A Bottomless Hunger

As soon as she was gone, Ye Xian turned to Ye Qianying and reached into his pocket, pulling out a spatial ring.

"Here. This is the original ring I took from you—the one with 20,000 ki stones. I only borrowed it for that bet against Lu Wen, so it's yours."

Ye Qianying shook her head, pushing his hand away.

"I gave it to you. That means it's yours now. Besides, you need those resources more than I do."

Ye Xian blinked in surprise before a grin spread across his face. "I won't lie—I do need them."

His cultivation method is far from ordinary. He will need an absurd amount of ki stones in the future.

Ye Qianying smirked. "Then use them well. It would be a waste otherwise."

Feeling lighter after their conversation, the two left the infirmary together. The sun was beginning its descent, painting the sky in hues of orange and pink. As they walked through the lively marketplace, they took their time enjoying the atmosphere.

They stopped at various stalls, sampling freshly roasted skewers, fragrant steamed buns, and a sweet fruit wine that left a warm sensation in their chests.

Ye Xian, ever the opportunist, made sure to get extra servings at each stop, while Ye Qianying simply watched with an amused shake of her head.

"You really eat like you haven't had a proper meal in days," she commented as Ye Xian devoured a meat skewer.

"Hey, near-death experiences make you appreciate good food."

He said, chewing happily.

"Besides, this is the least I deserve after all the trouble I went through today."

As the sun dipped lower, casting long shadows across the city streets, they finally made their way back to the Ye Clan residence. The familiar sight of the towering estate greeted them, its grand gates standing firm as always.

Ye Xian stretched, feeling satisfied—not just from the meal, but from the entire day. He had survived a brutal ordeal, gained a hefty sum of ki stones, and even deepened his bond with Ye Qianying.

"Not a bad day," he murmured to himself, following Ye Qianying inside as the sky darkened and the city prepared for nightfall.

As Ye Xian stepped into his bedroom, a grin spread across his face. Today had been a lucky day—no, an unbelievably fortunate one. Not only had he survived, but he had also walked away with a massive fortune of ki stones.

Yet, as he settled onto his bed, his mind drifted toward something even more intriguing—the Reverse Taiji Treasure.

Two particular discovery stood out.

The first one the moment Lu Zhe had shattered his ribs and broken his arms, something extraordinary had occurred. The berserker ki from Lu Zhe's infused strike had rampaged through his body, pushing him to the brink of collapse.

But in that desperate state, the Reverse Taiji Treasure had acted on its own. Without his conscious command, it had absorbed the berserker ki, refining and integrating it into his cultivation.

The result?

A spontaneous breakthrough to the 3rd stage of the Ki Refining Realm while he was still suffering in agony.

If anyone had heard of such a thing, they would have thought he was insane. After all, absorbing an opponent's ki in the middle of battle, especially while grievously wounded, defied all logic.

Yet, it had happened.

And that meant something profound—his cultivation technique didn't merely refine ki like ordinary methods. It devoured it, breaking it down and reshaping it into something far more condensed and efficient.

A bottomless abyss that demanded endless energy.

With that thought in mind, Ye Xian sat cross-legged on the bed, entering a meditative state.

He emptied all the ki stones he had won from Lu Wen onto the floor, the cool, crystalline stones spilling over like a shimmering tide. Then, he did a mental calculation:

5,000 ki stones from Lu Wen.

20,000 ki stones from Ye Qianying.

33,000 ki stones from Lu Zhe.

A total of 58,000 ki stones.

That was an astronomical amount—far beyond anything he had ever possessed before. The sheer sight of so many ki stones in one place made his heart race.

Without hesitation, he activated the Reverse Taiji Treasure.

Beneath him, a massive taiji projection unfurled, spanning over a two-meter radius. The two fish-like forces at its edges, one obsidian and the other moonlight silver, began to stir, their movements slow and deliberate, as if savoring the vast ki energy present.

Then, it began.

Thousands threads of pure ki emerged from the stones, weaving through the air like shimmering jade strands. They swirled around him before surging into his meridians, flooding toward his dantian with astonishing speed.

