Cultivation starts from devouring the Dao fruits

Meng Yibai said, "A Fierce Ghost Relic? I did indeed get my hands on a low-grade Second-Order Fierce Ghost Relic. How many Spirit Stones are you willing to pay for it?"

Zhao Yu's eyes lit up as he said, "Two thousand Spirit Stones!"

"Deal!"

A hint of satisfaction flickered in Meng Yibai's eyes as he passed a jade box to Zhao Yu.

Zhao Yu opened the jade box and found inside a Golden Lock shrouded in an incredibly dense aura of yin energy along with the faint breath of a low-grade Second-Order Fierce Ghost.

Zhao Yu showed a hint of satisfaction and took out twenty medium-grade Spirit Stones to give to Meng Yibai.

Xi Midan's eyes flashed with envy as she said, "At the Sixth Level of Qi Refining, Pill Master Zhao, your cultivation speed is really too fast! It makes one envious!!"

Zhao Yu smiled and said, "I've just taken a few more Spirit Pills, that's all!"

Xi Midan's eyes shone with envy as she said, "A few more Spirit Pills? Looks more like you're eating Spirit Pills like they're meals! This is treatment only True Disciples of the four Great Sects have!"

Meng Yibai said, "Pill Master Zhao, there are things you can buy with Spirit Stones, and there are things that Spirit Stones can never buy! For example, the Golden Core Technique! Only by risking exploration of some ancient ruins can we Loose Cultivators possibly obtain a Golden Core Technique!"

Zhao Yu's brows furrowed slightly, "Golden Core Technique!"

In the Market of Jiuchen Mountain, Foundation Establishment Techniques were not for sale, let alone Golden Core Techniques.

In the North Wilderness, Zhao Yu only knew that the Five Great Sects definitely had Golden Core Techniques, but he had no idea if other powers possessed them.

Zhao Yu slowly said, "Right now, all I want is to reach Foundation Establishment."

Meng Yibai let out a long sigh and said, "Foundation Establishment! It's really too difficult! That Foundation Establishment Pill has stumped so many cultivators!"

Xi Midan also spoke with a complicated expression, "In the past thirty years, not a single Loose Cultivator in the Market of Jiuchen Mountain has managed to achieve Foundation Establishment! It's all because there is no Foundation Establishment Pill!"

Meng Yibai continued, "Not to mention Loose Cultivators, even the Changyang Ling Family may not possess a Foundation Establishment Pill! Foundation Establishment Families all face this difficulty, let alone us Loose Cultivators."

Zhao Yu quietly listened to the two of them complaining. In his hand, he had a Foundation Establishment pill formula and two Second-Order Demon Beast Inner Cores. In the future, as long as he bought some more auxiliary materials for refining Foundation Establishment Pills, he could refine them himself.

Meng Yibai spoke with some expectation, "Pill Master Zhao, if I can find a Demon Beast Inner Core in the future, I will need to ask for your help in refining a Foundation Establishment Pill!"

Zhao Yu gave a bitter smile and said, "Meng Daoist Brother, I'd also need my Alchemy skills to reach that level! Advancing in the Art of Alchemy is fraught with difficulties; it took me decades to be able to refine a Superior Yellow Spirit Pill, let alone a Foundation Establishment Pill. Who knows how long it will be before I can do that."

In the North Wilderness, alchemists capable of refining Foundation Establishment Pills were mostly found in the four Great Sects; besides them, Zhao Yu had never heard of any Loose Cultivator able to do so. The waters were deep, and Zhao Yu did not want to disappear mysteriously one day.

"That's true! I too once studied Alchemy, and it really is too hard!"

Meng Yibai also sighed deeply, recalling the painful price he had paid for his past efforts in Alchemy.

After chatting for a while longer, Meng Yibai and his companion took their leave.

Inside the Quiet Room.

"Having swallowed and assimilated two thousand-year-old Spiritual Medicines, let me see just how much they can enhance the talent of my Spirit Root!"

Zhao Yu's eyes flashed with a passionate fervor as he willed a powerful surge of heat to flow from the depths of his soul throughout his body, strengthening his flesh and soul as impurities were expelled in large quantities.

"Superior Grade Wood Spirit Root (10/10000)."

