68 Changes
When he entered the ring in the middle, he was slightly startled by the difference in the density of Qi energy.
He stepped out of the Formation, then stepped back in again to get a rough estimate of the difference,
It was at least 30%!
This Formation indeed made a difference.
First it was Crystals, then it was Pills, and now it was Formations.
So many ways one could speed up the rate of their cultivation, and those from the Major Families were bound to get the best of it.
Countless years of heritage and history led to their accumulation of power and endless resources, allowing for their younger family members to use and enjoy, leaving them better than the rest of the younger generation.
They were indeed lucky to be part of a big family which can provide them with cultivation resources, but Long Chen did not dwell much upon it.
Because all these only gave them a head start, but did not determine where they will end up in the future.
Cultivating within the Grade 2 Qi Gathering Formation was indeed refreshing, and Long Chen figured that he would take less than 2 weeks before he officially break through into a higher Great Realm, the Sky Realm.
The legendary Sky Realm, where a cultivator could be able to defy the laws of gravity, and fly above the ground.
Whenever one sees a cultivator who naturally floats above the ground, the rest will all give way subconsciously, with awe and respect stemming from their hearts.
How they wished to also break through into the Sky Realm, but were unable to.
The concept of breaking through to the Sky Realm by the age of 13…could be said to be absolutely inconceivable.
There was always history records that were set, which recorded who was the earliest to break through each Great Realm.
People loved to compare.
But naturally, most people placed their emphasis on the high Great Realms, like the Elementary Realm, and the Sky Realm, rather than the lower Great Realms, Body Refining and Qi Refining Realm.
Unknowingly, Long Chen had already broken a record when he broke through to the Elementary Realm, with the previous person who had set the record being of 15 years of age.
This event had caused waves of unceasing current to surge among the city, and a celebration was even held to commemorate this.
And that same person was also the way who broken the record for the Sky Realm, reaching it at the mere age of 20.
That time, the city had celebrated for almost 3 days and 3 nights just for one person's break through. After all, when one person rises, the people around him benefits too.
It was their pride to have such a peerless genius who lived with them within the same city, and it was their joy to see that peerless genius rise to the heavens like a carp leaping over a dragon's gate.
Long Chen's break through to the Elementary Realm, unlike that legendary genius, was not divulged to the public, and was kept within the confines of a few select people who noticed it.
After he had handed in the 3 Star mission though, almost all of the Inner Sect disciples now knew of Long Chen's strength that could no longer classify as an Early-Stage Elementary Realm.
The news of this had been passed on through the mouths of many, and entered the ears of even more, causing currents of shock to rise throughout the Moonlight Sect.
Even though no one said it out aloud, they all knew it within their hearts.
A 13 year old. Completing a 3 Star mission with difficulty comparable to the Mid-Stage Elementary Realm.
If the Wind Cloud City were to know of this, it would cause an immense uproar far greater than the previous one.
15 and 13.
2 years of difference.
This was akin to an ant and an elephant, a Body Refining Realm to a Sky Realm, a Grade 1 Pill to a Grade 9 Pill.
The difference was vastly huge.
Every single day, every single hour, every single minute of cultivation mattered to geniuses where the competition between them is nothing but intensive and vigorous.
As these thoughts flashed past Long Chen's mind, he decided to put them aside for a moment, and refocus his attention onto his cultivation.
Cultivation is a process which requires assiduousness.
If one fails to maintain steady attention and effort on it, they will eventually fall on their paths.
The continuous stream of denser Qi Energy entered his body, while he tried his best to empty and calm his mind from other thoughts.
Time ticked by slower, and by the time Long Chen opened his eyes, the darkness of the night has begun to wave towards him.
Even though he was now a cultivator, an existence strengthened by the natural Qi Energy from the surroundings, he had not reached the state where he could live sleepless.
He tidied himself down, then slowly slid onto his comfy bed, and began to sleep.
-------
Eternal Darkness Sect
"Devil Master. The target, Long Chen, has completed a 3 Star mission. Our sources reveal that he is now in the 8th Elementary Realm."
The Devil Master waved his hands, as his dark eyes darkened even further, "I understand. Take your leave."
The subordinate did not dare to disobey, and swiftly left.
"Long Chen…" The Devil Master clenched his jaw while tightly gripping his fists.
-------
Moonlight Sect. In a courtyard.
