“I can’t believe it. Is this the new trend now?”
“I think I should grow a beard too.”
“What do you know? Old Man Su may be aged, but he was a handsome guy when he was young. Now that his beard is white, he’s just an old handsome guy!”
The outer sect disciples of Azure Cloud Sect couldn’t understand why Ziyun treated Su Bai with such respect. They all speculated wildly. Because of their preconceived notions, they began reading into everything Su Bai did as if it held deeper meaning.
“I get it now. It must be because he’s physically strong!”
“Old Man Su may be old, but those bright, spirited eyes of his show that he’s still full of vitality.”
“As the saying goes, ‘a young man fears the punch, but an old man’s stick is deadly.’ Su Bai must have his strengths!”
Listening to their ridiculous comments, Su Bai rolled his eyes. These kids were letting their imaginations run wild. Still, he didn’t mind. The more ridiculous their guesses, the better. As far as Su Bai was concerned, the best thing right now was to keep a low profile.
After handing the cultivation technique to Ziyun, Su Bai didn’t say much and headed straight for the training hall. He flashed the outer sect disciple token and paid the usage fee—10 Spirit Stones.
“Ten Spirit Stones? That’s extravagant!”
“What a rich guy!”
At that moment, the disciples started to realize what made Su Bai different. Many of them couldn’t even scrape together ten Spirit Stones, yet Su Bai paid without hesitation.
But what puzzled them even more was—why had Su Bai rented the training hall for so long?
The cost was one Spirit Stone per day. Su Bai had rented it for ten straight days. He didn’t bother explaining. There was no need to.
Once inside, Su Bai used the token to unlock one of the stone rooms. The floor was inscribed with an array to gather spiritual energy. Though the price was steep, the concentration of energy here was worth every coin.
Su Bai closed the stone door and exhaled deeply. His heart was racing with anticipation.
This was it—the moment of truth after sixty years of endurance and persistence.
If he failed, he’d turn to dust.
If he succeeded, it would be like a carp leaping over the dragon gate—a complete transformation.
In this turbulent cultivation world, there would be a place for Su Bai!
With firm eyes, he laid out 10,000 Spirit Stones—his entire life savings.
This was a gamble of everything he had!
But Su Bai had no such hesitation. He would risk it all to break through to the Qi Refining Realm.
If the others knew what he was doing, they’d be so furious their noses would turn crooked. This was the behavior of an inhumanly rich lunatic.
[Host has gifted: Annotated Azure Cloud Technique (Mystic-grade Technique).]
[Triggering 100x Critical Return.]
[Received: Azure Dragon Technique (Heaven-grade Technique).]
With the System Notification Sound, an identification screen appeared before Su Bai.
Technique: Azure Dragon Technique
Grade: Heaven-grade
Description: A cultivation technique created by the founding ancestor of Azure Cloud Sect. It trains both body and mana. Internally, it refines magic power; externally, it tempers the body. Once mastery is achieved, it grants strength equal to 500 kilograms!
“Amazing!” Su Bai couldn’t help but praise.
What he lacked most now was physical strength.
As the saying goes, age weakens the bones. Even with all the Spirit Stones in the world, if his body couldn’t take it, he’d still fail. But if he could use the Azure Dragon Technique to strengthen his physique, he’d have no weaknesses.
“Let’s do this in one go!”
Su Bai steeled his resolve. Sixty years of bitter cultivation had not fulfilled his dream, but today, he would finally break through and become a true cultivator.
He gave himself no retreat—piling all his Spirit Stones into the center of the array.
As the array activated, the glow of the Spirit Stones began to dim. Streams of mist-like spiritual energy rose from them, filling the entire room.
The spiritual energy in the chamber now was comparable to that of a sacred land.
Day one—nothing happened.
Day two—still no signs.
By the ninth day, disciples outside the training hall began to murmur, wondering if Su Bai had suffered a cultivation mishap and died inside.
But no one dared to investigate. Interrupting closed-door cultivation was taboo, especially since it wasn’t yet the tenth day.
“Senior Sister Lin is here!”
“Senior Sister Ziyun too!” Follow the newest chapters on g.com.
With bursts of excitement, the crowd watched as two beautiful girls, surrounded by disciples, arrived at the training hall.
“Old Man Su sure has status!”
“Both of the sect’s outer sect beauties came to see him!”
“If I could live like him, riding Spirit Beasts and living in an Immortal Abode, I’d trade anything!”
“You sure take advantage of every situation, don’t you?”
Lin Xiaoyue and Ziyun stood silently at the entrance of the training hall.
Ziyun was quiet and gentle, waiting patiently. Lin Xiaoyue, however, grew impatient quickly. She frowned.
“This old man couldn’t have actually died in there, could he? If he’s dead, who am I supposed to get the complete sword technique from?”
She pulled out a small jade bottle from her storage pouch. Inside was a pill that could reconnect meridians—an extremely rare and precious elixir. If Su Bai had truly lost control and was still barely alive, this might be able to save him.
Finally, the tenth day arrived.
More and more disciples gathered outside the training hall. Word had spread—an old man had been in closed-door cultivation for ten full days.
After sixty years without a breakthrough, if he managed to succeed at seventy-something years old, it would be major news.
Breaking through to the 1st stage of the Qi Refining Realm wasn’t impressive—but holding onto that unwavering will for sixty years, now that was remarkable.
“No one knows what Senior Su is doing in there, but for him to stay in closed-door cultivation so long, he must be working on something important!”
Ziyun didn’t believe Su Bai was in danger. She didn’t know why he needed ten days, but she felt it had deeper meaning.
By midday, Lin Xiaoyue couldn’t hold back anymore. She furrowed her brow, ready to force her way in.
Whether the old man was dead or alive, she had to try to rescue him.
Outside, voices of discussion grew louder.
“That old menial laborer… could he really have died in there?”
“Who knows. Cultivation isn’t always dangerous, but there’s still the risk of going mad. He’s so old, maybe…”
“Trying to force a breakthrough at seventy-plus? The consequences could be disastrous.”
Many disciples of Azure Cloud Sect didn’t believe in Su Bai’s success.
“Noon has arrived…” Lin Xiaoyue looked up at the sun.
She was about to forcefully open the stone room, when suddenly—creak—the door to the training hall opened.