Qi Refining Eighth Layer

In the days that followed.

Xu Changshou continued his secluded cultivation.

He remained in seclusion for three months straight. After that, he had to stop cultivating because he had run out of Windwalking Talismans and needed to draw more.

This time, Xu Changshou spent over two months drawing a full thousand Windwalking Talismans.

By his rough calculations, a thousand would cover seven months of assignments.

With another seven months of cultivation, he should be able to break through to the qi refining eighth layer.

Then he buried himself in arduous cultivation once more.

One day, seven months later.

Boom!

All at once.

A barrier within Xu Changshou's body shattered, and spiritual energy surged into him like a raging tide.

Vast amounts of spiritual energy gathered at his origin pass point, condensing into a golden vortex the size of a goose egg.

Xu Changshou felt the spiritual energy within him grow rich and dense, his spirits soaring a hundredfold.

After a year of arduous cultivation in seclusion, he had finally broken through to the qi refining eighth layer.

With his breakthrough complete, his next task was to keep drawing talismans.

Nothing but endless tedium.

Xu Changshou had it relatively good; he still had uninterrupted stretches of time for secluded cultivation. The other servant disciples had it miserable. Only after completing their assignments could they sit down and cultivate for a while.

Without uninterrupted time for secluded cultivation, their progress naturally suffered greatly. Otherwise, Yang Bailao would never have reached only the tenth level of qi refining by now.

He was already over fifty, with no hope of reaching foundation establishment in this lifetime.

Counting the days, half the month had already passed. He had only thirty Windwalking Talismans left, nowhere near enough for this month's assignment.

Back to drawing talismans.

Over the next half month, Xu Changshou drew two hundred and seventy Windwalking Talismans. Together with his original thirty, that made three hundred.

As his cultivation advanced, Xu Changshou could draw more talismans-three more each day.

Indeed, he could now draw eighteen Windwalking Talismans a day, without consuming any spiritual energy.

Of course, being able to draw more talismans also meant he would have to turn in more for future assignments.

On the afternoon of the month's final day.

Yang Bailao arrived at Xu Changshou's cultivation grounds.

By now, he had gotten into the habit of going with Xu Changshou whenever it was time to turn in their monthly assignments.

"Huh? Junior Brother Xu, you've actually broken through!"

Yang Bailao was astonished to see that Xu Changshou had reached the qi refining eighth layer.

After all, Xu Changshou's spiritual root was far inferior to his. When he himself had first arrived at Green Ink Peak, he had also been at the seventh level of qi refining, yet it had taken him a full ten years to reach the qi refining eighth layer.

It was not that he cultivated slowly. Drawing talismans required him to expend spiritual energy, and once he had exhausted it, he had to replenish it before he could cultivate.

Back and forth it went, draining both mind and body while wasting time.

Yet Xu Changshou had reached the qi refining eighth layer in just over a year, far beyond anything he could have imagined.

"Junior Brother Xu, how did you manage it?" Yang Bailao asked curiously.

"I had... blessings left by my ancestors..."

Xu Changshou offered a casual excuse and said no more.

"Congratulations, congratulations!"

Yang Bailao did not press him. Everyone had their secrets, especially cultivators.

The greatest taboo in the cultivation world was prying into another person's private affairs. One wrong move could bring death upon you.

So, if someone was unwilling to say more, it was best not to ask.

"Junior Brother Xu, let's go turn in our assignments."

"Yes!"

"The qi refining eighth layer!"

Seeing Xu Changshou's cultivation, even Li Dao Path could not help being surprised.

However, he soon composed himself and smiled. "Good, good. You've reached the qi refining eighth layer, lad. That's a good thing. This month's assignment remains unchanged, but starting next month, you'll need to turn in a hundred and eighty Windwalking Talismans each month. Your monthly stipend will also increase by twenty Fragmented Spirit Stones."

"This disciple understands."

The following day was a day off.

Xu Changshou neither went out nor cultivated, intending to have a proper rest at home.

Having just broken through, he should not push his cultivation too hard.

He simply needed to balance work and rest.

