Tempered by Hardship, Pressing Forward

After the banquet ended.

Ye Qingxuan resumed his cultivation rhythm, even reducing the time he spent on alchemy and devoting more time to cultivation.

Although he possessed Eternal Lifespan, he did not slacken in his cultivation because of it.

The immortal road was long. One step slow, and every step would be slow!

Sometimes, once an opportunity was missed, it was missed forever. One could not reach the Immortal Path Peak solely by relying on Eternal Lifespan.

To the true powerhouses of the Immortal Path, Eternal Lifespan was nothing much!

If he wished to reach the very summit, he could not harbor complacency and neglect cultivation merely because he possessed Eternal Lifespan.

Timing, Location, and People—sometimes, once the right moment was missed, the chance to reach the summit would be lost forever!

The higher one climbed on the Cultivation Path, the narrower the road became, and the fewer opportunities there were to aid oneself. Missing one chance could directly sever one's Future Path.

Only by advancing step by step, breaking through thorns, pressing forward through hardship, and persevering without fail could one seize opportunity after opportunity, transform oneself, and surpass everything!

Therefore, when Ye Qingxuan stepped onto the Cultivation Path, he had never relied on any so-called Eternal Lifespan. What he valued was merely the assistance Eternal Lifespan could provide him in the Early Stage.

If, in the future, he could trade this Eternal Lifespan for a chance to Ascend to a Higher Level, he would discard this so-called Eternal Lifespan without the slightest hesitation in exchange for such an opportunity.

Ever since he reduced the time he spent on alchemy and increased the time he spent cultivating.

Ye Qingxuan's cultivation had begun advancing a fraction faster than before!

Though it was only a fraction faster each day, as days and months accumulated, that tiny bit of progress began producing remarkable results.

In merely Six Years, Ye Qingxuan's cultivation had reached his expectations: Qi Refining Perfection.

It was a full year earlier than he had previously estimated.

After advancing to Qi Refining Perfection, his next step would be to Open Blessed Land and use the Feedback from Newly Opened Blessed Land to advance into the Foundation Establishment Realm.

Before Opening Blessed Land, Ye Qingxuan could not break through to the Foundation Establishment Realm in advance. Once he did, a cultivator's Essence Qi Spirit Origin would begin to solidify.

At that point, if he wished to separate his Essence Qi Spirit Origin and Integrate into Spirit Land Origin, the Success Rate would be greatly reduced!

However, before that, he planned to return home first!

Ye Qingxuan stood in the small courtyard, gazing at the sky as a trace of reminiscence flashed through his eyes.

"In the Blink of an Eye, Twenty-Two Years have already passed. It is time to go home and take a look!"

He had entered the Xuantian Sect at Twelve Years Old. Now, he was Thirty-Four Years Old, and after Twenty-Two Years, he had finally broken through to Qi Refining Perfection.

If he had been outside the Xuantian Sect, he might have needed to hesitate for over a hundred years before achieving what he had today, right?

After taking one final look at the small courtyard where he had lived for Twenty-Two Years, Ye Qingxuan no longer lingered. He opened the courtyard gate, took one step out, and his figure gradually disappeared into the distance!

Arriving at the Affairs Hall of the Blessed Cultivator Courtyard, Ye Qingxuan found Bai Zichun, the manager of the Blessed Cultivator Courtyard, and respectfully said:

"Steward Bai, this disciple has already broken through to Qi Refining Perfection and has come to register!"

"You broke through? So quickly?"

Bai Zichun looked at the disciple before him, whom he had only met face-to-face twice, and approval leaked out through his eyes.

"You are quite good!"

He had already tried to overestimate Ye Qingxuan's Cultivation Progress, yet he did not expect Ye Qingxuan's breakthrough to Qi Refining Perfection to still surpass his calculations.

The first time he met Ye Qingxuan was when Ye Qingxuan had just entered the Qi Refining Realm and came to the Affairs Hall to register his cultivation!

And their second meeting was this very time.

Although the small courtyards where the Blessed Cultivator Courtyard Disciples lived were protected by Formation Restrictions, preventing him from examining the situation inside every disciple's courtyard.

Through day after day of observation, he still had some understanding of each disciple's general cultivation condition.

Facing Bai Zichun's praise, Ye Qingxuan's expression remained unchanged as he humbly replied:

"You overpraise me, Manager. This disciple is unworthy of it!"

