Shen Qingyuan Emerges from a Bath in the Peach Grove

By the time Qin Chuan returned to his cave abode, he had calmed down. He silently recited the Heart-Clearing Mantra. I can't keep being so weak-willed. There's a long road ahead.

After reciting the Heart-Clearing Mantra, he didn't begin cultivating right away. Instead, he lay on his bed, secretly delighted. He had noticed that Shen Qingyuan also felt something more for him, though he couldn't tell just how much.

Master sees me as a mature man now. That's a huge step forward. I'll take it slow. Sooner or later, I'll gobble up my little white rabbit of a master, leaving nothing behind. Heh heh.

And sure enough, only practice reveals the truth. My eyes measured wrong. Master really is beautiful.

Qin Chuan's head was full of dirty thoughts. After a long while, he shook them out of his head. I'd better cultivate first. Cultivation comes first.

He then sat cross-legged on his bed, took out the Golden Scale Fruits, and swallowed them. It took two hours to fully absorb the energy of both fruits. By then, night had fallen.

He left his cave abode and went to the summit of Supreme Mystery Peak, where he sat cross-legged on a rock and swallowed the Body-Tempering Pill containing a trace of Silver Moon Wolf blood. The pill's power tempered his body as the power of the stars filling the sky slowly entered him.

As the power of the stars entered his body, pain spread through his body and meridians, growing steadily stronger. There was even a trace of pain in his dantian.

Rather than worry, he rejoiced. The pain in his body meant the power of the stars was tempering it; the pain in his meridians meant it was widening them; and the pain in his dantian meant it was condensing his spiritual energy.

"I didn't expect a little Body-Tempering Pill to be so effective. I really got a bargain."

Qin Chuan's voice was full of joy, but before he could celebrate for long, the pain inside him wiped the smile from his face. His body began to convulse.

But he didn't stop cultivating because of the pain. Instead, he remained seated cross-legged and frantically refined the Body-Tempering Pill, unwilling to waste even a trace of its medicinal power.

For no matter how gifted a cultivator was, they had to endure the hardships of cultivation to become powerful.

Shen Qingyuan watched from the side, her heart aching for Qin Chuan. At the same time, she used the Body-Tempering Pill to draw even more power from the stars to temper his body.

He cultivated through the night. By the time the first ray of sunlight fell on his face, he had finished refining and absorbing the Body-Tempering Pill, and his body had reached its limit.

With Shen Qingyuan on Supreme Mystery Peak, no one could hurt him, so he chose to collapse straight onto the ground and sleep. He was exhausted!

After Qin Chuan fell asleep, Shen Qingyuan stepped forward and silently used her spiritual power to nourish his meridians, stabilize the widened channels, and mend his overstrained body.

Qin Chuan slept soundly. In his dream, a pair of hands gently caressed his body, and he felt full of vigor again. He didn't wake until nightfall.

"How did I end up in bed?" Qin Chuan looked at the familiar furnishings. He was in his own cave abode.

He hurriedly checked his body. All the injuries from tempering it had healed.

"Master, was it you?" He sprang to his feet in delight, ready to rush to Shen Qingyuan's cave abode, but stepped back as soon as he crossed the doorway.

I can't spend every day lost in romance. Right now, I should press on and make a breakthrough in one go.

Qin Chuan took out the jade box containing the Spirit Ascension Fruit. The moment he opened it, spiritual energy spilled out. Not daring to delay, he swallowed the fruit at once.

Powerful spiritual energy surged through his body, and he immediately began working toward a breakthrough. He cultivated for half a year.

In truth, he had taken only a month to break through to the middle golden core stage. But the Spirit Ascension Fruit still had plenty of medicinal power left, and he was unwilling to waste it. Hoping to break through to the late golden core stage in one go, he chose to remain in seclusion and continue refining the spiritual energy.

Thus, he spent half a year and used up most of his spirit stones, but in the end, he still failed.

