A sharp, tearing pain pulsed through his meridians, as if countless red-hot knives were churning within them.
If it weren’t for the powerful physique granted by his Nourishing and Exquisite trait, and the fact that he had managed to expel that wisp of Fire Qi in time, his meridians would likely have been damaged by now.
Next, he tried absorbing Earth Qi first, but the result was just as miserable.
Water and Earth clashed, his Qi Sea roiled, and he nearly suffered a Qi deviation.
"It was a failure."
Standing outside the Spirit Pavilion, Chu Bai wiped the cold sweat from his forehead, stinging from the loss.
He had wasted two double-hours of access to the Spirit Pavilion, and all he had to show for it was a body drenched in cold sweat and faintly aching meridians.
However, this small loss was nothing compared to the importance of finding the right path.
Trial and error was an unavoidable part of cultivation.
Back in his room, he found that none of his roommates were there.
Chu Bai sat alone on his bed, cross-legged, toying with the Rat General’s Fang in his hand as he fell deep into thought.
’Absorbing them one after another doesn’t work. The introduction of a single attribute is too abrupt, so my current system rejects it as an Alien Species.’
’Since that path is a dead end, what if...’
A sudden gleam appeared in Chu Bai’s eyes. He’d just had an extremely bold, perhaps even crazy, idea.
’What if I stop trying to absorb them in sequence and instead find a special environment that contains both Fire and Earth Qi? Or use some method to make both types of Spiritual Qi enter my body simultaneously?’
’Fire creates Earth, and Earth creates Metal.’
’If Fire and Earth appear at the same time, the Fire Qi would be neutralized and transformed by the Earth Qi, which would then create Metal Qi... That way, it wouldn’t suppress the Metal Qi, and it could even complete the closed loop of the Five Elements!’
It would be like instantly filling two gaps in a closed loop, making it whole in a single moment!
’Simultaneous absorption...’
The more Chu Bai thought about it, the more feasible it seemed, and his heart began to pound in his chest.
But this would require an extremely special cultivation environment or the aid of a special Spiritual Object.
’Does the Spirit Pavilion have a Blessed Land with both Fire and Earth attributes?’
’Probably not. Those two types of Spiritual Qi rarely coexist naturally...’
About an hour later, the familiar sound of footsteps and cheerful chatter came from outside the door.
"This mission was a bit tiring, but the quality of those stalks of Demon Companion Grass is pretty good. They should fetch a few dozen Daoist Merits," Zhou Tong said, pushing the door open. Though his face showed a hint of fatigue, he couldn’t hide his smile.
Jiang Kuo and Chen Shi followed close behind.
"Hey, Brother Chu, how come you didn’t go to the Spirit Pavilion today?" Jiang Kuo asked, a little curious to see Chu Bai sitting dazed on his bed. "With your personality, shouldn’t you be racing against time in a Blessed Land right now?"
Chu Bai looked at his burly roommate, an idea turning over in his mind. After a moment’s hesitation, he stood up.
"Brother Jiang, there’s something I’d like to ask you."
"Oh?" Jiang Kuo was taken aback for a second, then sat down casually. "There’s no need for formalities between us. Just say what’s on your mind."
Chu Bai got straight to the point. "Brother Jiang, I remember that you major in an Earth-attribute Cultivation Technique. And when you cultivate, it seems you don’t rely solely on nature’s spiritual energy, but rather..."
His gaze fell on the simple, ancient-looking ceramic bottle hanging at Jiang Kuo’s waist, its color like fired yellow clay.
"You mean this?"
Jiang Kuo patted the bottle at his waist and grinned. "This is my family’s heirloom, the Earth Bottle. It’s only a Low-Grade Dharma Artifact, but it has a Spirit Gathering Array inscribed inside. As long as you put Spirit Stones in it, it can continuously convert them into pure and gentle Thick Earth Qi. For Cultivators like us who practice Earth Cultivation Techniques, it’s like a small, portable Blessed Land."
"Because of this thing, I don’t really go to the Spirit Pavilion much, unless I need a denser environment to break through a bottleneck."
’It’s just as I thought.’
Chu Bai was delighted. He had noticed before that Jiang Kuo never parted with the bottle when he cultivated; it turned out to be a portable Spiritual Qi Transformation Artifact.
"To be honest," Chu Bai said with a sincere expression, "I’ve run into a bottleneck in my cultivation and need a wisp of pure Earth Qi to neutralize the Spiritual Power in my body."
"I was wondering if you would be willing to lend me this Earth Bottle for a few days, Brother Jiang? Of course, I won’t use it for free. I’ll pay the same rate as the Spirit Pavilion: one Daoist Merit per double-hour, and I’ll cover the cost of any Spirit Stones used."
"Lend you the Earth Bottle?"
Jiang Kuo was a little surprised, but he quickly caught on.
’One Daoist Merit per double-hour?’
’That’s not a low price at all!’
’Normally, the bottle is just a cultivation aid. When I’m not using it, it just sits idle.’
’If I lent it to Chu Bai, even for just two double-hours a day, that would be a net income of two Daoist Merits—the same price as the Spirit Pavilion.’
’Besides, he trusted Chu Bai’s character. The guy was the top first-year student, after all. There was no reason not to do him such an easy favor.’
"Ah, Brother Chu, you’re being too formal."
Jiang Kuo waved his hand dismissively, saying generously, "We’re classmates. If you need it, just take it. No need to talk about money..."
"It’s better to keep things clear, even between friends," Chu Bai insisted. "This is your family heirloom, after all, and using it causes wear and tear. I wouldn’t feel right using it if you don’t accept the Daoist Merits."
Seeing Chu Bai’s firm attitude, Jiang Kuo didn’t press the issue. After thinking for a moment, he said, "Alright! We’ll do it your way. But I need to cultivate too, so I can’t give you the bottle for the whole day.
How about this: I’ll lend you the bottle every day when I’m practicing Magic Techniques or resting. I can probably spare it for three or four double-hours a day. How does that sound?"
"That’s more than enough!"
Chu Bai was overjoyed.
Three or four double-hours was plenty of time for him to conduct his experiment.
"Then, thank you very much, Brother Jiang!"
Chu Bai immediately transferred ten Daoist Merits as a deposit and took the heavy Earth Bottle from Jiang Kuo’s hands.
A sharp glint flashed in Chu Bai’s eyes as he felt the warm, smooth texture of the bottle.
’I have the Earth Qi now, and it’s available on demand.’
’Next, I just need to find a Fire Attribute Blessed Land in the Spirit Pavilion.’
’Then, I’ll place myself in a sea of fire while holding the Earth Bottle. I’ll draw in Fire Qi from the outside and absorb Earth Qi from within—a two-pronged attack!’
’Fire creates Earth, Earth creates Metal.’
’I refuse to believe that I won’t be able to break through this Five Elements barrier this time!’

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