A daily divination, from family tortoise shells to immortal clans.

After leaving the Chamber of Commerce, Chen Mingyi first went back to the Chen family in the town.

After arranging some things, he led Chen Qingmo and the others back to Tai Xuan Mountain.

Evening, near the stable at the foot of the mountain.

Chen Mingyi wiped his hand and took out the items the two had purchased from his storage bag.

There was a hint of longing in Chen Qingmo's eyes, and his determination to break through to the fourth level of Qi Refining became much stronger.

"The clan places high hopes on you younger generations. Although the laws are strict, the elders will help you to the best of their ability."

Uncle Jiu only hopes that after your cultivation improves, you will still keep the family in your hearts and not become like... sigh, never mind, let's not talk about this."

Chen Mingyi paused, sighed, and ultimately didn't say the last sentence, leaving the two of them puzzled.

"Put your things away safely. I still need to report to the elders. Qingmo, are you going into seclusion to break through to a higher level these next few days?"

Seeing Chen Qingmo nod, Chen Mingyi continued,

"Then I'll report it all at once, you don't need to go to the Fifth Elder."

After being in seclusion for an unknown number of days, Chen Qingmo needed to ask the elder in charge for leave to avoid being short-handed during the demon hunt.

Now that Uncle Nine is reporting it for him, it will save him a lot of time.

"Thank you, Uncle Jiu!"

Chen Qingmo thanked them, and then the group went their separate ways.

Upon entering the cave, to prevent interference from unsuspecting individuals, Chen Qingmo first set up a warning and soundproof array before beginning his closed-door cultivation breakthrough.

Sitting cross-legged on the futon, he formed hand seals and summoned four calming talismans around his body, beginning to adjust his state.

Two hours later, Chen Qingmo's momentum had reached its peak.

He opened the small jade bottle and swallowed the Spirit Gathering Pill.

As soon as the pill entered his body, a warm, gentle medicinal power flowed through his limbs and bones, especially noticeable in the three major acupoints that Chen Qingmo had already opened.

As time passed, the medicinal power contained in the Spirit Gathering Pill gradually dissipated, and the abundant spiritual energy began to impact the Qi Palace Acupoint of the fourth level of Qi Refining.

The first nine levels of Qi cultivation require opening nine major acupoints: Mingtang, Dongfang, Niwan, Qifu, Queqiao, Chonglou, Jiuwei, Jianggong, and Huangting.

Every three levels constitute a minor realm: levels one to three are the early stage of Qi Refining, levels four to six are the middle stage, and levels seven to nine are the late stage.

When the nine acupoints circulate smoothly and become one, one achieves the perfect state of the tenth level of Qi cultivation.

If one breaks through to the next level, one reaches the Foundation Establishment realm. However, most cultivators spend their entire lives without ever reaching even the tenth level of Great Perfection, let alone Foundation Establishment.

There are only three Foundation Establishment cultivators in Linyuan County: two Foundation Establishment family patriarchs and the remaining one is a rogue cultivator who is renowned in the area.

This is because Linyuan is a large county with a population of nearly one million.

Most of the surrounding counties only have one Foundation Establishment cultivator, and they are all from families within the sect's jurisdiction.

If a Qi Refining cultivator is fortunate enough to meet him, he must respectfully address him as "True Person" and dare not be negligent in the slightest.

In the early stages of Qi Refining, there are almost no bottlenecks in the first three levels, and the corresponding strength gap is not too large.

When you break through to the middle stage, the first three acupoints are connected, and the difficulty of the fourth acupoint will increase.

Once a breakthrough is achieved, the capacity of the dantian and qi sea will more than double, and at the same time, the divine sense will begin to manifest, making it easier to control spiritual power.

Breaking through to the late stage of Qi Refining is similar; in fact, reaching the Great Perfection of Qi Refining doesn't significantly increase one's cultivation level.

Chen Qingmo remained calm, undisturbed by the surging spiritual energy within her body.

He formed hand seals, circulating his cultivation technique, the Spirit Wood Technique, to gather spiritual energy and slowly open the fourth acupoint.

The Spirit Wood Technique is a common Qi Refining stage cultivation method, and its grade is basically the same as other cultivation methods in the clan.

Chen Qingmo's spiritual root lacks the earth attribute, so the Earth Mountain Technique, which can be cultivated to the Foundation Establishment stage in his clan, is not suitable for him.

Because he was more compatible with wood-attribute techniques, he began to cultivate the Spirit Wood Technique.

Three days later, Chen Qingmo sensed something and manipulated a surge of spiritual energy to rush towards his Qi Mansion acupoint.

