Shopkeeper Ding was taken aback. "You want to use a Spirit Burst Pill to break through?"
"I'm sixty-one this year. If I don't try now, I'm afraid I won't get another chance!" Shen Xuan said mournfully.
He looked no older than thirty, in the prime of life by mortal standards.
In truth, once a cultivator passed sixty, their blood and vitality began to wane.
That was why the Cultivation World used sixty as a dividing line.
Cultivators with ability usually chose to achieve Foundation Establishment before turning sixty.
As for someone like Shen Xuan, stuck at Qi Refining Level 3 and unable to advance to the Mid Qi Refining Stage, that was the fate of most lowly Rogue Cultivators.
"Fellow Daoist Shen, you must think this through. Though the Spirit Burst Pill is a Rank-Breaking Spirit Pill, it squeezes a cultivator's potential and damages their Dao Foundation. The consequences are endless. A wise man wouldn't take it!" Shopkeeper Chen advised kindly.
In his view, Shen Xuan was nearly as skilled as a Mid-grade Talisman Master.
After deducting the cost of his Talisman Crafting materials, he could earn more than ten spirit stones a month—enough to live quite comfortably.
He had even been considering whether to introduce another female cultivator from his clan to marry him.
After all, cultivators who had no worries about food or clothing and could earn over a hundred spirit stones a year were rare in Qinglong Bay.
The reason he had hesitated to make up his mind and put forward the proposal to his clan was still Shen Xuan's age.
He was sixty-one!
His achievements were limited. He could go no further.
Fortunately, cultivators had long Lifespans.
Shopkeeper Ding estimated that Shen Xuan, who never fought anyone and had an undamaged Dao Foundation, could live to at least a hundred and twenty.
With such a long life ahead, he could still amass quite a fortune.
"A cultivator's cultivation is a struggle against the heavens. I'm already sixty-one. If I don't take a gamble now, when will I?"
"Shopkeeper Ding, don't try to talk me out of it. I'll ask you just one thing: do you have a Spirit Burst Pill or not?"
Shen Xuan put on a look of impassioned resolve.
Seeing that Shen Xuan wouldn't listen, Shopkeeper Ding could only let out a long sigh.
"I do have them. They're fifty spirit stones each. How many does Fellow Daoist Shen want?"
"That expensive?"
"Rank-Breaking Spirit Pills have always cost that much. The Spirit Burst Pill is the cheapest. The Essence Charging Pill costs three hundred spirit stones, and the Foundation Establishment Pill costs over ten thousand!"
Shen Xuan knew Shopkeeper Ding wasn't lying.
Despite their many drawbacks, Rank-Breaking Spirit Pills that aided a breakthrough had always been worth a fortune.
"Can you lower the price?"
"For the sake of our long friendship, I can do forty-eight spirit stones. Not a single stone less!"
"Fine, I'll take one!"
Right in front of Shopkeeper Ding, Shen Xuan opened his Storage Bag and swept out all the spirit stones inside, leaving only three.
"Alas, I've gone completely broke!"
Shen Xuan solemnly accepted the medicine bottle Shopkeeper Ding handed him.
He opened it, took a sniff, and was met by a rich medicinal fragrance.
"Rest assured, the Ding Family Shop never sells counterfeits. This came from Qingyun Sect."
"I know. Thank you, Shopkeeper Ding."
Spirit Pills were unlike other spiritual items. They couldn't contain the slightest bit of adulteration, or their effects would be greatly diminished—or they might even backfire on the cultivator.
Shen Xuan would rather pay a high price at the Ding Family Shop than buy something blindly at the Marketplace.
Spirit Pills at the Marketplace were twenty to thirty percent cheaper than those at the Ding Family Shop.
But their quality wasn't guaranteed.
After Shen Xuan left the shop, Shopkeeper Ding gazed at his retreating figure and sighed.
A man over sixty, still refusing to give up, risking everything to force a breakthrough.
He thought Shen Xuan had very little hope of advancing to the Mid Qi Refining Stage.
Ascetic Cultivators like Shen Xuan, who remained stuck in the Early Qi Refining Stage, generally had poor-quality Spiritual Roots. He was likely to have an Inferior Spirit Root.
Even with a Low-grade Spiritual Root, he should have reached the Mid Qi Refining Stage by now.
As for an Inferior Spirit Root, even with a Spirit Burst Pill, the chance of a successful breakthrough was only twenty percent.
What's more, Shen Xuan was already old, his blood and vitality in decline.
He hoped that if Shen Xuan failed to break through, the backlash wouldn't be too severe and he'd be able to maintain his current Cultivation Realm.
