240: Chapter 240 Breakthrough to Sixth Rank

Half a year passed in the blink of an eye.

During these six months, Lin Tian lived a very disciplined life.

Every morning, he would Cultivate the Wanling Seal; every evening, he would consume a Treasure Fish; at night, he would meditate to refine his Qi and blood—repeating this cycle without fail.

The fellow Disciples on Zixia Peak rarely saw him leave his room. Even Peak Master Su Hanyan only saw him once every ten days or half a month. Whenever she saw him, he was either meditating in the Cultivation room or stewing fish soup in the small kitchen in the backyard.

Gradually, everyone knew that Lin Tian was in secluded Cultivation, so they did not disturb him.

However, no one knew that beneath these calm, water-like days, a world-shaking change was occurring within Lin Tian's body.

The Wanling Seal rotated day after day in his Sea of Consciousness, and his Soul energy gathered like a trickling stream, evolving from barely perceptible at the beginning to gradually solidifying later on.

He had already pushed open a crack in the door to Mental Energy, and six months of uninterrupted hard work finally pushed that door wide open.

The Breakthrough happened on an ordinary morning.

Lin Tian was practicing the Wanling Seal as usual when the spirit seal in his Sea of Consciousness suddenly trembled violently. An indescribable power gushed out from deep within his brow, sweeping through his entire body like a burst dam.

Guided by this power, the Qi and blood in his Dantian began to rotate crazily, collapsing toward the center at a speed visible to the naked eye, eventually condensing into a real pill the size of a chicken egg.

The real pill was perfectly round, with a faint luster flowing across its surface. Every rotation drove his Qi and blood to surge, emitting a faint booming sound, as if a never-exhausted volcano was hidden within his body.

6th Grade, the Pill Condensation Realm.

Lin Tian slowly opened his eyes, a sharp glint flashing deep within his pupils.

He looked down at his hands and gently clenched his five fingers; an unprecedented power gathered in his palm.

It was not mere physical strength, but a deeper level of power derived from the spirit.

He could clearly perceive everything within a radius of several meters—the ants crawling in the corner, the leaves falling outside the window, and even the trajectory of Spiritual Qi flowing in the air; everything was clearly reflected in his mind.

He calmed his mind and looked at the Proficiency System panel in his Sea of Consciousness.

Name: Lin Tian.

Cultivation: 6th Grade Early Stage.

Martial Arts: Wanling Seal (Perfection).

In the long list of martial arts, the progress bar behind the Wanling Seal had finally reached the end. The golden word "Perfection" hung there quietly, emitting a faint glow.

Lin Tian withdrew his gaze and let out a long breath of stale air.

Although there was only one Realm difference between 6th Grade and 5th Grade, the gap in strength was like heaven and earth. 5th Grade cultivated Qi and blood, while 6th Grade cultivated the spirit.

After stepping into the Pill Condensation Realm, Mental Energy could be released externally, attaching itself to fists, feet, and weapons, making the power of every move several times stronger than before.

If a 5th Grade Martial Artist was fighting with brute force, then a 6th Grade Grandmaster was fighting with the power of heaven and earth. The two were simply not on the same level.

He thought silently that if he were to meet Cao Yun now, he wouldn't need so many fancy tricks.

One palm. Just one palm would be enough to shatter his Vajra Body along with his Great Strength Vajra Palm, leaving him unable to even stand.

This was the gap between a Grandmaster and an ordinary Martial Artist.

However, after the Breakthrough, Lin Tian was even more low-key than before.

When he came out of seclusion, Peak Master Su Hanyan asked him how his Cultivation was progressing. He vaguely said that he was still polishing his Qi and blood and that he was still a little short of the 5th Grade Peak. Peak Master Su Hanyan did not ask further, only urging him not to be impatient.

Lin Tian naturally had his reasons for doing this. A 6th Grade Grandmaster in his twenties was too shocking to talk about.

Looking at the entire Qixia Sect, there were fewer than ten Martial Artists above 6th Grade, and every one of them was an old guy who had cultivated for decades or even most of their lives; the youngest was over forty.

A young man in his early twenties stepping into the Pill Condensation Realm would not only cause a sensation but also arouse suspicion.

He had many secrets—the Proficiency System could not be detected by others, which was safe enough, but if that private fish pond in Black Wind Gorge were discovered, it would be a huge trouble.

The origin of those two types of Treasure Fish, the location of the fish pond, and his frequent trips to Black Wind Gorge could not withstand close scrutiny.

Therefore, Lin Tian decided not to tell anyone about his Breakthrough, maintaining the illusion of being at the 5th Grade Late Stage, continuing to Cultivate and stew fish soup every day, living life just as before.

However, after breaking through to 6th Grade, Lin Tian continued to Cultivate for a few days and soon discovered a new problem.

The problem lay with the Wanling Seal. This method was indeed miraculous; it helped him steadily improve his Mental Energy during the 5th Grade period and was one of the keys to his Breakthrough to 6th Grade.

But after stepping into the Pill Condensation Realm, the increase in Mental Energy brought by the Wanling Seal became extremely limited—previously, cultivating for a day could increase it by a small amount, but now, running it for an hour, the increase was almost negligible.

It was not that the Wanling Seal was not good enough, but that after 6th Grade, Mental Energy required a qualitative improvement, not just an accumulation of quantity.

If he relied solely on this method, his Mental Energy would likely stagnate, and the 6th Grade Early Stage would be the end of the line.

Besides this, the problem of Qi and blood was also before him.

