Chapter 191: Exceptionally Gifted
Ye Huang arrived shortly and left with a thoughtful expression after a brief discussion with Chen Yin.
As soon as he left, another knock came at the door.
“Big Brother, Lian’er is here again!”
Chen Yin opened the door, and there she stood, in her short, light gray dress, her silver jewelry jingling.
Lian’er had been coming every day for her cultivation lessons. After Chen Yin helped her open her meridians, she could now absorb spiritual energy.
She had taken her first step on the path of cultivation.
The process had been mostly smooth, albeit a little… distracting.
Chen Yin watched her munching on a pastry and cleared his throat, trying to sound serious.
“Lian’er, listen carefully. After all your hard work, your spiritual energy can now flow freely through your meridians.”
“So, today, we’ll be taking a very important step.”
“…Gathering Qi in your dantian and embarking on the path of immortality.”
Lian’er’s eyes widened with excitement. “Today? Really?”
“Yay! Lian’er won’t be scolded by the Grand Witch anymore!”
Seeing her cheerful reaction, Chen Yin wondered how the Grand Witch usually treated her.
“Pay close attention to what I’m about to teach you…”
He carefully explained the key principles of Gathering Qi.
Gathering Qi was the process of absorbing spiritual energy from the world, circulating it through the meridians and acupoints, and then condensing it within the dantian.
After this baptism of spiritual energy, the body would no longer rely on food for sustenance, but on the essence of heaven and earth.
It was a complete transformation.
“Although it sounds simple, the amount and purity of the spiritual energy absorbed during Gathering Qi will greatly affect your future cultivation.”
Chen Yin said seriously, “I’ll provide you with the best possible conditions, but you must be prepared to endure some discomfort.”
Lian’er nodded seriously.
“Lian’er is not afraid of pain.”
Chen Yin ruffled her hair and instructed her to sit cross-legged on the bed.
…Once this was done, he could finally ask the Grand Witch to take him to the Phantasmal Harmony Ganoderma.
He sat behind her, closed his eyes, and formed a hand seal.
A surge of spiritual energy flooded the room, a gentle, invisible wind rustling Lian’er’s clothes and hair.
But Chen Yin just glanced at the incoming energy and dismissed it.
It wasn’t pure enough.
The spiritual energy in the Wu Xuan Cave was tainted with miasma, far below his standards.
Since he had made a promise to the Grand Witch, he might as well do it properly and provide Lian’er with the best possible foundation.
He pulled out countless pill bottles from the System Shop and crushed them into powder.
This time, a pure and potent vortex of spiritual energy, almost tangible, enveloped Lian’er’s small body.
A look of pain crossed her face.
“Hold on,” Chen Yin said softly.
Lian’er nodded, biting her lip.
Chen Yin began channeling the spiritual energy, guiding it through her body, following the principles of the “Forgotten Everlasting Heart Sutra.”
In this state of heightened awareness, his surroundings transformed. He was no longer in his room, but in a vast expanse of pure spiritual energy.
Lian’er stood before him, naked, her skin as white and smooth as jade, bathed in the gentle flow of spiritual energy.
Chen Yin’s heart skipped a beat at the sight.
But he was no longer a virgin, so he quickly composed himself and focused on controlling the energy flow.
The pure and potent spiritual energy circulated through Lian’er’s meridians, slowly converging towards her dantian.
Although Lian’er’s brow was furrowed in concentration, she didn’t make a sound.
Chen Yin breathed a sigh of relief.
Once all the energy had been absorbed into her dantian, the process would be complete.
But several minutes passed.
And Chen Yin realized something was wrong.
…This wasn’t normal.
Why wasn’t it over yet?
Lian’er was a beginner, her dantian untrained.
Even a small fraction of the energy he had gathered should have been enough for her to reach the Gathering Qi Realm.
But her dantian continued to absorb the vast amounts of spiritual energy, showing no signs of reaching its limit.
What was going on? Chen Yin frowned.
Ignoring any sense of propriety, he gently placed his hand on her lower abdomen, sensing the flow of energy towards her dantian.
…There was nothing wrong with her dantian. It wasn’t even close to being full.
But it was like a bottomless pit, endlessly absorbing the incoming energy.
