18: Chapter 18 Qi Refining Level 4

Ye Xiaoyao returned to the row of low, crude houses in the Outer Sect Disciple living area and pushed open his creaky, broken wooden door.

A familiar scent, a mixture of mold and old wood, rushed to meet him.

The furnishings in the room were simple to the point of being shabby.

A hard wooden bed, a broken meditation cushion, a rickety wooden table, and two broken chairs.

Nothing else.

Compared to the Fairy's Immortal Cave, this place was practically a slum.

He closed the door and slid the bolt into place behind him.

Although this thin wooden board and simple latch would only stop a gentleman, not a villain, it could at least block out some of the noise from outside and provide some psychological comfort.

Sitting cross-legged on the cold, hard meditation cushion, Ye Xiaoyao exhaled a long breath of turbid air, temporarily suppressing the various distractions of the day.

He first took the bottle of Qi Nourishing Pills from his Storage Pouch; the small jade bottle felt warm to the touch.

Uncorking it, a faint, fresh herbal fragrance drifted out, causing his spirit to lift slightly.

He poured a milky-white Medicinal Pill into his palm; it was round and lovely, and one could faintly see extremely faint Spiritual Qi flowing within it.

Ye Xiaoyao did not hesitate and placed the Medicinal Pill into his mouth.

He also took out a bamboo tube, which contained Spirit Spring Water he usually fetched from a spring with slightly denser Spiritual Qi at the back of the mountain.

Actually, the Spiritual Qi was pitifully thin, but it was still better than ordinary water.

With the spring water, he swallowed the Medicinal Pill.

Not long after the pill entered his abdomen, a gentle yet persistent warm current radiated from his Dantian and flowed slowly toward his limbs and bones.

The Spiritual Qi, which had been somewhat sluggish due to traveling and dealing with various troubles, began to circulate actively along his Meridians under the stimulation of this medicinal power, absorbing the thin Spiritual Qi in the air.

He could feel that the cyclone-shaped Spiritual Qi in his Dantian seemed to have solidified and strengthened by a sliver.

But just a sliver.

The barrier between the Qi Refining Third Layer and the Fourth Layer was thicker than he had imagined.

"Sure enough, popping pills to level up is the true path." Ye Xiaoyao sighed inwardly.

He no longer held back, pouring out the remaining Qi Nourishing Pills in the bottle one by one, swallowing them in succession like eating candy beans.

With each pill swallowed, the warm current grew stronger by a fraction.

After ten pills were in his stomach, the surging medicinal power rushed through his body, and his Meridians swelled slightly.

The Spiritual Qi at his Dantian was almost so dense it was about to overflow, like an over-inflated balloon, needing only that final poke to burst.

He immediately closed his eyes, gathered all his focus, and exerted his full effort to circulate the Basic Qi Refining Technique.

His consciousness sank into his body, guiding that massive medicinal power and the constantly gathering Heaven and Earth Spiritual Qi,

Over and over again, like waves crashing against a levee, launching a fierce and continuous assault against the invisible barrier standing between the early and Middle Stages of the Qi Refinement Stage.

The room fell into silence, save for his long, rhythmic breathing and the faint fluctuations of Spiritual Qi around him.

What Ye Xiaoyao did not know was that, at the same time he was Cultivating,

In the sparse little woods outside the house,

Two sneaky figures, using the cover of night, hid behind a crooked tree, peeking toward Ye Xiaoyao's lonely house.

It was exactly Sharp Mouth and Monkey Cheeks.

"Old Monkey, look, the light is out. That brat must be Cultivating with all his might inside." Sharp Mouth lowered his voice, his tone filled with schadenfreude.

"Senior Brother Lu said, interrupt his Cultivation, preferably make him go haywire, causing his Cultivation to regress. Let's see how he can be arrogant then!"

Monkey Cheeks was more cautious. He looked left and right before saying, "Don't make too much noise. This is the Disciple living area after all. It'll be troublesome if we attract the Law Enforcement Hall. Let's get closer, make some noise, or pretend to knock on the door looking for him. As long as we startle him out of his meditation, that's enough."

"Hehe, simple!" Sharp Mouth rubbed his hands, a lecherous smile appearing on his face.

"Let's go!"

The two crouched low, just about to crawl out from behind the tree, ready to execute their plan of disturbance.

