A hundred lifetimes of cultivation, merely seeking immortality in the cultivation world.

Chapter 210 The Moon Waits After It Is Full

Lu Qingyun slowly lowered his head and looked at his hands.

This breakthrough brought about tremendous changes in him. In terms of appearance alone, his ten fingers became long and strong, with more distinct joints, and a layer of lustrous sheen flowed under his skin, like the finest jade.

Lu Qingyun clenched his fist, gathering power in his palm. The feeling of fullness was unprecedented. He pushed his palm forward and struck out, instantly creating a huge crater in the wall of the quiet room.

Beside the pit, the array collapsed, and cracks suddenly appeared.

Immediately afterwards, the rock wall cracked open, letting in the sunlight from outside.

Zhao Qingxuan had been waiting outside for a long time. Upon hearing the noise, she looked up and was overjoyed.

"Junior brother, you did it!"

"Yes, I succeeded. I have reached the late stage of Qi Refining and am only one step away from Foundation Establishment."

Lu Qingyun nodded. His heartbeat was steady and powerful, each beat like a drumbeat pumping spiritual energy into every tiny corner of his body.

Now that success has been achieved, I feel completely at ease.

Even his breathing has changed. Before, he could simply inhale air into his lungs, but now he could feel the veins of spiritual energy in the air, like invisible threads, from which he could easily extract the strand he wanted.

This is the late stage of Qi Refining.

"So, isn't that enough to be considered half-step Foundation Establishment?"

Zhao Qingxuan was slightly taken aback as she looked at the shattered stone wall of the cave.

She was momentarily stunned. As the eldest daughter of the Zhao family, she was not unaware that Lu Qingyun's cultivation technique was extraordinary, but this strength was still too shocking. It should be noted that an ordinary half-step Foundation Establishment cultivator was no different from the late Qi Refining stage, and there was no way they possessed such astonishing strength.

"Junior brother, your cultivation technique is indeed profound and extraordinary. I'm afraid your current strength is comparable to some of my family's half-step Foundation Establishment cultivators who only have one supernatural ability."

"This technique is indeed extremely profound, but it is also exceptionally difficult to cultivate. I have almost died several times during the body tempering process. Looking back now, there is a bit of luck involved."

Lu Qingyun nodded, sensing the tremendous changes and vibrant life force within his body, and a smile appeared on his face.

This cultivation, especially the tempering of his heart, was a near-death experience. If he hadn't had a late-stage Qi Refining Divine Soul, and if he hadn't had that sliver of luck, he probably would have perished here.

"But it was a success nonetheless."

Looking up, the entire Danfeng Peak was now within sight. Places that were once inaccessible were now no longer forbidden zones thanks to their own strength. In the vast outer sect, as long as one did not step into the chessboard of those few Supreme Beings, even a half-step Foundation Establishment cultivator with the third level of Divine Power had nothing to fear.

Even though the Zhao family's power is waning, it is not something that can be easily offended. For example, in Qi-refining families like the Cui and Shen families, there are only two or three members who have reached the Foundation Establishment stage.

The Zhao family alone has more than three members, and the entire Zhao family has a total of nine branches and six sub-branches.

With his current supernatural powers and physical strength, he can go anywhere in the world.

Lu Qingyun couldn't help but sigh and recited: "Looking back several times, all I see is desolation. I once longed to live on the wind and dew, to rest in the clouds and ride the wind, but it was all in vain. A hundred years is but a fleeting moment, half a lifetime has passed in vain, and I have died with white hair. Now, though I am still weak, I see floating clouds and blue sky. One day, I will break through the sky with my sword and look back on those days."

"Junior brother is indeed a talented writer. Although he can't write poetry, he can compose prose. But if it were brought to that mundane world, it would move many scholars and make them admire his spirit."

"But he inevitably looks more weathered now. If I hadn't seen my junior brother rise from humble beginnings, I would probably have thought he was some senior immortal."

Zhao Qingxuan smiled wistfully, feeling both impressed by Lu Qingyun's current demeanor and delighted by his breakthrough, but also saddened by the current bleak state of the Zhao family.

Although the Zhao family is still powerful, the Zhang family's master is like a sharp blade hanging over everyone's heads, ready to fall at any moment.

Some time ago, Zhang Tianlie, having achieved remarkable success far surpassing Zhang Tianyan, was designated by that Supreme Being as the next head of the Zhang family, thus becoming the rightful heir.

The elders in the family, who were at the half-step Foundation Establishment stage, showed no surprise whatsoever. When she asked them, she learned that in their eyes, Zhang Tianlie had always been the heir of the Zhang family, while Zhang Tianyan had become utterly unremarkable.

It was as if he had never been superior to Zhang Tianlie.

The terrifying implications of this left Zhao Qingxuan restless for days, waking her up several times from nightmares.

I don't know at all.

How much of her understanding has been distorted?

"Where can it compare to the true immortal?"

Lu Qingyun shook his head. He was only at the half-step Foundation Establishment stage, not even close to the beginning of the Great Dao. Not to mention, he was only at the late stage of Qi Refining, still some distance from the half-step Foundation Establishment stage.

