"The immortal wouldn't deceive me, and the cultivation technique definitely has no problem," Jiang Taixuan said, raising his hand to look at his palm, a bitter smile on his lips. He continued, "Since the cultivation technique is fine, then the problem must lie with… me."
"No wonder the immortal refused to accept me as a disciple."
"Undoubtedly, the immortal must have seen that I'm simply not suitable for cultivation."
Having figured out the key, Jiang Taixuan felt immensely despairing. He had finally glimpsed a ray of hope, but was it going to be extinguished just like that?
"Bang!"
A loud noise rang out as Jiang Taixuan punched the nearby wall. Crimson blood dripped from his fist, staining the ground, but he didn't seem to notice.
At this moment, nothing was more painful than having cultivation techniques right in front of him, yet being unable to cultivate them.
"I can't give up!"
"I still can't give up."
Jiang Taixuan thought of his parents and the villagers in the village. Their lively faces kept flashing in his mind.
Reviving his parents and the villagers had become his obsession.
Until he achieved this obsession, he couldn't give up, no matter what.
"The immortal also gave me many white spirit stones; they must be good things. Perhaps they can give me a little boost." Jiang Taixuan seemed to have thought of something.
He turned around, ready to pick up a spirit stone, but before he could touch it, his movement suddenly froze.
Underneath the spot where he had punched the wall just now, a faint milky white light was blooming. The light was weak, and if one didn't look closely, they might easily overlook it.
"What is this?" Jiang Taixuan was extremely surprised. He used both hands to scrape away the soil, revealing a copper-rusted ancient mirror buried deep in the ground.
The ancient mirror emitted a decaying aura, and the soil wrapped around it made it impossible to see its original appearance.
However, when he had just touched the mirror, his pupils suddenly dilated, and his entire body seemed to lose its senses.
His body fell backward.
At the same time.
Outside the outer gate of Xuanyang Sect.
Ye Han, covered in blood, returned from outside the mountain gate and collapsed onto his bed after entering his thatched hut.
After a day of fighting with ferocious beasts, there was barely any intact part of his body left.
But fortunately…
The gains from this trip outside the sect were equally enormous.
"7th Layer of Body Tempering!"
Ye Han raised a hand and clenched his fist in the void. At this moment, he felt a surge of strength coursing through his body.
With just one trip outside the sect, his strength had skyrocketed by three layers, from the 4th Layer of Body Tempering to the 7th Layer of Body Tempering, as if he had ridden a rocket.
This would be shocking news to countless outer sect disciples if it were spread.
"Your luck is not bad. You found a 700-year-old Vermillion Fruit in the wild on your first trip. This fruit can save you half a year of cultivation time," a dignified voice came from Ye Han's mind. It carried a hint of satisfaction and continued, "You haven't completely refined the energy from the Vermillion Fruit yet. If you can completely refine it, you will be able to reach the Qi Refining Realm within two months!"
"Two months?"
Ye Han's lips curled up with a smile. He had originally needed a year to become an inner sect disciple, but now two months would be enough. No one would believe it if it were known.
Throughout the Xuanyang Sect, there was hardly anyone who had such a fortuitous encounter like him, except for Ye Han himself.
"Perhaps I will soon catch up to Senior Brother Li Xun… Once I become an inner sect disciple, I can fight side by side with Senior Brother Li Xun!"
Ye Han muttered to himself.
"Disciple, where does your confidence come from?"
A strange voice in his mind brought Ye Han back to reality.
"Uh… Senior Brother, didn't I just become an inner sect disciple?" Ye Han's expression froze for a moment, and he said in a low voice, "Senior Brother Li Xun, what cultivation realm is Senior Brother Li Xun at?"
"I'm not afraid to disappoint you," the senior brother's voice said solemnly, "When Li Xun saved you that day, he was already at the Peak of the Qi Refining Realm. Now that he has become an inner sect disciple and obtained the cultivation technique of the inner sect, he has most likely reached the Initial Stage of the Spirit Connection Realm!"
"Spirit Connection Realm Initial Stage…"
Ye Han seemed to have lost his soul, sitting on the bed and murmuring to himself.
Just a moment ago, he was feeling somewhat complacent after breaking through three layers of Body Tempering. But now, compared to Senior Brother Li Xun, he suddenly felt that he was still far behind.
After all, Senior Brother Li Xun had nothing. If Ye Han were to compare what he had with Senior Brother Li Xun, the achievements he had made would be surpassed several times over.