Qi Refining Level Six

A nine-story Blue Pavilion stood with the three golden characters "Hundred Herb Pavilion" written on its plaque. This was a shop opened by the Chen Clan, primarily dealing in spirit herbs.

On the eighth floor, Chen Yishan was speaking with a brawny middle-aged man. The man's gaze was imposing, and powerful spiritual pressure emanated from him. He was clearly a Foundation Establishment Cultivator.

"seventh uncle, didn't you find a second-order Purple-Striped Fire Centipede?"

Chen Yishan asked curiously.

They had received word that Purple-Striped Fire Centipedes had appeared in the Thousand Bamboo Mountain Range, so they had sent a team of Qi Refining Cultivators to exterminate them. One late-stage Qi Refining Cultivator had perished, body and soul extinguished.

The Purple-Striped Fire Centipede was a spirit insect listed on the Heaven and Earth Exotic Insect Ranking. If they could raise a second rank Purple-Striped Fire Centipede, it would greatly enhance the Chen Clan's strength.

If a second rank Purple-Striped Fire Centipede had appeared in the Thousand Bamboo Mountain Range, it would also threaten the Marketplace's safety. The Chen Clan had dispatched Foundation Establishment Cultivators to search for it.

"No. Those two Purple-Striped Fire Centipedes appeared too suddenly. They may have been left behind by cultivators."

The middle-aged man speculated.

Chen Yunhu, Foundation Establishment Middle Stage.

Some cultivators fought in the Thousand Bamboo Mountain Range, chasing one another through life-and-death battles. Things they carried might have fallen along the way.

Besides that, if a cultivator died from severe injuries while carrying Insect Eggs, those eggs might hatch. Such things were not unheard of.

"Could this be related to the Five Poisons Society?"

Chen Yishan guessed.

The Five Poisons Society was an evil cultivator organization that had harmed many cultivators. Its leader, the Five Poisons Rogue, raised five kinds of venomous insects.

This evil cultivator organization had been wiped out by Spirit Control Sect cultivators some time ago. The Five Poisons Rogue had fought desperately to break out of the encirclement, and his whereabouts were unknown.

The Spirit Control Sect had issued a hefty reward for the capture of the Five Poisons Rogue.

"Probably not! He also raised Purple-Striped Fire Centipedes, but his was a second rank Purple-Striped Fire Centipede."

"Even if he died in the Thousand Bamboo Mountain Range and the Purple-Striped Fire Centipede laid eggs that hatched, they could not possibly advance to First Rank Late Stage so quickly. Spirit insects on the Heaven and Earth Exotic Insect Ranking possess considerable abilities, and the cultivation resources they need to advance are even greater. That is common knowledge."

Chen Yunhu said.

"But what if he really died in the Thousand Bamboo Mountain Range? If someone else finds the Five Poisons Rogue's corpse, they'll strike it rich."

Chen Yishan said.

Chen Yunhu was somewhat tempted. The Spirit Control Sect's reward was quite generous.

"That's true. I'll organize some manpower to search the mountains carefully. Hopefully, we'll find something."

"By the way, treat Chu Xiaoyou well. If you can become Dual Cultivation Partners with her, it will greatly benefit your future development."

Chen Yunhu said.

"She doesn't think much of me at all. She wanted a Snow Cloud Fox, so I immediately issued a reward and got one for her. She only said thank you."

Chen Yishan said gloomily.

"The Chu Clan has a Golden Core Cultivator overseeing it. It is one of the Qin Kingdom's foremost cultivation clans, with experts as numerous as clouds. It is perfectly normal for her to have high standards."

"Even if you cannot become Dual Cultivation Partners, becoming friends would be good. At the very least, you must not make another enemy."

Chen Yunhu admonished.

"Understood, seventh uncle."

Chen Yishan agreed. Thinking of something, he asked curiously, "Come to think of it, why did Chu Clan cultivators come to Thousand Bamboo Valley? This place cannot compare to Purple Maple Valley."

"I'm not sure. They seem to be looking for someone. I asked Daoist Chu, and he said they were searching for the Five Poisons Rogue, but I don't think that is the case."

"Find an opportunity to ask Chu Xiaoyou about it and see whether you can discover their true purpose."

Chen Yunhu instructed.

Chen Yishan nodded and agreed.

Half a year passed in the blink of an eye.

Shen Long sat cross-legged on a stone bed, his eyes closed as a blue glow enveloped his body.

