Chapter 9

"Water is ready, let me help you take a bath." When Ning Cheng had sorted out some matters, Ji Luofei had already walked out and said.

Although Ning Cheng had been in a relationship with Tian Muwan for two or three years, they had only held hands at most. Apart from that, he had not done anything more. Now, Ji Luofei wanted to help him take a bath, and Ning Cheng immediately felt uncomfortable. He was sure that the previous Ning Cheng had never let Ji Luofei bathe him, not because of the same thoughts, but because of Ji Luofei's appearance.

"I can do it myself..." Ning Cheng quickly said.

Noticing Ji Luofei's puzzled gaze, Ning Cheng hurriedly climbed off the bed and, with great effort, supported himself by the bed frame, saying, "Look, I can already move on my own."

Although he had been tortured in prison for some time, after drinking some water, Ning Cheng was barely able to move.

Seeing Ning Cheng really stagger into the bathroom, Ji Luofei became even more puzzled. In her memory, Ning Cheng would never refuse anyone's service. For Ning Cheng, it was only a matter of beating someone for poor service, and he would never say he could do it himself. Could it be that Ning Cheng, knowing his family was destroyed, had become more sensible?

However, these doubts were quickly set aside by Ji Luofei. She no longer cared about Ning Cheng bathing himself and went to cook some rice porridge. Ning Cheng had practiced for many years but could not gather qi, which was not only because he was unwilling to endure hardship but also because of his poor aptitude. Now that the Ning family was destroyed, even if Ning Cheng did not die in prison, Ji Luofei could still foresee his miserable future.

Although she was nominally Ning Cheng's wife, they had not yet been married. Moreover, she was already at the third level of Qi Gathering. Once she advanced to the fourth level, she would be a key focus of the academy. Even if she did not abandon Ning Cheng, the academy would not allow her to be with him. As a fourth-level Qi Gatherer, if she continued to be with Ning Cheng, given his current situation, it would not help him but rather make him die faster.

Ji Luofei did not oppose not being with Ning Cheng. Ning Cheng had always been very harsh to her, beating and scolding her without ever looking at her properly. She saved Ning Cheng and took care of him because she owed the Ning family.

In Ji Luofei's view, since Ning Cheng could not practice and was so destitute, if she did not save him, he would only wait to die. She knew she would not continue to marry Ning Cheng, but she would not marry anyone else either. The reason she offered to help Ning Cheng bathe was that she was his fiancée and because she was the only one who could help him now. Since Ning Cheng could move on his own, she certainly did not have to help him.

What she could do for Ning Cheng now was to help him establish a comfortable living environment before she advanced to the fourth level of Qi Gathering. With her cultivation aptitude, even if her appearance was ruined, she would eventually leave the Cang Qin Kingdom, and Ning Cheng would only be a passing figure in her life.

...

After Ning Cheng finished bathing, although he felt somewhat exhausted, he felt better than before. When he came out, Ji Luofei had already brought the cooked rice porridge. After eating some porridge, Ning Cheng finally recovered some of his color and strength.

"These are for you; I'm going to the academy. You can move now, so you can take care of your meals yourself." Seeing that Ning Cheng had eaten something and was only a bit weak, Ji Luofei took out a bag of silver coins and handed them to Ning Cheng.

Ning Cheng did not take the silver coins from Ji Luofei. He knew what she meant. Ji Luofei had always practiced at the Cang Qin Second Star Academy and was a good disciple there. But he remembered that he was also a student at this academy and immediately said, "You're going to the academy, of course I'm going too."

Ji Luofei was instantly surprised and stared at Ning Cheng. Ning Cheng had always gone to the academy under the pressure of his grandfather. Now that the Ning family was destroyed and he had no constraints, why would he still think about going to the academy? Besides, with his aptitude, even if he went to the academy, he probably wouldn't learn much.

Ning Cheng, seeing Ji Luofei's expression, knew he had spoken too hastily. He was just thinking that in this place, without strength, he probably wouldn't survive for long. So when Ji Luofei said she was going to the academy, he immediately wanted to go with her. But he forgot that he had never wanted to go to the academy before, and with his poor aptitude, going to the academy was meaningless.

