Madam, please ascend.

Chapter 20: Extraordinary Qi Refining Realm

As the saying goes: The wind and clouds are light outside the world, and the years are long in the mountains.

For Suzaku, the time she spent tending to Yun Yi seemed incredibly long. Zhi Lao Er would occasionally appear, but Tao San Niang was nowhere to be found. Most importantly, Yun Yi rarely spoke to her, leaving early and returning late, always exhausted and falling asleep immediately.

But this cannot be blamed on him. He is just a mortal who has to walk back and forth on the stone steps every day. The day before yesterday, he was forced to increase the difficulty and was asked to carry two buckets up the mountain, fill them with water, and then carry them back to the immortal's residence.

Not to mention that he had to practice swordsmanship with the Monkey Sword Master on the top of the mountain. The "Square Sword" was so big and heavy that it was difficult to just lift it.

But after enduring so much hardship, Yun Yi's transformation was evident. His spirit and energy were growing stronger, and his body, through repeated tempering, had returned to its innate state. He was clearly about to enter the stage of "refining essence into qi."

This stage is also called "foundation building", and the more common name is "Qi refining realm", which is the first level of cultivation.

Furthermore, once Yun Yi entered the Qi Refining Realm, he would be different from ordinary Qi Refining Realms. His foundation would be exceptionally solid. Even Zhuque, recalling his own initial Qi Refining Realm, felt that he was inferior to Yun Yi at this moment.

If cultivating immortals is likened to building a staircase leading to the sky, most practitioners build one step at a time and then take a step up, repeating this process until they get closer and closer to the sky.

For example, Song Xinci, a stunning and beautiful product, can take several steps ahead of others with just one move.

But Yun Yi was different. He built a step and poured water on it repeatedly until the step was completely solid before he would step on it and move up.

The disadvantage of doing this is that the efficiency of practice is sacrificed, but the benefits are self-evident.

Now, the first step in his cultivation has finally been completed.

On another ordinary night, the Tongxin Gu contained in the bamboo tube became inexplicably restless, causing the bamboo tube to shake slightly.

Suzaku didn't notice these things, because her eyes were completely attracted by Yun Yi. That's right, she was bathing Yun Yi who was sleeping soundly.

Suddenly, the spiritual energy from the Feitian Secret Realm poured into the room, transforming into a colorful cloud of stars that surrounded the bathtub. It was obvious that they were coming for Yun Yi, who frowned slightly at this moment, feeling something different even in his dream.

The dream was still of the familiar peach blossom forest and the familiar beautiful girl. He was already accustomed to these things and only regarded them as the mysteries of the flying secret realm.

So Yun Yi reviewed the White Ape Sword Technique taught by the Monkey Sword Immortal in his dream as usual, but this time when he casually waved the peach branch in his hand, he found that there was a bit more mysterious feeling.

The branches seemed to have really turned into swords, and the tip of the sword drew circles one after another as it was swung, endlessly, like a whirlpool!
He finally completed the White Ape Sword Technique!

As this exhilarating sword dance was completed, Yun Yi also noticed changes in the outside world.

Then the man in the bathtub suddenly opened his eyes.

He watched in amazement as the starry clouds merged into his skin, bones, and blood, penetrating into every pore, reaching deeper into his body, and then transformed into the purest spiritual energy, nourishing every corner.

He then took a deep breath, exhaling the last breath of foul air from his chest.

At this moment, in the Feitian Secret Realm, Yun Yi finally succeeded in his cultivation for the second time and returned to his innate state.

The early stage of Qi Refining Realm!
Yun Yi danced with excitement and stood up unconsciously. He could feel that his Qi Refining Realm in this life was completely different from that in the previous life.

That time, he embarked on the path of cultivation with the help of the magic sect's natural treasures. Whether it was his state of mind or his own foundation, he was actually far from qualified, like a young seedling that was forced to grow.

It looks tall, but in fact its roots are not deep.

But this time was different. The Qi Refining Realm was more stable than ever before, and this feeling was something he had never experienced even when he cultivated to the Return to Void Realm in his previous life!
When Yun Yi finally calmed down, he suddenly felt cold all over.

He looked down and found himself standing naked in the bathtub, and next to him stood a woman whose blushing face was barely concealed even by a veil.

Pfft!
Yun Yi quickly sat down and asked nervously, "What's going on?!"

Zhuque finally opened his eyes again, and the more he looked at Yun Yi, the angrier he became: "You're taking advantage of me!"

"I really don't know what's going on!" Yun Yi was surprised at first, and then gradually remembered the changes in himself in the past few days.

He was so tired every day that he fell asleep immediately, but he felt extremely refreshed the next day and his body didn't ache at all. This was extremely unusual.

