Gateway of Immortality

Chapter 64: Sixth Stage

In this place, even with the Yang Warming Pill on him, he could not ward off the bone-chilling cold.

According to Senior Brother Liang Yan, when they first acquired the Yan Luo Banner, King Yan's strength was only equivalent to a cultivator in the first stage of the Qi Refining Realm. They only needed to absorb the malevolent yin qi from the top layer of the Yin Malevolent Abyss, allowing King Yan’s strength to gradually increase before delving deeper bit by bit.

At this position, even when using the Qi Perception Technique, the visibility was quite limited. Qin Sang could only see a senior brother sitting cross-legged on the cliffs on either side of the Yin Malevolent Valley, controlling King Yan to absorb the malevolent yin qi.

Every time King Yan absorbed a wisp of malevolent yin qi, the senior brother would collect it into the Yan Luo Banner, his spiritual consciousness sinking into the banner to suppress King Yan, and then repeat the process after a while.

Others, lacking the protection of the Jade Buddha, had to be extremely cautious whether they were controlling King Yan to absorb malevolent yin qi or using Soul Pills for cultivation. Only Qin Sang dared to use Soul Pills continuously and let King Yan be so unrestrained.

Finding a secluded corner, Qin Sang activated the Malevolence-Avoiding Pouch to its fullest, ventured into the malevolent yin qi, and after a certain distance, took out the Yan Luo Banner, clearly feeling King Yan’s excited emotions.

Indeed, the efficiency of absorbing malevolent yin qi was much higher than that of devouring souls. In no time, King Yan's strength was restored, and Qin Sang ordered him to produce Soul Pills until he had accumulated a month's worth. After waiting a few more hours, he set up the Malevolence-Avoiding Pouch and returned to his cave dwelling.

From then on, Qin Sang’s life became highly regimented. At the end of each month, he would consult Senior Uncle Yue, retrieve Soul Pills from the Yin Malevolent Abyss, and then remain in his cave dwelling, where food was delivered daily.

With no disturbances, he could focus entirely on cultivation, balancing both his arts and spells.

In less than a year, Qin Sang reached the peak of the fifth stage, feeling the bottleneck of the sixth stage, and the sense of helplessness returned.

He had now received guidance from Senior Uncle Yue, understanding that being more anxious only worsened the situation. Therefore, he only spent three to four hours daily on cultivation, dedicating the rest of his time to practicing spells and the Song Family Sword Art.

Six months later, Qin Sang became quite proficient with Cloud Evasion and Thousand Li Ice Seal. Although not yet at the level of manipulating spells with ease, he was adept enough for combat.

Nowadays, even without the Malevolence-Avoiding Pouch, Qin Sang could use Cloud Evasion to traverse the air for a while. The primary use of Cloud Evasion remained in concealment, allowing him to hide within clouds and mist or make a swift escape when faced with powerful foes.

Regarding Thousand Li Ice Seal, Qin Sang focused not only on the extent and strength of the mystic ice but also on refining his techniques—transforming ice into swords, knives, or even ice needles for traps.

The mystic ice created by this spell was exceptionally sturdy, and with precise timing, it could yield surprising results in battle.

The Song Family Sword Art progressed the slowest. Despite prolonged nurturing, Qin Sang still struggled to master the ebony sword.

Today was another session where Senior Uncle Yue lectured on the scriptures. Qin Sang stopped his training and walked out of his cave dwelling, coincidentally encountering Tan Jie coming out as well.

Among the seven who had entered, only four remained: Qin Sang, the Tan brothers, and Shi Hong.

One senior brother had died in the cave dwelling due to King Yan's backlash, while the other two had never emerged from the Yin Malevolent Abyss, with their deaths being predictable.

Qin Sang privately sighed, realizing why senior brothers and sisters had been so indifferent to seeing someone struck by King Yan’s backlash on their first day. Such occurrences were too common.

