The days spent recovering were quieter than Bai Qingxue had expected.
The effects of the Snow Spirit Powder were also unexpectedly good.
Within half a day of applying it, the bruising at the wound began to fade. The edges of the scab started to itch slightly—a sign that the flesh was healing.
She sat cross-legged on the stone dais, circulating the 《Mystic Frost Heavenly Heart Art》 to let spiritual power flow slowly through the meridians in her shoulder. Wherever the spiritual power passed, the lingering congestion was dissolved bit by bit, merging into her Mystic Frost spiritual power and becoming nourishment.
Two days later, Bai Qingxue unwrapped the bandages. The wound had mostly healed, leaving only a faint red scar.
She moved her shoulder; the soreness was still there, but it no longer affected her ability to use her techniques.
On the third day, Bai Qingxue tried pushing her spiritual power to its limit.
Spiritual power surged through her meridians more fluently than before she was injured, as if the life-and-death struggle had forced open certain areas that were previously blocked.
Bai Qingxue opened her eyes and looked at her palm.
She was near the peak of the fourth level of Qi Refining.
One more step would bring her to the fifth level.
However, Bai Qingxue was in no rush to break through. Instead, she closed her eyes to regulate her breathing, adjusting her state to its peak.
With the medicinal power of the Snow Spirit Powder still present and the cold air in the quiet room being quite sharp, it was a good time for cultivation.
A moment later, there was a knock at the courtyard gate.
“Junior Sister Bai, someone from down the mountain asked me to bring you something again,” the peak-guarding senior sister’s voice called out from beyond the gate.
Bai Qingxue furrowed her brows slightly before rising to open the door.
The peak-guarding senior sister handed over a wooden box and smiled. “It’s that same junior sister from Qingyun Peak from last time.”
Bai Qingxue took the wooden box and offered her thanks. After closing the door and returning to the quiet room, she opened the box. Inside was a small porcelain bottle labeled “Heart Nourishing Pills.”
It was the same kind of healing medicine as the one sent previously.
Next to the porcelain bottle lay a slip of paper with elegant handwriting. It contained only one sentence: “I heard your injuries haven't fully healed yet; these should still be useful.”
Bai Qingxue looked at the note for a moment. She remembered that the previous bottle of Heart Nourishing Pills was already in her storage bag, unused.
And now, another bottle had been sent.
After a moment of thought, Bai Qingxue stood up and left the courtyard.
...
Outside the gates of Qingyun Peak, Bai Qingxue waited for about fifteen minutes.
After the gate-guarding disciple went in to report her arrival, Ye Qingyao came running out. she was wearing the light green disciple uniform, her hair a bit messy as if she had been called out in the middle of cultivation.
“Sister Bai?” She froze for a moment upon seeing Bai Qingxue. “Why are you here? Your injury...”
“It’s mostly healed.” Bai Qingxue looked at her and got straight to the point. “Did you exchange your contribution points for the pills?”
Ye Qingyao was taken aback, then she lowered her head and twisted her hem with her fingers. “Yes.”
“How much did they cost?”
“Not much...” Ye Qingyao’s voice grew softer. “You don't need to worry about it, Sister Bai. I was just saving my contribution points anyway...”
“How much?” Bai Qingxue asked again.
Ye Qingyao bit her lip, hesitating for a long time before saying, “Sixty.”
Sixty contribution points.
For a disciple at the second level of Qi Refining, a daily mission only rewarded five points. Saving sixty points would take at least half a month.
Bai Qingxue remained silent for a moment. She did not like being indebted to others.
However, since Ye Qingyao had already delivered the items, it didn't seem right to return them.
“I will pay you back,” Bai Qingxue said.
Ye Qingyao looked up, her eyes slightly red, but her tone was earnest. “There’s no need. You’ve taught me so much about cultivation, Sister Bai, and I haven't even thanked you yet. What are a few pills compared to that...?”
Bai Qingxue glanced at her but said nothing.
