Home of Immortals and Mortals

The jade pendant's Small World, Siheyuan Courtyard.

Chen Renfeng, Bai Xue, and Chen Qing each sat cross-legged on a round wooden stool. All three wore short shirts and shorts made of silk cloth, facing one another.

"Bai Xue, can you sense the Spiritual Energy?" Chen Renfeng asked.

Bai Xue shook her head and said helplessly, "No! Uncle Chen, I'm so stupid. I've been practicing for several days already!"

Chen Renfeng looked at Chen Qing and asked, "How about you?"

Chen Qing shook his head awkwardly. "Every time I feel something trying to burrow into my body, it feels like the pores on my body can't open, blocking it."

Bai Xue nodded and added, "It's like something is on the surface of my body but can't get inside. It's so itchy."

Chen Renfeng understood. The grains and rich foods the two of them had eaten in the future had left too many impurities in their bodies. They needed to cleanse their meridians and marrow before they could sense Spiritual Energy.

Unfortunately, Marrow Cleansing Pills were only sold in the mortal realm. Everyone on Penglai Immortal Island had an immortal constitution, so nobody sold them there. They could only refine the pills themselves first.

Chen Tuan had refined the Marrow Cleansing Pill in the mortal realm in his memories. This Small World had plenty of medicinal herbs and immortal plants, so Chen Renfeng got straight to work.

Green smoke rose from the alchemy room south of the Siheyuan Courtyard. Raw pills made from herbs such as fleeceflower root, ginseng, and Blood Essence Grass were placed into the alchemy furnace. They would mature after forty-nine double-hours.

Chen Renfeng, Bai Xue, and Chen Qing sat in the courtyard chatting. Two puppets stood behind the gate like door guardians. The plaque above the gate read, "Home of Immortals and Mortals," written personally by Chen Renfeng.

"Bai Xue, Chen Qing, we won't be able to return for a while, and you can't leave this Small World either. Is there anything you want to say?" the professor asked seriously. It was their first such formal conversation since the little courtyard had been built.

Bai Xue held a book in her hands and shook her head. Whenever she had free time, she stayed in the study, just as she had spent her days buried in the library when she was in college. She loved reading, especially professional material, which she found utterly absorbing.

Chen Qing was fiddling with a piece of wood fitted with various parts he had assembled. It could change shape, and on closer inspection, it looked like one of the door guardian's hands. He shook his head as well.

Chen Renfeng was helpless. "You two are going to become cultivators too. You'll start with Qi Refining, then Foundation Establishment and Core Formation. It'll take many years, and... and you'll also have to abstain from desires so your cultivation won't be affected. Can you do that?"

Bai Xue answered first, "Uncle Chen, what are you trying to say? Why are you going around in circles?"

Chen Qing said nothing, continuing to tinker with the object in his hands.

Chen Renfeng cleared his throat. "Do either of you like the other?"

Bai Xue set down the book in her hands, and Chen Qing put down the piece of wood as well. The two exchanged a glance, then both lowered their heads after their eyes met.

Chen Renfeng saw it all. They truly were a well-matched pair—a talented man and a beautiful woman. Feeling sorry for the young couple, he said, "If you truly love each other, I'll act as your matchmaker. You can hold your wedding and become husband and wife in the next few days, then practice dual cultivation."

Bai Xue was startled. She did have feelings for Chen Qing, but when it came to actually marrying him, she still couldn't make up her mind.

Chen Qing was naturally willing, but he wanted to return home first and ask his mother's opinion before getting married. He couldn't make up his mind for the moment either.

Seeing the two of them lower their heads in silence, Chen Renfeng sighed and stopped trying to persuade them.

"What's that smell? It smells so good!" Chen Qing sniffed as a fragrant aroma drifted out of the alchemy room.

Chen Renfeng smelled it too and hurriedly said, "The Marrow Cleansing Pills should be ready. Come on, let's go take a look."

The three arrived at the alchemy room, where the fragrance was even stronger. The professor walked around the furnace once and nodded in satisfaction. He had Bai Xue and Chen Qing use wooden poles to lift off the furnace lid. After a clear fragrance drifted away, nine white pills could be seen inside. Their colors were bright and glossy, and they looked extremely tempting.

