Chapter 384 - 383: West Asia, Preparation for Exploration

Northern God Kingdom, West Asia.

This is a magical place.

It is freezing all year round, with temperatures dropping to 80 degrees below zero during the coldest days in winter, which can last up to nine months.

Due to long-term exposure to extreme cold and low temperatures, West Asia ranks among the top ten areas with the harshest living conditions in the entire planet of Blue Star.

Those who lack abilities will simply not survive here.

However, due to the harsh environment, West Asia is the favorite destination of the strongest in the Northern God Kingdom.

The number of top practitioners who come here for cultivation or even settle permanently is countless.

Most of the top-level practitioners of various world powers, like Longyu, are mostly gravitating towards the capital or the core of power.

They either settle in the capital or live in seclusion in surrounding cities.

But, in the Northern God Kingdom here,

The number of top-level practitioners residing in West Asia far exceeds that in the capital of the God Kingdom.

The path of cultivation is destined to be full of ups and downs.

However, due to today’s relatively stable environment in the world, the path of cultivators seems comparatively calm.

Such a situation has both advantages and disadvantages.

The advantage is,

With a stable environment, one can avoid unnecessary harm and conflicts.

The disadvantage is,

An overly comfortable environment leads to complacency, making the path of cultivation less challenging and thus slowing down cultivators’ progress, making it harder for them to grasp their direction.

Actually, there’s nothing much to say about this.

Born of worry, die at ease.

The logic is that simple.

People love pleasure; it’s human nature.

No one doesn’t want to get stronger, and at the same time, no one wants to encounter too many obstacles.

The real top-level practitioners think the same way.

However, they are not often influenced by such impractical expectations.

They know.

Difficulties, they must go through.

Only through hardships can they become stronger and go further in the path of cultivation than others!

Therefore,

West Asia, a place with harsh living conditions, naturally becomes the top choice for the strongest in God Kingdom.

There are quite a few powerful individuals who live in West Asia, and quite a few who come from this place too.

The harsh environment makes the fewer locals stronger than people from other parts of God Kingdom, and the local customs are tough and fierce.

Let’s take the ordinary people confined to One Realm as an example.

A One Realm individual from West Asia can defeat ten on his own.

They can even easily accomplish some tasks that normally a One Realm person wouldn’t be able to handle, provided that the requirements aren’t too high.

The reason why One Realm individuals from West Asia are so strong is very simple.

As a One Realm individual with weaker resistance, their survival and normal life in West Asia is something incomprehensible to outsiders.

Ultimately,

It’s just the rule of nature: survival of the fittest.

Having adapted to the harsh environment of West Asia, they are stronger no matter where they go.

What’s worth mentioning is,

Due to the vast harsh environment and sparse population, the natural resources in West Asia are exceptionally abundant.

It is not only a popular destination for tourists in Northern God Country, but also an important resource production area and super protection area of God Country.

...

At one o’clock in the afternoon.

A ray of thunderbolt came across the sky and landed in the living area of West Asia.

The Thunder light receded, revealing Li Jing and Liu Sisi.

It is now the end of summer and early autumn.

West Asia is probably at its most pleasant weather of the year.

However, even so, the temperature is akin to the severe winter of Jianghai City, generally below zero.

For Li Jing and Liu Sisi, of course, it doesn’t mean anything.

Not to mention this late summer and early autumn season, even during the harshest weather in West Asia, they would not be affected at all.

As for Li Jing,

He’s at the Seventh Realm, also practicing body refining.

Temperature is not an issue at all.

Liu Sisi not only is in the late stage of the Four Realm, she also has a Cold Heart Physique.

Apart from her cultivation level, her special constitution alone would make her feel at home in a place like West Asia.

And here it is.

As soon as she stood on the ground, Liu Sisi starts looking around curiously.

"I had anticipated coming here would suit me, and now that I’ve arrived in West Asia, I feel every cell in my body exhilarating."

Li Jing grinned, hearing her words.

"Is it really that exaggerated?"

"You are not of the Cold Heart Physique; you wouldn’t understand."

Liu Sisi snorted, then asked.

"Where are we headed now?"

"Let’s find an inn to stay at first."

Li Jing suggested with a smile.

"This is our last stop. We need to wait in West Asia for at least a week. The entrance to the Secret Realm will open nearby, and we will then rendezvous with the team from Jianghai Management Bureau."

As he spoke, Li Jing continued.

"Since we have some time, let’s have some fun for a couple of days, and let’s see if we can help you sense the bottleneck to break into the Fifth Boundary. Then we can refine ourselves further in the Big Secret Realm."

Upon hearing this, Liu Sisi frowned and puckered her lips.

