Chapter 31 – The Harvest and the Threshold
Two and a half weeks later.
At the edge of the outer regions of the forest, where the trees thinned and the terrain gradually softened into well-trodden paths, a lone figure emerged from between the shadows of towering trunks.
His clothes were torn in several places.
Dried blood stained one sleeve.
Dust clung to his boots and hair.
And yet—
His steps were steady.
His back was straight.
And the aura around him was deep, heavy, and calm in a way that only someone who had walked repeatedly along the edge of life and death could possess.
Hao Tian had returned.
On his back was a large, tightly bound sack, swollen to the point of looking almost misshapen. It was clearly heavy, yet he carried it without strain, as if his body had long since adapted to burdens far greater than this.
As he stepped onto the familiar road leading back toward town, he did not rush.
He also did not relax.
The forest had taught him many things over the past two and a half weeks.
It had taught him caution.
It had taught him patience.
And it had taught him, more than anything else, that strength was not something one could ever afford to treat lightly.
During this hunt, he had gone deeper than ever before—still within the outer regions, but to the most dangerous parts of it. He had fought beasts stronger than any he had faced before. He had been chased, wounded, cornered, and forced to gamble his life more than once.
Several times, he had come frighteningly close to not coming back at all.
But he had survived.
And survival, in the cultivation world, was never free.
It refined a person.
Not just the body.
But the will.
By the time the outline of the town finally appeared in the distance, the sun was already leaning westward.
Hao Tian exhaled slowly.
He did not head home.
Not yet.
Instead, he turned toward the market.
The moment he entered the town, he could feel it.
The difference.
People moved out of his way without realizing why.
Not because he was releasing anything.
Not because he was showing off.
But because something about him now felt… dangerous.
Like a blade kept in its sheath.
The market was as noisy and chaotic as ever, but Hao Tian walked through it with practiced ease, heading straight toward the area where hunters and independent cultivators sold their gains.
He found a reputable middle-aged merchant who specialized in beast materials and rare herbs and unloaded the contents of his sack.
The merchant's eyes widened more and more as the items were taken out one by one.
Claws from mid-tier outer-region beasts.
Bones from creatures with thick, hardened frames.
Several intact hides.
And a surprising number of rare herbs that only grew in dangerous, monster-infested areas.
"…You went deep," the merchant said, unable to hide his amazement.
"Deep enough," Hao Tian replied calmly.
They haggled.
Briefly.
But not too much.
The quality was real. The value was obvious.
In the end, when the merchant finished counting and handed over the money pouch, Hao Tian felt its weight and knew—
This trip had been worth it.
Very worth it.
He did not linger.
With money now in hand, he moved straight into the inner parts of the market, where the real shops were.
His goals were clear.
First, he needed a cultivation technique for the Qi Refining realm—one that would not lock him into a single attribute and would leave his future path open. After that, he would need a proper battle technique to match the sword he already carried, something straightforward and reliable rather than flashy. A movement technique was also necessary—without one, survival in real battles was never guaranteed.
And then there were the practical matters. Proper protective clothing, not just ordinary robes that would be torn apart by the first real clash. And finally… the pill.
The pill that would allow him to cross the threshold from Body Refining into Qi Refining.
With all of that in mind, Hao Tian headed straight toward the Clear Script Hall.
The same old librarian was there.
The old man looked up when Hao Tian entered—and this time, his gaze lingered far longer than before.
"…You've changed," the old man said slowly.
Hao Tian nodded. "I need a Qi Refining cultivation technique."
The old man studied him for a moment, then said, "Follow me."
This time, he led Hao Tian to a much more restricted section.
"These are all Qi Refining techniques," he said. "Most have attributes. Fire, water, wind, earth, lightning… and so on."
"I want an attributeless one," Hao Tian said.
The old man's eyebrows rose slightly.
"That will limit your early power."
"I know," Hao Tian replied. "But it will also leave my path open."
The old man looked at him for a long moment, then nodded.
"Very well."
In the end, Hao Tian bought a steady, orthodox, attributeless Qi Refining technique. It did not promise explosive power. It did not boast terrifying special effects.
But it was stable.
Broad.
And compatible with almost any future path.
Next came the battle technique.
He went to a weapon-technique shop this time, not to buy a weapon—his sword was already with him—but to buy a method.
After some searching, he chose a straightforward, powerful, attributeless sword technique.
No flames.
No lightning.
No illusions.
Just pure Qi-enhanced sword strikes.