These were Ye Qingxuan's sincere thoughts. Compared to those true geniuses, his Cultivation Speed was still far inferior!

Hearing Ye Qingxuan's humble response, Bai Zichun became even more satisfied with him and inwardly sighed:

"He can endure loneliness, and his temperament is also excellent. This child truly possesses Blessed Cultivator Potential!"

Though Ye Qingxuan's talent was not among the very best in the Blessed Cultivator Courtyard, he had still surpassed several other disciples with Dual Element Spiritual Roots solely through his own efforts, becoming the second person of their Same Cohort to break through to Qi Refining Perfection.

This was within Bai Zichun's expectations. It was only that Ye Qingxuan had broken through to Qi Refining Perfection a little faster than he had anticipated!

After Ye Qingxuan entered the Blessed Cultivator Courtyard, his secluded lifestyle and uninterrupted, day-after-day cultivation rhythm had all been seen by him.

As for the other Blessed Cultivator Courtyard Disciples, after entering the Xuantian Sect.

Which of them could be like Ye Qingxuan, endure loneliness, and resist curiously going everywhere to see the sights within the Xuantian Sect? How could one ever see enough of each and every mountain peak?

Most Blessed Cultivator Courtyard Disciples held the mindset that they should play while they still could before they Formally Become A Blessed Cultivator. Every day, they traveled in groups through the great peaks of the Xuantian Mountain Range, even grandly calling it Work-Life Balance.

There were even quite a few Blessed Cultivator Courtyard Disciples who, at the final juncture, could not withstand the temptations of the Outside World and delayed their Cultivation Speed in every possible way, all to prolong their time for pleasure.

Time slipped away precisely like this, without anyone noticing!

Disciples like Ye Qingxuan were extremely few even among the successive generations of the Blessed Cultivator Courtyard.

Naturally, Bai Zichun liked such disciples very much.

Taking a map from his arms, Bai Zichun said amiably:

"This map marks the First-rank Spirit Lands born within the Xuantian Mountain Range. You may choose one Spirit Land to contract."

Taking the map, Ye Qingxuan hesitated and said:

"Manager, before this disciple contracts a Spirit Land, I would like to return home and visit my Parents. This...?"

If he contracted a Spirit Land now, would he not be unable to return home?

Upon hearing Ye Qingxuan's words, Bai Zichun said with a smile:

"Hehehe, no harm, no harm. You can choose a Spirit Vein first, and after choosing and registering it, returning home will be no harm!"

"Though they are all First-rank Spirit Lands, there can be considerable differences between them. Among the remaining First-rank Spirit Lands, three have only just reached the Tier 1 Late Stage Spirit Land."

"Spirit Lands are first come, first served. Securing a good Spirit Land first will greatly help your development in the Early Stage."

Hearing Bai Zichun's words, Ye Qingxuan's eyes lit up. Naturally, he would not foolishly refuse Bai Zichun's goodwill.

"Thank you for your guidance, Manager!"

After offering his thanks, Ye Qingxuan opened the map in his hand and saw markings for over a hundred First-rank Spirit Lands!

Among them, three markings were especially conspicuous. They were precisely the locations of the three Tier 1 Late Stage Spirit Lands.

Of these three Tier 1 Late Stage Spirit Lands, one was Not Far from Xuantian Sect's main peak, Xuantian Peak, separated by only about 20,000 Kilometers. It was also the closest First-rank Spirit Land to Xuantian Peak.

The other two Tier 1 Late Stage Spirit Lands were located on the outskirts of the Xuantian Mountain Range, essentially near the boundary line of Xuan Prefecture.

"Manager, may I go and take a look at these three Spirit Lands?"

The Xuantian Mountain Range was too vast. Ye Qingxuan did not intend to inspect every Spirit Land, so he only planned to examine these three Tier 1 Late Stage Spirit Lands.

Bai Zichun knew these Blessed Lands like the back of his hand, so he did not refuse Ye Qingxuan.

"You may. There are Teleportation Arrays not far from these three Spirit Lands. Going to take a look will not waste much time!"

Then Bai Zichun continued:

"Oh, right. After you Formally Become A Blessed Cultivator, you may have two retainers. Since you are returning home anyway, take the opportunity to recruit them yourself!"

"Retainers?"