That night, while Grandma Si and Grandpa Tu were fast asleep, Mu Chen took the opportunity to learn the Heavenly Refinement Cultivation Technique - First Layer.
Thanks to the understanding he had gained from learning cultivation techniques before, Mu Chen read through the scroll in his hand and quickly began grasping its fundamentals.
This was no ordinary cultivation technique. There were specific requirements for any cultivator who wished to practice it, such as possessing one of the Ancient God artifacts and having a body capable of resonating well with Primordial Origin Qi.
Mu Chen met both conditions.
Without hesitation, he began cultivating.
The hand seal diagrams were laid out before him. Mu Chen followed the instructions and gradually calmed his mind.
The Ancient God Cauldron shrank down and flew into Mu Chen's body through his forehead without disturbing him in the slightest.
Once it arrived at his dantian sea, the Ancient God Cauldron immediately began refining spiritual qi.
During Mu Chen's previous cultivation sessions, he had relied solely on spiritual qi. But with the Heavenly Refinement Art - First Layer, everything was different.
Simply put, he still absorbed spiritual qi energy and guided it steadily through the twenty meridians in his body, but before it could reach the dantian sea, it first had to go through a purification process.
All of the spiritual qi he absorbed had to be refined by the Ancient God Cauldron first.
Once the purification process was complete, Primordial Origin Qi was released into his dantian sea, increasing Mu Chen's cultivation speed several times over.
That was as far as Mu Chen understood.
He had no idea what consequences this cultivation technique might bring.
Slowly, the spiritual qi was processed and refined into Primordial Origin Qi.
Because the cultivation technique was perfectly compatible with the Ancient God artifact, Mu Chen gained unique benefits of his own.
Primordial Origin Qi filled the gaps between the flesh and bones in his body, making him lean and strong. His bones became firm and durable, and even the sharpness of his senses was enhanced.
An ordinary sword would not be able to cut his body. The blow of a hammer would not be enough to shatter his bones.
Mu Chen grimaced in pain. His entire body felt as if it were burning, hot, stifling, and severely dehydrated.
Even so, he stubbornly continued his cultivation no matter what happened.
If I... don't become stronger, I'll end up hurt like yesterday.
Mu Chen spent the entire night cultivating.
At dawn, the rooster crowed as sunlight rose over the eastern horizon. The long night had passed, and Grandma Si was the first to wake up.
She opened her eyes and turned her head. Mu Chen had not slept.
He sat cross-legged and had cultivated through the entire night. His body was drenched in sweat, and his breathing was ragged and hurried.
"It seems he's pushing himself too hard," Grandma Si murmured softly.
Unable to bear watching Mu Chen suffer through his cultivation, Grandma Si formed a hand seal and directed a stream of her qi energy forward, right above Mu Chen's head.
It was not a complicated formation, merely a simple array meant to calm the turbulence of qi when a cultivator was cultivating.
Mu Chen's sensitivity immediately kicked in. He noticed another qi presence appearing around him.
He quickly stopped cultivating and opened his eyes, only to see Grandma Si standing before him.
"Grandma Si? Wait!"
Mu Chen looked up and saw a small green rune formation floating above his head.
His eyes widened in shock, and his entire body tensed in alertness.
"You... are a cultivator?!"
Grandma Si let out a sigh and withdrew the formation, deactivating it the moment Mu Chen paused his cultivation.
"In the end, I just couldn't bear to watch you cultivate as if you were suffering."
"I am Si You, and he is my husband, Tu Wei."
Mu Chen narrowed his eyes, stood up, and cupped his hands in greeting toward Si You.
"This junior was rude for failing to recognize Senior," Mu Chen said.
"It's fine. Even the people from Tianyin Sect don't know."
Mu Chen nodded, though he remained cautious. He was still worried that they might also be after the Ancient God Cauldron inside his body.
However, Grandma Si did not seem like a cultivator from another sect.
Her clothes were simple. She lived in a small house deep within the forest. She ate and slept just like a mortal.
None of their daily activities gave any indication that they were cultivators.
