Rebirth: A Cinderella's Counterattack-Chapter 1126 - 1106: The Path of Austerity

The scorching summer day, the blazing sun high above, the stifling heat, the ground parched, the vegetation withering, the earth cracked with noticeable fissures due to lack of moisture, even just a minute of walking under the sun would make one sweat profusely.

And on the cracked dirt road, two young teenagers were trudging forward with sweat streaming down their foreheads.

Each step left a footprint, heavy steps lifted slowly and fell heavily, accompanied by flying dust and two droplets of sweat that evaporated the moment they hit the ground, leaving a trail of footprints behind them.

Clearly, both of their physiques seemed quite balanced and slim.

Up close, the clothes on their bodies were already half-soaked, blending with the earth’s color and covered with dust.

After just a few hundred meters, the girl’s body swayed and she collapsed on the ground, overwhelmed by fatigue, raising a cloud of dust that buried her underneath.

The boy turned back, looking at the girl who had already fallen to the ground, also heavily panting, yet he did not sit down to rest, instead saying, "There are some trees ahead, should we go rest there?"

A voice laced with sobs came from the girl, already a bit hoarse, "I can’t walk anymore..."

"Luo Shufan is waiting for you to return."

"He’s waited forty-seven times already!"

"And grandpa..."

"Grandpa’s waited fifty-three times already!"

"If you make it to the front, you’ll definitely slim down! You’ll also get abs and a six-pack."

"Really?"

"Really."

The girl struggled to stand up from the ground, wobbling as she walked forward, and only after walking about a hundred meters did they finally reach the tree, both already unable to hold on, breathing heavily, and sat down with legs that felt like they weren’t their own.

Luo Qianqian plopped straight down under the tree, letting the sweat on her forehead flow like spring water.

Tang Tianyi leaned against the tree and took out some water, "Have some to drink, you’ll get used to it in a few days."

"Get used to it?" With Tang Tianyi’s help, Luo Qianqian gulped down some water, his hand was so heavy she feared holding the water herself would crush her: "Suppress the Cultivation Technique speed, hinder the intake of nature’s spiritual energy to replenish stamina, and even compress spiritual power to less than ten percent, what kind of trick is this?"

"Spiritual power?" Tang Tianyi hadn’t even considered the issue of spiritual power, only feeling bodily discomfort.

Luo Qianqian grimaced, "Before I get used to this, I fear there’s nothing I can extract, do you have enough supplies?"

"Enough." Tang Tianyi shook his head with a wry smile, puzzled, he didn’t feel his spiritual power was affected?

Could it be that the two things are different? He only felt his speed was decreasing...

"Indeed, adding the word cultivation to anything, even walking becomes painful." Luo Qianqian’s weak voice came, realizing their advantage in stamina among ordinary people was now entirely gone.

"This thing is truly terrifying..." Tang Tianyi’s face was also full of bitterness, breathing heavily, the increased burden led to greater depletion, his body severely dehydrated, even his voice was hoarse.

Hearing this, Luo Qianqian also turned her head to look at the Black Ring on her wrist, it seemed plain enough, why did it have such a terrifying power?

But thinking back to the initial Silver Ring, despite exerting her full strength, she couldn’t budge it an inch.

"I suddenly understand why some people tie sandbags to themselves during training before the physical exams..." Luo Qianqian bitterly laughed for a moment, aligning her sight: "If we don’t adapt quickly, we’ll probably have to rely on dry food for a while."

"Not only that, but we can’t bathe either." Tang Tianyi exhaled gently, touching the hard Inner Armor inside his clothes, at least it could act as a bulletproof vest...

"Right!" Luo Qianqian’s eyes widened, almost forgetting they needed to wash themselves, but now they might sink straight to the bottom if they went into the river in their current state.

And then they’d remain at the bottom until the river dried up and people found them?

"No, no, we should move a bit..." They could endure the heat and sweating profusely, but telling them they couldn’t bathe was intolerable! Struggling to straighten herself, leaning against the tree, though her wrist still rested on the ground.

"Hehe, a bath is no big deal, can’t stop others and can’t stop you, Luo Qianqian." from the ring, Xiao Hei’s voice, slightly gloating, sounded.

Hearing this, Luo Qianqian slightly shifted, glancing out of the corner of her eye at her hand on the ground, full of confusion.

A mist of water slowly appeared on the ground, but it wasn’t much, Luo Qianqian seriously controlled the mist heading towards Tang Tianyi.

Successfully making Tang Tianyi’s already sweaty clothes even wetter...

Tang Tianyi smiled, "No rush, take your time." as long as you’re happy...

Luo Qianqian sheepishly scratched her head, but since it was sandy ground here, the initial mist was probably still just the water vapor from their bodies.

And even a single attempt at control felt like her spiritual power was entirely spent...

"We should keep moving..." Luo Qianqian smiled bitterly.

Tang Tianyi nodded, seeing the weakness in Luo Qianqian’s gaze.

Neither expected that this tiny thing would torment them to the brink of madness.

Usually eager to bathe twice a day, Luo Qianqian hadn’t bathed for a few days, even she felt disgusted to the point of crying, but lacked the strength to cry.

Thankfully, the path they were on was quite desolate, with no wild animals or human inhabitants.

These past few days, they would pass out exhausted every day, and then Big Black and Xiao Hei would appear to take care of them.

But only in the night, during the day, regardless of any anomalies around, even if they vomited blood and passed out, they wouldn’t intervene.

Though the suppression was painful, in such an environment, they weren’t much different from ordinary people, and suddenly changing living conditions was naturally hard to endure, so some people felt massive pressure after just two steps.

In this situation, they didn’t appear peculiar to passersby at all.

The main point was that their filthy appearance deterred anyone from stepping in to help.

Gently touching his finger, a bottle of sports drink appeared in Tang Tianyi’s hand, nowadays, mineral water couldn’t replenish the large amounts of salt consumed by their bodies, so they had switched to drinks.

Luckily, Luo Qianqian bought plenty back then, allowing him to stash some, unexpectedly useful at this time.

Scouting around the area, Tang Tianyi twisted open the bottle in his hand, bringing it to Luo Qianqian’s mouth, and she hurriedly drank, her lips already chapped, although it had only been a few days, their water resource consumption was already over three times the usual.

In no time, the bottle was empty, Tang Tianyi wasn’t surprised at all, looking at Luo Qianqian, "Want more?"

"No, you drink it." Luo Qianqian didn’t have the luxury to feel embarrassed, it was the most awkward period she had faced in her life.

Being filthy was the least of her problems; going to the bathroom was the real issue!

Fortunately, they respected each other’s privacy, and even when one needed to relieve themselves, none would take advantage of the situation.

To be precise, they simply lacked the strength to cause trouble.

Sizing up their surroundings cautiously, seeing no one around, the two finally sat cross-legged, entering a state of cultivation.

Though the impact now was minimal, time compounded over days could become significant; it wasn’t the time to disdain extra time. Using every second was the right course.

Back to back, regardless of any potential hazards, there would always be someone senses it to some extent, even though Luo Qianqian’s soul power was suppressed, it didn’t affect her perception power.

With closed eyes, the two in their exhausted state strained to absorb the chaotic forces of nature, while their sore muscles began slowly recovering.