Chapter 19: Chapter 17: Sharp Judge of Character A month flew by quickly. Every morning, after finishing his cultivation, Ji An would wander near the Spirit Field and practice the Life and Death Technique. When half of his magical power remained, he would return to the bamboo building to ponder over magic techniques. Maintaining cultivation for a double hour in the morning and two double hours at night, he consumed one Yellow Bud Pill every three days, his cultivation increased rapidly. The increase in magical power from refining one Yellow Bud Pill was equivalent to half a month’s hard work on an average day. This strengthened his resolve to find ways to quickly improve his cultivation and slowly pay off his debts after advancing to Mid-stage Qi Refining. Once credit is restored, he plans to crowdfund cultivation for a year or so. Under the silent illumination of the bright moon, Ji An lit a stick of incense and sat cross-legged on a pudun in the courtyard. He discovered that during morning cultivation, the maximum magical power in his Qi Sea Acupoint no longer increased, clearly a bottleneck had been reached. Breaking through from First-Layer Qi Refining to Second-Layer is quite simple; the cultivation technique had detailed methods, easily practiced by simply following the steps. He took out a Jade Bottle, poured out one Yellow Bud Pill, and shook the bottle, there were still two pills inside. Ten pills to advance to Second-Layer Qi Refining, my aptitude, oh, what a difficult story to tell... He chuckled self-deprecatingly and swallowed the pill into his stomach. The effect of aptitude on cultivation was greater than he anticipated; the speed of absorbing nature’s spiritual energy was slow, and the speed of refining pill power was not quick either. Over a long period, some of the pill’s medicinal power would escape through his body’s pores before he had a chance to refine it, causing him notable frustration. Quickly dispelling distractions from his mind and calming his spirit, Ji An began his assault to reach the Second-Layer Qi Refining. Breaking through a realm involves reversing Qi Mechanism, and the flow speed of magical power within the Immortal Vein is not as stable as usual cultivation, requiring control over the rhythm of fast and slow. Simply put, it involves slowly extracting some magical power from the Dantian, then rapidly flooding it in, repeatedly hitting the bottleneck until the Qi Sea Acupoint’s capacity expands again. After soul fusion, Ji An’s Divine Sense was considerably stronger than other cultivators of the same level, adeptly controlling the magical power. After about a quarter of an hour, he felt his Dantian subtly swelling. Signs of the bottleneck loosening, the opportunity to break through was right in front of him! He reversed the Qi Mechanism, extracted more magical power from the Dantian, gathered and accelerated it within the Immortal Vein. Then with the normal Qi Mechanism, surging magical power expanded the Immortal Vein like an overflowing stream, dashing into the Dantian. The Qi Sea Acupoint suddenly expanded, the bottleneck shattered with a single push. Feeling a small portion of the pill’s medicinal power remaining, Ji An naturally adjusted the Qi Mechanism operation of his cultivation technique, refining magical power with the Qingyuan Scripture’s Second-Layer Heart Method, already familiar to him. Half an hour later, he ended his cultivation with an unfulfilled feeling. After breaking a realm, it is not advisable to cultivate for too long, as the cultivation techniques clearly stated, he obediently adhered to it. "This is the benefit of entering the sect... truly wonderful!" Ji An let out a relaxed sigh. The cultivation techniques come with detailed annotations from predecessors, refined and perfected over countless generations, allowing for simple practice and smooth small realm break-throughs. Loose cultivators lack cultivation techniques, especially those that allow for straightforward improvement in cultivation without much pondering. He introspected his body, noticing that the magical power held within the Dantian doubled compared to before the breakthrough, with some small branches added to his Immortal Vein’s side branches. With a well-developed Immortal Vein, whether absorbing nature’s spiritual energy or refining pills, efficiency noticeably improves. Although it seems like a small improvement, over time, the gains become quite considerable. He clearly understood how exponential growth could manifest into immense improvements over time. Based on the current total amount of magical power, he could cast the Small Cloud Rain Technique at the Minor Success Level three times a day, still with power to spare. Bright characters flashed in his mind. [Master: Ji An] [Dao Rhyme: 0] [Spiritual Mechanism: Kan Spirit 18.5, Kun Spirit 11.7, Xun Spirit 3.7] [Magic Technique: Small Cloud Rain Technique (Minor Achievement 1%) 𝘧𝓇ℯ𝑒𝓌𝑒𝑏𝓃𝘰𝘷𝘦𝘭.