"Uh... I was afraid my grandfather would scold me, but I just remembered he's no longer here..." Ning Cheng said sadly, thinking of the heartless Tian Muwan, and the sadness naturally flowed out without needing to be faked.

When Ji Luofei heard Ning Cheng mention his grandfather, her eyes also reddened. If it weren't for Ning Cheng's grandfather, she wouldn't be alive. Now that Ning Cheng mentioned his grandfather again, Ji Luofei was also affected. She pushed the silver coins into Ning Cheng's hand, "You need to rest more. I'll try to come back to see you as often as possible. When you're feeling better, if you still want to go to the academy, I'll take you there."

After saying this, Ji Luofei turned and left the stone house, quickly disappearing.

Ning Cheng looked at the not-so-many silver coins in his hand and then at the low, dark stone house, realizing that Ji Luofei's life was not good.

In the future, if he wanted to live in this place, he absolutely could not rely on Ji Luofei. This Ning Cheng was not the same as the previous one. He could feel the hardships of survival here; it was a world of the strong preying on the weak. Not only was it difficult to survive without strength, but even living under others' feet was a challenge. Even a family as powerful as the Ning family could be destroyed overnight.

He clearly knew that once Ji Luofei advanced to the fourth level of Qi Gathering, she would leave him. Not to mention that they were not yet married, even if they were, a fourth-level Qi Gatherer in the Cang Qin Kingdom was a key figure and would not be allowed to have a useless person by her side.

Unless he also advanced to the fourth level of Qi Gathering, but although he had the Ning family's cultivation techniques, he lacked the aptitude and had not been able to gather qi after years of practice, let alone reach the fourth level.

Even if he could not cultivate, he had to find a way to survive. Ning Cheng made up his mind and sighed. It was a pity that he could not cultivate. If he could, in this planetary plane, he might one day reach the Foundation Establishment realm and find a way back to Earth.

Ning Cheng could not cultivate, but that did not mean he did not know about the cultivation realms. He knew there were nine major realms and eighty-one minor realms. The highest realm he understood was the Foundation Establishment realm. In his memories, the Cang Qin Kingdom once had a Foundation Establishment realm expert.

Ning Cheng understood only the first three layers of the cultivation realms: Qi Gathering, Essence Condensation, and Foundation Establishment. The Qi Gathering realm involved gathering true qi in the meridians, divided into nine layers based on the amount of true qi gathered. Ji Luofei was currently at the third level of Qi Gathering, and the fourth level was a significant milestone. Although the Cang Qin Second Star Academy had many third-level Qi Gatherers, the number of fourth-level Qi Gatherers was drastically reduced.

When a cultivator's true qi reached a certain level, they would advance to the Essence Condensation realm, where true qi began to transform into true essence. The Essence Condensation realm also had nine layers, and the more refined the true essence, the more advanced the cultivation. The principal and vice-principal of the Cang Qin Second Star Academy were both Essence Condensation realm cultivators, extremely powerful in the Cang Qin Kingdom.

As for the Foundation Establishment realm, the Cang Qin Kingdom no longer had any.

Ning Cheng came from Earth and had heard various cultivation legends. Moreover, there were people on Earth who could cultivate inner qi, so he was not surprised that cultivation was possible on the Yi Star Continent. Of course, he had not yet understood that cultivation at higher levels would exceed his imagination.

Ning Cheng knew his aptitude was extremely poor and that he could not cultivate. Given his current poor physical condition, even if he could recall some of the Ning family's cultivation techniques, he did not think about cultivating. The first priority to survive here was to recover his health.

After Ji Luofei returned to the academy, she had no further news. Ning Cheng never went out; apart from resting in the stone house, he exercised in the front yard to strengthen his body.

A few days later, although Ning Cheng still looked somewhat thin, he had gradually recovered his strength. At least, he no longer felt weak. Ning Cheng felt he could go out and explore. At the very least, he needed to understand the environment of the capital of the Cang Qin Kingdom and what he could do to survive in the future.

(Updates at around 12 PM and 7 PM, this is the plan for tomorrow, not today. Thank you for the many recommendations and donations today, and the increase in collections. After the new chapter is updated, I will still be seeking recommendations and collections for the new book. Thank you!)

...

Page flip AD starts

Page flip AD ends