The medicinal potency surged like a tide, each wave higher than the last.
Chen Fan felt like a tiny boat amid towering, raging waves. No, at least a boat could float. He had practically been tossed into a washing machine on its spin cycle, scoured and kneaded over and over by the violent medicinal potency, until even the gaps between his bones throbbed with an aching soreness.
The marrow-cleansing potion erupted in full, forcibly widening his meridians and purging impurities; the essence-nourishing potion followed right behind, frantically filling the Qi sea in his Dantian.
Under this assault from within and without, his body was like a balloon being steadily inflated, at risk of bursting at any moment.
"Hiss... this isn't a bath! This is getting thrown into a Pill Furnace to become medicinal dregs! (╯°□°)╯︵ ┻━┻"
Chen Fan gritted his teeth and pressed his tongue against his palate, not daring to let his attention stray for a moment. He drove his remaining eleven Spirit Veins with everything he had, making them absorb as much medicinal potency as possible to nourish his body and open up more Spirit Veins.
Now he understood what "eighty-one tribulations" meant. At least Tang Seng had three disciples and a horse. All he had here were a few traits keeping him company.
Every surge of medicinal potency through his meridians was another tempering; every time his meridians approached the breaking point was another trial.
From skin to muscle, from muscle to meridians, from meridians to bone marrow, layer after layer, over and over, the seemingly endless medicinal potency honed his body repeatedly. It was just like an unreasonable personal trainer who shouted, "Last set!" while piling on weight plates as if trying to kill him.
[Diligence Can Make Up for Lack of Aptitude] was like a tireless repair crew-the conscientious kind that came whenever called, even at three in the morning, charged no overtime, and worked with incredible efficiency.
The moment his meridians were stretched open and torn, gentle white light surged in to repair and reinforce them; the instant repairs were complete, the next wave of medicinal potency rushed in, bursting them open again, only for them to be repaired again.
Through this repeated cycle, his meridians grew broader, thicker, and tougher at a terrifying speed. Meridians once as thin as cotton thread widened severalfold, their inner walls smooth and lustrous.
With the traits' support, his False Spirit Root's Spiritual Qi conversion rate began to rise, increasing from its original 16% to 25%. Spiritual Qi suddenly circulated without obstruction, upgrading straight from a rural dirt road to an eight-lane highway, complete with electronic toll collection.
Meanwhile, [Heavenly Dao Rewards Diligence] was more like a super accelerator. Where others could refine only one portion out of ten portions of medicinal potency, he could refine six or seven, while the rest went back into nourishing his flesh, with not a drop wasted.
Translation: other people bought their medicine at full price, while he got Pinduoduo's ten-billion subsidy, stacked with spending-threshold coupons and a membership discount-the kind of deal that would make merchants revise their SKUs overnight.
One attacked, the other defended; the two traits worked together seamlessly.
No wonder these two traits came bound together right from the start. The panel gave me a whole combination attack! Chen Fan found a spare moment to grumble inwardly. The pain had already gone numb, replaced by the pleasure of his cultivation rising without end.
The fire essence within his False Spirit Root grew increasingly condensed, and his sense of Qi grew stronger. Even the False Spirit Root itself kept growing, its affinity for Spiritual Qi increasing along with Chen Fan's cultivation.
The barriers between Qi Refining stages were as thin as paper, pierced with ease as he advanced triumphantly without the slightest resistance. In other words, if Chen Fan wanted to break through to Foundation Establishment now, it would only take a matter of minutes.
But Chen Fan could not concern himself with all that. Feeling good was all that mattered, and he still wanted to open up more Spirit Veins. He was nowhere near his ceiling yet. With the traits supporting him, his possibilities were endless!
He simply settled his mind completely, concentrating fully on circulating his cultivation technique and letting both traits work at full power-after all, pain became familiar if it lasted long enough. It was like eating chili peppers: the hotter they were, the more addictive and satisfying they became. (A correction: the author is not a masochist.)
Time trickled by. The medicinal liquid in the bathtub grew paler and paler, and its rich medicinal fragrance gradually dispersed. He had swallowed up most of the immense medicinal potency like a whale gulping and an ox drinking, while the changes inside his body were even more earth-shattering.
At some point, fine strands of lustrous white began appearing deep within his Dantian, slowly extending along the paths of his meridians.
Was this the eighteenth Spirit Vein?!
Chen Fan's heart stirred. It was universally acknowledged by the Immortal Palace that the core of the Qi Refining Realm lay in condensing Spirit Veins within the body. The more Spirit Veins one had, the firmer one's foundation and the higher one's future ceiling.