"This is great! I finally have my first Superior Grade Spirit Root!"

A hint of excitement flickered through Zhao Yu's eyes. Cultivators with Superior Grade Spirit Roots were considered to have exceptionally outstanding talent in the entire Northern Desolation.

After bathing and changing his clothes, Zhao Yu looked at himself in the mirror and found that he had become much younger and more handsome, looking like a man in his mid-twenties, bursting with vitality.

The corners of Zhao Yu's mouth lifted slightly, a smile apparent in his eyes, "I've become younger and more handsome again. Cultivation truly is indescribably wonderful!"

Zhao Yu was able to endure the tedium of refining pills day and night in the Alchemy Room and meditating for long hours each day for Qi Refinement because Cultivation was ineffably marvelous.

"Should I switch to cultivating Wood System techniques? To transform my Earth Attribute Spirit Root to a Superior Grade, I'd need to consume a large number of Second-Order Earth-Attribute Monster Cores or their flesh, which would be too costly."

"A Superior Grade Spirit Root makes Foundation Establishment much more potent than a Middle-grade one! Moreover, the cultivation speed with a Superior Grade Spirit Root is more than ten times faster than that of a Middle-grade. With the aid of pills, I can quickly return to the Sixth Level of Qi Refining!"

After pondering for a moment, Zhao Yu made a resolute decision. He bathed and changed once more, then began to circulate the Breath Concealing Technique he had obtained from Su Bingyun to slowly disperse his mana.

Ten days later, Zhao Yu had completely dissipated the mana within his body and began anew with the Wood Yuan Gong, a Wood System Cultivation Technique.

In the days that followed, Zhao Yu secluded himself in his cave mansion, dedicating himself to the strenuous practice of the Wood Yuan Gong.

Nine months flew by in an instant, and Zhao Yu, with his Cultivation Level restored to the Sixth Level of Qi Refining, smoothly broke through the late-stage bottleneck and advanced to the Seventh Level of Qi Refining with the help of his Superior Grade Spirit Root, Superior Grade Red Jade Pills, and the power of the Dao Fruit.

"Cultivation Level: Wood Yuan Gong Seventh Level (0/100). Qi Refining Seventh Level!"

"Divine Sense: Qi Refining Tenth Level (30/100)."

"I've finally become a late-stage Qi Refinement cultivator! That bottleneck from Early to Middle Stage of Qi Refining had me stuck, forcing me to use Breakthrough Pills, but the transition from Middle to Late Stage went very smoothly. Superior Grade Spirit Roots are indeed powerful!"

The corners of Zhao Yu's mouth curved into a slight smile as he took out the Fierce Ghost Relic, the Golden Lock, from the jade box, placed it near his mouth, inhaled sharply, and activated the Dao Fruit's devouring power. A cold breath flowed out from the Golden Lock into his body, which was then directly refined by the Dao Fruit.

With a thought, a refreshingly cool current emerged from the depths of his soul, continuously nourishing his flesh and soul, causing his Divine Sense to begin a transformation directly.

"Divine Sense: Foundation Establishment Stage First Level (0/100)."

"My Divine Sense has transformed to the Foundation Establishment Stage! Foundation Establishment Spiritual Sense is truly marvelous!"

After the transformation was complete, Zhao Yu activated his Divine Sense and scanned his surroundings, gaining complete mastery of the situation within a ten-foot radius.

Within this ten-foot radius, even if Li Xianjiao were to employ the Breath Concealing Technique, she would easily be discovered by Zhao Yu.

A powerful Divine Sense enabled Zhao Yu to have a better grasp of his body, allowing for a more precise control of his Qi and mana when practicing the Vajra Dragon Elephant Art.

With the Foundation Establishment Spiritual Sense, when Zhao Yu continued practicing the Vajra Dragon Elephant Art, his speed could increase by more than tenfold.

Zhao Yu stepped out from the Quiet Room and went to the living room, where he glanced at Li Xianjiao, "She's making rapid progress! Truly worthy of a Heavenly Spirit Root!"

Li Xianjiao was now thirteen years old and had already reached the Eighth Level of Qi Refining. In terms of Cultivation Level, she had surpassed Zhao Yu.