Below Qingzhu Peak.
Chen Qinglin waited here for Xie Jingyun. He had just sent her a voice transmission.
Xie Jingyun hadn't been back to Qingyan Town in two or three years.
It wasn't that she didn't miss home. Qingfeng Mountain had rules.
Those who hadn't reached the Inner Qi Realm weren't allowed to leave the mountain!
Although Xie Jingyun had good talent—upper-grade talent—she had spent a great deal of time mastering control over her Blood Qi.
Her cultivation speed in Blood Qi and True Qi might be a little faster, but that didn't help her control her own Blood Qi.
Blood Qi control was more a test of how well one could command oneself.
Breaking through to the Inner Qi Realm at different levels of control had different effects.
Normally, with Blood Qi control below seventy percent, there was no chance of breaking through to the Inner Qi Realm.
Some Evil Methods could allow one to break through to the Inner Qi Realm, which was one reason Evil Method Cultivators continued to appear despite repeated bans.
With Blood Qi control above seventy percent but below ninety percent, one could break through with the help of a Qi Gathering Pill, but would reach only an ordinary Inner Qi Realm.
If Blood Qi control reached between ninety and ninety-five percent, breaking through to the Inner Qi Realm would increase one's cultivation speed by half, and one could break through without a Qi Gathering Pill.
Above ninety-five percent, but short of perfection, one's cultivation speed would double.
The people of Qingfeng Mountain didn't know exactly how much faster someone who broke through perfectly could cultivate.
Since Qingfeng Mountain's founding, no one had ever achieved perfect Blood Qi control during the Body Tempering Realm.
In all of Qingfeng Mountain's thousand-odd years, only the Founding Ancestor had reached over ninety-five percent Blood Qi control in the Body Tempering Realm.
Rumor had it that the Founding Ancestor had surpassed the Spirit Aperture Realm and reached the Dharma Form Realm.
He had also shone brilliantly in the war against the Outer Realm Sky Demons. Unfortunately, he never returned, and his bones were buried in a foreign land.
Had he not perished, Qingfeng Mountain would have been even more glorious under his leadership.
Xie Jingyun's master, Meng Yunling, set high standards for her talented disciples.
Those with upper-grade talent had to achieve at least ninety percent Blood Qi control before they could break through to the Inner Qi Realm.
This brief pause was meant to help them travel farther in the future.
Xie Jingyun had spent two years mastering her Blood Qi control.
She had reached the Body Tempering Ninth Level more than two years ago, but didn't attain ninety percent Blood Qi control and prepare to break through to the Inner Qi Realm until a month before Chen Qinglin joined the sect.
During that time, Xie Jingyun had been secluded on Qingzhu Peak, which was why Chen Qinglin hadn't heard anything about her around the time he joined.
As for Chen Qinglin, he knew perfectly well how fast one could cultivate after breaking through to the Inner Qi Realm with perfect Blood Qi control.
It tripled one's original cultivation speed.
If the cultivation speed of average talent was five, then above-average talent was seven and a half, upper-grade talent was ten, and exceptional talent was fifteen.
As for below-average and above-upper-grade talent, their cultivation speeds weren't much different from those of average and upper-grade talent.
By comparison, below-average talent was around four, while above-upper-grade talent was around nine.
With perfect Blood Qi control, Chen Qinglin's breakthrough to the Inner Qi Realm had given him a cultivation speed on par with that of someone with exceptional talent who broke through with Blood Qi control between ninety and ninety-five percent.
That was why, with the help of the Origin Returning Art, which he had cultivated to perfection, he had reached the late stage of the Inner Qi Realm in just four months.
He had also opened the Yin Wei Meridian, Yang Wei Meridian, Yin Qiao Meridian, and Yang Qiao Meridian, and his cultivation speed had soared.
He was cultivating so quickly that he hadn't gone to seek guidance from his master, Fu Shenxing, for some time.
He only came out to stretch his legs after cultivating the Spirit Concealing Technique to Minor Accomplishment, allowing him to hide his cultivation from Origin Embracing Realm Martial Artists.
Strictly speaking, the Spirit Concealing Technique was a special secret art, so it couldn't really be described as a Human Tier Low Grade technique.
