Six hours later,Wang Yuyao left, looking a little drained.
Wang Jianqiang, on the other hand, appeared perfectly composed. To him, someone like Wang Yuyao barely counted as a warm-up. He didn't even need to rest before diving right back into cultivation.
A month passed.
As he was meditating, a mechanical chime echoed in his mind:
Ding! Wang Yuyao's cultivation has advanced!+1 Divine Ability Point, +1 Gold Training Point, +1 Silver Training Point, +500 Training Points.
Opening his eyes, Wang Jianqiang's expression brightened.He'd given Wang Yuyao fifty Perfect Azure Spirit Pills over the past month, and it had finally paid off.
Another five months slipped by.
This seclusion had lasted half a year in total. After refining more than eight hundred Perfect Celestial Spirit Pills, Wang Jianqiang finally broke through to the mid Foundation Establishment stage.
He rose from his mat and was about to stretch his legs when he sensed movement in the barrier outside his courtyard.
His first thought was that Wang Yuyao had come again — after all, over the past six months, she was the only one who occasionally visited to "relieve his boredom."
But when he activated his jade pendant and projected the scene outside the gate, he froze for a moment.
It wasn't Wang Yuyao.It was Mu Lingxi.
He sent out a thought, and the ward dissolved.
Mu Lingxi entered the courtyard, her steps light and graceful as she made her way to the pavilion.
Upon seeing her again, Wang Jianqiang noticed that her aura was markedly stronger — she had already broken through to the Foundation Establishment realm.
"Congratulations," Wang Jianqiang said with a smile.
"It's all thanks to your pills," she replied earnestly. "I came today to thank you properly."Mu Lingxi bowed deeply. "If not for the Perfect Foundation Establishment Pill you gave me, I might never have succeeded."
Wang Jianqiang waved it off lightly. "It was your own determination that mattered."
She opened her mouth to respond, but the words caught in her throat — her body instinctively tensed.
Wang Jianqiang's newly advanced cultivation had caused his spiritual pressure to leak slightly. Even though it wasn't intentional, that subtle force pressed down on her like a mountain.
Such pressure shouldn't exist between cultivators of the same realm.
A wild thought flashed across her mind.
She turned her palm upward, revealing a small crystal orb that began to glow brightly.
Her expression froze. The orb was a spiritual device her aunt Mu Yutong had given her — it could detect a cultivator's level up to the Core Formation stage.
"You… you're already in the mid Foundation Establishment stage?" she exclaimed in disbelief.
Wang Jianqiang glanced curiously at the orb — a rare treasure indeed, invaluable for identifying the strength of strangers when traveling.
But with the system by his side, such trinkets were useless to him.
He nodded casually. "Just broke through not long ago."
"But… you're a Five-Element Root cultivator. How could you advance so fast?"
The question slipped out before she realized how forward it sounded.Asking about one's cultivation methods was usually a grave taboo.
Seeing her discomfort, Wang Jianqiang chuckled. "In that Ice-Cold Pool secret realm, I found more than just Perfect Foundation Pills."
Mu Lingxi's eyes lit up. She opened her mouth, hesitated, then stopped.
"Do you want one?" Wang Jianqiang teased.
Her cheeks flushed, but she nodded. "Can I?"
Though she possessed a rare Heavenly Spirit Root, she had also cultivated the Three-Lives Body, which greatly increased her difficulty in advancing. A shortcut would be priceless.
"Ordinarily, no," he said warmly. "But since you once helped me a great deal, of course you can."
Joy blossomed across her face.
"However…" Wang Jianqiang's tone shifted slyly. "I know you're proud. If I just gave it to you, you'd feel uncomfortable."
"That's true," she admitted. "Tell me — how many spirit stones per pill? I'll buy them."
He shook his head solemnly. "How could we talk about money between friends? It's too cold, too transactional."
He paused deliberately. "Let's do this instead — something purely symbolic."
She tilted her head. "Symbolic?"
"One night per pill."
Mu Lingxi blinked, momentarily frozen.
Between spirit stones and… that, she wasn't entirely sure which cost more.
After a pause, she murmured, "Maybe I should just pay with stones instead?"
"That won't do," he said, feigning offense. "Didn't I say? Talking about money hurts friendship. You're not trying to reject my friendship, are you?"
"I— that's not what I meant."
"Then it's settled," he said, coughing lightly before adding in a tone of mock wisdom, "You may come from a good family, but spirit stones are always scarce on the path of cultivation. Better to save where you can. A night's rest costs you nothing — only benefits."
He grinned. "Besides, we've already done it once. What's there to be shy about?"
Mu Lingxi thought for a moment, then nodded solemnly. "You're right, Senior Brother Wang. Thank you for your generosity."
Wang Jianqiang smiled in satisfaction and handed her ten Perfect Celestial Spirit Pills.
"These are the ones I mentioned. Take ten for now — come back for more when you finish them."
"Thank you, Senior Brother Wang," she said happily, putting them away.
He leaned back with a lazy smile. "In that case, since I happen to be feeling a bit weary… why don't we start now?"
Six hours later,Mu Lingxi left the courtyard glowing with satisfaction.
Half a stick of incense later, Wang Jianqiang emerged from his room, looking thoroughly relaxed.
He no longer felt like taking a walk — today's "exercise" had been more than enough.
He dropped onto a chair and took out an ancient jade slip — one of the five given to him by Yan Qingxuan.
Inside was a fragmentary ancient alchemy formula.
Ding! Incomplete Pill Formula detected. Would you like to repair and upgrade it?Repair only: 100 Training PointsUpgrade only: 100 Training PointsRepair + Upgrade: 180 Training Points
The system's prompt rang in his mind.
He sighed inwardly — the system never missed a chance to charge him.
"Repair and upgrade," he commanded.
Ding! Incomplete "Xuanyuan Pill" formula repaired and upgraded to "Perfect Xuanyuan Pill."
After studying it, he found that the required ingredients were extremely rare, so he set it aside for now.
Fortunately, the Perfect Xuanyuan Pill was a high-tier second-grade medicine. For now, he still had the Perfect Purple Qi Pill, which would suffice.
Plenty of time remained to gather what he needed.
He spent the rest of the day refining more Perfect Celestial Spirit Pills.
Now that he'd reached mid Foundation Establishment, their effect on him had lessened significantly — but they would always be useful for others.
Stocking up never hurt.