Chen Renfeng placed the pills on a plate and carried them out. He first took one to test its effects. Although he was a primordial spirit, his cultivation had already made him nearly indistinguishable from a real person.

The Marrow Cleansing Pill dissolved as soon as it entered his mouth. The professor could sense that its medicinal power reached the level of a high-grade Marrow Cleansing Pill. Thanks to the memories of Chen Tuan's previous life, his alchemy techniques and control of the fire had allowed him to succeed on his first attempt.

Seeing how satisfied the professor was after eating it, Bai Xue and Chen Qing reached out for the pills as well. The professor smacked their hands and laughed. "Each of you should prepare a bucket of water in your own bathroom and sit inside it before taking the pill. Once the water becomes murky, change it. When the water's color stops changing, today's task will be complete."

Bai Xue and Chen Qing followed the professor's instructions. After taking the Marrow Cleansing Pill, their whole bodies felt warm, and impurities seeped out of them, dyeing the water in the buckets black. On the first day, they had to change the water seven times before it stopped changing color.

On the second day, they followed the professor's method again. After taking the Marrow Cleansing Pill, they felt more than just warmth—their entire bodies also felt much cleaner. The water stopped changing color after they replaced it six times.

On the third day, the water was no longer murky, and they felt as if all the pores on their bodies had opened.

Chen Renfeng refined another batch of pills. On the fourth day, he had them take two pills each. The warm feeling returned, and the water in the buckets turned black again. Two pills were no longer enough on the fifth day. They took three pills on the sixth day and four on the seventh. On the eighth day, they took five pills. By the ninth day, they no longer needed to take Marrow Cleansing Pills.

The three sat cross-legged on wooden stools in the courtyard again. This time, after Bai Xue and Chen Qing closed their eyes, they felt countless tiny points of light in the air land on their skin and begin entering their bodies. There was no resistance anymore.

Following the breathing and energy-guiding method the professor had taught them, they drew the points of light into their bodies with the air. Most of the points of light then escaped through their breathing or skin.

However, some of the points of light remained inside them, becoming part of their bodies. They could feel their strength becoming a little greater.

Bai Xue was puzzled. Could this be the Spiritual Energy described in the books—the energy Uncle Chen had mentioned? Before she could confirm it, Chen Qing shouted, "I can sense Spiritual Energy!"

Seeing this, Chen Renfeng laughed heartily. "Chen Qing, tell me first—what is Spiritual Energy like?"

Chen Qing said happily, "Professor, there's Spiritual Energy in the air all along. Look, those points of light have started burrowing into my body. It feels so comfortable!"

Seeing this, Bai Xue also watched the points of light in the air enter her body. She could even see that more of them were entering Uncle Chen's body than theirs, as if a new gateway to the world had opened.

Bai Xue happily shouted, "I can sense Spiritual Energy too!"

Chen Renfeng laughed heartily. "Congratulations on stepping onto the threshold of cultivation—the Qi Refining Stage. From now on, cultivation, pills, and breakthroughs will bring you one pleasant surprise after another. Once you form your Golden Core, I'll find a way to take you out."

Bai Xue first smiled and said, "Uncle Chen, now that the two of us can refine qi, how are you going to reward us?"

Chen Renfeng thought for a moment. When he saw Bai Xue and Chen Qing looking toward the kitchen, he understood. After eating Marrow Cleansing Pills for days, they had lost all taste in their mouths and had long been craving something good. The professor laughed heartily. "I'll make you a feast to reward you."

"Great!" Bai Xue and Chen Qing each kissed the professor on the cheek at the same time. It was the happiest day since they had arrived in the Small World.

Chen Renfeng felt a little awkward. Though he was happy inside, he still put on a stern face and said, "I'll go cook. You two go outside and gather some herbs for Spirit Origin Pills, then refine a batch yourselves to strengthen your foundations."

"Okay!" Bai Xue happily ran out with a basket, and Chen Qing followed close behind.