[Cultivation: Foundation Establishment Early Stage: 34/100]

Qin Lu glanced at the floating attribute panel, a satisfied smile touching his lips.

It had been four months since his breakthrough to Foundation Establishment. In that short time, his cultivation progress had already climbed to 34 percent.

At this rate, he would complete the early stage and advance within a single year.

Such terrifying speed was extremely rare across the entire Flowing Cloud Prefecture. Even compared to those legendary prodigies born with ‘Heavenly Spiritual Roots,’ Qin Lu’s progress was not inferior in the slightest.

His relentless effort over the past few months had borne fruit in other areas as well. He had finally ground every single one of his spells and sword arts to their maximum level.

This achievement had triggered the Awakening of several potent talents:

[Sword Art Excellence] [Ice Affinity] [Lightning Affinity] [Concealment Secret Art]

In addition to combat skills, he had squeezed out time to Grind the [Golden Light Talisman] to max level, successfully Awakening the [Talisman] talent.

The difference was night and day. Since Awakening the talent, the refinement process had become incredibly smooth. His comprehension of runic structures had reached a realm completely different from before.

His motivation for this sudden focus on talismans stemmed from his previous duel with Kong Mengli. The Illusion Beast Talismans she had deployed left a deep impression on him. Inspired, he had been researching second-grade talismans recently, and the results were promising.

Sizzle.

A faint, wet noise snapped Qin Lu out of his thoughts.

He immediately centered his focus, eyes darting toward the source of the sound.

Down in the damp, muddy wetlands of Centipede Ridge, a long, blurred shadow was writhing slowly through the muck. The vegetation hissed as the creature’s heavy body crushed it into the mire.

Qin Lu narrowed his eyes. It was a massive crimson python.

“Finally showed yourself.”

Qin Lu chuckled softly. His figure blurred, exploding into motion as he charged straight for the beast.

He had come to Centipede Ridge for two simple reasons. First, to field-test his newly maxed-out spells. Second, to hunt this specific quarry—the [Crimson Chain Snake].

This species frequented water sources, possessed a violently aggressive temperament, and was classified as a Grade 1 High-level Demon Beast.

Whoosh!

Qin Lu tore through the air. The wind pressure generated by his sheer speed stripped leaves from nearby trees and kicked up a wake of dust behind him.

With his current strength, crushing a Grade 1 Demon Beast was effortless.

As he closed the distance, the [Crimson Chain Snake] sensed the incoming threat. The beast whipped its long body around, rearing its head back. Its jaws unhinged, spraying a cloud of hazy purple toxic mist directly at Qin Lu.

“Hah, I know that trick, too.”

Qin Lu sneered. He didn’t dodge. Instead, he opened his mouth and exhaled.

Unlike the snake’s purple poison, Qin Lu’s breath was a stream of pure, white-knuckle frost.

[Ice Qi Technique]!

The two breath attacks collided in mid-air.

There was no contest. In a split second, the purple fog froze solid, suspended in the air like an abstract sculpture.

The glacial stream didn’t stop there. It punched through the frozen mist and engulfed the [Crimson Chain Snake].

Crack. Snap.

The beast’s head was instantly encased in a thick tomb of ice. The snake was frozen into a statue, the terror in its reptilian eyes perfectly preserved.

Ch!

Qin Lu waved his hand casually.

The frozen head shattered into a thousand glittering shards.

He nodded, inspecting the headless corpse. “The max-level [Ice Qi Technique] is extraordinary. The control is precise, the density is higher, and the thermal shock is far more lethal than before.”

He had tested this skill earlier on a small lake. When he pushed his Spiritual Qi to the limit, he had flash-frozen the entire body of water in a heartbeat.

It was a localized Ice Age.

With this spell mastered, his combat repertoire had expanded significantly. But it wasn’t his only card. The [Lightning Strike Technique], [Soft Wind Technique], and [Concealment Art] were all maxed out as well.

The [Lightning Strike Technique] had become his tactical nuke. Its destructive output now exceeded even the [Finger Flick Technique]. A full-power burst hit with the awe-inspiring force of a Thunder God descending to the mortal realm, crushing all opposition. He was currently working on integrating it seamlessly into melee combat.

The [Soft Wind Technique] boosted his mobility to frightening levels. At full tilt, he could outpace a mid-stage Foundation Establishment cultivator.

And then there was the [Concealment Art]. Qin Lu was confident that if he chose to hide, not even a Golden Core ancestor would be able to see through his disguise. It was the ultimate tool for assassination.

But the biggest surprise was the [Gray Shadow Sword Art].

Combined with the [Sword Art Excellence] talent and his maxed movement techniques, his lethality had skyrocketed. Every slash was fluid, every strike carrying a deadly, effortless grace.

Shhhk.

Qin Lu crouched by the carcass, his knife working quickly.

The belly meat of the [Crimson Chain Snake] was a delicacy in the market. Normally, a Foundation Establishment cultivator wouldn’t bother dirtying his hands for such petty gains. But Qin Lu was here on business.

The hunting team that usually supplied the [Red Light Shop] had taken some injuries and was recovering. The shop was out of snake meat.

Qin Lu refused to let the “All Beasts Available” reputation of his shop be tarnished. Since he was here grinding proficiency anyway, he figured he might as well restock the inventory.

Thanks to his [Micro-control] talent, his butchery was surgical. He stripped every ounce of valuable meat and material from the snake without wasting a scrap.

“Alright, that should do it.”

Qin Lu glanced at the sky.

With a thought, he launched himself into the air, flying back toward the White Jade Market.

Qin Lu strolled up to the [Red Light Shop]. Seeing the continuous stream of customers flowing in and out, he couldn’t help but puff out his chest slightly.

Selling Demon Beast meat wasn’t a high-margin racket, but the volume was unbeatable.

Small profits, quick turnover. The Spirit Stones flowed in like a river.

Most cultivators in the market were at the Qi Condensation stage. They still needed to eat, and spirit rice and beast meat were daily necessities. Basic needs—clothing, food, shelter, transport—were always the biggest businesses.

As the shop’s reputation spread, even major restaurants and wealthy clans had started setting up monthly supply contracts. With Qin Lu managing the operations behind the scenes, the business was expanding rapidly.

“It is getting a bit too crowded, though,” Qin Lu mused, watching the packed entrance. “I should open a branch…”

He slipped into the backyard and found Cao Yunxi hard at work. After a quick greeting, Qin Lu unloaded the mountain of meat he had harvested over the last two days.

Cao Yunxi immediately began moving the stock into the shop’s custom-built “Cold Storage.”

Qin Lu followed him in.

The room was frigid, filled with a biting chill that would make a mortal freeze to death instantly. Carcasses were organized by type in different zones. It functioned like a giant refrigerator, drastically extending the shelf life of the product.

In addition to the expensive freezing formation embedded in the floor, the walls were plastered with talismans radiating cold air.

Qin Lu scrutinized the walls. “These [Freezing Talismans] are fading. They’re about to lose potency.”

“Right. I’ll go buy a fresh batch tomorrow,” Cao Yunxi replied, hefting a slab of meat.

Qin Lu grinned. “Hehe, go buy them from your son’s shop. He should have plenty.”

“Naturally!”

After a few more minutes of small talk, Qin Lu bid farewell to his manager and headed for home.