At Dong Chengling's home, as everyone was finishing their meal, Little Jiu scampered over to the sofa, phone in hand, ready to dive back into her games.

Dong Chengling squinted slightly and turned to Gu Yueyan. "Yueyan, what did Little Jiu get up to today?"

Gu Yueyan, a little embarrassed, whispered, "She carried us to Diamond I..."

"So, she played all day?" Dong Chengling's tone was calm, betraying no emotion.

However, Ren Suo knew Dong Chengling well. Though not sociable, she always handled things with propriety. With guests present, she wouldn't act. But once everyone left and the door was closed, Little Jiu would find herself with no heaven to ascend to and no earth to burrow into...

Ren Suo thought that Little Jiu was, after all, their own little Nine-Tailed Fox, so he walked over, patted her small head, and said, "Little Jiu, you might not like what I'm about to say, but studying more can actually make games more fun, you know!"

Little Jiu, who was selecting her character, looked up at Ren Suo and pouted. "How can that be? Studying is studying; gaming is gaming."

"Take tomatoes, for example," Ren Suo began with a bit of everyday wisdom. "Adding a little salt to enhance the savoriness can actually make them taste sweeter. Now, you really want to play games, but compare that to how you'd feel after a full day of classes. Which version of you would be more excited?"

Little Jiu pondered for a moment, then nodded. "The me after a day of classes."

"That's the allure of delayed gratification! If you attend classes all day, you spend that whole time looking forward to playing. Non-stop gaming is fun, sure, but the joy after a period of restraint? That kind of happiness can make your skills even sharper!"

"Really?"

"Absolutely. If you don't believe me, try this: study for ten hours straight, really build up that anticipation, then play for one hour. You'll definitely have an amazing time, and all your opponents will crumble before you!" Ren Suo patted his chest. "Big brother wouldn't lie to you!"

Little Jiu actually believed him. She put down her phone and ran to her bedroom. "Then I'm going to study now!"

The moment Little Jiu was gone, Ren Suo snatched up her phone, muted the sound, and began a cycle: queue for ranked, flame teammates, quit match, repeat.

Before long, Little Jiu's account received two penalties: a six-hour ban from gaming and a requirement to win ten matches in the "solitary cell" before being allowed out.

Perfect, Ren Suo thought. Most players stuck in the "solitary cell" are low-ranked trash. With Little Jiu's skills, carrying her teammates to crush the opposition will be a piece of cake. I didn't lie; everyone encounters noobs eventually. I just gave things a little nudge.

Zhao Huo, who had witnessed the entire deception of the elementary school student, was thoroughly impressed. He chuckled. "Ren Suo, you might not like what I'm about to say, but proper sparring can accelerate your Cultivation pace."

"Huh?" Ren Suo glanced at him, surprised to see Bai Ji and the others nodding in agreement.

Zhao Huo picked his teeth with a toothpick. "You might not know this, but we teachers often spar in that still-unfinished combat simulation field. Of course, I don't spar with Teacher Bai, but after a good fight with Brother Liao and the others, working up a sweat and fully circulating our Qi Cyclones, even if we don't do specific Cultivation afterward, our Qi Cyclones still grow a bit. Not to mention, it improves spell proficiency."

Dong Chengling added, "If you cultivate immediately after combat, the efficiency increases significantly."

"So, Cultivation also requires a balance of work and rest," Zhao Huo said earnestly. "You've been cultivating a lot lately. Why not spar with us a bit? Teacher Bai and Teacher Dong are too strong, and you're not that familiar with Brother Liao and the others. How about we have a practice match tomorrow? After all, we're both second-turn. We know each other well, so I'll make sure you can fight to your heart's content. I know you're not great at combat, so I'll definitely look out for you."

