Chapter 160 - 156: Qi Refining Level 8
Over the next few days, Li Yuan took one Iron Wall Pill daily and cultivated using the Iron Wall Body Refining Skill.
After taking the second Iron Wall Pill, Li Yuan began circulating the Iron Wall Body Refining Skill.
Medicinal power seeped out from deep within his bones, and a searing heat spread from his spine to his limbs. Spiritual Power poured into the depths of his muscles along the pathways of the Iron Wall Body Refining Skill. The absorption channels opened by the Iron Wall Pill had not yet closed, allowing the Spiritual Power to surge unimpeded, seeping from the surface of his muscle fibers all the way to the periosteum.
After completing five cycles, Li Yuan slowly concluded his practice.
[Cultivation Technique: Iron Wall Body Refining Skill - Proficient (0/400)]
’It’s proficient now.’
Li Yuan clenched his fist. The muscles in his forearm were clearly defined when they contracted and felt a measure harder beneath his skin. It wasn’t a superficial hardness, but a density that seemed to push outward from within the muscle itself.
He used the remaining two pills within four days, and the effects of each were amplified by the tempering of his bone marrow and the nourishment of the Spirit Liquid. The proficiency of his Iron Wall Body Refining Skill rose steadily.
Although he was practicing the Iron Wall Body Refining Skill, Li Yuan’s main focus was always the Spirit-Introducing Skill.
He had already smoothed out all the meridian nodes of the eighth layer; Spiritual Power now flowed through them without any manual guidance. The ninth layer progressed more slowly than the eighth, but after circulating it two or three times each day, the nodes gradually transformed from unfamiliar to familiar.
Late one night, Li Yuan sat cross-legged in the main room, circulating the Spirit-Introducing Skill.
As time passed, Spiritual Power flowed out from the final node of the ninth layer and returned to his Dantian along the meridians. The entire path of the Spirit-Introducing Skill, from the start of the first layer to the end of the ninth, was now complete. His Spiritual Power could traverse the entire circuit without a single pause.
[Cultivation Technique: Spirit-Introducing Skill - Perfected (3200/3200)]
’Perfected, once again.’
The paths were the same, and the meridian nodes were connected. The foundation of the first seven layers was already at the fluency of the Perfected realm. Although the eighth and ninth layers were new routes, the meridians had long since been opened by the Microelement Meridian Introduction Skill. The only thing that needed refining was his proficiency with the technique’s pathways themselves.
His cultivation efficiency was now a notch higher than when he only had seven layers. A single cycle of Spiritual Power through his meridians now covered a wider area, and the Spiritual Power that settled into his Dantian was denser.
For the next few days, life in the outer perimeter continued as usual.
He made and sold Talismans during the day and cultivated at night. Fang Laosan helped with customers every day, with Fireball Talismans and Concealing Breath Talismans remaining the bestsellers. Li Yuan spent several hours each day drawing Talismans to replenish his stock, pouring all his remaining time into cultivation.
His cultivation was getting closer and closer to the Qi Refining Eighth Level.
This morning, there was a knock at his courtyard gate.
Wang Lu.
He stood at the entrance, holding a document in his hand.
"There’s a change in the mission."
The two entered the main house.
Wang Lu placed the document on the table.
"The cleanup for the Wuya Gang is mostly done. The captives have been interrogated, and we’ve followed the leads to their end."
"But our main objective, the leader of the rogue cultivators who raided the medicinal garden... we only have a single clue."
Wang Lu tucked his hands into his sleeves.
"According to the captives’ testimony, they had contact with the leader of the rogue cultivators. The man took the medicinal herbs stolen from the garden and went to the Spirit Ruins Secret Realm."
’The Spirit Ruins Secret Realm. That was the secret realm ruin whose entrance the Primordial Yang Sect had opened up, the one the street vendor mentioned.’
"Why go to the secret realm?"
"Uncertain. He might be looking for Spirit Essence Fruit, he might be laying low, or it could be both."
Wang Lu’s tone was even. "The situation inside the secret realm is complicated. Your entry point is random, and a larger group is more likely to be picked off one by one."
He looked at Li Yuan.
