Gao Xian woke up from the clear state of meditation, exhaling a long breath, completing the final step of cultivating the Great Five Elements Technique.
The Five Elements Technique originates from the Great Five Elements Technique, especially the first three foundational methods are exactly the same.
His transition to cultivating the Great Five Elements Technique can be said to be very smooth, without any difficulty.
However, the expert-level Five Elements Technique, once converted to the Great Five Elements Technique, becomes an entry-level practice.
This point is clearly marked in the Wind and Moon Treasure Mirror.
Great Five Elements Technique: Refine the body, mind, spirit, and soul with the power of the Five Elements. (115/300 at the entry level)
With Lan Jie's help, cultivating the 108 Circulations can increase one's cultivation level slightly.
Under normal circumstances, Gao Xian would circulate the Great Five Elements Technique 108 times in the morning and evening, thus increasing his proficiency by two points per day.
Calculating this way, the cultivation speed is not considered slow.
After transitioning to cultivating the Great Five Elements Technique, Gao Xian clearly felt that the efficiency of absorbing spiritual energy had increased significantly, his mana became more abundant and pure, and the circulation of mana became more smooth and natural.
These changes are difficult to quantify with specific values but have comprehensively altered his cultivation state, the state of his mana circulation, and consequently have had a considerable impact on his body, mind, spirit, and soul.
Although the Great Odd Divine Art and the Electric Dragon Hand are powerful, they are techniques for manipulating power.
The Great Five Elements Technique is a technique for cultivating power, so the Great Five Elements Technique is the foundation of everything.
Without the Great Five Elements Technique, no matter how strong other spells are, they cannot unleash their power.
Gao Xian understands this principle very well, but the Great Five Elements Technique cannot be expedited; it can only be cultivated through hard work, making progress slow.
Fortunately, the Wind and Moon Treasure Mirror allows him to gain something from each cultivation session, steadily moving forward, surpassing countless cultivators in this aspect.
During this period, Gao Xian also made another discovery, which was the cyan lotus-patterned belt obtained from Bai She.
The Qinglian Belt is about a palm wide and six feet long, made of a material as flexible and tough as cowhide, with a smooth and thick outer layer like silk.
The belt has an adjustable buckle for length and holes on the cyan lotus pattern for hanging items.
The overall style is simple and generous.
Inside the Qinglian Belt, there are three separate storage spaces, each with its own area.
Dividing into three independent spaces also makes it more convenient to categorize personal items.
The belt itself is exceptionally tough, able to withstand sword strikes.
In terms of the belt, it is of very high quality.
Gao Xian had Seven Niang take a look, but even she found it difficult to determine the grade of the belt.
It was the first time she had seen such a finely crafted belt.
More importantly, Gao Xian discovered that the cyan frost sword seemed to have a connection with these two artifacts.
The sword guard of the Qing Frost Sword is in the shape of a lotus flower, and the handle is also covered with lotus patterns.
The so-called Qing Frost Sword should have been named by Yao Qing Frost herself.
Gao Xian decided to rename it the Qinglian Sword, which better suits the temperament of the sword and also helps distinguish it from Yao Qing Frost.
In gaming terms, the Qinglian Crown, Qinglian Belt, and Qinglian Sword are likely a set of top-quality equipment.
However, the Qinglian Sword is more mysterious, and he has not fully understood it yet, nor can he make the Qinglian Sword resonate with the other two artifacts.
Gao Xian believes that the main issue is that his cultivation level is still too weak, and he is unable to truly unlock the hidden changes of the Qinglian Sword.
Back when Yao Qing Frost could resonate with the sword, there was already a faint fusion of body and sword.
Gao Xian doesn't think Yao Qing Frost is a genius in swordsmanship; she was just able to establish some tacit understanding with the sword through long-term use.
It has been almost a year since he obtained the Qinglian Sword, and he feels that there is already a subtle connection between him and the Qinglian Sword.
He believes that it won't be long before he can reach the state of unity between man and sword like Yao Qing Frost.
Gao Xian is quite looking forward to this.
The extreme speed enhanced by the Electric Dragon Hand requires a top-quality sword to fully unleash its power.
According to Seven Niang, the leader of the Red Snake Gang, Red Snake, did not die.
There are other sects supporting the Red Snake Gang from behind.
It is unknown when the Red Snake Gang will make a comeback.
One must be cautious.
