It's almost time to get to work. Lin Hao stopped his meditation and got up from the wooden bed.

"Let's set a goal, cultivate to the ninth level of Qi Refining."

He was filled with determination.

As long as he uses the Five Elements Eternal Life Art to reach the ninth level of Qi Refining, he would have a lifespan one and a half times longer than others at the same cultivation level, which is about 180 years.

"Big Brother, have you broken through to the first level of Qi Refining?"

Fatty Wang Fu asked Lin Hao, as he had heard that Lin Hao might break through in the last few days.

"Yeah, I have."

Lin Hao smiled and replied.

"Big Brother, as expected of someone chosen by Senior Sister Liu. You're truly amazing."

Fatty Wang Fu’s chubby face showed admiration.

"Don’t mention that I’m a talent disciple, we need to keep a low profile."

Lin Hao's face grew slightly unnatural when Fatty mentioned 'Senior Sister Liu'. He wasn’t sure what Fatty would think when he found out the truth, that his real spiritual root was a first-grade Five Elements root, not a sixth-grade single fire attribute. Would he still call him "Big Brother"?

The two chatted as they left the room together and headed toward the spirit mine mountain.

After receiving their mining tools, Lin Hao and Fatty entered the mine.

"Clink, clink! Ding, ding!"

A number of outer disciples were working in the mine, and the sound of chiseling rocks echoed continuously.

"My strength has increased!"

Lin Hao swung his pickaxe and found that after breaking through to the first level of Qi Refining, his strength had tripled compared to before.

Before his breakthrough, after eating a month’s worth of spirit porridge, he had close to 200 jin of strength, but now it was at least 600 jin.

With this increase in strength, Lin Hao’s mining speed surged.

In just two hours, he had mined enough spirit iron to exchange for a meal.

This was with him deliberately holding back—if he used his internal spiritual power and mined with full force, he could probably mine enough for a meal in just over an hour.

"Big Brother, you're too strong!"

Fatty Wang Fu, who was nearby, looked at Lin Hao with admiration. "Even Yan Heng, who’s close to the second level of Qi Refining, can’t mine as fast as you!"

"Heh, it’s just average."

Lin Hao smiled modestly, but inside he was thrilled. The Long Life Immortal Sect's teachings had been right—his Five Elements spiritual root made him invincible at the same cultivation level.

Just from his increased strength, it was clear.

Feeling joyous inside, Lin Hao smiled at Fatty and said, "Let’s work hard and try to get more spirit porridge today."

Back when they first arrived at Xuanyue Sect, he couldn’t even mine five pounds of iron, and it was thanks to Fatty’s help that he could get some spirit porridge. Now that he had broken through to the first level of Qi Refining and his mining speed had increased, he could exchange for more spirit porridge, and he didn’t mind sharing some with Fatty to repay the favor.

"He’s really a talent picked by Senior Sister Liu, breaking through in just half a month."

This book is hosted on another platform. Read the official version and support the author's work.

In the mine, the outer disciples watching the mining couldn’t help but be impressed by Lin Hao’s speed.

"Lin Hao’s at least a six-grade single fire spiritual root with how fast he’s advancing. His future achievements will be limitless. We can’t compare."

"Good thing we didn’t provoke him."

Yan Heng, who was about to break through to the second level of Qi Refining, heard the other disciples talking and felt a sense of relief. He was glad he hadn’t tried to pick a fight with Lin Hao due to his fear of Senior Sister Liu. A talent like him would be difficult to handle if provoked in the sect.

"Greetings, Sect Master! Greetings, Senior Sister Liu!"

While the other disciples were praising Lin Hao’s talent, suddenly, all the outer disciples in the mine knelt down and bowed.

An elderly man with a smiling face entered, accompanied by the stunningly beautiful Liu Qinghan in a purple gown, along with several inner disciples from Xuanyue Sect.

"You may rise, no need for formalities."

Xuanyue Sect’s Sect Master, Chi Yunzi, was in a good mood after hearing that his disciple, Liu Qinghan, had taken in Lin Hao, who supposedly had a six-grade fire spiritual root. He appeared very approachable.

"Thank you, Sect Master."

The outer disciples in the mine were somewhat overwhelmed, but they thanked the Sect Master and got back up.

