Immortal Refiner

Fifteen days later, the day of Ji Bai’s foundation establishment celebration arrived as scheduled.

During this time, Li Qing had converted all the true essence in his dantian into cultivation of the Crimson Blaze Heaven-Burning Art, officially gaining the full combat power of the early foundation establishment stage.

At this realm, he could easily fly for extended periods using magic artifacts, no longer needing to worry about mana consumption like he had in the qi refining realm.

Li Qing stepped onto a leaf-shaped magic artifact and gracefully floated towards White Cloud Peak, where Ji Bai had chosen to hold his celebration.

Unlike Li Qing’s simple and unadorned cave abode, Ji Bai’s was clearly decorated with care. The overall style was elegant and classical, yet still retained a touch of splendor.

Seeing the Eternal Flame Lamps hanging throughout the cave abode, Li Qing sighed, thinking, ”People are truly different. If it were me, I wouldn’t have the patience to decorate my cave abode like this.”

Soon, Ji Bai emerged from the cave abode with a warm smile, welcoming Li Qing inside.

”Hahaha, Senior Brother Li, please come in! Several fellow sect members and elders are already enjoying a small gathering inside.”

Upon seeing Ji Bai, Li Qing immediately retrieved a wooden box from his storage pouch. Inside lay the small bell he had refined.

”Junior Brother Ji Bai, this bell is just a trifle I refined on a whim. It has a certain calming and focus-enhancing effect. If you ever find yourself feeling restless or agitated, you might find it helpful to use this bell to soothe your mind.”

Hearing this, Ji Bai’s expression turned serious. He declined, saying, ”How can I accept this, Senior Brother Li? Please take it back. My foundation establishment celebration is meant to forge deeper bonds with close friends and strengthen our relationship. I can’t accept gifts.”

Li Qing merely chuckled and insisted, ”It’s just a minor trinket, nothing of great value. If Junior Brother Ji Bai doesn’t mind, that’s all that matters. I came here today to bask in your glory and get to know the other fellow sect members and elders!”

With those words, Ji Bai finally accepted the bell Li Qing had offered.

He didn’t open the wooden box. Instead, he asked with genuine curiosity, ”Senior Brother Li, you refined this bell yourself? Do you also understand the art of artifact refinement?”

”Hahaha, I understand a thing or two, but I wouldn’t call myself an expert. I just like to refine a few things in my spare time for amusement,” Li Qing said modestly.

As they spoke, the two of them entered the main hall of the cave abode.

Several people were already seated there—seven or eight foundation establishment elders from the sect!

Each person had a table in front of them, creating the atmosphere of a discussion forum.

In addition, several tables remained empty, suggesting that more guests were yet to arrive.

Seeing this, Li Qing’s admiration for Ji Bai’s social skills grew even stronger. In such a short time, he had managed to invite so many elders from the sect to his foundation establishment celebration.

Li Qing knew he could never have achieved this in just a few months. It was simply a matter of talent.

Before Ji Bai could introduce him, a young elder recognized Li Qing.

”Hehe, this must be Junior Brother Li Qing. Your name has been ringing throughout the sect lately!”

There was no malice in the elder’s words, only genuine curiosity.

Li Qing, feeling slightly flustered, clasped his hands in a respectful bow. ”Greetings, senior brothers. I’m not sure what mistakes I’ve made that have earned me such notoriety across a thousand miles.”

”Hahahaha, Junior Brother Li, you’re truly a remarkable person! You achieved foundation establishment with a Four Spirit Root aptitude—you’ve long become the most widely known elder in the sect!” someone said with a hearty laugh, his temperament exceptionally cheerful.

A female elder with exquisite looks and refined bearing chuckled softly from the side. ”Junior Brother Li’s words in the Hall of Technique Transmission have also spread throughout the sect. Many disciples now look to you as an example, and the sect’s cultivation atmosphere has become noticeably more diligent and hardworking.”

”Indeed! ’When black hair knows not the difficulty of foundation establishment, only white hair regrets the tardiness of bitter cultivation!’ These words are truly profound—let’s raise a toast to them!”

”If all the qi refining disciples in the sect possessed such self-awareness, it would truly be a blessing for the sect!”

Clearly, the modified verse Li Qing had casually improvised had resonated with many of the fellow sect members and elders present.

Taking advantage of this, he effortlessly integrated into the group, engaging in lively conversation with everyone present.

This is what a Cultivation Sect is like. While there’s competition among fellow sect members, their relationships aren’t too bad. Having all reached foundation establishment, they naturally understand the importance of being kind to others, as they might need each other’s help someday.

Li Qing, unlike Ji Bai, wasn’t particularly skilled at making friends, but he had always considered himself quite adept at handling interpersonal relationships. He quickly became familiar with several elders.

”Looking back to the qi refining realm, every step was incredibly difficult. If I had let up even slightly, I might not be sitting here today.”

