(6 hours later, Inner Alchemy Halls.)

Yuelan stared at the boiling cauldron in front of her.

There were hundreds of colors mixed within it, and each one of them was swirling vividly. Bubbles formed and then popped, sending a few droplets of boiling water onto her hand.

She flinched slightly, but it didn’t hurt nearly as much as she was expecting. If anything, it was more like a bee sting than actual boiling water.

Still...

"You sure this is safe...?" Yuelan asked, turning to the haggard Lijun Fen beside the cauldron.

"It’s safe," Lijun Fen said coldly. "You made me carry hundreds of buckets of Myriad Spirit Water up and down the mountain peak... You really are a devil."

"I didn’t make you," Yuelan replied with a chuckle. "I told you that I would be very happy if I could bathe in that water, and you just happened to be nearby. What a coincidence, isn’t it...?"

Of course, Yuelan was bullshitting through her teeth.

She had told Lijun Fen about the Myriad Spirit Pond and where it was. He went up the mountain peak to confirm, and after that, he began transporting the water down to the Azure Sky Sect.

He was very eager about it, and despite his grumpy appearance now, this would benefit the sect.

But Yuelan was stern about one thing.

"You do remember the deal, don’t you?" Yuelan asked.

Lijun Fen nodded. "We may use the Myriad Spirit Water however we want, but you’re the one who gave it to us... so you have priority over the other disciples."

"Yep, good. That’s all, Lijun Fen, thanks for all the help. I’m going to hop inside the concoction, so you may leave now," Yuelan said.

Before he left, he gave her a few points.

"When you get inside, immediately start cultivating. That way, you won’t feel that much pain." Lijun Fen narrowed his eyes. "And don’t even try to absorb everything at once. This process should take an hour if you do it correctly... but in your case, two hours since you have double the pills."

Yuelan listened attentively, and then gave him a thumbs-up. "Understood. I’ll get in right away then."

Hearing that, Lijun Fen finally made his way out of the room. A slight clack resounded, meaning he had sealed the pill room’s door from the outside.

It wasn’t only about privacy, but also about Qi escaping the room.

There was an array around the pill room, and after the door was sealed, the array was activated, making sure that no Qi escaped. This was something Lijun Fen had prepared after he was done bringing the Myriad Spirit Water back to the sect.

Nonetheless, Yuelan took a deep breath and undressed before dipping one foot into the boiling cauldron.

She winced in pain, and it felt like her skin was starting to peel.

However, no one said getting power was easy, and she played more than enough games to know how cultivation power-ups worked.

The higher the realm, the bigger the masochist, Yuelan thought.

She hesitated for only a second before fully dipping both her legs into the cauldron, and a moment later, her entire upper body, to the point where only her head remained above the boiling Myriad Spirit Water.

Ugh... Yuelan held back a groan as her entire body began to twitch.

But she soon refocused and activated her Seven Petal Bloom Qi Gathering Technique.

And to her surprise...

<+59,942 Qi>

<+48,474 Qi>

<+50,198 Qi>

Yuelan’s eyes widened at the amount of Qi she was getting, but that wasn’t all.

After a minute passed, she felt the effects of the One Thousand Pill Baptism grow stronger, to the point where even the amount of Qi she was getting practically doubled.

<+109,155 Qi>

<+121,829 Qi>

<+125,999 Qi>

It keeps increasing... Yuelan smiled and fell deeper into focus.

What she didn’t realize, however, was the fact that with each passing second, her body became more lustrous, glowing in all kinds of shades.

Her muscles were becoming more defined, and her body itself was undergoing a severe transformation, one that she was too focused to see.

<+228,447 Qi>

<+392,884 Qi>

<+620,194 Qi>

.

.

.

<You have absorbed enough Qi for a breakthrough! (x4)>

<You have reached Ninth Level Spirit Warrior>

<All stats +8,700>

<You have absorbed enough Qi for a breakthrough>

<Because your Qi experience is already full, you will not be able to receive any more Qi until you reach the next realm.>

<Ding!>

<Requirements to breakthrough into the Spirit Master realm>

1. Kill 50 Spirit Master monsters of any level. (0 / 50)

2. Complete the Scripture of the Moonpiercing Saintess - Trial 2: Swordsmanship (Incomplete)

3. Attune yourself to your natural Qi Affinity (Partially Complete)

Yuelan only briefly glanced at the pop-ups, and she realized she had already gotten enough Qi to be able to reach the Spirit Master realm; she only needed to complete the requirements.

And thankfully, the requirements were pretty easy this time.

I can ask about the Qi Affinity attunement later, and as for the others, they’re pretty straightforward.

But even as that good news rolled in, there was one issue.

Not even an hour passed and I’ve already hit the limit... am I just supposed to soak here? Yuelan thought with a conflicted look.

But that was when she remembered something.

Xuan had given her the Void Qi Gathering Technique, and while she knew it wouldn’t be as effective as cultivating beside Space Qi, Time Qi, or Death Qi, there were not many other options.

Therefore, she took another deep breath and activated the Void Qi Gathering Technique.

<+10 Void Qi>

<+10 Void Qi>

<+4,492 Void Qi>

Huh? Yuelan froze, canceling her cultivation as the water suddenly turned purple after the massive wave of Qi.

But that wasn’t all, as less than a moment later...

<Ding!>

<You have reached the next level for Void Qi> 𝒻𝑟ℯℯ𝑤𝑒𝑏𝑛𝘰𝓋𝑒𝓁.𝒸𝑜𝘮

<+1 Elemental Affinity Unlocked>

<Bonus: Your natural Elemental Affinity has been slightly upgraded!>