"Little Nine, since these peach fruits are starting to show some spiritual traits, why not give them a name?"
Luo Wentian suggested.
Ning Qi fell into thought, then said after some consideration:
"Since our gathering is called the Zhenwu Peach Gathering, let's call it the Zhenwu Spiritual Peach."
He really wasn't good at naming things.
Everyone laughed, seeing through Ning Qi's laziness. But the name wasn't bad either. Besides, it was Ning Qi who planted and nurtured the peach tree—he could call it whatever he liked.
Still, the way they looked at Ning Qi carried even more admiration.
To this day.
As Ning Qi revealed more and more of his remarkable abilities, they had come to realize that their Little Junior Brother was far more formidable than they had imagined.
"If one day Little Junior Brother suddenly shows strength beyond all of us, it'd probably make perfect sense."
As soon as the thought arose, the True Disciples shook their heads with a wry smile, thinking that day was still a bit far off.
After all, Ning Qi wasn't even eight years old yet.
Other kids his age were just stepping into the Martial Path.
Everyone drank happily and tasted the peach fruits, feeling more relaxed than ever. The pressure accumulated over recent days melted away, turning into renewed drive. During this time, they also talked about the upcoming Heaven-Man Ceremony, encouraging each other to not disgrace their sect. But everyone tacitly avoided asking about Ning Qi's Core Condensation Pill—they didn't want to put pressure on him.
That left Ning Qi slightly helpless.
He was originally planning to wait for his senior brothers to ask, so he could nonchalantly take them out.
Too bad things didn't go as planned.
As night fell.
The moon rabbit rose high.
Everyone was about to leave.
Ning Qi smiled and stopped them:
"Senior Brothers and Sisters, please wait a moment. I prepared a little gift for you."
Each of them received a standard Zhenwu Sect wooden box. Curiosity flashed in their eyes. Ye Qinghe joked:
"Little Nine, did you see how much your Senior Sister likes the Spiritual Peaches and prepare another batch for us?"
Ning Qi smiled without saying a word.
Everyone grew even more curious.
The others still cared about appearances, but Ye Qinghe simply flipped the lid off the box.
In an instant, everyone froze.
Inside the wooden box.
It wasn't Spiritual Peaches that met their eyes, but instead a pitch-black, crystalline pill. The familiar aroma told them clearly—it was none other than a Core Condensation Pill. 𐍂𝐚₦ọ𝔟Ё𝘚
This time, no one cared about modesty anymore. They all opened their own wooden boxes. One after another, Core Condensation Pills appeared before them.
"Little Nine, you… you did it?"
Luo Wentian's voice trembled with excitement.
All eyes lit up with emotion and excitement as they turned to Ning Qi. Ning Qi smiled and nodded:
"Luckily, I didn't let you down. Though I used up that previous Core Condensation Pill and all the medicinal materials from the treasure vault."
With Ning Qi's confirmation, everyone burst out laughing.
"Little Nine, you're a genius!"
They held back from cheering out loud, but their hearts were racing uncontrollably.
To be honest.
Even though Ning Qi had said he was somewhat confident in reverse-engineering the Core Condensation Pill recipe, no one had placed much hope on it. After all, if it were that easy to recreate a recipe from a single pill, Core Condensation Pills wouldn't be so rare.
They supported Ning Qi only because he was their Little Junior Brother.
But who would've thought.
In such a short time, Ning Qi not only succeeded, he reverse-engineered the recipe and refined so many pills! Back when they passed on that single pill, it wasn't because they didn't want it—it was just that there weren't enough to go around.
Now it was fine. One pill each, more than enough.
"With this, Senior Brother and Second Senior Brother both have a shot at breaking through to the White Mist Realm before the Heaven-Man Ceremony!"
That was the first thing everyone thought of, smiles spreading across their faces.
At that time.
With Jiang Baishan included, they'd have three in the White Mist Realm—more than enough to hold the stage and not appear too lacking.
"Huh? There's something underneath?"
Just then, Sixth Disciple Sun Chuanhai's voice drew everyone's attention.
He lifted the second layer of the wooden box.
A sheet of white paper and several pill bottles came into view.
Confusion appeared in everyone's eyes. They recognized the Core Condensation Pill, but these things—they weren't familiar.
All eyes turned to Ning Qi in unison.
Ning Qi felt a deep sense of fulfillment. The sect had always spared no effort in creating a nurturing environment for him. Finally being able to give something back brought him a special kind of satisfaction.
He didn't keep them guessing. He smiled and said:
"These were incidental gains during the reverse-engineering of the Core Condensation Pill. The jade bottles contain Dreamsleep Pills. After taking one, you can enter a special cultivation state. The white paper records the Dreamsleep Art to use alongside the pill—it allows you to cultivate Internal Energy even while dreaming, significantly accelerating your progress."
"This won't be useful for Fifth Senior Brother, and only mildly helpful for Senior Brother and Second Senior Brother. But for you, Third Senior Sister and the others, it should greatly speed up your cultivation."
As his words fell, silence followed.
Everyone was stunned.
The Core Condensation Pills were already shocking enough, but now they were hearing what? A secret art and matching pill to accelerate Internal Energy cultivation!
They weren't secluded monks shut off from the world.
Of course they understood what this meant.
A moment later, the statues around him began to "come alive." Luo Wentian and the others exchanged wry smiles, which eventually turned into overwhelming amazement:
"Little Nine… you really don't make a move often, but when you do—it scares the h*ll out of people…"
In that moment.
Ning Qi's figure seemed cloaked in a glowing light in their eyes.
Ning Qi chuckled and let out a yawn.
"Your Junior Brother's tired. Senior Brothers and Sisters, go get some rest too."
With that, he turned and walked back into his room.
Watching Ning Qi's relaxed and carefree back, everyone looked at each other and smiled. The glow that had surrounded Ning Qi quietly faded away. All they saw again was Ning Qi himself.
"No matter how monstrous Little Junior Brother becomes, he's still our Little Junior Brother."
...
After the short Zhenwu Peach Gathering, the True Disciples threw themselves into even more intense cultivation.
With Ning Qi's Dreamsleep Art and Core Condensation Pills, everyone trained with renewed vigor.
Especially disciples like Ye Qinghe who were still in the Inner Origin Realm. They experienced the wonders of the Dreamsleep Art firsthand—able to condense Internal Energy even while dreaming. It more than doubled their training efficiency.
As for Luo Wentian and Xiong Shi, both experts at the Ninth Fold of the Inner Origin Realm, they focused on adjusting their states in full preparation to use the Core Condensation Pill and break through to the White Mist Realm in one go.
As for Ning Qi.
His cultivation had also reached a critical point.
His Internal Energy had once again established a link with his physical body. He was about to enter his eighth false-death state.
Once he succeeded, Ning Qi would reach the Ninth Fold of the Inner Origin Realm—Perfection in Inner Origin Realm!
Then came the ninth false-death.
That would be the time for his breakthrough into the White Mist Realm.
But for now, Ning Qi was curious about what might be different when he reached Perfection in Inner Origin Realm.
"Tiansheng, guard me."
After giving instructions, Ning Qi entered his eighth false-death state with a trace of anticipation.