What made her even happier was that after today, she would only need to trade once more tomorrow to level up.
Originally, if she had completed the maximum number of trades every day, she would have leveled up long ago. However, during the busy harvest days, Ning Xuan was sometimes so exhausted that she would start working from the moment she opened her eyes in the morning. After finishing work, she would sometimes almost fall asleep right after eating, and as a result, she missed trading on a few days.
It was also because the modern dimension had greatly improved Ning Xuan's quality of life. With fewer survival worries, she had become somewhat "unmotivated."
The next morning, as soon as Ning Xuan woke up, she immediately initiated a trade with Wang Er Ya. Based on her observations, the morning and evening timeframes across their dimensions seemed to align quite well.
As usual, Lin Yuhan from the modern dimension would sleep in, while Wang Er Ya from the famine refugee dimension would wake up early. Their refugee group would start traveling before the sun rose, when the temperature was still relatively low, making the journey more comfortable.
Sure enough, Wang Er Ya responded quickly. The two traded food, drinks, and Zhengqi Water again.
It suddenly occurred to Ning Xuan that Wang Er Ya, fleeing during the scorching heat, was prone to heatstroke. So, she had previously asked Lin Yuhan to purchase Zhengqi Water and had already traded it once before. Today, she gave Wang Er Ya a little extra.
Trade completed.
[Congratulations, Host! You have reached 100 cumulative trades at Level 2, meeting the level-up conditions. Upgrade immediately?]
Yes, yes, yes!
Another dazzling flash of light followed.
[Upgrade successful! The System has reached Level 3. Begin matching with a new dimension now?]
Absolutely.
[Matching with a new dimension in progress. Please wait patiently.]
This time, the wait was longer—about 30 seconds before the match was successful.
[Congratulations! Successfully linked to a new dimension: Yunlan Continent Cultivation Realm. Send a trading inquiry now?]
Ning Xuan raised an eyebrow. This dimension sounded quite fantastical.
But since they were already connected, of course, she had to trade. The Cultivation Realm probably had plenty of good stuff.
At that moment, the Trading System’s homepage updated:
[Host: Ning Xuan
Current Dimension: Parallel World Dragon Country, 1970s
System Level: 3 (0/500), Daily Trades Available: 5
Linked Dimensions: 3
Points: 6882]
.
Yun Xi, the daughter of the Sect Leader of Yunxuan Sect on Yunlan Continent, had been doted on by the entire sect since childhood. Blessed with a top-grade Fire Spiritual Root and exceptional talent, her cultivation journey had been smooth. By the age of 20, she had broken through to the Golden Core stage, becoming the new pride of Yunlan Continent.
But recently, Yun Xi had run into trouble. It wasn’t that anyone was targeting her; rather, she noticed that her once doting parents, master, and senior brothers had started to care for her less.
And it was all because of the new disciple her master had taken in—her Little Junior Sister.
Just moments ago, she had been scolded by her senior brother again, accused of bullying Little Junior Sister by relying on her higher cultivation level.
She was utterly wronged. She had deliberately sealed her spiritual power, suppressing her cultivation to the Qi Refining stage just like her junior sister. Yet, during a normal sparring session where she was merely guiding the other in sword techniques, her junior sister had ended up coughing up blood.
Then everyone assumed she had bullied Little Junior Sister using her cultivation advantage. No matter how she explained, no one believed her.
To make matters worse, Little Junior Sister kept clutching her chest while saying, "I believe Senior Sister didn’t mean it. Everyone, please stop blaming Senior Sister."
Her words clearly implied that Yun Xi was responsible for her injuries, whether intentionally or not. Yun Xi was so furious she nearly lost control, barely restraining the impulse to actually strike her Little Junior Sister.
What pained her most was how these people who had once doted on her now turned against her. Overwhelmed with sorrow, Yun Xi fell silent, turned away, and immediately entered seclusion, refusing to see anyone.
During these days of meditation and cultivation, she found herself unable to calm her mind. Just moments ago, she had nearly suffered a qi deviation.
Then she heard a strange voice. At first she thought it was an illusion, but the voice truly manifested within her consciousness.
Suspecting soul possession, she soon realized it wasn't the case. After conversing with the voice, she learned it was called a Trading System that had already bound itself to her, enabling transactions with others.
Yun Xi paid it little mind. As heaven's favored daughter, she had seen countless rare treasures. Her cultivation was advanced, her Magical Artifacts plentiful, and being an alchemist herself, she could simply request anything she needed from her father or the Sect.
Still, since the binding had occurred, she decided to leave it be for now, planning to sever the connection when she found an opportunity to do so.
Instinctively, Yun Xi—who had always shared everything with her parents and fellow disciples—resolved to keep the System binding her secret, telling no one.
Suddenly, the System sounded again with an incoming message. The counterpart appeared to be a mortal, inquiring about pills suitable for ordinary humans.
She had plenty of those. Typically, pills refined by cultivators contained Spiritual Energy that would cause mortals without cultivation to explode from within.
However, many cultivators who had recently joined immortal sects but hadn't severed mortal ties would prepare such pills for their mortal relatives and friends to strengthen their health and prolong their lives.
Coincidentally, Yun Xi herself was an intermediate alchemist capable of easily producing these simple pills.
[I do have them, but what will you trade me? You probably don't possess Spirit Stones, right?]
Seeing the reply, Ning Xuan was momentarily at a loss. It seemed the other party held little interest in mortal goods.
Ning Xuan attempted sending pictures of several snacks, adding:
[How about some delicious snacks?]
Yun Xi understood immediately—what good could mortals possibly offer?
[Cultivators do not indulge in culinary desires, especially mundane food devoid of Spiritual Energy. Consuming such only increases impurity within the body, requiring additional time to purify with Spiritual Energy, thereby hindering cultivation.]
Ning Xuan could sense the profound disdain in the response. This was proving difficult—even food couldn't sway them?
Suddenly, Ning Xuan recalled that classic saying: If she's inexperienced, show her the world's splendors; if she's worldly, take her on a carousel ride.
An idea struck Ning Xuan. If edible items were rejected, perhaps visual or recreational offerings might work.
Turning around, Ning Xuan contacted Lin Yuhan:
[Buy me some novels—focus on cultivation stories for now, especially the female protagonist type.]
Receiving the message, Lin Yuhan—who had been idly scrolling through her phone—immediately got up and headed to the bookstore.
After sending the message, Ning Xuan suddenly realized: Wait, why hadn't she thought of buying novels to pass time herself? Better yet, she could purchase a phone, have Lin Yuhan download videos, and even binge-watch dramas.
Oh my god, forgive her for having been constantly "on the move" for survival issues. Only after just meeting basic needs did she now realize it was time to elevate her spiritual requirements.
Ning Xuan continued sending messages, 【Priority goes to Cultivation novels first, but also get me some other genres, especially era novels, farming novels, Palace Intrigue novels, and domineering CEO novels.
And could you buy me a phone to download some videos? I want romance dramas and variety shows. Oh, and get headphones too. Thanks~】
Upon receiving the message, Lin Yuhan immediately detoured to buy a phone first. Thinking a larger screen would be more convenient for viewing, she simply bought a tablet as well. After entering the bookstore, she connected to the store's Wi-Fi and started downloading videos.
Only then did she begin selecting novels.