Dual Cultivation System: My Cultivation Was Crippled, So I Rely on Intimacy to Level Up

Chapter 185: The Master in the Exploring Spring Flower Boat, Shrouded in an Entirely Seductive Aura!

Most cultivators spent anywhere from 30 to 100 years clawing their way from Foundation Establishment to the Golden Core realm.

But for Zhou Kai? Taking more than ten years to break through to Golden Core was absolutely unacceptable!

No, I can’t keep going like this!

Zhou Kai stood up and strode straight out of the Spirit Beast Garden.

He had to find Li Yunmian. He couldn’t afford to sit around waiting for her to emerge from her Secluded Cultivation on her own timeline.

Li Yunmian’s courtyard was as impeccably clean and tidy as always. It was almost excessively pristine; there wasn’t a single fallen leaf in sight, clearly maintained through meticulous magic.

Mo Qianyuan, dressed in a light-colored Daoist robe, was squatting in front of a flowerbed. With absolute focus, she was arranging the leaves of several Spirit Grass plants at perfectly symmetrical angles.

“Senior Sister Mo,” Zhou Kai called out as he landed nearby.

Mo Qianyuan didn’t look back. She pinched a slightly flawed leaf between her fingers, channeled a pulse of Spiritual Energy to silently pulverize it into fine dust, and then stood up. She brushed her hands together, wiping away non-existent dirt.

“Junior Brother Zhou, what’s the matter?” she asked, her tone flat.

“I have an urgent matter to discuss with Master. Do you happen to know when she’ll be coming out of Secluded Cultivation?” Zhou Kai cut straight to the chase.

Hearing the word “Master,” a strange, contorted expression flashed across Mo Qianyuan’s beautiful face. It looked as if she desperately wanted to laugh but felt it was inappropriate.

“Junior Brother, do you actually believe she’s in Secluded Cultivation?”

Zhou Kai froze. “What do you mean?”

“I checked her quiet room. The Restriction array on the door is perfectly intact, but there isn’t a single soul inside.”

Mo Qianyuan walked over to the stone table, sat down, and poured herself a cup of tea. “Knowing my Master,” she continued with absolute certainty, “she likely found the sect war too much of a bother, used ‘Secluded Cultivation’ as an excuse, and slunk off to hide in some obscure corner to slack off.”

“…”

Zhou Kai’s mouth twitched.

That theory fit Li Yunmian’s terminal laziness perfectly!

“Then how can we contact her?” Zhou Kai asked, feeling a headache coming on.

Mo Qianyuan reached into her Storage Bag and pulled out a piece of bright yellow Talisman paper.

“Here. A specially crafted ‘Life-Urging Talisman’,” she said, handing it over. “As long as you activate this, Master will receive the message, even if she’s hiding at the edge of the world. Of course, the consequences…”

A meaningful smirk touched her lips. “Her venerable self’s sweet dreams will be disturbed, and she will be in a terrible temper. Senior Brother Zhou, take care of yourself.”

Zhou Kai took the Talisman, thanked her, and didn’t linger.

Returning to his courtyard in the Spirit Beast Garden, he injected his Spiritual Energy into the Talisman paper. It ignited without a flame, transforming into a streak of blood-red light that instantly tore through the void and vanished.

Less than three breaths later.

A Divine Sense voice transmission—lazy, yet dripping with towering fury—exploded inside Zhou Kai’s mind like a thunderclap:

“Mo! Qian! Yuan! Your Master is in Secluded Cultivation, meditating on the Great Dao! How dare you use a Life-Urging Talisman to disturb my peace?! Speak! Is the sky falling? Is the earth collapsing? If this isn’t an earth-shattering emergency, I will turn you into a paper doll the moment I get back!”

The voice carried genuine Killing Intent, yet it was undeniably sultry.

Zhou Kai’s heart tightened. He immediately transmitted back with absolute respect. “Master, please calm your anger. It is your disciple, Zhou Kai.”

“Hmm? Zhou Kai?” The voice on the other end paused noticeably, the furious Killing Intent evaporating instantly. “My good disciple, what do you need from your Master? Were you wronged on the front lines?”

“This disciple would not dare complain,” Zhou Kai said. His tone was laced with profound helplessness and loss, pushing his acting skills to their absolute limit. “Master, please understand. Following the Young Master’s orders, this disciple has been butchering enemies on the front lines, never daring to slack off for a single second.”

“It’s just… this disciple’s cultivation is shallow. Not only am I of little help to the Young Master, but my own cultivation has completely stalled.”

“This disciple is foolish and simply cannot balance both combat and progression. If this continues, forget about sharing Master’s burdens, I fear I won’t be able to advance another inch for the rest of my life. This disciple’s heart burns with anxiety, and I boldly ask Master: is there a way for this disciple to temporarily leave the battlefield, return to the Sect to serve by Master’s side, and focus purely on cultivation?”

A heavy silence hung on the other end of the line.

Finally, Li Yunmian’s lazy voice drifted back into his mind. “So it’s for this matter… Come see me. I’m in the small attic on the top floor of the Exploring Spring Flower Boat.”

The Exploring Spring Flower Boat?

Zhou Kai’s eyebrows shot up.

That was a legendary money-burning pleasure den floating high above Crouching Tiger City—an opulent brothel owned by Gao Feihuang. A true paradise on earth for the wealthy.

His cheap Master, instead of “meditating on the Great Dao” in a serene cave, was actually hiding out in a high-end brothel?

