Trading system, I exchanged vegetables for golden pills.

"Okay, okay, everyone's happy. I'm so glad you came. Why did you bring so much stuff?"

The old woman gripped the hem of her clothes tightly, speaking excitedly. She looked around and said, "Xiao Qi disappeared early this morning. Have you seen Sister Dou Dou?"

The old woman's last question was directed at the children in the courtyard.

All the children shook their heads: "No!"

"Grandma, who is this uncle?"

"Grandma, could this be DouDou's boyfriend?"

"Grandma, this uncle said he's going to give us candy!"

The children chattered amongst themselves.

Ye Chen smiled and shook his head: "It's alright, Grandma, I know where she is, I'll go find her!"

Ye Chen carried the things into the house and placed them in a corner.

"Sit down and rest for a bit, I'll get you a glass of water!"

The old woman walked in briskly, carrying an old-fashioned thermos and an enamel cup.

"Grandma, you don't need to bother, I can do it myself!" Ye Chen took the things from the old woman's hands and poured himself a glass of water.

Seeing that Ye Chen didn't seem to mind, the old woman was even happier.

"I'm so happy that Master Ye could come!" the old woman said with a sigh.

The old lady wasn't highly educated, but her words were all genuine.

Ye Chen took a sip of water, put down the cup, and handed a bag of candy to the old woman with a smile.

"Grandma, why don't you give some candy to the children? I'll go find Xiao Qi!"

"Okay! You have to stay for lunch!" the old woman said with a smile.

"Yes, yes, I'll definitely get a free meal today!"

Ye Chen looked at the group of kids: "Now you know Uncle isn't a bad guy, right? Line up, Grandma will give you candy!"

"Yay! Yay!"

"Uncle isn't a bad person!"

The children spoke excitedly.

The old woman was also very happy, her eyes narrowing into slits: "Kids, come on, get your candy! Uncle brought it for you!"

Ye Chen left the courtyard and headed straight for the back mountain. Sure enough, his divine sense found Xiao Qi cultivating inside a tree hole.

When Ye Chen was less than a hundred meters away, Xiao Qi noticed someone approaching.

When she realized that the person who came was Ye Chen, she was stunned for a while before excitedly crawling out of the tree hole.

"Master, why are you here!"

Ye Chen laughed and said, "Aren't you about to start school? I came to see if you're still going!"

Xiao Qi skipped and hopped quickly to Ye Chen's side, then threw himself into Ye Chen's arms and hugged his waist tightly.

This embrace was simple and pure, filled with deep longing and admiration.

If Ye Chen hadn't been so physically strong, he probably would have been tackled to the ground.

"Master, I miss you!" Xiao Qi whispered.

Ye Chen gently stroked Xiao Qi's hair, feeling a warm glow in his heart.

The two hugged quietly for over a minute before Ye Chen patted Xiao Qi on the back: "You've broken through!"

Xiao Qi didn't lift his head from Ye Chen's chest, and said in a muffled voice, "Yes, Master, I wanted to give you a little surprise!"

"That was pretty fast!" Ye Chen was very pleased.

"Okay, relax a bit, I can't breathe!"

"Don't be so stingy, hug me a little longer!"

"Then, we can only hug for one more minute!"

"Yes!"

"It's been a minute, is that enough? Grandma's still waiting at home!"

"I'd like to ask for just one more minute!"

"No approval, disperse!"

"You're so stingy! It's just for a little while!"

......

Five minutes later, Ye Chen finally escaped the clutches of the devil.

Girls can be really clingy when they want to be sweet.

Ye Chen hurriedly took a calming pill to soothe his agitated heart.

In the middle of nowhere, a lone man and a lone woman, the woman being incredibly passionate.

If you don't have a lot of self-control, you might easily become completely honest with someone.

Ye Chen took a deep breath, took out the spiritual milk and handed it to Xiao Qi: "Here, drink this, and eat these ginseng slices while you're at it!"

"Oh, okay!" Xiao Qi didn't care what it was, he just ate whatever his master gave him.

