ATPnovel Chapter 32 Late Stage of Qi Refining
Chapter 32 Late Stage of Qi Refining
January 12th, early morning.
Liang Junjie sat cross-legged on the floor of his room, his spiritual energy seemingly stirred by an invisible hand, forming a small vortex.
Within his dantian, the already abundant lake of spiritual energy was now churning violently, its surface expanding and its boundaries crashing against the deeper, darker banks.
Last night, he copied the "Heart-Cleansing Mantra" a hundred times until his wrists ached, but it wasn't all without its benefits.
After the extreme shame, fear, and exhaustion, my mind calmed down. In addition, the pure spiritual energy released from the fake people I killed recently was more than ever before, and the operation of the "Starfire Technique" was smoother and faster than ever before.
"Click—"
A faint sound, the sound of the barrier breaking, that only he could hear.
It's clearer and more thorough than when it broke through the mid-term.
The surging spiritual energy broke through a key barrier and poured into a much wider territory.
The capacity of the dantian expanded again, the total amount and refinement of spiritual power jumped to a new level, and the range and clarity of divine sense perception also increased accordingly.
It's the late stage of Qi Refining, and it's done.
Liang Junjie slowly exhaled a breath of stale air, which dissipated as it flowed through the air. He opened his eyes, a flash of brilliance in them before they returned to clarity. He felt light all over, his senses sharpened, and his energy was at its peak.
"You broke through?" Huo Chuyu's voice came from outside the door, with a tone of expectation.
"Hmm, late stage of Qi Refining." Liang Junjie stood up, stretched his limbs, and a slight popping sound came from his body.
The door was pushed open, and Huo Chuyu leaned against the door frame, holding a set of... clothes in her hand.
It wasn't the dress he wore yesterday, but a more casual yet feminine outfit: a light pink knit sweater, a beige midi skirt, paired with small flat shoes, and even a beret with lace trim and a small crossbody bag.
Liang Junjie's face fell: "Master...again?"
"A bet's a bet; once you accept a mission, you have to see it through. As for Qingyi, you yourself agreed to 'accept any punishment.'"
Huo Chuyu tossed the clothes to him. "She said she needs someone to manage the herb garden, so go this morning. Wear this, don't upset her. Be back before noon."
Liang Junjie resignedly picked up the clothes. The joy of his breakthrough was instantly overshadowed by this routine task.
An hour later, Liang Jing, a junior sister, went online again.
This time, she dressed more like a quiet and pretty girl next door. With less of the deliberate uniform and more of a casualness, she appeared more...natural.
If you ignore his stiff shoulders and his almost identical walking posture.
Huo Chuyu once again sent him to the outside of Fairy Qingyi's Cloud and Mist Valley.
"Go in yourself. Be smart, don't 'set up a flag' again." Huo Chuyu left these words and then disappeared.
Liang Junjie stood at the entrance of the valley, mentally preparing herself for a long time before steeling herself and walking gracefully toward the bamboo hut.
Fairy Qingyi seemed to have anticipated his arrival, as the courtyard gate remained open.
She was standing beside a vibrant medicinal garden, holding a small jade shovel. Hearing footsteps, she didn't turn her head, but her clear, cold voice came: "You've arrived? There are tools over there. First, clean up the spirit-eating aphids around the Seven Star Moon Grass. Be gentle, don't damage the grass or leaves in the slightest."
"After cleaning, take three spoonfuls of water from the cold pool on the east side and water each plant. After doing this, tidy up the chaotic star vines in the east corner of the herb garden and put them back in place, making sure the vines follow the trajectory of the stars."
She spoke slowly and in great detail, as if she were instructing an ordinary apprentice in a medicinal garden. She made no mention of yesterday's events and didn't even glance at Liang Junjie's female disguise.
Liang Junjie breathed a sigh of relief and quickly replied, "Yes, senior."
He didn't dare to say much. He walked to the tool rack, picked up a smaller pair of jade tweezers and a jade bottle, and carefully squatted down next to the spiritual herb.
Cleaning up aphids is a delicate task that requires extreme patience and steady hands.
Liang Junjie calmed his mind and controlled his newly broken-through spiritual power with exquisite precision. He attached it to the tip of the tweezers and gently picked up the tiny, grayish-white insects, about the size of rice grains and almost blending into the color of the grass leaves, and placed them into the jade bottle.
The process is tedious and lengthy, but surprisingly it has a calming and tranquilizing effect.
Fairy Qingyi would occasionally glance over, and seeing that although his technique was clumsy, he was careful enough, she stopped paying attention and tended to another herb.
Before they knew it, the sun was rising higher. When Liang Junjie finally finished clearing all the Seven Stars Accompanying the Moon Grass and watered the cold pool as instructed, fine beads of sweat appeared on his forehead.
Organizing the chaotic star vines is both physically and mentally demanding. These vines are tough and possess a faint spirituality, twisting and turning haphazardly. They need to be sorted and guided little by little according to the simplified star map given by Fairy Qingyi.
By the time he finally put the last vine back in place, forming a pattern that could barely be identified as the Big Dipper, it was already noon.
"Is it...is it okay now, senior?" Liang Junjie asked breathlessly, his skirt and cardigan inevitably stained with some dirt and grass clippings.
