Spirit Essence Realm Seventh Level, Mid Stage

Unexpected,

yet also within reason.

Real life and novels still had a certain gap between them. No matter how poor relationships between people were, at most they would grow old and die without ever interacting. As for the sort who mocked and provoked others upon meeting them, they were always in the minority.

Still,

perhaps everyone who had come here was shrewd,

or perhaps Zhang Qingyuan's earlier display of potential had already been enough to earn respect,

in any case,

the atmosphere of the gathering was fairly harmonious.

Everyone was simply strengthening their ties,

or perhaps,

it was because Zhang Qingyuan was not the protagonist, so such a perfect opportunity for a face-slapping plot never arose.

At this,

Zhang Qingyuan could not help secretly grumbling to himself.

"Come, come, the path of cultivation is not easy. As fellow sect members, we should support one another more in the future."

Zhao Yuanyang raised his wine cup,

and spoke to the fellow sect members from the separate courtyard attending the gathering.

The disciples present

all raised their cups in response.

Some were enthusiastic, some indifferent, some shy and unwilling to speak; their reactions were varied.

In truth,

this was merely a gathering Zhao Yuanyang had organized to strengthen ties, seeing that another Outer Sect Grand Competition was approaching. There was not much purpose behind it.

Its function

was roughly to establish connections, so that after entering the Inner Sect and stepping into the true Cultivation World, they could broaden their network and exchange what they had for what they needed.

For instance, if someone was refining some kind of magic tool and could not find the materials, they could ask their fellow sect members or have them recommend an artifact refiner. An extra connection always made things easier to resolve.

Or if one day they discovered some Cave Abode Ruins,

and could not swallow it alone, they could invite several fellow sect members they knew to explore it together.

That was, at the very least, far more trustworthy than forming a team with unfamiliar rogue cultivators from the outside world.

If their temperaments matched,

they could try becoming closer and make a good friend.

On the other hand,

they could each go their own way, remain unfamiliar, and be no more than nodding acquaintances. It was enough simply to know such a person existed.

That was precisely what Zhang Qingyuan thought,

which was why he had decided to accept Zhao Yuanyang's invitation.

And this gathering

did not disappoint Zhang Qingyuan either.

What had originally been only superficial acquaintance with these fellow sect members had, after one gathering, at least allowed them to recognize one another by name.

And at this gathering in the Lake Pavilion, apart from building ties with most of the other genius disciples from the separate courtyard, the various spirit foods at the banquet also made Zhang Qingyuan feel that the trip had been well worth it.

Zhao Yuanyang truly deserved to be called the son of a great lineage.

Not only was he courteous and refined in dealing with others,

he was also rolling in wealth.

The spirit wine displayed at the gathering alone was, as Zhang Qingyuan knew, the most expensive fine wine at Fragrance Pavilion in the Outer Sect Marketplace. A single jar cost at least ten spirit stones.

After drinking just one cup, he felt warmth spreading through his stomach as spiritual power flowed toward his limbs.

The spiritual power in his meridians swelled.

At the same time,

the various spirit fruits set upon the table were also exceedingly valuable.

There might not have been any meat dishes,

but Zhang Qingyuan estimated that the expense of this gathering alone had cost at least one hundred spirit stones!

A rich man,

a truly rich man!

He had no idea whether it was Zhao Yuanyang's private savings or whether his lineage had funded this effort to win people over.

Faced with such a wealthy host,

Zhang Qingyuan naturally did not hold back.

An opportunity like this

was Zhang Qingyuan's first in three years.

By the end of the meal,

Spirit fruits and spirit wine worth at least a dozen spirit stones had gone into his stomach.

Moreover,

compared with cultivating using spirit stones alone, spirit foods such as these spirit fruits were somewhat more effective for cultivation and replenished all sorts of substances the body required.

This caused Zhang Qingyuan's impression of Zhao Yuanyang

to improve by quite a bit.

The gathering

had no major twists or turns,

and they returned home satisfied.

After returning to his dwelling,

Zhang Qingyuan began refining the spirit fruits and spirit wine he had consumed.