The Treasure Fish in the fish pond were Low Grade Treasure Fish, which had excellent effects during the 5th Grade period, with one fish a day allowing his Qi and blood to grow steadily.

But after breaking through to 6th Grade, the blood energy provided by the Low Grade Treasure Fish seemed a bit like a drop in the bucket.

Previously, one fish could make his Qi and blood boil all day, but now eating two felt like just a splash.

He needed higher-grade Treasure Fish. These two problems troubled Lin Tian.

Under normal circumstances, if he honestly reported his 6th Grade Cultivation to the Sect, as the champion of the Seven Peaks Tournament, the Sect would likely skew resources to Cultivate him—Medium Grade Treasure Fish, treasures that improve Mental Energy, there would always be arrangements.

But there was a risk in this. The risk was that the Sect might not just be cultivating him, but might also conduct a thorough investigation, asking him why his Cultivation speed was so fast and why his Mental Energy grew so much faster than others.

Once they found the private fish pond in Black Wind Gorge, things would be difficult to end.

Lin Tian dared not take this risk.

He had already learned about the infighting in the Sect from the removal of the Elder of the fishery. Chixia Peak and Jinxia Peak were just looking for handles on him, and he could not deliver the handle to them himself.

Hiding his Cultivation and finding a way himself was the safest choice for now.

One day, Lin Tian left Zixia Peak and went to Yunhai Fishery. Although he had been removed from his position as Elder, he had made many friends when he was a manager at the fishery, and several old companions had a good relationship with him.

Hearing that Lin Tian had come, several former colleagues were quite happy and took him to a small tavern next to the fishery, with a few small dishes and a pot of old wine, chatting lively.

After three rounds of drinks, Lin Tian quietly led the topic to Cultivation.

After chatting about the categories of Treasure Fish for a while, he picked up his wine glass, took a sip, and asked casually: "By the way, brothers, what is the highest level of the Treasure Fish we raise in the fishery? Is it still useful for 6th Grade Grandmasters to eat these fish?"

An Elder with graying hair picked up a peanut, threw it into his mouth, chewed it twice, and waved his hand: "Most of the fish in the fishery are Low Grade Treasure Fish, which are what we usually raise. Low Grade Treasure Fish are for Martial Artists below 6th Grade to eat, useful from 1st Grade to 5th Grade, and the lower the grade, the more obvious the effect.

But when you reach the 6th Grade Pill Condensation Realm, Low Grade Treasure Fish are not enough. You have to eat Medium Grade Treasure Fish."

Lin Tian's eyebrows moved slightly: "Medium Grade Treasure Fish? How many are there in the fishery?"

"Few, very few." The Elder held up two fingers, "The breeding conditions for Medium Grade Treasure Fish are extremely harsh. The water quality, Spiritual Qi, and bait are not on the same level as the Low Grade ones.

In our entire Yunhai Fishery, the annual production of Medium Grade Treasure Fish is only twenty or thirty, and it is in short supply even within the Sect, let alone for ordinary Disciples."

Lin Tian was silent for a moment, then asked: "Then the few Grandmaster experts in the Sect cannot just live on these twenty or thirty fish, right? What do they eat?"

Another Elder laughed and clinked his glass with him: "You kid asked the right question. Although Medium Grade Treasure Fish are precious, if you rely solely on them to Cultivate, you'd have to wait until the year of the monkey.

6th Grade Grandmasters mainly rely on Medicinal Pills for Cultivation—using Medium Grade Treasure Fish as the main ingredient, supplemented by a dozen precious medicinal herbs, and refined in a Pill Furnace.

A Medicinal Pill has a medicinal power equivalent to the sum of several Medium Grade Treasure Fish, and the herbs assist each other, making the medicinal properties much milder and easier to absorb than just eating fish.

Those Grandmaster experts of our Qixia Sect all rely on Medicinal Pills to support themselves; just eating fish won't work."

So that was it. Lin Tian suddenly realized, and secretly noted the two words "Medicinal Pill" in his heart.

But the problem was that he also didn't have Medicinal Pills—he couldn't get Medium Grade Treasure Fish, he didn't know the Alchemy method, and as for those precious auxiliary materials and herbs, he hadn't even seen them before.

After the meal, Lin Tian bid farewell to his old friends and returned to Zixia Peak alone.

This trip to the fishery was quite rewarding, at least he figured out the direction of Cultivation after 6th Grade—Medium Grade Treasure Fish are the foundation, and Medicinal Pills are the key; both are indispensable.

But these two things are hard to get. He didn't want to expose his Cultivation to the Sect for the time being, so he had to find another way.

He planned to take a trip to Yunzhou Prefecture in two days. Yunzhou Prefecture was a larger city outside Yunhai City, with many chambers of commerce and well-informed news, maybe he could find out about Medicinal Pills.

Just when Lin Tian was figuring out how to get Medicinal Pills, a group of uninvited guests arrived outside the Qixia Sect mountain gate.

It was a team of Martial Artists wearing azure cloud robes, led by a middle-aged scholar with a pale face and no beard, whose temperament was elegant but his eyes were like electricity.

Behind him were seven or eight young Disciples, each of them with condensed aura and arrogant expressions, looking like the elite of the elite.

As the group climbed the stone steps of the Qixia Sect mountain gate, the middle-aged scholar took a gold-stamped invitation from his sleeve and handed it to the gate-keeping Disciple.

The content of the invitation soon spread throughout the Seven Peaks—

The Qingyun Sect of Yunzhou challenged the Qixia Sect to a duel of Prodigies.