"Stop!"

A low shout, like a muffled thunderclap, suddenly exploded from another dense bush behind them.

Immediately after,

A figure as burly and imposing as an iron tower pushed aside the bushes with a "crash" and jumped out, blocking the two of them like a small mountain.

In the moonlight,

Zhang Jiba's rugged face carried anger, his copper-bell-sized eyes wide open, looking down at these two guys who were more than a head shorter than him.

Sharp Mouth and Monkey Cheeks were scared out of their wits by this sudden turn of events.

Especially Sharp Mouth, who, feeling guilty as a thief, had his tongue tied. He pointed in the direction of Ye Xiaoyao's house and blurted out incoherently:

"I, I, I... we were just passing by! We definitely weren't going to disturb Ye Xiaoyao's Cultivation! Definitely not!"

When Monkey Cheeks heard this, his vision went black, wishing he could slap this idiot into the dirt.

He hurriedly reached out and gave the back of Sharp Mouth's head a hard whack.

The force was so great that Sharp Mouth cried out "Ouch."

Then Monkey Cheeks squeezed out a smile that was uglier than crying, nodding and bowing to the ill-tempered Zhang Jiba:

"This Senior Brother, please don't listen to his nonsense! His brain isn't working right, he's just spouting gibberish. We were just... just taking a night walk, happened to walk here, and we're leaving right away! Leaving right away!"

As he spoke, he secretly probed Zhang Jiba's Cultivation, his heart sinking.

This strong man's aura was thick; he was at least at the Eighth or Ninth Level of Qi Refining Stage, perhaps even Great Perfection!

Far from someone they could provoke.

Zhang Jiba frowned, eyeing the two in front of him.

His memory wasn't great, but he had some impression of these two guys following behind Lu Guan at the trade fair in the afternoon, acting like foxes assuming the tiger's might.

Fairy Cao only told him to keep an eye on Ye Xiaoyao and not let anyone hurt him; she didn't say anything about managing these stray cats and dogs.

However, looking at their sneaky appearance, they definitely didn't have good intentions.

"I don't care if you're passing by or what!"

Zhang Jiba waved his fan-like hand impatiently, his voice booming.

"Get lost! Don't hang around here, and don't even think about playing any tricks! If I see you skulking around again, be careful I don't twist your heads off and kick them like balls!"

Monkey Cheeks, as if granted amnesty, hurriedly pulled the still-dazed Sharp Mouth, nodding and bowing.

"Yes, yes, yes! Senior Brother, please calm your anger! We're leaving! Leaving right away!"

After saying this, he dragged Sharp Mouth and dove into the darkness without looking back.

They ran faster than a frightened rabbit.

Zhang Jiba watched the direction they disappeared in, snorted, and muttered to himself:

"Fairy Cao told me to keep an eye on Junior Brother Ye, and she was right. There really are people with no eyes trying to cause trouble."

He was very satisfied with his heroic performance just now, feeling that he had perfectly executed the goddess's instructions.

Then he silently retreated back into the bushes to continue his glorious lurking and surveillance work.

Inside the small house, Ye Xiaoyao knew nothing about this brief conflict outside.

His entire focus was immersed in his Cultivation, repeatedly assaulting that barrier.

Time flowed in the silence.

The moon rose to the center of the sky and then gradually slanted westward.

When the first ray of daylight pierced through the dilapidated window lattice and shone into the dim room,

Ye Xiaoyao, sitting cross-legged on the meditation cushion, felt his aura suddenly surge!

As if something in his body made a soft "pop" sound, the tenacious barrier was finally completely breached by the surging torrent of Spiritual Qi.

More solidified and vibrant Spiritual Qi instantly coursed through the previously sluggish Meridians, and the circulation speed suddenly accelerated.

At his Dantian, the cyclone of Spiritual Qi had grown noticeably larger, and its color was deeper.

The Fourth Layer of the Qi Refinement Stage, done!

Ye Xiaoyao slowly opened his eyes, a flash of bright light passing through them, immediately replaced by deep joy.

He exhaled a long breath, feeling the completely different sense of power in his body and his much sharper spiritual perception.

"This Qi Refining Third Layer held me back for nearly a year..."

He whispered to himself, his tone filled with emotion and a trace of realization.

