Body Refining, Lotus Planting

The lesson ended.

Chen Sheng quickly returned to his cave dwelling.

During this period, he was in a phase of "rapid advancement."

Cold air filled the quiet room of the cave dwelling.

Eternal white frost coated the stone walls.

An Ice Soul Black Iron Furnace stood in the center, its mouth spewing liquid Thousand Year Cold Sand.

On the cattail mat,

Chen Sheng's expression was as still as an ancient well. His upper body was bare, the lines of his powerful muscles appearing and vanishing within the hazy frost mist.

As he breathed in and out, a layer of black frost mist enveloped his entire body. Strands of cold air rushed into every pore, tempering his meridians and honing his physique.

Chen Sheng was rebuilding his Body Refining Method.

"Xuanshuang Body Refining Art."

It had to be said,

Dragon's Vigor Tiger's Might was simply too well suited for Body Refining.

Chen Sheng had rebuilt this method.

In merely three months, he had reached the first level.

In his previous life, it had taken him seven or eight years to reach this stage.

In this life, he had the benefit of experience.

Breaking through in three months was still astonishing!

At the same time,

after body tempering, his blood and qi surged like a rainbow, while his meridians became increasingly sturdy and resilient.

This would further benefit his Qi Condensation cultivation.

Chen Sheng had heard Tang Xichen mention this advantage.

Unfortunately, when he had cultivated a Body Refining Method in his previous life, he had already reached Qi Condensation Perfection and had never experienced it.

Not long after,

the body tempering ended.

Chen Sheng stored the ice furnace in his Storage Bag.

He began his daily Qi Condensation cultivation, and the quiet room fell utterly silent.

Chen Sheng closed his eyes. The aura around him shifted into a deep, blazing heat as the mana within his body circulated through the cycles of the Lihuo Art, vast and surging.

Li Fire Mana coursed through his tough, broad meridians, rushing like a great river in flood!

A full five hours passed.

He had exceeded his previous limit!

Only when his meridians sent out that familiar swollen, stabbing pain did Chen Sheng slowly end his cultivation. He exhaled deeply, his breath long and steady.

"I lasted one incense stick longer again."

"My physique still hasn't reached the peak of my previous life, but the strength of my meridians seems to surpass it slightly."

Chen Sheng was delighted.

This advantage would be quite beneficial when he attempted Foundation Establishment.

Two months passed. In a core quiet room of the Heart-Seeking Hall,

Chen Sheng sat cross-legged on the floor.

One blazing, spacious Hidden Meridian after another had been opened within his body. Pure fire-attributed mana gathered through the Hidden Meridians, forming a Fire Lotus that was quietly planted in his Dantian.

Chen Sheng opened his eyes, and a scarlet-gold gleam flickered deep within his pupils!

He lightly raised his right hand without using a Hand Seal.

Whoosh!

A crimson Fire Pearl the size of a longan suddenly condensed into existence an inch above his fingertips!

The Fire Pearl floated and spun.

Its terrifying heat distorted the surrounding air.

At this moment,

when Chen Sheng looked at the Fire Pearl, he felt neither violence nor scorching heat.

There was only an absolute sense of control rising within him.

It was like lifting one of his own fingers!

"Condense!"

"Scatter!"

"Move!"

The Fire Pearl traced mysterious paths through the air according to his will, sometimes scattering into sparks and sometimes reforming as before!

Wherever his thoughts reached, it moved as easily as an arm or finger.

There was not the slightest hesitation!

Chen Sheng rejoiced inwardly:

"So this is the Origin Fire Pearl formed by the convergence of Essence, Qi, and Spirit. It truly is marvelous."

"Return!"

He gave a soft shout and opened his mouth. The crimson pearl flashed and immediately entered his abdomen, sinking into his Dantian.

That scorching origin merged into the Fire Lotus. Not only did it cause no harm, it instead brought a comfortable, nourishing sensation like basking in warm sunlight!

"The lotus has been planted in my Dantian, and the Origin Fire Pearl has formed!"

"Next, I must nurture the Fire Pearl until it becomes Spirit Fire, then command all flames."

Three months later.

At the Pill Alliance headquarters, in a Mysterious Fire Quiet Room.