Knock, knock, knock...

A sudden knocking came from outside.

"Who is it?"

"Junior Brother Xu, it's me!"

An unfamiliar yet familiar voice came from beyond the door.

Although they had not seen each other in a long time, Xu Changshou immediately recognized his visitor as Ye Shanhua.

"Is that Senior Sister Ye?"

"It is."

"One moment!"

Xu Changshou deactivated the formation, then walked over and opened the courtyard gate.

A young woman in a blue-green Daoist robe stood prettily at the entrance.

She had rosy lips, pearly teeth, and bright eyes. Her graceful figure could not help catching the eye.

Xu Changshou stared, momentarily spellbound. They said a girl underwent eighteen transformations as she grew; now, Ye Shanhua was so beautiful that he could not look away.

Ye Shanhua did not mind his gaze. She even unconsciously straightened her chest. "Well? Aren't you going to invite me in?"

"Of course, of course. Please come in, Senior Sister Ye."

Xu Changshou led Ye Shanhua inside, poured her some tea, and sat opposite her.

"Senior Sister Ye, it's been a long time."

"It has. Huh? The qi refining eighth layer? You've broken through to the qi refining eighth layer?"

Suddenly, Ye Shanhua's beautiful eyes widened a little, as though she had seen something inconceivable.

Of the ten people from their Gengzi Courtyard, Xu Changshou had always cultivated the slowest and possessed the poorest spiritual root. Moreover, when duties were assigned, he had been sent to Green Ink Peak, where conditions were the worst.

Under such circumstances, he had actually reached the qi refining eighth layer in less than two years. It was simply unbelievable.

Everyone knew that the servant disciples of Green Ink Peak cultivated notoriously slowly because they had to draw talismans.

Why had Xu Changshou's cultivation speed remained unaffected? How had he managed it?

Xu Changshou glanced at Ye Shanhua, inwardly startled, and smiled. "You've already reached the ninth level of qi refining. Why can't I reach the qi refining eighth layer?"

Indeed, Ye Shanhua was already a cultivator at the ninth level of qi refining, one level above him.

That was the difference between someone born into a cultivation family and an ordinary cultivator.

In terms of spiritual roots, Ye Shanhua was not much better than Yang Bailao.

In terms of cultivation, Ye Shanhua was at the ninth level of qi refining, while Yang Bailao was at the tenth level of qi refining.

Yet Ye Shanhua was only fifteen, while Yang Bailao was already fifty.

Such was the difference in cultivation progress brought about by the gap between rich and poor.

"That's not what I meant. I simply didn't expect you to cultivate so quickly, Junior Brother Xu. Please don't take offense!"

"No need to be so polite, Senior Sister Ye. I took no offense."

"By the way, Senior Sister Ye, how are the others doing?"

Xu Changshou could not resist asking. Ever since entering Green Ink Peak, he had not seen anyone else from Gengzi Courtyard.

"It's a long story."

Ye Shanhua shook her head slightly and said, "I've lost touch with a few of them. I haven't seen Li Linhao, Su Mo, Han Zong, Shi Wantong, or Qian Yuanbao.

"Zhang Feixian is making preparations to break through to the qi refining eighth layer.

"Lin Xian'er has progressed fairly quickly. She reached the qi refining eighth layer a month ago."

Xu Changshou was surprised. "Lin Xian'er broke through too?"

He had thought that, apart from Ye Shanhua, he was the only one who had broken through.

"What about Jiang Xiaochuan?"

"I've seen Junior Brother Jiang a few times. He asked me to help him buy pills, and it seems he's also planning to break through to the qi refining eighth layer.

"Oh, and he said you'd be the first person he came to see after his breakthrough."

"Oh?"

Xu Changshou smiled at that.

He knew Jiang Xiaochuan had been nursing a stubborn determination to reach the qi refining eighth layer so that he could make Xu Changshou call him Senior Brother.

Otherwise, he would not have stayed away for so long.

"Senior Sister Ye, what brings you here today?"

"Junior Brother Xu, I came to ask you a favor."