Chương 19: A Late Stage Reunion

Originally, Zhang Huaijin had estimated that breaking through to the sixth level of the Qi Refining Realm would take him two full years. But during this time, the Realm-Breaking Pearl had been constantly devouring flesh and blood, relentlessly strengthening his physical body. And on top of that, Huaijin had never gone without spirit beast meat. The twenty bottles of spirit wine Su Xiuqi had given him? He'd drunk every last drop. Both spirit wine and spirit beast meat were rich in spiritual energy.

In just six months, he had reached the peak of the fifth level of Qi Refining. After a period of careful polishing and consolidation, stepping into the sixth level would happen all on its own. The Primordial Tai Chi Visualization Diagram tempered his soul every moment of every day, without pause. This gave him a cultivation speed comparable to a cultivator with a Three Spirit Root talent. And he had a feeling, a vague, growing intuition, that his current cultivation speed had quietly increased yet again.

As his cultivation base grew, his speed would only get faster. And because of his humble Five Spirit Root talent, his foundation would become exceptionally deep and solid. Dressed in flowing white robes, Zhang Huaijin's mind was immersed in the world around him. Above the spirit field, a dark cloud thirty meter across had formed. Drops of rain fell in a steady rhythm, nourishing the spirit rice in the field below.

"My Cloud Rain Art is perfected," Huaijin said quietly, a trace of emotion in his voice.

"I can now be considered a Tier 1, Upper Grade Spirit Plant Cultivator." With his powerful soul, cultivation techniques held no difficulty for him. He had already cultivated the basic five element Arts to perfection. The Heavenly Fire Blaze Art recorded two specific techniques, the Heavenly Fire Sword and the Darkfire Storm. He had already cultivated the Heavenly Fire Sword to the Major Achievement level. As for the Darkfire Storm, its power was immense, and it consumed a great deal of spiritual energy.

So far, he had only reached the Minor Achievement level. At his current level of cultivation, if Zhang Huaijin were to go all out, even a cultivator at the seventh level of the Qi Refining Realm could be severely injured by a single misstep. Deep within his consciousness, three Yin Yang Divine Needles floated slowly, strands of chaotic Promodial force distorting the space around them. At the middle stage of Qi Refining Realm, he could only condense three needles.

Once he advanced to the late stage of Qi Refining Realm, he would be able to condense many more. The spirit rice in the fields of Heavenly Yang Mountain was thriving under Zhang Huaijin's care. The yield would definitely be higher than in the first half of the year. And the resources the Zhang family could obtain would increase as well. —— The next morning, at dawn. The story has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the violation.

Zhang Huaijin finished his daily cultivation and was about to practice his techniques when a familiar aura suddenly appeared outside the Six Ren Crimson Flame Array. A smile spread across his face. The visitor was none other than Zhang Hong. Zhang Hong now looked vigorous and energetic, his posture straight and firm. As he walked, he even carried a certain imposing quality that hadn't been there before. His injuries had healed. And not only that, he had broken through to the late stage of Qi Refining Realm.

That was the power of the Purple Sun Pill. The pill's yang energy was highly effective against cold, yin attributed spiritual power. On top of that, it contained a faint but vital trace of life giving energy. For Zhang Hong, it had been the perfect healing medicine. Purple Sun Flowers were extremely rare. The Zhang family had searched extensively for them but never found any. No one had expected Zhang Huaijin to be the one to locate one.

"Congratulations, Uncle Hong, on advancing to the late stage of the Qi Refining Realm!" Zhang Huaijin said, smiling as he bowed respectfully. He had always been deferential to the elders of his family.

"Huaijin… Thank you. Without you, I…" Zhang Hong's eyes welled up with tears. For over a decade, he had suffered under the torment of that cold, yin spiritual energy. His cultivation base had stagnated, then regressed. His body had become gaunt and withered. The family had searched for many resources, but nothing had ever worked. After all, the Zhang family was just a Qi Refining Realm clan. The resources they could mobilize were painfully limited. He had never imagined he would live to see the day he recovered.

