Breakthrough to Qi Refining Layer Eight

In truth, Xiao Chen had been cultivating all this time lately and had basically reached the brink of Qi Refining Layer Eight.

On top of that, it was his first time drinking Moon Reflecting Wine, which was why it ultimately produced such an effect.

No matter what, breaking through in cultivation was always a good thing.

After familiarizing himself with his newly gained mana and slightly consolidating his cultivation, Xiao Chen opened the Three Truths Mystical Method of Luo Tian, preparing to learn a new spell.

In the blink of an eye, another three days passed.

Most of the sect disciples had either gone home or entered seclusion, so the cultivation chamber had naturally closed as well.

Early that morning, on a deserted riverbank below the mountain, a flock of Fire Crows formed a great circle. One moment, they arranged themselves into the character for "big"; the next, into the character for "field."

Xiao Chen was cultivating the secret art Luo Tian Mysterious Fire Crow by the river.

This secret art was relatively simple, with three realms: entry, Lesser Accomplishment, and greater accomplishment.

Once a cultivator reached entry level, they could summon a Fire Crow one foot long, obedient as an arm or finger, to breathe flames and assist them in battle.

Upon reaching the Lesser Accomplishment Realm, they could summon ten Fire Crows, form the Small Fire Crow Formation, and spew vast quantities of Poison Crow Black Fire to scorch their enemies.

Yet Xiao Chen discovered that, due to Hextech's enhancement, he could summon ten Fire Crows even though he had only just reached entry level.

At the moment, he was trying to split his attention and command the Fire Crows to form a formation.

At first, he was unaccustomed to it and could only barely arrange them, but gradually, it became easier and easier.

By afternoon, a mass of pitch-black flames suddenly erupted. The fierce high temperature directly scorched the ground within several zhang, and even the river water within one zhang began to boil.

Two unlucky little fish happened to swim past and were instantly turned into boiled fish.

"Damn, I forgot to bring salt."

Looking at one of the grass carp, two inches long, Xiao Chen could not help feeling a little regretful.

As a result, the moment his attention wavered, the Fire Crows' positions fell into disarray.

Two Fire Crows even collided, becoming an exploding Fireball before scattering like fireworks into countless sparks that flickered and vanished.

After all, he was still unfamiliar with the Mystic Fire Crows and had not truly entered the Lesser Accomplishment Realm. Unless he concentrated completely, it was difficult to maintain the formation.

Still, this result was already quite good.

With these ten Fire Crows, he would at least no longer need to rely on the Fireball Art when fighting enemies.

He summoned the Fire Crows again and practiced for a while longer, only returning to Azure Water Peak at You Hour.

Before he had even gone up the mountain, he saw Manager Chen standing at its foot, seemingly waiting for someone.

The moment Manager Chen saw him return, he stepped forward first. "Where did you run off to during the New Year? I've finally waited for you. Come on, I'll take you home for the New Year."

Xiao Chen was somewhat taken aback. "Home for the New Year? Manager, what do you mean?"

Manager Chen looked a little displeased. "I told you last time. Since you've become Third Uncle's disciple, don't address me so formally."

Xiao Chen changed his form of address. "Brother Zhi'an, I mean, why did you come here?"

Chen Zhi'an grabbed his arm. "You're Third Uncle's disciple, so we're family. How could we leave you alone on the mountain and ignore you?"

"Of course we came to take you home to celebrate the New Year together. There shouldn't be anything left to pack up on the mountain, right? If not, come with me."

Xiao Chen tried to refuse. "Brother Zhi'an, I've actually gotten used to being on my own these past years. I'm perfectly fine by myself..."

But Chen Zhi'an refused to release his arm. "That won't do. Third Uncle kicked me out at noon. If I can't bring you back, I won't be able to go back either."

"Xiao Chen, if only so I can get my New Year's Eve Dinner, you have to come. Just consider it a favor to me, all right?"

"All right, then."

Since he had put it that way, it would be rather heartless to refuse. Xiao Chen nodded and followed Manager Chen to the Chen Family.

After passing through three successive gates of varying sizes, Manager Chen spoke before an arched doorway. "I'll go check the back and see if anything needs doing. You go sit in the rear garden first and wait for the meal."

"Anyone who comes here is family. No need to stand on ceremony or feel constrained. Sit wherever you like."

That was simple enough. Xiao Chen stepped in, swept his gaze around, and skillfully found an empty table set in a corner amid the noisy crowd.

There were already over a hundred people here, but most had gathered in the middle. Men and women, old and young, sat ten or so to a table, chatting about everything under the sun and bursting into laughter from time to time.

When they saw someone enter, quite a few people glanced over.

Once they realized it was an unfamiliar face, they turned back and continued their conversations.

No one knew Xiao Chen, and he knew none of the other Chen Family members. Thus, no one came to sit at his table or struck up a conversation with him.

