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There were two major bottlenecks in the Qi Refining Realm: one was breaking through from Qi Refining Third Layer to Qi Refining Fourth Layer and entering Mid-Stage Qi Refining.
The other major bottleneck was breaking through from Qi Refining Sixth Layer to Qi Refining Seventh Layer, advancing from Mid-Stage Qi Refining to Late Stage Qi Refining.
Bottlenecks were closely tied to Spirit Roots.
When breaking through the bottleneck into Mid-stage Qi Refining, each additional type of Spirit Root added another layer to the bottleneck that needed to be overcome.
This was why the more singular one's Spirit Root was, the faster one's breakthroughs and cultivation became.
When a Heavenly Spiritual Root broke through to Mid-Stage Qi Refining, it only needed to shatter one layer of bottleneck. It was no different from an ordinary minor realm breakthrough.
In fact, for a Heavenly Spiritual Root, breaking through to Mid-stage Qi Refining did not count as a bottleneck at all.
A Dual Spiritual Root needed to break through two layers of bottleneck to reach Mid-Stage Qi Refining. This differed somewhat from an ordinary minor realm breakthrough, but it was not much of a problem for them.
They only needed to expend a bit more spiritual power to break through.
For Triple Spiritual Roots, breaking through to Mid-Stage Qi Refining required overcoming three layers of bottleneck, demanding far more of their time and energy.
Three layers of bottleneck were equivalent to breaking through from Qi Refining First Layer straight to Qi Refining Third Layer in one breath.
However, they had already reached Qi Refining Third Layer, so they had enough spiritual power. The issue was time.
As for Four Spirit Roots and Five Spirit Roots, they needed to break through four or even five layers of bottleneck to enter Mid-stage Qi Refining.
That was already equivalent to the bottlenecks of four or even five minor realms. For someone with only the spiritual power of Qi Refining Third Layer, both the spiritual power and time required were immense.
Spiritual power was manageable as long as there were sufficient resources, but time was limited. Four Spirit Root and Five Spirit Root cultivators often had to spend vast amounts of time assaulting their bottlenecks.
The bottleneck of breaking through from Qi Refining Sixth Layer to Qi Refining Seventh Layer and entering Late Stage Qi Refining worked on the same principle.
It was just that the bottlenecks that needed to be overcome were twice those at Qi Refining Third Layer!
That meant a Heavenly Spiritual Root needed to break through two layers, while a Dual Spiritual Root needed to break through four.
A Triple Spiritual Root needed six layers, and a Four Spirit Root needed eight.
A Five Spirit Root faced a terrifying ten layers!
This was the explanation Mu Xingqi had received from his father in the simulation.
"Ten layers of bottleneck!" Even he could not help but recoil at the sight.
"What the hell am I cultivating for? I should just skip it!"
After a bout of indignant frustration, Mu Xingqi continued looking at the Simulation Panel.
