5: Breaking through two levels in a row

Leaving Ghost Willow Alley, Shen Yuanmo did not pause for a moment, his figure merging into the night of Linjiang City, quickly returning to the Shen Family.

Eight hundred Low-Grade Spirit Stones, and a piece of Profound Iron Ore the size of a human head.

This windfall temporarily relieved the Shen Family's urgent needs, but the news heard in the black market made the sense of urgency in Shen Yuanmo's heart grow heavier.

The Lin Family could no longer wait.

They spread rewards, which was testing the waters, preparing for the final, fatal blow.

Time was the thing he lacked most right now.

After obtaining the Medicinal Pill from the Shen Qifa, Shen Yuanmo returned to his own courtyard; he did not alert anyone and went directly into the quiet room where he usually Cultivated.

The quiet room was small, with only a meditation cushion and empty walls.

Shen Yuanmo did not hesitate, taking out all eight hundred Low-Grade Spirit Stones and piling them into a small mountain in front of him.

He followed a basic Spirit Gathering Array recorded in the Crimson Sun Glazed Scripture and quickly placed one hundred Spirit Stones in the eight directions of the quiet room.

As the last Spirit Stone fell, he pinched the Dharma formula, and a wisp of pure Crimson Sun magic power was injected into the array eye.

Hum.

The air in the quiet room vibrated slightly, and the one hundred Low-Grade Spirit Stones lit up with a faint light simultaneously. Wisps of visible Spiritual Qi were drawn and gathered, increasing the concentration of Spiritual Qi in this small quiet room several times over.

After doing all this, Shen Yuanmo sat cross-legged and took a jade bottle from his bosom.

Inside the bottle was the batch of top-grade qi gathering powder.

He poured one out; the Medicinal Pill was warm and moist, and the medicinal fragrance was refreshing.

Without the slightest hesitation, he opened his mouth and swallowed the Medicinal Pill.

The Medicinal Pill dissolved upon entering his mouth, and a majestic yet gentle medicinal power erupted, surging toward his limbs and bones.

The purity of this medicinal power far exceeded his imagination.

Shen Yuanmo immediately operated the Crimson Sun Glazed Scripture.

The perfect Cultivation Technique, combined with the top-grade Medicinal Pill, plus the assistance of the Spirit Gathering Array—the combination of these three had an effect beyond imagination.

The rich Spiritual Qi from the outside, mixed with the pure medicinal power from the dissolved Medicinal Pill, surged into his Dantian Sea of Qi like a hundred rivers returning to the sea.

His magic power began to grow, condense, and grow again at a terrifying speed.

The barrier of the Peak of the Qi Refinement Stage 8 could not even put up a decent resistance in the face of this overwhelming power.

Just one hour later.

Pop.

An invisible barrier was easily broken through.

Shen Yuanmo's body shook, and an aura far stronger than before spread out from him.

Qi Refinement Stage 9!

It succeeded!

From the Peak of the Qi Refinement Stage 8 to the Qi Refinement Stage 9, it only took one hour.

If any Cultivator in Linjiang City knew this, they would probably be shocked.

Ordinary Cultivators, even with the help of Medicinal Pills, would take months or even a year of hard work to go from the Peak of the 8th Stage to the 9th Stage.

Shen Yuanmo opened his eyes, feeling the surging Crimson Sun magic power in his body; both its total amount and purity had risen to a new level.

But he did not stop.

Less than thirty percent of the top-grade qi gathering powder's medicinal power had been consumed.

He closed his eyes again and continued to Cultivate.

He wanted to go all out and rush to a higher Peak.

With the operation of the Cultivation Technique, the magic power in his Dantian became increasingly full, and his Meridians were widened and reinforced time and time again.

Under his control, the Crimson Sun magic power washed over his Physical Body and tempered his Divine Sense over and over again.

The night passed without a word.

When the first ray of morning sunlight shone through the window into the quiet room the next day, Shen Yuanmo, who was sitting cross-legged, suddenly opened his eyes.

In the quiet room, the one hundred Low-Grade Spirit Stones used as the array base had turned into powder, their Spiritual Qi exhausted.

And the small mountain of Spirit Stones in front of him had also decreased by half.

Overnight, he had consumed nearly four hundred Low-Grade Spirit Stones!

Such a terrifying consumption resulted in another leap in strength.

The aura on his body had climbed to the apex of the Qi Refinement Stage, and he was only one step away from the Opportunity and Breakthrough of Foundation Establishment.

Great Perfection of Qi Refinement!

In one night, two Breakthroughs in a row!

"Still not enough."

Shen Yuanmo stood up, feeling the surging power in his body, but he was not complacent at all.

At the Great Perfection of Qi Refinement, he was still an ant in front of a Foundation Establishment Cultivator.

The threat of the Lin Family still hung over his head.

Just as he broke through, a subtle fluctuation of Spiritual power rippled over the Shen Family mansion.

Although the Shen Family's protective Formation concealed most of the aura, the outburst of spiritual energy during the Breakthrough was still sensed by all the core members of the Shen Family.

In the council hall.

The Lin Tianhong, Shen Qiming, was discussing with several Elders how to downsize the industry and survive this difficult period.

Suddenly, his expression changed, and he stood up abruptly, looking in the direction of Shen Yuanmo's courtyard.

"This Spiritual power fluctuation... is it a Breakthrough?"

The Shen Qifa, Shen Qifa, was also astonished; he knew better than anyone where this aura came from.

"It's the Young Lord! It's the Young Lord breaking through!"

"Let's go, let's take a look!"

Shen Qiming could no longer sit still and was the first to rush out.

