Ye Xian's eyes lit up with excitement. He knew that for cultivators, strong senses were like having a third eye. With better perception, he could "see" the world even with his eyes closed—360 degrees, even. Perfect for dodging attacks… or awkward social situations.
And though Adler's full techniques hadn't transferred, even the few that did were a huge advantage.
He wanted to grab Aureliana and hug her, spin her around like a rom-com lead in a meadow of spirit butterflies. But of course, all he could see was mist and those glowing golden eyes.
He silently thanked Aureliana before getting more details on how to use reverse taiji treasure to absorb ki from ki stones, feeling more hopeful and powerful than ever, then exited his inner world and returned to the real world in his room.
Ye Xian sat down and took a deep, focused breath. With calm precision, he summoned the Reverse Taiji Formation as he was instruction by Aureliana.
Beneath him, a glowing projection appeared—two fish, one black and one white, floating in stillness.
The projection expanded outward, covering a radius of one meter. At his mental command, the two fish flicked their tails and began slow, deliberate movements around the edge of the formation.
Moments later, thousands of strands of ki surged from his spatial ring, flooding around him before pouring into his body like a spiritual milkshake being inhaled through a straw.
The energy rushed into his dantian, saturating his being and sending a deep hum through his meridians.
In mere minutes, the ki stones began to crumble into ash—their essence fully absorbed.
Ye Xian could feel his cultivation rising. At the peak of the third stage of the Ki Refining Realm, he rapidly broke through to the fourth—a leap so fast it defied reason, common sense, and every cultivation manual ever written.
A wave of exhilaration swept over him.
The power of the Reverse Yin-Yang treasure was beyond imagination.
While most cultivators had to painstakingly absorb and refine ki before advancing, his method allowed him to integrate the ki directly into his cultivation.
Normally, any unrefined ki would dissipate if used before refinement—but Ye Xian was apparently playing by new rules now.
The speed and efficiency of ki absorption largely depended on a cultivator's innate talent, which was ranked in four tiers:
D-Tier: Basically cultivation cannon fodder. These folks were lucky if they reached puberty without pulling a muscle.
C-Tier: Could reach the ki Warrior Realm with enough pills and family bribes, they could breakthrough into element Element Disciple realm.
B-Tier: Capable of reaching the Element Master Realm, and with enough support, could even break into the Sentail Realm—a level far beyond the average cultivator.
A-Tier: The peak of talent. These cultivators had the potential to ascend into the Sage Realm.
However, a transcendent barrier separated the Sage Realm from all lower realms.
Beyond this point, every minor breakthrough became exponentially harder.
Talent alone wasn't enough. Decades of effort, massive resources, unshakable perseverance, miraculous treasure and luck were required.
Because of this, powerful clans focused their resources on children with higher-tier talents.
Lower-tier cultivators were often ignored unless they had a special background or influence.
Ye Xian had originally been a C-Tier nobody. The kind of guy elders politely patted on the head and then ignored.
Under normal conditions, it would have taken him months and twice the time to break through even one stage.
Even an A-Tier genius would need days to months, just to refine the energy to breakthrough .
This was the heaven-defying power of Reverse Yin-Yang.
He no longer faced the limitations that ordinary cultivators struggled with. No talent bottleneck. No slow refinement process. His strength would only grow—faster than anyone could imagine.
More and more ki threads flowed from the spatial ring, swirling around him before entering his body and settling in his dantian.
Fourth stage of Ki Refining!
Fifth stage!
Sixth stage!
Thanks to Meng Pan, Ye Xian had 20,000 ki stones—a ridiculous amount. He was feeling fantastic, breaking through stage after stage in just a few breaths.
Breakthroughs had never been this easy. If other cultivators saw how fast he was advancing, they would cry, flip tables, demand a refund from the heavens, and at last start questioning their entire existence.
The room was filled with glowing strands of ki as his cultivation surged higher and higher. Ki stones rapidly turned to ash in the spatial ring as his power climbed.
Seventh stage!
Eighth stage!
Ninth stage!
Suddenly, his progress halted.
At the peak of the ninth stage, Ye Xian opened his eyes, confused. He glanced into his spatial ring—and froze.
All the ki stones were gone.
"…What the FUCK?" he muttered. "Fk—there were 20,000 ki stones! That should've been enough to reach the Element Master Realm. I didn't even reach the Qi Warrior Realm?! What the actual fk?!"
He cursed loudly. A moment ago, he had been riding a wave of excitement—the sensation of breaking through stage after stage had left him dizzy with pleasure. Each time, warm energy had flooded his body, filling him with a sense of peace and strength.
The 20,000 ki stones from the bank(Meng Pan)—every single one had been consumed.
Ye Xian had been using the Reverse Taiji Treasure to increase his cultivation, but this wasn't a normal method. Normally, when a cultivator absorbs ki, it remains in a mist-like form within the body. But Ye Xian's cultivation, due to the Reverse Yin-Yang technique, had condensed into liquid ki—a much purer and more potent form.
This also meant he needed more ki than others to break through, because each stage of cultivation is significantly larger than the one before it. The second stage is bigger than the first, the third bigger than the second—and so on.
The 20,000 ki stones had been used up just to bring him to the peak of the 9th stage of Ki Refining.
Then he remembered—he still hadn't used the Yin essence he'd absorb during his dual cultivation with Sheng Qianying in the morning.
Closing his eyes, Ye Xian focused his will and gave a mental command.
The Reverse Taiji Formation began to rotate again.
He felt ki flowed into his dantian. His cultivation, which had been stuck at the peak of the 9th stage, surged forward and finally broke through into the ki Warrior Realm.
As the breakthrough happened, he felt a warm energy spread throughout his body, rejuvenating his muscles, bones, and tendons making them stronger and resilient.
He realized his meridians had grown stronger and wider, allowing even more ki to flow through them. His eyes widened. He felt amazing—stronger than ever before as power coursing through him.
He touched his nose and noticed something odd. Black, sticky impurities had come out of his body during the breakthrough—evidence of deep cleansing.
These were the toxins and waste that the Reverse Taiji Formation had forced out.
He smiled, knowing that with these impurities gone, even his talent had improved.
But the smell was horrible.
Unable to bear it any longer, he rushed to the bathroom to wash off.
After his bath, Ye Xian changed into a fresh clothes from his academy uniform—a silver robe embroidered with white cloud patterns.
He felt incredible.
His body was stronger. His mind was clearer. And most importantly, he had finally stepped into the ki Warrior Realm.