"For now, Uncle Qu will pursue him alone."
"Your part of the investigation is over. You can return to the market city. We’ll set out in a few days."
Li Yuan nodded and put the document away.
Wang Lu didn’t stay long. After relaying the information, he left.
The next day, Li Yuan left the outer perimeter and entered the Yunyang market city.
He planned to sell off the Talismans he had on hand before he had to leave.
First, he went to a purchasing shop.
He took out nearly all the Talismans he had accumulated in his storage pouch: Fireball Talismans, Heart-lock Talismans, Qi Gathering Talismans, Rejuvenation Talismans, Vajra Talismans, Golden Blade Talismans, Blood Replenishing Talismans, Investigation Talismans, Cleaning Talismans, Exorcism Talismans, and Concealing Breath Talismans. He kept only a few Heart-lock Talismans and Fireball Talismans for self-defense and put the rest up for sale.
The Shopkeeper checked a sample of each type and then tallied the total on his abacus with a series of sharp CLACKS.
"A total of one hundred twenty-three Spirit Stones."
Li Yuan counted them once before putting them into his storage pouch.
Leaving the purchasing shop, he ambled south along the main street.
The main street was as bustling as the past few days.
As he neared the southern end of the main street’s central section, Li Yuan’s pace slowed.
At a Loose Cultivator’s roadside stall, an assortment of miscellaneous items were on display: a few ore chunks, two bottles of medicinal liquid, a pair of slightly used iron shears, and several crudely made Magical Artifact components.
At the far right of the stall mat sat an Alchemy Furnace.
It was of a medium size, about a foot tall, grayish-black, with an iron body resting on three legs like a tripod.
There were several scuff marks and black soot stains on its walls, showing it had seen many years of use.
A wooden sign next to it read: "Old Iron Alchemy Furnace, Tier One Low Grade, twenty-five Spirit Stones."
Li Yuan hadn’t planned on stopping.
An old Alchemy Furnace was of no use to him. He didn’t know Alchemy, nor did he have any real need for it.
But as he passed by, his fingers habitually brushed against the items on the stall.
The instant his fingertips touched the furnace wall, the panel popped up.
[Equippable item detected]
[Item Affix Tier: Green]
[Note: Item does not belong to you. Cannot be equipped. Cannot view detailed information.]
’Green.’
Li Yuan stopped in his tracks.
His fingers lingered on the furnace wall for another breath.
’Twenty-five Spirit Stones for a green affix.’
An Alchemy Furnace was indeed of no direct use to him. But a green affix was a different story.
He mentally reviewed his experience with making affixes permanent.
’My self-made Talismans can have their affixes made permanent because the creation process itself satisfies some condition of the system.’
’Perhaps refining a Spirit Pill could also trigger the panel.’
’And it’s only twenty-five Spirit Stones.’
Li Yuan picked up the Alchemy Furnace and examined its bottom. A few extremely faint Spirit Patterns were carved at the base of the three legs, worn nearly smooth. The inside wall of the furnace was caked with a thick layer of medicinal residue, a testament to years of Alchemy.
"How much for this?" Li Yuan asked, holding up the Alchemy Furnace toward the stall owner.
The owner, a skinny Loose Cultivator in his fifties, was dozing with his head tilted. He opened his eyes at the sound of Li Yuan’s voice and glanced over.
"Twenty-five Spirit Stones. It’s used, but it works. The craftsmanship is just a little poor."
"Twenty."
The stall owner clicked his tongue and hesitated for a breath.
"Twenty-two."
"Deal."
Li Yuan counted out twenty-two Spirit Stones, placed them on the stall cloth, and put the Alchemy Furnace into his storage pouch.
He continued on his way.
’I won’t check the affix details now.’ The stall area was bustling with people; it wouldn’t be wise to stare blankly at an Alchemy Furnace in public. ’I’ll check it back at my place.’
He turned off the main street, heading toward the city’s exit.
The outline of the shanty district appeared ahead. Old Sun’s stall was at the very back.
When Li Yuan walked over, Old Sun was squatting by a medicine cauldron, portioning a batch of medicinal liquid into porcelain vials.
