Qi Cultivation Level Seven

Old Clan Head Zhou Minghan, a third-tier high-grade artifact refiner, personally forging a second-tier high-grade magic artifact naturally had no chance of failure.

Foundation Establishment stage cultivators could already convert their spiritual power into Foundation Establishment True Fire. While the temperature of this true fire was still somewhat inferior to Earth Fire, it was considerably hotter than the white flames produced by burning [Blazing Sun Wood].

What was even more remarkable was that true fire was born from a cultivator's spiritual power. It could be gathered or dispersed at will, making it extremely convenient to control, something that spiritual flames like Earth Fire or Heavenly Fire could never compare to.

To allow Zhou Yang to watch closely, the Old Clan Head deliberately slowed down his pace during the artifact refining process. At key points, he even used his divine sense to simultaneously transmit explanations to Zhou Yang, a treatment reserved only for personal disciples.

Clearly, in the eyes of the Old Clan Head, Zhou Yang, this junior, was his ultimate chosen successor for artifact refining techniques.

Zhou Yang also understood the preciousness of the opportunity. Regardless of whether he understood the Old Clan Head's explanations, he would meticulously remember them. Later, when he had free time, he would even take notes to avoid forgetting them in the future.

Although cultivators possessed the ability of photographic memory, when they remembered too many things, they would sometimes forget certain memories. Therefore, taking notes on important matters was still very necessary.

It was said that Nascent Soul stage great cultivators, after achieving Nascent Soul, would gain the great divine ability of "Memory Recall." At that time, as long as they willed it, they could even recall memories from their fetal stage in their mother's womb, rendering the need for taking notes completely unnecessary.

After approximately two hours passed in this manner, the Old Clan Head completed the artifact refining.

The two magic artifacts that were successfully refined were a defensive inner armor made from rat skin, and a set of four matching daggers made from four of the rat's incisors.

Since two drops of Zhou Yang's vital blood were used to consecrate the artifacts during the refining process, the magic artifacts could be used immediately upon completion.

He did not stand on ceremony with the Old Clan Head and immediately took off his outer robe, putting on the defensive inner armor. He then inserted the four daggers, each about seven inches long, into their scabbards and tied them to his waist for easy access.

After he had done all this, the Old Clan Head Zhou Minghan finally spoke, "Your cultivation should soon break through to the seventh level of Qi Refining, shouldn't it? Once you break through to the seventh level of Qi Refining, with these two magic artifacts, the [Black Gold Armor] and the [Armor Piercing Daggers], plus the [Silver Gang Shield] I gave you before, you'll be able to contend with ordinary ninth-level Qi Refining rogue cultivators!"

A cultivator's cultivation level determined the number and grade of magic artifacts they could wield. With Zhou Yang's current sixth-level Qi Refining cultivation, it was already somewhat strenuous for him to simultaneously wield two second-tier high-grade magic artifacts. If he could break through to the seventh level of Qi Refining, his spiritual power and divine sense would greatly improve, allowing him to truly unleash the power of the three second-tier high-grade magic artifacts he possessed.

As for third-tier magic artifacts, which possessed even greater power, even if he were to refine them, his current spiritual power and divine sense would not be able to unleash even half of their power. It would be more practical to use second-tier high-grade magic artifacts.

Therefore, the Old Clan Head Zhou Minghan, despite being a third-tier high-grade artifact refiner and having surplus third-tier magic artifacts in stock, would not bestow them upon Zhou Yang for refinement. Not only would it be a waste of resources, but it would also bring about a life-threatening disaster for Zhou Yang.

After all, many Foundation Establishment stage rogue cultivators still used second-tier high-grade magic artifacts after establishing their foundation. If they saw a Qi Refining stage cultivator like Zhou Yang possessing third-tier magic artifacts, it would be strange if they didn't harbor murderous intent towards him.

Zhou Yang also understood this principle, so even though he was highly regarded by the Old Clan Head Zhou Minghan, he would not make such a request.

Hearing the Old Clan Head's words, his expression immediately turned serious, and he replied respectfully, "This grandson was just about to report this matter to his great-grandfather. Recently, this grandson has felt the barrier to the late stage of Qi Refining and intends to use the abundant spiritual energy in the mountain peak cave dwelling for his breakthrough. I request great-grandfather's permission."

"Very good, then you shall enter the cave dwelling opposite my old man's cave dwelling to go into seclusion and break through. Here is the formation token for that cave dwelling. Remember to return it to me after you are finished."

With a wave of his hand, the Old Clan Head produced a cave dwelling token and handed it to Zhou Yang.