Cultivators with ordinary Spirit Roots could generally condense five to ten by Qi Refining Perfection; anyone who could condense twelve was considered a top prospect, a promising seedling recognized even by the Immortal Palace.
And now, without his noticing, the Spirit Veins inside him had already reached twelve, and the number was still rising!
The thirteenth... the fourteenth... every additional vein required a multiplied amount of medicinal potency. Fortunately, the bathtub held plenty, and the trait buffs were powerful enough.
Chen Fan felt only swelling and numbness in his Dantian. His Spirit Veins slowly grew and spread inside him as though alive, reaching throughout his limbs and bones.
By the time the beginnings of the eighteenth Spirit Vein appeared, the medicinal liquid in the bathtub had turned completely clear, its final trace of medicinal potency drained dry.
Just one last step!
Chen Fan drew a deep breath, gathered all the fire essence and medicinal potency within his body into his Dantian, and sent them surging fiercely toward the eighteenth Spirit Vein!
Boom!!
A muffled explosion that only he could hear burst inside his body.
All eighteen lustrous, translucent Spirit Veins took shape at once, spreading throughout his body like glowing meridians, linked end to end in an endless cycle. They were so utterly flawless that even someone with OCD would have to give them a like.
His Qi sea shook violently, and Spiritual Qi churned wildly, instantly reaching the very peak of the Qi Refining Realm!
As the eighteen Spirit Veins repeatedly absorbed and filtered Spiritual Qi, countless streams of pure Spiritual Qi poured into the deepest reaches of his body, condensing into an ocean of fire-attribute Spiritual Qi like a blazing sun rising into the sky.
As everyone knew, once a cultivator reached twelve Spirit Veins, their absorption of Spiritual Qi could reach their body's current limit, forming an ocean of Spiritual Qi.
Generally, most cultivators would choose to break through to Foundation Establishment at this point. Only a handful with special talents or physiques would choose to continue opening new Spirit Veins, which also meant that they needed stronger bodies to support them.
Chen Fan abruptly opened his eyes, and two faintly crimson gleams flashed through them.
He slowly rose to his feet. Droplets slid down his smoothly defined muscles, Spiritual Qi swirled around him, and his skin gleamed white as jade. His entire bearing had been transformed.
The marrow-cleansing potion had purged every last impurity from his body, his meridians had widened severalfold, eighteen Spirit Veins had taken firm root, and the fire essence in his Dantian was so full it was on the verge of overflowing.
"This feels so, so, so, so good!!"
Chen Fan swung his fists, his whole body brimming with strength, and could not help laughing aloud.
His laughter bounced around the bathroom, making even the Spirit Gathering Formation's glass hum. Anyone who did not know better would have thought renovations were underway inside.
Who could have imagined it? Just a few hours earlier, he had been a False Spirit Root genius with only eleven Spirit Veins. Now he had gone straight to Qi Refining Perfection in one leap and condensed a full eighteen Spirit Veins!
Who would believe him if he told them?! Even he wanted to post on Moments: Guys, who gets it? I took a bath and reached Qi Refining Perfection. Waiting online, pretty urgent.
With a thought, the trait panel immediately appeared before him.
[Host: Chen Fan] [Talent: False Spirit Root (Spiritual Qi affinity 27%) (Overwritten and refreshed by trait effects)] [Realm: Qi Refining Perfection] [Cultivation method: Fire Cloud Cultivation Method (Ninth layer perfected)] [Equipped traits: Diligence Can Make Up for Lack of Aptitude (Proficiency 75%), Heavenly Dao Rewards Diligence (300% cultivation bonus)...] [Unequipped traits: 11]
Looking at the information on the panel, Chen Fan grinned so widely that the corners of his mouth nearly reached his ears.
"Eighty-one tribulations, huh? All that suffering wasn't for nothing."
Chen Fan stretched his limbs, and a series of crisp cracks rang through his body. He felt indescribably unblocked, as though he had undergone a full-body bone adjustment and an essential-oil back massage, only the enhanced immortal-cultivation version.
He looked down at the empty bathtub, then at the remaining half bottle of potion in his hand, and could not help raising an eyebrow.
He had originally worried that the dosage would be too fierce for him to withstand. Instead, with both traits backing him up, he had devoured every last bit and still seemed to want more.
"Sure enough, scientific cultivation is the way. Popping pills makes me stronger. Long live pill-popping! Traditional cultivation can get lost. Never contact me again."
Chen Fan chuckled, took clean clothes from his storage ring, and changed into them.