Immortality and Cultivation: Starting with Improving Spiritual Root Aptitude

Time flies, and a month has passed in the blink of an eye. There are less than six days left until the highly anticipated auction in Zhongtianxu City.

Wu Fan was sitting in the quiet room of his rented residence, closing his eyes to regulate his breathing and stabilize the power within his body that had just broken through.

It wasn't that his cultivation had reached the Foundation Establishment stage, but rather that he had unexpectedly broken through to the sixth level of Body Tempering in the path of body refinement.

He had never paid much attention to body refinement, adhering to the attitude of "letting nature take its course," but unexpectedly, he achieved a breakthrough by accident during the daily pill refining in Zhongtianxu City.

A few days ago, he worked non-stop on alchemy, which greatly depleted his energy. So he casually bought some body-tempering medicine, mixed it into warm water for a bath, and when he was extremely bored, he circulated the "Blood Refining Body Technique" once. Unexpectedly, as his blood and qi surged, the bottleneck was broken by itself. It came unexpectedly, yet it was also a natural outcome.

In the quiet room, one could faintly hear the sound of Wu Fan's bones and muscles resonating within him. His marrow was becoming increasingly solid and condensed. Ordinary first-stage swords and magic weapons would at most leave a white mark on his body. Even if he was struck by a blunt weapon, it would be difficult to cause serious injury.

His internal energy and blood were as thick as mercury, surging like rolling waves, greatly increasing his endurance. Even after half a day of continuous "fierce battles," he would not feel tired at all.

His vigorous and energetic appearance was even more impressive than when he was in his thirties.

Wu Fan thought to himself, it is true that body refinement can delay the aging of qi and blood. At this rate, this physical body can probably last until after the age of sixty-five before it gradually begins to decline.

In addition, his strength has also increased dramatically. Now he can generate a thousand catties of force with a single arm, and he can easily split rocks and break wood. Even fighting ordinary monsters of a higher level is no problem for him.

"Perhaps with my current strength, I could exchange a couple of blows with Zhao Fu."

A faint smile appeared on Wu Fan's lips.

The only regret is that the attack methods recorded in the "Blood Refining Body Technique" are too weak, and can only reach a distance of two zhang at most. In the process of cultivators fighting, they can hardly play any substantial role.

However, he was still very satisfied with the benefits brought by body tempering.

His reaction speed is several points faster than before, and his endurance has doubled. Whether it is his concentration when refining pills or his ability to protect himself when encountering danger, he has improved to a higher level.

......

Time flew by, and the day of the auction arrived.

On the morning of the sixth day, just as dawn was breaking, Wu Fan got up and made sure he was properly "concealed".

The already bustling Zhongtianxu City was even more spectacular today.

There were several times more pedestrians on the street than usual, shoulder to shoulder, and the air was filled with noise.

Along the way, one could frequently see cultivators dressed in various strange costumes, including many at the Foundation Establishment stage.

The spiritual pressure emanating from them caused passing Qi Refining cultivators to instinctively step aside and avoid them, not daring to offend them in the slightest, for fear of angering these high and mighty Foundation Establishment experts.

Wu Fan concealed his aura and mingled with the crowd, walking at a moderate pace. Following the flow of people, he soon arrived at the pavilion where the auction was held.

This pavilion is nine stories high, and on either side of the entrance stands a cultivator at the ninth level of Qi Refining.

Just as Wu Fan was about to step forward, his gaze was suddenly drawn to three figures.

The three people slowly walked towards the steps of the pavilion, their auras extremely restrained. Wu Fan focused his senses and could not discern their specific cultivation levels.

A thought struck him, and he immediately understood that these three people must be quite powerful, most likely Foundation Establishment cultivators.

Not only him, but many cultivators around him also turned their gazes to the three of them. Wu Fan followed the gazes of the crowd and looked again. Once his eyes fell on the person in the middle of the three, he couldn't look away.

That person was extremely striking, possessing a rare feminine appearance despite being male.

Her eyebrows and eyes were so exquisite that they seemed to be carefully carved from beautiful jade. She had long eyelashes, a high and delicate nose, cherry-pink lips that were full and moist, and skin as white as snow. She had an aura of cool and otherworldly elegance.

He was tall and slender, dressed in a moon-white brocade robe. As he walked, the robe fluttered lightly. His figure was graceful but not effeminate. Instead, he exuded a gentle and refined noble air.

If Wu Fan hadn't inadvertently caught a glimpse of the prominent Adam's apple on his neck, he would have surely mistaken him for a woman of unparalleled beauty. Only now did he truly understand what it meant for "beauty to transcend gender."

Wu Fan was suddenly startled, and then realized that staring at a senior with profound cultivation so brazenly was extremely rude.

He quickly composed himself, subtly averting his gaze and suppressing his surprise.

Just as he withdrew his gaze, the man in the moon-white brocade robe suddenly turned his head and glanced over indifferently.

It wasn't that she noticed Wu Fan's gaze.

Along the way, countless eyes coveted his appearance, but Wu Fan's gaze was too ordinary to be worth mentioning.

What truly caught his attention was the faint fluctuation of spiritual consciousness within Wu Fan's body. That spiritual consciousness was far more refined and powerful than that of ordinary Qi Refining cultivators, and it carried a natural sense of purity that could not be achieved through acquired cultivation.

A barely perceptible hint of curiosity flashed across the man's eyes as he thought to himself.

A person with naturally strong spiritual awareness is one in ten thousand. Such talent is extremely suitable for cultivating the techniques of the Shattered Soul Sect. If those old guys in the Shattered Soul Sect saw this, they would probably fight tooth and nail to take him as a disciple.

However, this only piqued his curiosity. He glanced at Wu Fan briefly, then looked away, his expression still aloof, and continued climbing the steps with the two people beside him.

Wu Fan was completely unaware of this. He maintained his low profile, silently walked forward, calmly took out the invitation from his pocket, and handed it to the guard at the door.

The guarding cultivator took the invitation, examined the spiritual runes on it, and after confirming that everything was correct, handed it back with both hands.

"Fellow Daoist, please come inside. The auction will officially begin in one hour. The first, second, and third floors of the pavilion are for general seating, while the fourth, fifth, and sixth floors are for private seating. Fellow Daoist, you have a mid-level invitation letter and may go to the fourth to sixth floors to choose your seats."

Thank you.

Wu Fan nodded slightly, accepted the invitation, and then walked into the pavilion.

The seats on the fourth, fifth, and sixth floors are actually the same as those on the three floors below, all of which are curved seats.

However, there are partitions every few meters, which prevents people from getting too close. Although these partitions are not very effective in the face of spiritual consciousness, they are better than nothing.

The seating on the fourth, fifth, and sixth floors has a layout roughly the same as the three floors below, all being curved seating.

However, there is a partition every few meters. Although it cannot completely block the spiritual sense from probing, it can block most of the sound, allowing the cultivators to wait for the auction to start in a relatively quiet environment and protect their privacy. It can be considered better than nothing.

I had only taken a few steps up the stairs to the second floor when a gentle voice came from beside me: