Chapter 70: Mid-Stage Qi Cultivation

The Yin Wind Gorge was indeed the most suitable place for Su Che to gain experience. The people here were all at the third level of Qi cultivation, and despite their numerical advantage, they couldn’t pose a real threat to Su Che.

After more than twenty days in the gorge and nearly a hundred battles of various sizes, he could barely be considered battle-hardened. Victory or defeat didn’t matter much—Su Che felt he had grown significantly and was no longer a novice in combat. He also sensed that his understanding and control over his own strength had reached a higher level. It seemed he might achieve a breakthrough at any moment and advance to the mid-stage of Qi cultivation.

In the Immortal Prison, Luo Lianqiao needed two days to refine one batch of “Earthtransmutation Pills.” By now, he had made ten batches in twenty days, four of which were defective. This meant the success rate was roughly 60%.

Luo Lianqiao explained the high number of failures by saying that the prison’s conditions were poor, far inferior to those of the Heavenly Furnace Peak’s refining facilities. More importantly, using true fire spirit talismans along with special combustibles to control the fire made the flames unstable, with many variables that were difficult to master. With the stable fire energy of third-grade earth fire, the success rate for refining Earthtransmutation Pills should be around 80%.

His success rate at the Heavenly Furnace Peak was indeed this high, surpassing most of the inner disciples there, which was why he considered himself a genius in alchemy.

This explanation made sense. Even though Su Che didn’t understand alchemy, he knew the conditions in the Immortal Prison were indeed inadequate. Moreover, Lao He could prove through mind-reading that Luo Lianqiao wasn’t lying—he had indeed done his best.

As long as he had tried his best, it was fine. The lack of proper facilities could be gradually addressed in the future… So, Su Che rewarded Luo Lianqiao with 36 spirit stones, enough for him to cultivate normally for a month.

There were no underground spirit veins or natural qi in the Immortal Prison. If the prisoners wanted to continue cultivating and improving their strength, they could only draw on the pure qi contained in the spirit stones. Of course, Su Che wouldn’t give them spirit stones for free—prisoners had to make contributions to earn a certain proportion as a reward.

Spirit stones were just one form of reward.

Earthtransmutation Pills were special-type medicinal pills, with only three pills per batch. Luo Lianqiao had refined six batches, resulting in a total of 18 finished pills. Although Earthtransmutation Pills were hard to find in the market, there was still a general price. Luo Lianqiao said that the cost of one Earthtransmutation Pill was less than 20 spirit stones, yet it could be sold at a high price of 200 spirit stones.

It can grant ten times the violence, not only because it is extremely scarce but also because having such an elixir at hand allows one to dive underground and save their life at critical moments. This is a miraculous skill only mastered by Golden Elixir cultivators, which is why many Foundation Establishment stage cultivators spare no effort to buy these Earth-Diving Pills.

Given this, the market price of eighteen Earth-Diving Pills is roughly 3,600 Spirit Stones. Thus, Su Che gave Luo Lianqiao a 1% reward.

A 1% ratio may seem low, but Luo Lianqiao can continue refining pills and will receive ongoing rewards sufficient for his cultivation in the Immortal Prison. Of course, this assumes that the Earth-Diving Poison Vines in the Yin Wind Gorge can be harvested endlessly…

Somewhere in the gorge, Su Che took out an Earth-Diving Pill. Even though he encountered no dangers today, he still couldn’t resist trying out the miraculous effects of this pill.

The yellow-brown pill dissolved in his mouth instantly, bringing about a strange sensation in his mind.

Boom! Boom! Boom…

The earth pulsed, as if its heart was beating powerfully…

“So that’s how it is. The earth beneath our feet also has life.”

Su Che had a vague realization. With a thought, he silently sank into the soil. Strangely, no holes were visible on the surface.

Earth-Diving technique is not about digging; therefore, it leaves no traces on the earth.

Boom! Boom! Boom…

Su Che moved freely underground. Thick layers of soil, huge rocks, and ore containing metal components posed no obstacle—just like a fish returning to the sea, free and unbound.

At this moment, Su Che’s heartbeat resonated with the earth’s pulses, matching their frequency—a privilege reserved for those born of the earth.

The effect of one Earth-Diving Pill lasts for fifteen minutes, but before even half that time passed, Su Che had a sudden epiphany and exclaimed, “I understand!”

