**Chapter 106: Incredible Luck**

Take Wei Fan, for example. He was stuck at the bottleneck of the late-stage Qi Refining for several years.

It's worth noting that Wei Fan, like He Song, possesses a four-element spiritual root.

Even he was stuck for several years. In comparison, He Song's breakthrough of the bottleneck in just half a year is simply outrageous.

The reason He Song could say this so calmly is that, as a rogue cultivator, no one had informed him of these details.

Otherwise, when he broke through the bottleneck in just half a year, he would have realized that his speed was several times faster than that of ordinary cultivators!

Bottlenecks are like roadblocks for cultivators, especially those with poor talent.

It's entirely normal for some to make no progress for years or even decades.

For instance, Meng Guan, with a five-element spiritual root, was stuck for over a decade when trying to break through to the late stage of Qi Refining.

He only succeeded in the end by relying on the power of pills.

Wei Fan, with a four-element spiritual root, was also stuck for several years when attempting to break through to the late stage of Qi Refining.

But what about He Song?

When the bottleneck, which most cultivators fear like a tiger, appeared before him, it took him only half a year to successfully break through.

This shows just how shocked Wei Fan must have been.

"You're not a three-element spiritual root, are you?"

Seeing He Song answer so nonchalantly, Wei Fan couldn't help but blurt out the question.

But then he quickly shook his head.

"No, that can't be. Your cultivation speed during the early and middle stages of Qi Refining wasn't much faster than that of a four-element spiritual root.

"Besides, if you really had a three-element spiritual root, you'd probably be secluded in the Earth Sect, diligently cultivating. There's no way you'd still be in the immortal city.

"Could it be that your comprehension is just that high?"

After muttering to himself for a while, Wei Fan finally came to a conclusion.

However, when he looked at He Song, he began to doubt his own conclusion.

Comprehension is something that seems intangible.

But it does have some external manifestations.

For example, during cultivation, one might occasionally have a flash of insight, speeding up their progress.

Or when practicing spells, one might master them much faster than ordinary cultivators.

Similarly, when learning the various arts of cultivation, one might spend significantly less time than others.

But He Song didn't seem to meet any of these criteria.

Cultivation? In Wei Fan's eyes, He Song's cultivation speed was only slightly faster than that of an ordinary four-element spiritual root cultivator.

Especially during the early stages of Qi Refining, He Song's progress was painfully slow.

It wasn't until he broke through to the middle stage of Qi Refining that his speed gradually increased, catching up to and even surpassing other four-element spiritual root cultivators.

But even then, it wasn't by much.

It certainly didn't reach the level of a three-element spiritual root.

Spells? Wei Fan had never seen He Song practice spells, but he assumed that if He Song had any talent in this area, it would have shown by now.

Cultivators, especially those with a talent for spells, would undoubtedly rely on them as their primary means of combat.

In the cultivation world, it's common knowledge that one should leverage their strengths to become stronger.

But what about He Song?

In the over twenty years he had known He Song, Wei Fan had never seen him rely on spells.

In fact, he had never even seen He Song use any spell other than the Sound Transmission Technique.

As for the various arts of cultivation?

When Wei Fan thought of this, his gaze toward He Song turned slightly peculiar.

After all, the first time He Song mentioned the arts of cultivation to him and Meng Guan, He Song was only at the third layer of Qi Refining.

Back then, He Song had mysteriously told them that he had purchased a manual on the arts of cultivation and was studying it.

But over a decade had passed since then, and He Song had never mentioned what that art was or whether he had mastered it.

It wasn't until a few years ago that He Song finally revealed he had become a talisman master.

Hmm… Based on this timeline, Wei Fan concluded that it had taken He Song over a decade just to master the basics of talisman crafting.

This suggested that his comprehension might not be particularly high.

So, after reaching this conclusion, Wei Fan felt he must have been mistaken.

But there was no other explanation.

In the end, Wei Fan sighed, feeling that He Song's success was likely just a matter of incredible luck.

What Wei Fan didn't know was that everything he knew about He Song was only what He Song had chosen to reveal.

He had no idea about He Song's hidden talents in formations or spells.

"Sigh, even if your comprehension is high, it doesn't fully explain this. It seems you really are just incredibly lucky. Even the bottleneck you faced was much weaker than mine."

Without waiting for He Song's response, Wei Fan continued, his gaze toward He Song now tinged with envy.

If he had been able to break through a bottleneck in just half a year like He Song, he wouldn't be here now. Instead, he would have been in the Earth Sect as an outer disciple.

To become an outer disciple of the Earth Sect, one had to reach the late stage of Qi Refining by a certain age.

Moreover, not everyone had this opportunity. Only those in the Earth Sect's branch academy were eligible.

Rogue cultivators and immortal city cultivators, even if they met the requirements, would not be accepted.

The gap of a few years had cost Wei Fan the chance to become an outer disciple of the Earth Sect.

Even now, whenever he thought about it, he couldn't help but sigh.

Seeing He Song in this situation, his envy was understandable.

"I guess I'm just lucky."

On the side, after listening to Wei Fan's lengthy musings, He Song casually agreed without much thought.

At the moment, He Song's mind was still preoccupied with Meng Guan's upcoming attempt to break through to Foundation Establishment.

Since Meng Guan had invited both him and Wei Fan, they would undoubtedly make the trip to Greenwall Immortal City.

This time was different from the last.

Back then, He Song's cultivation was too low, and he lacked any means of self-protection, so he naturally didn't consider going to Greenwall Immortal City.

But now, things were completely different.

He Song's cultivation had reached the late stage of Qi Refining. Even if he went to Greenwall Immortal City alone, he would face little danger.

Moreover, four years ago, He Song had obtained two thousand spirit stones.

During his four years of seclusion, he hadn't been idle. He had equipped himself with two low-grade magical tools—one for offense and one for defense—as well as some protective talismans.

He had also taken the time to learn a few mid-grade spells.

In short, He Song's combat strength was quite formidable for someone at the middle stage of Qi Refining.

However, now that he had broken through to the late stage, the tools he had prepared for the middle stage were no longer as useful.

Using low-grade magical tools at the late stage of Qi Refining was somewhat embarrassing.

But before today, He Song's cultivation had only been at the middle stage, so low-grade magical tools had been sufficient for his needs.

Now that he had reached the late stage, He Song planned to sell his two low-grade magical tools and use the spirit stones to purchase two mid-grade ones—one for offense and one for defense.

Mid-grade magical tools were the standard for late-stage Qi Refining cultivators.

With two mid-grade magical tools, He Song wouldn't have to worry about being outmatched by other cultivators at his level.

Even if he couldn't win a fight, he could always escape.

After all, with a defensive mid-grade magical tool, most late-stage Qi Refining cultivators wouldn't be able to harm him.

(End of Chapter)

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