Ye Xian could feel his cultivation skyrocketing.

The ki surged and condensed, each cycle refining his inner energy at an impossible pace. He pushed forward, guiding the energy with precision, and in just a few moments—

Boom!

The bottleneck of the 3rd stage shattered, and his cultivation burst through the barrier.

4th Stage of Ki Refining Realm!

A wave of warmth exploded within him, sweeping through his body from the inside out. His muscles tightened, his meridians expanded, and his very bones seemed to radiate power.

But just as quickly as the surge came, it halted.

The room fell silent.

Ye Xian opened his eyes and scanned the area—all the ki stones were gone.

Every last one had been consumed in an instant.

He let out a long sigh. "All those ki stones... gone so fast."

Yet, he could feel the difference. His body felt stronger, more resilient than before. It was just a minor realm breakthrough, but he could tell that his physical strength had increased tremendously—more than what a normal 4th-stage cultivator should experience.

That only reinforced what he had suspected—his cultivation method refined ki at a terrifyingly high rate, turning it into something far denser than what normal cultivators could achieve.

But this also meant—he needed far more ki stones than ordinary cultivators just to progress.

He shook his head and poured out another 20,000 ki stones from the spatial ring Ye Qianying had given him.

Once again, the Reverse Taiji Treasure activated.

This time, thousands of ki threads radiated from the stones, forming a sea of jade-like brilliance. The entire room glowed with a divine luster as the energy poured into him.

His cultivation surged forward at an impossible pace.

The ki refined twice as efficiently, flowing through his meridians like liquid gold. His dantian trembled as his body absorbed more and more of the overwhelming ki essence.

And then—

Boom!

5th Stage of Ki Refining Realm!

Ye Xian's eyes snapped open, shock flashing through them.

That much ki had been consumed so quickly?

He looked around, only to see that all the ki stones had vanished again.

He nearly coughed up blood. "Damn it... This is robbery! How the hell am I supposed to keep up with this pace?!"

He gritted his teeth. He was only at the peak of the 5th stage—it wasn't enough.

Gritting his teeth, he withdrew the final spatial ring and dumped out the last 33,000 ki stones.

The Reverse Taiji Treasure expanded, covering the entire room.

This time, the spectacle was breathtaking.

The thousands of jade-like ki threads filled the air like celestial rivers, while the obsidian and moonlight-colored fish within the taiji projection seemed to glow with excitement, as if relishing the massive influx of energy.

Ye Xian's body drank in the ki essence greedily.

His cultivation soared—

6th Stage of Ki Refining Realm!

Then, without stopping—

7th Stage of Ki Refining

Then

7th stage--1/3

At last, the ki stones were completely exhausted.

Ye Xian exhaled, feeling his entire body surging with newfound power. The strength within him now felt several times greater than before—as if he had been reforged.

Yet, as he analyzed his progress, his heart sank.

58,000 ki stones… and he had only filled 1/3 of the 7th stage.

As Ye Xian sat cross-legged in his room, he steady his breath, he carefully analyzed the results of his cultivation session.

In total, he had absorbed 58,000 ki stones—a staggering amount that would be enough for an ordinary cultivator to push through multiple realms, even reaching the peak of the Element Disciple Realm or breakthrough to Element Master Realm.

Yet, for him, it had only been enough to advance from the 3rd stage of the Ki Refining Realm to the 7th stage.

That realization sent a complex wave of emotions through him.

On one hand, his growth was incredible. Advancing through four minor realms in a single night was a feat unheard of. Most cultivators would require months, if not years, to achieve what he had accomplished in time a essence stick to burn.

But on the other hand…

The sheer cost of his cultivation was terrifying.

At first, he had been shocked at how fast his cultivation consumed ki stones, but now he understood—it wasn't just about quantity, but quality.

His cultivation method, powered by the Reverse Taiji Treasure, didn't simply gather ki like ordinary techniques. Instead, it refined, condensed, and purified ki to an extreme degree.