I forge immortality with spiritual treasures.

Chapter 70 Just Like Before

Xiaqi Lakeside.

The weeping willows sway in the breeze, their verdant reflections creating a misty haze, where dragonflies occasionally skim the surface, flitting about in an instant.

Before we knew it, summer was almost over.

In the morning, after expounding the Qi, he went to the Zhengyuan Altar to listen to the lecture.

In the afternoon, he stayed in Yunji Pavilion for half an hour, then went to the Pill Workshop, before leisurely returning to the 26th Courtyard of the Jia Character.

Upon arriving at the courtyard, before even opening the gate, one could hear voices inside.

“In the Taoist academy, Taoist masters often give lectures. At the beginning of each month, the academy will release a timetable listing the courses for the month.”

"That's the one on the wall, see it?"

The voice was melodious and clear; it belonged to a colorful sparrow.

"Yes, I saw it. Thank you for your guidance, fairy."

The voice was youthful and shy, suggesting the person was not very old.

Ying Chan raised an eyebrow slightly, pushed open the courtyard gate and entered. Sure enough, he saw a young man standing in the courtyard.

The boy wasn't wearing a Taoist robe, but his hair was tied up in a bun. He had a rather honest and simple appearance, unlike Xuan Ying who was quite handsome, though they looked to be about the same age.

"what!"

When Cai Que'er saw Ying Chan push open the door and enter, she cheered and flew down: "The Taoist is back! Where is my Jade Dew Pill?"

Ying Chan smiled slightly, took out the Jade Dew Pill that he had just bought from the alchemy shop that day, and handed it to Cai Que: "Of course I will not forget the fairy's instructions."

The boy in the courtyard was stunned for a moment when he saw this scene. Then he came to his senses and walked forward nervously, cupping his hands in greeting, "This must be Senior Brother Ying."

“I am Zhang Yu, a newcomer to the Taoist academy. I hope my neighbors will be understanding and accommodating.”

Ying Chan was not surprised, but rather somewhat enlightened.

It has been some time since Li Xuanying joined the sect. Perhaps because there are not many new disciples entering the academy, the west dormitory of the 26th courtyard of the Jia character has been empty.

Unexpectedly, just as I was about to leave, I suddenly welcomed new neighbors.

Ying Chan smiled and returned the greeting: "Junior Brother Zhang, greetings."

"Junior brother, did Fairy Rainbow Sparrow tell you that you know my name?"

"Exactly."

Seeing that Ying Chan was easy to talk to, Zhang Yu breathed a slight sigh of relief: "I arrived this morning, and the fairy introduced me to many things that happened in the courtyard."

"Oh, you can choose a house to stay in?"

"Yes, we chose West House."

Ying Chan glanced at Cai Que'er and smiled, "It seems that the fairy has already done all the things I was supposed to do."

Cai Que'er gave a soft hum and raised her head.

Zhang Yu watched from the side, quite envious.

With nothing else to do, Ying Chan chatted casually with Zhang Yu. As the sun began to set, he suddenly heard a gurgling sound coming from his stomach.

Zhang Yu blushed and quickly said, "Senior brother, you flatter me."

"What's so funny about something that's only natural?"

Ying Chan took down his gourd containing the Five Essence Pills from the wall of the east room, poured out one pill, and handed it to Zhang Yu.

"This Five Essence Pill, one of which can replace the body's energy needs for three days, junior brother, take one."

"Five Essence Pills?"

After taking the Five Essence Pill, Zhang Yu's eyes lit up: "There are actually such spiritual pills."

Ying Chan suddenly realized that today is just like the past, and couldn't help but smile.

"I didn't know you were coming, Junior Brother. Otherwise, I could have prepared some things for you when I arrived at the alchemy workshop today... Never mind."

He glanced at the gourd in his hand; there were only a dozen or so Five Essence Pills left inside. He simply stuffed them all into Zhang Yu's hand: "Junior Brother, please take these Five Essence Pills."

"This..." Zhang Yu was taken aback. "How can this be?" "Neighbors in the same courtyard should help each other."

"Then, senior brother, shouldn't you keep some for yourself too?"

Zhang Yu hesitated for a moment, but Ying Chan just smiled slightly: "Take them all, I won't need them even if I keep them."