"You can slowly refine it inside the tree hole, and I'll protect you!" Ye Chen flicked Xiao Qi's nose.

"Okay, Master!" Xiao Qi sweetly entered the tree hole.

"Master, would you like to come in too? We can squeeze in!"

Xiao Qi blinked!

Ye Chen rolled his eyes and immediately gave Xiao Qi a calming pill: "Cultivate diligently and stabilize your mind!"

It's not that his mind is restless, it's clearly that her mind is restless!

Xiao Qi was very focused and entered a meditative state in no time.

......

Lingru truly lives up to its reputation as a rare and precious herb; when combined with aged ginseng, its effects are remarkable.

Ye Chen was even tempted to take a bite.

However, he ultimately refrained from giving the remaining portion to Lu Ye.

Even if Xiao Qi took a little more, the effect would be better than his.

Time passed second by second, and Xiao Qi's aura steadily increased.

This scene must have made countless cultivators envious, jealous, and resentful.

Finally, Xiao Qi's breathing stabilized, and judging from her energetic appearance, she had clearly broken through again.

Sure enough, the first thing Xiao Qi said after opening his eyes was, "Master, I've broken through again!"

The spiritual milk and nearly a hundred-year-old wild ginseng allowed her to break through again, reaching the eighth level of Qi Refining.

This is why these rare and precious materials are snapped up at high prices by knowledgeable people when they appear at auctions.

Ye Chen nodded in satisfaction: "Not bad, you've reached the eighth level of Qi Refining. Your mental strength should have improved as well!"

"Yes, I feel like I've improved. My spiritual sea is noticeably larger than before!" Xiao Qi nodded excitedly.

Ye Chen moved closer to Xiao Qi and placed his palm on Xiao Qi's forehead: "Clear your mind, let me feel it!"

"Mmm!" Xiao Qi nodded obediently and slowly closed her eyes, letting Ye Chen spy on her mentally.

The sea of ​​the mind is a person's private space, and Xiao Qi didn't hesitate or resist at all, allowing Ye Chen's mental power to invade.

This level of trust is something most people probably can't achieve.

Ye Chen was also quite moved; damn it, this was the first time someone had trusted him so unconditionally.

Ye Chen sensed it and found that Xiao Qi's spiritual power had indeed reached the Foundation Establishment realm level, a significant improvement.

Ye Chen withdrew his mental energy in time, refraining from probing further.

It's a good thing that Xiao Qi is trusting him, but he also has to live up to that trust.

Trust and respect are mutual; it's always good for everyone to keep a few secrets!

Ye Chen affectionately rubbed Xiao Qi's forehead: "Your mental strength is now at the Foundation Establishment level; reaching Foundation Establishment shouldn't be a problem!"

"Really, Master? When can I reach the Foundation Establishment stage?" Xiao Qi asked in surprise.

Ye Chen tapped her and said irritably, "What did I tell you? Cultivation is about taking it one step at a time. Why are you in such a hurry to reach Foundation Establishment!"

Xiao Qi blushed, lowered her head, and dared not look Ye Chen in the eye. She weakly said, "Master, didn't you say that we could cultivate together once I reached Foundation Establishment? I'll be 19 after the New Year, and I've already missed the most beautiful age of 18!"

Ye Chen stumbled, "Damn it, this is what they were waiting for me!"

Ye Chen changed the subject: "One's heart needs to be steady when cultivating the Dao. Let's go home for dinner; Grandma must be getting impatient!"

Xiao Qi muttered, "My Dao heart has always been very stable, and it's all thanks to you, Master!"

......

The two chatted and laughed as they returned home, only to discover that they had guests.

Ye Chen casually swept his divine sense across the area and saw that the newcomers were a family of three: a middle-aged couple with a chubby boy of about fourteen or fifteen years old.

What made Ye Chen somewhat suspicious was that the woman's appearance bore a resemblance to Xiao Qi.

Ye Chen couldn't help but recall what Xiao Qi had said about having a mother and a younger brother before she was 10 years old...