Without hesitation, he drew out a magic sword and began cutting through the surrounding soil vigorously. All the cut soil and rocks were sent into the Immortal Prison. In just a dozen cuts, he dug a hole dozens of feet deep underground. Sitting down casually, after a few breaths, he suddenly entered meditation…

In the Immortal Prison, Lao He knew well that after days of combat, his master had reached the critical point for a breakthrough. By sensing the earth’s pulses, he had instantly had an epiphany—likely about to challenge the barrier to the fourth level of Qi Cultivation.

Su Che already possessed an earth-type spiritual root. Although he had never practiced pure earth-based techniques, with his temporary identity as the Son of the Earth, he could now draw on the vast earth energy around him to help him break through. By leveraging the power of nature, this was yet another level of understanding Su Che gained in terms of strength.

Boom! Boom! Boom…

His heartbeat continued to resonate with the pulse of the earth, as endless streams of earth energy converged from all directions and slowly flowed into Su Che’s body. Earth energy was also a type of celestial energy, and it merged with the true energy within Su Che’s body, altering its nature. This was an unintended change; if Su Che chose to focus on earth-based techniques later, it would likely yield twice the results with half the effort.

Su Che had spiritual roots in fire, earth, and wood. Initially, he had tended to prefer practicing fire-based techniques—there was no specific reason, other than the fact that fire spells seemed more powerful. In truth, there was no hierarchy among the five elements’ spells; the difference lay in the practitioner themselves. Different people might be better suited to practicing certain types of techniques…

Lao He, on the other hand, believed that it didn’t matter which type of technique the master practiced—as long as he could continuously improve his cultivation level. The master’s advantage should lie in his Immortal Prison ability, rather than conventional factors.

As time passed, the effects of the Earth-Dwelling Pill quickly wore off, and Su Che’s sensitivity to the earth’s pulse disappeared. But that was fine—the earth’s pulse acted like a guide, having already helped him master the method of absorbing earth energy. The continuous flow of earth energy continued to pour into him.

The true energy within his body gradually changed in nature. When the characteristics of earth-based true energy became particularly distinct and his body could no longer hold more earth energy, with a sudden snap, Su Che’s body trembled as he felt a barrier deep within him being broken through!

It was an extremely subtle sensation, difficult to describe in words.

“It worked!”

Su Che quickly took out an Earth Spirit Pill, swallowed it, and immediately refined it, generating a large amount of spiritual energy, which was then transformed into new true energy… It was as if a dry riverbed was filled with floodwaters—his meridians and dantian at the fourth level of Qi Cultivation needed more true energy to be fully saturated.

Yes, he was now at the fourth level of Qi Cultivation. Su Che had officially entered the intermediate stage of Qi Cultivation.

…

After practicing in the underground cave for three days and nights, fully absorbing the power of an Earth Spirit Pill, Su Che finally stabilized his cultivation at the fourth level of Qi Cultivation.

Previously, it took five to six days to absorb a Earth Spirit Pill and reach the middle stage of Qi Cultivation. Now, after advancing, it only took three days to fully absorb its effects—this was the clear difference brought about by the improved strength.

Moreover, this cave extended dozens of feet underground, and by the end of three days, there would have been no air left. Yet Su Che didn’t feel even a hint of suffocation. The reason for this was, of course, that inside the Immortal Prison there existed a small world spanning a hundred miles, providing Su Che with endless air so he would never suffocate no matter the circumstances.

“Congratulations, master,” Old Black said joyfully. “The original plan was to reach the third level of Qi Cultivation in half a year, but you’ve exceeded that goal.”

“Yes, this trip to the Yin Wind Gorge has indeed been very fruitful,” Su Che said, feeling even happier after his recent advancement.

“I think the gains go beyond that…” Old Black said mysteriously. “There’s something I’ve never told you before, as I didn’t want to disrupt your focus during this time. Now that you’ve reached the middle stage of Qi Cultivation, it’s okay to reveal it.”

“Oh? What is it?” Su Che asked curiously.

“You once assigned three tasks to the Yin Wind Rats: finding people, searching for objects, and exploring secrets. They’ve done quite well with finding people and searching for objects, but there’s been no progress on exploring secrets,” Old Black said. “A few days ago, the rat king of one clan reported to me that there’s a secret cave in their territory, whose depth is unknown. Even they, who are the best at digging, dare not go too deep… Master, I wonder if you’re interested in going there and taking a look?”

Su Che knew Old Black must have a reason for asking, so he replied, “It seems you’re quite interested in that place. Then tell me more about it.”