Trading system, I exchanged vegetables for golden pills.

Only Ye Chen and Xiao Qi remained in the room.

Xiao Qi crossed his arms in front of his lower abdomen and whispered gratefully, "Thank you, Master. Grandma is my only family now!"

"What do you mean by 'only family member'? You call me 'Master,' and I'm your family too!" Ye Chen flicked Xiao Qi's nose.

Xiao Qi took Ye Chen's hand and walked outside to find a place to sit down, where she began to tell her story.

It turns out she has a mother and a younger brother.

However, her mother left with her younger brother after her father's accident. Xiao Qi was exactly 8 years old when she left.

Ten years have passed, and her mother has never returned to the village or contacted her again.

Xiao Qi was raised by his grandmother.

For the past 10 years, the two have relied on each other for survival, becoming each other's only concern in this world.

Ye Chen gently patted Xiao Qi's back without saying a word, simply listening.

Life is full of different experiences, and Xiao Qi's ordeal is truly heartbreaking.

No wonder I used to be so insecure.

How could someone born into such an environment not feel inferior?

Xiao Qi devoted all his energy to studying in order to leave the mountains.

Hard work pays off, and she was finally admitted to university as she wished.

She was able to afford university tuition thanks to a poverty alleviation grant.

The old woman even swallowed her pride and borrowed from everyone in the village, managing to scrape together more than 500 yuan for her travel and living expenses.

That's why we have Xiao Qi today.

Soon, the old woman cooked a bowl of noodles to serve Ye Chen.

Ye Chen didn't stand on ceremony and started to eat heartily; accepting food is also an art.

Only in this way can the old lady feel at ease.

Sure enough, the old lady was happy to see Ye Chen eating so happily, and she pulled Xiao Qi aside to whisper to him.

After finishing her meal, Grandma cleared the dishes and went to wash them. Now, Grandma is in excellent health, all her ailments have disappeared, and she's just as healthy as my 50-year-old aunt.

Xiao Qi wanted to help, but the old woman refused, telling her to just take good care of Ye Chen.

"Master, how about I take you to see my old secret base?" Xiao Qi said, blinking her big eyes as she pulled Ye Chen along.

"What secret base?" Ye Chen asked curiously.

"You've come to the right place!" Xiao Qi pulled Ye Chen up the mountain, and after a series of twists and turns, they finally arrived at a big tree.

This big tree is actually hollow, with a natural tree hole inside, making it perfect for outdoor travelers who like treehouses.

There's a small door outside the tree hollow, which looks like it's been there for quite some time.

It is precisely because of this small door that the tree hole has not been occupied by any small animals.

"Ta-da! Master, guess what this is!" Xiao Qi said mysteriously.

"I bet there's a tree hole inside!" Ye Chen said with a profound expression.

"Master, you can't cheat, that's no fun!" Xiao Qi pouted.

"Oh, let's start again. What's inside? Let me guess. You said a secret base, so I guess it's a tree hollow. How about that, was I right?"

"Wow, Master, you're so smart! You guessed it right away!"

Xiao Qi took two steps forward and opened the tree gate, revealing the entrance to the hole.

"I used to come here when my cold constitution flared up. There's a green liquid inside this big tree that can relieve my cold constitution."

Ye Chen did see a small pool of green, viscous liquid inside the tree hole.

This thing actually contains spiritual energy, and although the color of the spiritual energy is not very strong, it is still yellowish-green.

Ye Chen stepped forward, took a little and tasted it; it was similar to taking spiritual energy supplements.

In the past, this would have been very attractive to Ye Chen, as it would have been like having a good place to cultivate.

But now Ye Chen is not short of money.

"This green sap shouldn't be a big problem for breaking through a minor realm. You can cultivate here for the next few days," Ye Chen reminded him.

As for whether there are any ferocious beasts in the mountains? There might be, but for Xiao Qi right now, there are no ferocious beasts that can harm her.

If a cultivator who is about to break through to the seventh level of Qi Refining can't even handle a ferocious beast, then he might as well give up.

"Master, here, take these juices. They should be good for your health. I'll pack them up for you as a local specialty!" Xiao Qi started looking around for something.

Ye Chen smiled and shook his head: "This is some kind of spiritual liquid. You should start cultivating directly. This little bit of spiritual energy isn't very useful to me. You'll need some time back home anyway, so don't let your cultivation fall behind!"

Upon hearing this, Xiao Qi nodded, "Oh, so it's spiritual liquid. Alright, Master!"

Her cultivation level really needed improvement, so she didn't stand on ceremony.

Ye Chen began to examine the large tree. The green sap might be the essence of this tree.

But where does this essence come from?

Ye Chen's Qi Observation Technique couldn't reveal anything; the wonders of nature are beyond human comprehension.

Ye Chen flew directly into the sky to survey the surrounding terrain. Seeing this, Xiao Qi also used his flying technique to leisurely fly to Ye Chen's side.

Having had a few hours of flying experience on the Xuan Tian Zhou, she is no longer so afraid of heights.

At least with her Qi Refining Level 6 cultivation, she could easily handle this height.

"Master, what are you looking at?"

"Spiritual energy!"

This mountain does indeed possess a faint spiritual aura, displaying a gray-red hue.

The valley is also a place where spiritual energy gathers, and this big tree is located in the valley.

If any spiritual energy were to flow down, it would probably be intercepted by this big tree.

In a sense, this should be considered a natural spirit-gathering array.

No wonder Xiao Qi's cultivation speed was so fast at the beginning; it turns out he had consumed this kind of juice containing spiritual energy before.

Of course, Xiao Qi's cultivation speed is not entirely due to this reason.

"You should cultivate in the tree hollow for now. Breaking through to the seventh level of Qi Refining shouldn't be a problem. Look at the terrain here; the spiritual energy should all be converging in this direction."

This tree has been nourished by spiritual energy for a long time, and it may one day develop some consciousness.

Not yet, but it's hard to say as time goes on.

Ye Chen led Xiao Qi into the cave to take a look. The space inside the tree cave was limited, and the two of them had to squeeze together to stand.

Xiao Qi hugged Ye Chen, looked at Ye Chen's profile, and took advantage of Ye Chen's inattention to give him a light kiss.

Ye Chen was not the type to suffer a loss; if he was taken advantage of, he would definitely get his revenge!

Before they knew it, their mouths had a seamless connection...

Fortunately, the limited space inside the cave restricted their performance.

Otherwise, it could easily lead to some bloodshed.

Emerging from the tree hollow, Xiao Qi's face was as red as a ripe apple, yet she still gazed at Ye Chen with tender affection.

"Master, take me!"

Ye Chen took a deep breath and exclaimed that this was a monster; he almost couldn't hold on.

After a long pause, he calmed his inner turmoil and slowly spoke, "Let's talk about it after you've reached Foundation Establishment. Cultivation is faster when you're a virgin!"

After saying that, Ye Chen patted Xiao Qi on the back a few times, injecting spiritual energy to calm her down.

Being a virgin does indeed greatly help with cultivation. Xiao Qi's ability to cultivate so quickly is related to this, in addition to his physical constitution.