as he left the game.

"My own game is still the best." Qi Yuan sighed.

...

The first light of dawn climbed over the clouds, and the snow was slowly dissipating.

The entire Seven-Color Peak became colder.

"Senior Brother Qi Yuan, Dong Xian pays his respects!"

Outside the wooden house, Dong Xian, dressed in black, wore a respectful expression.

Soon, Qi Yuan emerged from the wooden house.

He looked at Dong Xian, proudly saying, "Junior Brother, how do you replace my new home? Grand or not? Does it have the potential of a luxurious residence? Does it match my current status?"

Qi Yuan’s straw hut had been repaired yesterday, turning into a wooden house.

Dong Xian glanced at the wooden house, his smile somewhat frozen.

This shabby wooden house...

"Senior Brother’s dwelling is truly a celestial abode, a spiritual realm of the world." Dong Xian still flattered him.

Qi Yuan was very pleased.

It was like buying a bicycle, posting a picture in the friend circle, and getting countless compliments from old classmates.

Feeling elated, it was quite nice.

"I heard from Junior Sister that you’ve been wanting to see me while I was in seclusion. What’s the matter?" Qi Yuan asked.

Since the incident with the bra, Junior Sister hadn’t wanted to talk to Qi Yuan for several days.

But a few days ago, Junior Sister came to Qi Yuan’s house and told him that Dong Xian had been looking for him.

"Senior Brother, are you aware of the Dragon Seizing Struggle?" Dong Xian stood respectfully outside the wooden house, his attitude sincere.

"I’ve heard a bit." Qi Yuan was aware of the Dragon Seizing Struggle.

Last time, Junior Sister Jiang Lingsu mentioned that Zhu Lianhua from Bright Palace intended to meddle in the Dragon Seizing Struggle of the Great Shang, aiming to control the Great Shang.

In other words, Guangming Palace had great ambitions.

"Senior Brother Qi Yuan, I have another identity. I... am the 17th prince of the Great Shang Kingdom."