"Yu Cheng! Mo Qiuxian! Just you wait!"
Qing Chen knew perfectly well that the Brahma Demon-Refining Art placed extremely exacting demands on a cultivator's soul.
This was because the [Brahma Aperture Foundation] was built upon the soul itself, and the agony of tearing it apart and reshaping it was far beyond what an ordinary cultivator could endure.
If his cultivation progressed too alarmingly fast, it would be tantamount to telling Mo Qiuxian that he possessed a secret soul technique or an extraordinary treasure.
He had a middle-grade spiritual root to begin with. Revealing cultivation at the fifth layer of Qi Refining might be a little fast, but it would not be too alarming.
And against a capering clown like Yu Cheng, retreating further would only make others look down on him, leaving him on the back foot as they pressed him step by step until they devoured him bit by bit.
The news that he had challenged Yu Cheng did not stir much of a storm in the Condensed Jade Sect. After all, neither of them could be considered anyone of renown.
But within the small circle of Outer Sect disciples, it sparked considerable discussion.
In particular, most of those who knew something of the inside story thought Qing Chen's actions were truly unwise, no different from inviting humiliation.
"Hmph, a newcomer who's only just scraped into the fifth layer of Qi Refining after a little over ten years in the sect actually dares challenge a General Affairs Hall disciple who's been here over twenty years and is already approaching the sixth layer? He really doesn't know his own limits!" someone sneered.
"Exactly. He should weigh how many spirit stones he has in his pocket. What decent magical artifact could he possibly have? And he dares square off against a