Over the past year, Qin Sang had witnessed several backlashes firsthand, and countless had died inexplicably in the Yin Malevolent Abyss. The fact that more than half of their batch had survived was quite rare.

Later batches of junior brothers and sisters had suffered complete annihilation.

The entire Kuiyin Sect, though said to have over a thousand disciples, only had three to four hundred listeners each time Senior Uncle Yue gave a lecture. This was with a continuous influx of new disciples.

Seeing only Tan Jie coming out, Qin Sang knew that Tan Hao was once again in secluded cultivation.

Since joining the sect, Qin Sang had only seen Tan Hao twice. Tan Hao had never attended Senior Uncle Yue's lectures, with only Tan Jie attending each time. Tan Jie explained that his older brother was obsessed with cultivation and did not want to waste time, so any questions were posed by Tan Jie on his behalf.

Although Qin Sang had a good relationship with Tan Jie, he remained quite unfamiliar with Tan Hao.

Passing by Shi Hong’s cave dwelling, Tan Jie glanced over and asked softly, "Brother Qin, is Senior Sister Shi Hong still in secluded cultivation?"

Qin Sang nodded. "She’s been in seclusion for two full months. She should be on the verge of breaking through to the sixth stage."

Shi Hong was the most talented among their group and, like Tan Hao, was a cultivation fanatic. Two months ago, she sensed an opportunity for a breakthrough and had since been in seclusion.

Tan Jie expressed his envy. "If Senior Sister Shi Hong can break through within six months, she will receive a top-grade artifact as a reward. Brother Qin, you should be close to a breakthrough yourself, right?"

Qin Sang smiled wryly. "It’s not that easy. You know my aptitude. I’m still struggling to find a breakthrough. You’ll likely advance faster than I will."

In fact, Qin Sang had felt a loosening of the bottleneck three months ago. With a period of secluded cultivation, breaking through to the sixth stage would be possible, but he had held back.

The two continued exchanging cultivation insights as they walked towards Senior Uncle Yue’s cave dwelling.

During this lecture, Qin Sang focused on asking about issues related to spell cultivation. Senior Uncle Yue was generous with his teachings, providing detailed explanations that greatly benefited Qin Sang.

As the lecture was nearing its end, a red streak of light suddenly pierced the air with considerable momentum. Qin Sang turned to see that it was Senior Sister Shi Hong.

Shi Hong had a red silk artifact before joining the sect, which now enveloped her and condensed into a streak of light. Her speed was astonishing.

Shi Hong’s spiritual power fluctuations were noticeably more profound than before. Qin Sang, sensing this, stepped aside and cupped his hands, saying, "Congratulations, Senior Sister, on breaking through to the sixth stage of the Qi Refining Realm!"

Even though Shi Hong was typically reserved, her excitement was apparent as she nodded at Qin Sang and then addressed Senior Uncle Yue. "I pay my respects to Senior Uncle Yue."

Senior Uncle Yue, having examined Shi Hong’s cultivation, clapped his hands and smiled, "Excellent! Excellent! Excellent! Truly deserving of your dual spiritual roots. You all may leave for now. Shi Hong, come with me."

By evening, Qin Sang heard the sound of Shi Hong’s streak of light as she exited the cave dwelling. Just then, he coincidentally encountered Tan Jie also leaving his room. The two shared a smile and knocked on Shi Hong’s cave dwelling door.

Though they had entered the sect together and exchanged little on a daily basis, they were closer to each other than to other senior brothers. Qin Sang and Tan Jie inquired about various matters, and Shi Hong answered them with great care.

It turned out that the promised top-grade artifacts were not given out at the moment of breakthrough but were distributed to all disciples meeting the requirements at an agreed-upon time.

During this period, Shi Hong was to remain focused on cultivation in her cave dwelling. Senior Uncle Yue provided her with the latter part of the cultivation method and gave her detailed guidance and encouragement, without assigning her any additional tasks.