Zhang Yu asked doubtfully, "What makes you say that?"

"I will begin my seclusion tomorrow, during which I will need to abstain from grains."

Ying Chan shook his head: "Junior brother, you've come at an inopportune time. I'm about to go into seclusion, and after that... I might not stay in the courtyard anymore. I'm afraid we won't have the chance to spend time together, and I won't be able to take care of you much."

Zhang Yu seemed to understand, but Ying Chan didn't explain further, only saying, "If there's anything you don't understand, you can ask Fairy Caique."

The colorful sparrow had already flown to the branch, but upon hearing Ying Chan's mention, it tilted its head and looked down.

Ying Chan ignored him and continued, "Or you can ask your classmates in the academy for advice. As long as you don't deliberately cause trouble, I don't think you'll be refused."

"Yes, thank you very much, Senior Brother." Zhang Yu said, "Senior Brother has already helped me a lot, so there's no need to worry about it."

Ying Chan nodded and said nothing more.

Zhang Yu hesitated for a moment, then cupped his hands and said, "I wish you success in your seclusion, Senior Brother."

Ying Chan was somewhat surprised, but nodded with a smile and said, "I also wish you a smooth cultivation at the academy, Junior Brother."

The sun blazed across the sky, heading west, and night was about to fall in the blink of an eye.

Ying Chan and Zhang Yu did not chat for long before returning to their respective rooms.

Ying Chan returned to his bedroom, sat down on the bed, and looked back into his inner world. There he saw thirty-three mysterious and seemingly existing acupoints, shimmering with light.

During this period, we should change our previous steady approach, be courageous and diligent, and strive to overcome difficulties.

To this end, he exchanged all his accumulated Taoist cultivation skills for a single Xuan Yuan Gu Ben Dan (a type of pill) for cultivation.

The Profound Origin Strengthening Pill helps cultivators stabilize their profound apertures, making it a superior spiritual pill for Qi Refining cultivators to aid in breaking through barriers.

With the help of this elixir, Ying Chan was able to soar through the wind and break through three mysterious apertures in a short period of time.

However, the Xuan Yuan Gu Ben Dan is quite valuable.

The Daoist cultivation that Ying Chan gained from his patrol was already quite substantial, but when converted into Xuan Yuan Gu Ben Dan (a type of pill), he only received a mere nine pills.

Having worked hard to break through the barrier during this period, the Xuan Yuan Gu Ben Dan had long been exhausted.

Moreover, the Xuan Yuan Gu Ben Dan is only used to stabilize the Xuan Aperture, and cannot directly strengthen the Xuan Aperture.

Therefore, the several mysterious apertures that Ying Chan had newly opened had not been properly nurtured, and his magical power had not been fully accumulated. If he wanted to continue breaking through the barriers, he would be somewhat powerless.

Therefore, if Ying Chan wants to make further progress, there are only two ways.

Firstly, by calming down and accumulating experience over a period of time, and then using magical power to nurture and strengthen the Xuanqiao (mysterious aperture), one can naturally continue to make vigorous and rapid progress.

However, since Ying Chan was determined to achieve perfection in one fell swoop, he naturally could not make this choice.

Therefore, there is only one choice left.

"We will enter the pass tomorrow and take the stone milk."

Ying Chan stopped looking inward, gathered his distracting thoughts, and slowly entered a state of stillness and meditation.

A night passed in the blink of an eye.

The next day, Ying Chan did not go to the peak to gather qi. After the meditation was over, he got up, left the courtyard, and strode away.

In the morning, the long embankment was shrouded in mist and smoke, with groups of Taoist disciples moving about in twos and threes.

Ying Chan followed the crowd through the clouds, then headed south alone, along the stone-paved road and the long steps made of bluestone, until he reached the gate of a cave.

The cave has no plaque, but upon entering, you will see a stone wall with the three characters "守静笃" (Shou Jing Du) carved on it.

This is the secluded retreat place in the Taoist temple, Jingdu Cave.

Ying Chan had two friends who, after achieving the perfection of Qi Refining, both went into seclusion here and cultivated the Profound Light, eventually joining the sect.

(End of this chapter)