Mu Chen grew curious.
He wanted to know why Grandma Si and Grandpa Tu were living under such conditions.
"You two don't seem like ordinary cultivators."
"Indeed," Grandma Si replied as she walked into the kitchen to prepare breakfast ingredients.
"We abandoned our lives as cultivators in order to seek heavenly enlightenment," Grandma Si continued.
Mu Chen fell silent for a moment. His eyes sharpened as his mind worked rapidly.
He questioned the meaning of heavenly enlightenment, a phrase that sounded strangely familiar, something Su Qingyue had once said to him while they were in the flying palace.
"Heavenly enlightenment? Are... are you Nascent Soul cultivators?"
"Haha! I never expected the man I picked up from the river to have such a deep understanding of cultivation," Grandma Si said.
"That's right. Grandpa Tu and I are both at the Perfect Nascent Soul stage."
Mu Chen was even more shocked. He reflexively took several slow steps back, something Grandma Si immediately noticed.
The old woman merely responded with a faint smile as she continued stirring the soup in the pot.
"Grandpa Tu and I have no interest in you. There's no need to be so afraid, Mu Chen," Grandma Si said.
A moment later, Si You stopped stirring the ladle. She raised her head and looked at the morning sky through the kitchen window.
"We... only seek heavenly enlightenment in order to comprehend the laws of nature."
Mu Chen glanced behind him. Grandpa Tu was still asleep, snoring away. He then turned his attention back to Grandma Si.
He knew what they were searching for.
"You're seeking your own understanding of a specific Dao concept?" Mu Chen asked.
"That's right," Grandma Si replied as she turned to look at him. "You are a clever cultivator. If you were our child, we would be very proud of you."
"Finding one's own Dao comprehension is far more difficult than obtaining a rare artifact."
Grandma Si sighed and resumed stirring the vegetable soup, "We don't know how many years it will take to gain our Dao comprehension."
"Enough of that," Grandma Si said as she brought over the finished pot of vegetable soup.
"You're only at the beginning of your cultivation path. There's no need for you to understand things that are complicated yet."
"Come eat."
Without Grandpa Tu, Mu Chen and Grandma Si ate breakfast together.
As they ate, Grandma Si told him many stories about her life as a cultivator alongside Grandpa Tu.
The two of them came from a mid-grade sect known as Hengyue.
Grandpa Tu was the former Sect Master of Hengyue Sect and had now devoted himself to seeking heavenly enlightenment, while Grandma Si was the sect's Grand Lady.
"Besides cultivation and longevity, we need Dao comprehension in order to break through into the Soul Formation realm."
"Breaking through to Soul Formation will allow us to return to the sect, and the sect's status can also rise to high-grade."
"But as I said earlier... seeking Dao comprehension is not easy," Grandma Si said.
"This junior understands, Senior Si."
"Just call me Grandma Si. You are not a member of Hengyue Sect."
Mu Chen nodded and continued eating his breakfast. Grandma Si finished earlier and kept watching Mu Chen.
Even though they had only known each other for three days, Si You felt a certain feeling in her heart whenever Mu Chen was near them.
It was a feeling that could neither be explained nor imagined.
Still, she felt that Mu Chen's presence here served a certain purpose.
"I was quite surprised when I found out you were cultivators. Isn't it typical for cultivators to prey on the weak?" Mu Chen asked.
"Not all of them. Most of them are demonic path cultivators."
"But I won't deny that righteous cultivators are also doing the same," Si You replied.
"Are you... still worried about the people from Tianyin?"
Mu Chen cleared his throat.
He knew that the Tianyin Sect was a major sect with tens of thousands of disciples, a Soul Formation ancestor, and most importantly, Su Qingyue.
For a Qi Condensation cultivator like Mu Chen, escaping their pursuit seemed nearly impossible.
Grandma Si saw the worry written across Mu Chen's face. She reached out and gently touched the back of his hand.
"Don't worry. You are safe with us."
"Even if these mortal bodies are destroyed... we will still protect you."
"That is our promise to you, Mu Chen."