154: Chapter 154 The Fifteenth Level of Qi Refining: A Strange Shackle

The night on Tingzhu Peak felt heavier than usual.

Inside the bamboo hut, the flickering candlelight projected Xu Ruyu's cross-legged figure onto the wall; with the swaying flame, he looked like a dormant beast.

He had been sitting like this for a full day and night.

From dawn to dusk, and now into the deep night, the True Explanation of Taixu Source Energy circulated endlessly within him. Deep in his Qi Sea, the ring-shaped structures of Qi Refining Level 9 lit up layer by layer with a silver-white radiance under the scouring of his True Qi.

But the strange thing was—no matter how he pushed his Cultivation Technique, how he absorbed the kinetic energy of the air from the world, or how he funneled that pure True Qi into his Qi Sea, his Realm remained stuck at the Qi Refinement Stage.

It wasn't that there was no Breakthrough.

Rather... he had broken through, yet he hadn't.

Xu Ruyu could clearly feel that his total volume of True Qi was growing frantically, his Qi Sea was constantly expanding, and his Meridians were becoming tougher and wider with each wash.

He could even "see" that the nine-layered ring-shaped Qi Sea within him was quietly undergoing some kind of transformation—

Beyond the ninth layer, the originally blurred and illusory outline of a tenth layer gradually solidified.

Then came the eleventh layer.

The twelfth layer.

...

The fifteenth layer.

When he woke from his meditation and inspected his Dantian internally, he saw a full fifteen layers of ringed Qi Seas. Like fifteen layers of heavenly gates nested within one another, silver-white Taixu True Qi circulated through them, pure and majestic.

That aura had already far surpassed an ordinary Cultivator at the Qi Refinement Stage.

In fact... Xu Ruyu had an intuition that the total volume of True Qi in his Qi Sea right now was likely no less than that of a Golden Core Initial Stage Cultivator.

But what about his Realm?

It was still the Qi Refinement Stage.

Qi Refining Level 15.

A bizarre Realm he had never even heard of.

"Why..."

Xu Ruyu opened his eyes, which were filled with confusion and incomprehension.

Logically, upon reaching Perfection at Qi Refining Level 4, one should attempt to charge into Foundation Establishment.

But look at him; not only had he charged all the way to Qi Refining Level 9, but he had now even broken through to the fifteenth level—and by the looks of it, there seemed to be no sign of stopping.

It was as if his Qi Refinement Stage was a bottomless pit that could be cultivated forever without end.

"Could it be because of the True Explanation of Taixu Source Energy?"

Xu Ruyu frowned in thought.

This Cultivation Technique was derived from scientific concepts of his previous life, emphasizing that "all things are energy." It used air kinetic energy, chemical bond energy, and the like as sources to convert into Taixu True Qi.

The cultivation method was completely different from traditional Cultivation Techniques; it followed a different path.

But even so, the Realm system should be consistent.

Qi Refinement, Foundation Establishment, Golden Core, Nascent Soul, Soul Transformation...

This was the iron Law of this Cultivation World, an embodiment of the Laws of Heaven and Earth.

How could he have jumped out of this framework?

"No..."

Xu Ruyu suddenly remembered an obscure ancient book he had seen before in the Hall of Power Transmission—"Miscellaneous Talks of Ancient Qi Refiners."

The book mentioned that in ancient times, the Cultivation World didn't only have the current Realm system.

There was a type of Cultivator known as "Ancient Cultivators" who followed a completely different path—they cultivated the Qi Refinement Stage to the absolute extreme, tempering a supreme Dao Foundation, and then skipped Foundation Establishment entirely to strike for the Golden Core.

That cultivation method had terrifyingly high requirements for Aptitude, Comprehension Ability, and resources, but once successful, one would be invincible among peers and fighting those of higher Realms would be as easy as a home-cooked meal.

However, after the great changes in heaven and earth and the decline of Spiritual Qi, that path's Legacy was gradually lost, leading to the current, more "efficient" Realm system.

"Could I have... accidentally stepped onto the path of an Ancient Cultivator?"

Xu Ruyu's heart stirred.

If that was truly the case, then it seemed to make sense why he was stuck in the Qi Refinement Stage and unable to break through.