After his third failed attempt to reach the late golden core stage, he opened his eyes and breathed out a mouthful of turbid air. "I was pushing too hard. I'll go to the Cloud Province auction first."

Two days earlier, Gu Hao had brought Qin Chuan the list for the Cloud Province auction, which would be held half a month later. The sword technique manual was on it, so he had arranged to set out with Gu Hao the next day.

Before leaving, however, he still had to see Jin Pang and give him the information he had compiled about the Land of the Fallen Phoenix.

He and Jin Pang had exchanged information about where they lived, so when he reached Pill Peak, he headed straight for Jin Pang's cave abode. He didn't find Jin Pang there, but instead met his grandfather, Jin Feng.

At the sight of Qin Chuan, Jin Feng smiled kindly and came forward to greet him. "Qin Chuan, are you here to see Jin Pang?"

"Yes. I arranged to bring Jin Pang something," Qin Chuan replied, neither servile nor overbearing.

"That boy Jin Pang happens to be in seclusion, working on a breakthrough. There's no telling when he'll come out. If it's urgent, you can give it to me, and I'll pass it on when he emerges."

That was exactly what Qin Chuan wanted. He took out the jade slip and handed it to Jin Feng. "Thank you, Elder Jin."

"Why thank me for helping my own grandson? Oh, and take this bottle of Heavenly Origin Rejuvenation Pills. You saved Jin Pang in the secret realm and gave him the inner core of a false nascent soul wolf demon with Silver Moon Wolf blood. That boy doesn't know any better, so don't take it to heart." Jin Feng took the jade slip and offered Qin Chuan a bottle of pills.

Jin Feng's thinking was simple. Qin Chuan was exceptionally talented and Shen Qingyuan's disciple-her only disciple. Naturally, he wanted to befriend him.

One shouldn't accept a reward without earning it, so Qin Chuan didn't take the pills. "Well... Elder Jin, Jin Pang saved me too. Our friendship is one between gentlemen. I really can't accept these pills."

"Then consider them a gift for meeting Jin Pang's friend. I'm a grandmaster alchemist. I can refine a bottle of Heavenly Origin Rejuvenation Pills whenever I please, so you don't need to feel burdened."

"Besides, I have a favor to ask of you. I'm sure you know about the grudge between Jin Pang and Xie An. Whenever he faces Xie An, he's impulsive and loses his composure. I'm afraid his impulsiveness will cost him his life one day. I hope that, as his friend, you'll do more to talk sense into him. I would be deeply grateful."

With Jin Feng having said all that, Qin Chuan had no reason to refuse. He accepted the Heavenly Origin Rejuvenation Pills and solemnly promised Jin Feng, "I'll be sure to advise Jin Pang and keep him from being schemed against because of his impulsiveness."

Qin Chuan meant every word. Jin Pang had treated him sincerely, and they had faced life and death together several times. Even without Jin Feng's request or his pills, Qin Chuan would have done everything he could to keep Jin Pang safe.

"Then thank you. If you have important matters to attend to, go on. I'll pass the jade token to Jin Pang." The more Jin Feng saw of Qin Chuan, the more pleased he was, and he was happy that Jin Pang had made such a friend.

"Elder Jin, I'll take my leave, then." Qin Chuan had nothing to talk about with Jin Feng, so Jin Feng's words suited him just fine. He promptly said goodbye and left.

"Go on." Jin Feng disappeared from Qin Chuan's sight.

Qin Chuan didn't linger either. He left Pill Peak and headed straight for Shen Qingyuan's residence. They lived not far apart, but when he entered her cave abode, he found no one there.

"Where did Master go? Could she be in the peach grove?" Qin Chuan hurried toward the grove.

When he reached its edge, he called inside, "Master, are you in there?"

At the same time, Qin Chuan strode into the peach grove.

Then he froze, staring fixedly ahead, unwilling to look away.