Chen Qing put the spirit liquid into a jade bottle, his eyes utterly calm.
He had always acted with caution, well aware that the Taiyi Spirit Ruins hid crouching tigers and hidden dragons.
Those in the first echelon—Jiang Tuo, Nan Zhuoran, Lin Haiqing, Wang Jing, Xin Nishang—were all monsters who had undergone ten or more refinements of True Essence, with one foot already across the Grandmaster threshold.
Even those old hands in the second echelon had immersed themselves at the peak of Nine Refinements for many years. Their experience was seasoned and their strength might not be inferior to those with ten refinements—perhaps even greater. After all, some old fellows had failed in their attempts to break through to Grandmaster, yet their True Essence had become even more condensed as a result.
"Shouldn't stay here long."
Chen Qing flashed away, vanishing into the depths of the dense forest.
He concealed his aura. The liquid True Essence that had formed after seven refinements slowly circulated through his body. Every step he took was as light as a feather, leaving no trace even upon snow.
The farther he proceeded toward the central region, the denser the surrounding Heaven and Earth Yuan Qi became.
The milky-white spirit mist filling the air had nearly condensed into substance. With every breath, cool and pure Yuan Qi flowed of its own accord into his meridians, and his cultivation slowly grew at every moment.
Yet Chen Qing became even more vigilant.
Dense Yuan Qi meant a greater chance of spirit springs appearing, but it also meant that Yuan Qi storms could erupt at any time.
He skirted several areas where aura fluctuations were obvious.
After seven refinements, his perception of Yuan Qi's flow had grown ever sharper.
Just as Chen Qing passed through a jagged stone forest,