A group of young men gathered together and headed to the cultivation room.
Originally, Lin Xiao had planned to stop by the cultivation room to greet his father and let him know he was back, but when he arrived, he realized his father wasn't there at all.
Old Master Lin, who had been meditating nearby, opened his eyes to review his cultivation technique and noticed his grandson searching for his father. In a slightly disdainful tone, he informed Lin Xiao:
"Your father's in the fields. I keep telling him that cultivating properly is the key to good farming, but he doesn't listen. He insists on doing his rounds in the fields first thing in the morning before he feels at ease. Go find him there; he's definitely still there!"
With that, Lin Xiao left the cultivation room and headed to the spirit fields to look for Lin Dayou.
Sure enough, as soon as he reached the edge of the fields, he spotted Lin Dayou bent over, tending to something in the terraced fields halfway up the mountain.
Lin Xiao quickly ran to his side.
"Father!"
Lin Dayou, who had been intently examining the spirit grains, was startled by the sudden shout. But he didn't show it on his face, instead turning around with a serious expression. After giving Lin Xiao a once-over, he nodded:
"You're back."
"Father, you don't need to come here so early every day. You could spend that time cultivating with everyone else," Lin Xiao advised.
However, Lin Dayou waved his hand dismissively:
"Ah, I just came to take a look. Cultivation doesn't yield results in a day or two, and missing a bit of time won't hurt. I feel more at ease checking the fields a few more times. You go ahead and cultivate, I'll join you shortly."
Seeing that his father wouldn't listen, Lin Xiao struggled between respecting his father's preferences and encouraging him to take cultivation more seriously. After a brief internal battle, he made up his mind, gritting his teeth as he hoisted his father up and headed back to the cultivation room.
"You're coming with me to cultivate!"
"Hey! You brat, put me down!"
...
After dragging his reluctant father back to the cultivation room, Lin Xiao spent a good while giving him a personal lesson. Only after ensuring his father had settled into meditation did Lin Xiao find a spot to sit and begin his own cultivation.
During his time in the Huanyou Kingdom, after mastering the ability to convert spiritual power into vital energy, Lin Xiao had felt that his cultivation realm had loosened, as if he were on the verge of a breakthrough.
However, due to the inconveniences of being away, he had ignored the feeling and refrained from breaking through while abroad.
Now that he was back, Lin Xiao decided it was time to make the breakthrough in the cultivation room.
He had a sense that this would be a minor breakthrough, not a major one, so he didn't feel the need to go to the natural platform.
Before attempting the breakthrough, he intended to fully explore this new "vital energy" he had acquired.
Closing his eyes and sinking into his consciousness, Lin Xiao's "sight" entered his body, where he began observing his Golden Core.
His Golden Core had changed significantly since before.
It had grown much larger, and its surface now gleamed with an extraordinary luster.
Lin Xiao then drew out the vital energy within him, carefully examining it.
Initially, he had thought that vital energy was a fusion of divine sense, soul, and spiritual energy, but upon closer inspection, he realized it wasn't quite that.
Vital energy seemed to be something produced by the interaction of those three elements—divine sense, soul, and spiritual energy.
Moreover, it had a nourishing effect on both the divine sense and the soul, something spiritual energy alone couldn't provide.
Although Lin Xiao didn't feel any dramatic increase in the strength of his divine sense or soul, he could tell that both had become much more solid than before. If he had to describe it, it was as if their density had increased.
After a thorough inspection, Lin Xiao took a deep breath and settled down, preparing to cycle through the Origin Heart Sutra using his vital energy.
He wasn't sure how much time had passed, but in the cultivation room of Lingxian Sect, the others who were also cultivating suddenly felt the surrounding spiritual energy surge, becoming several times more concentrated in an instant. The energy then began to swirl into a vortex.
However, the vortex didn't disrupt their cultivation; rather, they found it easier to absorb the spiritual energy and circulate their cultivation techniques along with the vortex's flow.
Their efficiency had multiplied several times over!
Sensing the change, no one dared open their eyes to investigate. Instead, they seized the moment to focus on their cultivation and fully utilize this opportunity.
In this state, the cultivators lost track of time, fully immersed in their practice.
After two days and nights, the spiritual energy vortex finally began to subside.
As the vortex dissipated, the disciples of Lingxian Sect halted their cultivation as well.
Opening their eyes, they couldn't hide the joy that shone in their gazes.
This session had advanced their cultivation significantly! It felt as though they had made a month's worth of progress in just this short period.
Moreover, they had achieved greater clarity in their understanding of their cultivation techniques. Many issues that had previously been unclear to them were resolved during this intense session.
Lin Xiao, too, opened his eyes at that moment and exhaled slowly.
Golden Core Late Stage!
Unexpectedly, after mastering the conversion of spiritual power into vital energy and running the Origin Heart Sutra through a full cycle, he had broken through from the early Golden Core stage to the late stage in one go!
After reaching the Golden Core stage, progressing further required an immense amount of cultivation. It was no longer as easy as advancing through the Qi Refining or Foundation Establishment stages.
Yet now, after only a few months since breaking through to the early Golden Core stage, he had already advanced to the late stage. This progress was astonishingly fast…
If other cultivators found out about his cultivation speed, they'd likely be questioning their entire existence.
Lin Xiao looked down at his hands, curling his fingers into a fist.
His power had grown once again.
The disciples of Lingxian Sect, noticing Lin Xiao's breakthrough, quickly gathered around to share their own experiences from the session.
As they exchanged insights, they realized that Lin Xiao's breakthrough had caused the spiritual energy surge, allowing them to ride the wave and advance in their own cultivation.
Two days ago, when Liao Pantu happened to pass by after emerging from the Yaoguang Small World, he noticed the strange activity in the cultivation room. After discovering that Lin Xiao was undergoing a breakthrough and that the others were benefiting from it, he had stood guard outside the room to protect them.
Now, hearing the noise from within, he knew they had finished. Liao Pantu entered the room and explained the situation to them.
Upon hearing his explanation, everyone finally understood.
However, more than anything else, their attention was focused on Lin Xiao's breakthrough.
In an instant, Lin Xiao found himself surrounded by excited disciples.
"Sect Master, you've broken through again!"
"Brother Xiao, what's your cultivation now? Are you at the mid-Golden Core stage?"
"What? You've already reached the late Golden Core stage? Wow, Brother Xiao, with your cultivation speed, when will I ever catch up to you…"
"Third Brother, is there anything new or fun about being in the late Golden Core stage?"
...