Feeling a bit uncomfortable under her gaze, Ye Qingyao lowered her eyes and whispered, “Besides... I’m just glad you’re okay.”
Bai Qingxue was silent for a few heartbeats before finally dropping the subject of returning the contribution points. She took out two Spirit Gathering Pills from her storage bag and handed them over.
“Take these.”
Ye Qingyao looked at the Spirit Gathering Pills and gasped, waving her hands hurriedly. “No, no, Sister Bai, these are too valuable. I can't take them.”
Before she could finish, Bai Qingxue had already pulled her hand over, pressed the pills into her palm, and closed her fingers around them.
“Take them.”
Bai Qingxue’s tone was flat, leaving no room for argument.
Clutching the pills, Ye Qingyao opened her mouth as if to say, “I didn't want you to pay me back,” but Bai Qingxue had already turned to leave.
“Sister Bai!”
Bai Qingxue didn't stop.
“Is your injury really healed?” Ye Qingyao called out after her.
“Yes.”
“Then rest well and don't get hurt again!”
Bai Qingxue’s footsteps paused briefly, but she didn't look back as she continued down the path.
...
Back in her courtyard, Bai Qingxue sat down again in the quiet room.
No lamps were lit inside. Moonlight leaked through the window, cutting several strips of cold white light across the floor.
After a moment, Bai Qingxue took out a bottle of Heart Nourishing Pills from her storage bag, uncorked it, and poured out a pill.
The pill was light green with fine patterns on its surface. Though its quality wasn't top-tier—and was even quite crude compared to the Snow Spirit Powder—she knew its value.
Bai Qingxue knew that with Ye Qingyao’s cultivation at the second level of Qi Refining and her limited contribution points, exchanging for these two bottles of pills had been a significant sacrifice.
But she couldn't use them...
The medicinal effect of the Snow Spirit Powder was much stronger than that of the Heart Nourishing Pills; it had been given by Perfected One Hanyi and was specifically for treating injuries sustained by those with the Ice Spirit Physique.
But Ye Qingyao didn't know that.
She only knew that Bai Qingxue was injured.
Pushing the thought aside, Bai Qingxue repacked the Heart Nourishing Pills and put them back into her storage bag. Then, she took out a Spirit Gathering Pill and held it in her palm.
The pill was milky white with a warm luster, a faint medicinal fragrance, and restrained spiritual power.
This was a standard product from the sect’s alchemy hall, with stable quality that was much better than what she had previously found in the market.
Bai Qingxue then placed the pill in her mouth and swallowed.
Feeling the medicinal power begin to dissipate, Bai Qingxue immediately closed her eyes and began her cultivation, guiding the power to spread through her entire body.
The 《Mystic Frost Heavenly Heart Art》 operated on its own, and spiritual power surged through her meridians. With every cycle, the medicinal power was refined further, transforming into pure ice-attribute spiritual power that flowed into her dantian.
The lake of spiritual power in her dantian was slowly rising.
The barrier of the peak of the fourth level of Qi Refining was right ahead. It was invisible and intangible, yet she could feel it—like a transparent wall standing between her dantian and meridians, trapping the lake of spiritual power within.
The impact of the medicinal power made the wall tremble slightly, but it did not break.
Bai Qingxue was in no rush.
She circulated her technique over and over, letting the spiritual power repeatedly wash against that barrier like a whetstone, round after round.
With every wash, the barrier grew a bit thinner.
The sound of spiritual power flowing through her meridians was clearly audible in her ears, accompanied by her increasingly long and steady breaths.
One breath.
Two breaths.
Three breaths.
Time became viscous in the quiet room; it was impossible to tell if fifteen minutes or an hour had passed.
Outside the window, the moonlight was cold, and the petals of the old plum tree were still falling. One petal, then two, silent and weightless, like snow, and like a sigh.
The tension in Bai Qingxue’s brow gradually relaxed.
By now, that barrier was already as thin as a sheet of paper.
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