Consecutive Breakthroughs

Yang Lingtian recalled the things his predecessor had done and had to admit they were a bit much.

With his Foster Mother putting it that way, he really had nothing to say for himself.

It wasn't like he could just say he wasn't the original Yang Lingtian anymore.

Let her scold him—after all, she was his future Mother-in-law.

Right now, the most important thing was figuring out how to complete the mission.

Suddenly, an idea struck him. Putting on a remorseful tone, he said with deep feeling, "Foster Mother, I know I was wrong."

"I've reflected deeply on myself, and I realize the one I've wronged most is Yiyue."

"So please allow me to step forward and sincerely apologize to Yiyue."

At these words, the three of them froze for a moment.

How unusual!

Giving in that easily?

He used to do whatever he pleased and never admit fault.

That was when Chen Zhengqing finally spoke up.

"Alright, just properly apologize to Yiyue, and we'll put this matter to rest."

With permission granted, Yang Lingtian walked steadily toward Chen Yiyue.

By now, he was very close to her, his deep eyes fixed on her face.

Chen Yiyue looked back at him with a startled expression, unsure what kind of apology was coming.

Yang Lingtian spoke first: "Yiyue, don't worry. I really won't go to those brothels anymore."

Then, his body quickly leaned forward, and before Chen Yiyue could react, he suddenly kissed her on the cheek.

The unexpected move left them all stunned.

Chen Yiyue especially—her eyes went wide, her face frozen in shock.

It was the first time a man had ever kissed her cheek.

Snapping out of it, she shouted angrily, "You jerk! Pervert! Yang Lingtian, go die!"

Then she lifted her foot and kicked him, sending him flying.

Even though Chen Yiyue was a bit younger than him, her cultivation was much higher—she was at Qi Refining Level 7.

And she'd only started training in the last year or two, so her talent was pretty solid.

Even without using her full strength, that kick still hurt Yang Lingtian badly.

Yang Lingtian was deeply puzzled: "Don't women like domineering men?"

"I kissed her so forcefully, and she didn't even swoon—just got mad instead."

"Guess I should stop reading those Domineering CEO novels so much."

Seeing the situation was bad, Yang Lingtian knew Chen Yiyue was still fuming, so he had to make a quick getaway.

He hurriedly said, "Uh, Foster Father, Foster Mother, I've already apologized. I'll be going now."

Before they could reply, he slipped away.

Chen Zhengqing just smiled faintly and muttered to himself, "This kid's got some of my style from back in the day."

He knew that kick from Chen Yiyue wouldn't seriously hurt Yang Lingtian.

But his Foster Mother was genuinely furious.

"That little brat—is that how you apologize?"

"Yiyue isn't even of age yet, and he dares to mess with her."

"Such a womanizer, no wonder he goes to those brothels."

"Chen Zhengqing, if you don't rein him in, he'll think he can do anything."

Chen Zhengqing shrugged it off. "It was just a kiss. Yiyue's going to marry Lingtian anyway."

"She's almost eighteen. Once they're wed, I'm sure Lingtian's temperament will change."

"Hmph, keep spoiling him, then. Look what he's become!" Liu Yingxue fumed.

"A dog can't change its nature. My poor daughter."

Chen Zhengqing was starting to get annoyed.

"Enough. No matter what, he's still your son-in-law. Don't say such harsh things."

Liu Yingxue was still seething inside. She took Chen Yiyue and left the main hall.

Meanwhile, Yang Lingtian was heading back to his room. For now, the best thing was to go cultivate.

After all, he'd gotten such an incredible cultivation technique—not using it would be a waste.

On the way back, some servants pointed and whispered as Yang Lingtian passed by.

"Did you hear? Last night he went to a brothel, went berserk with lust, and burned the whole place down."

"Yeah, not only is he a wastrel, now his conduct's rotten too—he's basically a sex fiend."

"So disgraceful. He doesn't even feel a shred of guilt. The Chen Family's reputation is ruined because of him."

Yang Lingtian could sense it clearly: throughout the entire Chen Manor, only his Foster Father Chen Zhengqing still looked out for him. Everyone else looked down on him.

But he couldn't be bothered with these people. He was going to become the strongest.

These mortals weren't worth his attention!

Back in his room, Yang Lingtian sat down and closed his eyes.

He began cultivating according to the Chaos Dao Divine Art.

Inside his Dantian, the Chaos Bead seemed to be stimulated—it trembled once.

Then, the spiritual energy of heaven and earth began to surge wildly.

Spiritual energy from a dozen li in every direction converged toward Yang Lingtian.

At that moment, Yang Lingtian felt as if he could no longer control his own body.

All his pores suddenly opened, frantically absorbing the spiritual energy.

His body had become like a bottomless pit.

No matter how dense the surrounding spiritual energy was, it all poured into him, flowing into his Dantian.

Yang Lingtian was shocked. His Dantian was actively absorbing the spiritual energy of heaven and earth on its own.

The terrifying rate of absorption left him alarmed.

If this kept up, normally speaking, such a massive influx of spiritual energy would soon cause his body to explode.

But instead, all that spiritual energy vanished into his Dantian like stones sinking into the sea.

He focused his senses and discovered that every bit of spiritual energy was being drawn into the Chaos Bead inside his Dantian.

