Qi Refining Level Four

Yue Qianchou naturally had no idea what his master was thinking outside. He was desperately wrestling with the golden pearl. Who knew how much time had passed, but the ever-faster-spinning pearl finally began to slow, rotating at a steady speed. Yue Qianchou was overjoyed. This thing had finally eaten its fill. The True Qi converted from spiritual energy immediately surged in, and his dantian swelled at a visible rate.

Damn! His dantian could not swell any further once it reached two-thirds of its original size. Yue Qianchou had already cursed the white fox's ancestors for eighteen generations. Giving him this thing—wasn't that just harming people? At this rate, he feared he would not even reach the Foundation Establishment Realm. His dream of Sword Flight had been snuffed out just like that.

While he was agonizing over it, the steadily rotating golden pearl suddenly emitted a dazzling radiance, and his dantian instantly turned scorching hot. The heat roasted Yue Qianchou until he could barely endure it. The True Qi that had refused to enter no matter how hard he squeezed suddenly flowed in. His already formed dantian began swelling again. Yue Qianchou froze. With opportunity knocking, he could not care about anything else. Enduring the burning heat, he pushed the Xuantian Art to its limit once more, pouring in True Qi without end.

Who knew how long passed? When his dantian had grown five or six times larger, the golden pearl's glow withdrew. As though it had awakened, it actually began moving along a fixed trajectory. No more True Qi could be infused, but Yue Qianchou was still satisfied. With a dantian this large, reaching that Tribulation Transcendence stage should not be a problem, right?

Thinking of this, he secretly felt rather smug. Successfully swelling his dantian counted as entering Qi Refining Level One, so he decided to follow the Qi Refining Level One method in the Xuantian Art and give it a try. He guided his True Qi out, and sure enough, it flowed freely through his meridians without obstruction. After several cycles, Yue Qianchou's spirits soared, and his heart practically danced with joy. Recalling the Qi Refining Level Two circulation route in his mind, he gritted his teeth, redirected his True Qi, and charged toward those unfamiliar meridians.

His powerful True Qi surged forward with an unstoppable force. The pain of widening his meridians was unavoidable, but Yue Qianchou hurt and rejoiced at once. Gritting his teeth, he forcefully continued the circulation. The Level Two route was opened, and his entire body shuddered. After his True Qi circulated several times, the meridians that had just been aching instantly became warm and comfortable, making his whole body feel as though he were floating among the immortals.

"Wonderful! True Qi, advance! Target: the Level Three route! Gahaha!" Yue Qianchou commanded his True Qi to charge once more. The unstoppable current rolled onward, smashing through every obstacle as it completed its circulation.

"Bakayarou! Charge toward the Level Four route!" Wherever Yue Qianchou's thoughts went, his True Qi remained fierce, but the resistance was stubborn as hell, and the pain was enormous as hell. Halfway through, he had no choice but to regulate his breathing and ease up for a moment. He cursed, "Those little devils won't do! Bring on a replacement!"

"The revolution has not yet succeeded; comrades must still strive. For the grand cause of cultivation, comrades, charge!" Yue Qianchou pushed his True Qi circulation to its limit, sweeping through everything in his path. The tremendous pain made his body tremble slightly. He bit the tip of his tongue, held his strength tight, and broke through the final obstacle in one burst.

In an instant, his body felt as if it had been immersed in a hot spring, comfortable from head to toe. His True Qi circulated over and over. The sensation of having all eight extraordinary meridians opened was truly exquisite. After indulging in it, he returned to reality. Yue Qianchou thought, Could it be that I've just mastered the beginner-level Xuantian Art? Have I already reached Level Four? Hmm! I should still ask Master to be sure.

He slowly withdrew his True Qi into his dantian. As he examined its enormous space, a question suddenly occurred to him. With his dantian so large, wouldn't his belly become like that of a pregnant woman?

A month passed, yet the disciple still had not finished his meditation and awakened. How could an ordinary person possibly spend a whole month swelling their dantian? Hao Sansi stood before the couch with a grave expression, now certain that something had gone wrong with his disciple. Just as he was considering whether to investigate personally, a shriek rang out.

Yue Qianchou sprang up from the couch. Looking as if he had seen a ghost, he kept feeling around his abdomen with both hands. Only after a long while did he pat his chest and let out a breath. "Thank goodness, thank goodness. I didn't turn into a pregnant woman. You scared me to death!" Then he suddenly saw an old face leaning toward him and jumped again. Once he recognized it, he exhaled. "Master! It's you!"

Hao Sansi looked him over from head to toe and asked suspiciously, "You sat there for an entire month. Are you all right?"

"Hehe! I'm great!" Yue Qianchou thumped his chest with loud bangs and laughed. "Master! I succeeded!" Then he froze. "I sat there for a month?"

"What do you think? I guarded your door for a full month. How is that possible? Swelling one's dantian takes ordinary people no more than five days. Yet you sat there for a month. You weren't fooling around, were you?" Hao Sansi asked.

