Throughout the ages, the cultivation world has produced countless geniuses. After all, given enough time, anything can happen.
So naturally, cultivators who walk the path of Dao–Body dual cultivation do exist.
But since Dao cultivation and Body cultivation are, in the end, two completely different paths, such cultivators are extremely rare.
If not for Ye Ling's "Void Spirit Body," Bai Yiyi would never have allowed him to pursue Dao–Body dual cultivation, let alone say something like, "Your master will never abandon you."
For Dao–Body dual cultivators, reaching the Golden Core Stage alone is enough to make them famous in the cultivation world. Going any further is already as rare as phoenix feathers and qilin horns.
To this day, among those recorded in the annals of the cultivation world who practiced Dao–Body dual cultivation and successfully ascended to immortality, there are only three.
The Xuanwu Great Emperor.
The Old Man Zhongshan.
The Heaven-Defying Demon Emperor.
Each of these three, placed among the common people, is a mythical figure.
The Xuanwu Great Emperor, founder of the Xuanwu Imperial Dynasty on the Northern Domain Ice Plains, relied on the fortune of his dynasty to ascend in one leap. Among the three, he was considered the least extraordinary.
The Old Man Zhongshan, leader of the cultivation world's number one assassin organization. As long as you provided enough Heavenly Treasures, there was no one he couldn't kill. By his own words, even if an immortal descended to the mortal world, he would dare to try.
The Heaven-Defying Demon Emperor, a peerless great expert who stirred up a storm of blood and slaughter in the cultivation world. By his own strength, he wiped out ninety percent of the righteous sects in the cultivation world. If he hadn't ascended midway to the Demon Realm, the entire Righteous Path Alliance would have been erased.
These three did not belong to the same era. Even the most recent, the Heaven-Defying Demon Emperor, lived more than three thousand years ago.
Yet their existence all proved one thing. Dao–Body dual cultivation, when pushed to its extreme, was enough to suppress all the geniuses of an era.
Unfortunately, the road of Dao–Body dual cultivation is long and difficult. It is by no means easy.
Talent alone blocks ninety-nine percent of cultivators. Whether Dao cultivation or Body cultivation, sufficient innate talent is required just to continue walking the path.
Even if you are gifted, and happen to be a genius in both Dao cultivation and Body cultivation, your energy is still limited.
And even taking a step further, suppose you are talented and energetic, so energetic that you could cultivate seven times in one night without feeling tired. Dao–Body dual cultivation still has an extremely harsh requirement.
That is, Dao cultivation and Body cultivation must advance in sync.
Not that they must be identical in every detail, but they must break through major realms at the same time.
In other words, if your Dao cultivation reaches Foundation Establishment and you are ready to condense a Golden Core, but your Body cultivation is still lacking, then you must wait until your Body cultivation also reaches the Golden Core level before you can break through.
This may sound simple, but even geniuses have bottlenecks.
Dao–Body dual cultivators have to overcome twice as many bottlenecks as ordinary cultivators. That is no joke.
Once you fall into a bottleneck, when your lifespan runs out, you will naturally die and your Dao will vanish, leaving nothing behind.
Though people say "a thousand-year Golden Core, a ten-thousand-year infant," that refers to extending one's lifespan through various methods. And if you truly fall into an unbreakable bottleneck, your lifespan will still eventually reach its end.
So cultivators who might have achieved something in either Dao cultivation or Body cultivation often end up achieving nothing at all because they chose Dao–Body dual cultivation. Such examples are far too many.
Every era has cultivators who believe themselves exceptionally talented and rashly challenge Dao–Body dual cultivation, only to exhaust their lifespan and die with their Dao extinguished.
But Bai Yiyi had no choice.
Ye Ling's situation meant that he had to temper his spirit and hone his body at the same time. Otherwise, he would not even be able to step onto the path of cultivation.
If he couldn't even enter the path, then there was no need to think about anything that came after.
"Master, I've already fully grasped the circulation routes. Thank you, Master."
Ye Ling gave Bai Yiyi a respectful nod, then stood up as if casually. Bai Yiyi reacted as if shocked by electricity and hurriedly pulled her small hand back.
Although Bai Yiyi's hand was soft, smooth, and cool to the touch, he still felt as if he had lost something precious.
Something's not right. Why am I the one getting taken advantage of?
Ye Ling stood up, picked up his clothes, and was the first to walk out of the bathing area. When he transmigrated, the System not only arranged his identity but also changed his clothing to match the style of this world. Unfortunately, he only had the single set he was wearing.
"..."
Bai Yiyi sat frozen in place, her cute little face flushed red, her wine-red eyes filled with a lingering, dazed look.
Th-this… this is a boy's body?
Even though she had hugged him last night, Bai Yiyi still couldn't suppress the restless stirring in her heart.
To be honest, she didn't know what these feelings meant, but she knew that her Dao heart was unstable. Something was definitely wrong with her.
But thinking about it, it was only natural.
Bai Yiyi had grown up on the mountain and had never interacted with males her own age. Suddenly encountering a genius disciple like Ye Ling, it would be strange if her feminine instincts didn't start wandering.
If their genders were reversed, with Bai Yiyi as a recluse living deep in the mountains and Ye Ling as a gifted young woman who came to seek a master,
Then even if that mountain recluse were pure by nature, it would still be easy for him to be attracted by instinct to the talented young woman. In the end, it was nothing more than human nature.
As the sages said: food and sex are human nature.
This was an unchangeable iron law of the Dao. Even if their genders were swapped, the result would be the same.
Of course, if Ye Ling were plain-looking, Bai Yiyi would naturally remain calm.
But Ye Ling already had the kind of looks that could easily be kept by a wealthy woman. Added to that was the transcendent aura he gained after Dao–Body dual cultivation. A sheltered young girl like Bai Yiyi simply couldn't hold back. She would instinctively feel her heart move.
Of course, this "heart moving" didn't mean that Bai Yiyi had fallen in love with Ye Ling. It was simply the human instinct to yearn for beautiful things.
To put it more simply — just a horny idiot.
As for Ye Ling, it was impossible for him to be completely unaffected either.
After all, he had long harbored "improper thoughts" about Bai Yiyi. A clumsy Master like this could only be taken care of by him.
So after walking out of the bathing area, he quickly calmed down. After all, there was still plenty of time ahead.
Once his realm surpassed Bai Yiyi's, he would have more than enough time to take back all the advantage he felt he had lost today.
Ye Ling put on his damp, azure robe, then followed the circulation route Bai Yiyi had taught him, drawing in Spiritual Qi and letting it circulate through his body. In no time, he had evaporated all the moisture from his clothes.
Just then, Bai Yiyi also walked out of the bathing area and happened to see Ye Ling shrouded in mist, like an immortal descending from the Ninth Heavens.
"Master, please teach me Body Tempering."
A gentle breeze lifted Ye Ling's jet-black long hair. Standing like an immortal detached from the world, he politely asked Bai Yiyi for guidance.
This scene was deeply engraved in Bai Yiyi's heart, making her small heart suddenly tighten.
My disciple is just too handsome!