31: Visitor

The next day, before dawn.

Lu Xian heard the sound of Materials being piled up from the right side.

"Old Song is quite efficient... He has always been reliable in his work, so there's no need to worry."

After getting up, Lu Xian went straight into the Cultivation Chamber.

His blood qi and Physical Body strength were difficult to improve for the time being, but he must not slack off in other areas!

Regarding Spells, the Object Manipulation Art and Cold Soul Finger had just reached the proficient level; reaching Major Achievement would still take time and effort, so he had to practice diligently.

The production of Formation Plates could not stop either.

The Small Wind-Thunder Killing Formation from last time had an outstanding effect, so Lu Xian planned to engrave a few more.

Finally, there was the improvement of his Qi Refining cultivation.

He took out a crystal-clear Medicinal Pill; it was precisely the spirit gathering pill he had obtained from killing the Bandit Cultivator who had tried to ambush him.

Taking this pill normally could increase the Spiritual Qi refinement speed of a Late Stage Qi Refining Cultivator, but its best use was to take it when attacking a minor Bottleneck, helping one achieve a Breakthrough in one go.

With the current condensation level of the mana in Lu Xian's Dantian, the sixth level of Qi Refining was completely stable, but he still needed to continue to Cultivate to reach the seventh level.

Combined with the 80% Spiritual Qi concentration increase from the Level 2 Immortal Cave and the 20% cultivation acceleration from the Level 1 Cultivation Chamber, he estimated it would take about five more months to reach the Late Stage Bottleneck.

The further one progressed, the more time it consumed.

The stronger one's strength, the more apparent the speed gap between Five Spirit Simultaneous Cultivation and a single Spiritual Root Cultivator would become.

A normal person might only take over a year to break through the Late Stage Qi Refining minor Bottleneck, while he might need several years or even longer.

Therefore, upgrading the Cultivation Chamber to Level 2 to obtain the 40% acceleration effect was crucial!

"I wonder if Fatty Du has found the awareness grass... I'll ignore it for now. With this spirit gathering pill, reaching the Late Stage of Qi Refining should be achievable as planned. Now, let's begin!"

A journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step.

Lu Xian deeply agreed with such simple logic.

Between breaths, three days passed in the blink of an eye.

While Song Chengping was still preparing Materials, an uninvited guest arrived outside the courtyard gate.

Lu Xian's Divine Sense swept across, and the visitor surprised him quite a bit.

"Bang, bang, bang!"

A hurried knocking sound rang out.

He originally wanted to pretend no one was home, but the person outside showed no intention of leaving.

"Fellow Daoist Lu, this little girl knows you are home. Open the door quickly!"

Luo Xuanmeng's voice was still ethereal, but at this moment, it sounded somewhat annoying to Lu Xian.

This beautiful young neighbor, why wasn't she staying home to Cultivate properly? What was she doing here?

Although Lu Xian was impatient, he first turned off the Spiritual Qi special effects of the Immortal Cave. Then, his figure flickered a few times, and he appeared silently behind the courtyard gate, reaching out to pull back the latch.

"Fellow Daoist Lu, you're finally willing to show your Face!"

Luo Xuanmeng's eyes curved into crescents, her smile bright. "I thought you were just a shut-in Cultivator who never leaves his house."

Today, she wore a simple white long dress, the hem fluttering gently in the wind, making her look like a Fairy from a painting.

"Speak if you have business, otherwise dismiss the court—no... cough, I mean, please go back if there's nothing. Also, how did you know my surname?" Lu Xian said expressionlessly and concisely.

"Old Song told me~"

Luo Xuanmeng's smile remained unchanged, but her gaze swept across the courtyard seemingly inadvertently. "A special visit—won't you invite this little girl in to sit for a while?"

The reason she came was actually that her heart was filled with curiosity.

That day, she had seen with her own eyes a majestic white crane soar into the sky from this courtyard, carrying a figure on its back, who must be the person before her.

More importantly, she faintly perceived a trace of a familiar aura from this courtyard.

It was hard to describe, yet it truly existed!

"I won't see you out!" Lu Xian had no intention of saying more and moved to close the door.

Cultivation time was tight and tasks were heavy; wasting time was not a good habit.

"Wait! I have serious business!" Luo Xuanmeng said hurriedly.

Lu Xian paused his movement and waited for her to continue.

Luo Xuanmeng reached out to press against the door panel and blinked. "It's just... can the noise from your house expansion be a bit quieter? It's been so noisy these past few days that I can't even enter a state of meditation at home. You have to take responsibility for this."

