21: Breakthroughs

Liu Xuan tucked the letter he had finished reading into his sleeve, cupped his hands in a salute to Liu Gang, and said, "Fellow Daoist Liu Gang, I still have some matters to attend to. Could we depart in two days?"

Red Pine City was chaotic, and Liu Xuan felt insecure. His cultivation could Breakthrough within these two days, so he planned to Breakthrough first before heading into the city.

"Fine!"

Liu Gang nodded expressionlessly and turned to leave.

Afterward, Liu Xuan focused on Cultivating. The Kunpeng Swallowing Heaven Body Refining Method could be Cultivated continuously, so Liu Xuan set aside all his Talisman Drawing time to Cultivate.

The next afternoon.

Inside the Immortal Cave.

Liu Xuan's heart pounded violently, steam rose from his skin, and it turned the color of a boiled shrimp.

Jet-black sweat beads constantly emerged from his body, quickly forming an oily layer.

"Thump! Thump! Thump!..."

His heart vibrated rhythmically, and his Bloodline Power washed over his entire Physical Body along the capillaries throughout his body.

Suddenly!

Liu Xuan opened his eyes, the flush on his Face rapidly faded, and his heartbeat slowed down, but every beat was extremely powerful.

"First Layer of Body Refining!"

Liu Xuan pinched his fingers to cast a Cleaning Spell, and the grease on his body fell away, revealing skin as smooth as warm white jade.

Without testing, Liu Xuan could sense his current Physical Body strength; it was comparable to a Low Grade Magical Artifact, and furthermore, a Low Grade Magical Artifact that could self-repair.

The Kunpeng Swallowing Heaven Body Refining Method was not merely about enhancing defense!

Gathering his Blood Qi power into his right arm, Liu Xuan threw a punch into the air in front of him.

"Boom~"

A booming sound similar to a sonic boom echoed.

Based on Liu Xuan's comparison of his strength with Lin Xue'er, Da Shuang, and Xiao Shuang, his strength with just his First Layer of Body Refining cultivation was not inferior to the Peak of Internal Qi.

Clenching his fists, Liu Xuan was filled with joy. The thrill of this improvement in strength and the enhancement of his life essence was extraordinary.

Besides the increase in strength, there were many accompanying enhancements to his vision, sense of smell, hearing... and body. Liu Xuan immersed himself in sensing these bodily changes for quite a while.

The human Physical Body is a treasure trove; by continuously developing and enhancing it, one can unleash extremely powerful strength.

Just as Liu Xuan was sensing the changes in his body, a faint cracking sound suddenly appeared within his Dantian.

Ten drops of mana shattered, then fused into a higher-quality mana bead.

The Spiritual Qi in the room was constantly being absorbed into Liu Xuan's body, and the mana bead's spiritual light grew brighter and brighter.

"Second Layer of Qi Refining!"

The original feeling of fullness in his Dantian disappeared, and he could continue to Cultivate and enhance his Dantian mana again!

Cultivation during the Qi Refinement Stage is basically the accumulation of mana. As long as one has an Immortal Cave with sufficient Spiritual Qi and enough Medicinal Pills, refining mana is not difficult.

The difficulty lies in the Bottleneck; if the Bottleneck cannot be broken through, taking ordinary Medicinal Pills to Cultivate is also useless.

Liu Xuan had carefully studied Cultivation Techniques. In fact, the Bottleneck was easy to understand: it was simply that the Dantian's capacity was full, and one must enhance the strength of the Dantian to continue accommodating more mana.

Other Cultivators could only use mana to slowly integrate into their Dantian bit by bit until the Dantian underwent a qualitative change, only then could they achieve a Breakthrough.

Liu Xuan estimated that the Kunpeng Swallowing Heaven Body Refining Method he Cultivated could also incidentally enhance the quality of his Dantian, thereby accelerating Breakthroughs of Bottlenecks.

"Of course!"

These were just Liu Xuan's guesses; he was only a small Cultivator at the early Qi Refinement Stage, and his understanding of the Dao of Cultivation was not deep.

Regardless, a Breakthrough was a good thing.

Liu Xuan now had Second Layer of Qi Refining mana cultivation, coupled with a Physical Body comparable to a First-Rank Magical Artifact. Even a Middle Stage Qi Refining Cultivator would suffer if caught off guard by him. He finally had a sliver of self-preservation ability.