Suppressing the bizarre feeling in his gut, Zhou Kai agreed and immediately set off.

The Exploring Spring Flower Boat was an immense, multi-tiered airship surrounded by swirling clouds and mist. Ethereal, floating music drifted through the air. Countless scantily-clad female cultivators with breathtaking figures flitted about the decks like butterflies, painting a picture of absolute decadence.

Zhou Kai ignored the sights and climbed straight to the independent attic on the highest deck.

Pushing open the door, he was hit by a thick, lazy aura—a heady mix of strong alcohol, expensive face powder, and the intoxicating natural fragrance of a woman.

Inside the attic, pearl curtains were half-rolled up, casting the room in a seductive, dim light.

The floor was an absolute disaster. Crumpled Talisman papers, the cores of devoured Spirit Fruits, and overturned wine jugs littered the floorboards.

And lying quietly among this messy debris was a priceless, dragon-patterned jade pendant. It was a high-grade accessory clearly meant for a male cultivator, tossed aside as if it were garbage.

Li Yunmian was reclining on a soft couch by the window.

Her luxurious palace dress was hanging off her body askew. One of her fragrant shoulders was completely exposed, revealing a large expanse of snow-white, silky skin. Beneath the rumpled hem of her dress, one foot was clad in an exquisite silk stocking, while the other was completely bare, her crystal-clear toes curled slightly against the cushions.

Her beautiful eyes were half-closed, as if she were still half-asleep. Yet, her mature, exquisitely charming face bore an unnatural, rosy flush, and her breathing was noticeably rapid.

She looked like a ripe peach soaked in dew—a woman whose sensual charm was so heavy it practically dripped from her skin. Yet beneath that, there was a hint of broken fragility that was enough to make any man’s heart pound in his chest.

Zhou Kai’s breath hitched. He didn’t dare to stare. He bowed deeply and respectfully. “Disciple Zhou Kai pays his respects to Master.”

Li Yunmian didn’t even bother to lift her eyelids. Her red lips parted slightly. “The Young Master wants to temper you. It’s for your own good. Don’t bother me with this.”

A direct, ruthless rejection.

Zhou Kai’s heart sank. If she was just going to reject me, why did she even call me here? Unexpectedly, Li Yunmian suddenly shifted gears. Her seductive eyes fluttered open, and she stared at him with a smirk that was both mocking and intensely alluring.

“However… my good disciple, if you can help your Master solve a certain trouble, I will make an exception just this once and find a way to get you off that battlefield.”

“A trouble?” Zhou Kai blinked.

“That’s right.” Li Yunmian sat up slowly, tugging at her disheveled dress. She let out a soft, mournful sigh, her eyes filling with a manufactured sorrow.

“To maintain my eternal youth, your Master sought out a grand Pill Master to refine the youth-preserving Pill of the Desire Wonder Palace. But who could have known? Once ingested, the effects of this Pill cannot be stopped. If the desire is not vented, one will be utterly consumed by a lustful fire, causing the true essence in their meridians to reverse and kill them.”

She tapped her flushed cheek with a slender finger. “You see my current state? This is the poison acting up. And the cure for this poison is rather… unsavory. I must find a man to engage in Dual Cultivation to resolve it…”

Hearing this, Zhou Kai’s brain buzzed.

He stared at Li Yunmian, his gaze shifting drastically.

A Demonic Path Pill? Dual Cultivation to detoxify? Hiding out in a high-end pleasure district? The male jade pendant discarded on the floor…

Connecting the dots, an absurd, repulsive conclusion formed in his mind.

She’s hiding here… so when the poison flares up, she just grabs whatever wealthy male guests are available to “detoxify”?

Zhou Kai was no moral crusader, but he was an incredibly possessive man.

His woman was his. From start to finish, body and soul.

A woman who needed to constantly bed random men to “detoxify”? A woman who was essentially the Sect’s communal mattress?

Instantly, Zhou Kai’s desire to conquer Li Yunmian evaporated into nothingness.

Not worth it. If she’s looking for Golden Core partners, she’ll bring too much trouble. Abort mission. Switch the target to Mo Qianyuan. Thoughts racing, Zhou Kai’s face betrayed none of his disgust. Instead, he painted on a mask of deep filial concern, though his voice unconsciously took on a stiff, distant edge.

“To think Master has suffered such a calamity! What specific Pill poison has afflicted Master? Please, allow this disciple to diagnose your condition! This disciple is willing to exhaust all my blood and sweat to refine the true antidote and free you from this torment!”

Li Yunmian stared at Zhou Kai. She saw his face radiating “righteousness” and “concern.” She listened to his passionate speech about “refining the true antidote.”

The faint flame of desire that had just ignited in her chest was violently snuffed out by his words.

She hadn’t taken a youth-preserving Pill. She had just popped a pure, top-grade aphrodisiac.

I… I already made it so obvious! she screamed internally. I talked about love poison! I talked about Dual Cultivation! I practically begged, “Good disciple, come screw your Master!” But what did he do?

He would rather exhaust himself researching a cure and brewing an antidote than touch her even once?!

What does it take to move this man’s heart? How can I make him willingly surrender his Qi of Creation?! He really… he really looks down on my body… She had hidden in this brothel specifically so her overflowing, seductive aura would blend in with the environment and not attract the Sect’s attention. She was waiting for the aphrodisiac to hit its peak before calling Zhou Kai over.

Since he arrived early, she would just have to wait. She would wait the full seven days, until the poison erupted so violently she couldn’t suppress it.