However, its proficiency requirements were the same as those of a Human Tier Low Grade technique, so Chen Qinglin had simply categorized it as one.
For now, he kept his cultivation at the middle stage of the Inner Qi Realm. It was still a little too fast, but what could he do? He hadn't had the Spirit Concealing Technique before.
Chen Qinglin was lost in thought until Xie Jingyun came down from Qingzhu Peak. Only then did he stop letting his mind wander.
He went over and exchanged a few customary greetings with Xie Jingyun before getting to the point.
"Sister Jingyun, I'm thinking of going home. Would you like to come with me?" Chen Qinglin asked.
He was going back to Qingyan Town, and Xie Jingyun hadn't been home in a long time either.
So he'd come to ask if she wanted to go with him.
"Junior Brother, you're going home? That's wonderful!"
"I wanted to go back after breaking through to the Inner Qi Realm, but I was worried it wouldn't be safe to travel alone."
"Qingfeng Mountain is so far from home. Now that you'll be there to protect me, I can finally relax," Xie Jingyun said gently.
She knew how capable this junior brother was.
In such a short time since joining the sect, he had already reached the middle stage of the Inner Qi Realm. She'd heard from her master that he had broken through with Blood Qi control at ninety-one percent.
Meng Yunling had naturally learned this from Fu Shenxing. Ling Ling, Chen Qinglin, Chang Yan, and Xie Jingyun often visited one another, and at some point, Meng Yunling, the Elder of Qingzhu Peak, and his master Fu Shenxing had struck up a friendship.
When they chatted over tea, they naturally talked about their disciples.
Chen Qinglin and Xie Jingyun were among their favorite topics.
After taking Chen Qinglin as his disciple, Fu Shenxing had naturally asked what level of Blood Qi control he'd had when he broke through to the Inner Qi Realm.
Could it be that I'm destined to become the go-between for my master Fu Shenxing and Elder Meng...?
Thinking of this, Chen Qinglin couldn't help but secretly sneer at his master Fu Shenxing.
(¬▂¬)
"If you're going home too, Sister Jingyun, you should get ready. The sooner the better. Let's set out tomorrow!"
"Okay, Qinglin. I'll go tell my master. Shall we go to Qingfeng City later and buy some things?"
"I want to get some things for Grandpa, Father, and the others," Xie Jingyun said.
"Yeah, we should get them some things. I'll go with you this afternoon!" Chen Qinglin thought of his little sister Chen Xiaoxiao and Chen Qingyun, and a smile tugged at his lips. He really should bring them some gifts.
As he spoke, he left Qingzhu Peak. He needed to tell his master, Fu Shenxing—and, well... his senior sister Ling Ling too.
Looking at this crowd of lovely young women before him, Chen Qinglin wondered if it was too late to regret everything.
He'd only planned to go down to Qingfeng City with Xie Jingyun to buy some local specialties. But when he told Ling Ling, his senior sister insisted on helping him choose. Not only that, she dragged Su Yuexing along too.
Then, when they reached Qingzhu Peak, they ran into Xie Jingyun and the people around her, including Senior Sister Chang Yan, who came along as well.
"..." They looked at one another in silence.
Xie Jingyun could only spread her hands helplessly.
Together, they headed down the mountain to stroll through Qingfeng City.
The usual dead-inside Chen Qinglin. The usual excited Ling Ling.
Ling Ling didn't care about anything else. The moment they entered the city market, she was as excited as a monkey.
She dragged Chen Qinglin this way and that, asking questions here and peering at things there.
Chen Qinglin now felt that his little sister Chen Xiaoxiao might not need so many gifts. Wasn't seeing her big brother the greatest surprise of all?
As for his younger brother, Chen Qingyun, he was about to start martial arts training at the school. What was the point of playing around? Practicing hard was what mattered.
"Junior Brother, do you think your little sister would like this bell...?"
"What about this hairpin...?"
"And this... and this..."
(눈_눈)
She liked them all. Why not just buy everything?
Xie Jingyun, Su Yuexing, Chang Yan, and the others watched Chen Qinglin and Ling Ling with smiles, clearly enjoying the sight of their junior brother's helpless expression.
They slowly picked out the things they liked at the market.
Ah!... Ah!
At last, the day of torment was over.
Before you continue