As she spoke, a sliver of Divine Sense quietly probed into the courtyard.

However, everywhere the Divine Sense passed, it was all ordinary scenes, and she failed to detect any obvious abnormalities.

What exactly was going on with that aura?

The doubt in her heart deepened.

"Fellow Daoist's action is somewhat lacking in etiquette, isn't it?" Lu Xian snorted coldly, having detected the Divine Sense probe.

Luo Xuanmeng quickly withdrew her Divine Sense and said apologetically, "I'm sorry, this little girl was being presumptuous."

"Fellow Daoist's home is over a hundred zhang away from this small courtyard; the noise certainly wouldn't cause such an impact. Your words are untrue. Besides, if you find it noisy, you can simply set up a soundproofing formation. I am not very talented, but I can do it for you."

Lu Xian changed the subject, catching a business opportunity. "Hmm... I'll just charge two hundred Spirit Stones, cost price!"

Since becoming a Formation Master, he hadn't made a single sale or earned a penny from it yet.

"Two hundred? Why don't you just rob someone!"

Luo Xuanmeng's voice rose, her black hair fluttering slightly, appearing extremely dissatisfied.

Seeing Lu Xian about to close the door again, her mind raced, and she suddenly lowered her voice to ask, "Fellow Daoist, could it be... you've set up an illusion formation in your home?"

Lu Xian's eyes narrowed, slightly surprised in his heart.

Even Zhao Shouren at the Great Perfection of Qi Refining couldn't see through the slightest hint of the Mirror Flower Water Moon Formation in the courtyard. How did this woman notice it?

Could she be bluffing me?

Thinking of this, he ignored it, changed the subject, and said firmly, "If Fellow Daoist has no important business, please go back. I don't want to resort to violence today."

Before his voice finished, with a "bang," the courtyard door was tightly shut.

Since she wasn't at Foundation Establishment, Lu Xian didn't intend to give her any Face.

If one has to lay low when their cultivation is low and still has to worry about others' reactions when their cultivation is high, then wouldn't this immortality cultivation be in vain?

Outside the door, Luo Xuanmeng was completely stunned.

Did I... just get the cold shoulder?

Such treatment was truly rare for her, and for a moment, she was somewhat dazed and confused.

"That aura was clearly the dissipation of an illusion formation. Why couldn't I see through it?"

A very faint purple light flashed in her eyes.

"Forget it, today's consumption wasn't small; I'd better go back and rest. This matter wasn't within the mission requirements anyway, so I can't be bored... This guy named Lu has a strange temper. There aren't many people who can make me suffer a setback."

Luo Xuanmeng returned home, muttering to herself.

What she didn't know was that the description of the Rank 1 Mirror Flower Water Moon Formation in Lu Xian's home was: Qi Refining Cultivators cannot see through it!

The condition was set in stone.

For Luo Xuanmeng to be able to detect an abnormality with her Qi Refinement Stage cultivation was already a sign of extraordinary talent.

To truly see through the reality of this Formation, she would have to break through to the Foundation Establishment Stage.

...

Two more days passed.

The preparation work for the expansion was finally completed, and Song Chengping took the initiative to come find him: "Immortal Master Lu, the Materials are all ready. Do you think we should choose an auspicious day before officially starting work?"

He was a bit undecided.

In the cultivation world, many Cultivators firmly believe in Luck and metaphysics. Matters like starting construction are particularly particular about the timing.

"No need. Start work immediately and try to finish it within ten days."

Lu Xian had always only believed in his own strength and Luck.

"Alright! This old man will start construction overnight!"

Having received the go-ahead, Song Chengping was full of energy and immediately began laying the foundation and building the walls.

Next, according to Lu Xian's request, he built a row of long sheds in the courtyard and separated them into individual spaces with thick wooden boards.

It looked somewhat like cages prepared for large Spirit Beasts.

On the other side, Lu Xian was concentrating on making Small Wind-Thunder formation plates in the formation chamber.

He took out a whole piece of Star Iron Mother Ore and cut it into palm-sized discs.

Subsequently, dozens of complex Formation patterns had to be accurately engraved on it.

Because of the high compression, his Divine Sense had to be completely focused, allowing no room for error.

A slight mistake would require shaving off the surface layer and starting over, which was not only time-consuming but would also weaken the durability of the Formation Plate.

One piece of raw material could at most withstand three shavings.

The successful Formation Plate from last time had exhausted two whole pieces of raw material and took six attempts to obtain.

"Now that I have sufficient experience, there shouldn't be too many mistakes this time!"

He was full of confidence.