Bai Ji and Dong Chengling, who had initially been quite interested, reluctantly dismissed the idea upon hearing Zhao Huo's words. Gu Yueyan, however, looked eager to try. Ren Xingmei appeared visibly upset. Qiao Muyi tilted her head, a smirk playing on her lips, while Lin Xianyu was busy scraping the last of the food from a platter into her own bowl.

Ren Suo pondered for a moment. "What you said... does seem quite reasonable."

Zhao Huo's face lit up. "Great! Since it's the holidays, there shouldn't be many people there. Why don't we head over this afternoon and—"

"I meant," Ren Suo cut in, shooting him a glare, "I really don't like what you said."

Even without the Listening Headphones, Ren Suo could tell something was off about Zhao Huo's suggestion. With the Listening Headphones, he knew Zhao Huo's ulterior motive instantly: he wanted to use this as an excuse to beat Ren Suo up and establish his dominance! And because Ren Suo knew Healing Magic, Zhao Huo was even planning to hit him harder? Zhao Huo actually thought he was being righteous, his Desire Resonance echoing with 'sincere thoughts' like 'beating him up might make him smarter.' If Ren Suo could have beaten Zhao Huo, he would have liked to give him a beating too, to make Zhao Huo realize he was a scumbag. Besides, I, Ren Suo, can advance my Cultivation by playing games. Why would I need to wrestle and sweat like you brutes in combat-based Cultivation?

After a satisfying meal, everyone went their separate ways. Ren Suo had been wondering how to get Qiao Muyi's Key, but no opportunity arose during dinner, and Qiao Muyi had left early, so he had to drop the idea.

However, as he was parting ways with his sister downstairs, he asked, "Short on cash lately? If you need anything from your big brother, just say the word."

Ren Xingmei eyed her older brother suspiciously. "Anything at all?"

"Anything at all!" Ren Suo declared magnanimously.

"Then I'll stay over at your place tonight!"

"No," Ren Suo refused flatly. Ren Xingmei huffed, ignored him, and left with Gu Yueyan and the others.

Leveling up Bonds really isn't easy, Ren Suo thought. Besides, I have a gaming livestream early tomorrow morning. How could I let my sister stay over? What if she interferes with my gaming?

With no other option, Ren Suo returned home. After changing his Skills, he put on his hat, took a deep breath, and uttered a low command:

"Demon King's Descent - Imperial Edict!"

"A Thousand Miles in a Day!"

During his livestreams, Ren Suo had discovered that the Disaster Girl could use "Demon King's Descent - Imperial Edict" to strengthen Bond Abilities. So, when he found the *Mystery of the Sovereign Lord·Chapter Two* difficult to learn, he immediately thought of enhancing his comprehension to master the Cultivation Technique.

Ren Xingmei's Bond Level was now 2, but it didn't have any Derived Abilities; the effect was simply 'enhanced comprehension.'

Ren Suo had secretly used "data stream" to check Ren Xingmei's physical condition and found she had already reached 52% of the first turn—and she had only been enrolled for about a month! Moreover, she spent every day at his house playing games, her actual Cultivation time barely exceeding his own.

It was evident that Ren Xingmei's natural comprehension was exceptionally high. He estimated she would advance to the second turn just a few days after the holiday ended. Ren Suo naturally felt some urgency—being at the same level as his sister was quite embarrassing!

"Demon King's Descent - Imperial Edict" was indeed effective. After "A Thousand Miles in a Day" was strengthened, Ren Suo immediately felt his mind clear, as if he could see for miles. The difficulties in the Cultivation Technique were no longer a problem; he even recalled many details he had missed in his daily life.

He realized he seemed... to have missed some things! There were hints everywhere! It was just short of someone saying it outright!

Ren Suo, oh Ren Suo, he chided himself, you fancy yourself clever, but why can't you see things that are right before your eyes?

As memories surfaced, Ren Suo couldn't help his eyes moistening; tears rolled down, leaving two streaks on his face. Endless regret and shame welled up in his eyes, making him unable to stop himself from looking up at the ceiling and sighing deeply.