When cultivated to a high level, the Qi would appear as a pale, dense white sheen around the blade—simple, but brutally effective.
Then came the movement technique.
Here, he did make a compromise.
He bought a wind-and-cloud–attributed movement art.
Because movement techniques were different.
They were about footwork, flow, and circulation patterns.
Even though his Qi was attributeless, he could still use it—just not to full effect.
At most, seventy to eighty percent.
But even that…
Was far better than having none.
After that, he went to a cultivator's equipment shop and bought a light armored battle changpao.
It looked like ordinary robes at a glance, but hidden layers inside could withstand attacks from the lowest levels of Qi Refining cultivators.
After his time in the forest, Hao Tian understood something very clearly:
Clothes meant nothing in real battle.
Protection meant everything.
Finally—
He went to a proper alchemy shop.
And there, he bought the pill.
The one meant to push a cultivator from the peak of Body Refining into Qi Refining.
The same kind of realm-breaking pill he had heard about before.
This time, from a legitimate source.
He checked everything carefully.
Then, only then, did he leave the market.
By the time he returned home, the sky was already dark.
He locked the door.
Washed.
Changed clothes.
Ate.
And finally sat down on his bed.
In front of him lay:
A new cultivation manual.
Two new techniques.
A new set of battle robes.
And a small jade bottle.
Inside it—
The pill that would change his realm.
Hao Tian did not rush.
He closed his eyes.
Breathed.
And calmed his mind.
He knew exactly what this step meant.
Once he crossed this threshold—
He would no longer be in the Body Refining realm.
He would step into the real world of cultivators.
Qi Refining.
Where Qi would no longer be confined to his body.
Where true techniques would begin.
Where the weak would be filtered out even faster.
He picked up the jade bottle.
Held it.
And then set it down again.
Not yet.
First, he would rest.
First, he would prepare his state to perfection.
Because this breakthrough…
He would not allow it to fail.
That night, Hao Tian did not sleep deeply.
But his heart was calm.
Because tomorrow—
He would knock on the gate of a new realm.
And this time…
He would not be crawling in.
He would be stepping through it.
......
The door closed softly behind him.
The simple wooden latch slid into place with a quiet click, sealing off the outside world.
Hao Tian stood in the middle of his small room for a long moment without moving. The room felt… different today. Not because anything had changed, but because he had changed. The air seemed quieter. The shadows steadier. Even the faint creaking of the old wooden beams sounded distant.
He set his pack down carefully and began to unpack.
First, the medicinal supplies. Then the water. Then the rations.
Then, finally, the small jade bottle.
He held it in his hand and looked at it for a long time.
This was the pill.
The one that would push him out of the Body Refining realm.
The one that would decide whether he truly stepped onto the path of real cultivation… or failed at the threshold.
He did not open it yet.
Instead, he went to the window and opened it slightly, letting fresh air flow in. Then he cleaned the room. Slowly. Methodically. He swept the floor, wiped the table, folded his bedding neatly. When he was done, the room looked no different than before—but his mind felt a little calmer.
He sat on the bed.
Then he exhaled.
Long.
Slow.
He closed his eyes and began to circulate his Qi and blood.
Not to push forward.
Just to settle.
His body was already at the absolute peak of Body Refining. Every bone felt dense. Every muscle felt heavy and compact. His blood moved with a steady, powerful rhythm, and his organs were strong, resilient, alive with vitality.
He could feel the limit.
It was like standing before an invisible wall.
He had been standing before it for days now.
This wall was not something he could see.
But he could feel it.
No matter how much Qi he circulated inside his body, no matter how full and saturated his vessel became, it simply… could not pass beyond a certain boundary.
That was the barrier.
The line between Body Refining and Qi Refining.
The difference between Qi being trapped inside the body… and Qi being allowed to leave it.
He opened his eyes.
And finally, he picked up the jade bottle.
His fingers were steady.
He uncorked it.
A faint, clean medicinal fragrance drifted out. It wasn't aggressive. It wasn't violent. It smelled… calm. Deep. Like something that had been refined carefully over a long time.
Inside was a single pill, round and pale, with faint swirling patterns on its surface.
He did not hesitate anymore.
He swallowed it.
The pill slid down his throat and dissolved almost instantly.
At first—
Nothing happened.
He sat there quietly, breathing evenly.
Then, warmth.
A gentle warmth spread from his stomach, flowing outward like a slow tide.
Then the warmth turned into heat.
Then the heat turned into something heavier.
Denser.
More forceful.