Compared to the initial few dozen disciples,

the space below was now packed with people. More than a hundred cattail mats were fully occupied, and people were even standing in the back rows.

The air was quiet, filled only with the faint haze of Sandalwood Incense.

Chen Sheng stood atop the Ink Jade Lectern, the aura around him becoming ever more condensed.

He explained a portion of the lesson from the platform.

Then he had several disciples below come up and practice together.

His gaze swept over one familiar face after another before he suddenly spoke.

"Zhang Li, come demonstrate."

"Yes, Master Chen!"

Zhang Li respectfully bowed, then quickly stepped onto the platform. He circulated his cultivation method and used his fingertips to guide the formation fire beside the Alchemy Furnace.

"Rise!"

"Split!"

The basic Hand Seals changed.

The flame swayed, splitting into several hair-thin strands.

Zhang Li displayed, one by one, the basic techniques Chen Sheng found incomparably familiar.

Generally speaking, each school's basic techniques

varied greatly in style.

Of course,

at Chen Sheng's level,

all kinds of techniques had essentially merged into one, and outsiders could no longer identify their origins.

However, for low-grade alchemists like Zhang Li who had only just entered the Way of Alchemy,

they were still constrained by their techniques and unable to break free of those limits. The various styles were obvious at a glance.

And so,

Chen Sheng recognized the origin of those techniques immediately.

They carried an extremely distinct Huang Yueyang Style!

Combined with Zhang Li's surname and his family's Zhang Luo Alchemy Shop, everything became clear.

Chen Sheng sighed inwardly:

"This world is too small."

"I never expected to encounter Senior Brother Zhang Yue's descendant."

"It seems Senior Brother Zhang and Senior Sister Luo escaped that disaster and fled to Fenghua Immortal City."

"They must have feared the Zhou Clan and dared not return to Thousand Mechanisms Workshop. No wonder there had been no news of them for so many years."

Not long after,

Zhang Li finished his demonstration.

Chen Sheng pointed out each of its flaws.

"So that's how it is! This disciple understands!"

Zhang Li's face flushed with excitement. Completely convinced, he gave a deep bow!

Chen Sheng had him return to his seat, then used him as an example to explain everything carefully to the other disciples.

In the last few rows,

a fish-eyed expressionless middle-aged cultivator listened to Chen Sheng's lesson and nodded repeatedly.

Beside him stood a youth who looked unusually mature.

The youth spoke quietly.

"Father, what do you think?"

The fish-eyed middle-aged man nodded.

"He explained it very well. Even I can understand it."

"A few days ago, I asked an acquaintance in the sect. Elder Li Changyang of the Alchemy Hall holds Master Chen in very high regard, saying that among first-rank alchemists, his alchemy skills stand at the very peak."

The youth's eyes lit up.

"He's that impressive? Why didn't you tell me before?"

The fish-eyed middle-aged man nodded.

"I only just received the news. Do you really want to take him as your master?"

The mature-looking youth answered decisively.

"I do!"

The fish-eyed middle-aged man gritted his teeth.

"A figure like him probably has very high standards."

"When we return later, we'll have to ask your grandfather for help and prepare an apprenticeship gift he cannot refuse."

"Alright!"

Time slowly passed.

Before long, the day's lesson ended.

In the first row on the eastern side,

Chen Hanchi rose and cupped his hands, his gaze bright.

"Master Chen, will you still be teaching in Area A next year?"

Chen Sheng nodded slightly and smiled.

"That's right!"

The answer was brief, yet it sparked a wave of barely restrained cheers. Everyone wore delighted expressions.

Over the past year,

Chen Sheng's teaching quality had been plain for all to see.

Several Foundation Establishment elders taking turns on duty had attended his lessons, and they had all praised the results without reservation.

Thus, under the instruction of the Pill Alliance higher-ups,

not long ago,

a Deacon from the Pill Alliance had approached Chen Sheng directly.

He asked Chen Sheng to continue teaching next year and raised his compensation to eight hundred Contribution Points, with it still counting as Administrative Affairs.

After Chen Sheng agreed,

he did not even need to go through the sect's Administrative Affairs Hall. He accepted the assignment right at the Pill Alliance headquarters.

Clearly, talented people were in high demand!

It was not only the Pill Alliance that needed teachers; the sect's Pill Hall also needed outstanding teachers.