After returning to the Misty Peak, Tang Muxi placed the Extreme Cold Ice Essence into the Cold Pool, nurturing it alongside the Qiluo Green Lotus.
During this time, after continuous use by Wen Fei and herself, the power of the Cold Pool had shown signs of weakening.
Now, with the addition of the Extreme Cold Ice Essence, it could gradually be replenished.
Tang Muxi was very satisfied.
Since her master’s protective formation had not yet been successfully transformed into a talisman, she was unable to refine a magic robe immediately.
Thus, she decided to set that aside for now and continue her cultivation.
After advancing to the Golden Core stage, her spiritual sea had expanded significantly.
With her already excellent comprehension, her cultivation naturally became much more efficient, and within just a few days, she felt her strength increase a bit more.
However, cultivating too quickly was not entirely a good thing; without a deep understanding, mere cultivation would be of no use.
Therefore, Tang Muxi had to deliberately reduce her training time, focusing more on solidifying her foundation each day.
Jiang Yin also found herself with some free time.
With the demonic veins still not in hand, she could only absorb a little moonlight for cultivation each night.
During the day, she was free, and upon seeing Tang Muxi practicing with the Illusory God, she couldn’t help but feel the urge to spar.
Practicing moves in a rigid manner was no match for the authenticity of real combat.
So, that day, she arrived early at the training ground with her weapon, waiting for Tang Muxi.
Tang Muxi went to the herb garden as usual to tend to the spiritual plants.
When she returned and saw Jiang Yin at the training ground, she was a bit curious: “Senior Sister, are you here to practice your sword?”
Jiang Yin shook her head: “Practicing the sword is boring. I’m here to spar with you. We’ve been together for a long time, yet we’ve never exchanged moves, which is quite regrettable.”
Upon hearing this, Tang Muxi froze in place, and it took her a while to regain her senses, filled with shock: “With, with me?”
Her voice trembled slightly.
“Senior Sister, don’t joke around. Muxi’s skills are lacking, very weak, very weak, how could I dare to be your opponent?”
Although both she and Jiang Yin were at the Golden Core stage, and due to their recent diligent cultivation, she was slightly higher in rank.
However, her meager skills were no match for Jiang Yin.
One had honed their skills through serious combat, while the other spent all day meditating and cultivating; the difference in strength was not trivial.
Seeing that she was hesitant to accept, Jiang Yin frowned slightly: “I won’t hurt you, it’s just a spar. Mutual practice is much better than you aimlessly practicing your sword alone.”
When Tang Muxi seemed like she wanted to say something, Jiang Yin directly interrupted: “No more words. If you don’t make a move, I will.”
Tang Muxi made a bitter face, feeling very reluctant.
This was not sword practice at all; it was clearly just getting beaten up!
But no matter how unwilling she was, she knew she couldn’t escape today, so she could only take out the Illusory God.
“Senior Sister, I’m going to start.”
After saying this, she drew her bow and shot three arrows from a distance.
The Illusory God had both bow and sword forms, and rather than foolishly engaging in close combat, it was better to maintain distance and utilize the advantages of archery.
The three arrows, condensed with spiritual power, emitted a gentle and cool aura, just like Tang Muxi herself, gentle as jade.
This strike came with great momentum and speed, but she still held back out of consideration for their friendship.
Jiang Yin merely tapped her toes lightly, dodging the attack with a few swift movements, and without losing speed, she quickly advanced, appearing before Tang Muxi in the blink of an eye.
“Don’t hold back. I have the Imprisoning Demon Sword, so the Illusory God can’t hurt me. Just go all out.”
As she spoke, she picked up an unsealed silver knife and lightly tapped it on Tang Muxi’s shoulder as a form of punishment.
“Your idea of keeping distance is good, but it hasn’t formed a pressing advantage, making it easy for the enemy to counterattack.”
