louisehourcade Chapter 143: Washing Away the Dampness
Chapter 143: Washing Away the Dampness
Seeing Li Lan walk out of the cave dwelling,
the Huang Family cultivator quickly stepped forward, scrutinizing him with a puzzled look,
but couldn't discern anything from his appearance.
He cautiously asked with a fawning smile:
"Senior, how was the harvest this time?
Do you see any areas for improvement in my Huang Family's Spirit Vein?"
"Not bad."
Li Lan simply uttered these two words indifferently, not specifying anything.
In fact, with the help of many external factors, his breakthrough this time was relatively smooth,
only failing twice before successfully entering the realm of Cultivation Base of Qi Refining Late Stage.
After advancing to the ninth level of Qi Refining,
Li Lan's Qi sensation was clearly further enhanced.
At this moment, he didn't need deliberate guidance;
he could absorb the world's spiritual energy just by breathing.
Although the magical power converted in this manner was relatively thin, over time, it was enough to create a significant gap compared to ordinary Lingqi Middle Stage cultivators.
In addition to this,
the physical changes were even more apparent.
The current Li Lan had shed his impurities, seemingly showing signs of rejuvenation;
the wrinkles that had recently appeared at the corners of his eyes had disappeared again.
All impurities on his body surface had faded away. When using magical power,
his skin would also emit a subtle glow, as if it had completely demarcated itself from a mortal body.
Now, he could sustain himself on spiritual energy, completely abstaining from grain.
Unless severely injured or consuming a lot of energy,
Li Lan no longer needed long periods of sleep and rest like he did during the Lingqi Middle Stage.
He could completely replenish his spirit through meditation.
Besides these superficial changes, the changes within Li Lan's body were truly earth-shattering.
His meridians had been tempered, becoming exceptionally tough, their strength even comparable to a low-grade Tier 1 magic tool.
The most intuitive change brought about by the toughened meridians was that
the amount of world spiritual energy Li Lan could absorb and refine each time had increased by nearly double.
This meant that his speed of cultivation and magical power recovery in the future would far exceed what it was during the Lingqi Middle Stage.
At the same time,
the speed and power when channeling magical power through the meridians to cast spells had also greatly improved.
Besides these relatively obvious benefits,
Li Lan's divine sense had also increased by nearly half.
Divine sense was crucial to him.
Besides affecting the maximum range his divine sense could explore when leaving the body,
it was also closely related to the number of magic tools and Spirit Bean Soldiers he could control simultaneously.
The eighth and ninth levels of Qi Refining were by no means just minor stages;
as the second bottleneck for Qi Refining Stage cultivators, the changes brought about by overcoming it were also difficult to fully express in words.
In order to quickly adapt to these current changes in his body and stabilize his Qi and realm,
Li Lan cultivated and studied in the A-grade cave dwelling for a while longer,
only coming out of seclusion when the Huang Family cultivator sent a message, still feeling unsatisfied.
After paying the overtime spirit stone fee,
Li Lan prepared to return directly to Guangji Sect.
With his realm advanced to the next level, some things he couldn't do before,
he finally had some confidence in now, such as refining aged spiritual materials.
Li Lan had obtained 12 Purple Sandalwood Spiritual Beans aged forty to fifty years in Xianzong Valley.
Previously, with his Lingqi Middle Stage level,
he could not guarantee the success rate of refining this item,
so he had never dared to try.
Now that he had successfully broken through to Cultivation Base of Qi Refining Late Stage, Li Lan finally felt confident.
After refining the twenty-plus-year-old Purple Sandalwood Spiritual Beans, one could summon Spirit Bean Soldiers at the Qi Refining First Level.
What kind of surprise would these forty to fifty-year-old spiritual beans bring him?
Even Li Lan couldn't help but feel a hint of curiosity.
Just as he was preparing to leave this place,
his peripheral vision caught sight of something, causing him to slightly narrow his eyes.
He was slightly surprised in his heart,
completely unexpected to see an acquaintance here.
