Lin Xueying shot Zhou Xun a surprised glance, only to meet his eyes.
The two exchanged a knowing smile.
Lin Xueying then returned her attention to the refining, while Zhou Xun's work had already ended.
The two streams of medicinal liquid flowed together smoothly and fused without issue.
Then came the condensation of the Dan.
At last, nine gleaming white pills flew out of the furnace.
Upon careful inspection, they were of excellent quality, all reaching the standard grade.
This refinement had gone far more smoothly than Lin Xueying had expected.
Thinking back over the entire process, Lin Xueying found it incomparably comfortable and fluid.
Everything had gone so smoothly, as though success had been ordained from the very start of the refinement.
At that thought, she could not help looking at Zhou Xun again.
It was their first time working together, yet they had been so perfectly in sync. It stirred a peculiar feeling within her.
Then she suddenly remembered Zhou Xun's money-grubbing appearance from yesterday. At that very moment, she met his gaze, and a nameless irritation surged up in her.
"What are you looking at? Refine the next batch!"
Zhou Xun was stunned, utterly at a loss.
Nor could he figure out when he had offended this Miss Lin.
After cleaning the pill furnace, the two tacitly began refining once more.
The second batch went just as smoothly, producing nine pills.
The third batch produced ten pills.
They continued until they had refined four batches before finally stopping.
"Pill Refiner Zhou, your skill is indeed exquisite. Our cooperation today was perfect!" The young woman regained her usual gentle and dignified manner.
"You flatter me, Miss. If there is nothing else, I shall take my leave." Zhou Xun cupped his hands in farewell.
Hearing this, Lin Xueying nodded. After Zhou Xun left, she viciously kicked the leg of the table.
After returning home, he began his daily cultivation routine.
He had now reached the peak of the third layer of Qi Condensation, yet the bottleneck to Mid-Stage Qi Condensation had trapped him for several months.
In truth, this was perfectly normal.
After all, there were many cultivators who could not break through for their entire lives.
After eating Spirit Rice, Zhou Xun circulated the Essence Cultivation Art and began cultivating.
Though his cultivation had not improved, he suspected that this cultivation was gradually wearing away at the bottleneck.
This time, he could clearly sense that the bottleneck had loosened slightly.
"Within a month at the soonest, or a year at the latest, I will break through!"
Once he broke through to Mid-Stage Qi Condensation, both Zhou Xun's divine sense and spiritual power would increase greatly.
Only then would he be able to freely control that flying magic artifact.
The spiritual power of the third layer of Qi Condensation was far too meager. Even with a flying magic artifact, he would not be able to fly very far.
After finishing his cultivation, Zhou Xun began practicing his body-refining technique.
He took several spirit herbs from his Storage Pouch and refined them into medicinal liquid according to the formula recorded in the Hundred Meridian Body Refining Art.
He then mixed in spirit water and poured it into a wooden tub.
Zhou Xun removed his clothes, sat inside, and circulated the method of the Hundred Meridian Body Refining Art.
Steam rose in waves, a faint red glow spread across his skin, and the medicinal liquid in the tub gradually began to fade.
"Using this medicinal liquid for cultivation, the progress of the body-refining art is going very smoothly. I should be able to successfully enter the initial stage soon!"
He had already used this medicinal liquid to assist his cultivation nearly ten times, and at last he had gained something from it.
According to the Mystic Gestures, once he entered the initial stage, his body would be as strong as an early first-rank demonic beast.
More importantly, Zhou Xun's meridians would also be strengthened.
By then, the time Zhou Xun could cultivate each day would increase, and at the same time, the amount of spiritual power his Dantian could hold would also greatly increase.
And so, another month passed.
Zhou Xun and Lin Xueying became increasingly in sync.
Without any commands, Zhou Xun could perfectly refine the spirit herbs according to Lin Xueying's rhythm.
To Lin Xueying, every time she refined Fire Barrier Pills felt like an enjoyment.
On this day, Zhou Xun had just finished assisting Miss Lin in refining a batch of Fire Barrier Pills.
