Chapter 29: An Miaoling Breaks Through to the Semi-Saint Realm

Qin Tian smiled and stepped behind Bai Xiaoru, resting his head upon her tails. He picked one up to examine it closely, then rubbed it against his face and took a deep breath. A wave of enchanting fragrance instantly surged into his mind, nearly causing him to lose himself.

Bai Xiaoru, currently in the midst of a breakthrough, blushed deeply, as her tails were among the most sensitive parts of any fox kin. Yet, she could not stop now; she had to grit her teeth and endure it, intending to retract her tails only after the breakthrough was complete.

Qin Tian, playing with the tails, suddenly grew curious. He wondered if Bai Xiaoru's seven tails all sprouted from the same spot. He peered over, but the thick fur made it difficult to see, so he reached out to part the hair.

The moment his fingers touched her, Bai Xiaoru stood up abruptly and snapped, "You lecher!"

Having completed her breakthrough—which was swift, as she was merely restoring her former cultivation level—she glared at him. Qin Tian laughed awkwardly and said, "I was just curious if your seven tails all grew from the same place."

Hearing this, Bai Xiaoru’s face turned even redder. "Don’t you know that a fox kin's tails cannot be touched at will?"

"I didn't know that," Qin Tian replied, feigning innocence. He walked over, patted her shoulder, and added, "What does it matter if your master touches them?"

Bai Xiaoru shrugged, looking slightly shy as she said, "A fox's tails are meant only for her mate. How am I supposed to marry anyone after this?"

"Do you have someone you like?" Qin Tian asked.

"Not yet, but that doesn't mean I won't in the future," she retorted stubbornly.

"If you don't have anyone, then that settles it. I’ll look after you from now on." With that, Qin Tian produced three sets of undergarments and a Star-Moon Glazed Dress, handing them to her. "These are gifts for you. You will look beautiful in them."

Bai Xiaoru took the clothes and left with a complex expression. Once she was gone, Qin Tian consumed a Saint-Replenishing Pill and began his own breakthrough. As the medicinal power spread through his body, the spiritual energy of Hidden Sword Peak rushed into him. Before long, he successfully advanced to the Second Level of the Saint Realm. At that moment, another strange phenomenon appeared in the skies over the Eastern Continent.

High in the back mountains, Xu Ming looked toward Hidden Sword Peak, having sensed the surge of spiritual energy. This time, Qin Tian had forced the breakthrough with pills, so his "Great Way of Transformation" remained at the twelfth level, leaving the thirteenth to be mastered through his own enlightenment.

Now, only An Miao Ling had yet to break through. Since she was advancing across a major realm and had only recently achieved her previous breakthrough, it was normal for her to be slower; she needed time to consolidate her foundation. The wait lasted until the following morning.

*Ding!*

[Host's disciple, An Miao Ling, has broken through to the Semi-Saint Realm. Reward: Host's cultivation aptitude elevated to Saint Grade; sign-in rewards increased by 50%.]

The moment he received the reward, Qin Tian felt his mind clear, and his understanding of the Dao deepened. These improvements were the direct result of his elevated aptitude. He knew that when An Miao Ling eventually entered the Saint Realm, his own aptitude would reach the Imperial Grade. Furthermore, the 50% increase in sign-in rewards was a massive boon; otherwise, he would have had to sign in diligently for over a decade to achieve the same progress.

After claiming the rewards, Qin Tian sent a message to An Miao Ling and Bai Xiaoru, telling them to change into their new clothes, as he would prepare a grand feast to celebrate that evening. He spent the next three hours busy in the kitchen, preparing a table full of delicacies: dragon bone soup, stir-fried dragon tongue, heavenly beef, and more.

Soon, he saw two breathtaking beauties walking toward him.

An Miao Ling wore the Phoenix Luan Feather Garment, embroidered with a soaring, multicolored phoenix, paired with a skirt of mist-like flowers. Combined with her peerless face, she looked incredibly noble, like a proud phoenix.