Li Lan showed no change in expression,
and only after the other party had gone far away did he open his mouth to inquire, "Was that woman just now also from the Huang Family?"
Li Lan's sudden initiative to strike up a conversation was unprecedented,
which greatly surprised the Huang Family cultivator.
However, he quickly reacted, putting on his characteristic smile,
and hastily replied:
"Is Senior referring to Senior Sister Xingyue?
She is not from our Huang Family. She is a descendant of the Di Family and has been friends with our clan for many years, which is why she can freely enter and exit this place.
Senior can reconsider what this junior said earlier.
This way, you can also cultivate here freely without paying any price, just like Senior Sister Xingyue."
Li Lan slightly raised an eyebrow.
Descendant of the Di Family?
Wasn't this woman's original surname Lin?
When did she change her surname?
This acquaintance was precisely Lin Xingyue, a Lingxiao Sect disciple Li Lan had encountered the first time he went to Xianzong Valley to gather spiritual plants.
After the Lingxiao Sect was destroyed, he didn't know what she went through, but she ended up here.
Not only did she change her surname to Di, but she even gained the privilege of freely entering and exiting this place. Her luck was truly good.
Li Lan pondered for a moment, but didn't dwell on the matter too much,
and turned to leave.
The Huang Family cultivator watched his receding figure, his eyes flickering, unsure of what he was thinking.
At this moment,
another young disciple came up beside him.
The latter said with a chuckle:
"What? Did you fancy something on that guy?
If you did, just find an opportunity to rob him halfway. What are you hesitating for?"
The Huang Family cultivator furrowed his brow and sternly lectured:
"How many times have I told you? We are not Demonic Path cultivators anymore! Stop thinking about those crooked ideas!
As long as we are obedient, follow the rules, and don't cause trouble, to the Human Emperor Hall, we are the righteous path, understand?
It's not that I fancied something on him. From his tone, it seems he knew Senior Sister Xingyue before.
Could this kid be someone from the former Lingxiao Sect in County South?
Or perhaps a fellow disciple from the Demonic Path?
Forget it. This person's background is unclear. It's not worth causing trouble over such a small matter.
The days of being like a rat crossing the street are gone forever. Now, we just need to guard this Spirit Vein well. Don't worry about anything else."
Li Lan didn't know that he had just visited a Spirit Vein controlled by a Demonic Path family.
On the way back,
he cautiously probed,
and only after confirming that no one was following him did he return to the Chongshan Region with peace of mind.
After successfully breaking through to the ninth level of Qi Refining,
Li Lan's lifespan had reached forty-eight years.
At this time, he still had some spirit stones left. Originally, he planned to go into seclusion for another year or so, cultivating diligently,
and then, when the spirit stones were almost depleted, go to Tian Shu Pavilion to find some sect missions.
But unexpectedly, upon returning to the temporary cave dwelling he had previously left, he found it was already completely surrounded by cultivators.
"When do you think Senior Brother Jiang Chuan will return?"
"Who knows?"
"Could Senior Brother Jiang Chuan have gone to perform a sect mission again? We've been waiting for so long, why haven't we seen him return?"
"Perhaps he has already given up on this cave dwelling?
Senior Brother Jiang Chuan also received quite a few sect rewards this time. This place is remote, and the spiritual energy is thin. He probably can't even cultivate a decent spiritual plant here.
I'm afraid Senior Brother has already moved to other fertile areas in the Chongshan Region."
"If Master Jiang Chuan has nowhere to go, he can come to my place. The spiritual energy there is abundant, and it's decent for both cultivation and cultivating spiritual plants."
"Pah, you haven't even met Senior Brother Jiang Chuan yet, and you're already calling him Master? Your skin is a bit too thick."
The registered disciples outside Li Lan's cave dwelling were discussing amongst themselves.
Their cultivation bases were generally not high; most were in the Qi Refining Stage, and a very few were even just at the Qi Refining First Level.