Chương 5: Heavenly Yang Mountain

And at that very moment, Zhang Huaijin had already reached the mountainside, standing just outside the Array formation! The formation's crimson light rippled across the void like a curtain of blood-red water, while the surrounding spiritual energy of heaven and earth slowly gathered, storing up power.

"A lower Tier 1 formation… the Six Ren Crimson Flame Array," Zhang Huaijin murmured to himself. Heavenly Yang Mountain only had a lower Tier 1 spirit vein. It was overseen by a single cultivator from the Zhang family, who was responsible for the forty acres of spirit fields on the mountain. As he stood there, the formation sensed his presence. A figure appeared within the hazy light, an old man in a gray robe with snow-white hair and beard.

"Oh, it's Huaijin! So the family sent you out." The gray-robed elder was named Zhang Hong. He looked at Huaijin's face and broke into a warm smile.

"This junior, Huaijin, pays his respects to Uncle Hong!" Zhang Huaijin bowed deeply. Crack. The active Six Ren Crimson Flame Array twisted and turned, the energy barrier warping to form a spiral just wide enough for one person to slip through. Huaijin quickly stepped inside, his figure swallowed by the glow.

"You're too polite, Huaijin. The truth is, this old, broken body of mine just can't hold on anymore. I can't share the family's burdens. Making a young man like you work for the family so early… the family has wronged you." Zhang Hong shook his head and sighed. Zhang Hong was not Zhang Chongwen's biological son. Back in the day, Zhang Chongwen had luckily obtained cultivation manuals, stepped onto the immortal path, and became a rogue cultivator.

Over the decades, he survived countless life-and-death encounters and befriended a few kindred spirits along the way. But by the time Zhang Chongwen was ready to establish his own family, those friends had already fallen to misfortune. A rogue cultivator's fate was precarious, no one knew what tomorrow would bring. All that remained of them were three bloodlines, three orphaned children. Facing the children of his closest friends, Zhang Chongwen couldn't just abandon them. The oldest was only six at the time.

After gaining their consent, he adopted them. Through decades of wind and rain, those three children had long since entered middle age, their youth forever gone. As time passed, they came to see Zhang Chongwen as their true father, taking on the Zhang name. Zhang Hong was the oldest of the Zhang family's second generation. He was nearly sixty now, at the sixth level of the Qi Refining Realm, peak stage.

But a great battle in the past had left him with hidden injuries that would forever block him from reaching the late stage of the Qi Refining Realm. Much of his lifespan had already been stolen away. Now, Zhang Hong's body has become incredibly frail. Enjoying the story? Show your support by reading it on the official site. A Qi Refining Realm cultivator's maximum lifespan was 120 years. But very, very few ever lived that long.

"Uncle Hong, the family is the one who should apologize. The younger generation is useless. You've been guarding the spirit fields with your injuries, still serving the family." Zhang Huaijin's face was full of shame. Zhang Hong waved a hand.

"The family belongs to all of us. No need to say any more. From now on, Heavenly Yang Mountain is yours." After speaking, Zhang Hong led Huaijin into the heart of the Six Ren Crimson Flame Array. There stood a simple, crude thatched hut.

"Huaijin, these are the family's spirit fields. It's July now. In about three months, the spirit rice will be ripe. Until then, these fields are in your hands." Zhang Hong's voice echoed softly. Zhang Huaijin looked out. Forty acres of spirit fields lay in orderly yet organic disarray. Threads of spiritual energy drifted through the air. Crimson rice tassels swayed in the wind, carrying the scent of grain. Red Sun Spirit Rice was a Tier 1 spiritual seed.

If the spirit fields had enough spiritual energy, it could even produce upper Tier 1 grains. But since Heavenly Yang Mountain's spirit vein was only lower Tier 1, all forty acres were also lower Tier 1.

"Understood. I won't let the harvest suffer." Zhang Huaijin gazed at the endless sea of crimson fields, his eyes full of determination. He had already mastered the skills of a Spirit Plant Cultivator. With constant practice and careful tending, he would soon become a true one.

"This is the formation disk for the Six Ren Crimson Flame Array. Keep it safe. I've already erased the old seals, refine it as your own." Zhang Hong took out a crimson disk and handed it over. Huaijin did as instructed. In less than the time it took to burn an incense stick, he had refined the disk. Beyond the disk, the core of the Six Ren Crimson Flame Array also contained a mid-Tier 1 dharma artifact: the Crimson Flame Saber. If an enemy invaded, Huaijin could wield the saber to unleash a blade aura.

Its terrifying flame power could match a seventh-level Qi Refining Realm cultivator. The Six Ren Crimson Flame Array hadn't been activated in over a decade. The energy stored within it was abundant.

"Good. No time to waste, I'll take my leave. Be careful in everything." Zhang Hong finished handing over all the affairs of Heavenly Yang Mountain, then prepared to leave. The mountain only had a lower Tier 1 spirit vein, thin and weak. Zhang Hong was at the sixth level of the Qi Refining Realm, and with his injuries, the mountain's spiritual energy couldn't even support his daily cultivation. Lately, he'd even shown signs of regressing in his realm.

"Good luck, Uncle Hong." Zhang Huaijin bowed again. His heart was full of respect for this elder who had given his all for the family despite his broken body. Zhang Hong waved without turning back, dragging his frail body slowly down the mountain until he disappeared from sight. Huaijin turned and returned to the thatched hut. He refined the formation disk once more, fully mastering the Six Ren Crimson Flame Array. But with his current cultivation, he couldn't yet unleash its full power.

Now is the perfect time to break through to the fourth level of the Qi Refining Realm. Zhang Huaijin sat cross-legged on the ground. At his chest, the Realm-Breaking Pearl pulsed with black and white patterns. As his will focused, energy from the pearl surged into his meridians. The spiritual energy within turned wild and violent. In an instant, the bottleneck to the mid-stage Qi Refining Realm shattered. A powerful aura burst from his body. The Realm-Breaking Pearl's strength was immense.

It crushed the boundary between realms and pushed Huaijin into the fourth level of the Qi Refining Realm. He was now a mid-stage Qi Refining Realm cultivator. And he was only fifteen years old. Huaijin circulated the Heavenly Fire Blaze Art. The restless energy in his meridians gradually settled. Spiritual energy from all around gathered toward him with a low hum. The Heavenly Fire Blaze Art was the Zhang family's fire-attributed Qi Refining Realm technique.

It allowed the cultivator to refine fire-attributed spiritual energy and could carry someone all the way to Qi Refining Realm perfection. It was the best fire-attributed technique the Zhang family had. As for a Foundation Establishment technique? The Zhang family didn't have one yet. Huaijin's aura slowly stabilized. Inside the Realm-Breaking Pearl at his chest, the black-and-white energy had been completely used up, leaving the pearl pure pale white.

In his sea of consciousness, the Primordial Tai Chi Visualization Diagram slowly rotated, constantly refining his soul and spirit. Breaking through to the fourth level of the Qi Refining Realm had strengthened his soul even further. Most cultivators at the eighth level of the Qi Refining Realm couldn't match Huaijin's spiritual power.