Zhao Qingxuan sighed and subtly informed Zhang Tianlie about the matter via telepathy. At the same time, she mentioned that some branches of the Zhao family were recently in a state of panic, seemingly wanting to defect to the Zhang family.

After thinking for a moment, Zhao Qingxuan whispered, "Besides that, there's also the situation in the Great Jing Kingdom. That young Marquis Xiao has made some moves again. He has sacrificed several late-stage Qi Refining cultivators of the Zhang family, and it seems that his cultivation has broken through again. As a result, the Zhang family has greatly strengthened its defenses in the Great Jing Kingdom, which has caused many frictions with my family."

"As my junior brother had suggested, I didn't interfere with the affairs of that young Marquis Xiao, but let him do as he pleased. However, it was still a potential problem."

"My junior brother once said that the Zhang family would definitely make trouble for my family in the next ten years or so. If the Zhang family finds out, it will be a huge disaster."

"Just keep calm, Senior Sister, there's no need to worry. If the Supreme Immortal truly intends to take our lives, no amount of resistance will be of any use. As for the others..."

Lu Qingyun shook his head and sneered.

"As the saying goes, 'If it's going to rain, it's going to rain; if a mother wants to remarry, then let her.' There's no need to interfere. You can't stop someone from courting death."

Despite the fact that Zhang Tianlie, the two chieftains, tried to win him over, he was extremely arrogant and regarded everyone else as trash except for those he respected.

Just like Zhang Tianyan, even though he and Zhang Tianlie have been competing for the Zhang family for a long time, Zhang Tianlie doesn't really consider him a person.

As for those members of the Zhao clan who sided with Zhang Tianlie, they fared even worse. If Lu Qingyun remembered correctly, none of them had a good ending in their previous lives. Even those who had reached the half-step Foundation Establishment stage were killed when Zhang Tianlie sent them to attack the Demonic Sect and they filled the array eyes.

On the contrary, those Zhao's defeated were only stripped of some property by Zhang Tianlie, and they remained relatively free. They were not significantly drawn from the battle against the Demonic Sect.

Zhang Tianlie always respected heroes and looked down on the district, but these people didn't know that.

Seeing Lu Qingyun's expression, Zhao Qingxuan seemed thoughtful and felt much more at ease.

"The more you interfere with Xiao Daojue, the more likely you are to bring trouble upon yourself. Don't concern yourself with Xiao Daojue's affairs. Just pretend you never saw him and let him go on his own."

"On the contrary, if he wants to return to Yunxia, ​​he should first make an excuse to smuggle the poison out of the country, so that he can cause more harm to the Zhang family and spread more poison in Dajing."

Lu Qingyun, the town's most important person, couldn't care less about the young marquis in this life. If he wanted to have fun, let him have fun in Dajing. Maybe he could bring some surprises.

It would be even better if he could confront Zhang's Foundation Establishment cultivator, as this would draw the attention of Zhang's True Immortal cultivator, which would be a huge benefit to both Zhao and him.

We can only make things harder for the young marquis.

"Understood, junior brother."

Zhao Qingxuan chuckled when she heard Lu Qingyun making such a fuss about that young Marquis Xiao.

The gloom that had been hanging over me for so many things has finally dissipated considerably.

The two chatted for a while longer, and Lu Qingyun explained some cultivation-related issues to Zhao Qingxuan before she left.

After seeing Zhao Qingxuan off, Lu Qingyun took out the jade talisman and began to examine the letters that had arrived in the past few days.

Only then did they discover that something had actually happened to Chen Xiru.

It had been ten days since Chen Xiru last sent a message; she only said one sentence—

[Senior brother, after I channeled my magical power into my upper dantian, the power within my body seemed to be rapidly condensing and becoming very cold. What went wrong with my cultivation...?]

After that, there was no further news.

Could it be that there has truly been a problem with his cultivation?

Lu Qingyun had a bad feeling.

He quickly activated a spell and headed towards Chen Xiru's cave.

As the sun set, a slight chill settled in the air, but by the time it reached Chen Xiru's location, the temperature had dropped considerably.

A chilling aura was constantly spreading outwards from Chen Xiru's cave. Fortunately, Senior Brother Sun Cheng was dead and she had moved away from here, so no one noticed anything amiss.

Lu Qingyun stepped forward. The entire cave entrance was completely encased in mysterious ice, frozen stiff. Lu Qingyun quickly pushed his palm and unleashed a burst of magical power, shattering the door.

But it was precisely because of its remoteness that it succeeded, and it also failed.

Chen Xiru has not interacted with other disciples these days, focusing solely on cultivation, thus avoiding others discovering the abnormality of his physique and attracting Foundation Establishment Realm experts.

However, this time, she encountered an unexpected event that went unnoticed by others in a timely manner.

As soon as Lu Qingyun entered, Chen Xiru's eyes went blank. She sat cross-legged, her clothes almost cracked from the cold, like a divine tree made of ice, pure white and smooth, cold as frost.

"Junior sister, what happened to you?"

Lu Qingyun's expression immediately turned serious. He had no time to appreciate the sensual scene. He quickly shattered the ice crystals, picked up Zhao Qingxuan, and then pushed her back with his palm, channeling his magic power into her body.

