Chapter 125: Contest (1)

“…What wedding?”

“I’m telling you, it’s true. For some reason, the marketplace is in an uproar over this rumor!”

“What a terrifying gossip to spread.”

Yuyu planted her hands on her hips, fixing Karlstein with an intense stare.

“Are you sure it’s not true?”

“…It’s not like that, kid.”

“Kid? I’ll have you know I’m practically a grown lady now!”

“…Huh.”

Karlstein let out a dry laugh at Yuyu’s spirited protest.

“You’re not my type for starters, so don’t worry about it.”

“G-grr! That’s not what I meant!!”

“Then?”

“…Anyway, it’s fine as long as it’s not true.”

“How boring.”

Tsk-tsk. Do they even know our age difference?

“You might get snatched up by some scary big sisters if you’re not careful.”

“Big sisters?”

“Yeah. There are some unscrupulous, wicked folks trying to force me into bachelorhood.”

“…?”

In any case…

“To think such rumors are circulating…”

“What’s causing all this?”

Yuyu and I had grown quite close. At some point, her unreserved, chattering approach became not so unpleasant, and as I indulged her, we settled into a comfortable rapport.

More importantly, this rumor… good grief. It’s quite something.

To a virile man who had yet to even lose his virginity, a rumor like this was cause for a bit of resentment. And to think it had spread throughout the entire cultivation world.

Karlstein shook his head, feeling a migraine coming on.

I wouldn’t feel so wronged if I’d at least held a woman’s hand before.

“Dual Cultivation be damned…”

“Dual Cultivation?”

“It’s not something kids like you should know about.”

“I told you I’m not a kid!!”

Yuyu protested vehemently, thrusting her chest forward.

Karlstein shook his head again.

“Seeing that just added to my conviction.”

“@^$&#^##!!”

I don’t know what this little squirt’s on about.

In Xianxia, Dual Cultivation had a simple meaning: a cultivation method between a man and a woman, awakening the harmony of Yin and Yang through Bedchamber Arts.

Truthfully, it was rather ambiguous to call it exclusive to Xianxia. Even in martial arts novels, one could often find references to Bedchamber Arts as a form of Sexual Arts.

Karlstein had not thought much of it either. The reason he started looking into Dual Cultivation was not anything special; it was all because of the community.

ㄴhnngff

ㄴDual Cultivation?

ㄴu get stronger while having sax

ㄴWhy can’t you just say sex?

ㄴhows that even possible bruh? getting stronger while having fun?

ㄴWhy not? There’s sex arts too.

Real-time exchanges were impossible due to the time dilation, but connections could be made like snapshots. It was one of Karlstein’s achievements from his diligent research on dimensions.

Regardless, the topic did not attract much attention at first.

ㄴ(SexGod): Kuhaha! Dual Cultivation of Xianxia, huh! I’d like to see how it compares to my Sexual Arts!!

But it all started when a fellow called SexGod began pestering the Oradge, eager to pit his Sexual Arts against the Dual Cultivation Technique of Xianxia.

-Hmm. I doubt they can learn the technique anyway. Guess it doesn’t matter.

Karlstein thought little of the matter. He had experimented with various techniques before, and without Aria’s adjustments, the Community users could not properly learn them.

However…

ㄴ(SexGod): How can this be…! It’s impossible!

ㄴy u goin in heat again?

ㄴ(SexGod): Oradge. What exactly is this?

The commotion started when SexGod managed to learn a Dual Cultivation Technique called Cloud Rain Union Art.

Above all.

ㄴ(SexGod): This is not a martial art that can be likened to mere Sexual Arts! No, is it even a martial art?

SexGod, a wanted man who was barely scraping by on the fringes of the martial world, suddenly rocketed into the ranks of the Eleven Supremes Under Heaven—and in just a few months at that.

ㄴme toooo!!

ㄴteach me too bro!

ㄴ111

ㄴ22

ㄴhawawa….

ㄴholy shit. Howd he become a top master with just sex art?

ㄴMurim history is crumbling because of one sorcery!

ㄴthis be a temptation no succubus cud resist!

The Community users began learning the Cloud Rain Union Art en masse, a development even Karlstein had not anticipated.

-So Dual Cultivation Techniques… can be learned?

While even the most skilled Community users could not learn ordinary Cultivation Techniques, they were seeing results with Dual Cultivation Techniques that involved exchanging Qi.

Well, well. What heavenly coincidence.

Increasing the Community’s strength was not a bad thing when considering the distant future. It was beneficial even when thinking about the upcoming opening of World.

In any case, this piqued Karlstein’s interest.

-Then what would be the strongest Dual Cultivation Technique?

A question arose then. Of course, he had no intention of finding out firsthand.

It’d be a dual cultivation technique that I can’t learn anyway. Can’t waste time on that!

Though a strange stubbornness had set in…

-Pavilion Master, I have a request.

-Hehehe. A request from Cultivator Ga? It will be handled with top priority.

Karlstein was quite diligent in his own way.

-Ahem. Uh… it regards Dual Cultivation….

-Dual Cultivation?

He went to see the Pavilion Master at the headquarters of Plum Shadow Pavilion. She was a Mid-Stage Nascent Soul cultivator who was also a business partner, and now someone he could comfortably joke around with.

