I Outworked the Entire Cultivation World

Chapter 45: Chapter 36: She Doesn’t Sleep

Xie Jingshan woke up, removed the book from his face, wiped the drool from the corner of his mouth, and stretched his arms to relax his muscles.

He opened his eyes in a daze, and suddenly saw the two people who had just fought coming together, reading and debating, looking very close.

Xie Jingshan blinked in confusion. How long had he slept? What happened while he was asleep?

Wait! Why did he fall asleep?!

Patting his head, Xie Jingshan watched Lu Nanzhi earnestly seeking advice and Jiang Yuebai speaking eloquently, feeling alarmed, as if he had only taken a nap and had been left behind by ten thousand miles.

No way, Xie Jingshan absolutely cannot be left behind!

Clenching his fists, he coughed twice, picked up a book, and approached them, interrupting the two.

”I just read through this book and found a few parts that I don’t understand. Can you take a look for me?”

Lu Nanzhi showed no expression, while Jiang Yuebai looked suspiciously with narrowed eyes.

Xie Jingshan gathered his courage, pointed to a line in the book.

Lu Nanzhi glanced at it and frowned in thought, while Jiang Yuebai calmly scanned it, ”This explanation will be clear when you compare it to the third sentence on page seventeen.”

”Page seventeen... let me see...” Xie Jingshan flipped through the book quickly, ”Ah, so that’s it... Wait! How did you immediately know what’s on sentence three of page seventeen?”

Jiang Yuebai smiled politely, ”I’ve memorized the entire book you’re holding.”

Xie Jingshan felt as if he was struck by lightning, while Lu Nanzhi looked at him with admiration.

”Don’t bother me and Senior Sister Lu until you’ve read through the entire book.”

Jiang Yuebai sent him away, and continued to discuss the evolution of ancient magical techniques with Lu Nanzhi.

”Senior Sister Lu, if it’s due to the current lower spiritual energy compared to ancient times making spell words inferior to hand techniques, I still feel it’s not quite right. Could it be that the evolution of heaven and earth, more complete Heavenly Dao rules, more detailed classification of spells requiring more precise ways to mobilize the corresponding spiritual energy...”

Xie Jingshan sat dispiritedly in the wild grass, the cold wind piercing through, feeling chilled to the bone. He needed to surpass Jiang Yuebai not only in cultivation but also in memorization!

Xie Jingshan would never admit defeat. Memorizing is nothing, right?

Memorize! To the death!

Gritting his teeth, Xie Jingshan added the word ”memorization” to his cultivation plan.

However, it didn’t take long for him to realize he was... too naive!

”Jiang Yuebai, why are you chopping these dead trees?”

”To make a low table for calligraphy practice.”

Cultivation plan added: calligraphy! Plus woodworking!

”Jiang Yuebai, aren’t you practicing calligraphy? Why are you cutting talisman paper?”

”Don’t interrupt, I’m learning talisman making.”

Cultivation plan added: Six Arts of Cultivation! Learn them all!

”Jiang Yuebai, do you not rest at all?”

”I cultivate at midnight, I’m used to sleeping late. I’m going over there to practice sword method and spell.”

Cultivation plan revised: practice martial arts and magical techniques to death!

”Jiang Yuebai, enough already! Lu Nanzhi couldn’t hold on and went to sleep, how come you’re still so energetic?”

”Sleeping is such a waste of time. You sleep, I’ll read the Five Flavors Collection to stay awake.”

”If you’re not sleeping, how dare I sleep!!”

Xie Jingshan originally thought Lu Nanzhi was the most diligent person he’d ever met, but it wasn’t until he encountered Jiang Yuebai that he realized Lu Nanzhi was nothing.

At least Lu Nanzhi knew how to sleep, Jiang Yuebai didn’t sleep at all!

Not only did she not sleep, she considered sitting down to write and paint talismans as physical rest, practicing spells and martial arts as mental relaxation, and alternated between the two.

He asked Jiang Yuebai if this tension was really okay?

Jiang Yuebai said she was not tense, she takes half an hour each day to read the Five Flavors Collection for relaxation.

Reading to relax... Xie Jingshan clutched his chest, overwhelmed.

He held the breath until midnight finally unable to withstand it, collapsed on the uneven low table he made himself, with bittersweet tears mixed with drool flowing down.

The cold wind pierced through, chilling him to the bone.

Jiang Yuebai took out the bedding from her storage bag to cover Lu Nanzhi and Xie Jingshan, and continued to lean against the windbreak of the mountain rocks, holding a Luminous Pearl while reading.

Ever since she cultivated the Five Elements Returning to Truth Skill, her spirit had only grown more vigorous.

Previously, when she accompanied her grandfather in the Spiritual Field for two days and nights, a few circulations of spiritual energy in her body would instantly eliminate fatigue.

Just for this reason alone, Jiang Yuebai was determined to find the complete version of the Five Elements Returning to Truth Skill.

