4: Qi Condensation Pill

Lin Feng woke up quietly before dawn.

A warm and soft presence was in his arms; Ye Yuner was curled up against his chest, fast asleep.

Usually, she would have already been up and busy by this time, but now her breathing was steady and deep.

One of her arms was still tightly clutching his; Lin Feng carefully and gradually pulled his arm away from her embrace.

Only when it was completely free did he let out a silent sigh of relief, his fingertips instinctively brushing over her slightly furrowed brow, wishing to smooth away that trace of worry.

'Yuner...' His heart softened for a moment, then hardened again. 'It is precisely for you that I cannot stop.'

He put on his outer robe, tiptoed out of bed, and went to the edge of the field.

Looking up, he saw that there was actually no one in the fields.

So, he stretched his limbs and loosened up. Surprisingly, after working through half the night, his spirit and strength were even better.

Lin Feng sat cross-legged by the field and attempted to draw the Qi of heaven and earth into his body.

Two hours later, he shook his head helplessly; there was no effect at all.

His consciousness sank into his Sea of Consciousness. The heaven-stealing vine seemed to have grown a tiny bit; its two tender leaves were slightly more unfurled, and its spiritual tendrils were a bit thicker.

Lin Feng tried to extend a spiritual tendril toward Third Brother Wang, who had just entered the field not far away.

After a moment, he withdrew the spiritual tendril, his brow furrowed.

'No... too weak.'

He looked up, his gaze passing over the layers of terraced fields toward the peaks deep within the Sect, shrouded in mist and glowing with soaring spiritual light.

Those were the residences and cultivation grounds for Inner Sect Disciples and core Elders.

But he knew that as a Utility Disciple, he didn't even have the right to approach those peaks.

To him, that area was like another world.

"Senior Brother Lin?" A soft call, tinged with drowsiness, came from behind him.

Lin Feng turned around and saw Ye Yuner standing at the door of the small shack, looking at him with some unease.

"Breakfast... is ready."

Lin Feng felt a warmth in his heart and quickly walked back to her side, taking her hand.

Her cheeks flushed slightly, and she hurriedly turned back to get the wotou.

Lin Feng watched her slender, busy figure. Even though only one night had passed, Ye Yuner had changed significantly, her whole being radiating an indescribable vibrancy.

After this period of time, the two of them naturally started living together.

However, the changes in the medicinal field could no longer be hidden.

Those Disciples who had previously relied on connections to occupy good fields and worked lazily now looked at the Spiritual Plants in their own fields and compared them to the two waste fields at the foot of the mountain with their terrifying growth. Their gazes changed.

"What kind of dumb luck is this..."

"He must have secretly used some forbidden medicine to overdraw the land's power!"

"Everyone check if any Spiritual Plants are missing from your own fields..."

Whispers and malicious glares began to circulate in the Herb Garden.

Lin Feng could clearly feel those unfriendly stares, but he had no time to deal with them; his entire mind was immersed in improving his strength.

Using the heaven-stealing vine to graft and transform Evil Qi was extremely mentally draining, but it was also a form of tempering for his spiritual power.

Lin Feng could feel that the spiritual power in his body was much more substantial than before, and his body was much stronger, no longer looking like it would topple over in a gust of wind.

However, the barrier to the Second Level of Qi Refining was like a solid gate, firmly blocking him.

The speed of spiritual power accumulation was far from keeping up with the requirements for a Breakthrough.

Relying solely on himself to absorb this thin and Evil Qi-filled Spiritual Qi to break through within half a year was simply a pipe dream.

After discussing it with Ye Yuner, the two of them carefully harvested the first batch of fully matured High Grade Spiritual Plants, wrapped them in damp cloth, and hid them in their robes.

Lin Feng turned to glance at the medicinal field; the remaining Spiritual Plants in the field were enough for the end-of-month quota.

The Sect Market at the foot of the mountain was more bustling than Lin Feng had imagined.

The stalls were cluttered, mostly selling low-level Materials, damaged Magical Artifacts, and various Medicinal Pills and Talismans of unknown origin.

