Chapter 60: Level Six, Qi Refining!

He restocked a batch of trade goods, and Chen Shicheng glanced at the sky.

It was already late, the pack ox wasn't fast either, so they needed to hurry toward the mining area.

Moreover, he now had the cultivation method, his attributes exceeded the upgrade threshold, and on the way he planned to grab the remaining 12 experience points to see what exactly differed between Qi Refining and Body Refining.

After a quick tidy-up, Chen Shicheng tucked La Tiao into his lap, had a mouse sitting on his shoulder, and retraced his route back to where he had been helping the pack ox.

The pack ox hadn't been snatched by forest predators; it lay honestly in place, occasionally nibbling on nearby tender grass, content and at ease.

After untying the rope and getting back on the road, Chen Shicheng donned the Evil Ghost Mask, summoned the Evil Ghost Pill to keep clearing wild monsters along the way, while he simply waited for the moment of leveling up to arrive.

The density of wild monsters deep in the forest remained satisfying; not long after signs of human activity appeared nearby, the Evil Ghost Pill slapped and killed a level-five Lone Wolf with a single palm.

The panel's prompt appeared shortly thereafter.

【Experience Points full—level up now? (Note: Low attributes may affect upgrade success rate; choose carefully.)】

"Impossible for it to be low—if these attribute values could still fail, nobody else would bother playing this game!"

Chen Shicheng immediately had the pack ox stop, then he found a flat spot, sat cross-legged, and calmed his mind and breath.

After the ceremonial feeling was fully satisfied, he solemnly chose to upgrade.

The next moment, his qi and blood began to circulate on their own according to the technique he had comprehended; after nine great cycles, his Divine Perception suddenly joined the circulation.

At the instant they met, the point where they converged and fused suddenly collapsed into a tiny dot, endless suction swirling forth, merging all his qi and blood power with his Divine Perception into one.

A brand-new force was born within him, swiftly devouring all his qi and blood power, then began to wander ceaselessly through his meridians.

At the same time, heaven and earth spiritual energy seemed to be drawn to him, gathering and flowing into his meridians through the acupoints, gradually increasing the amount of True Essence.

However, this increase was so slight that even when he observed it with his Divine Perception, he could only see an imperceptible trace—basically negligible.

Moreover, as True Essence circulated, his bodily cells kept devouring it; that tiny growth barely covered the consumption, leaving True Essence stuck in a neither‑increase‑nor‑decrease state.

According to the memory passed back after comprehending the technique, Chen Shicheng knew he was in an adaptation phase; once all his cells had absorbed enough True Essence to transform, this drain would disappear and True Essence would gradually replenish to fullness.

Of course, ordinary players would slowly adapt to this transformation period, but he did not need to.

At the very moment his qi and blood turned into True Essence, the Blood Killing Pearl sensed the internal energy consumption and released streams of pure True Essence, filling his True Essence to full.

His body seemed to notice the True Essence recovery, the absorption intensity surged, and it balanced with the Blood Killing Pearl's replenishment speed.

Five minutes later.

While other players might need two or three days to finish this transformation period, for Chen Shicheng it ended quickly—his level rose from five to six, and all his attributes increased somewhat.

【Essence: 26.3+1, Qi: 26+1, Spirit: 24.2+3】

At the same time, two permanent BUFFs appeared on his panel.

【True Essence Boost: All damage dealt +20%.】

【True Essence Shield: All damage taken -20%.】Seeing the two unexpected BUFFs that appeared after his upgrade, Chen Shicheng finally understood why such a harsh threshold existed between the two realms.

This was no longer a simple upgrade; it was a fundamental enhancement—between the +20% and –20%, a high‑realm player was literally 40% stronger than a low‑realm player.

It seemed that managing to kill Yu Wei several times before had been pure luck. After adapting a bit to his new post‑upgrade body, Chen Shicheng immediately mounted the pack ox and hurried on; the delay from leveling up had left him little time to make the journey.

Fortunately, the mining area wasn't far off; after hurrying and dawdling, he finally arrived at its entrance at the agreed time.

From afar he saw a woman he still didn't recognize, standing before a wooden fence, looking expectantly; without a doubt, this was the Fruity Candy who cared for head but not heel.

Indeed, the moment Chen Shicheng appeared, that woman rushed over impatiently, her mouth still muttering complaints.

"You said you'd arrive at seven, and you really came right on the dot—no wonder you're single; do you act like this on dates too?"

"I've never had a date, I don't know, but I really didn't expect you to come this early—aren't women usually fashionably late?" Chen Shicheng said, somewhat surprised.

"Don't lump me in with those women."

Before Fruity Candy finished speaking, she noticed the Evil Ghost Mask on Chen Shicheng's face, stared wide‑eyed, pointed at his face and said, "Isn't this the perverted mask from last time? How do you have it here!"

Without waiting for Chen Shicheng to reply, she suddenly realized and said, "Great, last time there was loot, and you actually black‑market‑ed the equipment!"

"Uh!"

Chen Shicheng touched the mask on his face, momentarily at a loss for words.

Last time, in the two‑on‑one fight, if Fruity Candy hadn't held back the Evil Ghost Pill, he might not have managed to pull this mask off Yu Wei's face; logically, it should have been hers as well.

But once something was in his hand, he couldn't just spit it out; helplessly, he could only compromise.

"Maybe I was nervous from the fight and forgot about it—worst case, I'll skip the elixir you mentioned; even if I pay for the mask, that should be fine, after all it's not exactly great gear."

Fruity Candy didn't believe a word of Chen Shicheng's statement, but seeing his penniless demeanor, she could do nothing about it.

After silently estimating the value of the elixir and equipment in her heart, she could only accept the unfair trade with a look of having lost eight million, dissatisfied.

"Since you came to save me this time, I won't hold it against you—if there's a next time."

"Don't worry, there won't be a next time." Before Fruity Candy could finish, Chen Shicheng cut her off: "Cut the chatter—it's late; hurry and take me to the trading spot."

"You're in a rush—why didn't you come earlier?"

Although Fruity Candy still felt a bit unbalanced inside, after Chen Shicheng secured the pack ox, she led him toward the deep woods beside the mining area, walking and reminding him along the way.

"This time be smarter—don't just blurt out your name when you show up, and don't take off that mask."

"Also, trading is entirely voluntary; absolutely no forced buying or selling, or you'll provoke public outrage—don't blame me if I don't help you."

In the midst of Fruity Candy's endless nagging, the two quickly passed through a grove and arrived at a clearing that looked as if it had just been cleared out.

(End of chapter)