Yafei seemed accustomed to Xiao Yan's teasing.
Her gaze swept over his youthful face as she covered her mouth and laughed softly.
"I'll still say it: wait until your hair grows before we talk."
"Hehe."
Xiao Yan only smiled expressionlessly in response to Yafei's teasing.
"When the young master's hair grows, you'll regret it!"
"What's next?"
Yafei set down her cup, her gaze burning into Xiao Yan.
"I'll refine another batch of Foundation Building Spirit Liquid."
Xiao Yan looked at Yafei's expectant eyes and said calmly, "Don't expect too much.
The one behind me isn't some laboring donkey. He can't refine these low-grade pills for us day and night.
Before the new year, maybe twenty bottles at most."
Hearing this, Yafei showed no dissatisfaction. Instead, she felt more reassured.
Meanwhile, a flash of white light gleamed from the black ring on Xiao Yan's hand, and the old man treated like a donkey emitted low, displeased grunts.
Normally, alchemists would claim eighty or ninety percent of profits in such cooperation. For Yafei to receive half of Xiao Yan's profits was almost unimaginable.
If such huge profits continued endlessly, she would feel slightly uneasy.
Twenty bottles of Foundation Building Spirit Liquid would still grant her a significant sum, enough for her to easily stand out in the family assessment with just Xiao Yan alone.
"Besides that, prepare two more sets of Ju Qi Pills for me."
Before leaving, Xiao Yan tossed a small slip of paper with the details of the Ju Qi Pills ingredients, leaving Yafei sitting there dazed.
"Ju Qi Pills… those are fourth-grade pills. Even Dan Wang Gu He wouldn't be completely confident in refining them successfully."
Watching Xiao Yan leave, Yafei's red lips curved into a bitter smile.
"Surely I won't end up falling into this little guy's hands in the future."
Half a month later, using the excuse of a visit, Yafei returned to the Xiao family, secretly giving Xiao Yan a ring and several jade cards containing a total of 300,000 gold coins in installments.
Thus, Xiao Yan's first bucket of gold after rebirth was finally in place.
Moreover, the ring contained all sorts of medicinal ingredients, the cost of which was almost entirely covered by Yafei herself.
The ring alone, along with the ingredients, cost over 200,000 gold coins.
Yafei had returned most of the auction profits from the Foundation Building Spirit Liquid to Xiao Yan.
For this, Xiao Yan could only give her a wry look—there was nothing else he could do.
"Never mind. In the future, what I owe you won't be lost because of this little bit."
Watching Yafei's seductive figure leave, Xiao Yan felt a slight itch in his heart, but quickly returned to his rigorous daily training.
As temperatures dropped and lower-level cultivators dressed for warmth, Xiao Yan successfully absorbed four bottles of Foundation Spirit Liquid, finally advancing to the ninth stage of Dou Qi.
From Dou Qi Stage Three to Stage Nine after rebirth, Xiao Yan had achieved this in less than five months—a pace over twice as fast as his previous life.
And this was under the condition of carefully condensing his Dou Qi to an extreme density.
The initial winter wind carried a biting chill, blowing dry leaves across the Xiao family's back mountains.
Xiao Yan stood shirtless, muscles defined, boldly facing the wind.
By his side, Yao Lao floated lightly, his old face showing slight displeasure.
"In this time, you've tricked me into refining over forty bottles of Foundation Spirit Liquid, two Ju Qi Pills, and one Minor Earth Spirit Pill.
But your Dou Qi is near breakthrough, right? You promised a surprise after breaking through to Dou Master."
Yao Lao toyed with a Ju Qi Pill, ready to feed it to Xiao Yan at any moment.
Although amazed by Xiao Yan every day for the past six months, Yao Lao still held a little doubt, mixed with anticipation for the promised surprise.
"Hehe. Me, Xiao Yan, breaking through to Dou Master? Not so easy, teacher. You should first bring out your Xuan Heavy Ruler and play with it."
At Yao Lao's reminder, Xiao Yan smiled and shook his head, instead urging the old man to bring out the Xuan Heavy Ruler.
"You little brat."
After carefully circling Xiao Yan with his eyes, Yao Lao waved casually.
A massive black ruler, slightly taller than Xiao Yan, fell from the sky, landing firmly in the ground before him.
Staring at this huge black ruler, larger than his own body, Xiao Yan's eyes filled with nostalgia.
"Old friend… long time no see."
On the surface of the jet-black giant ruler were etched some faint, strange patterns.
The markings extended to the handle, covering almost the entire body of the ruler.
Combined with its antiquated black color, it exuded a mysterious aura.
Staring at this massive black ruler, Xiao Yan finally recalled enough to reach out and grasp it.
"Rise!"
Xiao Yan let out a low shout. The terrifying power he had cultivated for nearly five months had far surpassed ordinary people. Even his physical strength alone could contend with a Dou Master.
Yet even so, when he lifted the Xuan Heavy Ruler, a sense of heaviness immediately pressed down on him.
His Dou Qi, though solidified through careful refinement, felt even denser when channeled into the ruler.
Xiao Yan's face remained calm, as he had long since grown accustomed to holding the Xuan Heavy Ruler.
The reason he summoned it was to use its special properties to refine his Dou Qi to the utmost and prepare for cultivating his newly devised technique.
Over the next month, Xiao Yan continued his day-after-day intense training. He refined his Dou Qi to perfection, enhancing his physical strength further, until the fifth bottle of Foundation Spirit Liquid was fully consumed.
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