The Shen Qifa, Shen Qiwu, and other high-level members of the Shen Family followed one after another, each with a look of doubt and uncertainty on their faces.

A group of people hurried to the outside of Shen Yuanmo's courtyard, but were blocked by the tightly closed door of the quiet room.

"Yuan Mo? Yuan Mo, are you inside?" Shen Qiming called out anxiously.

"Father, I am here."

The door of the quiet room slowly opened, and Shen Yuanmo walked out.

He had changed into a clean green robe, his face was calm, but the fluctuation of magic power on his body, which was round, full, and almost overflowing, could not be faked.

Everyone present was the backbone of the Shen Family, and even the lowest cultivation was at the Middle Stage of Qi Refinement.

They saw Shen Yuanmo's current Realm at a glance.

"Qi Refinement... Great Perfection?"

The steward Shen Qiwu's eyes widened, and he spoke stammeringly; he had seen Shen Yuanmo in the council hall just yesterday, and at that time, he was clearly only at the 8th level of Qi Refinement.

Only a day and a night had passed!

"Heaven bless my Shen Family! Heaven bless my Shen Family!"

The Lin Tianhong, Shen Qiming, was trembling with excitement. He stepped forward, grabbed Shen Yuanmo's shoulders, and confirmed it repeatedly.

It was true!

It was not an illusion!

His own son, overnight, had broken through two levels from the 8th level of Qi Refinement to the Great Perfection of Qi Refinement!

What kind of talent was this!

What kind of Opportunity was this!

"Good! Good! Good!" Shen Qiming said the word "good" three times, and tears were already shining in his tiger eyes.

The clansmen who had originally wavered now looked at Shen Yuanmo with only awe and ecstasy in their eyes.

They saw hope, a living, tangible hope!

The Shen Qifa, Shen Qifa, was even more gratified; he looked at Shen Yuanmo as if he were looking at a rare treasure.

A Grandmaster of alchemy, and his cultivation speed was so fast; the rise of the Shen Family was just around the corner!

The morale within the Family was united as never before because of Shen Yuanmo's Breakthrough.

However, what the Shen Family did not know was.

Just as Shen Yuanmo broke through to the 9th level of Qi Refinement.

In an inconspicuous alley outside the Shen Family mansion, a peddler who was dozing off suddenly stiffened.

Deep in his seemingly turbid eyes, a flash of essence flickered.

"This Spiritual power fluctuation... what pure magic power!"

This person was a spy planted nearby by the Lin Family.

His cultivation was not high, only at the 5th level of Qi Refinement, but his perception was extremely keen.

Although the Shen Family's protective Formation could conceal most of the fluctuations, the spiritual Opportunity and the interaction between heaven and earth during the Breakthrough, and the wisp of aura that escaped, were still captured by him.

This wisp of aura was pure, condensed, and carried a masculine and domineering meaning.

The spy's brain worked rapidly.

A Breakthrough in the Qi Refinement Stage could not possibly have such high-quality Spiritual power fluctuations.

Who in Linjiang City didn't know that the Shen Family's Cultivation Technique was incomplete, and the magic power cultivated was mixed and unbearable.

Then, there was only one possibility left.

That rumored Old Ancestor, Shen Zongdao, who was on the verge of death!

He was not dead!

Not only was he not dead, but his injuries were improving!

This fluctuation was clearly a sign that he was stabilizing his cultivation, or even improving it!

This guess made the spy's hair stand on end.

A healthy Foundation Establishment Cultivator was a huge threat to the Lin Family.

No, this news must be reported immediately!

The spy did not dare to pause for a moment, put away the peddler's carrying pole, hurried into the crowd, and galloped toward the Lin Family in the west of the city.

Lin Family, Council Hall.

The Lin Family's Lin Tianhong was listening to his subordinate's report, his brows furrowed.

"Still haven't found out the specific situation of that old thing in the Shen Family?"

"Lin Tianhong, the Shen Family has been shrinking recently, and the core disciples are forbidden from going out. Our spies can't get close at all."

Lin Tianhong snorted coldly and put down the teacup in his hand heavily.

Just then, the peddler spy stumbled in.

"Lin Tianhong! Lin Tianhong! Something is wrong!"

Lin Tianhong sank his face: "Panicked, what is the decorum!"

"Lin Tianhong, the Shen Family... that Old Ancestor of the Shen Family, Shen Zongdao, he... his injuries are probably healed!" The spy panted, telling his discovery and guess one by one.

"What?"

Lin Tianhong stood up abruptly, and all the Lin clansmen in the hall also showed shock.

"Are you sure? Was that Spiritual power fluctuation really the aura of a Foundation Establishment Cultivator?"

"It can't be wrong!" The spy said decisively.

"The purity of that magic power is definitely not something a Qi Refinement Cultivator can possess! It must be that old scoundrel Shen Zongdao recovering his strength!"

In the hall, the atmosphere instantly solidified.

A dying Foundation Establishment Cultivator and a recovering Foundation Establishment Cultivator were two completely different concepts.

"Lin Tianhong, we can't wait any longer!" An Elder of the Lin Family urged.

"If we wait for him to fully recover, our Lin Family will have no chance!"

"That's right! We must take advantage of his illness to kill him!"

"Please give the order, Lin Tianhong, we are willing to fight to the death for the Family!"

A flash of ruthlessness flashed in the eyes of Lin Tianhong.

His original plan was to boil the frog in warm water and slowly wear out the Shen Family.

But now, the situation had changed, so he had to use thunderous means.

"Pass my order!"

The voice of Lin Tianhong echoed in the council hall.

"Gather all clansmen, retainers, and Guest Elders above the 6th level of Qi Refinement!"

"Tonight at midnight, level the Shen Family!"