Sixth Level of Qi Refining

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

On the eighth floor, Chen Yishan was speaking with a burly, middle-aged man. The middle-aged man's gaze was imposing, and a powerful spiritual pressure radiated from his body; he was clearly a Foundation Establishment cultivator.

"Seventh Uncle, did you not find the second-stage Purple-Striped Fire Centipede?"

Chen Yishan asked curiously.

They had received news that a Purple-Striped Fire Centipede had appeared in the Thousand Bamboo Mountain Range and had dispatched a team of Qi Refining cultivators to exterminate it, only for one late-stage Qi Refining cultivator to lose his life.

The Purple-Striped Fire Centipede was a spirit insect on the Heaven and Earth Exotic Insect Ranking. If one could raise a second-stage Purple-Striped Fire Centipede, it would greatly enhance the strength of the Chen Clan.

If a second-stage Purple-Striped Fire Centipede appeared in the Thousand Bamboo Mountain Range, it would also threaten the safety of the marketplace, which was why the Chen Clan had dispatched a Foundation Establishment cultivator to search for it.

"No. These two Purple-Striped Fire Centipedes appeared very suddenly; they might have been dropped by some cultivator!"

The middle-aged man speculated.

Chen Yunhu, Foundation Establishment Middle Stage.

Some cultivators might have been dueling in the Thousand Bamboo Mountain Range, chasing one another, and items on their persons might have fallen off. Beyond that, if a cultivator died from severe injuries while carrying insect eggs, those eggs might have hatched; such a situation was not unheard of.

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

Chen Yishan guessed.

The Five Poisons Society was an evil organization that had harmed many cultivators. Its leader, the Five Poisons Rogue, raised five types of poisonous insects. This evil organization had been wiped out by Spirit Control Sect cultivators some time ago, but the Five Poisons Rogue had fought his way out of the encirclement and his whereabouts remained unknown.

The Spirit Control Sect had issued a heavy bounty for the capture of the Five Poisons Rogue.

"That shouldn't be it! He did raise Purple-Striped Fire Centipedes, but those were second-stage ones. Even if he died in the Thousand Bamboo Mountain Range and the Purple-Striped Fire Centipedes laid eggs that hatched, it would be impossible for them to advance to the late first stage so quickly. Spirit insects on the Heaven and Earth Exotic Insect Ranking possess significant innate abilities, and the cultivation resources they require to advance are even greater. This is common knowledge."

Chen Yunhu said.

"What if he really did die in the Thousand Bamboo Mountain Range? If someone else discovers the corpse of the Five Poisons Rogue, they would make a fortune."

Chen Yishan said.

Chen Yunhu was somewhat tempted; the Spirit Control Sect's bounty was very generous.

"That is true. I will organize some men to head into the mountains and conduct a thorough search. I hope we find something. By the way, make sure you entertain young friend Chu well. If you can become dual cultivation partners with her, it will be very helpful for your future development."

Chen Yunhu said.

"She doesn't think much of me at all. She wants a Snow Cloud Fox, so I immediately issued a bounty to get one to give to her, but she only said a simple thank you."

Chen Yishan said, feeling somewhat depressed.

"The Chu Clan has a Core Formation cultivator holding down the fort and is one of the top cultivation families in the Qin Kingdom, with experts as numerous as the clouds. It is normal for her to have high standards. If you cannot become dual cultivation partners, being friends is fine too; at the very least, you shouldn't make another enemy."

Chen Yunhu admonished.

"Understood, Seventh Uncle."

Chen Yishan agreed. He then thought of something and asked curiously, "Come to think of it, it's strange. Why did the Chu Clan cultivators run to Thousand Bamboo Valley? This place can't compare to Purple Maple Valley."

"I'm not sure. They seem to be looking for someone. I asked fellow Daoist Chu, and he said they were searching for the Five Poisons Rogue, but I have a feeling that isn't it. You should find an opportunity to ask young friend Chu and see if you can discover their true purpose."