After Zhou Xun cleaned up the Alchemy Room and prepared to leave, Lin Xueying called out to stop him.
"What is it, Miss?" Zhou Xun raised his dark, still eyes.
"If I remember correctly, Pill Refiner Zhou, you are only twenty this year, aren't you?" Lin Xueying asked with a radiant smile.
"That is correct." Zhou Xun nodded. When he had first joined Danbao Pavilion, he had only been seventeen. Nearly three years had now passed.
"A twenty-year-old low-grade first-rank pill refiner whose actual skill is close to the medium grade—you can be called a genius of Pill Crafting." The young woman praised him, her tone filled with admiration.
Then her tone changed.
"The Lin Family greatly admires Pill Refiner Zhou's bearing. I have a younger cousin who possesses natural beauty and a delicate, charming grace. Even I cannot help but feel tenderness for her when I see her."
"What is rarer still is that my cousin's aptitude is not poor either. Her water spiritual root has an affinity of nineteen, nearly comparable to a Medium Spiritual Root."
"If Pill Refiner Zhou is willing to marry into the family, then in addition to the previous terms, we promise that all your remaining treatment will be supplied according to the standards for direct-line descendants!"
"May I ask whether Pill Refiner Zhou is interested?"
After finishing, the young woman fixed her gaze tightly on Zhou Xun, a trace of barely perceptible nervousness flashing through her eyes.
Treatment equal to that of a direct-line descendant was an extremely sincere offer. They were practically already treating him as a member of the Lin Family.
Naturally, Zhou Xun was deeply tempted.
Yet he still had no choice but to refuse.
With the Ningshun Sutra hidden within him, it was impossible for him to find a Dao companion to spend day and night with.
His spiritual root would continue to improve in the future. Once it was discovered, the consequences would be beyond what he could bear at present.
"Since childhood, my heart has been set upon the Great Dao. I have long sworn that Foundation Establishment shall be my ambition in this life. I can only accept the Lin Family's goodwill in spirit!"
Even if the Lin Family valued Zhou Xun again, they could not possibly grant him an opportunity for Foundation Establishment.
Take the Li Family, one of the Four Great Clans of Red Leaf Square. They had searched bitterly for an opportunity for Foundation Establishment and failed to find one.
Even Grandmaster Yun Ku had obtained most of his Foundation Establishment Pills through his own connections.
"Pill Refiner Zhou need not refuse so quickly. Why not meet my cousin before making your decision?" The young woman's voice was cool, yet a hint of eagerness showed deep in her eyes.
"There is no need." Zhou Xun still refused.
"Since that is the case, then I shall decline on your behalf." The young woman replied quickly, a faint smile still lingering at the corners of her lips.
After his shift, Zhou Xun returned home.
The moment he pushed open the door, he saw a transmission talisman floating in the air.
Zhou Xun was slightly surprised. He could not recall who would send him a message. After all, a transmission talisman was worth ten portions of Spirit Essence; without important news, most people would not be willing to waste one.
Without giving it further thought, he reached out, and the transmission talisman landed in his palm.
He poured spiritual power into it to activate it, and Hong San's voice immediately came through.
It turned out that after the two ended their cooperation that day, Hong San had gone to find that Danbao Pavilion steward.
At first, the man had honored their agreement and supplied the pills at a low price.
But before long, the man seemed to discover that Hong San's source of pills was singular, so he took the chance to raise the price.
With no other choice, Hong San could only accept.
Yet that steward was a greedy man. Before long, he raised the price again, forcing Hong San to increase his own selling price to protect his profits.
But once he did so, sales suffered greatly.
Thus, he could only brace himself and send Zhou Xun a message, inviting him to Yuexiang Restaurant once more for a discussion.
Hearing this, Zhou Xun smiled faintly.
He picked up the transmission talisman and spoke softly.
Using the matter from last time as an excuse, he said that he had already offended his colleagues and would find it difficult to purchase a sufficient quantity of pills again, so he was afraid he would be unable to help Hong San.
With that, he tactfully declined.
Before you continue