It’s just that he was busy practicing before and never thought about this problem. Now, considering the current situation, thinking carefully, could it be that… Yun Yi said embarrassedly: “I’m really sorry to trouble Miss Zhuque.”

Zhuque glared at him, "Now you know how to call me girl?! Wasn't it easier to call me little bird before?!"

The past is the past, and the present is the present. You have seen and touched me all over, so I must be a little reserved.

Yun Yi was a little afraid to look directly at Zhuque: "Anyway, thank you very much."

Zhuque glared at him and said, "The water was prepared by Tao Sanniang, and the herbs were given by Zhi Laoer. You should thank them."

Yun Yi nodded slightly at this. He had dealt with Zhi Lao Er several times before, and every time he brought water back from the mountaintop, it was to help him water the fields. However, he had never seen Tao Sanniang himself, only hearing her name.

As he was thinking about it, he suddenly realized that the beautiful girl in his dream had peach blossoms on her eyebrows, and she was most likely Tao Sanniang.

What’s wrong with this little girl? She never shows up in reality, but chatters and loves to play in dreams?
Previously, he was too tired from practicing and fell into a coma. Now that Yun Yi had entered the Dao, he didn't dare to bother Zhuque anymore. He asked the girl to wait outside the door for a while while he quickly dried himself, changed his clothes, cleaned the bathtub, and didn't forget to tidy up the room briefly.

Then something happened that made Yun Yi even more uneasy. That was when Zhuque returned to the house, he skillfully made his bed on the floor.

"You and I...have always slept in the same room?"

"Otherwise, if the young lady hadn't ordered me to, I wouldn't bother taking care of you!"

"Well, you sleep on the bed and I'll sleep on the floor." Yun Yi said embarrassedly. He had indeed been ignoring this matter. After all, Zhuque was still awake when he fell asleep every day, and had already gone out for a stroll when he woke up.

Zhuque didn't act pretentiously. He snorted coldly, then jumped onto the bed, covered himself with the quilt and went to sleep in one go.

It can be seen that I have indeed suffered a lot of grievances these days.

Yun Yi, feeling extremely guilty, didn't dare to say anything. Although the man was sent by Song Xinci to protect him, he was also in the late stage of the Spirit Transformation Realm. Maybe after some training in the Feitian Secret Realm, he could even touch the threshold of the Return to Void Realm.

If you treat such a master as a maid, then you are really asking for trouble.

So Yun Yi quietly got into bed. The floor was a bit hard, and it was indeed not as comfortable to sleep on as on the bed.

Zhuque had quietly opened her eyes at some point, and looked at Yun Yi with a look of triumph, a prank she had pulled off. As a cultivator, she had actually been meditating and breathing heavily at night these past few days.

The Feitian Secret Realm is full of spiritual energy, and every day a little monster brings a bottle of monkey wine to fill the stomach. Zhuque actually gets a lot of benefits.

She had just slept on the floor on purpose just to disgust Yun Yi and make that stinky man feel more guilty towards her.

Recalling their first encounter in the dilapidated temple, Yun Yi was still an ordinary little scholar, but he had a very sharp tongue. Not only was he not affected by the charm, he could even fight back.

But now his body was glowing with precious light, and the gloom that had always been hidden in his brows and eyes had dissipated. He looked righteous, and had a somewhat elegant and refined air. He was somewhat similar to the disciples of famous and upright sects.

Is the Demon Sect really suitable for him? Suzaku suddenly thought for no reason.

However, she dismissed the idea in an instant. With her young lady's speed of cultivation, her ascension to immortality was just around the corner. The Demon Sect would only be a stepping stone for her, and heaven would be her final destination.

Yun Yi didn't think so much, nor did he imagine what the future of himself and Song Xinci would be like.

He was simply a little excited, immersed in the joy of starting to practice.

The "Qi Refining Realm" obtained by tempering the body and refining the Qi on the stone steps of the Tao is not as good as the peerless geniuses such as the Immortal Body, the Innate Golden Body, and the Yin-Yang Spirit Roots, but it is much stronger than the ordinary Qi Refining Realm.

As the name suggests, the primary task of the Qi Refining Realm is to "refine essence into Qi," while the next level, the Spirit Transformation Realm, requires "refining Qi into Spirit." The ingenious aspect of the Stone Steps of Inquiry lies in the fact that they not only train the body but also the soul.

Yun Yi could feel that as his cultivation level increased, the oppressive feeling of the stone steps became stronger and stronger, so the difficulty of each practice not only did not decrease, but increased instead.

Especially when going down the mountain, you not only have to maintain balance and awareness of being on the verge of collapse, but also maintain two buckets of water to reduce shaking so as not to spill too much spring water.

Only the person involved knows the hardship this has gone through.

(End of this chapter)