Feeling a pain in her shoulder, Tang Muxi quickly transformed the Illusory God into a blade and angled her body to stab at Jiang Yin.
Since she couldn’t hurt her opponent, she no longer held back and exerted the full power of the Illusory God.
This strike had decent force, and Jiang Yin praised her, patiently sparring with her for a few exchanges.
Tang Muxi knew she couldn’t defeat Jiang Yin and, after being suppressed in swordsmanship, she kept looking for an opportunity to break through.
Suddenly, as Jiang Yin’s sword clashed with hers, she threw a talisman from her pocket.
Recently, Tang Muxi had managed to draw middle-grade talismans, which held immense power.
Jiang Yin, not daring to underestimate the situation, hurriedly activated the Imprisoning Demon Sword to forcibly sever the connection before the talisman could detonate.
However, she was unaware that this was merely bait to lure the snake out of its hole.
Taking advantage of Jiang Yin’s moment of defense, Tang Muxi quietly shook the mysterious Heavenly Bell at her waist.
The bell rang out with a clear, enchanting sound, quickly pulling Jiang Yin into an illusionary array.
Seeing Jiang Yin’s hand freeze for a moment, Tang Muxi felt a surge of joy and swiftly aimed to strike at Jiang Yin’s neck with her fingers and the blade.
If she could land this hit, it would mean her victory.
Unexpectedly, before she could even touch the delicate neck, another jade-like hand preemptively pushed her arm aside, perfectly positioning itself against her throat.
Tang Muxi froze.
“You lost,” Jiang Yin said, a slight smile curling at the corners of her mouth.
Her rounded fingertips gently brushed against the skin hiding Tang Muxi’s throat, like a feather gliding over, causing a ticklish sensation.
Tang Muxi pouted in displeasure, “Senior Sister, you clearly fell for my illusion earlier. How did you wake up so quickly?”
That was the middle-grade Heavenly Bell; not to mention Golden Core cultivators, even Nascent Soul and Transformation Stage practitioners would find it hard to escape.
Jiang Yin felt the subtle movement of her throat beneath her fingers, then lowered her hand with a faint smile.
“My spiritual sea is often protected by the Imprisoning Demon Sword. Your bell-ringing was too obvious; I was already on guard, so it was naturally difficult for you to trap me.”
However, she had also benefited from the artifact.
If it had been an ordinary cultivator, they would have truly been caught off guard.
Tang Muxi huffed, glaring at the dark blade.
“You usually like me so much, but when it comes to a critical moment, you don’t help me. You, Imprisoning Demon Sword, don’t come to me to act cute anymore!”
Imprisoning Demon Sword: … Can’t you take a loss?
Why not vent your frustration on your Senior Sister instead?
Why bully a mere sword!
Jiang Yin continued, “Your tactics are good, but they still need refinement. Starting tomorrow, come to the training ground every morning to wait for me. I will teach you how to leverage the illusion and your own strengths in actual combat.”
“Ah? Again?”
And every day?
Isn’t that a bit excessive?
Jiang Yin smirked, “Yes, until I am satisfied.”
Translation: Until she no longer wants to play.
Tang Muxi felt like crying without tears.
Just the thought of waking up every morning to endure another round of beatings made her feel miserable.
“Senior Sister, teaching is one thing, but can’t we not resort to violence?”
She tried to make a desperate plea.
Jiang Yin raised an eyebrow, “No, don’t be lazy.”
In the following days, just as Jiang Yin had said, after every meal, she would arrive early at the training ground.
As the number of beatings increased, Tang Muxi became increasingly reluctant to go to the training ground, opting instead to linger in the medicinal garden, hiding here and there.
However, when the time came, no matter where she hid, Jiang Yin always managed to drag her out.
Thus, the days of what was called practical combat training, but was essentially just a beating session, continued for three days until Wen Fei finally completed the protective array.
As soon as she emerged, Tang Muxi rushed into her arms like she had found a savior.