[After the meal, your father gave you a token. It was the token for the Scripture Pavilion.] [He told you that you could visit the Scripture Pavilion and seek out cultivation notes left by Clan Ancestors. Perhaps they would inspire you.] [Your mother promised that next month, she would refine a bottle of Yellow Grade Mid Rank Qi Gathering Pills for you to help you break through.] [You were deeply grateful to your parents.] [The next day, you went to the Scripture Pavilion to select techniques.] [You selected Fire Snake Technique and Water Flowing Steps.] [In the second month, you went to the Pill Hall to visit your mother.] [As you wished, you met Mu Xinger.] [Seeing the bright and captivating girl before you again, your heartbeat could not help accelerating.] [You silently swore in your heart, *"This life, Brother will definitely protect you!"*] [Mu Xinger was also curious about you, but timid by nature, she appeared rather cold on the surface.] [Of course, you knew all this. After all, you and Mu Xinger had spent two years together in your previous life, and your relationship had been exceptionally close.] [Mu Xinger had a cheerful and lively personality, but only around people she knew. Around strangers, she was somewhat timid.] [As you stared at the young girl before you, you could not help being drawn to her bright eyes.] [It was as though stars truly lived within them.] [In the third month, because you often came to the Pill Hall, your relationship with Mu Xinger began to grow familiar.] [That same month, your mother delivered a bottle of Yellow Grade Mid Rank Qi Gathering Pills. There were even two extra pills inside, making five pills in total.] [Presumably, your mother had specially prepared them after learning that you were about to assault the Late Stage Qi Refining bottleneck.] [You expressed your gratitude to her in person.] [In the fourth month, after refining three pills, you sensed the first layer of bottleneck.] [You assaulted the bottleneck for the first time.] [Your luck was good. You broke through the first layer of bottleneck.] [In the fifth month, you refined the remaining two pills and sensed the second layer of bottleneck.] [You began preparing to assault the bottleneck.] [Unfortunately, you lacked a little spiritual power at the final moment.] [Your attempt to break through the second layer of bottleneck failed.] [You set aside time to hone your techniques.] [In the sixth month, your relationship with Mu Xinger grew even closer, and Mu Xinger began calling you "Brother Xingqi."] [With memories from your previous life, you naturally understood Mu Xinger's preferences.] [You knew that Mu Xinger had a persistent love for alchemy, so you often found her little things related to alchemy.] [For instance, incomplete pill formulas, ancient pills, spirit herbs, or accessories related to them.] [Mu Xinger's favorable impression of you greatly increased.] [In the seventh month, you assaulted the bottleneck once more.] [With the experience of your previous failure, you successfully broke through the second layer this time.] [Furthermore, you successfully cultivated Fire Snake Technique to the beginner level.] [In the eighth month, you continued cultivating. You often visited your mother at the Pill Hall and took the opportunity to tease Mu Xinger a little.] [In the ninth month, your mother sent you another bottle of Yellow Grade Mid Rank Qi Gathering Pills, again containing five pills.] [You were deeply grateful and cultivated even more diligently.] [In the tenth month, the new year arrived.] [You came to the Pill Hall, intending to celebrate the new year with your mother and Mu Xinger.] [Although it was the new year, your mother remained extremely busy.] [Because she was currently the only alchemist in the clan, nearly all pills were refined by her.] [She also had to make time to teach alchemy knowledge to the people at the Pill Hall.] [Thus, even during the new year, your mother remained endlessly occupied.] [Even so, your mother still made time to have a New Year's Eve Dinner with you.] [You were very happy and had New Year's Eve Dinner with your mother and Mu Xinger.] [That same month, after refining three Qi Gathering Pills, you successfully broke through the third layer of bottleneck.] [After setting aside time to hone your techniques, Water Flowing Steps successfully reached the beginner level.] [In January of the second year, Mu Xinger successfully refined Yellow Grade Low Rank Qi Gathering Pills and became a Yellow Grade Low Rank alchemist.] [Both you and your mother were happy for her.] [After Mu Xinger advanced to alchemist, she took some of the burden off your mother.] [However, this also made Mu Xinger busy, and your opportunities to meet her decreased.] [You felt deeply regretful.] [But knowing the Lineage's fate three years from now, you did not continue dwelling on it and instead continued your harsh cultivation.] [After refining the final two pills, you once again luckily broke through the fourth layer of bottleneck.]
"Ten layers of bottleneck! Heavens, you really do not want to leave Five Spirit Roots a path!"
In reality, Mu Xingqi watched himself work so hard. His mother had even given him a total of ten Yellow Grade Mid Rank Qi Gathering Pills.
Yet all that had only allowed him to break through four layers of bottleneck.
Mu Xingqi in the simulation had not broken down, but the real him could not help breaking down first.
[In February of the second year, you learned from your parents that the Clan Competition was about to begin.] [But knowing the future, how could you have time to participate in the Clan Competition? You needed to spend your time assaulting the bottleneck.] [You refused to participate in the Clan Competition.] [Although your parents were somewhat disappointed, they expressed their understanding.] [They would support you unconditionally. They were your strongest backing.] [March of the second year...]
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