Hao Tian's expression slowly grew serious.
He closed his eyes and immediately began circulating his Qi.
The medicinal energy did not explode.
It did not rampage.
It moved… deeply.
It seeped into his flesh, his blood, his bones, his organs—into every corner of his body.
And his body drank it in greedily.
His vessel was already at its absolute limit, but under the stimulation of the pill, it began to compress again. Not outward. Inward.
His Qi circulation sped up.
Faster.
Faster.
His heartbeat grew heavier.
Thump.
Thump.
Thump.
Each beat was like a drum echoing inside his chest.
His breathing gradually grew rougher.
His skin began to heat up.
Not burning.
But hot enough that faint steam began to rise from his body in the cool room.
Inside him, the Qi grew thicker.
Denser.
More viscous.
He could feel it.
His entire body was already saturated with Qi.
There was no more space.
And yet, the pill kept pushing.
Kept forcing more in.
Pain began to bloom.
Not sharp.
Not explosive.
But deep.
Like something was being slowly overfilled.
His muscles trembled.
His veins bulged slightly.
His bones creaked faintly.
Hao Tian's brows knit together.
He did not stop.
He could not stop.
This was the step.
If he failed here, he would either cripple himself… or waste the pill entirely.
He guided the Qi.
Again.
And again.
And again.
Hours passed.
The room grew hotter.
His clothes were soaked through.
His breathing was ragged now, chest rising and falling heavily.
Inside his body, the Qi had reached an extreme density.
It felt like thick fog pressing against the inside of his flesh.
And still—
It could not leave.
The barrier was there.
Unmoving.
Unyielding.
Like an invisible shell wrapped around his entire being.
Hao Tian clenched his teeth.
His hands trembled.
His mind wavered for a brief moment.
Not fear.
Exhaustion.
His body was screaming.
Not in panic.
But in strain.
He remembered the forest.
The blood.
The cold.
The times he had nearly died.
Compared to those moments…
This pain was… familiar.
He steadied his breathing.
And pushed again.
He changed his approach.
Instead of forcing Qi everywhere at once, he began to guide it in waves. Layer after layer. Cycle after cycle.
Compress.
Stabilize.
Compress.
Stabilize.
Time lost meaning.
The sun set.
The room darkened.
Then dawn came again.
He did not move.
Did not eat.
Did not sleep.
Only circulated.
Only endured.
His body felt like it was filled with molten lead.
Heavy.
Burning.
Oppressive.
And still—
The barrier did not break.
A flicker of doubt surfaced.
Just for a moment.
Is my foundation still not enough?
Is this really the limit?
The thought appeared.
And vanished.
He did not allow it to stay.
Instead, he remembered something else.
The monk's body.
The Origin Reconstruction Pills.
How his body had been torn apart and rebuilt.
How his foundation had been reforged from the root.
He was not the same as before.
He took a slow, deep breath.
And changed the rhythm again.
This time, he did not try to push the barrier directly.
He compressed.
And compressed.
And compressed.
He began to force the Qi within his body to become even denser.
Thicker.
More concentrated.
Like turning mist into water.
The sensation was terrifying.
It felt like his meridians were being stuffed full of liquid metal.
His vision darkened.
Blood seeped from the corner of his lips.
His hands shook violently.
But slowly—
Very slowly—
Something changed.
The Qi inside him stopped feeling like fog.
It began to feel… heavy.
Substantial.
Like it was on the verge of changing form.
And then—
Pressure.
Not outside.
Inside.
His entire body felt like it was swelling from within.
His bones groaned.
His organs felt compressed.
His skin felt tight.
The barrier appeared again in his perception.
Clearer than ever.
Closer than ever.
He could feel it now.
Not as a wall.
But as a thin, stubborn membrane.
Separating "inside" from "outside."
Separating mortal flesh…
From true cultivation.
His mind focused completely.
Everything else faded.
No forest.
No past.
No future.
Only this moment.
Only this line.
He gathered everything.
Every last strand of Qi.
Every last bit of medicinal energy.
Every last ounce of will.
And pushed.
Silently.
Relentlessly.
Without drama.
Without shouting.
Without rage.
Just… insistence.
The pain peaked.
His body trembled violently.
A low, hoarse sound escaped his throat.
And then—
Crack.
Not a sound.
A sensation.
Like something thin and ancient had finally torn.
Like a sealed gate had finally split open.
Like the world inside him had suddenly… gained a new direction.
In that instant—
He felt it.
The barrier…
Shattered.