After a while, the blue glow around Shen Long faded away. He opened his eyes and let out a long breath of turbid air.

"Qi Refining Level Six!"

Joy appeared on Shen Long's face.

It had taken him more than a year to advance from Qi Refining Level Five to Qi Refining Level Six. This cultivation speed was already very fast, faster than he had ever dared imagine.

Shen Long knew very well that if not for the Qi Nourishing Pills he had taken, his cultivation speed would not have been so fast.

In the past, he could only take one Qi Nourishing Pill per month. Now, he could take several each month, so his cultivation speed naturally improved.

Shen Long rose and stretched, then cooked a pot of spirit rice and quickly finished it.

He cooked another pot of spirit rice and brought it into the Spirit Control Tower.

A cheerful hiss rang out as the Iron Tail Scorpion crawled toward Shen Long. After more than half a year of training, the Iron Tail Scorpion had become quite close to him, and Shen Long fed it some Golden Pearl Spirit Rice every so often.

Even so, Shen Long's expenses had increased. Fortunately, he could still afford them.

Shen Long took out a clay pot, poured out the spirit rice inside, and let the Iron Tail Scorpion eat.

The Iron Tail Scorpion quickly finished a pot of spirit rice, but it was not satisfied and let out a piercing hiss.

"It eats even more than I do."

Shen Long muttered to himself and cooked another pot of Golden Pearl Spirit Rice.

Only after eating two pots of spirit rice did the Iron Tail Scorpion finally feel satisfied.

With a thought from Shen Long, the Iron Tail Scorpion's tail stinger suddenly struck the ground to its right. A dull thud sounded, yet not a single mark was left on the ground.

Soon afterward, its tail stinger struck the ground to its left.

Shen Long nodded in satisfaction. Now, with only a thought from him, the Iron Tail Scorpion would act according to his commands. The only flaw was that its attacks were somewhat weak, but it was indeed difficult to detect when hidden underground. There were advantages and disadvantages to everything.

"Go play by yourself!"

Shen Long waved his hand. The Iron Tail Scorpion returned to the pool. It loved staying in that pool and treated it as its own little nest.

Shen Long left the Spirit Control Tower, retrieved the Spirit Stones from the Soundproofing Array, and got up to walk outside.

He was just preparing to go to the Martial Practice Garden to practice spells when Qin Qing approached with a broad smile.

"Fellow Daoist Shen, you broke through? Congratulations!"

Qin Qing sensed that Shen Long's aura had grown much stronger and congratulated him with a smile.

"Fellow Daoist Qin, are we going into the mountains to hunt Monster Beasts?"

Shen Long asked. They had rested for more than half a year; it was time to enter the mountains again.

Qin Qing nodded. "Daoist Xu asked us to gather."

They arrived at the Green Bamboo Courtyard. Xu Lei and the other six had already arrived, and Ye Yuqing had also advanced to Qi Refining Level Six.

Xu Lei was somewhat surprised when he discovered that Shen Long had advanced to Qi Refining Level Six.

He had yet to overcome his bottleneck and was still stuck at Qi Refining Level Seven.

"We have rested for more than half a year, so it is time to enter the mountains. This time, our target is a First Rank Late Stage Fire Cloud Toad. Its nest lies deep in the Thousand Bamboo Mountain Range, and there are more than twenty Fire Cloud Grass plants inside."

Xu Lei said.

"There are two Fire Cloud Toads in total. They can use the Fireball Technique to wound enemies and spit blazing flames."

Sun Yang added.

"Since we have investigated everything clearly, let's set out. The sooner we go, the sooner we return."

Qin Qing said.

Shen Long and the others had no objections. The spirit herbs could be sold for quite a few Spirit Stones.

Shen Long still had the ten-year Three-Leaf Grass he had received last time.

After leaving the Marketplace, Xu Lei brought out the Azure Cloud Boat and stepped onto it. Sun Yang and the other seven hurriedly followed.

With a hand seal from Xu Lei, the Azure Cloud Boat lit up with cyan light and carried them into the sky.

Three days later, the Azure Cloud Boat appeared above a vast Cyan Bamboo Forest.

Xu Lei changed his hand seal, and the Azure Cloud Boat slowly descended, landing in an open area. Shen Long and the others stepped down and each cast a defensive spell on themselves.

Xu Lei cast a defensive spell on himself and walked ahead. Shen Long and the other seven followed him.