【Humbly beseech the Heavenly Book: show me the odds of breaking through to the fourth level of Qi Refining today.】
【Matter investigated: Realm breakthrough】
【Time spent deducing: twenty breaths】
【Result of deduction: Absolutely certain】
“Good!”
Jiang Yi’s heart settled completely. He saw that there were still several questions written on the golden paper.
They were, respectively, 【Auspicious place for breaking through to the fourth level of Qi Refining】, 【Auspicious time for breaking through to the fourth level of Qi Refining】, and so on.
“As it should be! My cultivation at the third level of Qi Refining is ninety-nine percent complete. What accident could there possibly be?”
He took in a deep breath. The bitter cold went straight into his lungs, yet it lifted his spirits and made his mind wonderfully clear.
“Brother He, I’m heading out. If you see Steward Yang, please tell him I have matters to attend to today and will go pay my respects in a few days.”
He Laohun had a beef flatbread clenched in his mouth as he poked his head out from the kitchen. Looking at Jiang Yi, who seemed so vigorous and high-spirited, he clicked his tongue and asked,
“Brother Yi, don’t tell me some happy occasion’s come knocking? You look like you’re about to become a bridegroom!”
Jiang Yi laughed heartily.
“When the day comes that I step into the inner peaks and rise to the clouds, that will be truly joyous news! For now, it’s still far off!”
The words came out in one breath, brimming with youthful vigor, perfectly displaying the bearing of a spirited young man.
Jiang Yi stood at the courtyard gate, almost like a rising sun, dazzling everyone in the communal courtyard.
Widow Qin leaned against her doorway and said with a smile,
“I think that day will come sooner or later. I’ll be waiting for your good news, Brother Yi! Winter’s setting in now, so I’ll wrap some dumplings. Remember to come back and eat.”
Old Li’s wrinkled face relaxed into a broad smile as he chuckled.
“One look and you can tell Brother Yi’s bound for great things! If my brat were half as promising as Brother Yi, I’d be able to close my eyes smiling!”
No sooner had he spoken than his wife pinched him hard and scolded,
“Spouting unlucky words first thing in the morning! Hurry up and get to work. Winter’s almost here, and you still haven’t earned next year’s expenses for the child!”
Old Li chuckled, planted his hands on his hips, and said,
“Don’t you worry! I heard Steward Tang from the grinding and engraving workshop say the inner peaks have opened up another market. From now on, sales will only grow wider, and there’ll only be more work! No fear of failing to earn talisman coins!”
With that, he trotted off toward the workshop like an old yellow ox.
He Laohun, on the other hand, said nothing. After the matter with Zhang San and Dong Si, his formerly loud and rough temperament had instead grown steadier, and even the number of times he went looking for fun with the other workers had decreased.
Sensing the vigorous, upward energy radiating from the communal courtyard, Jiang Yi wore a smile at the corner of his mouth and once again dismissed the idea of moving elsewhere.
No matter which of the outer sect’s four peaks it was, their spiritual vitality was poor all the same. There was no need to move just for the sake of some peace and quiet or a bit more space.
Jiang Yi went to the forge and asked Zhou Guang for a jade token to ride the flying crane. According to what the Heavenly Book had shown, the place most suited for his current breakthrough was a quiet room on the third floor of Heshui Cave on Guanlan Peak.
This was not unexpected.
The spiritual qi of the inner peaks was naturally far stronger than that of the outer sect. Though the quiet rooms Heshui Cave opened to outsiders could not compare to cave residences furnished with restrictive formations, they were more than enough for a menial servant.
Zhou Guang still handled matters as long as he was paid. His tiny turtle-like eyes spun restlessly.
“That kid’s been going to the inner peaks more and more often. Could he be thinking of breaking through to the fourth level of Qi Refining early?”
Qi Wei, who was polishing his boots, said in a low voice,
“Luo Tong came to see this lowly one yesterday. He went to the inner peaks to listen to a lecture and felt it wasn’t of much use. He wants this lowly one to put in a word and feel out a connection through you, Steward, to get a bottle of Essence-Nourishing Pills.”
Zhou Guang gave a derisive laugh.
“He’s got quite the appetite. Essence-Nourishing Pills are troublesome even for me to get! What price is he offering?”
Qi Wei answered honestly,
“One hundred and fifty thousand talisman coins.”
The flesh on Zhou Guang’s face rippled as he bared his teeth.
“Luo Tong is that wealthy? I remember the ‘Lianxi Luo Clan’ doesn’t even rank highly in Beiman Ridge. They can give him over a hundred thousand talisman coins to squander?”