He found a stall that bought Spiritual Plants. When the shopkeeper saw the ten High Grade Spiritual Plants they produced, he was clearly stunned. After a careful inspection, a hint of surprise flashed in his eyes.

In the end, they were bought at a price of one and a half Spirit Stones each, totaling fifteen Low-Grade Spirit Stones.

Holding this heavy bag of shimmering Spirit Stones, Lin Feng's hands trembled slightly.

Not daring to delay, he immediately rushed to the Medicinal Pill shop.

The cheapest qi condensing pills cost five Spirit Stones per bottle, and a bottle contained only three pills.

He gritted his teeth and bought two bottles.

He then bought the cheapest "Qi Induction Art" at the Cultivation Technique shop, spending his last five Spirit Stones.

Back at the small shack, Ye Yuner was already waiting, and the two of them were impatient.

Each of them swallowed a qi condensing pill. The qi condensing pill could accelerate the speed at which Cultivators in the Qi Refinement Stage absorbed Spiritual Qi and stabilize their nascent sense of Qi.

Once the pill entered the stomach, it turned into a warm current that was clearly several times purer than the Spiritual Qi they usually absorbed.

They immediately began to circulate their Cultivation Technique according to the newly acquired Qi Induction Art.

The Spiritual Qi provided by the qi condensing pill was rapidly refined and absorbed, merging into their Meridians and Dantian.

After completing several cycles, the pill's efficacy was fully absorbed.

Lin Feng opened his eyes and let out a long breath of turbid air. He felt refreshed, the spiritual power in his body had clearly grown significantly, and even his senses seemed slightly sharper.

'It works. Medicinal Pills and Cultivation Techniques are indeed the Righteous Path.'

Ye Yuner also looked delighted, having clearly gained a lot.

Two days later, Steward Wang arrived at Lin Feng's field with a gloomy face, accompanied by Zhang Hu.

Lin Feng remembered this Zhang Hu; he was the cousin's nephew of Senior Brother Li from the Inner Sect.

"Lin Feng, what's going on with the Spiritual Plants in your field?" Steward Wang asked in an unfriendly tone, his small eyes fixed on the exceptionally well-grown Spiritual Plants.

Lin Feng's heart tightened, but he remained calm on the surface. "This Disciple has had some realizations recently and has been tending to them diligently, therefore..."

"Bullshit!" Steward Wang interrupted him, pointing at several inconspicuous spots of freshly turned soil near the edge of the field.

"Someone reported that you stole others' Spiritual Plants and planted them in your own field to make up the numbers. These marks were left by you during your crime last night."

Lin Feng stared at Zhang Hu, deep in thought. "Steward Wang, please be discerning. This Disciple absolutely did not commit theft; this is clearly someone framing me."

"The evidence is conclusive, yet you still dare to argue!" Steward Wang didn't listen to the explanation at all, or rather, he didn't care about the truth.

He had long disliked Lin Feng and was just using this as a pretext.

"Humph, it seems I've been too lenient with you all. I punish you to go to the 'Preaching Cliff' immediately to sweep the stone steps. You are not allowed to return until you've finished all three thousand steps. Your field will be temporarily looked after by Zhang Hu."

Preaching Cliff.

That was where Outer Sect Disciples listened to Inner Sect Senior Brothers or Elders preach the Dao. It was not a short distance away, and the stone steps were long and steep; cleaning them would be extremely time-consuming and physically draining.

More importantly, being punished to go there meant he couldn't look after his own medicinal field or Cultivate.

Looked after by Zhang Hu?

By the time he returned, the Spiritual Plants in the field would likely have "accidentally" withered and died.

Lin Feng clenched his fists, his nails nearly digging into his palms.

He glared at Steward Wang's smug and sinister pockmarked face, rage boiling in his chest, but he had to force it down.

He took a deep breath and lowered his head, hiding the cold light in his eyes, as he squeezed out a few words through his teeth:

"This Disciple... accepts the punishment."