Chen Yin watched her closely, ready to stop the process at any moment if something went wrong.
But everything seemed to be proceeding smoothly.
Until the surrounding spiritual energy began to dissipate, and Lian’er’s dantian still showed no signs of being full.
Chen Yin hesitated, then gritted his teeth and pulled out more pills from the System Shop, crushing them into powder.
Another wave of potent spiritual energy surged towards Lian’er’s dantian.
…
Chen Yin had thought this would be a simple process, completed before nightfall.
But as night fell, the room was filled with piles of empty pill bottles.
Lian’er’s dantian finally showed a hint of fullness.
After another round of pills, her dantian finally seemed to reach its limit. Chen Yin breathed a sigh of relief, dispersed the remaining energy, and turned to look at her intently.
Lian’er opened her eyes, her expression weary.
Her body was covered in sweat, her hair and clothes clinging to her skin, outlining her curves.
“Big Brother… is it finally over?” she asked, her eyes filled with a mixture of exhaustion and relief.
Chen Yin nodded silently.
“Are you feeling any discomfort?”
“I’m fine… just a little sticky and uncomfortable.”
Lian’er wrinkled her nose, looking at her sweat-soaked clothes with a displeased expression.
“That’s normal. Gathering Qi is like a baptism for your body, cleansing it of impurities.”
“So this is all dirt?”
Lian’er’s frown deepened. “Big Brother, do you have any other clothes? Can I borrow some?”
Chen Yin thought for a moment and pulled out a light yellow dress from the System Shop.
Lian’er immediately started undressing.
“Hey, wait!”
Chen Yin was startled. “What are you doing? I’m still here!”
“Changing clothes.” Lian’er blinked her large, innocent eyes. “Why are you leaving, Big Brother?”
“You’re… a girl…”
“But you’ve already touched Lian’er everywhere. What’s the big deal about seeing me?”
Chen Yin was speechless.
This girl was more shameless than he was.
Although Lian’er didn’t seem to mind, Chen Yin blushed and turned away.
After a moment of rustling, Lian’er emerged in the new dress, but she still looked dissatisfied.
“I’m still dirty… I need to take a bath.”
“It’s fine, you can wash up later when you get back.”
“Do you want to join me, Big Brother?” Lian’er looked at him seriously.
“…No, thank you.”
For some reason, Chen Yin felt like he was the one being teased.
But looking at this innocent and pure girl, he couldn’t bring himself to have any impure thoughts.
Such pure and innocent girls were rare.
As Lian’er was about to leave, Chen Yin called out to her, “If you feel any discomfort in the next few days, tell me immediately.”
“Okay.” Lian’er thought for a moment, then asked, “Can I come and play with Big Brother even if I’m not feeling unwell?”
Chen Yin figured it would be good to check on her regularly, so he nodded.
“Thank you, Big Brother!”
Lian’er smiled brightly and skipped away.
Chen Yin watched her go, a thoughtful expression on his face.
A moment later, Qingying appeared beside him.
“You’ve been busy. From afternoon till night.”
“You noticed?”
“It’s hard to miss such a huge surge of spiritual energy.” Qingying scoffed. “Does Gathering Qi really take that long? Or were you taking advantage of her?”
Although Qingying was being playful, Chen Yin shook his head seriously.
“…It’s strange. How could a beginner’s dantian hold so much spiritual energy?”
“How much?”
“Almost as much as an Entering Gate Realm cultivator.”
“Entering Gate?” Qingying’s eyes widened in surprise. “But she just opened her meridians this week!”
Chen Yin didn’t answer.
He was starting to think he had underestimated the Grand Witch’s request.
…This was a level of talent he had never seen before.
The more spiritual energy a dantian could hold, the stronger the foundation.
With such talent, Lian’er would be a treasure in any sect, someone to be cherished and protected.
The Grand Witch must have known about Lian’er’s talent. The Wu Xuan Cave wouldn’t overlook someone like her.
But she had still sent her to him, not even allowing her to learn their own sect’s techniques.
Chen Yin didn’t understand her intentions.
But it was none of his business.
He and the Grand Witch had a deal.
He would teach Lian’er how to cultivate, and she would help him save Ye Ling’er.
There was no need for him to overthink it.
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