”You’re right. Cultivation is about taking one step at a time. Except for those with unparalleled talent, we’re all struggling to cross this Immortal Path.”

When they started talking about cultivation, it was inevitable that the conversation turned to core formation.

To be honest, everyone present was still relatively young. At most, they had entered the sect only two or three decades earlier than Li Qing and the others.

Among them, two had already reached the mid-foundation establishment stage, which was considered quite promising.

Even so, the mention of core formation still brought bitter expressions to both their faces, as they lamented the many trials and dangers of the Immortal Path.

Let alone the core formation realm, even reaching Pseudo-Core or even the late foundation establishment realm seemed impossibly distant.

”Difficult, difficult, difficult. Only those with exceptional talent can achieve core formation.”

”Indeed,” one of them agreed. ”I heard that a spiritual object that aids core formation appeared in the Heavenly River Sect area a few years ago.”

”I’ve heard of it too. I heard it was a pool of Yin-Yang Spirit Condensation Liquid, considered on par with Purple Mansion Spirit Liquid as one of the best core formation elixirs!”

”I heard the Heavenly River Sect elders only managed to secure a small portion of it in the end.”

Soon, someone turned to Li Qing, curiosity piqued. ”Junior Brother Li, I heard you were a rogue cultivator in the Heavenly River Sect area before joining the sect. Do you know more about this?”

Li Qing’s background wasn’t a secret; he had never concealed it. Anyone truly curious could easily find out with a little inquiry.

He wasn’t surprised by the question, instead calmly picked up a cup of Spirit Wine from the table and took a small sip.

”Back then, I was just a rogue cultivator in the qi refining realm. I probably knew no more than any of you.”

”But I heard that most of the core formation spiritual material was absorbed by a mysterious stone egg.”

This revelation sparked astonishment among many present.

”A stone egg? Really? Could a mere stone egg possess such immense power?”

”I didn’t expect it to be true. I thought it was just an excuse the Heavenly River Sect was using to cover up something.”

”They say even several core formation realm Ancestors couldn’t stop it. What kind of egg is this?!”

At this point, an elder with considerable seniority from one of the Cultivation Sects fell silent in contemplation.

”Senior Brother Lu, do you know something we don’t? Perhaps you could share it?” someone noticed the hesitation in the elder’s expression.

Senior Brother Lu frowned slightly before finally speaking. ”I heard that Martial Aunt Bing Yun ventured deep into the Forbidden Speech Snowfield several times recently. It seems she discovered a mysterious stone egg on the Forbidden Speech Snow Mountains!”

Hiss!

Many in attendance gasped, surprised that the mysterious stone egg, shrouded in such secrecy, was now so close to them.

Li Qing was also taken aback. He hadn’t expected the legendary stone egg, which had caused such a stir in the Heavenly River Sect’s cultivation world, to end up in the Snow Mountain Forbidden Zone.

Including Li Qing, many present began to scheme.

While they didn’t know what kind of Demon beast had laid the egg, one thing was certain: it had absorbed a vast amount of Yin-Yang Spirit Condensation Liquid.

If they broke the egg, would they be able to extract any remaining liquid?!

The allure of core formation spiritual materials was irresistible to any foundation establishment realm cultivator.

Li Qing, who had been silently listening, nodded inwardly. He realized that cultivating connections in this circle had its advantages. At least he could quickly learn about such hidden secrets.

In the future, when he sought heavenly spirit fire, he might even need to rely on these elders for information.

He silently made a mental note of everyone present. But soon, Li Qing noticed something amiss: Shen Ningbing and Wu Hong, the other two immortal seeds who had achieved foundation establishment alongside him, were nowhere to be seen!

Could Ji Bai have forgotten to invite them? That seemed unlikely...

Li Qing decided to ask directly. ”Junior Brother Ji Bai, where are Junior Brother Wu and Junior Sister Shen Ningbing?”

Ji Bai forced a wry smile. ”Brother Wu Hong is in a critical phase of switching cultivation manuals and can’t leave. As for Junior Sister Shen, she seems to have gone out on a training mission.”

A training mission?!

Li Qing quickly recalled a conversation he had overheard at the Sect Leader’s residence earlier. Shen Ningbing had become the disciple of a core formation realm supreme elder as soon as she joined the sect.

And that supreme elder’s name was apparently Bing Yun!

Connecting these details with the secret information he had just heard, Li Qing silently finished his cup of Spirit Wine.

Damn it, could that supreme elder have taken Shen Ningbing directly to subdue the Demon beast hatching from the stone egg?

He had heard that those with variant spirit roots often have a natural affinity with strange beasts of the same attribute.

(End of the Chapter)

📖Read [IR] ahead on Pa.treon@AnubisTL upto c364. [+4/+7.9k].

🎁All [2] Novels can be accessed for just $6/mo.

🔥Translated [1k+] Chapters and [2.17M+] Words.

🎯1 Review = 5 Extra Chapters. Reviews 5/5. Chapter 22/25. (Bonus Chapter)