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

Chapter 257: Securing Chuntao and Xiahe

Zhou Kai held the brush suspended above the paper, the ink threatening to dry before he could make a single stroke.

A marriage proposal letter required absolute precision. Every word had to be weighed.

The tone was critical. It needed to be solemn and respectful, yet he could not lower his posture too much. To appear subservient would disgrace himself and, by extension, cause the Jade Flower Palace to look down on Wu Hongxiao.

He pondered for a long time, the rich scent of ink mingling with the faint, sulfurous aroma of firecrackers drifting in from Brilliance City.

Finally, a sharp glint flickered in his eyes. The plan was set. His brush descended without hesitation, soaking up the thick ink and moving in one continuous, fluid motion.

“To the Eldest Senior Sister of Jade Flower Palace:

I, Zhou Kai, Elder of Calamity Abyss Valley, write this for a single purpose: to seek a union with your noble sect’s disciple, Wu Hongxiao.

We forged our bond on the battlefield of Crouching Tiger Mountain, sharing life and death. Hongxiao possesses a heart blazing like fire and righteousness that reaches the clouds.

I, Zhou Kai, deeply admire her spirit. I wish to become Dao Companions with her, to join hands in comprehending the Great Dao, and to share in the pursuit of carefree longevity.

I have dispatched a special envoy to your esteemed gates, bearing humble gifts as a betrothal offering to express my sincerity.”

Zhou Kai blew on the ink to dry it, folded the letter with care, and tucked it into his robes.

The letter was the easy part. The betrothal gift was the true headache.

If the gift was too light, it would insult the Jade Flower Palace and suggest he didn’t value Wu Hongxiao. If it was too heavy, it would seem desperate or ostentatious, ill-fitting for her status.

After much deliberation, he decided against writing a gift list entirely.

With a thought, he summoned an empty Storage Bag. He waved his hand, sending a stream of treasures flying into its dimensional space—items that would be invaluable to cultivators at Foundation Establishment or late-stage Bone Forging.

There were Gathering Yuan Pills to enhance cultivation base—twenty bottles, each shimmering with the radiant glow of High Grade quality.

There was Bone Tempering Ointment for refining the physical body. The medicinal potency was so concentrated it seemed solid; he tossed in thirty jars without blinking.

Then came the premium refining materials: fifty catties of Nine-Tempered Star Pattern Steel, ten feet of the main root of Void-Entwining Heart Vine, and a fist-sized chunk of Blood Pattern Mithril.

And naturally, Spirit Stones. He initially packed five hundred Middle Grade Spirit Stones. After a pause, he felt it wasn’t enough and added another five hundred. Converted to Low Grade Spirit Stones, the total value was a staggering 100,000.

Gifts prepared. Now, who would deliver them?

Chuntao and Xiahe were mere maidservants; sending them would show a lack of respect.

Gao Feiyang was a friend, but he was an outsider to the household.

“I have it.” Zhou Kai slapped his thigh. “Let Ziyi go! She is my first Dao Companion. Her status and cultivation realm are sufficient. Her presence represents my utmost sincerity. No one can find fault with it, and she certainly won’t let my prestige fall.”

He stored the betrothal gifts and the letter together, letting out a long sigh of relief. A major matter was finally settled.

He left the study and found Wang Qiaoqiao in the main hall, busy calculating inventory.

“Qiaoqiao, for the next while, unless the sky collapses, do not let anyone disturb me.”

Wang Qiaoqiao was tapping away at her abacus, the beads clacking rhythmically. She looked up, her bright eyes curved in a knowing smile. “Rest assured, Husband. With me here, I guarantee no one will step a foot into the backyard.”

Zhou Kai nodded and turned toward the master bedroom in the rear courtyard. Chuntao and Xiahe had already prepared hot water and lit calming incense. Seeing him enter, they hurried forward to serve him.

Zhou Kai waved a hand, signaling them to stop fussing. He disrobed himself and sank into the bathing pool.

More than a decade had passed, yet time seemed to have spared them.

They had grown from the green, inexperienced girls of the past into women in their early thirties. They had shed their childishness, their bodies now like ripe honey peaches, exuding a heavy, alluring charm.

Every smile, every gesture, every movement carried the gentle submissiveness cultivated over years of service, along with a tacit understanding that required no words.

