bookbashuk Chapter 133 Leaving the Mountain
Chapter 133 Leaving the Mountain
Six months have passed in the blink of an eye.
Zhao Fan sat cross-legged on the wooden bed, golden spiritual energy slowly circulating in his dantian.
The spiritual energy flowed smoothly and steadily through the meridians, carrying the sharp quality unique to metal-based cultivation techniques.
He looked inward at his dantian and saw that the edge of the qi vortex was almost at the limit of the fourth level of Qi Refining. He was only one step away from entering the fifth level of Qi Refining.
He opened his eyes and let out a long breath.
In half a year, he went from the second level of Qi Refining to the peak of the fourth level of Qi Refining, which was much faster than he had expected.
The main reason was the bottle of Qingling Pills the old man gave him. The pills were pure and contained very little poison. Each time he took them, his cultivation level would increase significantly.
The seed of divine consciousness has also undergone considerable changes in the past six months. Although it has not yet broken through to the next stage, it is clear that the strength of the divine consciousness is much stronger than before.
Every day while he was hammering and forging, he could feel the seed trembling slightly, as if responding to his hammering and forging, growing stronger little by little.
Zhao Fan stood up and pushed open the wooden door.
The sunlight felt warm and comforting on my face.
The waiter followed him out of the house, squatted down at his feet, and looked up at him.
Half a year has passed, and Xiao Er has grown even bigger, now reaching his waist. His limbs are thick and strong, his fur is glossy, and his eyes are bright and steady, just like a real wolf.
"It's time to hand over the elixir today."
Zhao Fan lowered his head and patted its head. He walked around the field ridge and picked the mature medicinal herbs one by one, putting them into his storage bag.
The old man comes to collect the money once a month without fail, but he needs to repay the contribution points he borrowed before. As of now, Zhao Fan doesn't have many contribution points left.
Not long after, the old man arrived.
He walked along the ridge with his hands behind his back, his steps still unhurried.
Zhao Fan handed over the storage bag, which the old man took, scanned with his divine sense, and nodded.
"The harvest this month is good."
He said it in a calm tone, but with a hint of satisfaction in his eyes.
"Your cultivation has recovered quickly; you should be close to the fifth level of Qi Refining, right?"
"Yes."
Zhao Fan clasped his hands in a fist salute.
"Thank you for your care over the past six months."
The old man waved his hand.
"Your own achievement is just something I sold to a few pills."
He paused, then continued.
"Now that your cultivation is close to the fifth level of Qi Refining, it's alright for you to go down the mountain for a walk."
Zhao Fan was stunned for a moment before he realized that he hadn't been down the mountain for half a year.
Since he began to rebuild his cultivation, he has not dared to go down the mountain, fearing that people would discover his significant drop in cultivation and cause unnecessary trouble.
Now, at the peak of the fourth level of Qi Refining, although it's not considered high, it's at least not at the bottom among the outer disciples.
"This disciple was just about to go down the mountain to collect the monthly allowance that I haven't received for the past six months."
Zhao Fan said.
The old man nodded.
"Go ahead. I'll have someone look after Lingtian for the day; you can return tomorrow."
Zhao Fan nodded and clasped his hands in greeting.
"Thank you, senior."
The old man waved casually, and his figure disappeared into the depths of the bamboo forest.
Zhao Fan returned to the wooden house, changed into a clean Taoist robe, tied the jade pendant to his waist, put Xiao Er into his spirit beast bag, and then hurriedly went down the mountain.
At the gate of Danfeng Mountain, the gatekeeper had changed. He was no longer the young man who was engrossed in reading, but a kind-looking middle-aged cultivator.
Zhao Fan handed over the jade token, which the man glanced at before letting him pass.
After leaving Danfeng, Zhao Fan walked along the stone steps towards the Inner Affairs Hall.
Along the way, he deliberately kept a low profile and tried to avoid making eye contact with the other disciples.
Fortunately, six months have passed, and not many people know him. Occasionally, someone will glance at him, but they will quickly look away.
The Inner Affairs Hall was still bustling with activity, with disciples coming and going in an endless stream. Zhao Fan walked in with his head down, went to the counter, and handed over the jade token.
The female cultivator behind the counter took the jade token, checked it in the booklet, and then looked up at him.
"Six months' worth of monthly allowance, collected all at once?"
"Yes."
Zhao Fan nodded.
The female cultivator didn't ask any more questions. She took out a storage bag from under the counter, counted out thirty spirit stones and some low-grade pills, and then handed them back along with the jade token.
It wasn't much, but for him, it was a godsend.
He put these items into his storage bag and turned to leave the Internal Affairs Hall.
After leaving the house, Zhao Fan stood on the stone steps, hesitated for a moment, and then decided to go to the Weapon Refining Peak.
He had not seen Su Ziyan since he entered the Suyang Sect.
When they parted last time, Su Ziyan said he was going to visit the Weapon Refining Peak, and then there was no further news.
Zhao Fan didn't know how he was doing at the Weapon Refining Peak, but at least he should be doing better than him.
The Refining Peak is located on the west side of the sect, not far from the Pill Refining Peak.
Zhao Fan walked along the stone steps for about half an hour before he saw the gate of the Weapon Refining Peak.
At the mountain gate stands a stone tablet with the three large characters "Refining Peak" engraved on it. The calligraphy is vigorous and powerful, completely different from the style of Dan Peak.
A burly disciple stood at the entrance and reached out to stop Zhao Fan as he approached.
"Who goes there?"
Zhao Fan handed over the jade token.
"Disciple Zhao Fan has come to see Su Ziyan. He joined the sect last year and is studying at the Weapon Refining Peak."
