Chapter 14: Five Years

At this moment, Lin Cong's injuries were completely undetectable.

He had changed into a new set of clothes, and the bloodstained garments he had worn before were likely discarded.

The depression in his chest had also fully healed, no longer looking as terrifying as before.

Now, aside from his burly and fierce appearance returning to its previous state, Lin Cong was no different from an ordinary cultivator.

After a month and a half of recovery.

He had fully healed.

Looking at Lin Cong, a flash of spiritual light appeared in He Song's eyes.

"Spirit Eye Technique!"

With a glance, He Song saw that Lin Cong's cultivation was still at the third level of Qi Refinement and had not broken through to the mid-Qi Refinement stage.

After a month, He Song had practiced two basic spells to the point where he could perform them normally without losing power.

The Spirit Eye Technique and the Voice Transmission Technique were now fully mastered by He Song.

Therefore, when encountering Lin Cong, He Song instinctively used the Spirit Eye Technique to check Lin Cong's current cultivation level.

"Congratulations on your full recovery, Fellow Daoist. Please." As the spiritual light flashed, He Song smiled and spoke.

When a neighbor came to visit, He Song naturally wouldn't turn them away.

Opening the door.

He invited Lin Cong to sit inside.

He Song's home didn't have much to entertain guests.

So he could only take out the tea set gifted by Wei Fan and brew a pot of tea for Lin Cong.

He Song wasn't sure about the quality of the tea.

But he figured that the tea leaves gifted by a late-Qi Refinement expert like Wei Fan couldn't be ordinary.

Using them to entertain a third-level Qi Refinement cultivator like Lin Cong should be more than enough.

"Good tea. Fellow Daoist, you really know how to enjoy life." After taking a sip, words of praise came from Lin Cong's mouth.

Hearing this, He Song raised an eyebrow.

He seemed to have said something similar in front of Wei Fan before.

But he wasn't sure if Lin Cong genuinely thought the tea was good or if he was just pretending without any real appreciation.

Pouring another cup of tea for Lin Cong.

He Song shook his head and pushed aside his thoughts.

Whatever, it's just a pot of tea.

"I'm not sure about the quality of this tea, but the tea set and leaves were gifted by a senior. My humble abode is simple, and this pot of tea is the only thing I can offer. I hope you don't mind."

The tea was definitely good.

The tea set was also undoubtedly high-quality.

For a late-Qi Refinement cultivator to casually gift such things, it was a significant opportunity for a Qi Refinement novice like He Song.

Although He Song didn't know the exact value of the tea and tea set, it certainly wasn't low.

Saying this was just to pique Lin Cong's curiosity and get him to ask about the senior He Song mentioned.

Once Lin Cong asked, He Song could casually mention that he had a late-Qi Refinement cultivator as a friend, letting Lin Cong know that he had a powerful backer.

A flash of vigilance appeared in He Song's eyes as he thought about the fate of the man who had broken into Lin Cong's house a month ago.

These rogue cultivators who lived by the sword were too dangerous for him.

If he couldn't make them wary, he would likely live in constant fear.

"Oh? A senior gifted this? May I ask, Fellow Daoist, what is that senior's cultivation level?" Sure enough, upon hearing He Song's words, Lin Cong was shocked.

"Seventh level of Qi Refinement."

"..."

A moment later, He Song personally escorted Lin Cong out of his house.

At this point, Lin Cong's attitude toward He Song had clearly changed significantly.

Originally, He Song felt that although Lin Cong was polite to him, it was only because of his attire, wanting to avoid offending him.

But now, after learning that He Song had a late-Qi Refinement backer, Lin Cong's attitude had shifted to one of wanting to befriend him.

Being an internal member of the immortal market alone wasn't intimidating.

What was intimidating was that this person also had a powerful backer.

Who could guarantee that He Song wouldn't ask that late-Qi Refinement cultivator to take action?

Being friends with someone like this could truly be helpful if something happened in the future.

With this in mind, the change in Lin Cong's attitude toward He Song was only natural.

Watching Lin Cong leave.

He Song turned and closed the door.

Sitting back at the table, He Song picked up the still-warm tea and silently poured himself a cup.

"Backers and status? They're just illusions. The only thing you can truly rely on is yourself."

Sitting upright at the table, He Song's expression showed no signs of pride or complacency.

Even though mentioning his backer had made Lin Cong view him in a new light, He Song didn't feel any sense of triumph.

He knew.

Backers and status were all illusory.

Only one's own cultivation was something that could truly make one stand tall.

A backer might cut ties with you over a minor disagreement.

Status could also be stripped away by the immortal market.

But as long as one's cultivation improved, it was a permanent improvement that no one could take away.

Although he thought this way, He Song was still somewhat satisfied with his earlier actions.

For someone like Lin Cong, who lived by the sword.

If he didn't give them some form of intimidation, He Song wouldn't feel safe even while cultivating at home.

Only by letting the other party know that he wasn't to be trifled with would they not harbor any unnecessary thoughts about him.

Thinking this way.

He Song's goal had been achieved.

From the change in Lin Cong's attitude before and after the visit, it was clear that Lin Cong was unlikely to have any ulterior motives toward him.

With his worries gone.

He Song took a big sip of tea.

Then, he began today's cultivation.

Days passed like this, one after another.

He Song lived a very regular life.

After finishing his morning cultivation, he would go to the spirit fields to perform the Art of Spirit Rain for half an hour.

Then, he would return home to meditate and recover the spiritual energy in his body.

If he had matters to attend to, he would go out after recovering his spiritual energy.

If not, He Song would occasionally visit the Spirit Construction Pavilion to chat and drink tea with Wei Fan or go to the Spirit Medicine Pavilion to chat and drink tea with Meng Guan.

Apart from this, He Song immersed himself in cultivation every day.

Time flies.

In the blink of an eye, five years had quietly passed.

These five years had been very peaceful for He Song.

No evil cultivators ambushed him.

No natural or man-made disasters occurred.

Nor were there any sect wars.

Everything was calm.

However, He Song occasionally heard some secret news from the outside world through Wei Fan.

For example, a certain rogue cultivator bought something in the immortal market and was ambushed by evil cultivators just after leaving.

Or someone, unwilling to live an ordinary life, resigned from their position in the immortal market and headed toward Green Wall Immortal City, only to disappear halfway.

Or someone discovered a precious mineral vein in a certain place, attracting countless families to fight over it. In the end, it was the Thick Earth Sect that stepped in and took control of the vein.

These secret stories gave He Song a deeper understanding of the current cultivation world.

Meanwhile, He Song's cultivation had progressed from the first level of Qi Refinement to the third level.

Sitting cross-legged on a cushion, He Song let out a long breath, and a flash of spiritual light burst from his eyes.

Having just broken through to the third level of Qi Refinement, He Song couldn't fully control the surging spiritual energy in his body.

Causing strands of spiritual energy to leak from his eyes, resulting in the flash of spiritual light.

"Third level of Qi Refinement. Next is accumulating spiritual energy to break through the bottleneck to the mid-Qi Refinement stage."

Feeling the significantly stronger spiritual energy in his body, a smile flashed in He Song's eyes.

The increase in spiritual energy meant He Song could manage more spirit fields.

Managing more spirit fields meant He Song could earn more spirit stones.

(End of Chapter)