After the Zhao siblings left, Qin Yuehan walked alone deeper into the Azure Sparrow Mountain Range. His immediate priority was to find a place to refine the Starfall Grass and the inner core of the Blood-Feathered Eagle. In this perilous region filled with danger on all sides, only formidable strength could keep him safe.
Qin Yuehan traversed the mountain range. After an hour, he spotted a rolling expanse of mountains not far away. *This is the place.* He then found a cave on a tall peak and walked inside. The cave was roughly two zhang in size vertically and horizontally. Free of weeds, the interior was filled with stones of various sizes. After a brief cleanup, Qin Yuehan sat cross-legged and took the Starfall Grass from his bosom. As for the inner core of the Blood-Feathered Eagle, its spiritual energy was far too potent, so he planned to refine it only after advancing to the Second Layer of Xiantian Realm.
Confirming there was no danger around him, Qin Yuehan swallowed the Starfall Grass in a single gulp. The moment the herb entered his stomach, its medicinal properties took effect. Qin Yuehan felt as though streams of clear, sweet spring water were flowing into his limbs and hundreds of skeletal channels, coursing through his blood and nourishing every single vessel. An indescribable sense of comfort washed over him. He immediately circulated the Myriad Creation Divine Scripture, and the terrifying refining power of this heaven-defying technique instantly manifested, absorbing the medicinal properties of the Starfall Grass at lightning speed and storing them in his Dantian...
"Crack." A faint sound echoed in Qin Yuehan's mind—the sound of a realm breakthrough. Qin Yuehan was wild with joy. Next, he felt the blood throughout his body accelerate its flow as a ceaseless stream of spiritual energy gathered from the surroundings and poured into his body. At that moment, his six martial veins were also greedily absorbing the external spiritual energy. Concurrently, his realm was further consolidated and slowly climbed: Early Second Layer of Xiantian Realm, Mid Second Layer of Xiantian Realm, Late Second Layer of Xiantian Realm. Finally, Qin Yuehan's cultivation level stabilized at the Late Second Layer of Xiantian Realm.
Having advanced to the Second Layer of Xiantian Realm, Qin Yuehan could feel that his physical strength had increased by at least threefold compared to when he was at the First Layer of Xiantian Realm. Now, if he threw a punch with all his might, it would likely carry eighty thousand catties of force. In contrast, an average martial artist at the Second Layer of Xiantian Realm could only output twenty thousand catties of force. This meant that if the current Qin Yuehan were to face a typical martial artist of the Seventh Layer of Xiantian Realm, without using any cultivation techniques or martial skills, purely through a clash of raw power, he could send them flying with a single punch. He could even put up a fight against a martial artist of the Eighth Layer of Xiantian Realm.
After breaking through to the Second Layer of Xiantian Realm, Qin Yuehan glowed with health and vitality, feeling as though he had an inexhaustible supply of energy coursing through his entire body. He then took out the inner core of the Blood-Feathered Eagle, pondering whether to refine it now. On second thought, however, advancing too rapidly through realms might not necessarily be a good thing; on the contrary, it could lead to an unstable foundation. He put the inner core away once more.
"Qin Yuehan, let me out to get some fresh air! I'm about to suffocate in here!" Within his sea of consciousness, Xiao Hei was calling out to him.
Without overthinking it, Qin Yuehan moved his mind, and Xiao Hei appeared inside the cave. "Phew~ I'm finally out!" Finished speaking, Xiao Hei made to run out of the cave.
"Wait!" Qin Yuehan promptly stopped Xiao Hei. "Let me ask you, the Myriad Creation Divine Scripture has a cultivation method: 'Open up the nine classics and eighteen meridians, and forge the natal divine artifact.' I've been cultivating according to this, so why can't I cultivate the second half of that sentence?"
Hearing this, Xiao Hei shot Qin Yuehan a look of utter contempt. "Idiot! Opening the eighteen meridians is the cultivation method for the middle stage of the first layer of the divine scripture, and forging the natal divine artifact is for the late stage. You must unlock all eighteen meridians before you can cultivate your natal divine artifact." There was something Xiao Hei left unsaid: a martial artist at a low realm simply could not cultivate a natal divine artifact; at least none of the past inheritors of the Heavenly Bead had ever managed to do so while at a low realm.
If he weren't currently dependent on this little cat, Qin Yuehan would have loved to kick it, but he managed to endure. As this little white cat had said, the most urgent task right now was to unlock all eighteen martial veins. Qin Yuehan had a vague sensation that if he could cultivate the natal divine artifact described in the divine scripture, it would undoubtedly be an extraordinary thing.