Chen Yu Yang directly slammed his hand down onto the table, causing it to break into many smaller pieces.
"Who?! Who is it that is spoiling my plans? Although him killing 5 Elementary Realm assassins can be explained, but there is no way he could kill of that Sky Realm existence! This is impossible! Who is helping him within the dark?!"
"5 Elementary Realm and 1 Sky Realm assassin. All dead! And Long Chen is still alive! How useless can you all be?!" Chen Yu Yang was no longer able to keep cool, as his calm and serene façade completely collapsed.
The door to the courtyard abruptly opened, and a youth walked inside.
"Chen Yu Yang, it is bad to be shouting this loudly. You should try to keep your anger within you, if not you may never know when you may die from anger." The youth's mouth rose up into a noticeable smirk as he walked in.
Chen Yu Yang looked towards the youth who came in, and his face inexplicably changed. Fighting to keep his composure steady, he lightly chuckled, "Chen Yu Tian, I thank you for your advice, and I will definitely keep this within my heart."
"It's good that you know." Chen Yu Tian glanced down towards the broken pieces of a table littering the ground and his eyes flashed with a glint of amusement as he continued, "Chen Yu Yang, I am here to remind you about the fight for the First Young Master's position. Make sure you get your forces ready, and don't embarrass yourself when the day comes."
With that said, Chen Yu Tian swiftly turned around, while giving Chen Yu Yang a provocative glance, before he suavely left the courtyard.
As the door closed, Chen Yu Yang's face instantly contorted into anger, "Chen—Yu---Tian!" He gritted his teeth as he forcefully spat out.
"That bastard must have received news that I had lost a few of my forces, and came here to gloat! If not for the loss of my 5 Elementary Realm and 1 Sky Realm cultivator, I would never have been in this predicament right now." Chen Yu Yang indiscriminately muttered to himself.
"Young Master, what do we do about Long Chen now?" His subordinate, who was still kneeling in a corner, spoke up and asked.
Chen Yu Yang cast a sharp gaze upon his subordinate, "Leave him alone for the moment! We cannot afford to lose any more of our forces during this crucial period of time!"
"Yes, Young Master!"
-------
In a courtyard
Long Chen was sitting down while his hands moved about, his eyes focused with utmost concentration.
The fire in the cauldron was being manipulated to a rather high extent, turning and coiling around as he pleased.
Burning sizzle sounds filled the air, as the impurities from the medicinal herbs were once again discharged.
He applied pressure onto the remaining liquid, forcing them together, as they slowly compressed together to form a solid substance.
A long while past, before the cauldron began to shake vigorously, as if it was on the verge of an explosion.
Pill formation!
As the cauldron halted its vibrating movements, a blue pill was revealed before his eyes, releasing a fragrance remarkable to the nose.
[Host has refined a High-Tier Grade 1 Pill. Host gains 5 Proficiency in Alchemy]
Long Chen calmly glanced at the formed pill, and casually placed it at the side.
If it was the past, his face would have divulged a delighted or joyous expression.
However, with his Alchemy Talent and astonishing improvement rate, refining High-Tier Qi Gathering Pills were now the norm, and a mistake would have happened if he refined a Mid-Tier one or lower instead.
He spent a whole day on continuous Alchemy, but had not finished all 30 sets of ingredients yet, with 10 sets still left.
After all, the process of pill refining takes quite some time, and if not for the fact that his own Alchemy skills were more advanced than others, he would probably have needed more than 3 days to refine 20 Pills, with the quality also worse than his current pills.
He had reached the bottleneck of the Grade 1 Alchemist a while ago, which now required for him to refine a Grade 2 Pill to be able to break through it.
The reason why he had not done it yet, was that he did not have the set of ingredients for it. After all, the composition of every pill was different.
He could either buy herbs from the Sect Treasury using his contribution points, or he could buy it from the Alchemy Association.
With the two choices within his mind, Long Chen decided to just go take a trip to the city, as he might as well take the Grade 2 Alchemist test at the Alchemy Association, and take the chance to freeload on a set of ingredients from them to refine a Grade 2 Pill, as well as breaking through his bottleneck and reaching the Grade 2 Alchemist standard.
He could take the chance to go to the Trading Chamber Commerce on the way, and collect his earnings from the auction, along with selling off another set of his pills.
