Even though he casually channeled mana to unleash a palm strike, a cultivator at the late-stage Foundation Establishment would need to cautiously and fully confront it.

Buzz!

Facing the overwhelmingly incoming giant mana palm, the Water Lake Rat gritted its teeth, instantly erupting with a powerful wave of demonic power.

Red and blue spiritual light surged up around its body, and even its originally blood-red eyes turned oddly into one red and one blue.

Following closely, before the Water Lake Rat's mouth, a ghostly blue water ball and a blazing purple flame instantly formed.

The next instant.

Boom!

The ghostly blue water ball and the scorching purple flame shot out like two meteors from the rat's mouth, spiraling through the air and directly bombarding the mana palm.

Rumble!

The two sides collided fiercely, accompanied by a deafening explosion, an invisible surge of powerful energy spread wildly from the point of impact like ripples.

Ultimately, these two powerful energies entangled and devoured each other, gradually dissipating into nothingness.

However, the Water Lake Rat had no time to relax before it was shocked to find Xu Ping had eerily appeared overhead.

Xu Ping was expressionless, his eyes as calm as water, raising his fist high and, without warning, slammed it down hard toward the Water Lake Rat.

Thud!

With an extremely heavy thud, the Water Lake Rat was hammered solidly into the ground.

The ground instantly was smashed into a deep pit, numerous stones flying in all directions, raising a cloud of dust.

"Hiss!"

The dust settled, and the Water Lake Rat lay in the pit, gritting its teeth in pain, miserably saying, "Master, this is murder!"

But Xu Ping turned a deaf ear and kicked again.

The Water Lake Rat saw this and could only clumsily roll over and dodge…

A quarter of an hour passed in an instant.

At this moment, Xu Ping stood calmly in the clearing, his breathing steady, as if everything that happened just now had no effect on him.

On the other side, the Water Lake Rat lay bruised and swollen on the ground, gasping for breath, looking extremely miserable.

"Continue tomorrow."

Xu Ping casually threw down this sentence and then turned to leave, leaving the dazed, lost-spirited Water Lake Rat questioning its own life, all alone in place.

.....

...

Just like this, under Xu Ping's repeated "beatings" of the Water Lake Rat, time passed slowly.

Three months later.

On this night.

The bright moon hung high in the sky.

The clear moonlight poured down without obstruction, like countless silver threads wrapping tightly around Thousand Leaves Mountain.

As the moonlight illuminated, the contours of Thousand Leaves Mountain became distinctly visible. The towering main peak pierced the sky, resembling a majestic giant quietly guarding this land.

At this moment.

Now, Xu Ping sat cross-legged on an enormous stone, his posture straight, eyes closed, silently waiting for the arrival of the Spiritual Qi tide.

Suddenly.

A crisp crack shattered the silence of the night.

The ground slowly cracked open with a gap, and a Spirit Worm wriggled its way out from the fissure.

"How did you get up here?"

Xu Ping opened his eyes, focusing his gaze on the Spirit Worm, and asked with a frown.

The Spiritual Qi tide was imminent and could not tolerate any disturbance.

"Hiss hiss!"

The Spirit Worm emitted sounds while obsequiously swaying its body, and kept gesturing various movements with its tail.

Xu Ping, with a motion of his divine sense, communicated with the Sea of Consciousness imprint of the Second-stage Spirit Worm.

Moments later.

A look of surprise appeared on Xu Ping's face: "You mean, you can use the Spiritual Qi tide to perform 'Spiritual Qi Resonance', summoning Heaven and Earth Spiritual Qi into the Spirit Vein to facilitate its self-purification and upgrade?"

Having raised the Spirit Worm for several months, Xu Ping now could clearly understand what it intended to convey through the divine sense imprint.

The Spirit Worm nodded energetically, appearing very confident.

"Interesting."

Receiving an affirmative answer, Xu Ping's face instantly showed a curious expression.

Using the Spiritual Qi tide to guide Heaven and Earth Spiritual Qi into the Spirit Vein, promoting its purification and upgrade.

This seemed to bear a striking resemblance to the Secret Technique 'Guiding Qi into the Vein' that he mastered.

Just not sure if its effectiveness is comparable to 'Guiding Qi into the Vein'.

"This should be a unique Divine Technique of the Second-stage Spirit Worm," Xu Ping speculated in his mind.

"In that case, you may give it a try." Xu Ping's lips slightly curved, eyes showing a trace of expectation.

He was curious to see how capable this Second-stage Spirit Worm truly was.

Given Xu Ping's permission, the Spirit Worm became excited, energetically gesturing.

"Rest assured, as long as you truly have the ability to summon Heaven and Earth Spiritual Qi into the Spirit Vein, the benefits will not shortchange you." Xu Ping smiled and nodded, his tone soothing.

Upon hearing this, the Spirit Worm became even more excited, immediately straightening up its body as if saying: "Master, just wait and see."

"Quietly wait for a moment, the Spiritual Qi tide is still some time away."

After speaking, Xu Ping gently closed his eyes again, entering a state of deep focus and waiting.

The Spirit Worm saw this and quietly laid on the ground.

In the distance, the Water Lake Rat, whose aura was almost at the peak of the Second-stage Middle Grade, watched this scene with a face full of worry.

The role of this Spirit Worm is becoming increasingly significant, wouldn't that make it seem even more worthless?

If things continue this way, wouldn't the master beat it even harder in the future?

No way!

It can absolutely not stand by idly!

The Water Lake Rat secretly resolved that it must think of a way to reclaim its prominent position in the master's heart.

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