"All you can think about is dual cultivation. What do you mean ’push me to sense the bottleneck to the Fifth Boundary’? I have been in the late stages of the Four Realm for a long time, haven’t I? I just haven’t sensed the bottleneck yet."

"Ahem!"

Li Jing coughed before replying.

"We agreed on this before we left. Are you planning to go back on your word now?"

"Did I say I was going back on my word?"

With an eye roll, Liu Sisi scoffed at him, grabbed his arm, and pulled him into the street.

"Come on, let’s find an inn. Although West Asia has a harsh environment, its culture is quite unique, and there are plenty of funplaces to visit. Once we check into the inn, we can research some travel recommendations online and plan our outings."

"Sounds good, whatever you say."

Li Jing responded with a laugh.

Strictly speaking, it had already been four days since he and Liu Sisi arrived in Northern God Country.

Since Li Jing brought Liu Sisi into the country using the papers from the Special Situations Bureau, they garnered attention from the Bureau as soon as they arrived, and courtesy staff were dispatched to make arrangements for them.

The people of God Kingdom are renowned for their hospitality, and this was no exception.

For Li Jing, the Special Sitations Bureau went above and beyond.

As Liu Sisi had entered the country with Li Jing without a passport or visa, she could have been charged with illegal entry.

This could have made accommodation arrangements complicated.

Considering these factors, the Special Situations Bureau issued a temporary permit which allowed her to travel freely in Northern God Country and even granted her authorization to use Sky Control."

For four days, Li Jing and Liu Sisi wandered around, living rather comfortably.

Earlier in the day, they received a notification from the Special Situations Bureau.

The abnormal spatial fluctuations detected around Northern God Country had been confirmed as the precursor to the opening of a Big Secret Realm.

The location of the Secret Realm Passage was near West Asia.

As there were staff from the God Kingdom who would liaise with Longyu Country, Li Jing didn’t have to contact Jiang Yini himself.

If there was anything she needed, she would contact him.

Liu Sisi and he discussed the upcoming exploration in the Secret Realm.

During the last exploration of the Chongyuan Holy Realm, Liu Sisi had to focus on her cultivation due to a unique bottleneck, but this time she was definitely planning on going.

Ever since Liu Sisi joined the Management Bureau under Li Jing’s arrangement, he had the idea of taking his wife on Secret Realm adventures to earn Merit Points.

Since they were going into the Secret Realm, naturally, Liu Sisi’s plateau in Cultivation level became a topic of conversation between the couple.

Liu Sisi was a late bloomer.

She only entered the Second Realm after her special physique awoke, but her level skyrocketed thanks to her dual cultivation with Li Jing.

After some accumulation over time, she’d come a long way from where she started.

Once a beginner with hardly any magic skills, she now possessed over twenty water and ice-based magic skills due to her Cold Heart Physique, and was highly proficient in a few of them.

If one said she was given special treatment, she was definitely not any less favored than Li Jing.

She was also highly motivated.

Her mother, Liu Shi’s "oppression," also played a significant role.

She was now primed to take the next step.

Since the Secret Realm was about to open, they naturally needed to prepare for it.

Liu Sisi hadn’t sensed the bottleneck towards the Fifth Boundary just yet.

With dual cultivation alone, it might not be possible to feel it.

But if Li Jing were to work on it again, it would certainly be beneficial.

Before one senses the bottleneck to a higher realm, there is always a period of self-cultivation and accumulation.

The more one accumulates, the easier it is to run into a bottleneck, and to break through it becomes easier as well.

If Liu Sisi gathered enough cultivation and entered the Secret Realm, she would be more likely to run into a bottleneck and possibly break right through it.

Li Jing spared no efforts when it came to his wife.

Since Liu Sisi entered the later stages of the Fourth Realm, they hadn’t... well, it’s been a while.

Let’s be honest.

It’s frustrating.

As newlyweds, naturally, their desire to be intimate was strong.

But because Liu Sisi’s Cultivation level was rising too fast, which wasn’t entirely beneficial to her, he had to suppress his own desires.

How unfair was that?

But let’s get back to the point.

During this period, Li Jing’s life had been far from easy.

Especially after having experienced something with Yulian while his Primordial Spirit was out of his body...

There were indeed some things that happened, but technically, they weren’t real.

While the experiences his Primordial Spirit had were indeed very realistic, it was more akin to a dream.

From a physical standpoint, Li Jing, a young man in his prime, not only didn’t have an outlet for his sexual desires, but his needs became even stronger.

Though Li Jing proclaimed he wanted to advance his Cultivation, he actually harbored some inappropriate thoughts, which the perceptive Liu Sisi was well aware of.

But denying him would also be improper, wouldn’t it?

