Qi Refining Level Four (Seeking Collection)

The next day.

Inside the shed's cellar.

Fang Xi sat cross-legged, looking at a small ink-black jade bottle in his hand.

This was a bottle of 'Wood Element Pill', suitable for Qi Refining early to mid-stage cultivators who practiced wood-attribute techniques to increase their cultivation, and it also had a slight effect of stimulating breakthroughs at bottlenecks.

"Di Qi actually kept his word, but a single Yao Beast's meat and bones only sold for twenty Spirit Stones, a bit of a loss... This guy must have skimmed a lot off the top..."

This was within Fang Xi's expectations; being able to save trouble and complete the transaction quickly was what he wanted.

After all, he didn't have much time here.

In Da Liang, Fang Xi had left the caravan under the pretense of wanting to travel alone.

The caravan's progress was slow anyway, and with his movement techniques, he could catch up in just a few hours for a journey that would take two to three days.

If he couldn't catch up... then so be it!

He had done his due diligence, and there was nothing more to say.

"It's a pity I can't go to the Hundred Skills Tower, and I can't sell the Taisui Meat anymore... Next time I hunt a Yao Beast, I'll disguise myself as a rogue cultivator and sell it at the market..."

"Compared to Di Qi, the Pill Cauldron Pavilion is truly a rip-off! A bottle of pills sells for thirty Spirit Stones... I even had to pay extra..."

Thinking of the various pills in the Pill Cauldron Pavilion and their exorbitant prices, Fang Xi felt an urge to grit his teeth and gasp.

Was it easy for him to work hard as a transporter between two worlds? Yet all the profit was taken by these monopolists!

"Sigh... Let it go, cultivation is everything."

Fang Xi calmed his mood and poured out a 'Wood Element Pill' from the ink-black jade bottle.

The pill was emerald green all over, but it smelled pungent and spicy.

After some thought, he swallowed it directly and closed his eyes to refine it.

Before long, Fang Xi's expression shifted as he felt a vast yet gentle wave of spiritual energy erupt in his dantian's sea of qi, stimulating the Evergreen Art, which was eager to move.

He involuntarily began to circulate the third layer of the Evergreen Art, over and over again.

When Fang Xi came to his senses, he had unknowingly circulated the cultivation technique for a full three hours.

And when he looked inward, his face immediately lit up with joy: "I've actually reached the peak of the third layer of Qi Refining! It wasn't easy at all..."

Heaven knows, his cultivation was at the third layer of Qi Refining when he transmigrated, and he hadn't reached the peak in over a year!

Now, he had finally cultivated this layer to its peak and could aim for the bottleneck of the mid-Qi Refining stage!

"The power of pills is not bad!"

Fang Xi happily caressed the ink-black jade bottle. There were two more 'Wood Element Pills' inside, which he estimated should be enough for him to break through the bottleneck of the mid-Qi Refining stage!

"As expected, just sitting and meditating is too foolish; taking pills is the way to go!"

"Moreover, these spirit pills contain their own spiritual energy. Taking pills mainly involves refining the spiritual energy and medicinal properties within the pills for cultivation. Therefore, even in Da Liang, one can still cultivate and progress..."

Fang Xi instantly felt like returning to Da Liang to capture Yao Beasts in large numbers and then exchanging them for pills to cultivate.

But he quickly dismissed this fanciful notion!

Advancing cultivation too quickly could lead to an unstable foundation!

Furthermore, pills suitable for increasing Magical Power and breaking through bottlenecks for mid to late Qi Refining stages were even more expensive!

Not to mention, taking large amounts of pills would lead to the problem of pill toxicity, which would definitely affect the breakthrough to subsequent major realms!

"Selling large quantities of Yao Beast meat would not only depress the market price and be a net loss, but it would also easily expose me..."

"I still need to be stable. I'm only seventeen, almost eighteen... No rush, no rush..."

Fang Xi looked at the Wood Element Pills in his hand and fell into contemplation.

One day later.

Fang Xi walked out of the shed, a hint of dejection on his face.

He had originally thought that taking another Wood Element Pill would allow him to break through the bottleneck.

He hadn't expected that one pill wouldn't be enough. After taking the last Wood Element Pill, he barely managed to break through the bottleneck of the fourth layer of Qi Refining, becoming a mid-stage cultivator at the fourth layer of Qi Refining.

"Talent!"

Fang Xi vaguely felt that his low-grade spirit root would become an increasingly significant obstacle on his path to longevity.

It was fine in the Qi Refining stage; although pills that increased Magical Power were not common, as long as one was willing to spend Spirit Stones, they could always be bought.

As for the pills needed to increase Magical Power for Foundation Establishment Great Cultivators, the Green Bamboo Mountain Market only had them at the auction held once every ten years.

Not to mention that once one reached the Core Formation stage, both the pill formulas and spirit herbs that were hundreds of years old would become extremely rare and scarce.

It was simply unrealistic to rely entirely on the power of pills to advance!

"Spirit roots... spirit roots... I wonder if there's a way to improve spirit roots?"

Fang Xi fell into contemplation.

According to the theory of spirit roots in the cultivation world, every cultivator with spirit roots must possess all five elements, but one or several spirit roots would be more prominent, determining the cultivator's talent based on the longest board.

Fang Xi himself had a low-grade wood spiritual root, meaning that among his five elemental spiritual roots, the wood spiritual root was the strongest, but it only reached the level of a low-grade spiritual root.

Above low-grade spiritual roots were medium-grade, high-grade spiritual roots, and even the legendary Earth and Heaven spiritual roots—these were all things of legend. Once they appeared, they would inevitably cause those super sects to fight over them. They were Core Formation seeds! Reserves for future powerhouses!