Fairy Qingyi then walked over, checked his work, and nodded slightly: "Not bad. Continue tomorrow at Chenshi (7-9 AM)."
"Yes." Liang Junjie felt as if he had been granted a pardon.
After leaving the Cloud Mist Valley and returning home, Liang Junjie rushed into the bathroom to take a shower and changed back into his men's clothing. He had just come out while drying his hair when his phone started vibrating incessantly.
Huo Zhenhui: "@Liang Junjie, Brother Jie! The old gymnasium in the east of the city! My buddy said there's an amateur basketball game inside this afternoon, but several players are acting strangely, their eyes are blank, and their movements are frighteningly stiff! I suspect it's a fake player who infiltrated! Need backup!"
Liu Chenghui: "@Liang Junjie, I also have a situation here. Several cats and dogs in the pet store have been restless and agitated lately, growling at thin air, and there are strange scratching sounds coming from the store at night..."
Chen Zhidong: "@Liang Junjie, points! I need points to exchange for that book, 'Basic Talisman Illustrated'!"
Well, it's time for customer service/thug work. Liang Junjie sighed, grabbed the Water Blossom Cloak and tied it on, then checked the Fire Umbrella Sword and the Spirit Seal again.
"Master, I'm going out!"
"Okay, make sure it's clean." Huo Chuyu's voice drifted from her room.
The afternoon was spent putting out various fires.
Three low-level imposters disguised as basketball enthusiasts infiltrated the old gymnasium. Liang Junjie easily dealt with them using a mental shock combined with the Fire Umbrella Sword Sheath, and incidentally, he also blurred the memories of the terrified guys.
The pet shop's troubles stemmed from a low-level spirit hiding in the ventilation duct, a creature that liked to feed on the drowsiness and spiritual energy of living beings. Liang Junjie drove it away using the "Heart-Cleansing Mantra" combined with a little bit of Starfire spiritual power.
After helping Liu Chengxi stabilize his spiritual power, which had been fluctuating due to impatience, and remotely guiding Chen Zhidong to draw two simple purification talismans, Liang Junjie dragged his slightly tired body home in the evening.
After dinner and a short rest, it was time for the unwavering Heart Sword practice.
In the backyard, Huo Chuyu personally supervised the operation.
"In the later stages of Qi Refining, with more abundant spiritual power, one's focus should be even more concentrated. Don't just focus on the strength of spiritual power; the intent of the Heart Sword is fundamental!"
Huo Chuyu's voice was stern, "Recall how you felt when Qingyi hung you up, that feeling of being on the brink of life and death, of utter despair—that feeling of utter 'despair'! Immerse yourself in that feeling!"
Liang Junjie's lips twitched, but he still tried as instructed.
He closed his eyes and focused his mind, visualizing the sword in his mind's eye. This time, the sword shadow seemed to solidify slightly, and when he swung it, the invisible sharpness it brought left a scorching mark in the air.
Although it is still far from the true realm of the Three Feet Heaven, it has indeed made progress.
"So-so, let's continue tomorrow," Huo Chuyu commented.
Late at night, Liang Junjie fell asleep almost as soon as his head hit the pillow. The continuous busyness, breakthroughs, labor, battles, and cultivation had left him physically and mentally exhausted, but also exceptionally fulfilled.
The dream arrived as expected.
A boundless sea of fire, sword energy crisscrossing. Huo Tianqi's figure was like a blazing war god, his attacks more ferocious and fierce than ever before, clearly indicating that the difficulty of the tutorial had been adjusted based on his strength after his breakthrough.
Despite his best efforts and the struggling attempts to defend himself with the newly mastered rudimentary form of the Heart Sword, Liang Junjie was still beaten badly, his clothes torn to shreds by the sword energy.
Just as he tumbled awkwardly to avoid a fiery sword aura that grazed his scalp, a sudden inspiration struck him.
Instead of trying to block or counterattack, he rolled to a spot not far from Huo Tianqi's feet and then grabbed Huo Tianqi's... Phantom's leg.
"Uncle!" Liang Junjie looked up, putting on a convincing act, his face a mixture of grievance, fear, and accusation, his voice trembling with tears, "Your daughter bullied me!"
Just as Huo Tianqi was preparing for the next wave of attacks, his movements suddenly froze.
For the first time, a noticeable change in expression appeared on that dignified face formed by the laws of dreams and Huo Chuyu's pre-set instructions—not anger, not severity, but a pure, bewildered look...
"?"
A huge question mark materialized above Huo Tianqi's head.
He looked down at Liang Junjie, who was hugging his legs, wearing tattered illusionary clothes, and looking "baby wronged." He then looked up at the empty dream sky, as if to confirm whether this was a dream, forgetting to put down his sword.
Taking advantage of his momentary stiffness and confusion, Liang Junjie acted decisively, letting go and scrambling back a considerable distance, and then...
The dream swayed unsteadily.
Huo Tianqi's phantom eventually turned into a hum that sounded both helpless and amused, and along with the entire fiery illusion, slowly dissipated.
Liang Junjie's consciousness sank into a deeper sleep.
A day so fulfilling it was almost overwhelming finally ended with a successful dream cheat.