Shrouding the Sky: The System Arrived Thirty Years Early

Luo Qianqiu looked inward at himself, gazing at the expanded sea of ​​suffering, and couldn't help but smile.

If this pace continues, he might be able to expand the Sea of ​​Bitterness to the size of a longan before dawn.

At that time, divine patterns will also emerge within his sea of ​​suffering, giving him a preliminary power far exceeding that of ordinary people.

A glint flashed in Luo Qianqiu's eyes. He grabbed the mineral water bottle beside him, took a big gulp of the divine liquid, closed his eyes again, and began to cultivate using the ancient scripture.

Several hours passed in the blink of an eye, and the sky gradually brightened until golden sunlight bathed the earth.

Inside the room, Lin Jia had already woken up, but she didn't make a sound, afraid of disturbing Luo Qianqiu and causing him to go into a state of demonic possession.

After a moment, the pale golden light receded, and Luo Qianqiu opened his eyes. The instant he stood up, his demeanor changed. He seemed much more agile, exuding an ethereal aura, unlike any ordinary person.

"It's finally over." Lin Jia breathed a sigh of relief, her tense body relaxing.

She got out of bed, looked at Luo Qianqiu whose demeanor had changed, and couldn't help but ask curiously, "Have you become stronger again?"

Looking at Lin Jia, who was as curious as a kitten, Luo Qianqiu chuckled and nodded, saying, "You've gotten stronger again."

At this moment, his sea of ​​suffering had expanded to the size of a dragon's eye, with faint divine power fluctuations emanating from it, a sign of minor success in the profound arts.

At this point, he could barely be considered to have entered the path of cultivation. Above his sea of ​​suffering, two 'divine runes' swirled, like iron chains. These were the original forms condensed from life essence.

With these two divine runes, Luo Qianqiu's combat power greatly increased. In the future, when facing enemies, he could control the divine runes to fly out of his body, destroying metal and jade with extraordinary power.

"Immortal Master, I have prepared some simple food. Would you like to eat it?" At this moment, the old man's voice sounded from outside the door, very respectfully.

With a creak, the door opened, revealing the old man with a hunched back, who persevered despite his swaying body.

Luo Qianqiu quickly stepped forward, helped the old man up, and solemnly said, "Old man, I am just a cultivator, not some immortal. You are older than me, so there is no need to be so respectful to me."

The old man had a kind heart; even when he was so desperate that he was numb, he still offered his help when he heard someone's request.

Luo Qianqiu held such a person in high esteem and did not want to see the old man so humble.

But when a person in despair sees a glimmer of hope, they will instinctively grasp it tightly and strive to do it perfectly, which makes them appear to be trying too hard.

The old man looked at Luo Qianqiu cautiously, afraid that he might have done something wrong.

He finally breathed a sigh of relief when he saw Luo Qianqiu's sincere expression, and then quickly led the two of them to the table.

The tables and chairs were old, but they were cleaned very thoroughly, as if they had been wiped hundreds or thousands of times.

There were three dishes and two bowls of dry rice on the table, not porridge. The dishes had a light sheen of oil. One of the dishes was stir-fried cured pork with wild vegetables, with a lot of cured pork and very little wild vegetables.

Luo Qianqiu glanced at the kitchen beams, which were indeed completely empty, having been turned into steaming dishes on the table, leaving not a single trace behind.

The old man looked somewhat flustered. He had given Luo Qianqiu everything he could to make sure he was well taken care of; in his mind, this was the best meal he could get.

But the old man also knew that the person in front of him was not an ordinary person, but a celestial cultivator. The food he ate on a daily basis was probably served in a golden bowl. Compared to that, his meal was indeed rather meager.

"The bowls are all clean; I washed them many times," the old man finally said, stammering.

Luo Qianqiu chuckled, trying his best to appear easygoing, and said, "Thank you for your hospitality, sir. Please sit down and eat with us."

The old man relaxed a bit, waved his hands repeatedly, and said, "I've already eaten, please continue eating."

