Chapter 68

In a garden on Piaomiao Peak, a group of beautiful young women were gathered, chatting and playing together. They had surrounded Shen Xian’er like she was a little Buddha. Her belly was round with food, a chicken in her left hand and a duck in her right, her mouth stuffed with who-knows-what as she mumbled unintelligibly.

“Doo doo doo… doo doo doo…”

Suddenly, the communication spirit stone inside her embroidered sachet began to ring. Shen Xian’er quickly wiped her hands and picked it up.

“Xian’er. Food. Come back now.”

Hearing her senior brother’s voice, she instantly jumped to her feet.

“Umm… sisters, I suddenly miss my master. I’ll come back and play with you later, okay?”

Without wasting time, she took out her bowl-and-chopsticks treasure and packed up all the delicious food nearby. Then, glancing back reluctantly every few steps, she finally left.

On Luoxian Mountain—

“Senior brother, I’m back! Bring out all the delicious stuff—I’ll help you take care of it!”

Shen Xian’er came running in, her big eyes scanning the place for any signs of food.

Han Luo raised his hand and took out a supreme-grade Spirit Tempering Pill.

“Wow! What’s that? It’s glowing! It must taste amazing!”

Xian’er had no idea what a supreme-grade Spirit Tempering Pill was. In fact, she didn’t know what a pill was at all. In her worldview, anything that could go in her bowl was edible.

And if it came from her senior brother? Then it had to be something great.

“This pill is called a supreme-grade Spirit Tempering Pill. It’ll help you refine your spirit again and improve your strength.”

“I can still temper my spirit?!”

Xian’er had been hearing a lot lately about the 'seven refinements' being the limit. She naturally knew seven was the cap. So how could her senior brother say there was still more?

“But senior brother, my godmother said seven times is the max. Can I really temper again?”

It wasn’t that she didn’t trust her senior brother—it was just that she was curious how he always knew so much.

“No, no,” Han Luo waved his hand. “For ordinary cultivators, seven refinements is the limit. But you’re not ordinary. You possess a rare seventh-grade spiritual root—almost unheard of in history. I believe you can complete the eighth refinement.”

He sounded completely confident.

“Really?!”

“Of course! When have I ever lied to you? Don’t worry. Once the refinement is over, I’ll prepare the most delicious thing you’ve ever tasted. It’s a once-in-a-lifetime culinary masterpiece.”

Honestly, even Han Luo couldn’t help but swallow his drool just thinking about it.

That dish really was too powerful.

“Okay okay okay! Let’s get started then!”

Sure enough, once food was mentioned, Xian’er’s IQ dropped to the negatives.

“Alright.”

Han Luo activated the Spirit Tempering Array and had Xian’er sit in the center. He handed her the supreme-grade Spirit Tempering Pill.

Without hesitation, she swallowed it whole, making Xiaobai shake her head.

Eat, go ahead and eat. Sooner or later, that senior brother of yours is going to poison you to death.

As soon as she swallowed the pill, Xian’er’s body reacted intensely.

A powerful aura of spiritual energy began radiating from her.

Han Luo stood to the side, unusually serious. He kept full control over the Spirit Confining Formation and the ancient bronze mirror, ready to intervene at a moment’s notice.

But it seemed his worries were unnecessary.

As the refinement progressed, Xian’er gradually entered a focused state. Strange phenomena began manifesting around her. This time, they were even more terrifying than last time.

Dragons, phoenixes, white tigers, and qilins appeared lifelike. A single glance at them could make one's soul tremble in fear.

Fortunately, the Spirit Confining Formation was at full strength, and the ancient bronze mirror, a postnatal spirit treasure, suppressed the pressure.

Otherwise, the entire Luoxian Sect might have been alarmed.

As the refinement deepened, Xian’er’s body began emitting a soft white light. The glow resembled cotton candy and drifted off in pieces with the wind—utterly magical to behold.

“This is bad!”

Xiaobai cried out in shock.