But Xiao Chen was happy enough to enjoy the peace alone. He closed his eyes to rest and reviewed his cultivation method.

Not until You Hour did several hundred more people pour in, filling every seat except the three large tables in the center.

The corner table was crammed full as well, with two extra stools added.

The people at Xiao Chen's table appeared to include a fairly impressive family. The moment they sat down, a young man greeted one of them. "Oh, Uncle Shun! How has your year been?"

"Sigh, how could it be? I'm still watching over the clan's spirit mine. The only good thing is that it brings in a steady harvest whether there's drought or flood. I can save three Spirit Stones a month."

Though the man called Uncle Shun said this, his face was beaming. He was clearly extremely satisfied with his current circumstances.

Xiao Chen glanced at him. He was not carrying a single magic artifact, so his cultivation was probably ordinary.

Another person sighed. "I worked myself to the bone all year and only saved ten Spirit Stones in total. At the beginning of the year, I wanted to trade some Spirit Herbs, but I thought they were too expensive and didn't buy any."

"It's too late for regrets now. I missed such a good market this year for nothing. By the way, Ping Zi, how did you do?"

The young man who had spoken first shook his head. "Brother An, don't even mention it. I was truly fucking unlucky this year. A rat spirit appeared in my spirit field and ruined everything."

"I spent three Talismans before I finally managed to get rid of it. After settling the accounts for the whole year, I actually lost five Spirit Stones."

"If it weren't for avoiding any delay to my family's spirit medicine supply, I would've been better off feeding all that spirit medicine to that beast."

Uncle Shun comforted him. "It's fine. Didn't you make quite a bit last year? Just treat it as losing wealth to avert disaster."

Everyone chimed in, discussing all sorts of market conditions concerning spirit mines and Spirit Herbs.

Suddenly, Uncle Shun noticed Xiao Chen, who had been sitting silently beside them.

"Hey, look at my memory. Which branch's relative is this? I can't remember at all."

When he asked that, the others looked at each other, unable to answer. The Chen Family had over a thousand members in total; no one knew everyone.

At first, everyone had assumed he belonged to another family, but now it seemed no one could identify which family he came from.

Seeing this, Xiao Chen took the initiative to speak. "My name is Xiao Chen, and I am a disciple of the Li Fire Sect. A few months ago, I was fortunate enough to join the Inner Sect and take Elder Chen Tianyang as my master."

Uncle Shun slapped his thigh. "Oh my, that's incredible! Young Master Xiao looks so young, yet he's already an Inner Sect Disciple. Truly a promising young talent."

The young man beside him called Ping Zi hurriedly picked up the wine pot and poured him a drink as well. "So it's Brother Chen. Come, let me toast you."

Xiao Chen, who had been an unnoticed nobody moments ago, instantly became the center of attention at the table, and everyone raised their cups to him.

They also began asking about him. "Brother Chen must be quite formidable among the Inner Sect Disciples, right? How many Spirit Stones can you earn in a month?"

Xiao Chen waved his hand. "No, no. I only recently entered the Inner Sect. I just earn a little pocket money each month."

Uncle Shun raised one hand with the air of an expert. "I know. Inner Sect Disciples don't need to do anything, and they receive five Spirit Stones a month."

"I reckon that a talent like Young Master Xiao must have other sources of income as well. It has to be over twenty Spirit Stones at least, right?"

The peddler called Brother An immediately widened his eyes. "Good heavens, that's enough in one month to equal two years of my business."

But Ping Zi spoke excitedly. "I think it's more than that. Brother Chen's Flying Sword is no ordinary item. I spend every day at the marketplace, and I've only seen such fine patterns in the Hundred Treasures Pavilion."

"That Flying Sword alone must be worth two hundred Spirit Stones. I bet Brother Chen can earn fifty Spirit Stones a month! Brother Chen, was I right?"

The moment he said that, the surroundings immediately fell silent. Even people at the neighboring tables turned to look when they heard fifty Spirit Stones.

Fifty Spirit Stones did not sound like much.

But in truth, at least half the people in this garden could not earn even twenty Spirit Stones in an entire year. They were barely any better off than Chore Disciples.

Many Rogue Cultivators counted out Spiritual Sand just to get through their daily lives.

Brother An stared at Xiao Chen in shock. In ten years of running a stall, even in his most prosperous year, he had only earned a little over thirty Spirit Stones.

He did not know much about Flying Swords. Was this young man truly that impressive?

Uncle Shun did not know much about Flying Swords either, but his wealth of experience immediately made him suspicious.

Xiao Chen had said he was only admitted to the Inner Sect a few months ago. In such a short time, he had managed to earn two hundred Spirit Stones?

Impossible. Absolutely impossible!

Uncle Shun had lived for most of his life and never seen such an impressive young man. That Flying Sword had surely been bought with help from his family.

Eh? But he immediately felt that something was wrong. If that were the case, why would Xiao Chen be here?