The man was her own choice, so of course she has to feed him well.

Furthermore, Liu Sisi herself also harbors the desire to become stronger.

She doesn’t have the same strong competitive spirit as Chen Yuran.

However, after witnessing Li Jing’s actions in the capital through the news, she felt she couldn’t continue to loaf about anymore.

She knew early that Li Jing had already entered the Seventh Realm.

However, she never thought Li Jing would have gone that far.

Far enough to stir up such a commotion in the capital and there was no one who could hold him back!

How many strong ones are there in Longyu Country Capital?

Ordinary people cannot reach the Seventh Realm, but in reality, there are countless "retirees" in just one Earth Realm Capital.

All in all.

Those in the Seventh Realm have simply "retired", they are not dead.

This point, Liu Sisi, who comes from one of the Seven Great Families, understands better than anyone else.

She also knows.

Those above the Seventh Realm have their own circle.

Liu Sisi does not have the qualifications to touch that circle, not even her own mother.

The Seventh Realm circle can only be reached by those in the Seventh Realm.

Those above the Second Realm are considered elite in the present world, whom ordinary people can still interact with.

But those above the Seventh Realm.

They are the peak of this world, once you step into the Seventh Realm, there’s no chance of contact anymore.

However, during her time at the Liu family, Liu Sisi occasionally heard from the family’s offspring about which family had a Sixth Realm guardian retiring.

This made it easy to imagine that there are actually quite a few in the Seventh Realm that ordinary people can’t reach.

Leaving all this aside.

In the huge Longyu Country Capital, no one could limit Li Jing, which made Liu Sisi feel considerable pressure.

Li Jing was so powerful that if she, as his wife, didn’t strive to do better, she might become a burden to him one day.

Living peacefully as a small woman was her consistent idea.

But those who Li Jing might encounter in the future may not think so.

...

As agreed between Li Jing and Liu Sisi.

In the following two days, the two roamed around West Asia.

Having had their fun, Li Jing succeeded in "consuming" his beautiful wife.

Early morning.

Liu Sisi lay in the hotel bed with a face full of skepticism towards life.

Li Jing’s vitality was as robust as ever.

Even though Liu Sisi, who had been in the late stages of the Fourth Realm for a while now, and had learned numerous auxiliary Magic Skills to strengthen herself, still couldn’t handle it.

Worth mentioning is.

The effect of Dual Cultivation with Li Jing seemed to have become more noticeable since he entered the Seventh Realm.

Dual Cultivation did not allow Liu Sisi to touch the threshold of entering the Fifth Boundary.

However, her cultivation level which had already been at the late stage of the Fourth Realm, had made a lot of progress.

In fact, after just a single night had passed, Liu Sisi felt.

Ordinary practitioners of the Fourth Realm were no longer her match, and she even had the capability to contend with those in the Fifth Boundary.

As she silently nourished her body with Spiritual Qi, which had enlarged and made significant progress, to recover from the exhaustion of the whole night’s lovemaking, Liu Sisi turned her head and asked.

"What are you doing?"

At this moment, Li Jing was sitting at the head of the bed studying something on his phone.

Hearing Liu Sisi’s voice, he turned his head and smiled.

"I asked Xiao Ai to find some ice-related Artifact Refinement formulas for me. I don’t have many of the materials in hand, so I’m thinking about whether to buy some on the Dark Web Black Market."

Receiving this response, Liu Sisi was slightly stunned.

"Artifact Refinement formula? When did you learn Artifact Refinement?"

"I’ve been learning for a while now."

Li Jing responded with a shy smile.

"I seem to have quite a talent in this area."

Saying this, he continued.

"Your Cold Frost Sword should have already achieved Spirit weapon level, but for the upcoming Secret Realm, a single flying sword may not be enough. I’m thinking about refining two more tools for you in case of emergency."

Upon hearing Li Jing claim to have a talent for Artifact Refinement, Liu Sisi blinked and reluctantly sat up.

"This... doesn’t seem to be necessary. After all, I only really started Cultivation after my Physique awakened, and began nurturing my weapon after I obtained the Cold Frost Sword, which isn’t too long ago."

As she spoke, her lips pursed lightly.

"At this stage, I should concentrate on the Cold Frost Sword and not scatter my focus. My Cold Frost Sword is already a Spirit weapon level and fully sufficient for now, but if I don’t nurture it properly, it might not be able to keep up with my realm soon. If I had two more Precious Items, I’m afraid I wouldn’t have the energy."

"Pure Precious Items in your hands would indeed become a burden."

Li Jing nodded, then smiled.

"But that’s not a problem, I can directly refine you a finished Spirit weapon."

