Qi Refining Level 7

The Flowing Cloud Sect's flying vessel sped through the clouds, traveling day and night as it raced north.

Li Chengjie stood at the edge of the flying vessel's deck, looking down at the scenery flashing past below. Many of the fellow disciples aboard had also fallen silent after their initial conversations.

Ten days later, the flying vessel gradually slowed.

Ahead, a familiar outline appeared on the horizon—it was none other than the former Qingshi Market.

When he finally set foot on that familiar land, the sight before him weighed heavily on his heart.

Where was there any Qingshi Market left?

The bustling, prosperous streets crowded with people had long since vanished, replaced by a dead-silent wasteland of ruins.

Most of the buildings had collapsed, burned by great fires until nothing remained but blackened frames.

Shattered signboards lay half-buried in rubble, stained with dark red blotches.

Where Li's Pill Pavilion had once stood, there was now only a heap of broken stones—not even a single intact brick wall could be found.

The wind swept through the ruins, stirring up ash and producing a whimpering sound, adding yet more desolation to the scene.

Yet the Qingshi Market of today had long since become unrecognizable.

The azure light barrier that had once enveloped the entire market had disappeared without a trace. The towering city walls had collapsed in many places, as though gnawed apart by some colossal beast, exposing the ruined buildings within.

No longer did the city contain its former streams of bustling people and spiritual lights. All that remained was a deathly silence amid broken walls and shattered ruins.

Charred timber and fractured bricks lay everywhere. In some places, large patches of blackened, dried blood could still be seen, along with scattered fragments of broken Dharma Artifacts that had not been cleared away in time.

The air was thick with an inescapable stench of blood, burnt matter, and the distinctive foul odor of rotting corpses, enough to make one retch.

Occasionally, carrion-eating demon birds such as vultures circled low overhead, letting out piercing caws that added further bleakness to the scene.

The flying vessel slowly descended onto a vast clearing temporarily cleared outside the market. This place had already become the Flowing Cloud Sect's Frontline Base.

Densely packed tents had been erected all around, and countless disciples in Flowing Cloud Sect robes hurried to and fro, exhaustion pervading the air.

"All Alchemists, report to the Alchemy Area immediately! No delays!" A stern-faced steward flew into the air, his voice hoarse yet carrying unquestionable authority as it rang across the entire flying vessel.

Li Chengjie followed the crowd off the flying vessel, his feet stepping onto ground mixed with blood-mud and scorched earth. It felt sticky and cold beneath his feet.

Li Chengjie drew in a breath laden with heavy foul odors and, following the directions, headed toward a heavily guarded area on the west side of the encampment.

There stood dozens of white tents several times larger than ordinary tents. Symbols of medicine cauldrons and cloud patterns were painted upon them. This was the Alchemy Area where the frontline Alchemists worked and lived.

Between the tents, many alchemy apprentices and Menial Disciples busily transported medicinal herbs and handled waste residue, exhaustion written across every face.

Just as Li Chengjie was searching for the steward responsible for assigning tasks, a familiar voice, tinged with surprise and fatigue, sounded behind him.

"Li Chengjie? Is that you?"

Li Chengjie spun around sharply and saw a middle-aged cultivator in steward's robes staring at him. The man had a square face, now weathered and weary—it was Zhou Wenwu, Steward Zhou, who had once recommended him in Qingshi Market and later evacuated alongside him!

"Steward Zhou!" Li Chengjie hurried forward and bowed respectfully, a complicated feeling of encountering an old friend in a foreign land rising in his heart.

The Zhou Wenwu before him was far more weathered than he had been in Falling Cloud City. Though his gaze remained sharp, the exhaustion in its depths was impossible to conceal.

Zhou Wenwu looked Li Chengjie up and down, then nodded, a trace of emotion in his voice. "So it really is you. I never expected to run into you here."

"It was all thanks to Steward Zhou's support back then, as well as the opportunities given by the sect and Elder Jin." Li Chengjie spoke modestly before asking with concern, "Steward Zhou, has the situation at the front... truly become this dire?"

At those words, the weariness on Zhou Wenwu's face deepened. He pointed at the surrounding devastation and the busy crowds, then gave a bitter smile. "You can see it for yourself. Qingshi Market... has been completely destroyed. Those madmen from the Blood Fiend Cult attack in wave after wave, utterly heedless of casualties. Though we've barely managed to hold this forward camp, our losses have been enormous. What we lack most now is pills—especially pills for healing injuries and restoring spiritual energy."