"Qinghan, which one of these is Lin Hao, the one with the six-grade fire spiritual root?"

Chi Yunzi asked.

The outer and servant disciples present were all envious. They all realized that the Sect Master had come to see Lin Hao personally.

They couldn’t help but feel a twinge of jealousy, wishing they could take Lin Hao’s place.

"That’s him."

Liu Qinghan pointed at the young man holding a mining tool.

At once, all eyes in the room focused on Lin Hao.

"So soon!"

Lin Hao felt uncomfortable under their gazes. He wasn’t happy about the attention; in fact, it felt like a pressure weighing down on him.

He was a first-grade Five Elements root, not the six-grade fire root they thought he had. If they tested his spiritual root with the stone, his secret would be exposed.

"Such dense fire spiritual energy... hmm, you’ve already reached the first level of Qi Refining so quickly. This kid is impressive!"

Chi Yunzi’s gaze landed on Lin Hao, his expression full of joy. "To have such a talent, our Xuanyue Sect is surely going to thrive!"

He was glowing with excitement. Even when he personally broke through to the Foundation Establishment stage, he hadn’t been this happy.

If this six-grade fire root really grew to its full potential, and combined with his disciple Liu Qinghan’s five-grade wood attribute spiritual root, it could raise Xuanyue Sect’s standing in the Zhaoguo Four Great Sects. Perhaps, they could even rise to the top.

Suddenly, Chi Yunzi flashed in front of Lin Hao so quickly that no one could track his movement.

"Good boy, come, quickly place your hand on this spiritual root testing stone."

Chi Yunzi pulled out a transparent stone from his storage bag, his face full of warmth as he spoke gently.

Seeing the old man’s eager expression, Lin Hao felt a cold sweat run down his back. He knew his real situation. He wasn’t a six-grade fire spiritual root.

He couldn’t avoid it.

Reluctantly, he placed his hand on the stone.

After a moment, the transparent stone began to glow with five-colored light.

"Huh...! This...!"

Chi Yunzi’s smile froze on his face as he stared at the spiritual root testing stone, his expression stiffening as if his Dao heart had been shaken.

"It’s impossible! Based on the energy released, it should be a six-grade fire root!"

Liu Qinghan’s pale face showed disbelief, her delicate body trembling. "Why is it only a first-grade Five Elements root?"

"Could it be that the testing stone is broken?"

Chi Yunzi wasn’t ready to give up. The fire energy coming from Lin Hao was pure, and with how quickly he advanced to the first level of Qi Refining, there’s no way he was just a first-grade Five Elements root.

He took out another spiritual root testing stone and asked Lin Hao to place his hand on it again.

The result was the same—five-colored light.

"The testing stone is fine. Could it be that Qinghan and I were mistaken?"

Chi Yunzi’s face darkened, struggling to accept the reality.

"It really is a first-grade Five Elements root."

He tested a few more times, but the result remained unchanged.

Chi Yunzi tried to steady himself, and his mind began to form a guess. He reached out with his aged hand and grabbed Lin Hao’s wrist, releasing a hint of spiritual power into Lin Hao’s meridians to investigate.

About fifteen minutes later, Chi Yunzi’s sharp gaze focused on Lin Hao as he asked, "Did you eat some strange elixir or spirit fruit?"

"Sect... Master..."

Lin Hao, under the intense pressure of the old man’s gaze, felt like a heavy mountain was crushing him, suffocating him. He nervously replied, "I... I once... found a very fragrant red fruit on a mountain... At that time, I was really thirsty and hungry, so I couldn't resist eating it..."

"Destruction! This is wasteful destruction!"

Before Lin Hao could finish his sentence, Chi Yunzi began shouting, his fists clenched tightly. "This fruit must have been a treasure for fire attribute cultivation, and you—a person with only a Five Elements root—ate it. Ugh... what a waste..."

"A Five Elements root is a rare useless root, and yet it was able to reach first grade. This must be the effect of the fire attribute treasure fruit. If it had been given to a talent with a fire attribute, how much would it have improved... I’m furious!"

The more Chi Yunzi thought about it, the angrier he became, to the point where he seemed almost crazed.

Lin Hao, who was now under the old man’s furious gaze, began to feel intense anxiety, fearing that Chi Yunzi might lose control and strike him in his rage.