In the deep mountains, within the peculiar valley where Li Weitian was buried.
Lu Qing and Xiao Li appeared.
"Half a year has passed since I last came here, and nothing has changed."
Lu Qing sighed as he looked at the valley, vibrant with birdsong and fragrant flowers.
Outside the valley, the autumn wind was bleak, and leaves were falling, but inside, it was still spring-like, a truly strange phenomenon.
Xiao Li on his shoulder called out, seemingly urging Lu Qing.
"I know, I know. You made a promise to Xiao Yan to get back early for your chess game. This time my seclusion shouldn't take too long."
Lu Qing patted the little creature's furry head, soothing it.
After paying respects at Li Weitian's grave, Lu Qing took Xiao Li, passed through the waterfall, and entered the cave.
In the Yuhua Cave Chamber, everything remained as it was when Lu Qing first saw it, unchanged.
It seemed as if, no matter how the world changed outside, this place would remain eternal.
Of course, Lu Qing knew this was just an illusion.
From the time he discovered this cave chamber, barely over two years had passed, hardly enough to talk about eternity.
"Xiao Li, guard me outside. I'm going into seclusion."
Lu Qing took many items from the Spatial Qi Bag.
Soft cotton bedding, clean water, dried fish, all prepared for Xiao Li.
He even placed two storybooks for the little one to read when bored.
In these two years, Xiao Li had learned to recognize all the characters and could understand not-too-complex articles.
This seclusion was crucial, and Lu Qing didn't know how long it would take, so he prepared well.
Previously, when entering the mountains, he could only carry a bamboo basket, limiting what he could bring.
Now, with the Spatial Qi Bag, a storage spiritual artifact, he made thorough arrangements.
Xiao Li, used to seeing many things come out of the small bag, calmly walked into the bedding, comfortably lying down to show it understood.
"You lazy little thing."
Lu Qing chuckled, shaking his head.
But he trusted Xiao Li's abilities.
Its unique sensing ability could detect even Precelestial realm experts unless they deliberately concealed their aura.
Plus, its stealth talent and indestructible claws made it a formidable guardian.
No one could be a better protector.
Leaving the little one lounging, Lu Qing pushed open the secret door, entered the hidden chamber, and sat on the jade bed.
After calming his breath and reaching a state of complete tranquility, adjusting his energy and spirit to the best condition, he immersed his mind into the brow acupoint.
Compared to two years ago, Lu Qing's brow acupoint had significantly changed.
Not only had the space expanded, but his soul power had also advanced greatly.
If, two years ago, his soul power in the brow acupoint was a thin mist, now it was a dense fog, dozens of times thicker.
More importantly, at the center of the orifice floated a soul rune, ancient and intricate, stabilizing the entire orifice space.
The soul rune was nearly complete, except for a small missing corner on the lower right.
Lu Qing's goal for this seclusion was to complete this final corner, fully forging the soul rune.
This step was crucial for his future path, demanding utmost care.
Thus, he brought Xiao Li to the secluded Yuhua Cave Chamber for this purpose.
"Finally, the time has come."
"The enhancement of soul power is indeed much harder than physical cultivation. My physical condition reached the Internal Organs Realm perfection a year ago, yet soul power, even with Immortal Dao secret methods, took another year to almost forge the soul rune."
Lu Qing sighed, "watching" the rune in the brow acupoint.
These two years, he diligently trained, continually tempering his soul power.
He even advanced the Furnace Visualization Method to the second level, the Furnace View realm.
Only then did he elevate his soul power to the point of nearly completing the soul rune.
On the other hand, his martial cultivation, despite minimal effort, advanced rapidly, reaching the Internal Organs Realm perfection as a Martial Grandmaster.
His martial prowess was too substantial.
Two years ago, he had mastered various martial arts to the grandmaster level, even touching the realm of "Intent."
In these two years, his understanding of martial arts had further improved.
Having consumed rare treasures like Earth Vein Spirit Liquid, his talent was extraordinary.
With such accumulation, rapid martial progress was inevitable.
"Two years of hard cultivation have greatly advanced all aspects of my practice. Now, it's finally time for the soul rune."
Looking at the nearly complete soul rune in his brow acupoint, Lu Qing began to forge the final rune as per the Divine Rune Sect's heritage.
He was skilled in forging soul runes, having practiced countless times over the past two years.
Soon, he forged the final rune needed.
Carefully, he moved the rune toward the soul rune.
As the rune approached, a strange force emerged, drawing the rune to the soul rune's missing corner, seamlessly completing it.
As the rune completed, a miraculous scene unfolded.
The entire rune began to glow faintly, with the many runes Lu Qing painstakingly forged over the years converging, merging, and rotating.
Finally, everything settled.
A complete soul rune emerged once more.
Simultaneously, Lu Qing felt an invisible wave emanate from the rune.
The brow acupoint began to change.
The change was sudden and intense, catching Lu Qing off guard.
His mind was swept by the wave, plunging into a strange state, akin to enlightenment.