“Han Luo, stop her! She’s undergoing Dao transformation!”

She turned into a streak of white light and rushed toward Xian’er, raising her paw to try and stop the process.

“Freeze.”

Han Luo raised his hand and suppressed her in place.

“Are you crazy?! Stop her now! If anything happens to Xian’er, I swear I’ll kill you!”

The goldencharacter on Xiaobai’s forehead glowed fiercely, and waves of terrifying power surged out of her. She struggled wildly like a mad cat, desperate to stop what was happening.

“Dao transformation…”

Han Luo murmured the term, recalling its meaning from ancient texts.

Dao transformation: a process where one’s spiritual energy and physical body dissolve into the world, returning to the source.

Typically, it’s the most dignified death for a cultivator who has no hope of breakthrough or is facing certain death.

One’s power comes from the heavens, and ultimately returns to the heavens.

At this moment, Xian’er was clearly going through that exact process.

If he didn’t act fast, she might actually vanish from the world.

And what did Han Luo do during this critical moment?

He solemnly took out his little notebook and began recording every step of the transformation.

“You bastard, Han Luo! You’re still taking notes at a time like this?! Stop her already!”

Xiaobai was nearly hysterical, yelling at the top of her lungs.

The white glow around Xian’er intensified. Like snowflakes, the light began to drift upward.

Oddly, her face showed no pain—on the contrary, she seemed to be enjoying herself.

Those who undergo Dao transformation get a final gift from the heavens: they get to relive their happiest moments.

That’s one of the reasons some cultivators choose to transform.

A painless end… and a chance to fix their biggest regrets.

As the transformation continued—

“That should be enough.”

Han Luo closed his notebook and looked at Xian’er, who was still immersed in bliss.

He raised his hand and took out a plate of Peking roast duck from his mirror world.

The scent wafted through the air.

Xian’er’s little nose twitched. Her body suddenly jolted, and she instantly opened her eyes.

The moment she did, the Dao transformation stopped and all the phenomena vanished.

To undergo Dao transformation, one must surrender entirely to heaven and earth. Even the slightest hesitation spells failure.

“Wow! Roast duck! My favorite! Senior brother, you’re the best!”

Food was her ultimate weakness. In front of roast duck, Dao transformation wasn’t worth a fart.

“You little glutton, not yet. First, stabilize your new realm.”

“Okay, okay, okay!”

Xian’er nodded and immediately began consolidating her cultivation.

The eighth refinement—complete.

“The eighth refinement?!”

Xiaobai was dumbstruck.

She couldn’t believe it. In her entire life, she never thought she’d witness such a miracle.

“You actually helped Xian’er complete the eighth refinement!”

Her view of Han Luo had changed completely.

This guy wasn’t just a schemer—he was a real genius. The array, the supreme pill, it all pointed to his exceptional talent.

“You knew about the eighth refinement?” Han Luo asked.

“Of course… no! Of course not!” Xiaobai almost slipped but quickly denied it.

Her reaction, however, told him everything he needed to know.

“You’re not that simple. Spill everything you know, or else…”

Han Luo pulled out a rainbow-colored cat teaser wand.

“Don’t waste your time, Han Luo. Even if you give that to Xian’er, I won’t say a word.”

Whatever goodwill Xiaobai had for him instantly vanished.

Genius? Ha! He was a demon. A complete and utter demon.

“No, I won’t give it to Xian’er. I’ll give it to the girls on Piaomiao Peak.”

Han Luo flashed an evil grin. He could already imagine the chaos. Hilarious.

“You… You shameless scoundrel!”

Xiaobai cursed him outright, furious at his underhanded threats.

“Hey, watch your words, Xiaobai, or I’ll sue you for slander,” Han Luo teased.

“You… despicable, vile, perverted…”

Xiaobai lost all composure, cursing him like a street brawler.

“Done cursing? Then tell me what you know.”

She glared at Han Luo, knowing full well this bastard was capable of following through on every threat.

She had no choice.

She had to give in.