Senior Brother, You Never Even Asked Whether I Broke Through!

Xiao Chen was curious because she had not come to bother him for quite some time.

Ever since that spar with Su Yuanpeng, Su Wanqing had come to invite him to all sorts of activities every few days.

"Senior Brother Xiao, happy Mid-Autumn Festival! Want to drink wine and admire the moon together?"

"Senior Brother Xiao, happy Double Ninth Festival! Want to climb high and admire chrysanthemums together?"

"Senior Brother Xiao, happy Winter Solstice! Want to go eat dumplings together?"

But he had refused them all on the grounds that he was busy cultivating.

After being rejected time and again, Su Wanqing had suddenly vanished and did not come on Laba Festival.

Xiao Chen had thought she had already given up, but unexpectedly, she had come again today—and with that same familiar opening line.

Outside the door, Su Wanqing wore a supremely confident smile.

Senior Brother Xiao definitely could not have imagined that after more than a month of arduous cultivation, she had finally broken through to Late-Stage Qi Refining yesterday.

With her Cultivation Breakthrough, her mood had soared as well.

After asking around, she discovered that her Cultivation Speed was far ahead of the pack, placing her in the first tier among her peers.

She immediately recalled how, more than a month ago, when she had come looking for Xiao Chen, not only had he refused her—

He had even teased her: "Junior Sister, if you keep wasting time, you can consider becoming my disciple in the future."

Today, she had come to prove that as long as she got just a little serious, she could easily catch up to Xiao Chen and soon surpass him.

Furthermore, during this New Year, the family had distributed one Spirit Fruit to every Direct Lineage disciple, specifically to help them handle the Flame Pool Secret Realm.

After Su Wanqing's adamant demands and persistent efforts—

The family had ultimately allocated an extra one to her, which she could give to Xiao Chen to earn a favor.

Thus, after leaving home under the pretense of going to see the lanterns, Su Wanqing hurried impatiently to Azure Water Peak.

"Senior Brother Xiao, happy Lantern Festival! Want to go see the lantern fair together?"

Xiao Chen opened the door only halfway. "Junior Sister Su, I still need to cultivate tonight. I don't have time."

"Senior Brother, there'll be fireworks at the Lantern Festival. They're really beautiful!"

"Junior Sister Su, I still need to cultivate tonight. I don't have time."

"Senior Brother, there'll be peerless beauties to look at during the Lantern Festival. Are you really not going?"

As she said this, Su Wanqing planted her hands on her hips. Clearly, the peerless beauty she meant was none other than herself.

"Junior Sister Su, I still need to cultivate tonight. I don't have time."

Xiao Chen decisively delivered a triple rejection and added, "If there's nothing else..."

"Wait!" Su Wanqing abruptly interrupted him, then mysteriously emphasized, "I have very important news to tell you. Special intelligence."

"Please, come in!"

Xiao Chen poured her a bowl of fish soup. "This place is a little shabby, and I didn't prepare any tea. But I just finished simmering this fish soup. Try it and see if it's fresh."

Cradling the bowl, Su Wanqing took a small sip and narrowed her eyes. "Delicious!"

Only then did she ask, "Senior Brother, do you know Song Shengying?"

Xiao Chen shook his head. "Never heard of her."

Su Wanqing paused. "Song Shengying is the Song Family's direct daughter, two years older than me. Last summer, she finally broke through to the 7th level of Qi Refining."

"That speed isn't slow, actually." Xiao Chen asked, "How is that important news?"

Su Wanqing changed the subject. "Then Senior Brother must have heard of Lin Ping'an from Branch 9."

Xiao Chen nodded. "I've heard of him many times. Apparently, his luck is incredibly good. He relied on Heavenly Materials and Earthly Treasures all the way to the 6th level of Qi Refining."

Su Wanqing immediately continued, "Right, right, him! Did you know, Senior Brother? On Double Ninth Festival, he actually picked a Rouge Snowdrop in the mountains."

"He then directly broke through to the 7th level of Qi Refining, became an Inner Sect Disciple, and has now joined Blazing Fire Peak."

Rouge Snowdrop was a renowned Second-Order spirit flower. Its Medicinal Properties were mild, and it was also a type of chrysanthemum.

Even Xiao Chen could not help sighing. "Encountering a chrysanthemum on Double Ninth Festival, and it just happened to be a variety that could be swallowed directly. His luck really is formidable."

Then he looked at Su Wanqing. "This is the special intelligence you mentioned?"

Su Wanqing's eyes darted. "Senior Brother, Ye Fei from your Branch 2 went to the market before the New Year to sell pills, and he ran into Robber Cultivators."

"The market, purchasing, Robber Cultivators?"

Xiao Chen suddenly recalled how he had been ambushed and nearly killed, and his interest was immediately piqued. "I really didn't know about this. What exactly happened?"

Su Wanqing said, "Apparently, he set up a stall at the market and sold off a great many pills at low prices in one go, earning a lot of Spirit Stones."

"Then, while returning to the sect, he was ambushed by a Rogue Cultivator who was suspected to have come from Quanzhou."

"The other party was a 7th level of Qi Refining cultivator and had planned it in advance, quickly injuring Ye Fei. But guess what happened?"