The path of an Ancient Cultivator was precisely to build the Foundation to its extreme during the Qi Refinement Stage, and then break through the shackles in one go to enter the Golden Core directly.

But...

Xu Ruyu frowned again.

That book also said that while Ancient Cultivators were strong, cultivation was difficult, and every step was like walking on thin ice. Most importantly—that path had long been severed, and even the specific cultivation methods were lost.

As someone who had stumbled onto this path by mistake, how was he supposed to continue?

What if he went the wrong way? Would he suffer Qi Deviation and lose all his cultivation?

The more Xu Ruyu thought about it, the more unsettled he became.

He got up and walked out of the bamboo hut, standing in the courtyard and looking up at the night sky.

The moon was bright and the stars were sparse; the sea of bamboo rustled in the night breeze.

Only two days remained until the Three-Month Agreement.

In two days, he would step onto the life-and-death arena to face Leng Ningshuang, who was at the Late Golden Core Stage.

With his current cultivation of Qi Refining Level 15, facing the Late Golden Core Stage... it was still a near-certain death.

Unless he could break through within these two days.

But how could he break through?

He didn't even have a direction.

"Sigh..."

Xu Ruyu sighed and turned back into the bamboo hut.

He decided to go find Lady Qingli.

That Taihu Clan Elder, with her mysterious origin and vast knowledge, might... be able to give him some answers.

Lady Qingli lived in an elegant small courtyard on the other side of Tingzhu Peak.

That was the residence Xiao Nianyin had specially arranged for her when she came to "visit" the Hehuan Sect—though it was called an arrangement, it was more like surveillance.

After all, for a Transformed Great Demon to live within the Sect, there had to be a legitimate reason.

When Xu Ruyu arrived, Lady Qingli was sitting by a stone table in the courtyard, drinking alone under the moon.

Tonight she wore a water-green long dress with silver patterns embroidered on the hem, which shimmered with a faint glow in the moonlight.

Her long hair was loosely pinned up with only a green jade hairpin, with a few stray strands falling by her temples, making her charming face look even more enchanting.

On the stone table sat a pot of wine, two jade cups, and several plates of exquisite side dishes.

"Oh, Xiao Yuer is here?"

Lady Qingli heard the footsteps and turned her head. Seeing Xu Ruyu, a hint of a smile flashed in her eyes:

"You've come at just the right time. Come have a few drinks with your sister."

Xu Ruyu walked to the stone table and sat down, but he didn't touch the wine cup. He just looked at Lady Qingli, hesitating to speak.

"What's wrong?" Lady Qingli raised an eyebrow, poured herself a cup of wine, and then poured one for Xu Ruyu. "Looking so gloomy—who bullied you?"

"Senior..." Xu Ruyu hesitated for a moment before speaking. "I've encountered some problems with my cultivation and wanted to ask for your advice."

"Problems?" Lady Qingli picked up her wine cup and swirled it gently, the liquid rippling inside. "Let's hear it."

Xu Ruyu organized his thoughts and explained the situation of being stuck in the Qi Refinement Stage while his levels continued to increase.

He didn't mention the True Explanation of Taixu Source Energy or the Ancient Cultivators; he only said that while cultivating, his total True Qi was growing but his Realm wouldn't break through, and he had now reached Qi Refining Level 15.

Lady Qingli listened quietly without interrupting.

It wasn't until Xu Ruyu finished that she put down her wine cup and looked at him with a half-smile:

"So, Xiao Yuer thinks... something has gone wrong with your cultivation?"

"I..." Xu Ruyu gave a bitter smile. "I don't know. I've never heard of this situation. Qi Refining Level 15... does such a Realm even exist in the Cultivation World?"

"It doesn't exist in the Cultivation World," Lady Qingli said leisurely, "but that doesn't mean it doesn't exist elsewhere."

She paused, then suddenly leaned closer to Xu Ruyu, her peach-blossom eyes scanning his face, her tone suggestive:

"But Xiao Yuer, your cultivation speed... is a bit fast. It's only been a few days, and you've charged from Qi Refining Level 9 to Level 15? Did you get some 'special' Opportunity in the Ancient Hall of Love and Heaven?"