Needless to say, the Pavilion Master warmly welcomed Karlstein. After all, he had transformed the nearly collapsed Plum Shadow Pavilion into the continent’s most powerful force since the bloody incident a decade ago.

-Hmm…. I think I might be able to help with that.

-Ahem. Then I’ll trust you.

Karlstein thought he had spoken vaguely enough, feeling awkward about elaborating further with a woman.

-(Breaking News) The Overseer of Plum Shadow Pavilion’s Flame Metal Branch personally seeks Dual Cultivation partner.

-Who is this mysterious Flame Metal Branch Overseer?

-Plum Shadow Pavilion’s Master: “He’s the finest man I’ve ever seen.”

-Why does this enigmatic Overseer, who has never shown his face before, now seek a partner?

-Plum Shadow Pavilion announces Partner Selection Contest as competition among Immortal Sects intensifies….

-Mountains of treasures offered as rewards for mere selection…

-Currently the hottest topic of interest across the entire Cultivation World: what is he planning?

All kinds of articles proliferated rapidly.

“The hell?! What in the world is going on?!”

Karlstein could not help but be dumbfounded. He had deliberately made a quiet visit to only convey his request and leave, yet…

-If I could just get accepted as a Dual Cultivation partner…?

Not a single cultivator was ignorant to the influence of Plum Shadow Pavilion’s mysterious Overseer.

-Hoho. It would be possible to build a force in one fell swoop.

-The cultivation world has been quiet since that bloody incident in the Southern Continent. Things are about to heat up.

-This isn’t just a simple partner search. The entire cultivation world is invested! If we use this opportunity well…!

Now, the whole world obsessed over Karlstein’s Partner Selection Contest.

“Tell the Pavilion Master! If this isn’t resolved, there won’t be any new Dharma Treasure development in the future.”

“Eek!”

“Yes! Understood.”

But despite Karlstein’s attempt at a hard stance…

….

-I’m sorry. Even I can’t do anything about it now.

-Why not!

It was futile.

The Overseer’s extraordinary technological prowess had already put him in the spotlight. The situation was already out of hand.

“No wonder she was smiling all meaningfully!”

It could not be contained either.

“Haah….”

Still, Karlstein harbored no ill feelings towards the Pavilion Master. Despite her injuries from the Bloody Incident, she had acted on his behalf to bring all sorts of information and cultivation resources. She remained an important figure, obtaining top-secret intelligence about the mastermind behind the Bloody Incident in the Southern Continent and tracking Proxitan’s movements…

“Ahh….”

Even so, this was too much. At this rate, he would end up married for sure.

“I’ve decided to enter too.”

“You, Yihong?”

Are you kidding?

Seeing Karlstein’s indescribable expression, Yihong’s face reddened as she yelled.

“I-It’s not that I’m interested in you! I just want to compete with various cultivators!”

“I mean… but aren’t you a scrub?”

“I don’t know what you mean, but it sounds oddly insulting?”

“I’m saying you’re a loser.”

“…Apparently they’re selecting candidates for each cultivation realm in this competition. Qi Refining, Foundation Building, Core Formation, and Nascent Soul. They’re choosing four people this way.”

“Wha…”

Seriously… why? When did this become a harem gacha? I never heard about this.

Things were taking a strange turn in many ways.

“Haah… So you’re entering as a Foundation Building cultivator?”

“Mhm…”

“Oh boy.”

But that aside…

“Honorable Ga… I have also decided to enter…”

“What, Ma Yucheol! Why the heck are you joining?”

Worse still, the competition apparently did not discriminate against gender. Or even age.

Ahh…. For real? How. Why. How can this be?

“…What in cosmos is going on?”

Faced with this alarming situation, Karlstein immediately went to confront the Master of Plum Shadow Pavilion, but…

-There’s nothing I can do.

-Come on, what nonsense is this?!

-Listen.

-Listen my ass!

The Yin Yang Celestial Blossom Sutra, renowned as the most powerful dual cultivation technique, was divided into three volumes. Technique could not be properly learned with just one volume.

The three top Immortal Sects of the Northern Continent each held one volume.

-The three sects agreed to hand over the ‘Yin Yang Celestial Blossom Sutra’ on the condition that Cultivator Ga takes in Dual Cultivation partners. I suppose it’s because it’s useless for them to just hold onto it.

-…

-Of course, we’ve got our pride as the Plum Shadow Pavilion. We can’t allow them to choose partners on a whim, so we set a condition.

-And that condition is…?

-We agreed to select through fair competition. Hehehe!

Ah, shit.

Okay. Let’s say, giving them the absolute benefit of the doubt, that things have spiraled completely out of control, beyond all expectations. Fine.

Okay. But still.

“Why are you all here too….”

“Karl—uh, Your Majesty. You’ve done something unthinkable…”

“Wheeze- Wheeze- T-the Avatar maintenance was successful.”

“Ahem. Er…. I apologize, Your Majesty.”

The woman with starlight hair, and the girl with a gas mask had also shown up.

And why is that beefcake Milo squeezed in among them?

Karlstein gave up all thought.

***And at that moment, somewhere in the Southern Continent… a tremor rippled through the atmosphere as the final Great Seal broke.