Chen Yunhu instructed.

Chen Yishan nodded and agreed.

Half a year passed by in the blink of an eye.

Shen Long sat cross-legged on a stone bed, his eyes slightly closed, his body enveloped by a layer of blue radiance.

After a while, the blue radiance on Shen Long's body dissipated. He opened his eyes and exhaled a long, turbid breath.

"Qi Refining sixth layer!"

Joy appeared on Shen Long's face.

It had taken him over a year to go from the fifth layer to the sixth layer of Qi Refining. This cultivation speed was very fast; it was something he hadn't even dared to imagine.

Shen Long knew very well that if he hadn't been taking Qi Nourishing Pills, his cultivation speed wouldn't have been this fast. Previously, he could only take one Qi Nourishing Pill a month, but now he could take several, so his cultivation speed was naturally faster.

Shen Long stood up, stretched, cooked a pot of spirit rice, and finished it quickly.

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

A series of cheerful hissing sounds 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 very close to Shen Long, who fed it some Golden Pearl Spirit Rice every so often.

Even so, Shen Long's expenses had increased, but fortunately, it was still within his means.

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

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

"Your appetite is even bigger than mine."

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

The Iron Tail Scorpion ate two pots of spirit rice in a row before it was finally satisfied.

With a thought from Shen Long, the Iron Tail Scorpion's tail barb slammed fiercely into the ground to its right, producing a muffled thud, yet the ground showed not a single trace of damage.

Soon after, its tail barb struck the ground to its left again.

Shen Long nodded in satisfaction. Now, with just a single thought, the Iron Tail Scorpion would act according to his commands. The only drawback was that its attacks were a bit weak, but since it could burrow underground, it was indeed difficult to detect. Everything had its pros and cons!

"Go play on your own!"

Shen Long waved his hand, and the Iron Tail Scorpion returned to the pool; it loved staying in this pool, treating it as its own little nest.

Shen Long exited the Spirit Control Tower, put away the spirit stones from the Soundproofing Array, and stood up to walk out.

He was just planning to head to the Martial Practice Garden to practice spells when Qin Qing walked over, his face full of smiles.

"Fellow Daoist Shen, you've broken through. Congratulations!"

Qin Qing sensed that Shen Long's aura was much stronger and offered his congratulations with a smile.

"Fellow Daoist Qin, are you heading into the mountains to hunt demonic beasts?"

Shen Long asked. After resting for over half a year, it was time to head into the mountains.

Qin Qing nodded and said, "Fellow Daoist Xu is calling for us to go over."

They arrived at the Green Bamboo Courtyard, where all six of the others, including Xu Lei, had already arrived. Ye Yuqing had also advanced to the sixth level of Qi Refining.

Xu Lei noticed that Shen Long had reached the sixth level of Qi Refining and was somewhat surprised.

He had yet to overcome his own bottleneck and was still stuck at the seventh level of Qi Refining.

"After resting for over half a year, it is time to head into the mountains. Our target this time is a late-stage first-rank Fire Cloud Toad. Its lair is deep within the Thousand Bamboo Mountain Range, and there are over twenty stalks of Fire Cloud Grass inside the lair."

Xu Lei said.

"There are two Fire Cloud Toads in total. They can cast Fireball Technique to injure enemies and spit flames from their mouths."

Sun Yang added.

"Since we've investigated it clearly, let's set off! The sooner we go, the sooner we return."

Qin Qing said.

Shen Long and the others had no objections; the spiritual herbs could be sold for quite a few spirit stones.

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

After leaving the marketplace, Xu Lei summoned the Azure Cloud Boat and stepped onto it; Sun Yang and the other seven quickly followed.

Xu Lei pinched a spell seal, and the Azure Cloud Boat lit up with a cyan glow, carrying them as it flew toward the high sky.

Three days later, the Azure Cloud Boat appeared above a vast expanse of green bamboo forest.

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

Xu Lei cast a defensive spell on himself and walked forward, with Shen Long and the other seven following behind.