Zhang Hong looked at Zhang Huaijin's figure and, for a moment, couldn't find the words.

"Uncle Hong, it's all in the past now," Zhang Huaijin said. His gaze was steady and firm as he spoke, each word deliberate.

"From now on, our Zhang family will only get better and better."

"Good! Good!" Looking into Zhang Huaijin's eyes, Zhang Hong felt a sense of certainty wash over him for some reason. The Zhang family, led by Huaijin, would march toward glory.

"The New Year is approaching," Zhang Hong said, calming his emotions.

"You should head back to the family quickly. I'll temporarily guard this place."

"It won't be long before someone in the family advances to the middle stage of Qi Refining Realm," Zhang Huaijin said slowly.

"When that happens, you can return to Green Bamboo Mountain and focus on your cultivation." This, he reflected, was the hardship of a Qi Refining Realm family. No suitable spirit vein, yet unable to afford to lose the spirit fields. Cultivating a spirit vein required a heavy investment of spirit stones. It was like being trapped in a dead end.

"It's no trouble. No trouble at all," Zhang Hong said, waving his hand. He took the array core for the Six Ren Crimson Flame Array back from Zhang Huaijin, gave a final wave, and his figure disappeared into the thatched hut. Zhang Huaijin said his goodbyes and, accompanied by the Purple Spirit Tiger, left the Heavenly Yang Mountain. Over the past three months, the Purple Spirit Tiger had grown quickly. It now stood one meter tall.

Its purple hide was marked with swirling black stripes, it was fierce and imposing as it walked by Huaijin's side. Devouring large amounts of flesh every day, the tiger had already reached the second level of Qi Refining Realm. It was now capable of contributing in a fight. On the way back to Green Bamboo Mountain, Zhang Huaijin killed three tier 1, lower grade spirit beasts. One of them had been taken down by the Purple Spirit Tiger by himself. After tasting blood, the tiger seemed even more ferocious.

The energy stored within the Realm-Breaking Pearl was now full. Spirit beast flesh no longer had any effect on it. Zhang Huaijin packed the meat away to serve as food for the Purple Spirit Tiger. Soon, he returned to Green Bamboo Mountain. The mountain was now dressed in silver, covered in a thick layer of snow. The bamboo groves, heavy with frost and snow, had a quiet beauty to them. —— Zhang Huaijin went home. Zhang Lixian and Su Xiuqi had already received word and prepared a lavish feast.

They looked at their son with beaming smiles. Sitting next to Su Xiuqi was a ten year old girl in colorful clothes. Her skin was fair, her eyes bright and sparkling. Two dimples appeared on her cheeks when she smiled. She looked absolutely adorable. On top of her head was a little upright ponytail. This was Zhang Huaijin's younger sister, Zhang Yunli. She had just guided Qi into her body this year, becoming a first stage Qi Refining cultivator.

She had a Four Spirit Root talent, which made her the sixth ranked among the Zhang family's third generation. Right now, though, Zhang Yunli had her arms crossed tightly over her chest. Her face was scrunched up in an exaggerated pout, and her gaze was fixed on Zhang Huaijin. A slightly embarrassed look appeared on Zhang Huaijin's face. The family doted on his little sister.

"Second Brother," Zhang Yunli began, doing her best to sound like an adult, "you left without saying goodbye to me. Are you trying to say you don't want me as your sister anymore?" Su Xiuqi rolled her eyes at this and promptly flicked her daughter on the back of the head.

"Who taught you to talk like that? Your second brother is back now, isn't he? Just eat your meal!" Zhang Yunli winced from the flick and instantly broke character.

"You—!"

"You what?" Zhang Yunli turned her head away, her face turning red. But one look at her mother's expression, and she quickly deflated.