After all, Shen Xuan's business with the Ding Family Shop earned him five or six spirit stones in profit every month.
Shen Xuan didn't hear the sigh from inside the Ding Family Shop.
So expensive!
He was still fretting over the price of the Spirit Burst Pill.
At least it had come from Qingyun Sect and came with a certificate of authenticity.
Otherwise, he wouldn't know how to get rid of it later.
He returned home.
After informing Ding Yuyao, Shen Xuan began cultivating in seclusion.
"I've lived in Qinglong Bay for over forty years. If I suddenly break through to the Mid Qi Refining Stage, it'll definitely attract attention."
"So even with the Spirit Burst Pill as an excuse, I still need to be careful."
At a time like this, the Breath Concealment Technique would come in handy.
There was also the Invisibility Technique. It was useful in both combat and escape.
Like the Breath Concealment Technique, the Invisibility Technique didn't consume much spiritual energy and lasted a long time while producing a powerful effect. It was far better than a High-grade Invisibility Talisman.
As Shen Xuan cultivated the Divine Treasure Canghai Technique, he also improved his proficiency in the Breath Concealment Technique and Invisibility Technique.
Over the next year or so, he openly earned more than a hundred and thirty spirit stones from the Ding Family Shop.
In secret, he changed his identity and sold ordinary Breath Concealing Talismans and Invisibility Talismans, earning more than seventy spirit stones.
Every month, he spent over ten spirit stones buying Mysterious Water Turtles and Silver Jade Fish. On top of that came the annual rent of twelve spirit stones, as well as the cost of food for him and Ding Yuyao.
As a result, he had almost no spirit stones left.
After buying the Spirit Burst Pill, he really was left with only three.
However, Shen Xuan wasn't worried.
There were still over a hundred High-grade Talismans in his Storage Bag, worth forty spirit stones.
Besides, after advancing to the Mid Qi Refining Stage, he could greatly increase his earnings from making Breath Concealing Talismans and Invisibility Talismans, if he wanted.
"A Rank-Breaking Spirit Pill like the Spirit Burst Pill can't be sold off in the Market."
"Going out is too dangerous. I'll sell it if I get the chance."
Shen Xuan pondered.
Even now, aside from the Talisman Brush in his hand, he didn't own a single Magic Artifact.
The Spell Techniques he knew were just the simplest Water Shield Technique and Water Blade Technique.
And there was the Cloud Rain Technique, which he had learned first to help with farming.
He couldn't say he had no combat ability, but he was as close to having none as it was possible to get.
For now, I'll have to be patient. Once I have spirit stones, I'll need to buy a few decent Magic Artifacts and Spell Techniques.
Shen Xuan stopped thinking about it and returned to cultivating in seclusion.
A little over ten days later,
Shen Xuan emerged from the training room and stopped concealing his aura.
Seeing her husband's rosy complexion, Ding Yuyao couldn't help asking curiously, "Husband, are you all right?"
"What could be wrong with me? Come, let your husband check how your inner cultivation is going, Yaoyao!"
"No, it's broad daylight!"
"What's wrong with broad daylight? Some things are more fun in broad daylight!"
After a bout of feigned resistance,
Shen Xuan finally let himself go.
Afterward,
Ding Yuyao's bright eyes studied Shen Xuan again and again.
"If you have something to say, just say it."
"Husband, I feel like you've changed!"
"Have I gotten bigger or longer?"
"Husband!"
After a coquettish protest, Ding Yuyao finally said what was on her mind.
"Husband, you've grown stronger!"
Shen Xuan smiled faintly.
"I broke through!"
"Ah!"
Ding Yuyao's cherry-red lips fell open, and she couldn't close them again.
The news was truly explosive!
Before she married Shen Xuan, her clan had given her a detailed report.
Shen Xuan: Inferior Spirit Root, sixty years old, Low-grade Talisman Master, skilled at making Breath Concealing Talismans and Invisibility Talismans, an Ascetic Cultivator who didn't visit brothels, gamble, or drink, with no bad habits.
She hadn't expected Shen Xuan to break through!
She'd hit the jackpot!
With her husband's diligence, becoming a Mid-grade Talisman Master was only a matter of time.
A Mid-grade Talisman Master!
Even in a Foundation Establishment Cultivation Family, he could secure an Attendant position!
Ding Yuyao had heard that the Ding Family had an Attendant over a hundred years old, a Mid-grade Alchemist, who had married three wives and had an unknown number of concubines!
He truly had wives and concubines in droves!
"Husband, did you really break through to the Mid Qi Refining Stage?"
After a long while, Ding Yuyao asked in a trembling voice.
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