This left Uncle Shun confused as well, and he looked at Xiao Chen with puzzlement.

"Mm, it wasn't too far off from your guess."

Xiao Chen thought about it and decided to keep a low profile. Setting aside exactly how much higher or lower it was, it was roughly close enough.

Even so, this immediately triggered another wave of exclamations.

Uncle Shun could not help sighing. "Young Master Xiao, I've met several thousand people in my life, including Clan Elders from some Great Families and even several Foundation Establishment Great Cultivators."

"But someone your age who can earn over forty Spirit Stones a month—I've only ever heard of such people from others. I've never truly met one."

Brother An's eyes were full of envy. "I wonder whether I'll ever be able to earn that much money someday."

"I do handle more than a hundred Spirit Stones every month now, but ninety-nine percent of it isn't mine."

Xiao Chen blinked. They seemed to have interpreted his "not too far off" as meaning he could indeed earn almost fifty Spirit Stones.

Should he correct them?

Forget it. Let it be.

"Brother Zhiquan, Happy New Year!" "Zhiquan, come sit over here!" "Brother Zhiquan..."

At that moment, a succession of greetings suddenly rang out from the garden entrance.

Chen Zhiquan, son of Elder Chen from the Chen Family Main Branch, arrived in the garden ahead of the others. He responded to the greetings while looking around as though searching for someone.

He quickly spotted Xiao Chen in the corner and strode over.

He first greeted Uncle Shun. "Uncle Shun, Happy New Year."

They exchanged a few polite words about good health and the like.

Only then did he look at Xiao Chen. "You're Xiao Chen, right? I've wanted to meet you for a long time. My name is Chen Zhiquan. My father is your master, so you should call me Brother Zhiquan."

Xiao Chen followed the others' example. "Brother Zhiquan, Happy New Year!"

"You too. Happy New Year to us all." Chen Zhiquan nodded in satisfaction. "Not bad. You're quite a fine-looking fellow too, with the same bearing I had ten years ago."

"I heard from Brother Zhi'an that you've started learning alchemy?"

Xiao Chen nodded. "Yes, I only started recently."

Chen Zhiquan patted him on the shoulder. "Good eye! Learning alchemy is the right choice. Alchemy is wonderful—I'm an Alchemist too. If you have time, come find me at the family estate."

"If there's anything you don't understand or can't do, you can come ask me."

The Chen Family was currently short on Alchemists, primarily Foundation Establishment Alchemists capable of refining Second Order pills.

Chen Zhiquan had heard from Elder Chen that Xiao Chen had excellent prospects of achieving Foundation Establishment, so he wanted to get acquainted with him in advance.

After all, they were close in age and belonged to the same generation. If both achieved Foundation Establishment, they might well cooperate for over a hundred years in the future. Building a relationship beforehand was important and necessary.

Still, Chen Zhiquan's enthusiastic approach caught Xiao Chen somewhat off guard. "All right, Brother Zhiquan."

"Oh, right. Our Chen Family has an old custom: the first time we meet after you take a master, we exchange gifts. I've already prepared mine. Here!"

Chen Zhiquan suddenly waved his hand and took out a gift box. "This helps calm the mind and settle the spirit, and it's especially useful for novice Alchemists."

"When I was learning alchemy, I relied on this to help me study Pill Recipes. Now I'm giving you a box too."

Xiao Chen froze upon hearing that. An old custom? Exchange gifts?

Manager Chen had not mentioned anything like this before bringing him here.

Yet the people around them had craned their necks to look at the gift, clearly no strangers to the custom.

Damn it, Manager Chen was way too unreliable!

Xiao Chen had prepared nothing and had simply been dragged here. Now someone was giving him a gift—what was he supposed to do?

He should decline politely first. "I can't accept this gift..."

But Chen Zhiquan had no idea what Xiao Chen was thinking and interrupted his unspoken refusal. "Don't be so quick to refuse. Look at it first."

He reached out and opened the box. Inside were ten sticks of Sandalwood Incense arranged in a neat row.

Several layers of silk wrapped the bottom of the box, with jade slips separating the incense sticks. Every stick bore a handwritten signature, proving that it had been made by a master incense-maker.

"High-Grade Sandalwood shipped from He Province. One stick burns for six hours, and a single breath clears the mind and refreshes the senses. I've tried it myself—it works especially well."

Chen Zhiquan looked at Xiao Chen with a smile. This was a gift he had specifically purchased.

During the long alchemy process, which could last several hours at a time, novice Alchemists were most prone to becoming restless and distracted.

A good Pill Fragrance thus became something every novice Alchemist wanted, yet was reluctant to buy because of its high price.

Chen Zhiquan believed that once Xiao Chen saw this gift, he would definitely be tempted.

A four-thousand-word chapter—sincerely asking for continued reading, and also for recommendation votes and monthly votes.

Also, wishing all esteemed readers a happy National Day!