Chapter 109: Ning Xiaozhuo, the Warmhearted Friend

Ning Ze’s residence also possessed a cultivation chamber. After finishing his meal, Ning Zhuo entered the chamber to begin his practice.

First, he inspected the surrounding facilities, finding no signs of surveillance. He then carefully examined the array formations laid out within the room. These formations were intricate and linked to the Ning family’s main array, which in turn encircled one of the pillar formations of the Fire Persimmon Immortal City.

Through this layered and refined structure, the cultivation chamber provided a relatively abundant supply of spiritual energy. The source of this energy was the infinite fire-aspected spiritual energy within the body of Fire Persimmon Mountain. This vast energy, initially carrying toxic miasma, was purified by the city’s main array before passing through further complex formations to be converted into neutral spiritual energy. By the time it reached the Ning family estate, this neutral energy was further transformed into ice or water-aspected energy, as the Ning family’s mainstream cultivation techniques were primarily based on those elements.

Since Ning Zhuo had switched his cultivation path, he now employed the Five Elements Qi Law, a technique known for its broad compatibility; it allowed him to directly absorb any spiritual energy related to the five elements. Thus, this chamber was perfectly suitable for him.

Soon, clouds of spiritual energy began to drift through the room. Layer upon layer, they covered Ning Zhuo’s entire body, wrapping him in a giant, cotton-like sphere. However, because the chamber was spacious, the clouds only condensed around him rather than filling the entire room. The Ning family had spared no expense or effort when originally laying out their ancestral grounds.

Wrapped in these clouds, Ning Zhuo first took out some spirit-food pastries, savoring their flavor. He then drank a bottle of secret-recipe fruit juice, worth over a hundred spirit stones, which caused his internal spiritual power to surge until his whole body felt somewhat bloated and full. He avoided pills for now, as they carried the risk of medicinal toxins, whereas spirit food—though expensive and difficult to preserve—carried no such hidden dangers.

Fortunately, Ning Zhuo was wealthy. His current income included the profits from his Fire-Exploding Monkey automatons, the periodic leaderboard rewards from the Magma Immortal Palace, and resources tricked out of his uncle. The largest share, however, came from the cultivation resources distributed by the three major families. Their previous quotas had already been generous, but after the recent string of attacks on the families' young geniuses, the three houses had been greatly stimulated, increasing their resource distributions by three to four times.

Having already demonstrated his cultivation level and a potential, as-yet-undetected talent, Ning Zhuo received a top-tier share of these resources, putting him in a completely different league from the likes of Zheng Jian. Thus, he had the means to indulge in such spirit food.

Beyond the food, he had also prepared pills and utilized a meditation cushion artifact, which served as an excellent auxiliary tool. Among the new resources issued by the three families today, the Sharp-Advance Needles and the Ice-Light Pulse-Strengthening Talismans caught his eye. These were items normally reserved only for geniuses of the main branch, like Ning Xiaohui.

As he practiced the Five Elements Qi Law, the Demonic Blood-Tendon Refining Technique, and the Mirror-Platform Psychic Art, the speed of his progress under the influence of these abundant resources was visible to the naked eye. At first, Ning Zhuo was shrouded in five-colored brilliance that permeated the inner layers of the spiritual clouds. Then, a red, demonic glow washed over him, accompanied by an overflowing blood aura. Finally, his aura retracted, leaving his face filled with an expression of compassion.

Once his body reached its limit, Ning Zhuo decisively ceased his practice. Cultivation that progressed too quickly was not necessarily a good thing; the body, especially the three dantian, required a period of adaptation and buffering. This was why rapid cultivation often led to an unstable foundation.

However, among the materials Ning Zhuo used were several high-quality items that accelerated this adaptation process, and he did not hesitate to use them.

"At this moment, I must give my all to seize the Magma Immortal Palace as quickly as possible," he thought. "Wealth is merely an external object. If I fail to capture the palace and lose my life, all the spirit stones in the world will be meaningless." Ning Zhuo held a profound understanding of this reality.

He opened the door to the chamber and stepped out with a smile, his current progress far surpassing any previous session. "The Sharp-Advance Needles and Ice-Light Pulse-Strengthening Talismans are truly effective. If I could stack them with the Gathering-Dispersing Ease Spiritual Tide Array, it would be even better. Alas, I cannot use that."

Ning Zhuo remained highly wary of the Zhou family's strength and their style of conduct. Among the three families, he understood the Ning family deeply and felt he had a certain degree of control. The Zheng family’s style was clear and straightforward, making their next moves easy to predict. The Zhou family, however, was different. In terms of raw strength, the Zhou family was undoubtedly the strongest—even the Zheng family admitted to a gap in hard power. Yet, in Fire Persimmon Immortal City, the Zheng family held the most prominence. The Zhou family preferred to plan before they acted, and their members were generally quite calculating; Zhou Zhu was an exception, while Zhou Zeshen could be considered the standard representative of the Zhou family.

