Wu Mengqi asked tentatively, since it did not seem like Wu Long was slacking with cultivation or delaying raising strength up to now either, and yet he was in the position where the speed at which his strength rose was not enough.

“Hmm, not without adjusting the speed at which I gain strength”

He said tracing his chin in thought while some of the beauties in this room and on the other side of the formation exchanged glances, which caught his eye, but his mind was taken off it in the next moment.

“But you don’t have enough cultivation partners…”

Ye Ling accurately pinpointed the part he did not pronounce, reading his thoughts as if they were her own. .𝒎

‘Haha, it really is tough to hide my thoughts from her, though it is not like I try that hard’

He inwardly sighed as it was not something pleasant to hear for the ladies around. But to his surprise there was no surprise or disappointment on their faces as it seemed they all knew their Yin Qi even combined was simply not enough for him. And even as the situation improved and their cultivation realms rose it was still not efficient or fast enough.

“Yes, I need to start thinking about the possibility of finding cultivation partners outside of the Dao Family if I don’t find a better way in the upcoming weeks”

He sighed as his thoughts on the topic were a little complicated. As he sought and found more meaningful connections, the idea of dual cultivation being more about connection with people rather than a method of gaining strength started to solidify in his mind. It became more than just an art he elevated it to before, but a borderline sacred bond between him and his loved ones.

But at the same time he had to be realistic, and not having enough strength to protect those he cared about simply because the method of gaining strength did not fit his new ideals would be the epitome of stupidity.

It was not a matter of discomfort or idealism, but a simple matter of reality not waiting for the ideal way to give results. Not mentioning that it would only become harder for him to cultivate as the realms go higher, and creating a bond with his Dao Family was also partially dependent on his cultivation rising so that his Yang Root could accommodate the balance, so cultivating with people he did not make the bond with was going to be stumbled on eventually either way.

“I am against it”

A clear voice resounded as several pairs of eyes looked to the beauty with heterochromatic ones.

“Min’er! We can’t be picky here. It is not like Wu Long thought of this on a whim”

Luo Mingyu looked at Shen Min with surprise. Everyone in both rooms could tell that Wu Long did not come to this conclusion easily, as it most definitely came at the end of lengthy process of mulling over it and seeking other ways.

It was in fact something they had on their minds as well. Since they could finally see what he and Ye Ling meant by him having bad talent when he hit Revolving Qi Realm.

If Ye Ling could pick out that thought with such accuracy and confidence it meant that he was already about to announce it, since all his other ideas failed the test of scrutiny.

He was just having that last hesitation of bringing it up in as much painless way possible. Ye Ling ripped off the bandaid since she wanted to lessen the burden on him even if a little bit.

Not to mention that Shen Min was not usually one to go against his decisions. So it made most of the beauties, who knew her borderline obsessive loyalty to him, gobsmacked at this reaction from her.

“Don’t misunderstand, what I am against is cultivating with random strangers. We shouldn’t trust random people to go that near Wu Long or gain something from him as he would need to give at least a decent Dual Cultivation Technique to his partners and thus raise their cultivation substantially”

She clarified, finally allowing the beauties around to sigh with understanding. It was indeed highly unusual for Shen Min to be so adamantly against something Wu Long decided.

“Mm, in that case I agree with Min’er”

Wei Lan voiced her support. Though Wu Long could tell her reasoning was slightly different.

“But what do you suggest we do then?”

Feng Yi raised her eyebrow as the pair of different-colored eyes turned to her, a slightly still distrustful light in them.

“She means that the people I would cultivate with would have to be a select group, even if it was a large one, which we could trust, and that will eventually travel with us when we leave, so that we don’t have to seek out new people later”

Wu Long said while placing his hand on Shen Min’s head and patting it slightly, stroking her hair as she closed her eyes with a feeling of comfort enveloping her and a blissful smile. At the same time he gave Feng Yi a smile that put her at ease as Shen Min’s gaze could be intimidating.

He could tell Shen Min’s idea since it was something he thought of as well, though their reasoning for it was slightly different. Whereas Shen Min’s issue was with trust toward strangers, his issue was with using someone as cultivation partner like a tool and then leaving them behind.

“But wouldn’t that idea need time to seek out and assemble these people, not to mention to persuade joining us?”

Cao Mei pondered as all of them agreed that it was a better idea than just cultivating with whoever possible, but it did not mean that the idea was easy to pull off.

“But the gains do outweigh the time cost, since if we assemble a suitable group that is of a considerable enough size and high enough cultivation, even if we use quite a bit of time doing so, it would take only a week or so for Wu Long to reach 6th or 7th, possibly the peak of Foundation Building Realm.

And assuming this group would benefit from cultivating with him as well, they would be enough to aid in his cultivation while growing in strength with us all, and our aligned interest would make them powerful allies in the upcoming conflict”

Luo Mingyu gave an analysis based on his speed of cultivation up to now and the rate at which it slowed down and required more Yin Qi.

“Mm, in that case it would be easier to recruit, as what we could offer is growth to cultivation heights people in this world could hardly imagine, meaning that we even if we offer it to someone with relatively high cultivation they would be tempted by the benefits”

Sui Luxiao nodded as she thought about this from the position of a sales pitch and appeal.

“Heh, it seems I don’t need to persuade much, which is a little surprising”

Wu Long chuckled as his beauties seemed to be awfully understanding about this situation.

“Haha, honey’s underestimating up too much. I told you long ago that I would not mind who you are with as long as you give me your love and attention. Besides, it is not like you are doing it casually or in secret either”

Wu Mengqi chuckled, lamenting that she was not in the same room as him to receive the same gesture of affection as Shen Min did a moment ago.

“Yes, we also know that it is something that has to be done. And there was a possibility of it happening before, when we decided to be with you. It is only later that you decided to limit your cultivation to us, so in a way we were the ones who held back your progress”

Hua Ziyan then raised her voice as she looked at Wu Long with clear and sincere eyes full of devotion.

“You don’t have to think like that Ziyan, as I received much more from you than you can imagine.Besides it is only an idea at this point, as we never know if a better solution will pop up in the time we search for ways to deal with the situation”

He smiled as he placed his hand on her cheek, causing her to brightly smile as Wu Mengqi both regretted her decision to remain in the sect again and at the same time was more and more sure she was right as she caught Ye Ling’s calm and gentle eyes looking in her direction time and time again.

Wu Long could tell that there was definitely more behind their unanimous acceptance of his decision, possibly even anticipation of it and prior discussion, but did not press his ladies any more as he was grateful to them and did not feel like it would be right to trample on their consideration.

𝑖𝘦.𝑐𝘰𝘮