Chapter 180
Chapter 180: Guarding Qi
Wang Jie chuckled softly. “You’ve been used. Who told you that we, the people from this side, have stolen anything from the border master? And who told you that I reside in Liuli Court?”
Ji Zheng.
Yun Ju’s mind flashed with the image of this person.
This individual was a member of the border master’s faction at Zhi Academy, and also a fifth-grade smith refiner. He was capable in his own right. Every time he visited Zhi Academy, this person had helped him recommend equipment to buy.
Yun Ju wasn’t foolish—he simply didn’t care about a Star Breaking realm expert. Besides, pursuing Su Le was of the utmost importance, and he couldn’t afford any distractions.
Normally, no one would think that a Star Breaking realm cultivator could be at the heart of the Zhi Upper realm’s power struggles.
Wait a minute, Wang Jie? That name sounds familiar.
“You’re Wang Jie?” Yun Ju asked, narrowing his eyes.
Wang Jie smiled. “Indeed.”
Yun Ju’s eyes narrowed even further. Wang Jie. No wonder. So he was the one behind it all. He’d truly been manipulated by Ji Zheng.
Su Le said, “Yun Ju, you can leave now.”
Yun Ju glanced at Wang Jie, then at Su Le, and smiled. “I apologize for disturbing you, junior sister. Please don’t blame her—senior brother was just worried for you and acted rashly. I’ll take him back and teach him a lesson. Senior brother, I’ll take my leave now.” He glanced at Wang Jie once more, his gaze lingering for a moment before departing.
As Yun Ju and his group left, Su Le breathed a sigh of relief. “Thankfully, Mu Ran contacted me, or I might not have made it in time. Master, are you all right?”
Wang Jie shook his head. “I’m fine, but you came back so quickly?”
Su Le laughed. “I was already on my way back and thought I’d visit some friends. When I received Mu Ran’s urgent message, I rushed back immediately.” She paused, then spoke seriously. “Master, be careful of Yun Ju. No matter who is using him, he will definitely try to regain face by targeting you. He’s vengeful, and his methods are ruthless. Don’t underestimate him.”
Wang Jie nodded. “Don’t worry. I won’t underestimate anyone.”
“And there’s something else,” Su Le hesitated for a moment, then said, “We’ll talk about it when we’re back.”
Just as they were about to turn back, someone approached. This person had a blank expression, walking slowly toward them.
Wang Jie noticed him immediately.
The aura from this person was very strong.
“Excuse me, where is Yun Ju?” the person asked.
Su Le looked at the newcomer, confused. “And you are?”
The person introduced himself. “I am Shi Wei, of the great Shi family. I am looking for Yun Ju.”
“He left,” Su Le pointed in the direction Yun Ju had gone.
Shi Wei expressed his gratitude. “Thank you. By the way, how long has he been gone?”
“Just left,” Su Le answered, her curiosity piqued. “What do you want with him?”
Shi Wei smiled. “I want to beat him up.”
Su Le and Wang Jie exchanged a glance, both stunned. After a moment, they looked at each other in confusion. It didn’t concern them, so they didn’t think too much about it.
Back in Liuli Court, Su Le advised Wang Jie against competing for the Devour Star.
“It’s a deadly trap. I’ve heard Zhi Shu will be involved.”
Wang Jie raised an eyebrow. “Zhi Shu?”
Though he had been involved in the Zhi Upper realm’s struggles, Wang Jie didn’t know who Zhi Shu was. After all, he was just a low-level ant.
“Zhi Shu is a disciple of the younger generation from the Zhi Upper realm, a wandering star realm cultivator. Although not a Six Dao Wanderer, due to his family background, the resources he gets for cultivation and the techniques he possesses are beyond what most wandering star realm cultivators have.”
“I heard that Master was ambushed by Deacon Wu Yun in the Lock Path interval. Wu Yun is far weaker compared to her. They’re not on the same level.”
“She is from the Senior Zhi Qing faction.”
Wang Jie understood now. “So, the young lady was investigating this for me. Thank you.”
Su Le looked concerned. “It’s not just Zhi Shu. Several disciples who were previously traveling have returned. Some of them were once mentored by Senior Zhi Qing. I thought the full star realm would be the focus, but it’s not just one or two wandering star realm experts involved. We don’t know how many of them are out to harm you.”
Wang Jie’s mind flashed with the information about Black White Heaven’s elite disciples, the ones he had gotten from Du Xian.
One of them was Shi Wei.
A white wanderer under the White Realm Lord’s command.
And Yun Ju, he hadn’t underestimated Yun Ju. Yun Ju was also a white wanderer, a wandering star realm expert.
“Master, are you really going to compete for the Devour Star?” Su Le asked.
Wang Jie sighed. “I have no choice. I need a lot of lock force. As a lock force cultivator, everyone tells me I have no future, but I don’t believe them.” His hand clenched into a fist. “I’m a celestial refinement master. I can refine medicinal pills.”
“I can fight against wandering star realm experts even in the star breaking realm.”
“I can see the cause of past lives and solve people’s troubles. Why should I not have a future?”
“As long as I have enough lock force, I can try. I’ll try to unlock the future, and even if I have to die millions of times, I will.”
Su Le’s eyes sparkled. “Well said, Master. Your ambition is admirable. Cultivation is about fighting for life with the heavens. How could we just accept what others say?”
Wang Jie stood, gazing at the vast sky. “My wish—my body as small as a mustard seed, my heart as vast as Mount Meru!”
The sunlight shone down on him, bathing him in golden light. Su Le watched him, and her mind once again flashed back to the music she had heard during their fortune-telling session. The melancholy and heroic sounds, as if from the depths of hell, contrasted sharply with the radiant light before her.