"He actually achieved an Impromptu Breakthrough! He advanced to the 7th level of Qi Refining on the spot, then turned around and killed that Robber Cultivator."

Another Rogue Cultivator from Quanzhou?

These cultivators from Quanzhou did not seem very law-abiding.

Xiao Chen pondered this, then calmly remarked, "Oh, being able to kill an outsider at the 7th level of Qi Refining means he really is somewhat impressive."

Though he was certainly no match for Xiao Chen's Combat Power, achieving an Impromptu Breakthrough showed that he had considerable potential. His future could be expected.

Su Wanqing also sighed. "Senior Brother, have you noticed? In the latter half of last year, so many of our fellow senior and junior brothers broke through to the 7th level of Qi Refining and became Inner Sect Disciples."

She deliberately emphasized, "And quite a few senior and junior sisters broke through as well."

Xiao Chen agreed. "Indeed. That's a good thing."

Then the two stared wide-eyed at each other in silence.

Su Wanqing looked at Xiao Chen expectantly, only to find that Xiao Chen was looking at her expectantly too.

"Senior Brother, don't you have anything to say?"

Xiao Chen shook his head slightly. "Junior Sister, you know I don't know many people. So you should continue. Do you have any other news?"

With a thud—

Su Wanqing heavily set down her bowl. "Senior Brother, you never even asked whether I broke through!"

Xiao Chen suddenly understood. No wonder all those bits of news had emphasized others breaking through to the 7th level of Qi Refining. So she had broken through herself.

He cooperatively asked, "Then Junior Sister, have you made a Cultivation Breakthrough recently?"

"Of course I have!"

Su Wanqing sprang to her feet and released her cultivation aura without holding anything back.

Though it was somewhat unstable, as though she had only recently broken through, it was undeniably the genuine 7th level of Qi Refining.

Beaming, Su Wanqing said, "Well? Surprised? Didn't expect me to be this amazing, did you?"

"This is only the beginning. This summer, I'll break through to Qi Refining Layer Eight and become the strongest among our generation of disciples!"

"Then I'll receive a nomination and could become one of the Chief Disciple candidates of this generation as early as the end of the year."

Hearing her say she would become "the strongest," Xiao Chen smiled faintly.

Modestly speaking, even he might not be able to securely claim first place among the Li Fire Sect disciples of his generation, but Su Wanqing definitely had no chance.

Still, Xiao Chen gave her a thumbs-up and praised her cooperatively. "Amazing! Your cultivation has truly advanced by leaps and bounds."

Even the spiritual energy around Su Wanqing became lively.

Yet she even patted her chest and declared, "Don't worry, Senior Brother. Even if I break through to Qi Refining Layer Eight before you do, I'll still call you Senior Brother."

Ah, this... Xiao Chen fell silent upon hearing that.

But Su Wanqing misunderstood his silence. Amid her delight, she finally remembered that she actually had something serious to do.

She took a Spirit Fruit from her robes. "Ta-da-da-da! Senior Brother, look what this is!"

This Spirit Fruit looked somewhat like an apple, but its entire body was a more vivid deep red, like a burning flame.

A circle of cloud patterns faintly appeared near its base. One glance was enough to tell that it was no Yellow-grade item.

Xiao Chen recalled the contents of his Pill Manual and said with some uncertainty, "Is this a Rosy Cloudfire Fruit?"

The reason he was uncertain was because the Rosy Cloudfire Fruit was a Second-Order Spirit Fruit. After consumption, it could nourish the Primordial Spirit, strengthen the body, and provide Fire Avoidance.

In terms of preciousness, it surpassed even Rouge Snowdrop.

For cultivators with a Fire Spiritual Root in particular, it was an exceedingly rare treasure.

Using the Rosy Cloudfire Fruit as the main ingredient, one could refine a Second-Order Spirit Pill—the Rosy Cloudfire Pill.

For Fire Spiritual Root cultivators in early and middle-stage Qi Refining, their first consumption of a Rosy Cloudfire Pill could directly raise them by one Minor Realm.

For Fire Spiritual Root cultivators in Late-Stage Qi Refining who had not yet reached the Qi Refining Ninth Layer, their first consumption of a Rosy Cloudfire Pill had a seventy percent chance of directly raising them by one Minor Realm.

The only pity was that most Qi Refining Cultivators found it difficult to obtain even a Second-Order Spirit Fruit, let alone a Second-Order Spirit Pill.

Su Wanqing directly handed it over. "That's right. Since you recognize it, I won't introduce it. Here, it's for you."

This time, Xiao Chen was truly curious.

The Su Family should understand the effects of the Rosy Cloudfire Fruit and certainly had channels to turn it into pills. Why would they be willing to give it to him?

And since Elder Chen had learned of the Flame Pool Secret Realm, the Su Family should also have received relevant intelligence.

Any cultivator who consumed a Rosy Cloudfire Fruit could strengthen their body, avoid fire, and gain a slight resistance to Fire Qi.

At a time like this, such an item should surely be reserved for the family's own disciples first.

How could there be an extra Spirit Fruit to give away to him?

Xiao Chen looked at Su Wanqing. "Such an important item—Junior Sister, you aren't keeping it for yourself?"