Vast spiritual power

surged forth from the dantian in his abdomen like a clear spring. As it circulated through the meridians inside his body, it was carried to all four limbs, forming a complete heavenly cycle.

Under the effects of that spirit feast,

Zhang Qingyuan, who had long reached the peak of the Early Spirit Essence Realm Seventh Level, finally shattered through the bottleneck that had faintly been on the verge of breaking after his great battle with Yao Ping.

Rumble!!!

Robust Spirit Essence surged and circulated through the meridians inside his body,

and the Spirit Essence within him

grew three parts more abundant!

Spirit Essence Realm Seventh Level, Mid Stage,

achieved!

Having completed the breakthrough of a minor realm, Zhang Qingyuan did not leave immediately. Instead, he sat cross-legged upon the cushion and continued refining the remaining spiritual power contained in the spirit fruits and spirit wine within his body, stabilizing his realm.

Three days later,

when Zhang Qingyuan emerged from his dwelling,

his aura had already stabilized.

Not only had it been stabilized,

but he had even advanced further within the Spirit Essence Realm Seventh Level, Mid Stage, climbing a stretch toward the Seventh Level Late Stage!

His strength

had taken another small step forward.

It was fortunate that Zhao Yuanyang had been so generous, spending a fortune to invite them to the gathering. That expenditure of over one hundred spirit stones was at least equivalent to the price of a top-grade mid-tier magic tool.

But it had been worth every coin.

"I never expected that in just over three short months, my cultivation would break through from the early stage of the Seventh Level to the middle stage. Even before those geniuses with exceptional cultivation aptitude, that speed should count as fairly good, right?"

As he examined his own strength,

it had undergone an earth-shaking transformation compared with three months ago, when he had yet to break through to the Spirit Essence Realm Seventh Level.

A faint smile appeared on Zhang Qingyuan's face.

There was

an element of good fortune in this,

but it was also inseparable from his own hard work.

Afterward,

he stretched his tendons and bones.

Having completed a breakthrough in a minor realm,

Zhang Qingyuan had no intention of continuing to remain in his dwelling to cultivate.

Instead, he felt like going out for a walk.

Since the mission to hunt Spirit Devouring Rats in Azure Mountain Town that day, more than two months had already passed.

All the earnings from that mission

had gone toward buying the magic tool Silver Shadow, with the remainder used to support his own cultivation.

The several jin of spirit grain harvested from the Spirit Devouring Rat nest

had long since been completely consumed.

Throughout this period of time,

the cultivation resources Zhang Qingyuan used, such as Spirit Calming Incense, still relied on the benefits the sect provided to Outer Sect Disciples like them.

Fortunately, Zhang Qingyuan's ranking had already reached the second row,

so the benefits he received had increased severalfold.

Ten sticks of Spirit Calming Incense and three Qi-Guiding Pills each month.

These benefits distributed by the sect

could barely sustain Zhang Qingyuan's cultivation. But if he wanted to increase his realm by another minor stage before the soon-to-arrive Outer Sect Grand Competition, or even break through to the Eighth Layer of Spirit Essence Realm, he would need more additional resources to aid his cultivation.

Therefore,

Zhang Qingyuan planned to go out and take on some missions

to accumulate some contribution points first.

"On the path of cultivation, effort is important, but resources are equally important!"

"If I had resources like those from that banquet to cultivate with every day, then before the Outer Sect Grand Competition, I could even reach Spirit Essence Realm Eighth Level or beyond!"

The Outer Sect Grand Competition.

Thinking of that upcoming, incomparably cruel elimination battle, the joy Zhang Qingyuan felt from breaking through a minor realm faded considerably.

"Recently, the proficiency on the Proficiency Panel has been increasing much more slowly. I should have reached a bottleneck in cultivation. It is just the right time to accept some farther-reaching missions and get some fresh air outside while I'm at it."

After composing himself,

he instructed Hu Junshan to watch over the dwelling.

Then Zhang Qingyuan activated Cloud Smoke Steps and sped toward the External Affairs Hall.