In the days that followed, Zhang Xian remained at the Taoist temple. Aside from seeking guidance from Xuanwei and Li Miaoyin, he spent all his time practicing the Classic of Nurturing Golden Cores with Azure Wood. Finally, on the evening of the ninth day, a vortex the size of an egg yolk formed in his dantian, signifying the completion of his False Core!

The first level of the Classic was now fully mastered!

At the same time, a faint green aura began to emanate from Zhang Xian’s body—clear evidence of the Wood Spirit Root energy he had cultivated. The surrounding spiritual energy started flowing freely throughout his being, drawn by the power of his False Core. This verdant energy traveled along his meridians, and wherever it passed, his withered organs seemed to sprout tender buds, emitting a soft rustling sound like seedlings breaking through the earth. Even his facial features gradually regained their youthful vitality.

As dawn approached, Zhang Xian exhaled a deep breath of stale air.

Qi Refining has been achieved!

At this moment, his five senses were extraordinarily sharp, so much so that he could clearly see the dewdrops clinging to pine needles a hundred meters away.

Is this what cultivators call spiritual perception?

He concentrated further, carefully sensing the energies around him. Indeed, Li Miaoyin’s aura was the strongest within the temple, followed closely by Xuanwei’s. Both were cultivators of the Water attribute. The other disciples in the temple, including Yu Yun, also possessed Spirit Roots, but none of them had any trace of spiritual energy within them.

Zhang Xian closed his eyes, immersing himself completely in his newfound perception. Soon, he sensed Li Miaoyin and Xuanwei approaching together. A faint smile crossed his lips as he opened the door to welcome his guests.

From quite a distance, he already heard Xuanwei’s hearty, booming laughter. “Hahaha!”

“Earlier, my Senior Sister and I both sensed a spiritual presence enveloping the area. It must be Lord Zhen Guo who has successfully completed Qi Refining! What joyful news!”

Zhang Xian returned the gesture with a respectful bow. “This achievement would have been impossible without the generous assistance of both of you esteemed friends. If I had tried to cultivate alone behind closed doors, I never could have succeeded.”

Xuanwei genuinely believed the credit belonged entirely to himself, feeling deeply honored and laughing even louder. Yet, not far behind the two of them, Yu Yun watched Lord Zhen Guo’s youthful and handsome face, his heart growing ever more bitter.

Oh no! That old rogue, Lord Zhen Guo, has broken through to the Qi Refining stage, gaining centuries of lifespan out of thin air! Truly a calamity that will haunt us for millennia!

Finally, two months later, Yu Yun could bear it no longer. Taking advantage of an opportunity to go out shopping, he pulled Xuanwei aside and pleaded bitterly, “Master! We’re doomed!”

“What do you mean ‘doomed’? Who’s doomed?”

Xuanwei had been in exceptionally good spirits these past few days. His Senior Sister had already recovered to the sixth level of Qi Refining thanks to the Spirit Stones. Xuanwei himself no longer needed to transfer his True Qi to sustain her life, as he had done every year before. Not only had his years of drained cultivation been fully restored, but he even stood a chance to break through to the next level!

“It’s that old rogue, Zhang Xian! He’s clearly coveting Senior Sister Miaoyin!” Yu Yun cried out, his voice filled with anguish.

“Impossible! Lord Zhen Guo has saved both my Senior Sister and me! Never utter such words again!”

“You simply don’t understand Lord Zhen Guo’s true nature, Master!” Yu Yun said, pulling a book titled Wild Chronicles of Great Liang from his chest, his fingers trembling slightly. “Look here—”

Lord Zhen Guo, Zhang Xian, is over ninety years old and maintains eighteen beautiful concubines in his residence. In the past ten years, six out of ten entries in the Great Liang Records of Beautiful Prodigies have ended up as his wives.

Yu Yun couldn’t help but recall that rainy night when he learned that his Senior Sister, Yu Rao, was to marry Zhang Xian.

His grandfather, once a renowned swordsman in the martial world, had been equally famous as the daughter of the Sword Sage. Yet he had loved her deeply for years without success, only to see her marry that very same rogue, Zhang Xian. Overcome with rage, he vowed never to wield a sword again.

This indirectly led his son—Yu Yun’s father—to abandon his martial heritage and pursue officialdom instead. His father fell in love with two twin sisters, both celebrated courtesans in the capital. The younger sister was gentle and demure, while the elder was lively and spirited. After agonizing over his choice for half a year, he realized he favored the younger sister more. But then, to his utter despair, he discovered that Zhang Xian had tricked both sisters into marrying him! Consumed by fury, he leapt into the river, nearly drowning.

Then there was Yu Yun’s own uncle, who likewise abandoned martial arts for scholarly pursuits, quickly earning high honors. At a banquet, he caught a fleeting glimpse of the Imperial Princess, instantly captivated by her ethereal beauty. Determined to become her consort, he redoubled his efforts.