Hearing footsteps, Old Sun looked up.
"You’re here. Good timing, I just finished a new batch of Evil Essence Pills."
He pulled out several small vials from a corner of his stall.
"Fifty pills. Usual price, ninety Spirit Stones."
Li Yuan counted out the Spirit Stones, placed them on the stone counter, and put the porcelain vials into his storage pouch.
Old Sun grunted in acknowledgment and squatted back down by his medicine cauldron to continue his work.
Li Yuan left the periphery of the Pill Hall, retraced his steps out of the city, and returned to his residence in the outer perimeter.
He closed the courtyard gate and entered the main house.
Li Yuan sat cross-legged on his bed plank.
He took out the Evil Essence Pills from his storage pouch, tipped out three, and swallowed them.
Once the pills entered his stomach, the Evil Qi and medicinal effects spread out simultaneously. The nourishment from the Spirit Liquid boosted the pill’s effect on his Spiritual Power by thirty percent, while his affinity for Evil Qi suppressed its negative side effects to a minimum.
He began circulating the Iron Wall Body Refining Skill. The Evil Qi seeped into his fascia and bones, while his Qi Blood surged through him from within.
Then, he switched back to the Spirit-Introducing Skill.
Spiritual Qi from all directions surged into his body. With the Spirit-Introducing Skill now Perfected, all nine layers of meridian pathways were fully connected, and a single circulation of Spiritual Power covered every meridian in his body. The Pure Spiritual Power expelled impurities as it condensed and sank into his Dantian.
The lingering Spiritual Essence from the Spirit Absorption Pill continued to provide a boost, making his cultivation speed more than twice that of an ordinary person.
One cycle, two cycles, three cycles.
With each passing cycle, the Spiritual Power in his Dantian accumulated.
By late the next night, the Spiritual Power in his Dantian was saturated.
Not just nearing saturation, but truly, completely full.
Spiritual Power filled every corner of his Dantian; any more would cause it to overflow. The pressure on the walls of his Dantian reached its limit, and the Spiritual Power churned violently within.
The bottleneck of the Qi Refining Seventh Level.
Without hesitation, Li Yuan accelerated the circulation of his cultivation technique.
His Spiritual Power flowed naturally. When it encountered the bottleneck, it paused only for a moment before shattering it.
Spiritual Power surged through the breach into a deeper space within his Dantian. This new space was a size larger than the original. The inflowing Spiritual Power spread out rapidly, filling every corner.
His meridians expanded in sync. Under the impact of the Spiritual Power, every meridian in his body widened slightly, and the capacity of their walls increased once more. The speed at which his Spiritual Power circulated was now over twenty percent faster than before his breakthrough.
The meridian nodes deep within his Dantian, unlocked by the eighth and ninth layers, became even more clear and open as they were scoured by the torrent of breakthrough Spiritual Power.
Qi Refining Eighth Level.
Li Yuan raised his hand, clenched his fist, then relaxed it.
His strength was another notch higher than at the Qi Refining Seventh Level. This wasn’t just an increase from the greater volume of Spiritual Power, but a comprehensive change resulting from the simultaneous improvement of his Spiritual Power’s density and his meridians’ capacity.
With a thought, he adjusted the degree to which his aura was suppressed.
The Spiritual Qi fluctuations emanating from his body were pushed down. His Qi Refining Eighth Level aura dropped all the way to the level of about the Qi Refining Sixth Level. With his increased cultivation, the thirty-percent suppression range now covered a wider span.
The permanent Concealment affix activated in sync, shaving another layer off his already suppressed aura.
To an outsider, he still looked like a Talisman Maker at the fifth or sixth level of Qi Refining.
Outside the window, the sky was beginning to lighten. The sounds of movement began to stir in the outer shanty town. A RUSTLING and CRASHING came from Fang Laosan’s hut, followed a moment later by the sound of a door and footsteps fading down the dirt road.
Li Yuan stood up from the bed plank and stretched his limbs.
A body at the Qi Refining Eighth Level was different again from the seventh. His joints had a greater range of motion, his muscles contracted faster, and even the expansion of his lungs felt deeper than before.