His gaze passed over Li Chengjie with a hint of scrutiny. "You came at the right time. The Alchemy Area is desperately short-handed. Since you're here, you won't be able to take it easy. I'll assign you to Alchemy Room C-7 at once. That room is mainly responsible for refining Qi Replenishing Pills and Blood-Stopping Powder. The workload is heavy, but the Contribution Points and spirit stones are three times what they were in Falling Cloud City. Those who exceed their quota will receive additional rewards. Can you handle it?"

Without hesitation, Li Chengjie cupped his hands. "This disciple will certainly give it his all and not disappoint Steward Zhou's expectations!"

"Good!" Zhou Wenwu patted him on the shoulder, his tone turning heavier. "This is no rear area. Blood Fiend Cult spies and raiding squads can worm their way in anywhere. Even within the camp, safety is not guaranteed. Be careful in all things. While refining pills, do not neglect your cultivation either. Only by staying alive can you refine more pills and make greater contributions to the sect."

"Thank you for the reminder, Steward. This disciple understands." Li Chengjie nodded solemnly.

Under Zhou Wenwu's personal arrangements, Li Chengjie quickly settled into Alchemy Room C-7.

Two apprentices at Qi Refining Level 5 were already busy processing medicinal herbs inside. When they saw the arrival of Li Chengjie, an "Alchemist," they hurriedly bowed to him respectfully.

The conditions within the alchemy room were simple, but the earth fire was exceptionally abundant and fierce, clearly drawn forth deliberately to improve pill-refining efficiency.

Piles of medicinal herbs like small hills sat nearby, most of them ingredients needed to refine Qi Replenishing Pills and Blood-Stopping Powder.

Li Chengjie did not waste any time. After briefly familiarizing himself with the place, he immediately lit the furnace and threw himself into the intense work of pill refinement.

"Hiss—"

At the invocation of his Cultivation Technique, earth fire surged upward, and the dark-red alchemical furnace rapidly heated up.

Li Chengjie held his breath and focused, deftly feeding batch after batch of medicinal herbs into the furnace. In this high-intensity, high-pressure environment, he did not dare be distracted in the slightest. His spiritual sense remained highly concentrated as he precisely controlled the furnace temperature and the changes in the medicinal liquid.

The night was deep and still, shrouding the ruined remnants of Qingshi Market.

Apart from the occasional footsteps of patrolling disciples and the faint whimpering carried by the distant wind, most areas of the Flowing Cloud Sect's frontline camp had fallen into dead silence.

Only the Alchemy Area still had quite a few tents glowing with light, revealing the busy figures within.

Inside Alchemy Room C-7, the earth fire had long since gone out, though a faint medicinal fragrance and smoky scent still lingered in the air.

Li Chengjie sat cross-legged on a Prayer Mat, not yet asleep.

Several consecutive days of high-intensity pill refinement had nearly drained his mana and mental strength dry. Yet at this moment, not only did he feel no fatigue, but as the Mysterious Flame Art slowly circulated within him, his mana seemed like seawater rising again after the tide had receded—growing denser and more active.

An unprecedented sense of fullness spread from the depths of his Dantian Qi Sea, flowing into his limbs and bones.

His Meridians swelled faintly, as though they could no longer hold any more refined Spiritual Energy.

His spiritual sense was also extraordinarily clear, his perception several times sharper than usual. He could even distinctly make out the snapping rustle of the night wind whipping the flags outside the tent.

"This is the moment."

Li Chengjie's mind was clear as a mirror.

Before departing Falling Cloud City, he had already stood at the peak of Qi Refining Level 6. He had copied Old Man Li's experience at Qi Refining Level 7 and Han Li's at the Ninth Level of Qi Refining. Such a minor bottleneck in cultivation had long ceased to be an obstacle to him; all he lacked now was an opportunity.

These days of sleepless, unceasing pill refinement had been like repeated high-pressure tempering, further purifying and compressing his already refined mana. And on this perilous front line, with his mind tense at every moment, his potential had been stirred without him even realizing it.

The opportunity for a breakthrough was tonight!

His gaze sharpened, resolute and keen. With a wave of his hand, several streams of Spiritual Energy shot out, activating the pill room's rudimentary soundproofing and warning restrictions to their maximum.

Their defensive capabilities were limited, but they could at least block out most disturbances and issue a timely warning if someone tried to force their way in.

Li Chengjie did not choose the relatively safe but Spiritually Energy-sparse resting area. Instead, he remained in this pill room.