It seemed the Chaos Bead was absorbing energy to repair itself.

Still, this amount of spiritual energy probably couldn't restore even a trillionth of the Chaos Bead's power.

At this point, with Yang Lingtian at the center, spiritual energy for several li around churned violently, whipping up gusts of wind that howled through the Chen Manor.

The manor was filled with flying sand and swirling leaves.

Although most of the spiritual energy was absorbed by the Chaos Bead, a tiny fraction leaked out from it.

That fraction became pure Spiritual Power, absorbed by Yang Lingtian.

Even this minuscule amount of Spiritual Power rapidly boosted his cultivation.

Qi Refining Level 3!

Qi Refining Level 4!

Qi Refining Level 5!

Meanwhile, in his own room, Chen Zhengqing was greatly startled.

"What's going on? Why is the fluctuation of heaven and earth's spiritual energy so violent?"

He turned into a blur, shooting out and arriving above the Chen Manor at lightning speed.

He sensed that all the spiritual energy was converging toward the area where Yang Lingtian lived.

His face grew solemn as he stared at Yang Lingtian's room, a look of confusion and bewilderment on his face.

He had no idea what was happening inside. Even he couldn't cause such intense spiritual energy fluctuations.

The whole process lasted only a few minutes.

After those minutes, the Chaos Bead seemed to fall silent, no longer actively absorbing the spiritual energy.

The violent spiritual energy also calmed down.

Yang Lingtian's cultivation had risen to Qi Refining Stage Level 6.

He tried to cultivate again using the Chaos Dao Divine Art, but found he could no longer stimulate the Chaos Bead.

It seemed the Chaos Bead had fallen back into slumber.

If it had activated a few more times, he might have broken straight through to the Foundation Establishment Realm.

[Congratulations, host, on breaking through to Qi Refining Stage Level 6. You have taken another step forward on the path of the strong.]

[As a reward, you receive Tier 3 Alchemy and corresponding knowledge, including pill formulas for Tier 3 and below.]

"Tier 3 Alchemy? That means I've instantly become a Tier 3 Alchemist?"

"I heard that even the True Elixir Pavilion in Tianchen City doesn't have a Tier 3 Alchemist. So I'd be the only one in the whole city?"

"This system wants me to be self-sufficient with pills! It's helping me become an all-around powerhouse."

"From now on, if I need any elixir, I'll just refine it myself. No need to be beholden to anyone."

"Hell yeah, this is awesome!"

Receiving the system rewards again, Yang Lingtian was overjoyed.

Just then, Chen Zhengqing had already arrived outside the house, his voice carrying a hint of urgency.

"Lingtian, are you alright? What happened in there?"

"I'm fine." Yang Lingtian snapped back from his delight, looking toward the door as he replied.

Then he rose and went out, opening the door. He knew his foster father would definitely come in to check.

With Chen Zhengqing's Golden Core cultivation, he could naturally sense Yang Lingtian's Qi Refining Stage Level 6 aura with ease.

His face showed shock as he exclaimed, "Lingtian, you actually broke through from Qi Refining Stage Level 2 straight to Level 6?"

Then a long-lost smile spread across his face.

"Haha, good, Lingtian. You've surprised me. It seems your talent in cultivation isn't that poor after all."

"But the commotion from your cultivation was too much."

"Your meridians were already damaged. Won't cultivating like this cause problems?"

Yang Lingtian could feel his foster father's concern and reassured him, "Don't worry, Foster Father. This was just a one-time thing. It won't happen again."

"Very well, then focus on your cultivation for now."

"I'll go find you a Meridian-Renewing Elixir, though such pills are rare."

"Even the True Elixir Pavilion might not have one, but I'll do my best to search for you!"

With that, Chen Zhengqing left.

Yang Lingtian used to enjoy eating, drinking, and having fun, neglecting his cultivation.

Since he was finally willing to cultivate seriously this time, Chen Zhengqing didn't disturb him further.

After Chen Zhengqing left, Yang Lingtian resumed cultivation, but his speed was much slower than before.

He realized that because his damaged meridians hadn't fully recovered, his cultivation was hindered.

So he needed to find a Meridian-Renewing Elixir first to repair his meridians.

In Tianchen City, only the True Elixir Pavilion was likely capable of refining one.

The Meridian-Renewing Elixir was a Tier 2 Spirit Pill, extremely difficult to refine.

Moreover, there wasn't much of a market for such pills, since few people suffered from damaged meridians.

Thus, the True Elixir Pavilion rarely refined them and basically never stocked them for sale.

But now, as a Tier 3 Alchemist, he could refine it himself.

However, he would still need to purchase the required herbs from the True Elixir Pavilion.

After all, the True Elixir Pavilion was Tianchen City's largest supplier of medicinal herbs and pill sales point.

It stood independently, free from the control of any faction, transcendent and aloof from the world.

The True Elixir Pavilion in Tianchen City was just a branch; the Star-Moon Dynasty was dotted with its branches.

It was said that the force behind them was extremely powerful, and no one dared to provoke the True Elixir Pavilion.

Even the City Lord's Mansion was wary of it, as it was completely beyond the jurisdiction of the City Lord's Mansion.

Moreover, the True Elixir Pavilion also had Golden Core Realm experts within.