Free Web NovelChapter 10: Chapter 10: Replete Qi Sea
Yang Wenqing suppressed his elation as he felt the rate at which his Qi Sea was absorbing Spiritual Qi. His consciousness flashed through the Golden Core World, and a plan quickly formed in his mind.
This piece of the Cultivator’s skeleton gathered Spiritual Qi faster than the Spirit Gathering Array in the bureau’s training room. The only drawback was that the Spiritual Qi it gathered was crude, but with his Golden Core World, Yang Wenqing could completely ignore that flaw. With this bone, he could draw Spiritual Qi into his body to cultivate without even needing to practice his fist techniques.
’At this rate, I might be able to shorten the two years I’d planned on to a few months, maybe even just one.’
"Wenqing, you can’t rush cultivation!" Li Ming warned, noticing the gleam in Yang Wenqing’s eyes. He had seen that look far too many times and knew exactly what Yang Wenqing was thinking right now. freewebnovёl.ƈom
"That’s right, Wenqing. You’re still young," Zhou Kun chimed in, trying to persuade him. "If you aren’t careful cultivating with this, you’ll damage your Spiritual Veins. One wrong move, and you might completely lose your chance to ever reach the Qi Cultivation Stage."
"How much is this thing worth?" Yang Wenqing asked.
"I don’t know, but probably not much," Li Ming responded. "It’s completely useless to most low-level Cultivators. Once you reach the Qi Cultivation Stage, you wouldn’t use it anymore. Its greatest value is being collected by some research institute for strange experiments."
He paused after speaking, then stared at Yang Wenqing and added, "You should know that setting up a Spirit Gathering Array suitable for our level is very complex because our Spiritual Veins are extremely fragile. In most cases, even the sons of wealthy families don’t use spirit-gathering methods to cultivate at this stage."
Yang Wenqing fell silent for a few seconds before meeting Li Ming’s gaze. "Thank you for the warning, Brother Ming. I just want to give it a try. How about I use it to cultivate for a while before we sell it?"
Li Ming and Zhou Kun exchanged a glance. Both of them wanted to refuse. It wasn’t that they were afraid Yang Wenqing would keep it for himself, but that he would overdo his cultivation and permanently damage his Spiritual Veins.
"I can’t give you an answer. I’ll report this to the captain and let him talk to you."
That was Li Ming’s answer. He then added, "For now, put it away. We need to destroy these buildings and clear out the bodies."
"No problem!" Yang Wenqing nodded. He wrapped the section of spine in a clean piece of oilcloth and tucked it into an inside pocket of his tactical backpack.
The three then dragged the Demon corpses scattered across the clearing into a single pile.
The Demons’ pelts, claws, bones, and even their flesh, which contained traces of Spiritual Qi, were all materials of some value to the City Defense Bureau or certain Commerce Associations. A specialized militia team would come later to handle the more detailed processing and cataloging.
Li Ming pulled a pale yellow sheet of rune paper from his folder. After activating it, a breeze carrying a fresh scent instantly formed, spreading outward from the center of the corpse pile. This would disrupt and disperse the heavy stench of blood.
Then, Yang Wenqing’s three-man team continued to push southward.
Perhaps due to the presence of the Wolf Demon Tribe, all the other Demons and Spirit Monsters in the surrounding area had either been absorbed or driven away. Consequently, during the rest of their sweep, they only encountered a few weak beasts and some scattered Spirit Monsters, dealing with them effortlessly.
Around three in the afternoon, they reached the border of their designated zone, left a marker, and then the three of them headed back to camp along the same route.
By the time they returned to camp, the setting sun had stained the horizon red. Other squad members were also trickling back, and the camp was noticeably more bustling than it had been the day before.
Yang Wenqing had just gotten back to their quarters and set down his gear when Captain Xiao Liang approached him.
"Li Ming told me everything," Xiao Liang said, getting straight to the point. He looked at Yang Wenqing and asked, "Are you sure you want to take this risk?"
"Captain, I understand the risks," Yang Wenqing said sincerely. "I’ll be extremely careful. If I feel the slightest discomfort in my Spiritual Veins, I’ll stop immediately. I know my limits; I wouldn’t gamble with my future."
Xiao Liang stared at Yang Wenqing for several seconds. Yang Wenqing’s gaze was clear and unwavering.
"Fine. Since you’re so insistent, you can do as you’ve said. Just remember: know your limits."
"Thank you, Captain!"
A look of gratitude spread across Yang Wenqing’s face.
However, although Xiao Liang agreed on the surface, he secretly resolved to keep a close watch on Yang Wenqing’s condition over the next two days while they were out. If anything seemed amiss, he would immediately and forcefully intervene.
Not long after Xiao Liang left, Ye Yong came running over to get Yang Wenqing for dinner.
After dinner, the camp gradually grew quiet. Most of the team members seized the opportunity to rest, recovering the physical and mental energy they had expended during the day. Only the militia on patrol paced back and forth along the perimeter fence.