...

The next day.

Liu Xuan was dressed in the First-Rank Talisman Master magic robe of the Talisman Hall's Inner Sect, with a cyan Magical Artifact sword hanging at his waist, looking like a dashing Sword Immortal.

"Why do I feel that Young Master is even more handsome than before?"

Xiao Shuang stared at Liu Xuan, looking him up and down, with a puzzled look on her Face.

Lin Xue'er and Da Shuang looked over upon hearing this. Liu Xuan's skin was fairer than before, and while his facial features hadn't changed, he had gained an inexplicable aura.

"He really is more handsome!"

Da Shuang nodded in agreement.

Before they could ask, Liu Xuan revealed the aura fluctuations on his body and smiled, saying:

"I achieved a Breakthrough to the Second Layer of Qi Refining yesterday; this change must be due to the mana nourishing my body!"

The mana's nourishment of the Physical Body was limited and would not achieve such an effect, but the three women were shocked by the news of Liu Xuan's Breakthrough and did not pay attention to this detail.

"Knock knock!"

While the family was happily celebrating, a knocking sound came from behind the door.

Calculating the time, it should be Liu Gang who had arrived. Liu Xuan instructed the three women a few words and got up to go out.

Liu Gang stood at the door without saying a word, and did not speak when he saw Liu Xuan appear.

"Let's go!"

Liu Xuan walked ahead. He did not go directly out of the city, but instead went to the Dual Cultivation Hall to rent a carriage.

A Cultivator in the early Qi Refinement Stage could only barely fly; not to mention the massive consumption of mana, if one encountered danger, it was very easy to fall to one's death. Therefore, when traveling, they generally rode Spirit Beasts or Spirit Beast carriages.

"Of course!"

If one had money, one could also ride flying Spirit Beasts or use flying Magical Artifacts that consumed Spirit Stones.

The lowest-level Low Grade First-Rank flying Spirit Beast from the Spirit Plant Hall, the Iron Feather Eagle, only sold for eighty-eight Spirit Stones, and only required feeding three pigs a day.

A pig was worth about one gold coin; eating at least three gold coins a day meant it could eat over a hundred Spirit Stones a year. Liu Xuan could not only not afford to buy it, but he also couldn't afford to raise it.

There were cheap flying Magical Artifacts; a dedicated Low Grade First-Rank Flying Sword cost at least ten Spirit Stones.

However, it could only reduce the mana consumption of flight, and its utility was very mediocre.

That kind of Flying Boat that could fly by consuming Spirit Stones and had decent defensive capabilities was at least Medium Grade First-Rank, which Liu Xuan also could not afford.

The Dual Cultivation Hall's carriage was not bad; the horse pulling the carriage was not an ordinary horse, but a Yao horse possessing Yao Beast Bloodline.

A carriage sold for three Spirit Stones, and renting it for three days only cost one gold coin.

Renting was not cheap, but the Dual Cultivation Hall included a coachman and accompanying services. Liu Xuan didn't need to worry about anything; he just needed to point out the destination and give instructions.

Liu Xuan paid one Spirit Stone and rented it for a month first. The carriage started moving and headed toward Red Pine City.

Red Pine City was right opposite the Red Pine Sect, separated only by a river. The distance was not far; even if just walking, it would only take a little less than an hour.

But Liu Xuan was a dignified Inner Sect Disciple of the Red Pine Sect, a noble First-Rank Talisman Master, how could he walk?

Liu Xuan was going to do business; things like Face are very valuable and could not be lost!

In less than a quarter of an hour.

The carriage arrived at the Red Pine City gate, and Liu Xuan looked out from the carriage window.

There was a long line of people at the city gate, with soldiers checking the identity of every person entering the city, as well as goods being transported into the city.

The carriage did not follow the line but turned to another empty entrance on the side.

There was no need for inspection, and no soldiers blocked them; only a few Martial Artists at the door recorded them from afar. The carriage drove straight in and entered Red Pine City.

The carriage did not stop along the way, passing through the bustling outer city and heading toward the center of the city.

Residents along the way avoided it one after another, their gazes toward the carriage filled with envy and awe.

Most of the people living in the outer city of Red Pine City were ordinary people, not even in the Muscle and Bone Realm of martial arts. The carriage Liu Xuan was sitting in was already a luxury vehicle to them.