"Speak. What happened today?"
After Niu Shouren left, Wang Jianqiang's smile vanished. His face became expressionless as his gaze fell coldly upon Chen Jiaojiao.
Her delicate face paled. Hastily, she explained, "Uncle, it wasn't me who asked Shouren to come. He insisted on following me."
Wang Jianqiang said nothing, his expression still unreadable, eyes fixed on her.
Chen Jiaojiao gave a bitter smile and continued, "In the past, you always gave plenty of resources. But these last two times, you only gave one Spirit Gathering Pill each. The reduction was too great.
"Shouren guessed that it must be because he hadn't come to see you in so long, which displeased you. That's why he insisted on coming himself.
"I couldn't stop him, and I had no way to explain it to him. I could only bring him along."
At her words, Wang Jianqiang's expression finally eased. "Really?"
"Absolutely," Chen Jiaojiao nodded repeatedly.
Wang Jianqiang had originally suspected that Chen Jiaojiao had brought Niu Shouren here to pressure him, to extort more resources.
If that were truly the case, he would have decisively cut ties with her. Even if it meant turning the two into enemies, he would never give her another ounce of support.
But hearing her explanation, his suspicion melted away.
"So that's how it was."
A trace of guilt rose within him. He gently placed his hand on Chen Jiaojiao's shoulder.
"Jiaojiao, your uncle wrongly blamed you…
"I noticed your face looked a little pale just now. Are you feeling unwell? Come, let me examine your condition carefully."
…
For the next month, Wang Jianqiang did not leave his home. He remained secluded, focused entirely on refining pills.
Ever since awakening the system, he had never failed a single refinement.
A one-hundred percent success rate—such a feat was beyond human.
After a month, the stockpile of herbs he had purchased was completely exhausted, yet from it he had produced fifty Perfect Body-Nourishing Pills and fifty Perfect Green Spirit Pills.
At the same time, he had accumulated a great number of cultivation points.
During this period, Niu Shouren and Chen Jiaojiao visited several times.
Each visit began with the usual pleasantries, after which Niu Shouren would leave Chen Jiaojiao behind as a "supervisor," then depart in high spirits.
Niu Shouren believed he had Wang Jianqiang under his thumb, feeling smug with his supposed control.
But he never realized—
The deadliest hunter often wore the guise of prey.
Wang Jianqiang merely watched his performance with calm detachment, as though watching a clown on a stage.
To him, Spirit Gathering Pills were now nothing more than pocket change.
Cultivation itself was a tedious task.
Endlessly so.
Thus, these little diversions served as nothing more than amusement during the dull stretches of training.
Spending a few pills was hardly worth fretting over.
…
Within the dimly lit room, Wang Jianqiang stared at the attribute panel before him. The number "100" glowed under the section for cultivation points.
Without hesitation, he poured them all into the Yanling Art.
Raising the level of his technique would increase the absorption rate of medicinal power—it was the best way to accelerate his progress for now.
His goal was clear: to push the Yanling Art to the highest stage—Great Accomplishment.
"Ding. Yanling Art has reached its current maximum stage."
"Five hundred cultivation points required to optimize and upgrade. Proceed?"
The system's voice echoed in his mind, leaving him momentarily stunned.
Even techniques could be optimized and evolved?
His gaze swept across the panel. Beside "Yanling Art," the former label of "Intermediate" had already shifted to "Great Accomplishment." Beyond it, a new option now gleamed—Optimize Upgrade.
He had always possessed poor aptitude. Combined with practicing a common, mass-market technique, his progress had been agonizingly slow.
But if he could raise the grade of his technique, his cultivation speed would surely surge.
A thrill of excitement coursed through him.
Yet when his eyes fell upon the meager five points remaining, his excitement cooled instantly.
From Intermediate to Great Accomplishment, the Yanling Art had consumed ninety-five points, leaving only these scraps behind.
He still lacked four hundred ninety-five points to attempt an optimization upgrade.
That was no small number. Even refining pills without pause for months on end, it would take nearly four months to accumulate that much!
Shaking his head, he set aside the thought for now.
Drawing out a Perfect Green Spirit Pill, he swallowed it.
With the Yanling Art at Great Accomplishment, his absorption efficiency had leapt from thirty percent to seventy.
His cultivation speed had more than doubled.
In just two days—
After refining ten Perfect Green Spirit Pills in succession, his qi surged, and he broke through, reaching the fifth level of Qi Refinement.
He was about to continue, intent on rushing to the sixth layer in one go, when Chen Jiaojiao's voice called from outside.
Wang Jianqiang decided to pause.
Half an hour later, Chen Jiaojiao departed, satisfied, clutching the Spirit Gathering Pill he had given her.
After a short rest, he resumed his seclusion.
Ten days passed.
As he sat cross-legged, his body suddenly trembled, spiritual energy roaring within him—he had broken through again.
From the fifth to the sixth layer of Qi Refinement, the process had devoured thirty-seven Perfect Green Spirit Pills.
Only three remained. He had no intention of consuming them.
At the sixth layer, the effect of Perfect Green Spirit Pills had plummeted drastically.
To advance further with them, he would need to refine and consume two to three hundred pills—months of nonstop effort.
For others, such speed would already be astonishing.
But he was a man blessed with a cheat.
This pace could not satisfy him.
Exhaling, he shook his body lightly, spiritual power surging to cleanse away the grime from his pores.
Then, without hesitation, he strode out toward the Hall of Affairs.