"Ah?"

Liu Sisi was startled, and questioned in bewilderment.

"Finished Spirit weaponry is not easy to wield, and weapon spirit backlash is not a joke, I..."

Before she could finish her sentence, Li Jing smiled indifferently.

"There will always be a way, I’m here aren’t I?"

After hearing such a declaration, Liu Sisi’s beautiful eyes flickered a couple of times. She nodded silently and laid back down.

She knew Li Jing did this for her own good.

For her own husband, she had unconditional trust.

If Li Jing wanted to do things this way, she would follow suit.

Worst comes to worst, they would find a way to tame the weapon spirit together.

If she could get two high-quality spirit weapons, the boost they would offer her personally was unimaginable.

Before stepping into the Seventh Realm.

The function of the spirit weapons was virtually limitless.

A suitable and high-quality spirit weapon would allow a low realm cultivator to kill enemies stronger than himself, something that would be impossible under normal circumstances.

Seeing Liu Sisi lazily lay back down, Li Jing asked.

"I’m ready to forge a defensive gown for you, then I’ll craft a weapon for offense. Do you have any preferences for the weapon, or do you still want a flying sword?"

"I already have a flying sword. Something else," Liu Sisi responded, after archiving her thoughts, she said.

"Make me a flying dagger or something."

"Flying dagger?"

Li Jing was taken aback.

There were many types of weapons.

However, those suitable for frontal attack were just a few common ones: sword, spear, knife, rod, axe, halberd, and stick.

Flying daggers were considered concealed weapons, not direct strike weapons.

Normally, they were used for unexpected attacks.

Put simply.

Weapons like flying daggers were more suitable for assassins.

Li Jing wouldn’t interfere with the path Liu Sisi chose.

But since she wanted to go in the assassin’s direction...

After some thought, Li Jing asked for confirmation.

"Sisi, are you planning to use a flying dagger as a concealed weapon?"

"Concealed weapon?"

Liu Sisi looked at him, her expression clearly saying, "I didn’t think that much."

Seeing this, Li Jing chuckled.

He found himself thinking too much apparently.

Smiling, Li Jing shook his head, "Flying dagger might not be suitable for a girl to play with. How about this, I’ll make you a set of flying needles."

"Alright."

Liu Sisi nodded.

Whether it was a flying dagger or flying needles, she didn’t particularly care.

Besides the Sword Controlling skill she needed to control the Cold Frost Sword, she had also learned the general Weapon Controlling Skill.

As long as it was a weapon, she could master it instantly.

The form didn’t matter.

What mattered was if it was handy and whether she could control the spirit weapon and get it to recognize her as its master.

After getting Liu Sisi’s approval, Li Jing placed the order for the corresponding materials on the black market on the dark web without any hesitation.

In the artifact refinement recipes that Xiao Ai had brought him earlier, there was already a recipe for flying needles, so he didn’t need to find another one.

There were many Ice-attribute-related weapons and covert weapons available.

After placing the order, Li Jing also bought Yan Tong some spirit materials for nurturing worth a million spirit crystals, and did the same for Liu Sisi.

Yan Tong seemed to be shy.

Although she had been running her mouth about leaving, she hadn’t shown herself due to Li Jing’s constant companionship with Liu Sisi.

As for this, Li Jing didn’t care too much.

It was good if Yan Tong could be quiet.

But now that things in the God Kingdom Capital had passed, he naturally had to arrange for "provisions" for Yan Tong to strengthen their bond.

Spending these two hundred million spirit crystals wasn’t a big deal for Li Jing.

Under Xiao Ai’s continued management, his account now had over 16 million spirit crystals. Spending two million at once wouldn’t hurt him at all.

If it wasn’t for the principle of balancing expenditure and income, he could buy more.

He didn’t lack money, but spending it all at once wasn’t a good idea.

Instead, Merit Points could be spent more liberally.

However, he was currently in the Northern God Country and couldn’t go to the Management Bureau to redeem them, so he had to simply use spirit crystals for now to feed Yan Tong.

After placing the order, Li Jing spent another hundred spirit crystals to expedite the order to ensure the black market courier could pick up and deliver within two hours.

Nothing more to say.

With money, one can act wilfully.

...

There’s no need to elaborate on an expedited black market order.

Approximately an hour and a half later, the dark web courier contacted Li Jing and delivered the items he had ordered to the hotel lobby.

Now that the items had arrived, Li Jing naturally wanted to start forging immediately.

He originally wanted to invite Liu Sisi to go downstairs with him and pick up the goods. Then they’d find a place to start the refinement process. However, after last night’s lovemaking, she wouldn’t get out of bed no matter what. Therefore, he had to go down by himself.