Lu Li had no choice but to stop. When he opened the door, he saw that it was Chen Zhong and Qin Shouren.

Chen Zhong was carrying a big basin full of steamed buns and looked at Lu Li with a simple and honest smile. "Mud Monkey, I've brought you some food."

Only then did Lu Li notice that it was already dark outside. He thanked them and invited the two into his room.

"Mud Monkey, you can't skip meals even when you're cultivating. There's still a long way to go in the future," Qin Shouren said as they sat at the table.

"I know. I was just too excited because it was my first time getting a cultivation technique," Lu Li said as he took big bites of the steamed buns. "Didn't you two cultivate today?"

"I only cultivated for two hours. I found that the speed of refining true energy was really slow. Besides, I have seven layers of acupoint barriers. I don't know when I'll be able to break through them all," Qin Shouren said a bit dejectedly. "Do you think we'll really be like what that old Yu Tong said, that we won't be able to reach the second level in our lifetime?"

Lu Li was stunned for a moment and then comforted him, "Don't worry. We're still young. Let's take it slow."

As if he had remembered something, he bent down and secretly took out the pill formula. "We still have this, don't we?"

"This is... that pill formula!" Qin Shouren's face lit up when he heard this. "Quick, let's see what's written on it."

Chen Zhong also quickly leaned in.

Lu Li nodded and read in a low voice, "First-order Green Bamboo Grass, first-order Thunderfire Orchid, five-hundred-year-old Earth Milk Essence, and... what's this?"

Suddenly, Lu Li stared at the last pattern that looked like a mess of scribbles. It looked like a strawberry, but there were a few extra strokes on it, making it seem like it was smoking.

"I know, it's a strawberry on fire!" Chen Zhong blurted out.

Lu Li and Qin Shouren both gave Chen Zhong a disdainful look at the same time. Lu Li said, "Never mind what it is. You two remember the first three items. I remember that servant disciples have the job of taking care of the herb garden. If there's a chance in the future, you know what I mean, right?"

"Understood!"

Of course, the two understood what Lu Li meant. Their spiritual roots were so mixed. If they cultivated step by step, they were afraid that they really wouldn't be able to break through to the second level of Qi Refining in their lifetime.

Seeing this, Lu Li nodded and solemnly instructed them, "I have to remind you that Fan Zhengping once said that even the major sects don't have this pill formula. If it gets leaked out, it will surely bring disaster to us. You two must be careful, especially you, Qin Shouren..."

"Don't worry. Although I seem carefree, I know my limits when it comes to this kind of thing," Qin Shouren said seriously.

"Okay, that's good."

After eating, Lu Li sent the two of them out, saying that he was going to continue cultivating and told them not to slack off in their cultivation just because they had the pill formula for the Acupuncture-breaking Pill. After all, they hadn't made any progress with it so far.

The narrative has been illicitly obtained; should you discover it on Amazon, report the violation.

After the two left, Lu Li lay directly on the bed because he found that whether his real body was lying or sitting, it wouldn't affect his entering the Time Hall.

Moreover, if he sat for a long time, he always felt sore in his back and waist when he came out. Lying down was much more comfortable, and even if others came in, they would just think that he was sleeping.

Just now, after cultivating for over thirty hours, the first metal-attribute barrier of his second acupoint had already started to loosen. He wanted to strike while the iron was hot and break through it directly.

While Lu Li was cultivating...

On the Heavenly Absolute Peak in the back mountain of the Qingyang Sect, in a cave abode, three old men were happily drinking wine.

One of the old men in green robes was Yu Tong, the second elder who had tested the spiritual roots of Lu Li and the other two today.

Another one, if Lu Li were here, he would also recognize. It was the old Taoist in gray robes who went to Longxing Town to recruit new disciples that day. He was actually Fang Buwei, the third elder of the Qingyang Sect.

As for the long-bearded old Taoist with restrained aura and ruddy complexion sitting in the east position, he was Xiao Jue, the famous first elder of the Qingyang Sect.

The three of them were chatting merrily and laughing from time to time.

After a while, all of them showed some signs of drunkenness.

Suddenly, Yu Tong seemed to remember something interesting. He leaned over the table and said mysteriously, "Brother Xiao, Brother Fang, I encountered an interesting thing today. Do you want to hear about it?"

"What interesting thing?" Xiao Jue and Fang Buwei both looked at Yu Tong at the same time.

Yu Tong was usually quite serious and seldom gossiped. They were rather curious.

"Hehe, you probably won't believe it when I tell you. Today, I actually encountered a person with nine spiritual roots... Oh my god, nine spiritual roots! I've never even heard of it in my life, let alone seen it with my own eyes. You don't know, I was completely stunned at that time. I checked again and again. I still find it unbelievable even now."

"Nine... spiritual roots?" Xiao Jue rolled his eyes. "Second brother, you can't brag like this. You might as well just say that you recruited a Heavenly Spiritual Root. I might believe you a little more then."

"Exactly." Fang Buwei shook his head helplessly. "Although I recruited a dual spiritual root this time, it's not like it would make you so jealous, right?"

The dual spiritual root that Fang Buwei mentioned was actually the girl named Xiao Yun who was recruited in Longxing Town. This incident had caused a sensation in the Qingyang Sect at that time. Even Li Xuanyang, the sect leader who had been in seclusion for three years, came out of seclusion in person.

Fang Buwei also gained a lot of attention and received many rewards because of this.

"Yes, Third brother recruiting a dual spiritual root this time is indeed a contribution to the sect. Second brother, it's a bit too much for you to make such insinuations," Xiao Jue said, shaking his head.

"Who's making insinuations? I'm telling you, it's not just a person with nine spiritual roots. There were two others with seven spiritual roots with him!"

"Alas..." Xiao Jue and Fang Buwei exchanged glances and sighed helplessly. They didn't expect that a dual spiritual root would make the dignified second elder so jealous.

But then again, the other party was in charge of the Foreign Affairs Hall. This was originally something for the Foreign Affairs Hall to handle, but unexpectedly, the third elder got ahead of him. No one would feel good about it, right?

"Damn it! You don't believe me, right? Well, if you don't believe me, go to the Foreign Affairs Hall and ask tomorrow. I still remember that the three boys are named Lu Li, Qin Shouren, and Chen Zhong. You can go and check for yourselves..."

Keep making it up...

The two stared at Yu Tong quietly, with sad expressions on their faces.

"The friendship has faded! I won't drink anymore, damn it!!!"

Seeing their expressions, Yu Tong flew into a rage. He kept shouting that the friendship had faded. With that, he stepped on the table and flew out with a whoosh.

The next moment.

"Ouch!"

Suddenly, a cry of pain and a crisp cracking sound came from outside.

Xiao Jue and Fang Buwei exchanged glances and rushed out hurriedly. They saw that Yu Tong was now lying upside down under a banana tree, and the banana tree as thick as a water bucket had been broken into two pieces.

"Second brother, don't use your sword when you're drunk, and don't get drunk when you're using your sword. You..."

Xiao Jue's face twitched violently, and he clearly couldn't hold back his laughter.

"The friendship has faded, the friendship has faded!" Yu Tong did a carp-like jump and stood up. He stretched out his hand, and a long sword whistled out. Without paying attention to the shouts of the two behind him, he directly soared into the air and flew away without looking back.

The next morning...