While tempering her body, Wen Jingshu wondered: since her pain tolerance was so high, should she consider... taking up body cultivation on the side?
If the opportunity arose, it was certainly worth a try...
Refining pills, practicing sword arts, drawing talismans, and now adding body tempering... The more Wen Jingshu cultivated, the more she felt that she was running out of time!
Was there a magic treasure out there that could manipulate time?
She really, desperately needed one!
By the time she completely absorbed the Ziyao Spirit Bamboo Extract, dawn was already breaking.
Wen Jingshu stood up, stretched her limbs, and began another round of sword swings.
The young girl was petite, yet her movements were incredibly precise. Her eyes shone with bright, unwavering determination.
With heaven-defying talent, abundant resources, and a boundless future, the talisman cultivator Wen Jingshu had never felt so full of hope!
Seeing Wen Jingshu so full of drive, several of Wen Shuyi's Dao protectors couldn't help but look on with gratification.
With such talent, coupled with her temperament and patience, it was only a matter of time before the Wen sisters ascended to immortality!
Only Zhao Xun let out a sigh. “Consuming pills at such a young age... What a pity.”
Hearing this, Li Xunzhi looked at him with confusion.
“The pills the young lady prepared for her are all supreme-grade Qi-Recovery Pills. Instead of wasting time sitting in meditation to recover, she might as well just take one.”
“All that talk about exhausting one's spiritual energy and then meditating to widen the meridians... is nothing but self-consolation for broke sword cultivators.”
People only complained about pill toxicity because they couldn't afford them. If they truly had the option, who wouldn't want to greedily down a whole bottle of supreme-grade pills?
Setting aside the fact that the pill toxicity of supreme-grade pills was practically negligible, with the Wen family's deep heritage, could they possibly fail to find natural treasures to cleanse any residual toxicity?
Zhao Xun opened his mouth to retort, but found the logic indisputable.
Damned rich people.
That night, while Wen Jingshu was busy forming contracts, tempering her body, and practicing her sword arts, Gu Ji was not idle either.
He had sought the Ziyao Spirit Bamboo Extract to temper his own body in the first place. He had originally planned to take the extract back and commission an alchemist to refine a Body-Tempering Pill for him. Who would have thought that, through a stroke of luck, he would directly trade the extract for a supreme-grade Body-Tempering Pill imbued with Pill Intent!
Now that he had this treasure in hand, he was terrified of losing it no matter where he kept it.
Realizing he was currently in the absolutely secure Yundan City, Gu Ji made an impulsive decision to temper his body right then and there!
Upon learning of their young master's decision, the Gu family elders only hesitated for a brief moment before standing guard outside his door to protect him.
Gu Ji was right—a treasure was only truly safe once it was used!
After the Gu family elders and Gu Ji set up seven or eight defensive formations around his temporary courtyard, he carefully retrieved the Body-Tempering Pill.
The Body-Tempering Pill was entirely emerald green. The moment it was taken out, a faint, trace-like Dao Charm could be felt emanating from it.
Especially in the night, the pill was slightly translucent, shimmering with a subtle luster. If one didn't know it was a Body-Tempering Pill, they might easily mistake it for a piece of top-tier jewelry.
Medicinal pills of Sixth-Grade and above were not only astonishingly effective, but their appearance was also as exquisite as a work of art.
Gu Ji admired the Body-Tempering Pill for a long while before swallowing it.
He braced himself for the excruciating pain of body tempering, but after waiting for a moment, he found that not only did it not hurt, but it was actually quite comfortable.
He felt as if he were soaking in a hot spring, washing away the day's fatigue as his entire body became clear and unobstructed.
A look of intoxication appeared on Gu Ji's face as he immersed himself entirely in his own world.
Meanwhile, the elders guarding outside sensed an inexplicable Dao Charm. They exchanged a glance, both seeing the utter shock in each other's eyes.
Their young master had entered a state of sudden enlightenment!
A Pill Intent Pill refined by Wen Shuyi using her Carefree Intent was truly terrifyingly potent!
Gu Ji had no idea what was happening. By the time he came to, his body tempering was complete. Opening his eyes, he was startled by the sight of two old faces staring at him.
Before he could even ask, they exclaimed:
“Young Master! You just entered sudden enlightenment!”
“Tomorrow, we must bring a grand gift to thank Second Young Lady Wen for granting you this fortunate opportunity!”
Gu Ji froze at their words. He quickly checked his own condition and discovered that the bottleneck which had stymied him for three years was actually loosening!
