[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":-1},["ShallowReactive",2],{"origin-the-treasure-immortal-basin":3,"chapter-the-treasure-immortal-basin-the-treasure-immortal-basin-chapter-229":6},{"origin":4,"title":5},"chinese","The Treasure Immortal Basin",{"chapter":7,"nextChapterSlug":19,"prevChapterSlug":20,"totalChapters":21,"novelImage":22},{"id":8,"novel_id":9,"title":10,"slug":11,"index":12,"content":13,"wordcount":14,"created_at":15,"updated_at":15,"volume":16,"translator":17,"content_hash":18},2355412,4608,"Chapter 229: Scattering Qi","the-treasure-immortal-basin-chapter-229",229,"\u003Cp>A vast spiritual sense descended from the sky, paused briefly over He Pingsheng, then lightly swept past.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Cold sweat beaded densely along He Pingsheng’s back; only after the overwhelming pressure passed did he dare lift his head—but above him, there was only empty void.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>No one was there.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>What did that mean?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It meant the one who unleashed that powerful spiritual sense to sweep across the entire Jixi City wasn’t necessarily watching He Pingsheng—they simply scanned casually.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Nascent Soul!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>In an instant, He Pingsheng made his judgment: only a Great Nascent Soul could do this.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>That meant a Great Nascent Soul had taken up residence in Jixi City.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>What was he here for?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He Pingsheng didn’t know, but he could deduce.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Huh…” He Pingsheng took a deep breath and walked along the main street of Jixi City.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>There weren’t many people on the road; he entered several other spirit-tea houses to gather information.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But the news he received was nearly identical: the Qi Kingdom’s imperial family had begun surrounding and blocking escape routes, and the encirclement was growing tighter.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>…\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>In the cave, red candles flickered!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A warm glow from the candlelight illuminated Qiao Huizhu’s face.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He Pingsheng looked at her, feeling as if he were gazing upon a beauty beneath lamplight.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Qiao Huizhu spread the meditation cushion flat and said: “So it seems, in a few more days, this place won’t be safe anymore!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He Pingsheng nodded: “Yes, we need to find another place!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Sister Qiao, I’m sorry!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Qiao Huizhu shook her head: “It’s nothing, little brother. Let’s not talk about that now!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“You’ve been running around nonstop these days—rest well tonight. We’ll decide everything tomorrow!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“After all… there are still a few days left, aren’t there?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He Pingsheng said: “Alright!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>These days of constant travel had indeed worn him out.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After washing briefly in the mountain stream, He Pingsheng lay down on the meditation cushion inside the cave—but he couldn’t sleep, no matter how he turned.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Qiao Huizhu sat beside the cushion, her face flushed: “Aren’t you the one who wanted to do something reckless last time?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Today, I’ll let you be reckless!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He Pingsheng sprang upright like a leaping carp: “Sister… you…”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Don’t talk!” Qiao Huizhu took a deep breath, lowering her face: “We don’t even know if we’ll live to see tomorrow—let’s make this marriage real first!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>…\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Half-asleep, he didn’t know how long he’d slept when He Pingsheng suddenly opened his eyes.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He turned his head to his left.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>That was where Qiao Huizhu had slept—but now it was empty.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He quickly turned to his right—also empty.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Sister…” He leapt up, scanning the surroundings.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The dark cave held no trace of a person.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Boom…\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He Pingsheng summoned his spiritual power, forming a fire crow on his palm.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The entire cave was illuminated.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Still no one!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Sister!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He Pingsheng extended his spiritual sense—but found no trace of her in the cave.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He hastily dressed and pushed through the four layers of second-rank formation barrier outside.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Outside the cave, dawn’s first light glowed faintly, the sky turning pale.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Mist rose from the ground, blurring the rocks and trees around him.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But He Pingsheng wasn’t afraid—he extended his spiritual sense again, and this time he saw Qiao Huizhu.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>She sat atop a massive boulder nearby, her body curled and bent, resembling at first glance a writhing, pained shrimp.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Sister!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He Pingsheng rushed over in panic!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He leapt up and landed on the boulder.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But the sight before him froze his body rigid.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Her hair was white.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Wrinkles lined her face.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Worse, her cheeks bore streaks of blood.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>As if slashed open by a dagger.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Had it not been for the lingering scent of her perfume from last night, He Pingsheng wouldn’t have believed this was the woman he loved.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Little brother!” Qiao Huizhu smiled: “Can you still recognize me?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He Pingsheng’s heart ached. He crouched down: “What happened to you?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“How did you become like this?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“And where did your cultivation base go?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Where did your spiritual power vanish?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“What on earth happened?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He Pingsheng held her body, pressing her with relentless questions.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Tears welled in his eyes.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Qiao Huizhu reached out and traced a hand across He Pingsheng’s face.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Her hand was still as soft, fair, and slender as ever: “The Qi Kingdom’s encirclement is closing in—I understand your intent. You want to break through, even at the cost of your life!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“You might escape alone, but the two of us together? There’s no chance.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“So last night, I thought hard—how to break this deadlock?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Finally, I found a way.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Qiao Huizhu took two deep breaths, forcing calm: “It’s called scattering Qi.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He Pingsheng’s heart felt like it was being cut: “Scattering Qi… restarting cultivation?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Mm…” Qiao Huizhu nodded: “You have the Brocade Robe—it can change shape. Even a Nascent Soul cultivator won’t see through it!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“But I can’t.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Not even a Golden Core cultivator—let alone a Nascent Soul—would miss me.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“But scattering Qi is different.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“I drain all spiritual power, lose all cultivation base—then I become a mortal with no foundation at all.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Second, as my cultivation vanishes, my true age will show.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“You’re thirty-seven now, right?” Qiao Huizhu looked up at He Pingsheng.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He Pingsheng said: “Yes, nearly thirty-eight.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Qiao Huizhu said: “I’m a few years older—I’m already over forty. I thought after scattering Qi, I’d age dramatically by forty.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“But after I scattered my Qi, I realized—it didn’t happen.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“My appearance barely changed at all!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“So… since I’d already paid such a price and still couldn’t hide, I decided to go all in.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He Pingsheng understood.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He nodded.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Qiao Huizhu’s plan was indeed clever.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Scattering Qi would erase her cultivation base and cause aging, altering her appearance drastically.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But after scattering Qi, she found her face hadn’t aged at all.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>So she gritted her teeth—and destroyed her own face.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Now, passing inspection won’t be a problem.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Sister!” He Pingsheng’s heart swelled with mixed emotion—gratitude, sorrow. He lifted her into his arms: “Don’t worry—I’ll restore your spiritual root!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“If I can’t, I’ll quit cultivation entirely!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Scattering Qi and restarting cultivation sounded simple.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>In truth, it was extremely difficult.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Once Qi is scattered, cultivation becomes impossible.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>You become exactly like an ordinary mortal.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Even if you try to resume your former scripture, it won’t work.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Because your meridians, spiritual root, and dantian have all closed.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>To resume cultivation, you must reopen your meridians, spiritual root, and dantian.\u003C\u002Fp>",1071,"2026-06-21T04:09:00.242Z",1,"Qwen3-Next 80B","bd86e279f91658405a299679b6e095d25f22ac9f62ab4dd0d1d22a05126743cc","the-treasure-immortal-basin-chapter-230","the-treasure-immortal-basin-chapter-228",1000,"https:\u002F\u002Fnovelzhen.com\u002Fimages\u002Fcovers\u002Fthe-treasure-immortal-basin-cover.jpg"]