Dual Cultivation Chapter 2 Suffering to Find a Single Partner

Previously on Dual Cultivation...

Two figures, an ancient man and a regal young man named Su Yang, shared a moment atop the Eternal Retribution Cliff. The old man, intrigued by Su Yang’s past—a notorious act of devouring a forbidden fruit—offered him a chance to escape his gloomy confinement. Amid their conversation, Su Yang reflected on his sinful life and the threat of the Heavenly Emperor. Suddenly, a blinding light transported Su Yang into a younger version of himself, where he found himself in a deathmatch against a rival named Yan Ming. Just as tensions escalated, an Elder intervened, bringing the conflict to a halt.

"Look over there! It's Su Yang, that fool who dared to pursue senior apprentice-sister Xing even though he knew she already had a partner!"

"Wait, wasn't he supposed to have a deathmatch with senior apprentice-brother Yan today? What was the outcome?"

"His robes are soaked in blood. Does this mean the duel is over, Su Yang emerged victorious, and Yan Ming is dead?"

"That's impossible! He's stuck at the third level of the Elementary Spirit Realm, while Yan Ming has reached the sixth level! With such a massive gap, I wouldn't even dream of winning, let alone a loser like Su Yang!"

"Then how is he still breathing? Once two people step onto the stage for a deathmatch, it only ends when one of them dies. I've never heard of a situation where both fighters walked away alive."

"Let's just go and ask him ourselves."

The disciples whispered among themselves as they watched Su Yang move through the Sect. Despite the bloody puncture in his white robes, his expression remained tranquil, as if he were completely oblivious to the serious wound in his chest.

"Hey, Su Yang, you scoundrel. How did you manage to survive the deathmatch against Yan Ming?" A group of disciples stood in his way, forcing him to stop.

Their interference drew the eyes of everyone nearby, making them the immediate focus of the crowd.

"I don't have time to play with children—scram." Without offering them a second look, Su Yang stepped around them, leaving everyone stunned. When did this idiot become so bold and arrogant? To think he would disrespect so many disciples at once; had he finally lost his mind?

"Su... Su... SU YANG! TAKE ANOTHER STEP AND YOU'LL REGRET IT!" The leader of the group roared, his voice startling those around them.

Su Yang ignored the threat entirely, continuing his walk without even turning his head to acknowledge them.

"You damn bastard..." Veins throbbed on the forehead of the disciple who had shouted. With his fists clenched tight, he rushed toward Su Yang.

As the man took his second step, Su Yang suddenly whipped his head around, his eyes narrowing with a sharp, murderous intent.

That terrifying stare, cold enough to pierce through solid stone, paralyzed the disciple. He began to shake uncontrollably, feeling as though he were staring into the eyes of a starving beast ready to strike.

Plop—the disciple's legs gave out like soft tofu, and he collapsed to the ground.

Even the disciples standing behind him began to tremble, looking like a group of shivering clowns in the winter cold.

"Hmph. A pack of fools," Su Yang snorted coldly and resumed his journey.

"..."

"Was that... truly Su Yang? Or did we mistake him for someone else?"

"How could that be him? They might look alike, but that noble aura he radiates is nothing like the pathetic Su Yang I know!"

"Exactly! Su Yang always carries a stupid look on his face, but that handsome man just now had a sharp, intense gaze—they are completely different people!"

The onlookers began to gossip, with some laughing at the group that had tried to block his path.

"Was that really not Su Yang?" the disciple on the ground wondered, feeling utterly confused.

Could the Sect really house two people with such identical features?

The image of that beastly gaze flashed in his mind again, and he quickly pushed aside his doubts. That definitely wasn't Su Yang, just a look-alike! The Su Yang he knew would never dare to talk back, let alone intimidate others with such a look!

–

After arriving at his living quarters in the outer court, Su Yang found another handsome young man waiting by his door.

"Su... Su Yang?! You actually survived a deathmatch with Yan Ming?!" The youth thought he was seeing a ghost when he first spotted Su Yang approaching from the distance. But now that Su Yang stood before him, the possibility of him being a spirit vanished.

Searching the memories of the 'previous' Su Yang, he recognized this young man. It was his roommate, Tang Hu.

"I'm feeling unwell, so I'll be resting. Don't disturb me." Without another word, Su Yang stepped into the house.

Tang Hu watched him pass, his jaw dropping in shock. "Good heavens!" he whispered to himself. "He's actually alive!"

–

Su Yang went straight to his room and began to collect his thoughts.

"That old man... what exactly did he do?" He peered into the wall mirror, and visions of his childhood flooded his mind.

"This is clearly my own body from my youth, but why don't I remember this place? Did I truly reincarnate and only regain my memories after being stabbed through the heart? To be wounded like this, I am far too weak in my current state!"

Su Yang was currently sixteen years old and had been a disciple of the Profound Blossom Sect for nearly a year. Yet, in all that time, his Cultivation had seen almost no progress, let alone a breakthrough.

Outer Court Disciples like him received no help from the Sect and were expected to find their own partners for Dual Cultivation—the act where two people of opposite genders engage in intercourse to advance their Cultivation. Only after becoming an Inner Court Disciple could one ask the Sect to arrange a suitable partner.

However, despite his top-tier looks, Su Yang hadn't found a single partner since joining. He was undeniably handsome—enough to have seduced the Moon God’s wife in his previous life. Initially, many female disciples and even seniors fought for the chance to be his partner. But once they realized he had mental issues and zero talent, they quickly shunned him.

Regardless of his beauty, no one in a Sect where growth depended on their partners was foolish enough to jeopardize their future for a pretty face, especially with so many other attractive disciples around.

"That old man gave me another life, but this kind of existence... Aiya!" Su Yang sighed loudly.

In his past life, he was the most handsome man in existence, with countless peerless goddesses and jade-like fairies lining up to be his partner. To think he was now struggling to find even one partner in a Sect filled with thousands of young maidens.

"If this is the same world, then there's a chance they are still out there..." A profound light flickered in Su Yang's eyes as he remembered several peerless figures. "I will find them and hold them in my arms again, and this time, I won't let go! But first, I have to deal with this ruined reputation of mine..."