Chapter 5: Breakthrough
“……” Inside the hall, Wang Xi and Shen Huai were both unusually silent…
After an unknown amount of time, Shen Huai finally spoke to offer her assessment.
“The pill shape is round and plump…”
Shen Huai murmured softly, “The spiritual energy is balanced and abundant… close to the standard of a superior-grade pill.”
“Which inner disciple produced this?”
“In the Dongyuan Sect, there is actually an inner disciple capable of refining superior-grade pills?”
Both of them dismissed the possibility of it being an outer disciple without hesitation.
Even so, Wang Xi still found it somewhat incredible.
He had studied the Dao of Alchemy for several years and even possessed some secret treasures that could assist in alchemy. He understood very well just how difficult it would be to refine a superior-grade pill using standard materials and a standard cauldron in only half a day, with no prior preparation whatsoever.
The biggest problem was…
The Qi Nourishing Pill was indeed simple and easy to learn, but no one would bother to research a pill of such negligible value.
That meant this disciple who could casually refine a near-superior-grade Qi Nourishing Pill could likely refine true superior-grade pills if they dedicated themselves to a particular formula.
“……”
“……Whose is this?” Wang Xi suddenly began searching through the pile of discarded items on the floor like garbage.
“A disciple label…”
Shen Huai realized what she was looking for and joined in the search.
When pills were submitted, they were typically wrapped in a small box, and inside the box was a pill label written by the submitting disciple, which recorded relevant information.
“This one.”
Shen Huai picked it up and examined the pill label. The two exchanged a glance.
Almost unconsciously, Shen Huai suddenly asked, “Has Dongyuan Sect selected someone for that dying position?”
“……”
Wang Xi looked at the pill in his hand, his gaze flickering. He took a deep breath and said thoughtfully, “……Let it be him.”
[Outer Disciple, No. 039.]
[Song Yan, Song Yesheng.]
……
On the Outer Disciple Peak, Song Yan was currently seated cross-legged in the center of his cave dwelling, his expression solemn.
Today, he would begin his breakthrough attempt.
He had been stuck at the fourth level of Qi Refining for quite some time now. In another half year, he would have to participate in the sect’s external missions. With his current meager strength, if he encountered danger, he likely wouldn’t even be able to protect himself.
This immortal sect didn’t keep idle people around either…
On the stone bed, Song Yan finished regulating his breathing. He took out a bottle of Qi Nourishing Pills, the formation disk of the Minor Spirit Gathering Formation, and a small pile of spirit stones from his Cosmos Bag—roughly a dozen or so.
This was nearly all of his possessions.
With a movement of his spiritual energy, five formation beads flew out from his Cosmos Bag and landed in the five corners of this simple cave dwelling.
At this moment, the patterns on the formation disk had already lit up. He took out two spirit stones and placed them on the formation disk.
The five formation beads instantly hovered in midair.
Formation activated.
Whoosh…
Inside the cave dwelling, though imperceptible to the naked eye, wisps of dense spiritual qi surged in from all directions.
Song Yan’s eyes brightened. He quickly closed his eyes and began meditating, circulating the Qi Condensation Chapter.
This “Qi Condensation Chapter” was an excerpt from the cultivation method known as the “Minor Profound Qi Scripture.”
The original scripture was widely circulated throughout the cultivation world. Compared to other introductory cultivation methods and techniques, its greatest characteristic was its balance and moderation. The spiritual qi and Dao Essence it cultivated were extremely gentle and refined.
Even if one were to switch to the Five Elements cultivation method or other types of techniques later, the condensation and conversion would be quite convenient. It was the most suitable introductory cultivation method for practitioners with ordinary or poor aptitude.
But it also had a very obvious drawback: the Qi Condensation Chapter cultivated the Primal Unity, so its cultivation speed was naturally slow.
Spiritual qi drifted like thin mist, and Song Yan’s body resembled a small whirlpool.
The spiritual qi within the cave dwelling began to be drawn into his body at a steady pace, though it appeared rather slow.
But Song Yan didn’t think so. In the past, without the Minor Spirit Gathering Formation, even holding spirit stones, his cultivation speed hadn’t reached even thirty or forty percent of his current rate.
Formations truly were wonderful things…
He didn’t waste this excellent opportunity and quickly swallowed a Qi Nourishing Pill.
The pill dissolved upon entering his mouth, immediately transforming into a stream of pure spiritual energy that descended into his Dantian and flowed to his limbs and bones.