"Senior brother..."

Chen Xiru blinked slightly. Her lips moved as if she wanted to say something, but she was too weak to open her eyes. Her face was pale, and only her fingers trembled slightly.

"Alright, that's enough. I'll help you refine the cold energy in your body now."

Lu Qingyun's expression turned solemn, and he dared not hesitate.

In a short while, Chen Xiru's life force began to drain away again, and her magical power gradually weakened, with the cold energy heading towards her heart.

As he channeled his magic power, Lu Qingyun's mind stirred slightly, and the Heavenly Profound Magic Power within his body transformed into a blazing fire element.

Then, he made a hand seal again, activating the supernatural power [Refined Light].

Although this supernatural power was previously only used for body tempering, that does not mean it can only be used for body tempering.

Tempering the body is merely the most insignificant function of this supernatural power. Its true function is to enhance Lu Qingyun's control over his magical power. When used for alchemy, it can even forcibly integrate the medicinal properties of spiritual herbs and form pills from nothingness without the use of alchemical fire.

At this moment, the cold air invaded Chen Xiru's body, almost penetrating his heart.

If we simply remove the cold energy from her body, it will simply return and will not benefit her cultivation.

After scanning Chen Xiru's body with his divine sense, Lu Qingyun discovered the true cause of her illness.

Her spiritual root is a rare type of mid-grade ice spiritual root, and she also possesses the [Ice Profound Treasure Body] physique.

The body is constantly absorbing external ice-elemental spiritual energy, which is continuously accumulating in various parts.

The "Mysterious Frost Devouring Flame Technique" is also quite special, as it is yin and yang, respectively, compared to the "Red Fiend Melting Lotus Scripture," a family heirloom of the Zheng family of Pingyang.

The creator of this cultivation method is truly a genius. He separated the cultivation methods of Yin and Yang, taking the extremes of Yin and Yang respectively, and using them as furnaces and cauldrons. Once he breaks through the half-step Foundation Establishment stage, he can devour the other to harmonize Yin and Yang and forge a false foundation.

However, Chen Xiru's ice-based magical power was already quite strong, and when combined with this extremely yin and cold technique, it became an overreaction.

As the saying goes, water overflows when it is full, and the moon wanes when it is full.

Chen Xiru had been cultivating diligently these past few days, but not only did she fail to break through to the fourth level of Qi Refining, she also nearly perished due to the rampage of her Ice Elemental Power.

Simply eliminating this cold energy would solve the immediate problem, but Lu Qingyun hoped that Chen Xiru could use it to her advantage in her future cultivation.

Therefore, with his eyes closed and knees crossed, Lu Qingyun waited until he felt the Heavenly Profound Magic Power completely enveloping the cold energy within Chen Xiru's body before immediately using his divine power [Refining Light].

Under the influence of the profound principles of fruition.

The chill quickly became as docile as a docile rabbit, allowing Lu Qingyun to knead and tease it. His Heavenly Profound Magic Power drew an arc, and then the chill instantly condensed along the arc of the magic power, continuously forming a cold moon that hung in Chen Xiru's dantian.

A few moments later.

The chill inside the cave completely dissipated, and the bright moon had already risen outside.

Chen Xiru woke up with trembling eyelashes and looked inward. How could she not know that Lu Qingyun had saved her again? If it weren't for Lu Qingyun, she would probably have died here.

"Senior brother..."

Chen Xiru felt grateful, but when she thought about how she was almost completely naked, a blush rose on her cheeks.

"I'm sorry for making you worry again, Senior Brother. Without you, I really don't know what to do."

"This is not your fault, junior sister. It should be my fault. I never thought that your physique would cause this technique to malfunction. If I had not been so careless, how could I have caused you to suffer such a setback?"

When he turned around, Chen Xiru had already changed her clothes. Looking at Chen Xiru's charming appearance, Lu Qingyun smiled. He still remembered how Chen Xiru was aloof on the outside but took care of him and Li Erniu and the others in every way in his previous life.

Now it's finally her turn to surpass her in cultivation level, and she's taking care of her.

"It's not my senior's fault, it's just that I was unlucky."

Chen Xiru seemed to realize something, and her gaze dimmed.

"Senior brother, is it possible that my current physical condition is no longer suitable for cultivation...?"

After all, if she were to cultivate other techniques, she would inevitably face a dead end and encounter other problems. Cultivating the "Mysterious Frost Devouring Flame Technique" would be even more life-threatening. Even though she was always pure of heart, she couldn't help but feel sad when she thought about the hopelessness of her path.

"That's not necessarily true. As the saying goes, the one who tied the knot must untie it. Junior Sister has already brought her ice-based magic to its peak at the early stage of Qi Refining. In my opinion, that may not be a bad thing."

Lu Qingyun stood with his hands behind his back, casting the light towards the direction of Pingyang, and said with a smile: "After all, if we can use a half-step Foundation Establishment cultivator of the Crimson Lotus Sutra as a guide and use it as resources, it is not impossible to reach the late stage of Qi Refining in one step."