After binding with a genius, I became an immortal by exploiting loopholes.

Chu Yunfeng possesses top-grade dual spiritual roots of metal and fire; with his inherent talent, a breakthrough is only a matter of time.

Even so, this bottleneck has kept him occupied for quite some time.

Lu Qingchen regained his composure and remained silent for a moment.

Even a prodigy like Chu Yunfeng is blocked by a bottleneck. How long will he be blocked when he reaches this point?

For most cultivators with five spiritual roots, this bottleneck is as difficult as climbing to the heavens—their spiritual roots are short and thin, their spiritual power is not pure enough, and their meridians are as narrow as streams; each of these is a fatal weakness.

Of the ten people with five spiritual roots, nine and a half are stuck at this stage, unable to reach the mid-stage of Qi Refining in their entire lives.

But he has a monument.

What is the essence of the bottleneck? It is that the spiritual root is insufficient to support the circulation of spiritual energy at a higher level.

As long as you use the Dao Tablet to temper your spiritual root—even if it's just from low grade to mid grade—the difficulty of breaking through will be greatly reduced.

What is an insurmountable barrier for others is just a matter of spending more time for him.

It will be difficult, but not to the point of completely blocking him out.

He regained his composure, activated the "Concealing Spirit Technique," and suppressed the exposed aura back to the second level of Qi Refining.

The pure energy in the dantian is gathered, and the energy on the body surface descends layer by layer, eventually stabilizing at the level of the second level of Qi Refining.

He looked down at himself, then examined himself again to make sure there were no flaws.

The opening of the Hidden Spirit Technique states that "even those with a higher cultivation level than oneself will find it difficult to see through," which theoretically means it can deceive Foundation Establishment cultivators.

But whether it works or not, we still need to find someone to verify it.

Elder Sun and Zhou Yuandao, these two are both Foundation Establishment cultivators. We'll meet them when we return to the sect next time. Whether they can tell or not, we'll find out with a test.

Shen Yao's reply should arrive soon, and we can verify it together then.

......

The next morning, Lu Qingchen took out the three kinds of seeds that the Spirit Plant Hall had rewarded him with.

Three each of the Vermilion Fruit, Jade Marrow Fungus, and Golden Leaf Orchid were placed in three palm-sized brocade pouches, the openings of which were tied with thin ropes and labeled with the Spirit Plant Hall.

He opened the first brocade pouch and poured out three Vermilion Fruit seeds—twice the size of the Jade Spirit Rice seeds, with a reddish-brown seed coat and fine lines on the surface, and they felt slightly warm to the touch.

He then untied the second brocade pouch, and three seeds of jade marrow mushroom rolled out.

The seeds of Chalcedony are only the size of rice grains, and are milky white all over, resembling three small pieces of solidified chalcedony.

If you bring it close, you can smell a very faint medicinal fragrance.

The third pouch contained seeds of the golden orchid, flat as paper with a pale golden halo around the edge.

These three are all mutated varieties allocated internally by the Spirit Plant Palace; they cannot be bought outside.

The Vermilion Fruit is of the highest grade, and its fruit can enhance cultivation.

Jade Marrow Ganoderma, Grade 1, is of superior quality and can warm and nourish the meridians.

Golden Leaf Orchid, Grade 1, Medium Quality. Its leaves can be used to make talisman ink. Its advantages are high yield and fast growth.

If it weren't for his meritorious service in resolving the Spirit-Eating Disease, as a low-grade spiritual plant cultivator with five spiritual roots, he would never have been able to come into contact with seeds of this level in such a short period of time.

Lu Qingchen selected a section of the spirit-protecting field near the center and planted the seeds one by one.

Before each seed was planted, he would draw out a tiny bit of his cultivation from the Dao Stele's light pearl and inject it into the seed coat.

After watering thoroughly and casting a Spirit Nourishing Spell, pale green spiritual light seeped from my palm and enveloped the seeds.

After finishing all this, he looked at the newly planted areas in the spirit protection field and felt a surge of anticipation.

Vermilion Fruit enhances cultivation, Jade Marrow Fungus nourishes the meridians, and Golden Leaf Orchid can be sold for spirit stones—each has its own use.