"I... how could I have never noticed..." he lamented. "Such an obvious thing, and I've always failed to see it. I'm so foolish, really."

He slapped his forehead hard!

"If I just bought another phone, a Bluetooth headset, and an unlimited local call card, couldn't I remotely control my clone! What need is there for Hope Link? With a phone and Bluetooth headset, as long as the clone could return before its duration ended, where in Lianjiang City couldn't I go!"

Ren Suo sighed heavily and began to cultivate the *Mystery of the Sovereign Lord·Chapter Two*.

He had to successfully execute the Cultivation Technique at least once for the Mini-World Game Console to recognize this Ability.

This Cultivation Technique was indeed difficult. Without the automatic Cultivation provided by the game console, Ren Suo estimated that even if he reached the third turn, he could only cultivate one chapter of it—of course, even with automatic Cultivation, Ren Suo still had to endure the hardship.

Aided by the strengthened "A Thousand Miles in a Day," Ren Suo barely managed to circulate the *Mystery of the Sovereign Lord·Chapter Two* with his Second Tier Cyclone. However, during the operation, he had to continuously consume negative emotions to activate "Imperial Edict."

Fortunately, his recent livestreams had provided plenty of despair, violence, blood, and fear. Though Ren Suo had largely ignored these feelings at the time, he had accumulated a vast reserve of negative emotions. Now that he had an opportunity to use them, he naturally wouldn't be stingy.

One hundred and twenty minutes later, Ren Suo let out a long breath, his body drenched in sweat, his pajamas soaked through.

This wasn't some profound body refinement like marrow cleansing; it was purely sweat from exhaustion. Don't ask why he sweated so much with so little movement; one can also sweat buckets just lying in bed doing certain 'exercises' that don't involve much action.

Even with sufficient comprehension, executing the Cultivation Technique once still took a lot of time; after all, any small mistake could ruin all his previous efforts.

However, forcefully cultivating high-level Cultivation Techniques, the benefits naturally wouldn't be low—just one session had improved Ren Suo's Cultivation by 0.1%.

"But, it's really too tiring, too time-consuming, and my head is exhausted..." Ren Suo leaned against the wall to stand up. "It's almost like executing one chapter of the Cultivation Technique with a threefold superposition..."

Ren Suo mused that serious Cultivation was harmful to both body and mind, while playing games was beneficial. Shaking his head, Ren Suo took a bath, then sat on the couch and opened the Equipment Interface.

There were no new Abilities, but *Mysterious Sovereign's Secret Record Chapter One* had become *Mysterious Sovereign's Secret Record - Mortal Shedding*.

Does it mean... cultivating both Chapters One and Two allows one to enter the Mortal Shedding realm of *Mysterious Sovereign's Secret Records*? Or does it mean that Cultivators shed their mortal bodies, achieving an evolution in their level of existence?

While his intellect hadn't yet dulled from the exertion, Ren Suo quickly pondered the implications of the name change. He felt both guesses made sense. Although he hadn't seen a description of realms in *Mysterious Sovereign's Secret Records*, he had indeed seen words like 'Mortal Shedding.'

Furthermore, *Mystery of the Sovereign Lord·Chapter Two* should be cultivable up to the fourth turn. Ren Suo recalled Mr. Chuan, You Jiu, and the Endless Monk—each of them, whether in terms of Vital Energy and Spirit or Physical Condition, could indeed overpower a Third-turn Cultivator.

The state designated the fourth turn as the threshold for the Great Wall; perhaps the fourth turn indeed held something unique. Perhaps stepping into the fourth turn equated to transcending the mundane.

Ren Suo pondered such trivial details about the name for a moment before dismissing them. He turned his head to open *Hand of Fate* and forced his brain to work, contemplating the information revealed from the settlement of the fifth chapter's mission:

"A branching task that appears after scoring 100 points, 'Surpass Fate'... what could it possibly mean?"

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