Gone was the nervousness and shyness of their youth. Their movements as they bathed Zhou Kai were fluid and practiced.

Warm fingertips glided over his skin, carrying a faint, almost imperceptible tremor of anticipation.

He pulled the two women into his arms, inhaling their subtle, natural fragrance.

With a low growl, Zhou Kai lifted them both effortlessly and strode toward the bed. The gauze curtains fell, sealing the room in a haze of intimacy.

…

[System Message]

[Chuntao]

Point Type: Puppet Refining

[Xiahe]

Point Type: Spirit Plant

Puppet Refining? Spirit Plant?

Zhou Kai raised an eyebrow. This was interesting.

Alchemy, artifact refining, talisman crafting, array formations—he was familiar with these mainstream Cultivation Arts. But he hadn’t realized that niche skills like puppet crafting and spirit plant cultivation could also generate System points. This was a first.

He idly caressed the soft curves of the women in his arms, listening to their ragged breathing as they recovered.

The System prompt had pulled him from the afterglow, his mind now churning with calculation.

He looked down at them and asked softly, “What did your families do for a living before you came here?”

Chuntao shrank deeper into his embrace, her delicate frame trembling slightly. Her voice was as faint as a mosquito’s hum. “Replying to Master… this humble concubine’s original surname was Zhang. My family was a clan in the Calamity Abyss Valley outer sect that specialized in manufacturing small puppet components.”

Xiahe was a bit bolder. She lifted her head, a trace of nostalgia in her eyes. “Master, my original surname was Qiu. My family elders cultivated low-grade spirit medicines for the Sect. When I was little, I used to help tend the medicine gardens.”

Zhou Kai nodded slowly. So, the roots of their talents lay in their bloodlines.

But when he glanced at the System Panel—Affection: Chuntao (47), Xiahe (49)—the smile on his face vanished.

Zhou Kai narrowed his eyes, his mind racing.

He had treated them well. Food, clothing, daily necessities, cultivation resources—he had given them the best available. How was it that after more than a decade of intimacy and care, their Affection wasn’t even at the halfway mark?

His fingers tapped rhythmically against the edge of the bed. Suddenly, his hand paused. He realized the problem.

“How did Wang Qiaoqiao originally buy you two?” Zhou Kai asked abruptly.

The two warm bodies in his arms stiffened instantly.

Chuntao visibly shuddered. It took her a moment to find her voice. “The family… my family, Madam Wang, and this humble concubine… the three parties signed a Death Contract. I left the Zhang family, changed my name to Chuntao, and became Madam Wang’s slave for this life and all eternity.”

Xiahe nodded silently, her expression darkening with ingrained sorrow.

Zhou Kai understood completely now.

A Death Contract. It was the sale of one’s life and soul. No freedom, ever again.

No wonder. With such a thorn buried in their hearts, how could they ever feel true loyalty or love? They saw themselves not as people, but as objects bound by a magical deed.

As long as that thorn remained, their Affection would never rise.

Zhou Kai sighed softly. He reached out, lifting their chins so they were forced to look into his eyes.

His voice wasn’t loud, but every word struck their hearts like a hammer.

“What I want is your genuine heart, not a piece of paper.”

Zhou Kai continued, his gaze intense. “Since you have already changed your names, you will remain Chuntao and Xiahe. But in a few days, I will have Wang Qiaoqiao take you back to your respective families. In front of your clansmen, with all three parties present, we will annul those Death Contracts.”

The two women shook violently. They stared at him, their eyes blank with shock.

Then, the blankness shattered, replaced by a massive, overwhelming wave of ecstasy that threatened to drown them.

As if by telepathy, Chuntao and Xiahe scrambled out of his embrace. They fell to the floor with a heavy thud, pressing their foreheads against the cold ground.

They trembled like leaves in a storm, tears splashing onto the floorboards. Their voices were strangled, squeezed from tight throats, thick with sobbing.

“Thank you, Master, for your grace!”

“Thank you, Master! This is a kindness equal to giving us a second life!”

Zhou Kai calmly accepted their kowtows.

“Stand up.” He reached down, pulling the weeping women back up and into his arms. “Don’t just cry. I have plans for you. I will provide the resources; one of you will attempt Puppet Refining, and the other will help me cultivate spirit medicines. If you truly have the talent and achieve results… your Master will reward you heavily.”