"Welcome back, Yuan."
The first person to notice his presence was Zhu Yuying.
"How was your visit with my Master?"
"It went better than I’d expected," he said.
"That’s great to hear. Anyways, I gave your friend the perfect cultivation technique, but if you need anything else, just let me know."
"Really? How much will it cost?" Yuan asked, expecting to pay for it.
"My Master said it’s for free so you don’t have to pay a single gold."
"Free again? I kind of feel bad now." A bittersweet smile appeared on Yuan’s face.
"Don’t worry about it. My Master has plenty of techniques, and it’s only a Divine-rank technique. If he cannot afford to give away techniques, he wouldn’t be doing it in the first place."
"Alright." Yuan nodded.
Sometime later, Yuan and the others prepared to leave the Myriad of Techniques.
"See you again next time, Yuan. Though, I will be replaced in a few weeks, so I might not be able to see you until you reach the fifth heaven."
"The fifth heaven?" Yuan asked.
"There are nine heavens, and the place you’re at right now is the first heaven, also known as the Lower Heavens."
"I see... But that might take a while."
"It’s okay. I can wait." Zhu Yuying said with a bright smile on her face.
A few minutes later, Yuan and the others left the store, and they returned to Long Chen City.
"What are we going to do now, Young Master?" Feng Yuxiang asked him.
"Let’s find a place where Meixiu can cultivate in peace," he said.
"Is there a Cultivators’ Haven in this city?"
"I think so." Feng Yuxiang nodded.
"Okay, let’s go."
Feng Yuxiang and Lan Yingying returned to his body to make traveling more convenient, but Xiao Hua decided to stay with Yuan and Meixiu.
"Are you okay, Brother Yuan?" Xiao Hua asked him when she noticed him staring at her.
"Yes, I am fine." Yuan nodded.
Although Xu Jiaqi warned him about Xiao Hua, even telling him to separate from her, he still trusted her.
’An exile, huh? I never got to ask them about it. Though, it doesn’t matter. Xiao Hua is still Xiao Hua no matter what background she has.’ Yuan thought to himself.
Sometime later, Yuan asked the pedestrians about the Cultivators’ Haven.
Once he had the directions, they began making their way towards the place.
About half an hour later, they arrived before a tall building that looked very familiar to Yuan, as the place resembled the one in Spring City.
"Welcome to Cultivators’ Haven! How may I help you today?" A pretty lady asked them from behind the desk.
"I’d like to borrow one room from the highest floor for seven days," Yuan said to her.
"You seem like you’ve been with us before. Do you have a key?" The worker asked him.
"No, I don’t."
"That’s okay, we can give you a new one. For seven days, it will cost you 7,000 gold coins."
It was at this moment Yuan realized that he had no money besides the spirit stones given to him by Xi Meili.
"Actually, can you make it 10 days instead of 7? I will pay with a spirit stone. It is worth 10,000 gold, right?"
"Spirit stones? If you pay with spirit stones, you get bonus time, so you’ll actually get 15 days instead of 10."
"That sounds great." Yuan nodded and handed one spirit stone to the worker behind the desk.
After accepting the spirit stone, the lady went to the back to prepare his key.
A few minutes later, she returned with the key and handed it to him.
Once they had the key, Yuan went upstairs with the others until they reached the top floor.
"How do I cultivate this technique? I have never cultivated before." Meixiu asked him after they entered the room.
"You basically read whatever is in the technique and recite it until you ’comprehend’ the technique. Once you comprehend it, you can practice it and begin absorbing the spiritual energy in the air and cultivate."
"Okay."
Meixiu then took a seat in the middle of the room and opened the scroll in her hands.
"Spirit Severing Scripture? It has the same name as my physique..." Meixiu mumbled.
It was no wonder Zhu Yuying picked this cultivation technique for her, as the technique seemed like it was literally created for her physique.
Meixiu began to read the scripture.
Although the words were foreign and she has never seen them before, Meixiu was able to comprehend the words for some reason and read the scripture without a problem.
And a few minutes later, after reading through the Spirit Severing Scripture just once, a notification appeared before Meixiu.
Ding!
[You have learned Spirit Severing Scripture!]
[Spirit Severing Scripture]
[Rank: Divine]
[Mastery Level: 1]
[Description: Absorbs 5 Qi per second. If used during Spirit Form, you will absorb 50 Qi per second instead.]
Once she learned the cultivation technique, Meixiu closed her eyes and began reciting the technique inside her mind.
Soon, her breathing patterns changed.
[You have cultivated for the first time, unlocking Qi Experience]
[Due to Qi Gathering Array, your Qi absorption rate has increased slight]
[5/5,000]
[12/5,000]
[17/5,000]
[24/5,000]
In just a couple of minutes after Meixiu started cultivating, she reached her first breakthrough.
[You have succeeded in breaking through your mortal shackles, becoming a Spirit Apprentice!]
[Physical Strength, Physical Defense +75]
[Mental Strength, Mental Defense +150]
Name: Meixiu
Cultivation: First Level Spirit Apprentice
Legacy: None
Bloodline: None
Physique: Spirit Severing Physique
Physical Strength: 157
Mental Strength: 1,870
Soul Strength: 555
Physical Defense: 109
Mental Defense: 300
"Wow, she made a breakthrough already? That was faster than I’d expected. This cultivation technique was definitely made for her." Yuan mumbled in a low voice when he saw Meixiu absorbing spiritual energy after a single read and breaking through mere minutes after she started cultivating.
Although she was assisted by the Qi Gathering Array in the Cultivators’ Haven, Meixiu still managed to breakthrough faster than Yuan when he first started cultivating.