Plant VS Cultivation

Chapter 5: The Method of Qi Refining

Upon receiving Gu Mo's affirmative response, Yao Shifeng's smile deepened. As a noble of the Great Xia, he was well aware that success couldn't be achieved alone, especially given his status as a menial disciple.

If he possessed a mid-grade or even high-grade spiritual root, he wouldn't need to forge any connections; the sect would naturally provide ample resources to support his cultivation.

Unfortunately, Yao Shifeng had been tested and found to have the lowest-grade inferior spiritual root—a result he simply couldn't accept. In the mortal world, he was a distinguished aristocrat, but upon entering the world of cultivation, he was reduced to the status of the lowest menial disciple. He was unwilling to resign himself to this fate.

Thus, Yao Shifeng aspired to climb the ranks step by step. After all, there were precedents of menial disciples eventually becoming inner sect disciples.

Over this period, Yao Shifeng had studied cases in the library of menial disciples who had risen to prominence. Considering his current circumstances, he ultimately decided to pursue a strategy of befriending fellow townsmen.

Private Dining Room

Yao Shifeng, Gu Mo, Hu Hai, Wu Jinfeng, and Chu Feifei sat together. After Gu Mo agreed to join, Yao Shifeng invited everyone for a meal, providing an opportunity to get acquainted.

Through their conversation, Gu Mo gained a rough impression of the others besides Yao Shifeng. Hu Hai, a short, young boy, seemed somewhat self-conscious, likely due to his background.

Wu Jinfeng, in contrast to Hu Hai, was a big, robust individual and quite talkative. His spiritual energy assessment placed him in the upper-middle range.

Chu Feifei was the only female among them. With her delicate features and well-defined curves at just fifteen or sixteen years old, she occasionally drew glances from both Hu Hai and Wu Jinfeng.

"Everyone, I have some cultivation insights that I'd like to share," Yao Shifeng said after they had introduced themselves.

He had his own motives for gathering this small group. To reap benefits from it later, some initial investment was essential.

Upon hearing that Yao Shifeng had cultivation insights to share, everyone turned their attention to him. What was most important right now? Naturally, it was cultivation—strength was everything.

Although senior brothers from the Qi Refining stage would give them lessons, those were mostly by-the-book teachings. Practical cultivation insights were far more valuable.

"My elder once joined the sect and left behind some cultivation notes," Yao Shifeng explained as he noticed their curious gazes.

Yao Shifeng's noble status in Great Xia was largely thanks to this elder who had once entered the sect. Though this elder had only been an outer sect disciple and had passed away over a century ago, the legacy he left behind ensured Yao Shifeng's family remained influential.

Among that legacy, the cultivation insights were particularly valuable. It was through these notes that Yao Shifeng managed to stand out among the menial disciples.

Unfortunately, since that elder had merely been an ordinary outer sect disciple and had long passed, no connections within the sect remained for Yao Shifeng to rely on.

Taking a deep breath, Yao Shifeng began to recount the cultivation insights left by his elder. While such insights would be incredibly precious for independent cultivators, their value diminished slightly within the sect. Nonetheless, for menial disciples, they were still highly valuable.

"So that's how it is!"

Listening to Yao Shifeng's explanation, Gu Mo finally gained a clear understanding of the Qi Refining stage. After completing the process of drawing spiritual energy into the body, the next goal was to continuously accumulate it, then use the gathered energy to open meridians and complete the minor circulation.

Depending on the cultivation method, the number of meridians required for a minor circulation varied. However, all Qi Refining techniques followed the structure of nine minor circulations, three intermediate circulations, and one major circulation.

Completing one minor circulation marked the first layer of the Qi Refining stage. Completing three minor circulations advanced a cultivator to the third layer. After that came a bottleneck between the early and middle stages of Qi Refining. By merging three minor circulations into one intermediate circulation, one could step into the middle stage.

Completing three intermediate circulations led to the ninth layer of Qi Refining. Merging those into one major circulation meant achieving Qi Refining Perfection.

Noticing the thoughtful expressions on everyone's faces, Yao Shifeng revealed a slight smile. By offering this valuable insight, he had secured the loyalty of the group. Moreover, he had only shared a fraction of the knowledge—he planned to reveal more gradually.

As Yao Shifeng concluded his explanation, the others returned to their senses and expressed their gratitude.

"Our task now is to improve our cultivation as quickly as possible. Let's meet again in a week to discuss any issues we've encountered," Yao Shifeng said with a wave.

"This Yao Shifeng isn't a simple man," Gu Mo thought to himself upon returning to his small room, recalling Yao Shifeng's earlier behavior.

Still, it wasn't a big deal. Since Yao Shifeng had shared valuable insights, Gu Mo didn't mind contributing something in return when the time came.

Taking out the sunflower from the dark mist space, Gu Mo glanced at the sky. It was already evening. Since the sunflower had been kept in the dark mist space all day, it hadn't accumulated any solar essence.

This taught Gu Mo that the sunflower couldn't gather solar essence while in the dark mist space; it needed to be left outside.

"Well then, time to start cultivating."

Gu Mo carefully studied the Qi Accumulation Technique provided by the sect, immersing himself in cultivation as time flew by.

A week passed quickly, marking the day for their group to reconvene. Gu Mo's cultivation had advanced remarkably during this period.

All credit went to the sunflower—the solar essence it produced was equivalent to two days of Gu Mo's intense cultivation. Intense cultivation meant dedicating at least eight out of twelve hours in a day to practice.

Each portion of solar essence from the sunflower could be refined in just a few breaths, equating to two full days of hard work.

To put it simply, Gu Mo's cultivation speed over the week was on par with that of cultivators with low-grade spiritual roots. If the cultivation speed of an inferior spiritual root was set at 1, then low-grade spiritual roots ranged from 2 to 4. This wasn't a fixed number because even among low-grade spiritual roots, there were differences in quality.

However, it was certain that low-grade spiritual roots were at least twice as fast as inferior ones. Mid-grade spiritual roots accelerated cultivation by 5 to 7 times, while high-grade roots could reach up to ten times the speed of inferior roots.

And this was just the basic enhancement. When combined with powerful techniques, spiritual lands, and elixirs, cultivation speed could increase even further.

By harnessing the sunflower's solar essence, Gu Mo effectively achieved the cultivation speed of someone with a low-grade spiritual root. It wouldn't be an exaggeration to say this had essentially altered his spiritual root.

This alone proved the sunflower's extraordinary value. Yet, over the week, Gu Mo discovered other uses for the solar essence as well.