“Master! You finally came out! I missed you so much!”
She had been dreaming every night, waiting for Wen Fei to come out so she could legitimately avoid the beatings.
Although her adaptability had skyrocketed over these three days, making her swordplay and archery more fluid and her cultivation more solid, her progress seemed insignificant compared to the insurmountable mountain that was Jiang Yin.
Every day was just more beatings.
Tang Muxi’s confidence had been thoroughly shaken after days of being toyed with.
Wen Fei was unaware of what had transpired, but seeing her precious disciple so fond of her, she felt secretly delighted even if she didn’t say it out loud.
Just as she was about to reach out to ruffle her obedient disciple’s hair, she suddenly sensed a chilling, deathly gaze piercing through her.
Wen Fei shivered and turned her head to meet Jiang Yin’s expressionless eyes.
Unconsciously swallowing, she raised her hand, only to be forced to lower it again.
Wen Fei chuckled awkwardly, almost forgetting that the person in her arms was someone else’s Dao partner.
She resolutely pushed Tang Muxi away and softly scolded, “Don’t touch me like that. Your wife is watching!”
Tang Muxi pouted, confused about why her master suddenly seemed so cold.
Do cultivators go through a midlife crisis too?
But it didn’t matter; she just wanted to hurry up and refine her tools.
“Master, is the Guardian Formation ready?”
Tang Muxi asked eagerly.
“Yes, it’s done.”
Mentioning this made Wen Fei’s pride swell, and she took out a talisman from her hand.
Although formations and talismans are interconnected, they are fundamentally different, and the conversion between them is quite challenging.
The Guardian Formation is an Earth-level formation, very powerful, and she encountered numerous problems during the conversion.
However, with her intelligence, she managed to resolve them without any major issues.
Just as Wen Fei was about to boast a little about the ups and downs of the conversion over the past seven days, she saw Tang Muxi reach out and take the talisman.
“Master, you’ve worked hard! I’ve prepared delicious meals in the kitchen, so go eat! I’ll take the talisman for now and return it after the tool refining is successful.”
With that, she ran off without looking back.
Just moments ago, Tang Muxi had been acting all affectionate towards her master, but now she dashed away faster than anyone, leaving not even a shadow behind.
Wen Fei stood frozen in place, feeling somewhat defeated.
Jiang Yin, who had been watching the scene unfold, casually remarked, “Calling you ‘Master’ so sweetly, but in reality, you’re just a tool for her.”
Although Wen Fei didn’t understand what “tool” meant, her intuition told her that Jiang Yin was definitely insulting her.
Her face darkened immediately, and she retorted sarcastically, “At least I’m better than someone who can only watch from the sidelines. Not to mention a warm hug, not even a glance! Are you perhaps feeling neglected? Why are you speaking so harshly?”
This time, Jiang Yin’s expression also turned sour.
During this period of playful banter, Tang Muxi had indeed started to avoid her.
The two figures, one red and one white, glared at each other for a long time before finally looking away, snorting coldly and turning to leave.
Tang Muxi was unaware that her master and Senior Sister were vying for her favor.
After obtaining the talisman, she took the pre-prepared materials like Hanyu Silk, Heart-Guarding Scales, and Swan Feather, and retreated into the alchemy room to begin crafting her magical robe.
After enduring daily beatings, she discovered that refining tools was such a wonderful thing.
Therefore, she intentionally extended the time spent on crafting the robe, meticulously refining every corner.
The Heart-Guarding Scales were difficult to merge with the Hanyu Silk, so she decided to refine them into a magical treasure and affix it to her heart.
The Swan Feather was transformed into an ornament for the robe, serving as both a hidden weapon and a means to form a secret defensive formation.
The Hanyu Silk already had miraculous effects, and Tang Muxi even dripped her own blood into it, adding a purer and gentler power.
This set of magical robes took her a long time to create, but the process went quite smoothly.