A sound seemed to come from within his body, and the barrier was finally broken through. Chen Qingmo's body was filled with spiritual energy, indicating that he had already reached the fourth level of Qi Refining.

He circulated his energy to calm his breathing until he looked exactly the same as usual.

Looking inward, Chen Qingmo noticed that his dantian had expanded and there was still some medicinal power remaining in his body.

"The Spirit Gathering Pill truly lives up to its reputation as a top-grade first-tier pill, containing so much spiritual energy. No wonder it's an essential pill for breaking through to the mid-stage of Qi Refining."

He muttered a few words to himself, then took out two more Mind-Cleansing Talismans to stabilize his cultivation.

Two more days passed, and Chen Qingmo opened his eyes, slowly exhaling a breath of stale air.

My body has largely adapted to the fourth level of Qi Refining cultivation. However, I cannot rush to solidify my foundation; I need to proceed slowly.

He casually used a minor cloud and rain spell to wash away the impurities expelled from his body, and then changed into clean clothes.

"Gurgle!"

A sound came from his stomach, and Chen Qingmo chuckled to himself.

Even cultivators in the mid-stage of Qi Refining cannot avoid eating. If they wish to abstain from grains, they need to rely on Abstinence Pills, which can last for about seven days if they are low-grade.

After cooking some spirit rice and beast meat to fill his stomach, Chen Qingmo left the cave.

As soon as he stepped outside, Chen Qingmo released his divine sense, making it clearly visible within five meters without the need for the naked eye.

These past two days, he not only used the time to consolidate his cultivation, but also to get a basic understanding of how to use his divine sense.

If you want to fight your past self, you can easily defeat him in no more than three moves.

Withdrawing his divine sense, Chen Qingmo headed towards the treasure pavilion.

The Treasure Pavilion is not only a place for storing cultivation techniques, weapons, and elixirs within the clan, but also a record of the cultivation levels and contributions of the clan's disciples.

This measure is to prevent disciples within the clan from exchanging pills and cultivation techniques on behalf of others, thus ensuring relative fairness.

Chen Qingmo had already used up all the contribution points he earned from completing tasks, and now that he was breaking through, he needed to update his information and retrieve his storage bag.

As soon as he entered the treasure pavilion, he noticed a gaze sweeping over him.

Looking up, he saw Chen Kaihe smiling at him.

"Greetings, Eighth Elder."

"Is this a breakthrough?"

Although Chen Kaihe sensed that Chen Qingmo's aura was different from before, he still wanted to hear him admit it himself.

"Hmm, I managed to break through to the fourth level of Qi Refining by sheer luck."

Chen Qingmo nodded slightly and said modestly.

Chen Kaihe shook his head and handed him a small bag:

"There's no such thing as luck involved; it's the result of your own hard work. I've updated the information for you; this is the storage bag issued by the clan for breaking through to the fourth level of Qi Refining."

Chen Qingmo took the storage bag, dripped blood onto it to bind it to his owner, refined it, and then examined it.

As he expected, the interior space was three feet square, and there was a fine iron longsword that the family regularly issued.

Although it couldn't compare to his mid-grade magic weapon longsword, it was more than enough to deal with low-level first-tier demonic beasts.

Even if you break through to the mid-stage of Qi Refining, you should not be arrogant. In the path of cultivation, Qi Refining is not the ultimate goal, and even Foundation Establishment is just a drop in the ocean.

We old folks have little hope left, but you are still young. If you want to go out and explore the world, we won't stop you.

Cultivation is inherently a process of competition and struggle; opportunities don't appear out of thin air. But remember to prioritize your own well-being; if you truly cannot survive outside, you still have your family to rely on.

Chen Kaihe spoke earnestly, then smiled calmly.

"As I get older, I can't help but say a few more words. Please don't think this old man is being a nag."

Chen Qingmo bowed with his hands clasped in greeting:

"Qingmo dares not, and will humbly follow the elder's teachings."

The two chatted for a while longer. Just as Chen Qingmo was about to leave, a young disciple rushed into the treasure pavilion, anxiously calling out:

"Eighth Elder, something terrible has happened! The Second Elder's demon-hunting team has suffered heavy losses, with some bleeding profusely and even unconscious."

"Please, Elder, fetch some healing pills so I can deliver them quickly."

After listening, Chen Kaihe turned around and went straight into the warehouse.

Standing to the side, Chen Qingmo was shocked. With the Second Elder's cultivation at the seventh level of Qi Refining, what could have happened to cause such heavy losses to the team?