"Sure enough, on the path of Immortal Cultivation, wealth, companions, methods, and land—wealth comes first. Those second-generation immortals and Family descendants, no matter how ordinary their Spiritual Root is, can rely on Spirit Stones and Medicinal Pills to pile up their Cultivation, and it will soar."

"For grass-roots Cultivators like us, relying solely on hard work to absorb this thin Spiritual Qi is as difficult as ascending to heaven."

This Breakthrough made him even more firm in his belief that resources were paramount.

The hundreds of Spirit Stones given by the Saintess must be used on the cutting edge, all exchanged for Medicinal Pills to raise his Cultivation as quickly as possible.

Only when his own strength was solid would he have the confidence to face the Saintess's unpredictable schemes and handle the harassment of people like Lu Guan.

And even... to grasp more initiative in the future.

"Pills, must crazily pop pills!"

Ye Xiaoyao clenched his fists, making up his mind.

He restrained his aura and spent some time consolidating his Realm.

It wasn't until the sun was high that he felt his Realm was completely stabilized at the Fourth Layer of the Qi Refining, and only then did he end his meditation.

At noon, the sunlight was a bit dazzling.

Ye Xiaoyao pushed open the door, walked outside, and stretched comfortably.

His bones made a series of slight popping sounds, his whole body was full of energy, and even this dilapidated environment looked a bit more pleasing to the eye.

"Brother Ye!"

A familiar voice came.

Ye Xiaoyao turned his head and saw his good friend Chen Shi walking out of a house not far away, with a look of pleasant surprise on his face, walking quickly toward him.

Ye Xiaoyao also smiled and greeted him.

"Brother Ye! I felt you returned last night, but I was afraid of disturbing your Cultivation, so I didn't come over..."

Chen Shi walked closer, but halfway through his sentence, he suddenly stopped, looking Ye Xiaoyao up and down, surprise appearing in his eyes.

"Eh? You... you broke through? You're at the Qi Refining Fourth Layer?"

He subconsciously activated his Spirit Eye Technique to check carefully, and after confirming it was correct, the surprise on his face became even richer.

Ye Xiaoyao laughed, patted Chen Shi's shoulder, and said:

"Just lucky, I took some Medicinal Pills. Compared to your dual Spiritual Root Aptitude, Brother Chen, this is nothing. You're almost at the Seventh Level of Qi Refining, right?"

Chen Shi sighed upon hearing this, his smile fading a little: "It's not that easy. Brother Ye, you and I are both from Mortal origins, without Family support. Every Spirit Stone, every Medicinal Pill has to be calculated carefully. How can our Cultivation speed compare to those fellow Disciples with abundant resources? I've been stuck here at the Sixth Level of Qi Refining for almost half a year."

He scratched his head, quickly perked up, looked at Ye Xiaoyao with bright eyes, and changed the subject:

"By the way, Brother Ye, I haven't officially congratulated you yet! You were truly... amazing yesterday!"

"To be chosen as a Dao Companion by the Saintess, this is truly a case of a carp leaping over the Dragon Gate! When you become successful in the future, don't forget to pull your brother up!"

"Hehe..."

He said this sincerely, feeling happy for his friend's encounter.

Ye Xiaoyao felt warm in his heart, nodded, and said: "Don't worry, Brother Chen, we are brothers, we share blessings."

"By the way, do you know where the Sect's Scripture Pavilion is? I haven't been there yet."

"Scripture Pavilion?"

Chen Shi was a bit surprised.

"You want to go there? I know the place; I've been there once to look for some advanced Spell Jade Slips."

He paused and smiled: "If you want to go, perfect! Let's go to the Spirit Food Hall to eat first, let's talk while we eat, I'm hungry too."

"Okay!"

Ye Xiaoyao agreed readily.

After the Breakthrough, he also felt empty in his stomach.

Cultivators at the Qi Refinement Stage cannot yet abstain from eating, and the meals in the Spirit Food Hall made with low-grade spirit rice, spirit vegetables, and Yao Beast meat, although containing thin Spiritual Qi, were much cheaper than bigu pills and could fill one's stomach, making them the main food source for Outer Sect Disciples.

The two chatted and laughed, walking side by side toward the Spirit Food Hall shared by the Outer Sect Disciples.