"Forget it, I didn't want to start studying so soon. I came to see how your Cultivation is going."
Xia Yu walked forward without standing on ceremony, sat down on another Armchair, and then reached out for the teapot to pour himself a cup of tea.
"Hoo hoo~ hoo~ slurp slurp~ gulp gulp~ ah~, tui!"
After downing a cup of tea and spitting out the tea leaves he accidentally drank, Xia Yu set down the teacup and sighed, "This tea is not bad."
Zhongli watched Xia Yu finish the tea with an indifferent face the entire time before speaking, "Based on universal local reasoning, your way of drinking tea lacks taste."
"Tsk, mind your own business. It's already good enough that I didn't drink directly from the teapot's spout." As he spoke, Xia Yu poured himself another cup of tea, but this time he didn't drink it; instead, he asked Zhongli.
"So, is your Cultivation going smoothly? Can you understand what I wrote? If there's anything you don't understand, you can ask me directly. As your senior, I'll give you a pointer or two."
"Hmm..." Hearing this, Zhongli pondered silently for a moment. "Some parts are indeed profound, but there is nothing I don't understand yet."
"Hehe, no need to be embarrassed. As your Cultivation senior, I won't laugh at you." Xia Yu picked up the teacup and took a sip. "What stage have you reached? Qi Condensation? Can you sense Spiritual Energy?"
"As for the realm..." Zhongli clenched his fist, feeling the Spiritual Energy circulating through his body. "I should have reached the Foundation Establishment Realm. If I pass the Lightning Tribulation, I should be at the Golden Core realm."
"Pfft—!"
As soon as these words came out, Xia Yu spat out a mouthful of tea. He stared at Zhongli with a face full of disbelief and asked tremblingly, "What realm did you say you were at?"
"Foundation Establishment. I can already sense the Lightning Tribulation, but I've been holding back from breaking through to the Golden Core realm. After all, these few days are quite sensitive."
"..."
Xia Yu felt a bit shut-in. Comparisons are odious; Zhongli had touched the Golden Core realm in just a few days, while he had been at it for so long and only barely touched the edge of it.
Why? They were both Demon Gods, so why was his Cultivation so slow! He refused to accept this!
Beside him, Zhongli saw Xia Yu suddenly stop talking. Although he found it a bit strange, he didn't speak, but continued to savor the fragrant tea in his cup.
These few days were indeed important to him. He would rather not break through to the Golden Core realm yet, lest he lacked the extra strength to deal with any sudden incidents.
After a moment of silent atmosphere, Xia Yu looked at Zhongli's face, which always had an indifferent expression, and said through gritted teeth, "How did you cultivate so fast? It hasn't even been a week."
"Hoo..."
Zhongli first set down his teacup and exhaled a breath of hot air before extending his right hand. The next moment, a majestic gilded energy condensed on his palm.
Xia Yu looked at this energy with some confusion. The feeling this energy gave him was similar to Spiritual Power, but not entirely. Zhongli explained accordingly.
"This is Adeptal Energy. It is a new type of energy I obtained through the purification of Elemental Power and the removal of elemental attributes. I have named this energy Adeptal Energy. The source of the Adepti's power is Adeptal Energy."
After speaking, Zhongli extended his left hand. This time, rock-yellow energy condensed from his left hand. Xia Yu recognized this energy; it was the Spiritual Power he was familiar with. Zhongli spoke again.
"This is Spiritual Power, the energy I cultivated through the method you gave me."
The two energies floated on Zhongli's hands. Feeling these two energies, a guess appeared in Xia Yu's mind.
"Could you convert Adeptal Energy into Spiritual Power?"
"Correct." Zhongli nodded and withdrew both the Adeptal Energy and Spiritual Power simultaneously. "I found that Adeptal Energy is a weakened form of Spiritual Power. Therefore, through Cultivation, I refined the Adeptal Energy accumulated in my body over thousands of years back into Spiritual Power. Thus, my realm rose easily."
"Of course, it's impossible to refine thousands of years of Adeptal Energy in just a few days. I've only refined a very small part. Adeptal Energy makes it convenient for me as I don't need to absorb Spiritual Energy from the outside world to cultivate."
After speaking, Zhongli picked up the teacup on the table again and took a sip of tea to moisten his throat.
After hearing Zhongli's explanation, Xia Yu slumped powerlessly into the Armchair. He thought he could be a Cultivation senior, but he didn't expect the other party to have already figured out the method. Although it was just simple purification and refinement, this was figuring it out from scratch.
As expected of the man known as the Ancestor of the Adepti. If it weren't for Erosion and world restrictions, perhaps Zhongli would have already carved out a true path to immortality long ago.
Sigh, I can't compete, I can't compete. I'll just go back to being a slacker.
"By the way, how is your Erosion after starting Cultivation?" Xia Yu suddenly asked. He didn't know if it was because his soul didn't belong to this world or because he hadn't lived long, but he didn't feel the existence of any Erosion.
Therefore, he could only ask the person who could feel Erosion the most about it.
"The speed of Erosion has slowed down." Zhongli said in a deep voice, "Though it is very little, it has indeed slowed down."
As a Demon God who had lived for over six thousand years, he had the deepest understanding of Erosion and knew most clearly what Erosion would bring. After all, his comrade-in-arms, Azhdaha, was sealed by his own hands.
Therefore, even a slight slowing down was a huge step forward for him.
"I have a feeling that the higher the Cultivation realm, the slower the speed of Erosion. When I truly become an immortal, not only will the Erosion stop, but the Erosion from those thousands of years will also recover on its own."
"Raiden Ei's path was wrong. The path of Cultivation is the true path to eternity." Zhongli suddenly lamented.
However, he had no intention of helping Raiden Ei correct her mistake. Setting aside that she was a god of another nation, the Cultivation method was given to him by Xia Yu. Without Xia Yu's permission, he would not pass it on to others.
"It really can slow down Erosion." Xia Yu said thoughtfully, "Then when do you plan to undergo the tribulation? I'll go and observe."
"Hmm... if nothing goes wrong, after the Rite of Parting ends."
"You're quite at ease."
"No matter, I will take action."
Coincidentally, the sky outside darkened, and a heavy pressure of an impending storm enveloped the entire land of Liyue, as if it were the precursor to a tempest.
"Oh? It seems it's about to start." Xia Yu felt the sudden increase in pressure in the air and stood up from the Armchair.
"What? Do you want to participate in this chaos too?" Zhongli asked, looking at the standing Xia Yu.
"Of course." Xia Yu's lips curled up as he looked at the gradually darkening sky outside. "After all, I like joining in the fun the most."
"Hmm... I won't stop you, but please do not interfere with this trial for Liyue itself."
"It's not like I'm that bored." As Xia Yu walked towards the door, he extended his right hand and waved. "Don't worry, I won't interfere with your trial for Liyue. I'm just going to see an old friend and give him a bit of heart-to-heart care."