Dual Cultivation System: The Villainous Servant’s Rise

“Enough. No matter the sentiment, this Senior is still a man of the Heavenly Void Sect.”

Han Lie’s voice cut through the tranquil air of the domain, grounding them back to reality. “Here, in private, we may speak as old acquaintances. But once this domain falls, you and I return to being enemies on a battlefield.”

It was a cold, pragmatic truth that neither could ignore. The blood feud between the Heavenly Void Sect and the Myriad Sword Pavilion was deep, arguably even more bitter than the rivalry with the Sun Moon Sect.

Xiao Yuruo bit her lip, her gaze fixed on him with an intensity that bordered on desperation. “Daoist Han… have you truly never considered defecting? If you come to the Myriad Sword Pavilion, I swear on my life, you will be treated with the dignity you deserve. It would be a far more comfortable existence than living among those demons.”

Han Lie smiled faintly, shaking his head with a weary sigh. “Perhaps. But… it is difficult to explain. Suffice it to say, I have no intention of leaving the Heavenly Void Sect. Not now.”

“Why?” Xiao Yuruo pressed, genuine confusion clouding her eyes.

Han Lie offered only a noncommittal shrug. How could he explain the intricacies of his situation?

He couldn’t exactly tell her that the chaotic, cutthroat environment of the demonic sect suited his Yin Yang Scripture perfectly. Or that Sect Leader Ye Qingxuan, who had once been a source of terror, was now his primary benefactor—and a potential conquest. Between the icy Sect Leader, the fiery Zhuo Hongyi, the devoted Su Mei, and the mysterious Bai Ling, he had curated a garden of supreme quality “cultivation vessels” that he was loath to abandon.

To leave now would be to abandon a harvest just as it was ripening. In the righteous Myriad Sword Pavilion, finding even one partner willing to engage in dual cultivation would be a bureaucratic nightmare, let alone a harem of high-grade spirit veins.

Seeing his silence, Xiao Yuruo sighed, her shoulders slumping. She knew that uprooting a man from the place he had spent half a lifetime was no simple task.

“Very well,” she conceded, though the disappointment lingered in her tone. She quickly composed herself, shifting the topic. “Speaking of time… your cultivation has surged forward at a terrifying pace. You are merely one step away from the Nascent Soul stage, are you not?”

It was a rhetorical question. When she first met him in Qingzhou City a few years ago, he was a mid-stage Golden Core cultivator. Now, he stood at the precipice of the Golden Core Perfection, having closed the gap between them with impossible speed.

“Fairy Yuruo is no sluggard herself,” Han Lie replied, nodding approvingly. “To bridge the gap from late-stage to Perfection in such a short time… your talent is formidable.”

This wasn’t empty flattery. Xiao Yuruo’s spiritual veins likely rivaled the genius Zhao Batian of the Sun Moon Sect. Among the three great powers of the region, only the Heavenly Void Sect lacked a true ninth-grade genius—even Bai Ling was a sleeper agent. It was a testament to the sect’s notorious reputation that they attracted scavengers rather than prodigies.

A playful glint suddenly entered Xiao Yuruo’s eyes. “Daoist Han, dare you make a wager with me? Let us see who attains the Nascent Soul first.”

Han Lie stroked his beard, amused. “Interesting. And the stakes?”

Xiao Yuruo paused, her expression turning serious. “If I reach the Nascent Soul stage first, you must sever ties with the Heavenly Void Sect and join me at the Myriad Sword Pavilion. No more excuses.”

She took a breath, her voice softening. “But if you succeed before me… then for the rest of my life, I will heed your every command. Whatever you ask, I will do.”

Han Lie raised an eyebrow. The weight of that promise was immense.

“Of course,” she added quickly, as if fearing he might decline, “I do not intend to hinder you. In fact, to make this fair, I will share a secret. A critical opportunity for your breakthrough.”

“Oh?” Han Lie leaned in, his interest piqued. “Do tell.”

Breaking through to the Nascent Soul stage was an act of defying the heavens (nì tiān ér xíng). It was not something achieved through grinding meditation alone. It required a convergence of fate: opportunity, enlightenment, and luck. For the average genius, it was a wall they might never scale. For the peerless, it was a single moment of clarity.

“Ten thousand miles east of Qingzhou lies the Buried Immortal Mountain Range,” Xiao Yuruo said, her voice low. “Deep within one of its canyons, an ancient ruin is on the verge of resurfacing.”

“According to our latest intelligence, the site has gathered sufficient spiritual pressure. Within a year, the seal will break. Our Elders have conducted a preliminary survey… the density of the qi suggests it is a classic Profound Rank ruin.”

Han Lie’s eyes narrowed in calculation.

The ruins of the Tianyuan Continent were categorized strictly: Heaven, Earth, Profound, Yellow. A Profound Rank ruin typically held the legacy of a Nascent Soul or Soul Formation cultivator. An Earth Rank ruin belonged to Void Refinement or Body Integration masters.

As for Heaven Rank… those were the tombs of Tribulation Transcendence or Grand Ascension ascetics—beings who shone as brightly as the sun and moon, practically immortal. Such entities rarely died, making their ruins the stuff of legends, unseen for ten thousand years.

But for a Golden Core cultivator, a Profound Rank ruin was the perfect treasure trove.

“Fairy Yuruo,” Han Lie said slowly, testing her. “Is sharing such high-level intelligence truly in the best interest of your sect?”

Xiao Yuruo laughed softly, covering her mouth with her sleeve. “See? I told you. You are not a true demon. Even in the face of such temptation, your first thought is for my safety.”

She shook her head. “Do not worry. Strictly speaking, this will not remain a secret for long. The high command of the Heavenly Void Sect likely already knows. You would have heard of it upon your return regardless.”

“It will become a training ground,” she explained. “A crucible for the younger generation. For behemoths like us, a Profound Rank ruin is significant, but not world-ending. The true titans of the continent wouldn’t even blink at it unless it was Earth Rank or higher.”

“So, the sects will send their elites to fight for scraps and legacies,” Han Lie mused, stroking his chin. “A chaotic battlefield filled with opportunity.”

He looked at her, a confident smirk playing on his lips.

“Very well. I accept your wager.”

Xiao Yuruo’s eyes brightened. “Then we shall meet again at the Buried Immortal Mountain Range, Daoist Han. Do not make me wait too long.”

“This Senior never disappoints,” Han Lie replied smoothly.

As the domain around them began to dissolve, returning them to the war-torn reality of Soul Rest Town, Han Lie’s mind was already racing. A Profound Rank ruin… the perfect stage for the next act of his rise. And perhaps, the graveyard for those who stood in his way.