Qi Wei said softly,
“This lowly one drank with him a few times and sounded him out. He doesn’t have much spare wealth on hand, but he has a good elder sister who’s skilled at getting money.”
A look of understanding appeared in Zhou Guang’s eyes, and he sneered.
“Zhou Can of Sewing Peak must really be starving to treat Luo Qian’er like some precious treasure!”
He looked down at Qi Wei again and said in satisfaction,
“You handled this well! Go tell Luo Tong that one hundred and fifty thousand talisman coins aren’t enough to exchange for Essence-Nourishing Pills. Have him gather two hundred thousand!
The bottom line set by this steward is two hundred thousand! Whatever extra oil you squeeze out is yours. Consider it your reward!”
Qi Wei was greatly excited and hurriedly kowtowed in thanks.
“What a waste that Zhou Can shares my clan name, letting himself be bewitched senseless by a wanton wench!”
Zhou Guang said with a beaming smile,
“I hear Sewing Peak has the highest income among the outer sect. No matter how rich one’s family fortune is, spending it on women will burn it all away. Better it benefit me!”
……
……
On his second visit to Guanlan Peak, Jiang Yi knew the way much better and stepped into Heshui Cave calmly.
“The quiet room requested by our guest has long since been swept and cleaned. Once you enter, we will hang up a sign and have someone keep watch, ensuring that our guest will not be disturbed in the slightest.”
The proprietor of Heshui Cave was in his fifties, with white hair but bright, piercing eyes. He was hale and vigorous, and was also a cultivator at the fourth level of Qi Refining.
“Many thanks.”
Jiang Yi paid enough talisman coins and accepted the wooden hand token.
He had asked Yang Xun about it before. Those able to do business with inner sect disciples and direct descendants of local clans on Guanlan Peak all had uncommon backgrounds.
They were either relatives by marriage of some elder, or members of some senior brother’s clan. Otherwise, there was absolutely no way to obtain a place to open a shop.
According to Steward Yang, Elder Xu, who was in charge of transmitting techniques and giving lectures, had invested money in Heshui Cave. Many inner peak disciples, knowing this, would all come here to support the business.
“Everywhere in this sect are business opportunities, and everywhere depends on connections.”
Jiang Yi suppressed his stray thoughts, hung the hand token outside the door, and stepped into the quiet room.
The room was ten feet square, furnished with a couch and a meditation cushion. Beside it stood a bronze crane holding a lamp in its beak. The crane’s body was three feet tall, its long neck curving back, the tip of its beak supporting a lotus-shaped lamp dish.
Inside the lamp dish was congealed oil, and at the center, a wick protruded half an inch.
“This quiet room costs two thousand talisman coins and can be used for twelve double-hours. More than half of that value falls on this candle.”
Jiang Yi lit it, and an extremely fine wisp of smoke slowly emerged from the crane’s beak.
The smoke was peculiar. It did not immediately disperse, but rose straight upward three feet like a spirit snake before slowly spreading out.
It carried an exceedingly faint cold fragrance, like the scent of aged cypress wood mixed with ice and snow.
“Expensive things have their reason for being expensive.”
With only a light sniff, Jiang Yi felt his mind and spirit clearer and more stable than ever before, making it extremely easy to enter the meditative state needed for seated breathing.
Seeing that this Mind-Calming Candle truly had an effect, he removed his outer robe, shoes, and socks, then sat cross-legged on the couch in full lotus.
The fourth level of Qi Refining was the transformation of the organs and refinement of the viscera, seeking seamless unity between inner and outer, so that this mortal body would be completely transformed into a fine cauldron capable of containing the spiritual essence of heaven and earth.
Unranked cultivation methods like the Orthodox Meridian Qi Circulation Formula recorded no tricks or essentials for breaking through this level.
Fortunately, Jiang Yi had already obtained the Lesser Essence-Tempering Fire-Control Art, which explained the method of forcing through the pass.
“Within lies natural true fire; within the furnace, a blazing crimson burns long, scorching the five organs and six viscera, tempering them into a mass of primal essence…”
He savored the profound meaning of every word as analyzed by the Heavenly Book, and naturally began circulating his cultivation. Under this kind of propulsion, his true qi turned into gurgling currents of heat that spread throughout his body and bones. The inside of his fleshly body grew warm and toasty, indescribably comfortable.
His muscles and bones rubbed together, his qi and blood grew lively, and inch by inch, fire-natured gleams gathered into clusters, illuminating his hazy organs and viscera.
“This is a matter of slow, patient work. I must temper and polish them bit by bit, making the organs and viscera within my body harmonize as I will, without the slightest flaw.
Twelve double-hours will be enough!”
P.S. Two steady updates delivered. Humbly beseeching you, esteemed readers, to grant your votes~