Leaving Tianyun Garden, it was already noon. Gu An had no interest in strolling around and planned to return directly to the inn.

Halfway there, Gu An suddenly remembered that he hadn't handed over the Black-Pattern Iron to Senior Sister Yun. After thinking it over carefully, he felt that Senior Sister wouldn't care about such a paltry amount anyway, so he kept it for himself with a clear conscience.

his conversation with Yun Xiuyan had opened a new door for Gu An. This door had originally been slightly ajar, but now it was fully open.

Gu An returned to the inn. As soon as he sat down cross-legged on the bed, a voice sounded in his mind.

[One of the Black Spirit Fish you raised has died of old age, returning a Spiritual Qi Cluster to you!]

The voice sounded four times in succession, and four clusters of spiritual Qi appeared in Gu An's Dantian.

Gu An was stunned, a hint of confusion in his heart. He knew that walking all the way from Tianyun Garden back to the inn without using any spiritual power had taken him about half a quarter of an hour.

Why was it only now that he was receiving the feedback-

Unable to figure it out, Gu An wasn't one to dwell on things. Whenever it came, it came. The spirit stones were in hand, and Spirit Source Feedback would gradually take effect. He didn't care about anything else.

It wasn't as if Senior Sister Yun wouldn't eat them and would keep them to raise, right-

Given the gluttonous nature of the Purple Cloud Goose, Gu An felt that even if Senior Sister Yun wanted to keep them, she wouldn't be able to.

And indeed, things turned out exactly as Gu An had expected. Over the next three days, every day at noon, four streams of spiritual power fell into Gu An's Dantian, forcefully driving his cultivation advance a notch.

Just now, Gu An was sitting by the window, holding a spirit stone in his hand, meditating facing the moonlight.

[One of the Black Spirit Fish you raised has died of old age, returning a Spiritual Qi Cluster to you!]

[One of the Black Spirit Fish you raised has died of old age, returning a Spiritual Qi Cluster to you!]

[One of the Black Spirit Fish you raised has died of old age, returning a Spiritual Qi Cluster to you!]

..

The voice sounded eight times in rapid succession. Gu An was a bit dazed. In the middle of the night, did the Purple Cloud Goose get up for a midnight snack-

Suddenly, joy appeared on Gu An's face. Without time to think further, he closed his eyes again and emptied his mind.

He felt that the spiritual power in his Dantian was so full it seemed about to overflow. Looking inward, it matched the description in the Water Origin Art of being full without spilling over.

It was time to break through to the fifth layer of Qi Condensation!

Gu An began circulating the Water Origin Art. The spiritual power in his Dantian moved along the meridians in a cycle, repeatedly washing through his Dantian and meridians, gradually widening them.

Dripping water can wear through stone!

Amidst the sound of flowing water, Gu An's Dantian and meridians were filled with spiritual power, leaving not a single empty space.

Finally, as if a certain boundary had been broken, the previously somewhat sluggish spiritual power surged through the meridians once again, faster and with greater quantity.

Everything fell into place naturally.

After the breakthrough, Gu An's spiritual power surged by a full fifty percent. The newly broken-through spiritual power couldn't be perfectly controlled yet, seeping out slightly, causing a blue light to flicker around Gu An.

The seeping spiritual power turned into a vortex, drawing a gust of wind through the window, scattering the furnishings in the room.

Gu An opened his eyes. Seeing the wind wreaking havoc in the room, he quickly drew back the escaping spiritual energy. The wind gradually subsided. Looking at the messy room, he decided not to sleep.

He leaped out of the window frame, climbed onto the roof, and lay down with his hands behind his head.

The half-moon was like a curved ruler, stars faintly appearing, casting a soft light on his face.

..

The next morning, Gu An woke up leisurely among the roof tiles, couldn't help but stretch.

"So comfortable. It's been a long time since I slept so well."

Gu An jumped down, went to the inn's front desk, found the shopkeeper, gave him a silver ingot, instructed him to have the room cleaned, and then walked straight out the door.

This inn was on Vermilion Bird Avenue, not far from Tianyun Garden. In a short while, he arrived at Tianyun Garden.

Walking along the white jade path into Yun Xiuyan's courtyard, several senior brothers and sisters had already arrived.

After greeting them, Gu An gained a preliminary understanding of these senior brothers and sisters.

Qian Jinbao, eighth layer of Qi Condensation, on Garrison Duty in Baigu Commandery.

