Chapter 14 Qi Refining Level 4
For over ten consecutive days, Lin Yue stayed in his Immortal Cave, silently cultivating, besides handling his Sect duties.
With the Hundred Meridians Unblocked body, his Spiritual Veins, which had been clogged by pill toxins for decades, were now like withered wood meeting rain after a long drought, slowly stretching out their curled-up networks. The original 91% blockage rate quietly dropped to 88% under the wash of Spiritual Qi from Symbiotic Cultivation.
The growth of his Spiritual Qi also reached an unprecedented level.
This made handling Sect duties extra easy—tasks like rain-making and tending to the medicine fields that used to take a whole day of hard work now only took half a day to complete.
Even though to outsiders, he still looked exactly the same—old and decrepit, with one foot in the grave.
One day, Lin Yue stood in the center of his Immortal Cave, feeling a sense of fullness in his Dantian like never before, and a smile couldn't help but tug at the corners of his mouth.
A He's Everspring Art ran more and more smoothly, her light green Spiritual Qi flowing like a trickling stream through the bond of their Soul Bond, turning into the purest Vitality Power to nourish his Spiritual Veins and Physical Body.
Su Qingyuan's Burning Heaven Sword Scripture was just starting to grasp the basics; a faint, imperceptible crimson Sword Qi flowed within her. Though still immature, it carried a domineering power to burn everything, and when it merged into Lin Yue's Meridians, it actually helped him clear several minor blockages.
Luo Ningshuang's Nirvana Pill Canon was even more mysterious; as she operated her Cultivation Technique, a faint Golden Pill Radiance emitted from her Dantian. That power was gentle yet extremely resilient, repairing the old wounds on Lin Yue's Spiritual Veins bit by bit.
This was the beauty of Symbiotic Cultivation; the cultivation gains of his partners would all turn into nourishment for his own growth. The stronger they became, the stronger he became.
Lin Yue slowly closed his eyes, guiding the three different attributes of Spiritual Qi to circulate within his body. Using the Hundred Meridians Unblocked method, he merged them into one, impacting the shackles of Qi Refining Level 3.
Ten years. He had been stuck at Qi Refining Level 3 for a full ten years, going from a high-spirited Outer Sect Disciple to a withered, wretched old man. Now, he finally felt the opportunity for a Breakthrough.
Spiritual Qi galloped through his Meridians like a wild horse off its leash, impacting that invisible barrier.
Once, twice, thrice...
With each impact, Lin Yue's Physical Body grew stronger under the blessing of the Hundred Meridians Unblocked, and the blockage rate of his Spiritual Veins also dropped bit by bit.
After an unknown amount of time, a soft "crack" sounded in his Sea of Consciousness.
The shackles that had trapped him for ten years shattered.
Qi Refining Level 4!
Lin Yue snapped his eyes open, a sharp light flashing in his gaze. Although hiswhole body Spiritual Qi fluctuations were suppressed by Breath Concealment and Essence Hiding, only showing the facade of Qi Refining Level 3, he could clearly feel that the total amount of Spiritual Qi in his body had more than doubled, and its circulation speed was several times faster.
[Ding! Host has reached Qi Refining Level 4 through the Symbiotic Cultivation mechanism! Spiritual Vein blockage rate has dropped to 78%!]
[Reward Issued: Hongmeng Space (Initial Form)!]
Hongmeng Space!
The name was truly majestic and domineering; just hearing it made one's heart race, as if it contained the supreme power to create the heavens and evolve all things.
Lin Yue's heart warmed. Could it be the kind of top-tier Grotto-Heaven Magic Treasure where time flows differently and Spiritual Qi is as thick as liquid? Or perhaps a Secret Realm fragment containing an ancient Legacy?
He impatiently sent a strand of Divine Sense to carefully probe the strange coordinates that had just appeared in his perception, linked to his Soul's Origin.
In the next moment, the expected immortal palaces and spirit herbs did not appear. What presented itself in Lin Yue's "eyes," or rather his consciousness, was a... hazy, gray scene.
The space was not large; it could even be called extremely cramped. It was surrounded on all sides by gray barriers of undifferentiated Chaos that he couldn't touch or see through, leaving only this pitiful bit of volume in the center.
A very thin, almost negligible trace of Spiritual Qi permeated the space, so faint it could almost be ignored. Compared to the outside world, it offered no advantage at all, being even worse than his simple Immortal Cave.
This is it?
Lin Yue's intense excitement was like having a bucket of ice water poured over it, instantly cooling by half.
The huge psychological drop made him unable to resist roasting it in his mind: "Hongmeng Space? The name is scary enough, but it turns out to be just a... Storage Pouch? And a smallest-sized one at that?"