Refocusing her attention on the book, Jiang Yuebai was currently reading about Wuwei Mountain Man collecting heavenly materials and earthly treasures, preparing to refine his Lifebound Magic Treasure.

This was a book read by Lii Jiuchuan, surrounded by many small annotations, all speculating about this Lifebound Magic Treasure.

”... Five-Colored Lotus Platform, spells at will, refining Five Element Spiritual Energy into Five Elements Essence Qi, mutual growth and inhibition, self-circulation, self-evolution, accumulating over time to form Five Elements Origin, creating its own world...”

Just from the scattered descriptions, this Lifebound Magic Treasure was indeed formidable and promising.

Once the Five Element Spiritual Energy is refined into Five Elements Essence Qi, it could greatly enhance the power of the Five Elements Magical Techniques. No wonder Lii Jiuchuan said he could fight Late-Stage Golden Core cultivators at Early-Stage Golden Core.

And the Five Elements Origin mentioned inside, it’s the cornerstone of the rotation of heaven and earth. If the Five Elements Origin were truly born, wouldn’t it be a Pocket Small World?

Reading this, Jiang Yuebai couldn’t help but swallow. Although she was still ten thousand miles away from Core Formation, she already coveted this Lifebound Magic Treasure.

Then it occurred to her that such a powerful Magic Treasure must be incredibly complex to refine.

No wonder Lii Jiuchuan’s Lifebound Magic Treasure was broken and hard to repair. If there was truly no hope, he would have to Shatter Elixir and Rebuild while his life span still allowed.

Lii Jiuchuan was so close to Nascent Soul, what a pity.

Jiang Yuebai lost interest in reading further, returned the book to the storage bag, and as her Divine Sense withdrew, she suddenly noticed the Wood Puppet in the storage bag and took it out to toy with.

”I felt there was something inside before, hearing it clatter when shaken.”

Jiang Yuebai opened the lid of the Wood Puppet’s head, discovering a Spirit Stone embedded inside. The interior of the Spirit Stone comprised a complex passage forming an Array, but she couldn’t tell how it was done.

She tried to use her weak Divine Sense to penetrate the Spirit Stone, feeling it divided into threads by the passages within, like meridians spreading throughout the Wood Puppet’s body.

At this moment, Jiang Yuebai felt the Wood Puppet was like another version of herself, capable of performing various movements according to her will.

”How amazing, can the Wood Puppet also cast spells?”

Though small, the Wood Puppet’s fingers moved vividly; as soon as Jiang Yuebai’s thoughts moved, the puppet immediately formed hand techniques.

The spell reached halfway, green Wood Spirit Qi circulated at the Wood Puppet’s fingertips, Jiang Yuebai’s mind was pierced by pain, severing the connection with the puppet.

In the Sea of Consciousness, the three-leaf sprout withered, losing vitality—evidence of her Divine Sense being depleted.

”My Divine Sense is so weak, I need to quickly find a Cultivation Technique to enhance it.”

Jiang Yuebai rubbed her temples, recovering before continuing to fiddle with the Wood Puppet, opening the chest panel to see the intricate gears and mechanisms.

”What’s that?”

In the depths of the Wood Puppet’s body, a small piece of silk was wrapped around the spine, with splotchy ink markings resembling drawings and text.

Jiang Yuebai thought for a moment, then slammed her hand down on the desk in anger.

”How despicable! This is intended for me to dismantle the puppet and extract the drawings inside, to study and learn, to fall into her trap! If I learn it, next time I see her I would definitely feel guilty, calling her master would be inevitable.”

Stuffing the Wood Puppet into her storage bag, Jiang Yuebai hugged her arms and puffed her cheeks.

”I am a person of principle; trying to trick me into falling for it won’t happen! I refuse to dismantle the puppet no matter what!”

Moments later.

Gear parts were scattered all over the table, Jiang Yuebai held the silk with furrowed brows.

”This is more complex and delicate than the building plans my father makes, oh no, oh no, I really can’t put it back together, what’s this over here?”

Flipping it over, small characters densely packed, below there was a delicate array map.

”Divine Mechanism Stone Refining Method? Divine Mechanism Stone is the core of puppet control, a method for entry-level puppet practitioners, using Spirit Stones to create Low-Level Divine Mechanism Stones, capable of controlling Qi Cultivation Stage puppets. Engrave the Spirit Stone with Divine Sense, forming an array inside, the spirit of the stone enhances the Divine Sense...”

Jiang Yuebai carefully read, and her eyes lit up.

”This is actually a method of strengthening Divine Sense, but it’s too wasteful on Spirit Stones, not good, not good, considering I’m already poor and unable to learn quickly, the Spirit Stones would all be wasted. I can’t learn this method, I don’t have a Spiritual Stone Mine, how could I afford this?”

Jiang Yuebai put away the silk, used a box to collect the scattered parts, packed them back into the storage bag, leaning against the stone with an irritated expression.

After a while, she sat up and took out a Spirit Stone.

”I’ll try once, um, just once!”