Looking at the old man's dry lips, Luo Qianqiu knew he was lying, so he said, "It is unacceptable for the host not to sit at the table and for the guest to eat alone. Please sit down and eat with us, sir."

In the end, the old man couldn't persuade Luo Qianqiu otherwise, so he went to the kitchen and ladled out another bowl of rice. He didn't dare to take too much, just a little over half a bowl, afraid that there wouldn't be enough rice left in the pot.

This time, Luo Qianqiu did not force the issue. He knew that this was already the limit, and continuing to force it would only put the old man in a difficult position.

After finishing his meal, Luo Qianqiu returned to his room to continue his cultivation, not intending to go to Qingfeng Mountain immediately.

Although it has been confirmed that the bandit leader's cultivation level is not very high, since he can become stronger quickly, Luo Qianqiu naturally wants to perform the ritual of sending the bandits to the afterlife in a better manner.

At midday, the sun was high in the sky, and the tranquility of the village was broken.

Several figures rushed into the village, shouting as they ran, "It's alright, the group from Qingfeng Mountain went to Muqiao Village, they won't come here."

Soon, the village returned to its usual appearance, and people slowly opened their doors and windows and came out.

In the side room, Luo Qianqiu, who was cultivating, obviously noticed something was wrong and got up to go to the courtyard.

"What's wrong?" he asked curiously.

An elderly man who came up to them explained, "This is a young man who keeps watch at the foot of Qingfeng Mountain, specifically to gather information on the movements of that gang of bandits."

Upon hearing this, Luo Qianqiu suddenly realized what was happening. He walked out of the courtyard and happened to run into a group of young people. The leader of the group stopped smiling when he saw the old man and said in a low voice, "Uncle Zhou, please accept my condolences."

The villagers following behind the young men stopped cheering, clearly aware of Old Man Zhou's situation.

Soon, the villagers noticed the two unfamiliar faces, Luo Qianqiu and Lin Jia, and their expressions became somewhat tense.

"People from outside Ping'an Village?"

"Who are they, and what is their relationship with Old Man Zhou?"

Whispers arose from the crowd, all wondering about Luo Qianqiu and Lin Jia's identities.

But soon someone realized what was happening and explained in a low voice, "Yesterday, some outsiders came into the village, saying they were just passing through and wanted to stay the night, but I didn't dare open the door, so they left."

"My family came too, but I didn't dare open the door."

"And my home."

The villagers relaxed, as long as it wasn't the group from Qingfeng Mountain.

"Gentlemen, I have something I'd like to ask you. Is this convenient?" Luo Qianqiu ignored the villagers' conversation and focused his gaze on the young men.

The scene fell silent immediately, everyone curious about what the outsider wanted to ask.

The young man in the lead had keen eyesight and could see that Luo Qianqiu had an extraordinary temperament. He solemnly clasped his hands and said, "I wonder what this brother wants to know? I will tell you everything I know."

After hearing this, Luo Qianqiu didn't mince words and went straight to the point: "You gentlemen have been keeping watch at the foot of Qingfeng Mountain. Do you know anything about the leader of that bandit gang?"

Mentioning this person caused the villagers present to change color, nervously looking around as if afraid that the bandit leader would suddenly appear.

The young man in the lead was better; he wasn't as nervous as the villagers, and instead looked at Luo Qianqiu with suspicion.

After a moment of silence, he said, "I don't know much about the leader of Qingfeng Mountain. The only time I saw him make a move was at Black Stone Village. A divine iron chain flew out of his body, radiating light, and could break through anything."

Luo Qianqiu raised an eyebrow, looked around for a moment, and then fixed his gaze on a blue stone by the roadside.

Then, he bent his middle finger, hooked his thumb on it, and flicked it lightly. Instantly, a divine rune shot out, like a dazzling sword beam, and with a bang, it pierced through the bluestone, leaving a hole as thick as a wrist.

"Is it like this?"