This person, he would surely accomplish great things.
In the distance, Mu Ran stared blankly. Is he really this great?
Su Le slammed her hand on the stone table, startling Wang Jie.
“Master, I’ll help you.”
Wang Jie raised an eyebrow. “You’re getting a bit too excited, aren’t you?”
“No need. You’re a pill master. Competing for the Devour Star would be too dangerous for you.”
“I won’t go, because my strength isn’t enough to help you, Master. But I can bring my senior sister to help you. My senior sister is a Six Dao Wanderer.”
Wang Jie was shocked. “Your senior sister is?”
“Mo Wan Yin,” Su Le said proudly.
Black White Heaven had many disciples, but the most famous and powerful were the Six Dao Wanderers.
Six Dao Wanderers were the six strongest wandering star realm experts among all disciples in Black White Heaven. Anyone who surpassed the wandering star realm could become an elder, no longer a disciple.
Compared to the Six Dao Wanderers, figures like Xiao Rong, Wu Yun, and Yun Ju were nothing.
Even Zhi Shu didn’t compare.
Wang Jie had learned about the Six Dao Wanderers from Du Xian, but he hadn’t expected that one of them would be Su Le’s senior sister. Wasn’t her senior sister supposed to be from the Alchemy Dao? She was actually a Six Dao Wanderer? Incredible.
Su Le was already leaving. “Master, wait here. I’ll kneel and beg her to protect you and help you win the Devour Star.”
“Wait, take this with you.”
“This is?”
“If your senior sister refuses to help me, show her this.”
Su Le nodded and quickly left.
Wang Jie exhaled. He wouldn’t mind having help. His survival experience in the end times had taught him that the more people there were, the greater the power. He had no pride about not wanting to be protected. In fact, he welcomed the extra protection.
Over the next two days, Wang Jie received a gift from Zhi Xing Xue—Shift Pill.
A Shift Pill was a pill that allowed someone to instantly appear at a designated location within a certain range. Though it was a wandering star realm pill, it contained the power of the void, making it something that ordinary pill masters couldn’t refine.
Wang Jie had been to Zhi Academy many times and had never been able to buy a Shift Pill.
Wandering star realm pills typically cost around a hundred thousand star stones each, but a Shift Pill cost five hundred thousand star stones per pill.
The Third Fragrance Shift Pill was even more expensive—fifteen million star stones per pill.
It wasn’t cheap.
But the price didn’t matter as much as the fact that he couldn’t buy one.
It must have been Zhi Xing Xue’s personal gift.
Wang Jie was deeply grateful.
That evening, the most anticipated person arrived.
“Disciple greets the Master.”
Shu Rang nodded and casually sat down, holding a wine gourd. The moonlight bathed his face in a serene glow. “How’s your study of star speech going?”
Wang Jie replied, “Disciple has learned it.”
Shu Rang spoke a few sentences, all in star speech, and Wang Jie responded in kind.
As they spoke, the aura around them trembled.
Star speech wasn’t just a language—it could also manipulate qi, as if there was an invisible force at play.
After a while, Shu Rang was satisfied. “Not bad.”
Wang Jie relaxed. “What should disciple learn next?”
Shu Rang said, “Recently, Black White Heaven released a Devour Star. Go and compete for it.”
Wang Jie was stunned. Everyone had advised him not to compete, but only this ‘cheap’ master had encouraged him to do so. “Yes, disciple will definitely go.”
“This Devour Star is filled with lock force. Winning it will benefit you greatly, and you’ll soon reach the full star realm. But it’s a bit difficult—there are some disciples from Black White Heaven who are not to be underestimated. Though you can ignore them if you’re in the same realm, you’re still in the star breaking realm.” Shu Rang muttered to himself, then turned to Wang Jie. “Have you learned how to use your qi?”
Wang Jie was excited. “No.”
“Then why are you excited?”
“Disciple wants to learn.”
Finally, the moment had come. Wang Jie had wanted to learn how to use qi last time, but his master had run off without saying anything. Now, he had finally returned.
Shu Rang rolled his eyes and took another sip of wine. “There are four main ways to use qi: Yuan, Zong, Ying, and Wei.”
“Yuan Qi is the innate qi, the fundamental life force everyone possesses. It is the basis for all things and drives growth.”
“Zong Qi represents breathing and the circulation of vital energy, adjusting the heart’s residence.”
“Ying Qi is the nourishment for both the body and the spirit.”
“Wei Qi represents the energy beyond the meridians and can resist external forces like cold and evil.”
“Right now, your qi is very thin and only on the surface of your body. The most appropriate thing to practice is Wei Qi—it can help you resist destructive forces and is far better than using qi directly to defend.”
“However, it’s best to avoid people when using it, especially those in high positions, so you don’t get recognized. After all, this power belongs to the Death realm, and it’s not accepted by most.”
Wang Jie was curious. “Death realm?”
Shu Rang thought for a moment. “You can think of it as another cultivation world. It’s deeply hidden but incredibly powerful. There are many factions in the Death realm, and they have various ways of using qi. You don’t need to worry about that now—when you encounter it, you’ll understand. For now, focus on practicing the basics.”
“Using qi.”
Wang Jie tried to move his qi.
“Your qi is only on the surface of your body right now, but Wei Qi needs to be integrated into your meridians and bones, or it can instantly cover your body and blood.”
Under Shu Rang’s guidance, Wang Jie finally took the first step into the world of qi cultivation.
Some things seemed simple when you saw them, but without looking, you would never understand them.
Wei Qi was actually quite simple—just a few steps, but the real challenge was adopting the mindset to cultivate it.
Now that Wang Jie had entered this path, it meant his cultivation of lock force could evolve into infinite possibilities.