Yang Wenqing found a relatively secluded corner. He first went through the fist techniques of the Energy-Introducing Skill three times, as was his habit, to bring his body to its optimal state. Only then did he sit down cross-legged and pick up the oilcloth-wrapped section of spine.
In just a moment, the Spiritual Qi in the air seemed to be drawn in by an invisible field, converging on him rapidly. Yang Wenqing immediately focused all his effort on guiding the gathered Spiritual Qi into his body.
His narrow Qi Sea couldn’t refine this forcefully gathered Spiritual Qi quickly enough, and it surged directly into the Spiritual Veins throughout his body.
Therefore, Yang Wenqing immediately entered his Golden Core World. He used its power to refine the Spiritual Qi before guiding it through a Grand Circulation in his Spiritual Veins.
Despite this, he could still see fine cracks appearing in his Spiritual Veins, a result of the excessive speed of circulation. Yang Wenqing didn’t stop. He gritted his teeth and pushed on with his cultivation, because in that moment, he could clearly feel his Spiritual Veins slowly expanding.
As time went on, however, the strain on his Spiritual Veins grew heavier. Waves of tearing pain spread from his limbs, reminding him that his body was approaching its limit. He only cut off the connection to the spinal bone when he felt his Spiritual Veins were on the verge of collapsing, threatening to damage his very foundation.
Now, his Qi Sea was filled to the brim, a result more potent than several days of normal, arduous cultivation. The price, however, was that his Spiritual Veins were covered in minute injuries, which brought with them a searing, stinging pain.
Yang Wenqing didn’t dare to delay. He immediately focused his mind and began circulating the "Basic Qi Cultivation" technique with all his might, mobilizing the overflowing, pure Spiritual Qi from his Qi Sea to repair his damaged Spiritual Veins.
By the time he had mostly repaired his major Spiritual Veins, he realized the sky had become completely dark.
He exhaled a breath of turbid air, feeling the fullness of his Qi Sea with a deep sense of satisfaction. Just then, he noticed that not far away, Captain Xiao Liang was sitting cross-legged beside a supply crate. He appeared to be meditating with his eyes closed, but his position was perfectly angled to keep the corner where Yang Wenqing had been cultivating within his peripheral vision.
Yang Wenqing instantly understood. ’The captain was afraid I’d overdo it, so he was standing guard for me.’
...
「The next morning」
As dawn was just breaking, a shrill whistle for assembly echoed through the camp.
All patrol members quickly dressed and jogged to the center of the camp to fall into formation. Director Wang Ren stood before them, his expression even more solemn than the day before.
"After yesterday’s preliminary sweep, the external threats have been mostly eliminated," Wang Ren’s voice carried across the camp. "Today, the six patrol squads will converge and advance deeper into the forest in a fan formation. Our objective is to clear out all sizable Demon gathering points in this region and completely eradicate any hidden threats..."
Over the next three days, the cleanup operation went into full swing.
Director Wang Ren personally commanded the operation. The six patrol squads advanced steadily deeper into the forest. The few Demon Race gathering points they encountered were reduced to ruins under hails of gunfire, so much so that neither Director Wang Ren nor the six squad captains ever had a reason to make a move.
Every day at five in the afternoon, the teams would punctually return to the forward operating base established by the militia to rest. During these times, Yang Wenqing would find a secluded spot to cultivate with the spinal bone, and Captain Xiao Liang would invariably be "coincidentally" meditating or handling business not far away.
It was worth noting that Cultivator remains were found at one other gathering point, but they were only two rib bones, nearly weathered away to dust.
Three days later, the primary threats in Forest No. 13 had been essentially purged. Long-term monitoring Arrays and simple outposts were established in several key locations.
And so, the main force began their return to Qianjiao County.
As the year drew to a close, the festive atmosphere of the New Year was growing stronger in the county seat, but the security station’s work didn’t let up. Manpower was especially tight during the Spring Festival, when more people were needed to maintain order.
As a rookie, Yang Wenqing was assigned to consecutive duty shifts.
Perhaps because it was the Spring Festival holiday, there was still no word from the buyer the captain had contacted about the spinal bone.
Yang Wenqing spent the entire first month of the new year on duty, on patrol, or cultivating. Whenever he returned to his dorm, he would take out the spinal bone and cultivate with the aid of his Golden Core World.
This routine continued until a chilly night at the end of the first month. As Yang Wenqing finished his cultivation session as usual, he suddenly felt something stir within him.
He immediately focused his mind inward, using his Golden Core World to observe the Spiritual Veins inside his body...
He saw that his Qi Sea, long since filled to its absolute limit, had finally reached a critical point. A strange sense of saturation and a rhythmic pulsing emanated from the Spiritual Veins throughout his body, as if some kind of shackle was about to break.
Yang Wenqing’s eyes shot open. He suppressed his excitement and muttered to himself, "This is faster than I imagined. With the amount of refined Spiritual Qi in my Qi Sea right now, I probably won’t even need a Dragon Ginseng Pill to break through to the Qi Cultivation Stage!"