Once they mature, his cultivation speed, meridian strength, and spirit stone income will all improve significantly.

Moreover, if it is successfully grown, the Spirit Plant Palace will offer additional rewards!

Two days later, Shen Yao's letter arrived.

The letter was brought back from the sect by Li Tiezhu. The crumpled envelope was addressed to "Lu Qingchen" in delicate handwriting.

Lu Qingchen opened the letter and quickly scanned it—Shen Yao said she knew a senior brother from the Refining Hall who was at the late stage of Qi Refining, and happened to have a small storage bag to sell.

If he is interested, he can return to the sect to discuss it in person.

Lu Qingchen was overjoyed and carefully folded the letter, putting it into his pocket.

He had been eyeing the storage bag for a long time. With it, he wouldn't have to make repeated trips to move large materials like bluestone slabs, spirit fertilizer, and array flags. It would save him effort and keep him out of the way.

He immediately went to Zhao Demao to ask for leave, and after returning, he went to Sun Han's room.

"I need to go back to the sect. It will take at least one day and maybe two days. Keep an eye on the spirit protection field for me. Don't let anyone get close to the light barrier. If there's anything unusual, go to the manor lord immediately."

Upon hearing Lu Qingchen's instructions, Sun Han's fingers tightened slightly.

He nodded solemnly: "Don't worry, with me here, that field will be fine."

Lu Qingchen patted his shoulder, turned around and went out the door, heading towards the entrance of the village.

......

When they arrived at the Spirit Plant Hall, Shen Yao was already waiting at the entrance.

"Junior Brother Lu, over here."

She waved, looked him up and down, and smiled, "I've been waiting for you for a while, let's go."

The two walked side by side toward the weapon-refining hall.

As Shen Yao walked, she said, "That senior brother's surname is Guo. He is at the eighth level of Qi Refining and has been in the Weapon Refining Hall for more than ten years."

"The storage bag he has is one he acquired a few years ago. He later got a bigger one, so this one has been sitting unused ever since."

"The space isn't big, but it's cheaper than what you get at the market outside, and the people there seem honest. You'll see when you meet them."

The Refining Hall is located on the west side of Mingfa Peak, separated from the Spirit Plant Hall by a mountain.

Before even reaching the door, one could faintly hear the clanging of blacksmithing coming from inside.

Upon arriving at the palace gate, Shen Yao informed the disciple on duty.

Before long, a burly man came out of the hall.

He had a square face, thick eyebrows, and a wide mouth. His skin was tanned black by the fire, and he wore a dusty gray short jacket covered in rust and charcoal ash.

His gaze first fell on Shen Yao, and he grinned. Then he turned to Lu Qingchen, looked him up and down, and his brows furrowed slightly.

Shen Yao called out to the man, "Senior Brother Guo."

"Junior Sister Shen, is this the one you want to trade with? What's his cultivation level? Qi Refining Level Two?"

His voice wasn't loud, but the disappointment in his tone was genuine.

A disciple at the second level of Qi Refining only receives a few spirit stones per month, which is not enough to fill a storage bag even after a year of saving.

He originally thought that the person Shen Yao brought was at least in the mid-to-late stage of Qi Refining, but he didn't expect that it was a junior brother whose aura had just stabilized.

"What happened to the second level of Qi Refining?"

Shen Yao smiled and said, "Don't worry, although my junior brother's cultivation level is not high, he can definitely afford the storage bag you have."

Shen Yao knew that Lu Qingchen had cured the Spirit Corrosion Disease and received a reward from the Spirit Plant Hall, so trading a small storage bag was basically no problem for him.

Senior Brother Guo looked at her with some skepticism, then at Lu Qingchen.

Lu Qingchen remained calm and cupped his hands in a gesture of respect: "Senior Brother Guo, may I take a look at the items first?"

Since we're already here, we can't just not let them see anything.

Senior Brother Guo hesitated for a moment, then took a palm-sized gray cloth bag from his waist and held it in his palm.

The watch face of the bag is embroidered with fine silver patterns, and there is a faint flow of spiritual energy.