Novel Full Chapter 941 - 941: Conflicted
Wu Long came out of the garden he was meditating in, a thoughtful expression still lingering on his face.
He had only glimpsed a faint hint to obtain the Metal Rune, but that was enough for this moment.
He knew that progress had to be gradual and could not be rushed.
Any further effort at this time would earn less and less results, and if pushed could even lead him astray into wrong direction, so he had to be content with this result for now until he felt like he could advance his comprehension of the Dao Runes further.
Moreover, there were a lot of things to pay attention to at this time, so he couldn’t really spend a lot of time in deep meditation.
Not to mention that this was not how he cultivated in the first place as a Dual Cultivator.
Deep meditation and pondering was the method mainly employed by Dao Culitvators, although not exclusive to them. He, on the other hand, usually spent his cultivation time far more pleasantly.
In preparation to advance into Essence Awakening Realm, he was currently cultivating mostly in the Frozen Garden Palace.
Unlike the previous times when he went into collective seclusion with the entire Frozen Garden Palace for entire months, he was visiting for 6-7 hours every day.
This was not only because he still had to pay attention to the developments in the Silver Wing City and the Soft Meadow Continent overall, especially with the upcoming auctions, but also because he did not neglect spending time with his Dao Family, it was an important time of his day.
Furthermore, this was also a good opportunity to gradually introduce the way he would be cultivating after he advanced into Seven Boundless Realms on a daily basis.
In Nine Mortal Realms, he could gradually advance by cultivating with his Dao Family, and only cultivated with the Frozen Garden Palace in intensive seclusion cultivation to achieve major breakthroughs.
However, the amount of Yin Qi he would require to advance in Seven Boundless Realms was simply incomparable.
It was also far more beneficial to cultivate a little each day than do so intensively in short bursts like he did before, as that built a far more steady and stable cultivation base, not only for him, but also for his Dao Family and the Frozen Garden Palace.
Of course, the time he spent on a given day could be adjusted, since at times, when he was more busy, he could spend only 2-3 hours, and when he had more time he could spend almost all day.
But since on he ultimately would only visit for a few hours at a time on an average day, it was inevitable that he could only cultivate with a limited number of the Frozen Garden Palace members in one go.
This, however, was an advantage instead of a drawback. One’s cultivation was individual, and thus the ideal timing for every lady of the Frozen Garden Palace to dual cultivate was different.
After all, they were not pure Dual Cultivators, and required time for meditation, and practice of their martial arts and Spiritual Qi manipulation skills. Each of the nearly thousand ladies had their own progress, which meant that there were times when they required focus without being disturbed.
Not to mention, some benefited from Dual Cultivation with Wu Long more than others, simply because of differences in innate aptitude, while benefiting less from meditative cultivation.
In the past, it was inevitable that they all cultivated when Wu Long visited since he needed to cultivate at that time, and it was also the only time they could cultivate with him.
Now, however, they could freely choose a time to cultivate with him when it was convenient for both sides. There was now even a spcial Cultivation Hall of the Frozen Garden Palace, which was in charge of recording who applied for a dual cultivation session and kept track of schedule.
Thus, the Frozen Garden Palace entered a new kind of lifestyle, not much different from when they were an independent Cultivation Sect on the Azure Eagle Continent as each of them individually spent time according to their own needs.
They were diligently cultivating in meditation, practicing martial arts, sparring, and studying, as well as spending some leisure time. The only difference were the added dual cultivation sessions with the Master of the Eternal Duality Valley, which each of the beauties of the palace were excited about.
Wu Long’s Dao Family also mostly retreated into Fen Baihu’s Mystic Realm, leading a similar life in the Wu Family Mansion, though in their case they did not have a particular schedule to spend quality time with Wu Long, free to do so at any time.
Even those who managed various Palaces and organizations in the Eternal Duality Valley returned to the mansion every evening for dinner and to spend the night there.
Those who had things to do in the outside world, like Sui Luxiao and Liang Yuhan also returned to the Mystic Realm mansion every day, coming out only for a few hours a day to manage their respective organizations in the Silver Wing City.
This was why Wu Long showed a surprised look as he saw the crimson eyes of a white-haired beauty looking at him. Hong Yue didn’t really have anything to do in the Silver Wing City so he didn’t expect to see her here instead of the Mystic Realm.
He nodded in greeting with a smile, and after a brief moment of delay she returned the nod.
“It seems I made you wait”, he said with a wry smile.
Her crimson eyes turned away, as if fleeing his gaze, “I didn’t wait long, besides we didn’t make a promise to meet”
“Then I must’ve displeased you in some other way”, he chuckled, continuing to walk into the courtyard she stood in.
She made a soft humph, long since used to the way he always read her mood and thoughts regardless of how well she hid them, “It’s not really displeasure… I just…”
She paused, hesitation appearing in her eyes, building up even more intrigue in Wu Long’s gaze since it was definitely an unusual behavior for her.
“…forget it”, she shook her head after a lengthy pause, seemingly turning to leave.
“That… that should be illegal!”, he almost tripped over, his words stopping her.
Looking at the expression he made, she felt an inexplicable urge to laugh, barely suppressing it at a smile hidden behind her silver mask.
‘To think he can make such a face… looking at this sight, who would think that he’s that unfathomable man of immense power and ability, whose bottom could not be seen, and who’s constantly shrouded in mystery…’, she thought with a wry look flashing in her eyes.
Meanwhile, he persuaded, “You can’t leave people in suspense after stirring it up so much, that’s just too cruel. If you didn’t bring anything up in the first place that would’ve been one thing. But you’ve come this far, and already started talking, it would be simply irresponsible to not see it through”
As she heard his words, an increasingly conflicted look appeared in her eyes. The biggest impact was the word ‘irresponsible’ that Wu Long made sure to slip in, knowing it would be effective.
As soon as she heard it, her eyebrows lightly furrowed, and she appeared to be in deep thought for a few moments.
Seeing that expression, he knew there was only one last push until success, dejectedly sighing, “Alas, I guess I’ll have to ask Ye’er if she knows anythi-…”
“Wait!”, as expected, she reacted before even thinking, and then seeing that she already gave away a reaction, showed a frustrated look, continuing in a slow pace, as if thinking over every word, “I… I just… wanted to ask why you haven’t… used the idea that Ye’er proposed the other day… that one about the rival auction’s treasure”
“Ah, so that’s what it was”, he smiled, instantly understanding her behavior before, thinking, ‘Such a caring sister~’
Hong Yue saw that despite saying ‘I’ll think about it’ at the time, Wu Long didn’t seem to make any indication that he was planning to follow through on the plan to seize the Silverlief Trade Hall’s auction treasure, which made her feel conflicted since it felt like Hong Ye’s suggestion was ignored.
At the same time, she hesitated to do anything about it, since it was ultimately her little twin’s affairs, and sticking her nose into it felt inappropriate, even if she had the best intentions.
Yet, thinking how devoted Hong Ye was to Wu Long she knew that she wouldn’t pursue this matter, and Hong Yue couldn’t help but feel that it was unfair to her little sister.
Confronting Wu Long about it was tricky since it might not be something Hong Ye wanted as well.
Not to mention, whether she was aware of it or not, but she already had a very positive attitude towards Wu Long, and was conscious of how grateful she felt for how he treated both twins.
Thus, stuck between the need to stand up for her sister and being careful not to cause trouble for her or offend Wu Long, she ended up with the half-baked attempt at a conversation earlier, ultimately backing off, and only proceeding after Wu Long urged her to, and that too, without any sharp words or any confrontational attitude.