Xiao Mingshu Breaks Through
He had been with Meng Ke the whole time and hadn't had a chance to check his phone. He was just in time to see the message, and he was wondering whether he should urge her to hurry up with it.
With this modified carriage, the return journey will be much safer this time.
Shen Jingchuan drove straight to the warehouse in the suburbs. As soon as he entered, he saw the modified carriage parked inside, which stood out among the ordinary carriages.
He went over and inspected it carefully, then shook it. Old Zhou was as reliable as ever; the car body was very sturdy.
I jumped onto the roof, checked the steering bracket on the frame, and kicked the frame with all my might. Not bad.
With a wave of his hand, he stored the carriage in his spatial storage, then turned the carriage around and drove back to the West Mountain Separate Garden.
Without wasting a moment, Shen Jingchuan changed into a robe from another world, and with a thought, he traveled back to his room at the Yuelai Inn in Spirit Creek Market.
He listened intently to the sounds from next door, but there was nothing. Shen Jingchuan left the room and went to the parking area next to the stables in the backyard.
He saw his own four-wheeled carriage, and with a thought, he put it into his storage space. Then he released the modified carriage from the space, which landed steadily in place.
After doing all this, he returned to his room with peace of mind. Once inside, he took out a High-Grade Qi Gathering Pill from his storage space, sat cross-legged, took out the Spirit Gathering Formation and set it up, swallowed the pill, and began to refine it by circulating his Cultivation Method.
With the blessing of the mid-grade Spirit Gathering Formation, he only needed to circulate his energy for three cycles to completely refine the medicinal power of the High-Grade Qi Gathering Pill. The Spiritual Qi in his Dantian became increasingly abundant, and the barrier between the Qi Refining Third Layer was getting closer and closer.
He took out another Qi Gathering Pill in one go, and was about to swallow it when his Divine Sense suddenly detected a significant surge of Spiritual Power coming from next door. The energy surged a few times, and then slowly settled down.
It was Xiao Mingshu; she broke through.
He immediately stuffed the Qi Gathering Pill back into the jade bottle, stored it in his storage space, then raised his hand to deactivate the Spirit Gathering Formation, and was about to walk to the next room.
He took two steps, then hesitated, took out his pocket watch and glanced at it; it was already one in the morning.
It was really inappropriate to come and offer congratulations in the middle of the night, so he paused, turned back, and sat back down on the meditation cushion to continue meditating.
Just as he settled down, a clear female voice suddenly rang directly in his ear, as if speaking right next to his ear:
"Hey little brother, I know you're not asleep, come here right now."
Shen Jingchuan was startled. There was no one around. Just as he was wondering where the voice was coming from, it rang out again:
"Alright, stop standing there like an idiot. I'm using a secret technique to talk to you, so come here right now."
Shen Jingchuan thought to himself, "He's spying on me again. He's a total voyeur."
He muttered to himself as he opened the door to the next room. Before he could even knock, the door opened from the inside. Huan'er stood smiling in the doorway and stepped aside to let him in.
As soon as he entered, he saw Xiao Mingshu beaming with undisguised joy, looking at him with a smile.
"Hey little brother, come here right now! Your sister has finally broken through!"
Her tone was light and cheerful, and her aura was calm and relaxed, clearly showing the ease that comes from stabilizing one's cultivation level.
Shen Jingchuan was also happy for her, and cupped his hands in a smile:
Congratulations, sister, your wish has come true!
"Thank you."
Xiao Mingshu waved her hand, her tone very sincere:
"If it weren't for those two High-Grade Qi Gathering Pills you gave me, I don't know how long I would have been stuck at this bottleneck."
"Sister, you flatter me. It's mainly because you've already accumulated enough experience and have a deep foundation. My two pills were just to help you break through that final barrier."
"Alright, stop being so polite with me."
Xiao Mingshu glanced at him sideways:
"I know very well how hard it is to find High-Grade Qi Gathering Pills. I know best how many years I've been stuck at this bottleneck. This time, I was able to break through smoothly entirely thanks to these two pills that played a crucial role."
Xiao Mingshu was in a great mood and chatted with him for a while before letting him go back to his room. The two agreed to buy some supplies the next day and then set off on their return journey.
Shen Jingchuan returned to his room. Xiao Mingshu's advancement spurred him on, and a sense of urgency welled up in his heart. He immediately made up his mind to reach the Qi Refining Fourth Layer as soon as possible.
He first took out Mid-Grade Spirit Gathering Formation Plate and set it up in the center of the room. The surrounding Spiritual Qi immediately began to slowly gather around.
He then walked into the center of the formation, sat cross-legged on a futon on the floor, calmed his mind, and took out a High-Grade Qi Gathering Pill.
The elixir melted upon entering the mouth, transforming into a pure Spiritual Qi that spread along the meridians.
Shen Jingchuan closed his eyes and concentrated, guiding the Spiritual Qi to circulate within his body. After completing three cycles, the medicinal power of the first pill was almost completely refined, and the Spiritual Qi energy within his body visibly became more abundant.
Without stopping, he immediately took a second Qi Gathering Pill and continued to focus on refining it.
By the time the effects of the second pill had fully permeated his body, the sky outside the window was already turning a pale white.
Shen Jingchuan slowly finished his practice and opened his eyes. He could clearly feel that he was very close to the barrier of the Qi Refining Fourth Layer. However, no matter how much he urged his Spiritual Qi forward, he was always just a hair's breadth away and could not truly break through the bottleneck.
Shen Jingchuan sighed inwardly, knowing that this bottleneck couldn't be rushed, so he simply stopped trying to force it.
He calmed his mind, circulated his Spiritual Qi for another full cycle, and completely refined the remaining medicinal power in his body before slowly finishing his practice and opening his eyes.
It was already bright outside, and the morning light streamed into the room. He stood up, carefully put away the Spirit Gathering Formation Plate, and pushed open the door to leave the room.
Just as he reached the corridor, he happened to run into Xiao Mingshu, who was also coming out of the next room. Xiao Mingshu asked him, "Are you all ready?"
Shen Jingchuan nodded, and the two of them, along with Huan'er, walked to the front yard to have breakfast.
In the steward's office of Spirit Creek Market, the morning light had just spilled across the windowsill. Wang Cheng'an was slowly sipping a cup of warm spiritual tea.
He was the head of the market, a cultivator in the Foundation Establishment Early Stage, and his word was law in the market; he held great authority.
There was a light knock on the door, and Zhou Meng, the patrol team leader, strode in. He was dressed in a tight-fitting outfit, his Qi Refining Ninth Layer concealed, and his face still carried the scent of the morning streets.
"Steward Wang, I've made progress on that batch of unusual items you asked me to investigate."
Zhou Meng stood still and bowed:
"The woman selling watches, mirrors, and handbags is a Qi Refining Sixth Layer cultivator. She never sets up her own stall; she wholesales her goods to various shops. She's very cautious and changes her clothes every day."
Wang Cheng'an raised his eyelids slightly:
"Just her alone?"
"There were also a male and a female servant, both at the Qi Refining Third Layer, who ran errands for me."
Zhou Meng paused, then added:
"There's another matter—I encountered three unfamiliar cultivators who had been following her suspiciously for two days. They had a gloomy aura and looked like Intermediate Cultivators. The female cultivator herself was completely unaware and was still carefully concealing her presence."