Yue Qianchou gave a sly chuckle. It was probably because of the golden pearl in his dantian. He did not know whether he should tell his master, but after some thought, he decided to keep silent for now. Shaking his head, he said, "I don't know what happened either."

Hao Sansi did not press further. He sighed, patted his disciple on the shoulder, and said, "You can now be considered to have entered Qi Refining Level One. Since there is hope, you must cultivate diligently. Once you reach Qi Refining Level Four, you can begin practicing skills."

"Uh..." Yue Qianchou scratched his head awkwardly and said sheepishly, "Master! There's something I'd like to ask. Please take a look for me."

Hao Sansi nodded. Yue Qianchou spread out one palm, and a stream of white True Qi emerged from it, gradually taking the shape of a budding lotus. He forcefully urged his True Qi onward. The bud swayed lightly, and one petal slowly opened. Once it had fully unfurled, the bud swayed again, and the second petal gradually spread open.

"Qi Refining Level Two!" Hao Sansi's voice trembled. His disciple had actually broken through to Qi Refining Level Two within a single month. Amid his astonishment, the third petal opened. Hao Sansi's eyes widened, his face full of disbelief.

When the fourth petal spread open, Yue Qianchou was already drenched in sweat. He had clearly pushed his True Qi to its limit. His face slightly pale, he asked, "Master! Does this count as reaching Qi Refining Level Four?"

"Withdraw it!" The astonishment vanished from Hao Sansi's face, replaced by utter solemnity. Only after his disciple withdrew his True Qi did he say gravely, "Qianchou, Master does not know what happened to you. But you must never tell anyone about swelling your dantian. Remember, you must not tell anyone! As for your successful cultivation, it cannot be hidden forever. If someone asks, say that not long after entering my school, you had already successfully swelled your dantian, and that I, your master, told you to conceal it. By no means say that you went from joining the sect to Qi Refining Level Four within this one month. Otherwise, I fear it will bring great trouble upon you. You must remember Master's words—remember them a thousand, ten thousand times over!"

At this point, something had to be explained. Hao Sansi, who had always been alone, had begun to faintly regard Yue Qianchou as a son.

After hearing his master's words, Yue Qianchou was delighted at first. He truly had reached Qi Refining Level Four. But he was no fool. His master had made it sound so serious, and thinking of how long he had stayed in the Qingguang Sect, he indeed had never heard of anyone cultivating to Qi Refining Level Four within a month. Even that legendary person with extraordinary talent had taken nearly a year to reach Qi Refining Level Four. Accomplishing it within a month was truly impossible. It was likely related to the golden pearl inside him. There were surely plenty of people in this world whose evil thoughts stirred at the sight of treasure. His master's words made sense. He immediately nodded solemnly. "This disciple understands Master's meaning and will certainly keep it firmly in my heart."

"Eh! How strange—I actually can't see your cultivation level!" Hao Sansi looked his disciple up and down, finding it bizarre. Then he shook his head and said, "Forget it. Don't tell me. I don't want to know either."

Yue Qianchou shrugged and smiled bitterly. "Master, even if you asked, I wouldn't know. I only know it may have something to do with the forbidden area behind the mountain." He felt somewhat guilty saying that. In truth, he already knew it had to be because of the golden pearl. But having lived two lives, and after hearing what his master had said earlier, he decided to let the matter of the golden pearl rot in his belly. It was not that he feared what his master might do. It was simply that some principles were often like this... Some things could not be told even to the closest people. It was not because one did not trust them, but because it was better for them and better for oneself—only then would it be better for everyone!

"The forbidden area behind the mountain?" Hao Sansi murmured. His disciple often ran to the back mountain, so perhaps it truly was related to that place. He then shook his head and stopped thinking about it.

Several days later, Yue Qianchou was meditating on his couch when Hao Sansi came in and tossed a pile of things onto it. Yue Qianchou ended his cultivation and opened his eyes. Hao Sansi smiled. "I'll be leaving for a month. There are some spirit stones here for you to absorb in cultivation. I copied and revised that book for you; it contains all the cultivation methods of the Qi Refining stage. And that sword—I gathered it for you. When cultivating, find somewhere secluded and do not let anyone see you. Though your cultivation is already sufficient to carry a sword, the sect has not officially granted you one yet. It would not look good if others saw it. Hide your cultivation for as long as you can!"

Yue Qianchou flipped through the book and asked doubtfully, "Where is Master going?"

Hao Sansi smiled. "Heh! Your cultivation speed is astonishing. For this Newcomer Tournament, I pestered Sect Master Brother into letting me go and do my part as well. Tomorrow, I'll lead a team there with several senior brothers. When the Foundation Establishment Pills are distributed, I'll have the face to ask for one or two, to prepare for your Foundation Establishment."

"Mm!" Yue Qianchou nodded, biting his lip without saying anything. His eyes were slightly red. How could he not know that this drunkard master of his had always been lazy and loose? Now, he was voluntarily asking to do work—for Yue Qianchou's sake.

The next day, his master left. Yue Qianchou waited until no one was around, then stood at the entrance to the forbidden cave with a bundle on his back. He took a deep breath and walked inside.

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