"If there's nothing else, Lord Dragon is heading out!" Tossed these words, Xiao Hei bolted out of the cave.
Qin Yuehan didn't bother minding it. He had already scouted the vicinity; there were no human-rank fierce beasts, mostly just mortal-rank primary and intermediate fierce beasts, which likely wouldn't pay attention to a little white cat devoid of any spiritual energy, so it shouldn't run into danger.
Qin Yuehan did not rush outside; instead, he wanted to continue unlocking his martial veins. He closed his eyes and began to circulate his energy. In an instant, that heart-rending, soul-crushing agony of unlocking martial veins swept over his entire body once more. It felt as though thousands of ants were gnawing at his flesh and blood, while simultaneously making him feel as though he had been cast into a raging sea of fire. Qin Yuehan furrowed his brow tightly, letting beads of sweat the size of soybeans drip down...
Cultivation knows no days or months; three days passed in the blink of an eye. During this time, Xiao Hei returned twice, but seeing that Qin Yuehan was still cultivating, it ran back out. Over these three days, Qin Yuehan had unlocked four martial veins, bringing his total to ten when counting the previous six. Originally, two days ago, Qin Yuehan had already unlocked his ninth martial vein, which belonged to the limit of what martial artists on the Ten Directions Continent could unlock. Yet when Qin Yuehan tried to unlock the tenth martial vein according to the cultivation method of the Myriad Creation Divine Scripture, he could find no clue whatsoever. A whole day passed like this, and Qin Yuehan even began to doubt whether there was something wrong with what the Myriad Creation Divine Scripture stated—that in this world, martial artists simply possessed no such thing as a tenth martial vein, let alone eighteen. But just as Qin Yuehan was about to give up, he finally found the tenth martial vein described in the divine scripture. Thus, another day passed before Qin Yuehan finally managed to unlock the tenth martial vein.
Just as Qin Yuehan was considering whether to unlock yet another martial vein, Xiao Hei panted as it scurried in from outside the cave. "Qin Yuehan, hurry! Hurry and come with me, there's a treasure!"
"Where have you been messing around this time?" Seeing that Xiao Hei was covered in dirt, its fur nearly dyed black by mud, Qin Yuehan wanted to laugh. "Heh, did you fall into a ditch?"
Seeing Qin Yuehan's attitude, Xiao Hei grew anxious. "Qin Yuehan, I'm talking to you about something serious! Be serious! I've found a treasure!"
Seeing that Xiao Hei didn't seem to be joking, Qin Yuehan asked, "What treasure?"
"Let's get this straight first: if we get the treasure I mentioned, you have to give me half!" Xiao Hei looked at Qin Yuehan somewhat nervously, because the treasure it spoke of was tied to the question of whether it could recover its realm and spiritual energy.
"Ha! You haven't even said what it is—what makes you think I'll agree?" Qin Yuehan also wanted to know what could make this little fellow care so intensely and nervously.
Seeing Qin Yuehan like this, Xiao Hei knew he wouldn't scatter the eagle until he saw the rabbit. "Have you ever heard of Myriad-Year Frigid Ice Water?"
"What!?" Qin Yuehan widened his eyes and abruptly stood up, somewhat shaken. After all, Myriad-Year Frigid Ice Water was a legendary, peerless treasure, a spiritual entity naturally formed between heaven and earth. According to records in books, Myriad-Year Frigid Ice Water was produced in bitter, frigid regions, nurtured by heaven and earth, and possessed immense sentience. A single drop consumed by someone on the brink of death could bring them back to life. It could be used to refine pills, temper the body, provide spiritual energy for cultivation, and even refine weapons. That was the stuff of legends, something Martial King powerhouses would fight to the death to seize.
Qin Yuehan found it somewhat hard to believe. "Are you lying to me? Where in the Azure Sparrow Mountain Range would such a divine object exist?"
Hearing this, Xiao Hei grew rather exasperated. If it couldn't beat Qin Yuehan, it would have really wanted to slap him a few times. Instead, it bared its teeth and brandished its claws. "I swear to the heavens, if I'm lying to you, may I be cursed to choke to death on water and crushed to death by a block of tofu..."
Qin Yuehan was speechless. "Stop! Where did you find the Myriad-Year Frigid Ice Water?"
At this, Xiao Hei began to recount the tale: "A day ago, I ventured deep into the northern frostlands of the mountain range. There are endless snow-capped mountains there. Just as I was walking among the snow mountains, I discovered a group of people gathered around a towering snow-covered peak, arguing..."