𝒸ℴ𝓂 Thick Earth Technique (Minor Achievement 1%) Life and Death Technique (Minor Achievement 1%)] Ji An slightly curled his lips, this significant amount of resources awaited him to exchange for the Third Layer Spell Jade Slip at the Miscellaneous Affairs Hall, the perfect time for rapid progress. Going all in is a form of wisdom. ... The next day. Ji An finished cultivating, a twinkle gleaming in his eyes, his entire body feeling comfortable. After breaking through yesterday, cultivation could once again increase his magical power limit, a truly marvelous feeling. He walked out of the bamboo building at a leisurely pace, casually closing the fence gate, striding towards the Spirit Field. In a few days, the Spirit Grain will begin to sprout, and he would become busy. Upon reaching the field ridge, he immediately released the Thick Earth Technique. The earth-yellow spirit light seeped into the field, and the Spirit Grains moved as if in greeting to him without wind. The Third Layer Thick Earth Technique could increase the field’s fertility and boost rice production. Afterward, Ji An effortlessly released the Small Cloud Rain Technique, a mysterious rhythm manifesting on him. He raised his eyebrows slightly, his mind connecting with the Stone Turtle. [Magic Technique: Small Cloud Rain Technique (Minor Achievement 1→2%)] A smile appeared on his lips, after several rains, it finally showed improvement. White clouds enveloped half an acre of Spirit Field, raindrops like pearls, making a crackling sound as they hit the Spirit Grain. He stood with his hands behind his back, watching the pouring rain, losing himself in the moment. "Junior brother’s Small Cloud Rain Technique has reached Minor Achievement Level, congratulations." A gentle voice came from behind, Ji An turned to see Liu Yu walking down the path. Sunlight bathed the other’s skin, whiter than a woman’s, glistening subtly. He involuntarily thought of a saying, "The road ahead brings a person as pure as jade, unparalleled among young men." His face reflexively smiled, Ji An said: "Congrats. Senior Brother Liu, it’s rare to see you out and about, what brings you out today?" "My cultivation made a breakthrough last night, so I came out to relax." Ji An’s smile grew, he clasped his hands and said: "I feel a strong spiritual pressure from you, Senior Brother. You must have rapidly broken through this month?" When he first visited Jade Water Lake Spirit Field that night, Liu Yu mentioned that he had just entered the Third-Layer Qi Refining, he might very well be at Fifth-Layer now. "Yes, Sixth-Layer Qi Refining." Ji An felt his smile becoming a little stiff, rubbing his face with his hand. "A great talent, Senior Brother." Within his words, envy mixed with a tinge of sourness. "I have a family backing me, free from labor, without cultivating magic techniques, spending half the day in cultivation just barely achieving this. Far behind those born with access to Immortal Veins, nurtured as cultivation seeds. But you, Junior Brother, entered just a month ago, magic techniques at Minor Achievement Level. Currently in difficulty, like a dragon trapped in a shallow well, perhaps one day you’ll soar to the sky." Liu Yu sighed inwardly, each family has its challenges, he too has to compete with other descendants. If unable to meet the family expectations, a reduction in benefits is inevitable. Tsk tsk, this Senior Brother is quite handsome, speaks nicely, and sees people accurately! Ji An quickly adjusted his slightly downcast spirit, his good times lay ahead. "Senior Brother claims not to practice magic techniques, yet can discern Small Cloud Rain Technique’s advancement, do you have expertise in planting techniques?" "My family started with Spirit Farming, familiar with tending Spirit Fields since childhood." Liu Yu said, pointing at the Spirit Field: "That row of Spirit Grain has aphids, better deal with it soon, Junior Brother."