All he needed now was to enter secluded cultivation to break through!
“I recall Uncle still has a drop of Ziyao Spirit Bamboo Extract. Send a message to him immediately and have him send it over tonight via the teleportation formation!”
Just as he finished, Gu Ji quickly added, “No, ask Uncle to clarify exactly where this Ziyao Spirit Bamboo Extract came from! Second Young Lady Wen is far more interested in its origin!”
Sudden enlightenment! That was sudden enlightenment! On the surface, it only seemed to loosen his current bottleneck, but in reality, the benefits brought by sudden enlightenment were far beyond measure!
An increase in his comprehension meant that his path of cultivation would stretch much farther in the future!
Just as Wen Jingshu sheathed her sword, Zhao Xun informed her that Gu Ji was waiting outside.
Having received Wen Jingshu's nod of approval, Zhao Xun finally let him in.
Of course, given Gu Ji's standing, he was only worthy of entering the reception hall halfway up the mountain.
By the time Wen Jingshu arrived at the reception hall, Gu Ji had been pacing anxiously for nearly the time it took for an incense stick to burn.
Upon seeing her, Gu Ji rushed forward to greet her, his eyes shining and his face beaming with a broad smile.
His overly enthusiastic behavior left Wen Jingshu feeling utterly baffled.
“Little Sister Shushu, this foolish brother was fortunate enough to enter sudden enlightenment while using the Body-Tempering Pill last night! I have come today to offer another thank-you gift.”
“And this map is a gift of gratitude from my uncle on my behalf.”
Gu Ji's uncle, the current head of the Gu family, had sent this gift not just for Gu Ji, but also to represent the Gu family's goodwill toward Wen Jingshu.
Wen Jingshu glanced at it and said in surprise:
“Is this... the map to the location of the Ziyao Spirit Bamboo?”
Seeing Wen Jingshu's slightly teasing expression, Gu Ji recalled how confidently he had claimed not to know yesterday, only to eagerly present the map today. This blatant self-contradiction was indeed a slap in the face.
A trace of subtle embarrassment flashed across the youth's face as he quickly changed the subject.
“This location is within the territory governed by my Gu family. Should you have some free time to visit in the future, Little Sister Shushu, this brother will certainly accompany you personally.”
Wen Jingshu nodded to show she understood. After sharing breakfast with Gu Ji, they headed to Yundan City together.
Today was the second day of the auction, and Yundan City was even more crowded than yesterday.
Some were those who had planned to attend from the beginning but had been delayed on the road, only just arriving.
Others had rushed over in a panic after hearing rumors that the grand finale of this auction was an Azure Dragon egg.
Having already experienced the grandeur of the Eastern Azure Continent's largest auction yesterday, Wen Jingshu sat in the private room for only a short while before starting to feel a bit bored.
Sensing her mood, Xinghui proactively presented a book and said, “Miss Wen, this contains the subsequent auction items and their approximate times. You may look through it in advance to see if there is anything that catches your eye.”
“If you find it boring, you may also leave early. This servant can bid on your behalf.”
Wen Jingshu was taken aback by Xinghui's words.
Such a convenient option existed? Why hadn't anyone told her?
She had accidentally shown her lack of worldly experience yet again.
Little did she know that only guests in the Heaven-grade private rooms had the right to browse the auction catalog. Even Zhao Xun and Li Xunzhi were seeing it for the first time.
The auction catalog looked like a heavy, thick book on the outside. As Wen Jingshu opened it, a scaled-down projection of an auction item materialized before her eyes.
At the same time, Wen Jingshu could sense a faint connection between herself and the book. With a mere thought of medicinal pills, a dazzling array of pill lots appeared before her.
The items grayed out had already been auctioned off, while the colored ones had yet to begin. Each item listed only its name and general effects; to learn more detailed information, she needed to shift her focus to the specific item of interest.
Intrigued, Wen Jingshu spent two hours browsing and selecting, eventually settling on a dozen or so items. She said to Xinghui:
“Keep an eye on these for me. Bid on them if you can, but if the price exceeds my expectation by more than twenty percent, let them go.”
Xinghui bowed. “Understood.”
Ying Zhen also chimed in from the side, “Junior Sister Wen, feel free to go out and enjoy yourself. I will keep watch here and contact you immediately if any issues arise.”
Looking at the sincere youth, Wen Jingshu smiled and replied, “Then I shall trouble you, Senior Brother Ying.”