Huang Xuan, seventh layer of Qi Condensation, on Garrison Duty in Zhuyang Commandery.

Wang Nan, sixth layer of Qi Condensation, on Garrison Duty in Danyang Commandery.

Gu Feng, sixth layer of Qi Condensation, on Garrison Duty in Qingbai Commandery.

These four all had higher cultivation than Gu An. If Gu An hadn't just broken through to the fifth layer of Qi Condensation today, the gap would have been even larger.

However, they were all fellow disciples of the same sect with no grudges. No incidents of belittling occurred. They chatted about everything, and no one was left out. The atmosphere was harmonious.

Gu An breathed a sigh of relief, but inwardly felt a faint disappointment. Showing off and face-slapping was classic plot material; he had wanted to see some excitement.

But he didn't consider what he had to show off. It was probably only face-slapping that would happen to him.

After a short while, a bearded burly man arrived. Everyone stood up to greet him. After the introduction, Gu An learned that this Senior Brother Tan was already at the ninth layer of Qi Condensation.

In the Yun Kingdom, aside from the royal family's Foundation Establishment cultivator, he had the highest cultivation. It was said he was just over fifty years old, and Foundation Establishment Is Within Reach.

Gu An was startled. The ninth layer of Qi Condensation-this realm only required polishing the Dantian's spiritual power to perfection before one could attempt Foundation Establishment. Taking that step would make everything different.

This level of cultivation was especially rare in the Yun Kingdom. Even Senior Sister Yun Xiuyan was only at the eighth layer of Qi Condensation.

Thoughts racing, Gu An quickly cupped his hands in greeting: "Greetings, Senior Brother Tan."

Tan Chengfeng casually returned the gesture. "Greetings, Junior Brother Gu." He then ignored Gu An and sat down on his own. Seeing this, everyone else also sat down and began chatting again.

Gu An listened attentively from the side, hearing Senior Brother Tan Chengfeng talk about killing evil cultivators, Senior Sister Wang Nan describe the evening scenery of the rosy clouds, Senior Brother Qian Jinbao share strange tales and anecdotes..

He marveled at the vastness of the world and the dangers of the cultivation world, greatly broadening his horizons. His resolve to pursue longevity by raising spirit beasts became even firmer.

After another while, a thin, lean young man arrived, riding the wind. "Senior brothers and sisters, this junior brother has come late."

"Han Geng, why are you so late- We've been waiting for a long time." Senior Brother Tan spoke first, saying discontentedly.

"Forgive me, Senior Brother Tan. This junior brother truly had a reason. Wasn't a small family in Yellow Wind Commandery, where I'm stationed, massacred- The sect was furious and sent Uncle-Master Wang to investigate. I was dragged along as free labor. It was truly bitter!"

Han Geng repeatedly apologized while explaining to everyone.

"Have they been found- These robber cultivators are truly audacious, daring to massacre a family and destroy a spirit vein. They're simply courting death." Senior Brother Tan said indignantly, and the others also joined in cursing.

Han Geng shook his head. "No. Uncle-Master Wang found that the people seemed to have run into the neighboring Beastmaster Sect, so he went back to report."

"Also, I heard that those two didn't just do this one thing. They even robbed and killed the son of Pavilion Master Hua of the Hundred Ingenuity Pavilion in Qingyuan Immortal City."

This stirred up the crowd even more, and they continued cursing. "It's those bastards from the Beastmaster Sect again. Sooner or later, we'll attack the Beastmaster Sect, break through their Spirit Land, fell the mountain and destroy the temple, and let those birds see our might."

Gu An listened with great interest, occasionally joining in with a curse or two. He was also a disciple of the Qingyuan Sect. His position determined his stance, and he had a considerable dislike for the Beastmaster Sect.

As far as Gu An knew, the Beastmaster Sect was also a Golden Core Sect.

The Qingyuan Sect was located in the Qingyuan Mountains. The Qingyuan Mountains bordered the Cloudmist Mountains to the north, a place rarely visited by humans. The other three directions were mostly plains, where the three kingdoms of Yun, Chen, and Zhao were established. Yun Kingdom was located to the west, bordering You Kingdom; this You Kingdom was the sphere of influence of the Beastmaster Sect. The two robber cultivators had probably run to You Kingdom.

There was much friction between the two sects, with occasional fights and casualties on both sides. They could be called sworn enemies.