Zong Shou had become increasingly accustomed to life a thousand ages ago. However, apart from the occasional trips downtown to gather herbs and materials required for his Spirit Master cultivation and that 'Quicksilver Beast King,' as well as teasing his maidservant now and then, he spent the rest of his time sequestered in his room, diligently practicing the fundamentals: basic swordsmanship, footwork, leaping techniques, and all the rudiments of martial cultivation.

Yin Yang and Chu Xue were the same, striving to avoid attracting trouble by staying out of sight as much as possible.

By now, over a hundred thousand people had gathered in the town of Yanxia. It was a motley collection of individuals, many young and full of raw, vigorous energy. Even with the deterrent effect of the Lingyun Sect’s reputation, a degree of chaos was inevitable, with brawls breaking out frequently, though so far, no one had dared to cause a fatality.

Given their sensitive status, the three of them naturally wished to avoid stirring up trouble here.

Of all the developments over these two months, what pleased Zong Shou the most was the noticeable advancement in cultivation achieved by Yin Yang and Chu Xue, respectively. Following that fierce battle with Liejian Wuwei, Yin Yang had successfully opened his eighth Wheel Meridian, ascending to the rank of a Mid-stage Secret Martial Master.

As for Chu Xue, while the true extent of her Primordial Soul’s progress remained unknown, her internal Zhenqi was clearly at the peak of the Martial Master realm, perhaps even surpassing Zong Yu’s level at the time.

Zong Shou could not help but be delighted. Yin Yang and Chu Xue were, in essence, loyal servants—the only people in this entire world he could truly trust.

The increase in their strength naturally meant a significantly greater chance of survival for him.

Even Chu Xue was overjoyed. After reaching this level in dual Spirit-Martial cultivation, advancing further was akin to scaling an unclimbable peak; every minor improvement was precious beyond measure.

Only Yin Yang, whose gloom had momentarily lifted after slaying Wuwei, found his troubled expression returning, growing darker with each passing day.

Yin Yang had not mentioned his conversation with Feng Xiao that evening, and Zong Shou, choosing to feign ignorance, refrained from asking. He simply intensified his daily training routine.

Inside the large wooden tub, the water rippled, steam billowing thick and hot. Zong Shou sat languidly in the center, his body completely bare.

Behind him, Chu Xue, slick with perspiration, meticulously massaged and struck his back with her fingertips, targeting pressure points to activate his channels.

Seemingly irritated by Zong Shou’s relaxed demeanor, she applied heavy pressure, leaving his back mottled with angry red marks.

“Young Master has now successfully cultivated the Fetal Wheel, and the Respiratory Wheel is more than halfway complete. Your Qi refinement has shown some success. For the next medicinal bath, Xue’er will no longer be needed; you can manage it yourself. Later, Xue’er will teach the Young Master a breathing and internal refinement technique that can also metabolize the medicinal power of this Five-Root Blood-Strengthening Decoction—”

Speaking of Zong Shou’s Wheel Meridians, Chu Xue was deeply astonished. She could not fathom what method Zong Shou had employed. Despite only practicing the foundational Qi Refining Art passed down by the Zong Clan, in just two short months, he had completely unblocked all twenty-four acupoints of the Fetal Wheel, totaling forty-eight points due to his Dual Meridian physique. Furthermore, the Respiratory Meridian also appeared partially opened.

Let alone Martial Soldiers of the same rank, even those at the peak of the Three-Meridian stage would likely be slightly inferior in terms of sheer volume of inner energy.

The foundation he possessed was robust and solid, surpassing any martial artist in the world.

With such formidable internal energy reserves, it was true that he no longer required her assistance to absorb and digest those medicinal ingredients.

Unexpectedly, Zong Shou shook his head right then, his tone decidedly curt: “A breathing and internal refinement technique? I won’t learn it! Having Xue’er help me is sufficient—”

He mused internally: Why should he endure the hardship of independently absorbing and refining the Five-Root Blood-Strengthening Decoction?

Though he conceded that his Tun Yuan Great Method and the Inner Breathing Guidance Art were indeed far superior in efficacy to Xue’er’s help.

Yet, every ten days, he enjoyed the pleasure of a beautiful, delightful companion accompanying his bath. Where else could he possibly find such a perk?

Chu Xue’s Zhenqi nearly went astray from shock. Fortunately, over these two months, she had gained some understanding and immunity to the Young Master’s current disposition. Her expression turned icy as she stated, “Whether the Young Master learns it or not, Xue’er will not be accompanying him for his bath next time, I mean what I say—” She was firmly resolved that she would no longer assist this rather lecherous Young Master with meridian massage.

