Twenty days later, Su Shi'er let out a breath of white vapor, and every joint in his body crackled like popping beans.
His eyes were bloodshot, and he had grown noticeably thinner, looking utterly exhausted. Yet a faint smile still played across his face.
These twenty days had felt like years to him, agonizing beyond measure.
But refining this Qi Gathering Pill had produced obvious results. The True Yuan within his body had grown from the size of a grain of rice to that of a soybean.
Only now could he truly be considered a Qi Refiner at the first level of the Qi Refining Stage.
"Sure enough, Medicinal Pills are the real good stuff! With my current cultivation, taking Spirit Gathering Pills may make me endure tremendous pain. But my cultivation speed has increased more than tenfold as well. By that calculation, it's still well worth it!"
"I heard Senior Sister Xiao Yue say that Han Yu reached the first level of the Qi Refining Stage in only ten days. Though I'm not as fast as him, I should be about on par with ordinary people now."
Su Shi'er clenched his fists, his face full of excitement. He had not intended to compare himself with anyone. To him, being able to raise his cultivation to the first level of the Qi Refining Stage in such a short time was already very good.
After reining in his excitement, Su Shi'er did not rush to continue cultivating.
"Though I barely refined this Qi Gathering Pill, my meridians were damaged because of it."
"If I try again before my meridians recover, I'll undoubtedly die."
"But this is just the right opportunity to practice those two techniques from the cultivation method. Otherwise, if I truly encounter danger, I won't even have the strength to protect myself."
Su Shi'er pondered in secret. After swallowing a Minor Restoration Pill for healing, he rose and walked into the courtyard.
Recalling the information on the Fire Control Technique, he tried to circulate his True Yuan and formed hand seals.
"Whoosh, whoosh..."
The next instant, a fist-sized ball of blazing flame appeared before him.
The fire flickered wildly, seemingly ready to break free of his control at any moment. Su Shi'er had no choice but to pour in more True Yuan.
Yet the more he did so, the more unstable the flame became.
In the blink of an eye, the True Yuan in his body was completely drained.
The flame in the air also sputtered and vanished into nothing.
At the same time, Su Shi'er's body went limp, and he collapsed into a sitting position in the courtyard. Not only was he drenched in sweat, but he also felt as though every ounce of strength had been sucked from his body.
The difficulty of this Fire Control Technique and its consumption of True Yuan far exceeded his expectations.
But Su Shi'er was not one to give up easily. He sat down where he was and silently restored the True Yuan within his body.
The moment his True Yuan recovered, he immediately resumed practicing.
Over and over again, the process was exceedingly dull and tedious. Other children his age would have found it difficult to endure such loneliness, but Su Shi'er held a fire in his heart and did not find it boring in the slightest.
Gradually, his control over the True Yuan in his body became increasingly deft. Through this repeated cycle of depletion and replenishment, the True Yuan in his body even seemed to grow a little.
This discovery filled Su Shi'er with delight.
In the blink of an eye, half a year had passed since he joined the Yun Ge Sect.
That evening, in the woods beside the Waste Pill Room, Su Shi'er was hunched over with his back against a giant tree, gasping for breath.
Compared to half a year ago, his skin had clearly grown much darker, and his body had become stronger as well.
Before him, three low-level Wolf Demons, their eyes crimson and their bodies as large as oxen, stood covered in wounds as they slowly bared their fangs and approached.
Faced with danger, he remained calm. His hands rapidly formed seals as he drew upon the last trace of True Yuan within him.
"Wind Calling!"
"Fire Control!"
Following his low shouts, a wild gale rose through the forest. Sand and dust obscured the Wolf Demons' vision, while several balls of searing fire took the opportunity to strike their bodies.
"Bang! Bang! Bang!"
Sparks scattered through the windblown sand.
The three Wolf Demons had already been at the end of their tether. Now they could no longer hold on, letting out mournful whimpers before collapsing and dying one after another.
Seeing this, Su Shi'er did not hurry forward. Instead, he sat down to meditate where he stood.
A moment later, he rose and hurled several more fireballs, smashing the heads of the Wolf Demons to pieces. Only then did he step forward, skillfully string the Wolf Demon corpses together with rope, and head toward the Waste Pill Room.
After half a year of cultivation, Su Shi'er had not only become proficient in both techniques, but the True Yuan in his body had also grown from the size of a soybean to that of a broad bean.
"I've already practiced these two techniques to the point of proficiency. Unfortunately, there's too little True Yuan in my body, and I can only activate techniques three times at most. Next, I'll still have to rely on Qi Gathering Pills to cultivate bitterly. But before that, I should first collect the Foundation Cultivation Pills issued by the sect."
"Though I have the mysterious Pill Furnace, and can have as many Foundation Cultivation Pills as I want, it would be strange for a new disciple to delay collecting Medicinal Pills for so long."
"And if possible, I should find a way to investigate the Man in Black's true identity."
Su Shi'er walked along the road, silently making plans.
He had already been fairly clever to begin with. Over the past half year, although taking Foundation Cultivation Pills every day had not further improved his physique, his mind had become sharper and sharper.
After delivering the Wolf Demon corpses back, he changed into the Disciple Robe issued by the sect and immediately set out for the Pill Pavilion.
There was a Pill Pavilion on every peak. In principle, disciples of each peak could only collect Medicinal Pills from the Pill Pavilion on their own peak.
The Medicinal Pills and other resources issued by the sect came once a year and could be collected at any time.
In just one hour, Su Shi'er arrived outside the Pill Pavilion on Luofu Peak.
From the outside, the Pill Pavilion looked like a square courtyard house. Its open gates bore a plaque inscribed with the three words, "Pill Pavilion."
Looking through the gate, he saw a gigantic Pill Furnace over five meters tall standing in the middle of the courtyard. No one knew what burned within it, but wisps of smoke curled upward, its fragrance drifting for miles.
Su Shi'er walked straight into the courtyard. As soon as he entered, he saw seven new disciples around his age, each wearing a delighted expression as they lined up to receive Medicinal Pills.
Among them were the three children who had joined Luofu Peak with him that day.
For the past half year, they had been learning to read and write. Only today had they finally passed, and they had rushed over impatiently to collect their Medicinal Pills.
Compared to Su Shi'er, these children looked far more immature.
When they saw Su Shi'er enter, the three children recognized him at once, and every one of them looked utterly shocked.
That little beggar! He's actually still alive?
None of the three had expected Su Shi'er to survive alone in a place like the Waste Pill Room for so long.
Zhu Hanwei, the chubby child standing at the very back of the line, raised his brows and widened his eyes.
"Didn't they say there were ferocious beasts in the Waste Pill Room? How come this little beggar looks even sturdier?"
After muttering softly, Zhu Hanwei paid him no further attention.
Ahead of the children stood a fat, twenty-something menial disciple with a face full of flesh.
A pile of medicine bottles lay before him. With his eyes turned skyward and impatience written all over his face, he inspected an identity token, then stuffed three bottles of Medicinal Pills into the hands of the Square-Faced Child at the front of the line.
The Square-Faced Child was thrilled. The moment he received the bottles, he impatiently opened them and poured the Medicinal Pills into his palm to inspect them.
The next instant, the Square-Faced Child suddenly froze, and his expression changed slightly.
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