The Fire Vein here was abundant. Though the earth fire had been extinguished, active Fire Attribute Spiritual Energy still lingered in the air. It complemented the Mysterious Flame Art, his primary cultivation art, and would also aid his breakthrough.

He closed his eyes again and focused his mind, guarding his Dantian.

Li Chengjie no longer suppressed the surging mana within his body. He circulated the seventh-level route of the Mysterious Flame Art with all his strength.

Compared to the first six levels, the circulation route of the seventh was far more complex and arduous, placing immense demands on mana control and the strength of one's Meridians.

Li Chengjie cautiously guided the torrential flood of mana within him, like diverting a great river on the verge of overflowing, and launched his first assault at the invisible barrier separating the middle Qi Refining stage from the late Qi Refining stage!

Boom!

The torrent of mana crashed viciously against the resilient barrier, producing a Muffled Roar that echoed through his Sea of Consciousness.

The barrier shuddered violently but did not break. The rebounding force sent stabbing pain through the Meridians all over his body, and his Qi and Blood churned.

Li Chengjie gave a muffled grunt, his face paling slightly, yet his eyes only grew brighter.

Li Chengjie had been prepared from the start. Breaking through to the late Qi Refining stage was no easy feat.

Without the slightest hesitation, he immediately took a Jade Bottle from his robes, poured out a Qi Replenishing Pill he had secretly refined himself—one of superior quality—and swallowed it.

The pill transformed into a stream of pure warmth, swiftly replenishing his depleted mana and soothing his shaken Meridians.

At the same time, the Experience and Insights concerning a breakthrough into the late Qi Refining stage, copied from Han Li, surfaced in Li Chengjie's mind.

The choice of points for an Instantaneous Burst of Spiritual Energy, the perception of weak points within a bottleneck, and the techniques for deflecting the rebounding force—all of it was as clear as instinct etched into the depths of his soul, guiding his actions at this moment.

Li Chengjie no longer charged blindly. Instead, he adjusted his breathing and gathered mana that was even more condensed and penetrating. Like a drill, it targeted the nearly imperceptible ripple that had appeared on the barrier after his first strike, launching a second, a third... an unending series of assaults!

Time slipped away amid silence and the roaring within his body.

Beads of sweat covered Li Chengjie's forehead, and his clothes were already soaked through. His body trembled slightly under the immense pressure.

Yet Li Chengjie guarded the last spark of clarity in his mind. Relying on his unwavering will and the guidance of Han Li's experience, he stubbornly directed his mana, scouring and wearing away at that solid barrier again and again.

Who knew how much time had passed? Just as he felt his mana about to run dry once more and his consciousness beginning to blur—

Crack!

A crisp sound, like glazed glass shattering, came from deep within his body!

The solid barrier that had obstructed him for so long shattered at last!

Surging mana burst forth like floodwaters through a breached dam, joyfully pouring into a broader, sturdier network of Meridians.

An indescribable sensation of supreme comfort swept through every part of his body, as if a long drought had finally met sweet rain. Every cell greedily absorbed the pure energy born of this transformation, releasing sighs of satisfaction.

Qi Refining Level 7—achieved!

A powerful sense of strength filled his entire body. Both the quantity and purity of his mana had increased by nearly double!

His spiritual sense surged along with it, its range expanding greatly, while his perception of his surroundings became clearer than ever before.

Li Chengjie did not dare relax in the slightest. He immediately followed the seventh-level method of the Mysterious Flame Art and stabilized his realm with all his strength.

Li Chengjie guided the surging mana within him to adapt to its new circulation route, continuously compressing and refining it until it obeyed his will as readily as his own arm.

The lingering Fire Attribute Spiritual Energy in the pill room was drawn toward him, streaming into his body in fine threads and merging with that increasingly Vigorous Mana torrent.

When he opened his eyes again, a sharp gleam was hidden in their depths. He was brimming with vitality, and all his previous exhaustion had vanished without a trace.

Li Chengjie lightly clenched his fist, feeling the ceaselessly flowing strength within his body—far surpassing anything he had possessed before. A powerful confidence rose in his heart.

Qi Refining Level 7, the late Qi Refining stage!

This was a leap in quality—not merely an increase in mana, but a minor elevation of his very level of life.

Whether in casting speed, power, the acuity of his spiritual sense, or the precision of his control, none of it could be mentioned in the same breath as before.

"Finally... I've taken this step." Li Chengjie rose to his full height. A faint series of pops came from his bones, and his aura was harmonious and restrained, yet it carried a subtle pressure belonging to a late Qi Refining cultivator.