Zong Shou gave a faint ‘Oh,’ his expression retaining that air of bored listlessness, only the corner of his lip curling into a wicked, knowing smile: “That works too, but your Young Master here was originally planning to teach Xue’er the basic swordsmanship I have learned. Ah, what a pity—”

His words were laced with profound regret. Chu Xue’s eyes immediately lit up. Basic swordsmanship techniques are largely similar across various schools and clans. But the way Zong Shou wielded it, achieving such masterful proficiency, was unprecedented.

In their occasional sparring sessions over the past few days, she had invariably been defeated within a few exchanges. No matter how exquisite her sword forms, before Zong Shou, they lacked any real artistry and were easily countered.

And throughout it all, he relied solely on that set of the simplest, most basic sword stances.

What she coveted most were the profound martial principles and all the ensuing variations contained within them.

Her focus wavered instantly. The next moment, Su Chu Xue’s cheeks flushed crimson again. She gave Zong Shou’s back a hard slap, dispersing the last remnants of the collected medicinal power from the Five-Root Blood-Strengthening Decoction. Then, she quickly gathered her clothes and bolted out of the room as if fleeing a fire.

Only after several breaths did Chu Xue’s voice drift back from outside: “Young Master, you scoundrel!”

Her tone held a definite note of indignation, but paired with her soft, sweet voice, it possessed virtually no cutting power.

Zong Shou grinned wide, then immediately activated his Tun Yuan technique, drawing in every last trace of residual medicinal essence from the liquid, transforming it into pure essence and storing it within his body.

The entire process took less than a few breaths.

“It’s a pity the Soul-Reflecting Mirror Technique cannot be applied to the Wheel Meridians. If I could borrow the Solar Essence Flame to refine the purity of my Zhenqi, my cultivation would surely advance another stage, allowing me to complete the second phase of the Fetal Respiration Wheel—”

Every time he used the Tun Tian Yuan Hua Gong, the subsequent refinement and purification stage consumed far too much of Zong Shou’s time.

If he were not concerned about his Zhenqi becoming overly muddled, laying down too many hidden dangers for the future, he could likely achieve breakthroughs even now, bypassing the Martial Soldier realm entirely.

However, his Soul Power cultivation had caught up in recent progress. The Soul-Reflecting Mirror Technique had increased from six surfaces to twelve. Every seven days, the windowsill of his guest room was almost entirely covered with densely packed bronze mirrors.

He had now firmly secured the cultivation level of the Spirit Settling Realm.

The Spirit Master rankings were relatively straightforward, divided into nine layers below the Divine Master level: Spirit Settling, Soul Viewing, Spirit Nurturing, Soul Departure, Night Wandering, Yang Return, Day Wandering, Body Shaping, and True Form.

In the initial stages of Soul Power cultivation, the Primordial Spirit was extremely unstable, ethereal and constantly dispersing. The so-called first stage, Spirit Settling, was, as the name suggested, about stabilizing the Primordial Soul.

Since forging his True Soul Spirit Seed, Zong Shou had practiced Soul Departure daily, confronting the violent winds and using the Solar Essence Flame within the moonlight to continuously temper it. He had, in fact, long completed this phase.

What he lacked was only the sheer quantity of Soul Power. Only now had he reached the required threshold to proceed to the next stage of practice.

Shifting the wooden tub aside, Zong Shou, as was his routine, first fed the mutated Slime Beast housed in the ironwood jar.

The food now offered was not only upgraded in mineral quality but the Beast Crystals had increased to the second tier.

Listening to the crunching sounds from inside, a smile touched Zong Shou’s face.

In a few more days, the Soul Power he had accumulated would be sufficient to subdue this future Guardian Spirit Beast. And in about half a month, this beast would evolve to the second tier, preliminarily acquiring abilities that were intensely coveted.

However, when his gaze fell upon the remaining few dozen Beast Crystals in his pouch, a look of frustration once again crossed Zong Shou’s face.

Practicing the Qi Refining Art and feeding the Spirit Beast had caused his wealth to plummet drastically. If there were no further replenishments, it would inevitably run out one day.

“Hm? This wind feels a bit off?”

Zong Shou abruptly stepped forward, walking to the window to meet the breeze that swept in from outside.

The next moment, he saw a flurry of commotion in the street below, with some people running wildly and shouting: “The great wind is rising! The opening of the Lingyun Sect is imminent—”