The disciple took the jade token, glanced at it, looked at Zhao Fan, and gently shook his head.
"There is no one named Su Ziyan among the inner disciples. If you are looking for an outer disciple, go and find him at the foot of the mountain."
Zhao Fan nodded, turned around, and headed straight for the foot of the mountain.
At the foot of the mountain, similar to Danfeng, there were many dilapidated wooden houses and caves. Zhao Fan searched for a while before finally finding a sign in a corner.
The sign read, "Repairing low-level magical artifacts by appointment."
In the cave behind the wooden sign, Su Ziyan was standing in front of a red-hot furnace, shirtless, vigorously pounding a magical artifact prototype.
Hearing footsteps, Su Ziyan assumed it was a customer and immediately looked up, only to see Zhao Fan.
"Brother Zhao!"
Su Ziyan ran up to him, grabbed his shoulder, and looked him up and down.
"What brings you here? It's been so long! I thought you'd forgotten me!"
Zhao Fan smiled.
"How could that be?"
He looked at Su Ziyan's disheveled appearance and felt a surge of affection.
"How are you doing at the Weapon Refining Peak?"
"good."
Su Ziyan grinned, revealing two rows of white teeth.
"Although I'm still some distance from becoming an inner disciple, I can already refine low-grade magic weapons. With another two years of study, refining mid-grade magic weapons won't be a problem."
As he spoke, he pulled Zhao Fan toward the cave.
"Don't stand here, come in and sit down."
Zhao Fan nodded and followed Su Ziyan into the cave.
The cave dwelling was small and simply furnished, with a bed, a table, a chair, and a few pieces of ore and some unfinished magical artifacts piled in the corner.
The air was filled with a burnt smell, clearly from the furnace being left running for a long time.
Su Ziyan moved a chair for Zhao Fan to sit down, then sat on the edge of the bed and poured a bowl of water for him.
"How have you been lately, Brother Zhao? Have you collected enough contribution points for your spiritual cultivation technique?"
Zhao Fan took the bowl, drank a sip of water, and nodded.
"I've already bought the cultivation manual, and I'm practicing it now."
Su Ziyan nodded, about to say something, but then noticed that Zhao Fan's aura was only at the fourth level of Qi Refining.
"Brother Zhao, what's the deal with your cultivation level?"
"Something unexpected happened."
Zhao Fan did not hide anything and recounted the story of how his cultivation had been disrupted and he had to rebuild it.
From the shattering of the seed of consciousness, to the old man's rescue, to the dissipation of his cultivation and the rebuilding of his skills, to the recovery of the fourth level of Qi Refining in half a year.
As he spoke, Su Ziyan's brows furrowed, becoming more and more tightly furrowed.
"You mean there's something wrong with the martial arts techniques your master taught you?"
Su Ziyan's voice was a little tense.
Zhao Fan nodded.
"Compressing spiritual power with the sea of consciousness doesn't sound quite right. My weak spiritual consciousness before was probably due to this technique."
Su Ziyan fell silent. He lowered his head, looking at his toes, his fingers unconsciously rubbing the hem of his clothes.
Zhao Fan, oblivious to his unusual behavior, continued.
"But it's all right now. Although it's a bit slow to start over, at least we're on the right track. Once I recover to the seventh level of Qi Refining, I'll go take the Dan Peak exam."
Su Ziyan raised her head, looked at Zhao Fan, and moved her lips as if she wanted to say something.
He hesitated for a long time, but in the end he swallowed his words and just smiled.
"That's good. Brother Zhao, with your resolute character, you will surely succeed."
Zhao Fan didn't think much of it and changed the subject.
"Ziyan, I have a question for you. Are there any cultivators on the Weapon Refining Peak who can refine high-grade magic weapons?"
Su Ziyan was taken aback for a moment, then spoke.
"There are many, what's wrong?"
Zhao Fan took out the Golden Marrow Thorn from his storage bag and handed it over.
"I bought this magical artifact from the market. The shopkeeper said it was originally the prototype of a high-grade magical artifact, but it wasn't finished yet. I'd like to ask if it's possible to upgrade it to high-grade?"
Su Ziyan took the Golden Marrow Thorn, examined it several times, then probed it with his spiritual power before nodding.
"It is indeed a good piece of jade. The material is marrow, which is extremely hard and has strong penetrating power."
"However, to upgrade it to the superior grade, the Xuanwen circuit needs to be re-engraved."
He looked up at Zhao Fan.
"There are quite a few people who can do it, but they don't charge low fees. The price depends on the strength of the magic item, and the minimum is fifty spirit stones."
"Your golden marrow thorns are made of a special material, so they might be more expensive."
Zhao Fan fell silent. He had just received his monthly stipend for half a year, and with what he had left over, he had less than sixty spirit stones in total.
He could afford fifty spirit stones, but once he did, he would be penniless.
He shook his head and put the Golden Marrow Thorn back into his storage bag.
"Never mind, let's talk about it later."
Su Ziyan noticed his embarrassment and didn't try to persuade him further, but simply patted him on the shoulder.
"No rush. As for magical artifacts, enough is fine. Once your cultivation level increases, you can directly replace them with better ones. Why bother upgrading them?"
Zhao Fan nodded, but felt a little reluctant to part with her.
The Golden Marrow Thorn has been with him for a long time, from Zhoujiafang Market to now, and has saved his life several times.
But he knew that now was not the time to spend money; he needed spirit stones, pills, and to recover his cultivation as soon as possible.
Everything else can wait.
After chatting for a while longer, Zhao Fan got up to say goodbye.
Su Ziyan saw him off, and only turned back after watching him walk away.