"Thank you, great-grandfather. This grandson shall take his leave."

Zhou Yang, holding the token, eagerly bid farewell to the Old Clan Head Zhou Minghan and moved into the cave dwelling opposite.

Of the three cave dwellings on the summit of Jade Spring Peak, only the one where the Old Clan Head Zhou Minghan resided was occupied. The other two were unoccupied. If anyone in the clan wished to use the abundant spiritual energy of the mountain peak cave dwellings to break through their cultivation realm, they could apply to the Old Clan Head for temporary residence and seclusion.

However, there were not many late-stage Qi Refining cultivators in the Zhou family. Moreover, it often took more than ten years for a late-stage Qi Refining cultivator to advance one level in cultivation. Therefore, these two unoccupied mountain peak cave dwellings were vacant for eight out of every ten years.

The cave dwellings were all equipped with dust-removing formations, so even after many years of disuse, they remained as clean as new. Zhou Yang entered the cave dwelling with the control token, took a brief tour of its layout, and then proceeded directly to the seclusion chamber at the deepest part of the cave dwelling.

The seclusion chamber of this mountain peak cave dwelling was directly connected to the spiritual eye of Jade Spring Peak's spiritual veins, making it the place with the densest spiritual energy on the entire Jade Spring Peak. Furthermore, each seclusion chamber contained a Cold Jade Bed carved from a second-tier spiritual item, Cold Jade.

The cold air emitted by the Cold Jade Bed helped cultivators clear their minds and focus, preventing them from falling into a demonic deviation. Most Foundation Establishment stage cultivators with some financial means would add such a treasure when building their cave dwellings.

Foundation Establishment stage cultivators with even greater wealth would prepare auxiliary cultivation treasures such as Clear Mind Cushions and Calming Incense to carry with them, in addition to the Cold Jade Bed.

Zhou Yang sat cross-legged on the Cold Jade Bed and immediately felt a bone-chilling cold surge into his body from the bed beneath him, rushing straight to his head.

Stimulated by this cold air, he felt much more energized. The time it took him to enter a state of meditation was nearly twice as fast as usual.

For the next few months, Zhou Yang remained in seclusion in the mountain peak cave dwelling without stepping out. When he was hungry, he would cook a bowl of [Golden Pearl Rice]; when he was thirsty, he would condense clear water with a spell. He vowed not to leave the cave dwelling until he reached the seventh level of Qi Refining.

With this resolve, one day three months later, the door of the seclusion chamber creaked open from the inside. Zhou Yang, now at the seventh level of Qi Refining, emerged with a look of exhaustion on his face.

Three months of seclusion, with meditation replacing rest every day, had pushed Zhou Yang's mental state to its absolute limit.

It was with this last bit of strength that he broke through the barrier between the mid-stage and late-stage of Qi Refining. Now that the barrier was broken, he could no longer hold on and stumbled into the bedroom next to the seclusion chamber, collapsing onto the Warm Jade Bed in the bedroom and falling into a deep sleep.

He slept for a full three days and three nights before waking up. After waking, Zhou Yang felt an indescribable sense of comfort throughout his body, feeling as though he had never slept so well in his entire life.

This was only natural.

Not only was this the first time he had slept for such a long duration in both his past and present lives, but the Warm Jade Bed he was sleeping on was also a treasure he had never had the qualifications to enjoy before.

Warm Jade, like Cold Jade, was also a second-tier spiritual item. The difference was that the cold air emitted by Cold Jade helped cultivators focus and stay alert, preventing demonic deviation, while the heat emitted by Warm Jade helped to relax the spirit and greatly improve sleep quality.

"No wonder everyone wants to become a high-level cultivator. The difference between high-level and low-level cultivators is not just in lifespan and divine abilities; even the treatment enjoyed in terms of daily necessities like food, clothing, housing, and transportation is like the difference between nobles and commoners!"

Zhou Yang looked at the smooth and warm Warm Jade bed beneath him and couldn't help but sigh with emotion.

Zhu men jiu rou chou, lu you dong si gu. (The gates of the rich reek of wine and meat, while the poor freeze to death on the roadside.)

In the world of cultivation, the issue of uneven resource distribution was even more severe than in his previous life.

Low-level rogue cultivators would fight to the death for a piece of low-grade spirit stone, yet they didn't realize that after decades of desperate struggle, they still couldn't afford a bed for high-level cultivators to sleep on.

"Fortunately, I am now the one sleeping on the bed!"

He muttered this with a strange expression, as if thinking of something, then casually got up and left the cave dwelling.