"But... I don't seem to have heard of any methods to improve spiritual roots? Perhaps this is because my predecessor's cultivation was too low and their knowledge was insufficient?"

"If spiritual roots could be improved after birth, why would sects bother searching for disciples with excellent spiritual roots? Therefore, even if such methods exist, the cost must be extremely high..."

"Alas... one word: difficult!"

Fang Xi silently worried about his path of cultivation.

He walked into the courtyard, and a tiny seed suddenly appeared in his hand.

This was a weed he had casually collected while working as a spirit farmer here—the Iron Luo Grass Seed!

This type of weed had no particular benefits, it was just incredibly tough, comparable to steel.

Fang Xi took out this seed, however, to cultivate a spell!

After his cultivation advanced to the middle stage of Qi Refining, he could finally escape the awkwardness of only being able to use spirit farming, weeding, and rain spells in the early stage of Qi Refining, and learn a mid-tier Rank 1 spell!

The spell he was about to learn was called the 'Entanglement Technique', a minor spell recorded in the 'Evergreen Art' cultivation technique.

It mainly involved using Magical Power to nurture seeds, forming vines that would entangle and restrain enemies!

A common spell from a common cultivation technique... that was its limit.

Fang Xi recalled the incantation while channeling his Magical Power and tossing the seed.

Crack!

The seed landed on the ground and remained still for a long time...

"Spell failed..."

Fang Xi sighed.

He had never been a genius in the path of cultivation.

Fortunately, casting spells could be mastered through repeated practice.

Fang Xi wasn't aiming for immediate combat effectiveness, so he could speak the incantation slower, and perform the hand seals just as slowly, in order to reduce the difficulty.

Half a day later.

Accompanied by bursts of complex and awkward syllables, Fang Xi formed hand seals and threw out the Iron Luo Grass Seed.

"Evergreen commands, ten thousand trees sprout!"

The next moment, Fang Xi felt the Magical Power within him surge out like a dam that had burst its gates!

The Iron Luo Grass Seed on the ground rapidly exploded, sprouting pitch-black leaves about a zhang long, with sharp serrations along the edges, which then ensnared a wooden stake.

Crunch! Crunch!

The Iron Luo Grass coiled like a giant python, tightening its grip. The wooden stake shattered in an instant, sending countless wood chips flying.

"This power... it's just okay."

"In critical moments, I still have to rely on my fists!"

Seeing this, Fang Xi wasn't particularly disappointed.

"Haha... a fine wood-elemental spell!"

Just then, a voice of admiration came from beyond the courtyard wall.

Fang Xi looked over and saw his neighbor Chen Ping, and smiled, "Not at all... it can't compare to Fellow Daoist's nimble and destructive fire spells."

Perhaps only this person could engage in such polite, mutual flattery with him.

Chen Ping's cultivation technique was even worse than his. The only spell he could handle was the Fireball Technique. He had truly immersed himself for many years, playing with the Fireball Technique to its limits.

"However, this Entanglement Technique is a mid-tier Rank 1 spell. Could it be that Fellow Daoist Fang...?"

Chen Ping suddenly looked at Fang Xi in surprise.

"Haha... a fortunate coincidence. I've finally broken through to the middle stage of Qi Refining!"

Fang Xi had no intention of hiding his cultivation progress.

What he truly wanted to hide was his Body Refining cultivation.

"So that's how it is. Congratulations, Fellow Daoist."

Chen Ping bowed solemnly, his eyes filled with envy.

His aptitude was truly average, and cultivation and breakthroughs were exceptionally difficult for him.

At this point, Chen Ping continued, "Since I've run into you, Fellow Daoist, I wanted to let you know... I'm moving."

"Oh? Why?"

Fang Xi was taken aback.

Was Chen Ping no longer going to be a spirit farmer?

"To be frank, after inheriting the Zong Master's legacy, my talisman crafting skills have improved slightly. I am now a mid-tier Rank 1 Talisman Master..."

Chen Ping answered proudly.

This time, it was Fang Xi's turn to envy Chen Ping.

A mid-tier Rank 1 Talisman Master was much more valuable than a Qi Refining cultivator at the middle stage.

Damn it, this is so unfair... Master Zong barely reached this tier, and Chen Ping struggled to draw even low-tier Rank 1 Spirit Talismans before. How did he suddenly get enlightened?

Fang Xi couldn't figure it out no matter how hard he thought.

Chen Ping, meanwhile, touched his head and flashed another honest, simple smile. "Also... Fellow Daoist Lu saw how diligent I was and was moved by my talent in the Way of Talismans. She's willing to stay and guide me for a few days. She won't be leaving anytime soon..."

"..." Fang Xi was even more speechless. He suppressed the twitching at the corner of his mouth and congratulated him, "Congratulations, Fellow Daoist. Your sincerity has moved mountains and seas!"

The cultivation world didn't place much importance on remarriage. Even female cultivators could keep three thousand male consorts, and everyone would fawn over them.

This was because female cultivators could also cultivate and break through in terms of 'strength,' not falling behind male cultivators at all.

The equality of strength was the true root of equality!

And Lu Zhi had high cultivation, good looks, and a large inheritance...

At this moment, Fang Xi felt a pang of jealousy.

After his sigh of emotion, Fang Xi's mind suddenly recalled Yunmeng Fairy and others' interactions with Chen Ping. Perhaps... this Fellow Daoist Chen truly possesses a unique charm?

However, he looked left and right but still couldn't see it. Besides, if there really was a secret, why had Chen Ping been doing so poorly before?

"Haha... When my Fellow Daoist Lu and I become Dao companions, you'll definitely have to share a cup of Spirit Wine with me, Fellow Daoist Fang!"

Chen Ping laughed heartily, full of high spirits.