"I accidentally exposed the Zhou family's secret maneuvering when I used the Gold-Blood Battle Ape 'Big Voice'," Ning Zhuo reflected. "To this day, the Zhou family has kept silent about it." Ning Zhuo, of course, would not take the initiative to expose them. The Zhou family keeping their secret for now was to his advantage.

"Young Masters, please, this way. Master Ning Zhuo is in the side hall," a servant announced. Before long, Ning Chen and Ning Yong were led inside. Upon entering the hall, they saw Ning Zhuo.

"A-Zhuo!" Ning Yong raised his arm and waved, looking very excited. Ning Chen smiled and bowed to Ning Zhuo.

Ning Zhuo waved them off. "With our friendship, there's no need for such formalities. Sit down; let’s eat and talk."

"Exactly! Why be formal with A-Zhuo? We’ve been through life and death together," Ning Yong said, sitting down carelessly. Seeing the various spirit-food pastries on the round table, his eyes widened. "My god, so much spirit food!"

Ning Chen also sat down with a look of surprise. They had been practicing at home when they received word that Ning Zhuo had invited them. With Ning Zhuo having risen significantly in status, and feeling both affectionate and admiring—with a hint of secret guilt—they had readily agreed to come.

As the three chatted, Ning Yong ate incessantly, his cheeks constantly bulging. Ning Chen was initially a bit reserved, but under Ning Zhuo’s encouragement, he also partook in the pastries.

The moment he greeted them, Ning Zhuo had begun to activate the nascent divine ability: "Human Life Hanging by a Thread." After chatting for two full cups of tea, he finally succeeded in placing a thread above each of their heads. These threads were noticeably thinner and more translucent than the ones he had placed on his cousin Ning Ji or his aunt Wang Lan.

"So, the degree of understanding of the target significantly affects the deployment of this ability," Ning Zhuo mused. The nascent ability only informed him that he possessed the power, much like having legs allowed him to walk or run, but the specifics—how far, how fast, how high—required personal practice.

He now realized his previous estimates had been overly optimistic. "Ning Chen and Ning Yong are my classmates; I've spent fourteen years with them. Even if we weren't close, we were familiar enough to know each other's basic profiles. And my cultivation is higher than theirs. Even then, it took me two cups of tea to set the threads."

From this, it was clear that the practical combat value of this ability was low. In a heated battle, most opponents were strangers, and with the rapid shifts between offense and defense, who could afford to spend time connecting these threads? At least for now, Ning Zhuo could not.

"This ability is primarily for managing influence; it cannot be effectively utilized in combat unless I make preparations beforehand," he concluded. "But as it stands, I have to be within three steps to set it; it’s as difficult as ascending to heaven."

With the threads successfully set, Ning Zhuo stopped the idle chatter. "I invited you here today because I want to give you a hand. My cultivation is currently ahead of yours, and having reached the peak of the third layer, I have gained some experience that I would like to share."

Ning Yong and Ning Chen exchanged glances, both seeing pleasant surprise in the other's eyes. "That would be fantastic!" Ning Yong cheered. Ning Chen stood up and bowed solemnly to Ning Zhuo, who immediately rose to help him up with a smile. Ning Yong quickly followed suit with a gesture of thanks.

"We’ve been classmates for a dozen years and have shared life-and-death experiences; there's no need for this," Ning Zhuo said with a hearty laugh. "Let's do this: follow me inside. We’ll go to the cultivation chamber, and I will guide you personally."

The three entered the chamber in the main house. "This is the main family's chamber. My grandfather uses it the most, followed by my father. I only get to use it occasionally," Ning Yong remarked with a sigh. "A-Zhuo, it seems your uncle treats you quite well."

Ning Chen chuckled, "This must be a recent change in A-Zhuo’s uncle. If the talk of mistreatment were true, it wouldn't have lasted for over a decade of schooling."

Ning Zhuo smiled, neither confirming nor denying. "My uncle has a secret mission and is currently away on business, which is why I’m able to use this chamber." This was the unified story they presented to the public. Ning Ze's situation had not been blown out of proportion and remained confined to a few people. Ning Xiaoren knew he had orchestrated the trap and would not speak of it; Ning Ze cared too much for his face to ever reveal the truth; and Wang Lan and Ning Ji were desperate to keep the secret, so they certainly wouldn't spread it.

Ning Zhuo had them sit. As members of the cultivation-switching team, they took out their own cushions and began to breathe. Ning Zhuo moved around them, immediately applying needles. They had brought their own Sharp-Advance Needles, but for the Ice-Light Pulse-Strengthening Talismans, Ning Zhuo used a mix of theirs and some of his own—a layer of concealment as a precaution.