After leaving the cave dwelling where he had spent three months, Zhou Yang intended to pay a visit to the Old Clan Head Zhou Minghan to share the good news of his breakthrough to the seventh level of Qi Refining.

Unexpectedly, just a few steps after leaving the cave dwelling, he discovered that his Seventh Grandfather Zhou Yun, who usually sat under the [Dragon Scale Tree], was nowhere to be seen, and white cloth had been hung on the tree.

Seeing the white cloth, Zhou Yang's expression suddenly changed. Hanging white cloth on the [Dragon Scale Tree] was something done only when an elder of the clan had passed away.

"Which elder has passed away?"

His heart sank. The joy of breaking through to the seventh level of Qi Condensation was instantly washed away by the bad news.

The Zhou family only had eight elders in total. Losing one person so suddenly wasn't just about losing an elder; it was also about losing a high-level combatant. The loss to the family was absolutely not something that could be compensated by an additional cultivator at the seventh level of Qi Condensation.

Without daring to delay, Zhou Yang immediately changed his plans and rushed towards the family ancestral hall at the foot of the mountain.

When he arrived at the ancestral hall, he discovered that all the family cultivators present in the Jade Spring Lake oasis, including the old patriarch Zhou Minghan, were there to handle the aftermath for the deceased elder.

It was then that he learned the deceased elder was none other than the Zhou family's Great Elder, Zhou Qian, the cultivator at the tenth level of Qi Condensation, who had failed his attempt to establish a foundation after taking a Foundation Establishment Pill.

Zhou Qian, the Great Elder of the Zhou family, was the eldest of the "Guang" generation. He was also a cultivator with a mid-grade spiritual root and a rare high-grade second-tier formation master.

It was precisely because of Zhou Qian's exceptional talent in formations and his decent spiritual root aptitude that the Zhou family had bet on him back then, giving him the Foundation Establishment Pill purchased with the family's entire savings.

If he had succeeded in establishing his foundation, the Zhou family would not only have gained a Foundation Establishment stage cultivator but also a rare third-tier formation master. At that time, the entire Zhou family's strength would have doubled.

Alas, he failed!

His failure not only caused the Zhou family to waste an incredibly precious Foundation Establishment Pill but also tainted his Dao heart, making it impossible for him to ever break through to the third-tier formation master realm. For the rest of his life, he worked tirelessly to repay the family debt, and he didn't even leave any descendants.

"Your great-grandfather was only three years older than me. With his cultivation at the Great Perfection of Qi Condensation, he should have been able to hold on for a few more years. Unfortunately, after learning that the family was preparing to develop that Scarlet Flame Iron Mine, he resolutely gambled all his lifespan to forcefully attempt to break through to the third-tier formation master realm, wanting to leave the family a third-tier formation and the inheritance of a third-tier formation master!"

Outside the ancestral hall, after paying his respects to the deceased Elder Zhou Qian, Zhou Yang emerged and happened to see Elder Zhou Quan, whose eyes were red. He then heard the elder say in a hoarse voice the reason for Elder Zhou Qian's death.

Zhou Yang hadn't had a particularly deep impression of this great-grandfather before, as he, unlike Elder Zhou Quan or Elder Zhou Yun, didn't often appear before the younger generations to teach them cultivation.

Counting carefully, in the past twenty-two years, he had met his great-grandfather less than five times. Each time, it was only during important family gatherings, and he would simply go up to pay his respects as instructed by his parents. Their interactions were truly minimal.

However, upon hearing Elder Zhou Quan explain the reason for his great-grandfather's death, he felt a surge of respect. He developed immense admiration for this elder who had always silently contributed behind the scenes.

Then, looking at Elder Zhou Quan, whose eyes were red as if he had been crying, Zhou Yang said in a low voice to comfort him, "Third Grandfather, please accept my condolences. Although Great Grandfather has passed away, his merits and contributions to the family will forever be remembered in the hearts of us who are still living!"

He didn't ask if Elder Zhou Qian had succeeded, because that was no longer important.

Many people often focus only on the outcome, but they don't realize that the process is sometimes more important than the outcome.

If Elder Zhou Qian hadn't made up his mind to attempt the third-tier formation master realm, how could there have been an outcome?

Therefore, the outcome is sometimes truly unimportant. What matters is having the heart to achieve the outcome!

Thanks to the 500 Qidian coins reward from book friends Shiyan Xiaoxiao Bu and Wu Li Mengzhu, and the 100 Qidian coins reward from book friend Hei Yun Dao Ren. With the help of these three book friends' rewards, I have barely managed to secure the tenth position on the new book list in the category (crying). I continue to ask for recommendation votes and to be added to the new book investment group.