But after a tumultuous upheaval, the Princess too ended up married to that very same old villain! Zhang Xian, a brute of immense strength, and the Princess, still so young! How could she possibly endure such abuse? How could that villain bring himself to do such a thing?!

And finally, there was his own tragic story with his Senior Sister, which he chose not to elaborate upon.

That rainy night, he sat at home, heartbroken and drunk, while his grandfather and father tried to comfort him. But as they spoke, each of them was reminded of their own painful memories, and soon the four generations—grandfather, father, Yu Yun, and the memory of his Senior Sister—were weeping together in the rain, cursing that old villain with heartbreaking grief.

Xuanwei paused, then replied, “Loving beautiful women isn’t a flaw. Besides, my Senior Sister and I share a deep bond, having endured hardships together for over a century. Yu Yun, please stop speaking like this.”

“You underestimate just how low that old rogue, Zhang Xian, will sink, Master!” Yu Yun retorted, flipping another page.

In the tenth year of Emperor Liang Jing’s reign, Lord Zhen Guo led troops on a western expedition, assassinating the Grassland King and forcibly seizing his Queen as his own wife.

Xuanwei took a deep breath, seized the book, and flipped through several pages. He found nothing but tales of Zhang Xian’s romantic escapades, some of which were even too scandalous to describe, causing him to shudder involuntarily.

Yu Yun seized the moment, pressing his advantage. “Master, that Lord Zhen Guo is nothing short of an ancient demon! Remember how, from the very beginning, he inquired about Senior Sister Miaoyin’s name? Clearly, he had his sights set squarely on her!”

“And recently, he’s been sending you Spirit Stones—this is his usual tactic! First, he sweet-talks you with gifts, then, after a few days, he reveals his true colors!”

Suddenly, Xuanwei felt the Spirit Stones in his hand grow unbearably hot. Recalling his Senior Sister’s exquisite beauty, he was confident in her resilience, but what if Zhang Xian resorted to force? With his magical artifacts at the ready, they stood no chance against him! Could it really be that he harbored designs on his Senior Sister?

“I’ll go speak with my Senior Sister.”

Watching Xuanwei walk away, Yu Yun finally felt a great weight lifted from his heart.

Now that I’ve exposed your true nature, old villain, you’ll never lay a hand on Senior Sister Miaoyin again!

Meanwhile, Zhang Xian sat cross-legged in a bamboo grove on the back mountain of the Taoist temple.

Two months had passed since he broke through to the Qi Refining stage, and now he had reached the third level.

Because Great Liang lacked spiritual energy, and because he practiced the Classic of Nurturing Golden Cores with Azure Wood, his consumption of spiritual energy was more than ten times greater than that of ordinary cultivators.

Reaching this level had already cost him sixty medium-grade Wood Spirit Stones, not counting those he had previously given to Xuanwei and Li Miaoyin. Now, he had only thirty-five Wood Spirit Stones remaining in his storage space, along with roughly three hundred and fifty other types.

If the attributes didn’t match, the cultivation effect was reduced by half. These remaining stones, at best, would only suffice for him to reach the sixth level of Qi Refining.

These past few days, Zhang Xian had again tentatively offered Li Miaoyin some Spirit Stones and other supplies, but received nothing in return.

There was nothing else she needed beyond medium-grade Spirit Stones, and the stones generated by his System couldn’t be gifted to the same person and then returned through a loophole.

Zhang Xian was growing increasingly eager to enter the cultivation world, realizing he needed to bind himself to more Destined Women and cast a wider net.

In recent days, Xuanwei and Li Miaoyin had also enlightened him about the cultivation world. They explained that Great Liang was merely a fragment of the greater world, a self-contained miniature universe.

The cultivation world they spoke of, however, was a vast, expansive realm, brimming with spiritual energy, teeming with sects, and hundreds of times larger than Great Liang’s miniature universe.

Because Great Liang’s miniature universe lacked spiritual energy, no one paid it any attention, making it essentially unclaimed territory. To return from this miniature universe to the greater world, one needed to construct a powerful spiritual energy conduit—a ritual array capable of connecting the two realms. Fortunately, this ritual had no technical barriers, though it was exceedingly expensive, requiring ten medium-grade Spirit Stones for a single journey.

As Zhang Xian pondered these matters, he suddenly sensed two figures rapidly approaching, holding hands and walking side by side.

One of them was Li Miaoyin herself, whose appearance had transformed utterly compared to just a few months ago. Her eyebrows resembled distant mountains veiled in mist, her lips were as red as cinnabar, and her figure was graceful and elegant—she was now a truly stunning woman.

Yet what surprised Zhang Xian most was that Li Miaoyin was accompanied by a young Taoist priest, seemingly in his twenties, with skin as white as jade and a breathtakingly handsome face.

Who on earth is this? Is he Li Miaoyin’s secret young lover?

The two landed nearby. Li Miaoyin’s cheeks flushed slightly, while the young man beside her wore a confident smile.

“Lord Zhen Guo.”

“Xuanwei???” Zhang Xian exclaimed in astonishment.