The effects of the Qi Nourishing Pill were extremely gentle. At this moment, he only felt his meridians opening and his entire body growing warm. The pill’s spiritual energy carried the absorbed spiritual qi as it surged through his body. Following Song Yan’s guidance according to the Qi Condensation Chapter, it was gradually fully refined and finally merged into his qi sea Dantian.
The pill’s power dissipated. Without hesitation, the second Qi Nourishing Pill entered his mouth.
Qi Nourishing Pills were typically used by cultivators who were just guiding qi into their bodies or those at the first or second levels of Qi Refining to assist in their cultivation. By the third level, their effectiveness had already diminished considerably, let alone for Song Yan who was now taking them while attempting to break through to the fifth level.
He couldn’t help it. He was too poor and simply couldn’t afford other pills.
Fortunately, this batch of pills had been refined by Song Yan recently, so the spiritual energy was abundant enough to barely suffice.
At this moment, the third pill entered his mouth.
Counting it up, he had accumulated at the fourth level of Qi Refining for a long time. The spiritual energy in his qi sea was already abundant, and with this cultivation, the feeling of approaching the limit grew clearer and clearer.
Until, in a single instant, as if some shackle or fetter had been broken, the spiritual energy that had been stagnant in his Dantian’s qi sea suddenly began flowing again, as if fresh water had been introduced.
Fifth level of Qi Refining—naturally achieved.
“Hoo…”
Song Yan let out a breath of turbid air. His entire body was covered in sweat stains—whether left behind by the mist that rose during the breakthrough or caused by the cleansing of his tendons and meridians afterward, he couldn’t tell.
Though he had already broken through, he couldn’t waste the Minor Spirit Gathering Formation.
Song Yan continued to cultivate with the help of the formation’s operation for several more days before finally emerging from seclusion.
“Breaking through to the fifth level of Qi Refining, and my savings are completely drained.”
He smiled bitterly before him lay medicinal bottles toppled in disarray and a floor of spirit stones that had cracked and lost their luster.
Cultivating immortality, cultivating immortality… without resources, what was there to talk about regarding the great path of eternal life?
“Water Curtain Technique.”
Song Yan formed a hand seal. Spiritual energy rapidly gathered in the air, forming a curtain of water. Song Yan stepped through it, and all the filth and dust on his body were left behind by that curtain of water.
“Convenient, certainly, but not as comfortable as a real bath.”
He lowered his head to look. The formation disk of the Minor Spirit Gathering Formation was already covered in cracks, and the formation stones had turned a dull gray.
This one-time use opportunity salvaged from the garbage pile at the Fire Works outpost had allowed Song Yan to clearly see the power of formations.
It was a pity that most cultivators simply didn’t have the mental energy to study the Four Paths. With his middling talent, he was even less suited for it.
Even if one had the mental energy to study, one needed a sufficiently high realm to support divine sense.
“Divine sense…”
He suddenly gained some insight and took out the strange stone bead from his Cosmos Bag. But Song Yan discovered it had actually changed from pure white to a profound black.
“Hm?”
Song Yan furrowed his brows and sent his divine sense into it.
There was no longer a process like the divine consciousness sinking into the abyss. This time, he appeared directly before the black stele.
The ancient characters on the stele still emitted a white glow.
Above his head, ink-black clouds had already begun to condense, gradually forming the shape of a massive stele.
“So fast.”
Song Yan’s gaze sharpened. He immediately began releasing his divine sense. When the massive stele came crashing down, he shattered it with ease.
It seemed his divine sense had indeed undergone some changes. Moreover, he was already mentally prepared, he could now observe his surroundings during the interval between the two falling steles.
The senior who crafted this stone bead—if their only purpose was to transmit this nameless incantation—it seemed they needn’t have gone through such elaborate trouble.
Combining this with the falling steles, Song Yan speculated that this bead was likely crafted to measure divine sense strength. In other words, the number of massive steles one could shatter with divine sense was used to gauge the strength of one’s divine sense.
Very clever.
But if his memory was poor and he forgot the count, where should he look for his “results”?
He released his divine sense and shattered the second falling massive stele.
Looking around, his peripheral vision caught a row of ring-shaped ink dots at the bottom of the stele inscription that recorded the nameless incantation.
He had previously assumed they were merely decorative and hadn’t paid much attention.
“What is this?”
A brief scan revealed seventeen rings in total. At this moment, two of them had been filled and were glowing with white light.
The third massive stele fell. Once again, Song Yan transformed his divine sense into a blade and shattered the stele into ink.
In that very instant, the third ring lit up as well.