Bai Xiaoru was dressed in the Star-Moon Glazed Dress, with a bodice embroidered with pale purple stars and a flowing skirt that shimmered like glass. She looked like a celestial fairy descended to earth to bewitch the hearts of men. Seeing Qin Tian’s stunned expression, the two women covered their mouths and giggled.

Once they were seated, Qin Tian finally gathered his wits. Reflecting on the first half of his life, which had been mundane, he felt truly fortunate to have these two beauties by his side. After the meal, he suggested a medicinal bath, as he had recently acquired the corpse of a Third-Level Saint Realm black dragon, and its essence blood would be far superior to the previous batch. The women initially refused, but under Qin Tian’s persistent persuasion, they agreed, acknowledging the benefits to their cultivation.

During the bath, the two women remained on high alert, and Qin Tian was unable to take any liberties. With An Miao Ling now at the Semi-Saint level, she could suppress the dragon essence, preventing the dangerous reactions they had faced before. Qin Tian could only feast his eyes on the sight of them in the undergarments he had chosen, their flushed faces, fair skin, and beautiful feet visible beneath the water. It stirred a restlessness within him, and he began to harbor thoughts of hunting an Emperor-level dragon, as he doubted An Miao Ling could withstand such potent blood.

After the bath, everyone returned to their rooms. The days passed quickly, and soon the half-month mark arrived. Shangguan Ya arrived at Hidden Sword Peak as promised. Qin Tian settled her in the Spirit Sword Pavilion and gifted her an Imperial-grade cultivation technique. Upon receiving it, she felt that serving as his maid was an incredibly lucrative arrangement, though Qin Tian never truly made her perform menial tasks.

A peaceful period of cultivation followed. Three months later, An Miao Ling’s sword intent had still not reached perfection, and she grew increasingly anxious. She had understood what Qin Tian taught her, but she struggled to put it into practice. Finally, she sought his advice once more.

Qin Tian watched her practice for a while before calling a halt. "When you practice, you treat it merely as a routine, which is why you feel something is missing. Sword intent embodies nobility, cold pride, sharpness, inner truth, and killing intent. If you were in a life-or-death battle, you would naturally channel these emotions, and you might achieve enlightenment in an instant. But right now, you are merely using the technique mechanically, which is why it remains imperfect. The best way is to immerse yourself in it. Practice with a single intent, using the same move repeatedly, until it forms muscle memory and imprints upon your sea of consciousness. It is a slow, clumsy method, but I believe it will be effective."

An Miao Ling nodded earnestly, agreeing with the approach. If it failed, she would have to seek out life-or-death combat, though that was a perilously extreme path.

In the following days, she practiced blindfolded, imagining her enemies before her, repeating a single strike to force herself into that state of mind. During one of these sessions, Qin Tian received an urgent transmission from Ming Yilian: "Master, save me! The Demon Sect is hunting me down!"

Qin Tian asked for her location and rushed there immediately. Not far from the Kunlun Mountains, he found Ming Yilian struggling toward the mountain range, her spirit withered and her body covered in severe wounds. Behind her, a few armored guards were desperately holding off three Demon Sect elders.

Qin Tian appeared at her side, fed her a healing pill, and drew his Life-Death Sword. With a single slash, a flash of sword light swept out, cleaving the three elders into pieces. The armored guards, who had been bracing for death, were left stunned.

After resolving the threat, Qin Tian asked, "What happened?"

Ming Yilian replied, her voice choked with tears, "There was a coup in the Chongming Kingdom. Our Grand Preceptor turned out to be a Demon Sect elder. He ambushed and killed my father, then cast a massive formation over the city to sacrifice every cultivator within it. My grandfather broke out of seclusion and sacrificed himself to open a gap in the formation so that I and my guards could escape."

"Sacrifice the entire city?" Qin Tian exclaimed in shock.