Xu Chang’an looked in astonishment at the middle-aged woman in front of him, whose eyes carried a touch of crow’s feet.
It’s definitely not weapon restraint.
In Xu Chang’an’s eyes, Steward Qin was synonymous with seriousness and steadiness. He never expected to hear such peculiar words from her.
"Don’t understand?" Steward Qin frowned. "Even if you belong to Muyu Peak, you should try to avoid indulgence."
Xu Chang’an was about to explain: "I haven’t..."
"Listen to me." Steward Qin raised her eyebrows, though she actually had a good impression of Xu Chang’an, she felt it was necessary to advise this young man a bit.
"You’ve been here for a year and a half, almost two years, yet you remain behind the Open Source Realm. I say it’s because you’re not fully dedicating yourself to cultivation. Am I wrong?" Steward Qin asked.
"Senior is right." Xu Chang’an acknowledged that he had indeed been distracted.
Steward Qin seriously stated: "Cultivating Qi is about nurturing the body, essentially to reach Open Source, only when you step into the Open Source Realm can you truly start cultivation."
Steward Qin had a good relationship with Muyu Peak, so her tone carried a touch of frustration. She reminded Xu Chang’an, "I know your early cultivation was difficult, but the Breathing Technique, although Ninth Grade, is already enough for Open Source, and it won’t negatively affect your future cultivation."
The Qi Refining Realm in the eyes of Major Sects doesn’t even count as a realm; it’s merely the process of expanding the Elixir Field and cleansing the body with spiritual power before entering the Open Source Realm.
The Breathing Technique is really more than sufficient.
Because of this, after accepting Xu Chang’an, the people of Muyu Peak did not select a better Qi Cultivation Technique for him to start over.
The Qi Refining Realm rarely requires mentors, because it’s essentially a process of self-cleansing spiritual power and familiarizing with the meridians, which can be taught a few times and then practiced independently.
At first, no one paid attention to Xu Chang’an, so while generally with a guide, one could start Qi Cultivation in about ten days, Xu Chang’an took a few months, wasting a lot of time during entry, but once he began cultivating, the only thing affecting his Qi Cultivation progress was the absorption and conversion efficiency of spiritual power.
That is to say, effort and talent.
For those with good talent, this process can be completed in just half a year.
For those with poor talent, it might take five to ten years to overcome this hurdle.
But Xu Chang’an cannot be poor.
"It’s been a year and a half." Steward Qin said helplessly, "Miss Zhu has great expectations for you, don’t let her down, work harder."
Young man, if you don’t strive now, then when?
Based on Xu Chang’an’s average talent, he should have reached the Open Source Realm by now.
"..." Xu Chang’an did not explain.
His speed of absorbing spiritual power is really slow, when he first started cultivating, he always felt a resistance from the Heaven and Earth Spiritual Qi, often meditating a whole night without any increase in spiritual power.
Although it’s a bit better now, it’s still not fast.
The key is that he has no elder figures around him, just a system, it’s not likely that the spiritual qi he cultivates is being consumed by a system that only adds Celestial Dao Points, right?
Maybe because he’s a transmigrator, the world doesn’t accept him.
Steward Qin seemed to see through Xu Chang’an’s thoughts, she tapped her finger on the table, then said, "Cultivation speed isn’t the entirety of talent, it’s just a very small part."
There are many types of talent.
Mindset, special constitution, and so on are countless.
Since Zhu Pingniang favors Xu Chang’an, it must be because Xu Chang’an’s talent is excellent, otherwise, for what reason?
The old cow eating young grass?
"Miss Zhu has her considerations letting you bring your wife up the mountain." Steward Qin looked at Xu Chang’an and said, "But whether for you or for the untrained Miss Yun, if you want to cultivate well... it’s still best to meet less."
On the path of cultivation, building a foundation is really too important.
She didn’t want Xu Chang’an, a promising young talent seen by Zhu Pingniang, to ruin himself by indulgence.
"I understand." Xu Chang’an replied earnestly.
"I don’t know if you truly understand or not." Steward Qin sighed, then gently tossed out a bag and said, "Here are ten Qi Replenishing Pills, take them."
Xu Chang’an was startled, surprised as he looked at Steward Qin, then quickly reacted and expressed his gratitude.
He had encountered the steward several times before, but they had never spoken.
"What are you looking at?" Steward Qin shook her head, not explaining.
Zhu Pingniang had done her a great favor, Zhu Pingniang was not on the mountain during heart refining, and Steward Qin wanted to help look after him more.
Giving him pills was out of consideration for Zhu Pingniang.
Steward Qin, precisely because she wasn’t familiar with Xu Chang’an, so the medicine wasn’t precious, not counted as gratitude, just an expression of goodwill and her attention.
Xu Chang’an also understood this point, so he received them without any pressure.
"Alright, let’s talk business." Steward Qin waved her hand.
"Sorry to trouble you." Xu Chang’an smiled, then reported Yun Qian’s residence, filling in additional details, and finally left.
After Xu Chang’an turned to leave, Steward Qin put down her pen, thinking about the young man’s performance and expression earlier.
Not flawless, but indeed very comfortable, modest yet not inferior.
She had just asked again about Xu Chang’an’s cultivation progress and found that Xu Chang’an wasn’t avoiding the issue of his slow cultivation speed.
Steward Qin couldn’t help but feel that Xu Chang’an was very confident about the breakthrough, it seemed that Zhu Pingniang arranging for his wife to come up the mountain was beneficial for him.
Indeed, it’s just his inspiration with absorbing spiritual power is slightly lacking, otherwise, he should have reached Open Source by now.
Like Sikong Jing from the Profound Sword Bureau, at sixteen he started cultivating after his bones matured, within a month he successfully stepped into the Open Source Realm, and without letting anyone down, wielded the Sect’s Divine Sword, which hadn’t been used in a millennium.
Compared to the Open Source Realm, Qi Refining... really is just a process of Qi Condensation and Refining the Elixir Field.
Steward Qin didn’t mean to compare Xu Chang’an with Sikong Jing because it’s meaningless.
While Sikong Jing started cultivating at sixteen, he was the legitimate son of the Sect Leader, spending those sixteen years in the sect nurturing and cultivating, consuming countless Heavenly Materials and Earthly Treasures, and having cultivators help him absorb medicinal powers, it was truly an accumulation.
Xu Chang’an, a normal person without background, naturally cannot compare to such prodigies.
However, Steward Qin believes anyone valued by Zhu Pingniang must have exceptional talent.
Unfortunately, he hasn’t reached Open Source, otherwise, he’d be able to catch up with the upcoming Sword Trial Conference and demonstrate what kind of talent this young man possesses.
"Finally... returned."
Xu Chang’an utilized the Celestial Bright Peak’s Teleportation Array to return to Muyu Peak, immediately preparing to claim his reward for slaying the Cyan-eyed Tiger.