83: Chapter 83 Master, since you can't take it back, then I'll continue to enjoy your services.

"Senior Brother Zhou, you jest." Xu Ruyu displayed

As for the signs of Foundation Establishment, they are still far off. Senior Brother, please don't tease your Junior Brother.

He pushed everything onto Xiao Nianyin, which was perfectly reasonable.

"Oh? The Sect Master bestowed a Medicinal Pill?" A gleam flashed in Zhou Li's eyes. "What kind of Spirit Pill was it to have such miraculous effects? Junior Brother, could you tell us, so we may broaden our horizons?"

This was being overly aggressive, directly inquiring about something bestowed by the Sect Master, which was extremely impolite.

Xu Ruyu's face

Revered Master only said it was beneficial for polishing one's Foundation before Foundation Establishment... I don't know the specific name, Junior Brother.

Zhou Li stared at him for a few seconds, seemingly judging the truthfulness of his words, then gave a sinister laugh: "Since that's the case, then so be it.

However, Junior Brother Xu, in the Dao of Cultivation, being down-to-earth is paramount. While relying on external objects can bring temporary swiftness, an unstable Foundation will lead to endless hidden dangers in the future.

Junior Brother must take good care of himself, and not... make a mistake, and betray the Sect Master's profound kindness."

The warning in his words was unmistakable.

"Thank you, Senior Brother, for your teachings. Junior Brother will engrave them in his heart."

Xu Ruyu bowed respectfully.

Zhou Li snorted coldly and stepped aside.

Xu Ruyu said nothing more and quickly walked into the Hall of Power Transmission.

He knew this was just the beginning.

As his Cultivation continued to increase

But... so what?

Xu Ruyu walked through the long corridor towards District C, his eyes calm and unwavering.

His confidence stemmed not only from his judgment that Xiao Nianyin couldn't take back her Cultivation, but also from his gains in the Hall of Power Transmission over the past dozen days, and the rapid progress in his Cultivation brought about by nightly

His strength was steadily growing, and his understanding of cultivation knowledge was deepening in a unique way.

More importantly, he had grasped a fatal

As long as Xiao Nianyin still needed to maintain the superficial Revered Master-Disciple relationship, still needed to try to recover her power through this strange method, and as long as she couldn't bring herself to make a fuss and lose face and dignity, then Xu Ruyu was temporarily safe, and even... held a certain secret initiative.

Arriving at the Pavilion of Miscellaneous Arts, Xu Ruyu did not go to the Formation area today, but instead headed towards the

He needed to start preparing for future

He took several Jade Slips concerning the properties of common Artifact Refining Materials, basic refining techniques, and the most rudimentary principles of

Time flew by in focused study.

Xu Ruyu memorized the material properties of this world (hardness, Spiritual Qi conductivity, elemental affinity, etc.) while silently comparing them with his previous life's material science knowledge, searching for possible points of convergence and Breakthroughs.

As noon approached, he promptly put down the Jade Slips, returned them, and then left.

On the way back, he politely declined an invitation to travel with another

"If 'Lightning-Struck Wood' is regarded as a natural capacitor and semiconductor material..."

"Using the stable spiritual conductivity of 'Deep Sea Silver' to construct the Foundation of a 'circuit'...

"Can specific frequencies of spiritual power fluctuations be used to simulate electromagnetic fields, for 'wireless energy transmission' or 'Spiritual Energy Encoding'?"

One by one, bold ideas, merging knowledge from both worlds, collided and germinated in his mind.

In the evening, he returned to the Ningyin Hall Side Hall.

He closed the door and activated (or rather, merely confirmed) the Taixu Fox Shadow Sound-Proofing Array, which was practically a facade.

Xu Ruyu sat cross-legged and began his routine evening Cultivation, refining his Taixu True Qi and absorbing that newly added trace of Saint Realm Power fragment in his Dantian.

Late at night, when all was quiet.

When that familiar cool, clear fragrance, mixed with an indescribable hint of fatigue and conflict, once again quietly permeated the room, Xu Ruyu was already

He could feel the slight hesitation as that cool body approached, and the complex gaze that fell upon his face.

But he continued to breathe evenly, as if immersed in a deep dream.

When cold fingers, with familiar intent, touched his lapel, Xu Ruyu

He felt Xiao Nianyin's body stiffen noticeably.

A moment later, that hand tried to gently move his arm away.

Xu Ruyu took the opportunity to roll over, adopting a semi-sideways sleeping position, his face turned inwards, his back to her, and his arm also retracted, as if it were just a natural adjustment in his sleep.

He could feel the breathing behind him freeze for a moment, as if suppressing anger or helplessness.

After a while, a rustling sound emerged, and the cool body pressed against him from behind, an arm wrapping around his waist, seemingly trying to turn him back.

Just then, Xu Ruyu seemed to have his dream disturbed, muttering an unintelligible sleep-talk, but his body suddenly exerted force, thrusting backward at an extremely tricky angle, while his elbow

"Mm!"

A heavily suppressed groan, tinged with pain and surprise, came from behind him.

Xiao Nianyin clearly hadn't expected him to have such an

Xu Ruyu's heart was calm, and he even felt a little like laughing.

He continued to

The rest of the night passed in such a

Xu Ruyu became increasingly skilled at playing the roles of

As the sky outside the window began to lighten again, Xiao Nianyin almost gritted her teeth, enduring the soreness in her body and a burning, strange sensation in a certain area, as well as the rising, unventable fury in her heart, and stumbled out of the Side Hall.

This time, she could barely maintain her composure, her hair disheveled, her lapel slightly open, and a trace of... whether it was annoyance or something else, still visible at the corner of her eye.

Xu Ruyu woke up at

He walked to the window, looking in the direction Xiao Nianyin had disappeared, his eyes calm and profound.

"Revered Master, if you walk the night roads too often, you'll always encounter... 'accidents' like me."

"Since you can't take it back, then let's slowly wear it down."

"Let's see if you find another way first, or if I first... gain enough power to protect myself, or even turn the tables."

He turned and began preparations for a new day.

The sea of books in the Hall of Power Transmission still awaited him. And the

This twisted interaction, which began with coercion and calculation, was quietly transforming into a more advantageous, clandestine journey of Cultivation and counterattack for Xu Ruyu, after he saw through part of the truth.

And he, already, had nothing to fear.