Tonight is destined to be a sleepless night

In the blink of an eye, the remaining simulation chances were all used up.

Cao Xueyan acted as though she had just finished a round of cultivation, opening her eyes and letting out a long breath of turbid air.

What a truly exhilarating round of simulations!

Nine simulations in total, and the endings were almost the same.

Cao Xueyan could not even be bothered to comment anymore.

All were dead ends, all ending in death at the hands of demonic cultivators.

The only difference was whether it was quick and clean, or slow and torturous.

Still, it was worth mentioning that in the later simulations, her luck had been poor.

She still died to demonic cultivators, but hardly encountered any demonic women.

As a result, the cultivation points she gained in those later rounds barely reached passing, only around eighty, not even a hundred.

Strange though—why was it that whenever she fell into the hands of demonic women, a special defeat CG was unlocked?

Cao Xueyan touched her face.

She wasn’t exactly a peerless beauty.

Then she looked down at her chest.

Not exactly overwhelming either.

So what exactly did those demonic women see in her?

Should she… change herself?

No, better not.

Changing might mean fewer cultivation points, and she was relying on those points to ascend!

Before that, she might as well let her simulated self suffer.

After all, she herself lost nothing.

Now, her panel looked like this:

Host: Cao Xueyan

Realm: Qi Refining Eight (800/70)

Talisman Arts: Not Initiated (1000/147)

Simulation Chances: 0

Cultivation Points: 1300

A total of 1300 points gained—more than enough to break through to Qi Refining Nine.

Or, if she added them to talisman arts, she could directly comprehend the path and become a first-rank talisman master!

When she had only simulation chances, it did not feel like much.

But when those chances were converted into points, the feeling was completely different.

Breaking through Qi Refining Nine or becoming a first-rank talisman master—either choice was within her grasp.

She had never fought such a “rich battle” before!

Cao Xueyan’s face was visibly bright with joy.

Before she could get too excited, Xiao Menglan glanced over and asked, “What are you so happy about?”

“Master!” Cao Xueyan leaned closer. “I was cultivating just now, and I think I entered some kind of mysterious state!”

She began to bluff seriously.

Even cheats needed an excuse, didn’t they?

Xiao Menglan looked skeptical. “Could it be… enlightenment?”

“Master is wise!” Cao Xueyan raised a thumb. “You guessed it in one go.”

Xiao Menglan was speechless.

Was this disciple still reliable?

She had been perfectly fine not long ago—how did a short cultivation session lead to this?

Enlightenment… most cultivators spent their whole lives without experiencing it.

It required heaven, earth, and timing all aligned.

How could it be so simple?

Did she look like a fool?

Yet, judging by Cao Xueyan’s expression, it didn’t seem like she was faking.

Xiao Menglan held back her doubt.

Faced with her dear disciple, she could not speak too harshly.

“And what did this enlightenment yield?”

Cao Xueyan’s face flushed.

Her fingers tangled together, fidgeting nervously, unable to form a complete sentence.

She was afraid Xiao Menglan would think she was joking, so she needed to prove it somehow.

But breaking through so unnaturally also needed a cover story.

And what better reason than this?

Hadn’t Xiao Menglan once said her body constitution had a special talent for dual cultivation?

Why not go along with that and make it a fact?

Her image in Xiao Menglan’s eyes might take another blow, but that was acceptable.

“Disciple… disciple doesn’t know why,” she stammered.

“My body suddenly feels so hot, even the cold qi cultivated from the Xuan Yin Record can’t suppress it.”

Her face was crimson, her skin feverish, her body restless, her heartbeat pounding against her chest as if crying out.

At first Xiao Menglan remained calm, curious what Cao Xueyan was playing at.

But soon, she panicked.

Because she truly felt the sudden surge of spiritual power from Cao Xueyan’s dantian.

It had nowhere to go and was battering against the bottleneck of Qi Refining Nine.

But that bottleneck was not so easily broken.

If this continued, Cao Xueyan might fail the breakthrough.

Worse, her foundation could be damaged!

If that happened, future Foundation Establishment would become far harder.

Even if she somehow succeeded, the quality of her foundation would be the lowest grade.

This was about her disciple’s future path.

How could this foolish child be so reckless?

Xiao Menglan cursed inwardly, then quickly pressed her palm against Cao Xueyan’s abdomen, at her dantian.

At such close distance, she could feel the violent, surging spiritual power more clearly.

Her expression grew grim.

This was nearly the sign of falling into deviation!

That was even worse than damaging the foundation—it meant death if mishandled!

But she had no good solution.

If she forcibly intervened, Cao Xueyan’s dantian might collapse from the strain, ruining her cultivation forever.

In desperation, Xiao Menglan pulled out a Qingxin Pill from her storage bag, placed it in her mouth, dissolved it, and pressed her lips against Cao Xueyan’s pale ones, passing the medicine through a kiss.

Cao Xueyan’s eyes widened, but she did not resist.

She let the medicine enter her mouth.

After all, this was all her own staging.

Using cultivation points to break through would never cause such problems.

The simulator was reliable.

But too smooth a breakthrough would also be suspicious.

So she had intentionally left one or two points unused, then circulated her technique to force a breakthrough.

As expected, symptoms of deviation appeared.

In the past, Xiao Menglan’s kisses had been soft and deep, domineering yet not disregarding her feelings.

But this time was different.

Cao Xueyan felt her lips being bitten and pried apart.

Because when she accidentally closed them slightly, the medicinal liquid leaked down her chin and into her robes.

Fearing any loss of potency, Xiao Menglan forced her mouth open.

Guilt pricked at Cao Xueyan’s heart.

But since it had come to this, the act had to be carried through.

Besides, she wasn’t entirely pretending.

The burning dantian, the spasming meridians, the chaotic thoughts in her mind…

The signs of deviation were truly felt.

Even after swallowing the cool yet warm-tinted medicine, her symptoms did not ease.

The nameless fire within her only burned hotter.

She was tormented for a long time.

Her throat went hoarse, her whole body aching.

Worst of all, her dantian felt swollen, like a balloon about to burst.

When the time seemed right, Cao Xueyan staggered up, gasping.

But Xiao Menglan quickly pushed her back down in alarm.

“You rebellious disciple! Instead of sitting to regulate your breath, why are you standing?!” she scolded.

Yet Cao Xueyan could hear the urgency in her master’s breath.

Sorry, Master, I didn’t mean to worry you, she thought.

She forced herself up again, her body wracked with discomfort.

She only wanted to get through the scene quickly.

Once she added the points, the symptoms would vanish.

In a daze, she muttered, “Master, please touch me… disciple feels so uncomfortable here…”

Xiao Menglan froze.

“You still think of such things at a time like this?”

Then realization dawned.

Yes—those in deviation often lost clarity, even changed personalities.

“In the past, it was always Master who took the lead…”

Cao Xueyan’s silly smile spread as she leaned in, pressing her body over.

“Now it’s disciple’s turn. Come on, give me… give me that…”

Give what?

Xiao Menglan understood.

It was absurd, but right now, there was no other choice.

The curtains around the bed fell silently.

Xiao Menglan slipped out of her robe once again.

Tonight, too, would not be a night of rest.