Fortunately, he rarely goes out, and his attire is usually inconspicuous.
Besides, with so many members in the Red Snake Gang, how many of them can truly recognize the Qinglian Crown, Belt, and Sword?
Apart from cultivation, Gao Xian had to refine pills in the scorching heat of July.
He had planned it well, preparing enough pills in advance to allow him to rest for four months and spend a leisurely summer.
However, Yun Zong opened the ancient sect ruins, attracting scattered cultivators from all directions.
The Flying Horse Inn saw a surge in the number of scattered cultivators.
According to Zhu Qiuniang, the number of scattered cultivators has now exceeded sixty thousand.
With so many scattered cultivators, various pills and talismans were in high demand.
Especially the Lu Jiao Powder and Tian Gui Pill became the most popular pills.
The four-month stockpile prepared by Gao Xian was quickly running out.
To earn money and also for the sake of humanity's spiritual enlightenment, Gao Xian had to start refining pills in the scorching heat of summer.
To avoid being smoked and roasted by charcoal fire, Gao Xian chose to use spirit stones for alchemy.
The alchemy furnace came with a formation, and the spirit stones could be directly embedded in the grooves of the three legs of the alchemy furnace to activate the water and fire formation for pill refinement.
In the past, Gao Xian was too poor to afford using spirit stones for alchemy.
Now that he was financially comfortable, he was unwilling to suffer.
Three spirit stones could refine three furnaces of pills.
Moreover, without smoke and roasting, the water and fire formation contained the mana within the pill furnace, hardly transmitting it outward.
On the other hand, using spirit stones for pill refinement also resulted in higher quality pills.
After all, charcoal fire was only stable and could not adjust the temperature at will.
Gao Xian had mastered the Ice and Fire Nine Heavens technique, controlling the power of water and fire with great proficiency.
This made him extremely skilled in alchemy.
After adapting to the water and fire formation of the pill furnace, Gao Xian's efficiency in refining pills had greatly improved.
In the blink of an eye, it was already August, and the weather became increasingly hot, with a bit of cool breeze only in the evening.
Taking advantage of the coolness, Gao Xian went to the backyard of the Hundred Soldiers Hall and opened the back door.
He often came here, and the old lady immediately led him to the main hall upon seeing him.
Yellow Ying was very happy to see Gao Xian coming over and promptly sent a helper to bring back some dishes from Lao Li's Wine Shop.
Gao Xian was both happy and a bit worried about Yellow Ying's enthusiasm.
Yellow Ying still had charm and a good figure, making her a beautiful woman.
Men naturally like beautiful women, and it's hard to resist the warmth of a beautiful woman.
Gao Xian was just a bit worried that Yellow Ying might devour him, as there was a hint of fierceness in her bones.
The food and drinks were quickly brought back.
Gao Xian and Yellow Ying had a few drinks, and both of them relaxed.
Gao Xian held Yellow Ying's soft and tender hand, comforting himself in his heart, "It's all for the sake of accompanying a customer, reluctantly, reluctantly..."
Yellow Ying was a generous woman and soon opened up to Gao Xian with sincerity.
"Younger brother, sister has been feeling sore all over recently. After eating, you must help sister with a massage."
"Soreness is a sign of blocked qi and blood. I will help you with a massage later, sister."
"Yes, help me clear it up..."
The seductive charm in Yellow Ying's bright eyes overflowed into Gao Xian's heart.
Gao Xian also felt dry-mouthed and couldn't help but think of many things.
"Younger brother is so good, sister toasts to you."
Gao Xian was about to raise his cup to drink with Yellow Ying when she gently pushed away his cup.
She then wrapped her arms around Gao Xian's neck, sat on his lap, and smiled seductively, "Please drink from my cup, little brother."
With that, Yellow Ying raised her cup, drank it all, but didn't swallow the wine.
Instead, she leaned in front of Gao Xian.
Seeing the approaching rosy lips with a hint of shimmering moisture inside, Gao Xian couldn't help but swallow his saliva, "This sister is really good at playing, I can't resist it!"
Gao Xian felt he should resist, but somehow, he felt weak all over and couldn't muster the strength to resist.
Before he could finish his drink, Gao Xian felt like he was already drunk.
Excitedly, he exclaimed in his heart, "Oh no, I'm going to be devoured today..."
Just then, a sharp scream came from outside!
(End of this chapter)