He had originally hoped that this foundational reward for binding a "Dual Cultivation partner" would be some kind of Heaven-Defying Divine Artifact to help him rise quickly, but he hadn't expected it to be such a shabby mini-space with unknown utility. His disappointment was beyond words.
As if sensing the host's disdain and confusion, the detailed description of the "Hongmeng Space" flowed through his mind at the right time:
[Hongmeng Space: An Origin Wonder hidden in the deepest part of the host's Sea of Consciousness, bound to the Divine Soul, undetectable and unsearchable by others. The space is in its Initial Form, occupying only a square inch of land, and can store non-living objects, yet its potential is infinite. By putting in items containing Spiritual Qi—whether Spirit Stones, spirit materials, or magical artifact remains—their Spiritual Qi can be absorbed by the space, promoting the growth and expansion of the space. With perseverance, this square inch of land may evolve into a real world, setting its own rules and nurturing living beings.]
Form its own world?
The last few sentences of this description made Lin Yue's heart skip a beat.
Although the earlier description still seemed like a "pit" that required constant resource investment, the ultimate prospect of "evolving into a world" was simply too shocking.
This was no longer comparable to ordinary storage artifacts or Grotto-Heaven Magic Treasures; it involved the creation of a world's Origin!
His sense of disappointment receded slightly, replaced by cautious observation and a spark of interest. He had heard of growth-type Magic Treasures, but one whose growth limit was "a world" was unheard of.
[Since the protagonist's current cultivation is too low, only the Medicine Plot function is open. Spirit Medicine can be cultivated in the space's Medicine Plot with accelerated growth; the current growth rate is 10 times that of the outside world.]
Lin Yue was overjoyed. He suppressed the excitement in his heart and turned to look at A He.
A He was still sitting cross-legged on her cushion, and the light green spiritual light around her was becoming more intense; she had unknowingly broken through to Qi Refining Level 1.
This girl's talent was far better than he had imagined. The Azure Vine Mysterious Water Spiritual Root paired with the Everspring Art was simply a match made in heaven. Given time, she would surely become a Great Spirit Plant Master.
Beside her, Su Qingyuan was currently frowning, fine beads of sweat seeping from her forehead. She tightly gripped that tattered Flying Sword, and crimson Sword Qi flickered at the tip, but it could never quite condense into form.
Although the Innate Sword Bone was strong, Su Qingyuan had practiced mortal swordsmanship since childhood and was completely ignorant of the sword dao methods of the cultivation world. The Burning Heaven Sword Scripture was also extremely domineering, so as a beginner, it was inevitable she would encounter problems.
"The Burning Heaven Sword Scripture focuses on intent; control the sword with your heart, not with force," Lin Yue advised. "Let the Sword Qi flow through your Innate Sword Bone rather than trying to force it."
Following the method Lin Yue described, Su Qingyuan operated the Burning Heaven Sword Scripture again. The crimson Sword Qi slowly flowed along the Innate Sword Bone. This time, there was none of the previous resistance, and the Sword Qi condensed into a point of crimson light at the sword tip, smooth as flowing clouds and water.
Lin Yue praised, "Not bad. Continue refining it. Once the Sword Qi solidifies, you can try Qi Induction to step into Qi Refining Level 1."
Luo Ningshuang sat cross-legged in the corner of the Immortal Cave, surrounded by a faint Golden Pill Radiance. Her originally shattered Meridians were quietly recovering under the nourishment of the Nirvana Pill Canon, and the Origin power in her Dantian was no longer as deathly still as before.
Luo Ningshuang's talent was the highest among the three. With the Innate Pill Body paired with the Nirvana Pill Canon, repairing her Meridians was only a matter of time.
It was just that her Meridians were too severely damaged, so the nourishment process was extremely slow and still required a large amount of Heaven And Earth Treasures for assistance.
This was also the biggest headache Lin Yue faced at the moment—earning Spirit Stones.
The monthly payment for the Wife-Providing Contract required 12 Low-Grade Spirit Stones per person each month. For three people, that was 36 stones, plus interest; added together, he needed to pay at least 40 Low-Grade Spirit Stones every month.
And now, the Spirit Stones on his person were completely empty. If he couldn't make the monthly payment, Zhou Biao would surely come looking for trouble and might even take back his three partners.
At this point, his only option was to utilize A He's talent for Spirit Plants to Cultivate medicinal herbs.
He had managed the medicine garden of the Qingyun Sect's outer Sect for decades and knew the growth habits of various medicinal herbs like the back of his hand. Combined with A He's ability to communicate with Spirit Plants, cultivating high-quality medicinal herbs would not be difficult.