Chapter 22: The Tenth Level of Qi Refining, Miss Nalan, Please Conduct Yourself with Dignity!

Seeing that Nalan Yanran could ask such an idiotic question, Shen Lang rolled his eyes. "Do you not need resources for your cultivation?"

"I..." Nalan Yanran was momentarily stunned by the retort.

She naturally needed resources for cultivation, but her supply mostly came from the monthly stipend issued by the Shenxiao Sect. Three hundred spirit stones a month felt like more than enough for her. Yet, Shen Lang had actually borrowed three million spirit stones from the Huang family. This figure inevitably made her suspicious.

"A Golden Core cultivator absorbing ten spirit stones a day is already quite impressive. You are only at the fourth level of the Qi Refining stage; could you possibly use up three million spirit stones? Don't you have some other motive?"

Seeing through her thoughts, Shen Lang smiled faintly. "Those you mentioned are just ordinary cultivators. My cultivation method is much faster than theirs. A mere three million spirit stones would be fully absorbed in, at most, the time it takes to burn a stick of incense."

"Do you think I'm a fool?" Nalan Yanran looked at Shen Lang with displeasure. She acknowledged that his talent was extraordinary, but she absolutely did not believe he could consume three million spirit stones in such a short time, as even her master, Shenxiao, lacked such a capability.

Shen Lang couldn't be bothered to explain. He took one of the six spatial rings, each containing 500,000 spirit stones, and piled them directly in the courtyard. "Watch closely and see what a true peerless genius is!"

With that, he commanded the system in his mind: "Absorb!"

[Ding! Recycled 500,000 spirit stones. Host gained 50,000 resentment points!]

"This..." Nalan Yanran was completely dumbfounded as she watched the mountain of spirit stones lose all its spiritual essence in an instant. She couldn't describe her current state of mind; her entire worldview had shattered. She knew that even she, who could absorb thirty spirit stones a day, was hailed by Shenxiao as a prodigy. Yet, right before her eyes, Shen Lang had devoured 500,000 in three seconds. What word could possibly describe his power?

However, she soon noticed something wrong. Even though he had consumed 500,000 spirit stones, his cultivation level hadn't risen in the slightest. She raised an eyebrow and asked, "Are you playing games with me? You absorbed 500,000 spirit stones, yet your cultivation hasn't budged. Did you hide them using some underhanded trick?"

Facing her interrogation, Shen Lang cursed the system in his heart for lacking social tact, but he kept a straight face and bluffed, "It's not that I haven't improved; you just can't see it. My cultivation has been stored away by my Invincible Eight Desolations Divine Body. I can choose to advance whenever I want!"

As he spoke, the aura around him began to surge. Nalan Yanran watched in disbelief as his cultivation climbed: Fifth level! Sixth level! Seventh level! Eighth level! Ninth level! Could he be heading straight for Foundation Establishment?

Just as Nalan Yanran was watching his spectacular ascent with bated breath, Shen Lang stopped at the ninth level. It wasn't that he didn't want to keep showing off; it was because, just as he was about to break through to the Foundation Establishment stage, the system prompt echoed in his mind: "Congratulations to the host for reaching the ninth level of Qi Refining! Do you wish to advance directly to Foundation Establishment, or spend 50,000 resentment points to reach the tenth level of Qi Refining?"

*There's a tenth level of Qi Refining?* Shen Lang was shocked. And judging by the system's price, the tenth level was even more expensive than advancing to Foundation Establishment. He couldn't help but ask inwardly, "System, is the tenth level of Qi Refining very powerful?"

"It's decent," the system replied perfunctorily, making Shen Lang frown. He suspected this rascal was trying to scam him out of his resentment points.

Before he could press further, he noticed Nalan Yanran had stepped forward and placed her smooth, delicate hand on him. A moment later, a pure aura flowed into his body. He realized she was playing the role of a beautiful physician checking his condition. He immediately reached out, grabbed her hand, and feigned alarm. "Lady Nalan, please show some self-respect! I am not that kind of person! You've touched me, so you must take responsibility. Otherwise, how can I ever face anyone again?"

"You..." Nalan Yanran had only wanted to verify if his body was as incredible as he claimed. She hadn't expected him to grab her back. She hurriedly pulled her hand away, her face flushing red. "What nonsense are you spouting? I... I just wanted to confirm if you were cheating."

"And what did you find?" Shen Lang looked at her with a grin. "Am I not incredibly impressive?"

"You..." Nalan Yanran instinctively wanted to retort with a curse, but the words died on her lips. Having inspected the details, she couldn't bring herself to say it. His physical strength was on par with hers, and his spiritual roots were the legendary Heavenly Spirit Roots. Even if she wanted to disparage him out of spite, she couldn't.

She was forced to admit, "You are indeed impressive. But I don't believe in this 'Invincible Eight Desolations Body' of yours. Can you tell me how you did it?"

Seeing her thirst for knowledge, Shen Lang naturally couldn't tell her that his greatness came from the system. He put on a mysterious front: "Lady Nalan, this is my greatest secret for survival. We are not related; isn't it a bit impolite to ask such a personal question?"

"This..." Nalan Yanran was taken aback, realizing her own impetuousness. She lowered her head and said, "I was reckless. But why didn't you continue to advance to Foundation Establishment? 500,000 spirit stones should have been enough to get you to the third level of Foundation Establishment, right?"

Seeing her calculations were quite accurate, Shen Lang recalled the system's words and said softly, "Lady Nalan, are you aware of the tenth level of Qi Refining?"

"What?! You want to break through to the tenth level of Qi Refining?!"

That single sentence confirmed to Shen Lang that the tenth level wasn't a system exclusive. He acted profound: "Is there any reason I shouldn't?"

*Hiss...* Nalan Yanran's eyes changed as she looked at him. She hadn't expected Shen Lang to be a brave soul willing to break the body's limitations and defy the heavens. Her expression turned solemn. "With your talent, you can indeed attempt the tenth level. However, reaching it is extremely difficult. You must be prepared for a long and arduous struggle!"

Hearing this, Shen Lang looked surprised. "Lady Nalan, are you worried about me? Do you truly want to take responsibility for me?"

"Get lost! Who wants to take responsibility for a lecherous thief like you? I'm just afraid you'll waste your talent because you can't handle the hardship of cultivation!"

Seeing that Nalan Yanran wasn't even providing resentment points anymore, Shen Lang realized she wasn't as untouchable as she seemed. He smiled, "Don't worry, I have it under control. By the way, please take this to His Majesty."