Chapter 85: Misfortune Turns to Blessing, Body Refinement Fourth Layer

After Ye Tianyi left, Yun Man brought out the Concealment Formation again and set it up around Qin Xiao.

“You don’t need to worry about me. After that battle, both of you must have exhausted some energy. Go and recover. I need to tend to my injuries as well.”

Seeing that Yun Man and Lin Shimeng were simply standing there watching him, Qin Xiao instructed them to meditate and recover.

“Master, are you truly alright?”

Yun Man asked with lingering concern.

“Of course. Go and see to yourselves. That’s an order from your master.”

Knowing his body was already repairing itself, Qin Xiao gave a direct order.

“All right. Rest first, Master.”

Seeing Qin Xiao’s firm tone, Yun Man sat down cross-legged nearby to begin her recovery.

Lin Shimeng opened her mouth as if to speak, but meeting Qin Xiao’s gaze, she swallowed her words and sat down nearby to recover as well.

This recovery took much longer than the one on the secret realm’s second floor. His flesh and bones needed repair, and so did his meridians.

It continued for a full day and night before it was finally complete.

“It worked! It really worked!”

One day later, Qin Xiao inspected the results of his recovery and sprang to his feet in delight.

“Master, what is it? What worked?”

Seeing Qin Xiao leap up and shout about success, Yun Man quickly rose to her feet.

“I never expected this. It cost me a lot, but something good came of it. I’ve become much stronger.”

Qin Xiao’s excitement stemmed from a breakthrough to the Body Refinement Fourth Layer.

The description for the Body Refinement Fourth Layer was: shifting weight at will and walking through the air.

This meant not only a qualitative transformation of his physical body, but the ability to fly.

In the past, Qin Xiao had always relied on Yun Man’s flying sword or bummed rides on the treasures of others for long journeys. Now, he could finally walk through the air by his own power.

“Master, are you fully healed? I’m glad you’re all right. When are we going back?”

Lin Shimeng asked with concern before inquiring about their return to the sect, considering they had been away for three days and her father must be worried.

“Whenever. Those four elders’ bodies are still here, right? Search them and see if there’s anything good.” Get faster updates on novelping . com.

Qin Xiao was ready to move at any moment, and he was eager to test out walking through the air, but the battlefield still needed to be cleared.

A quick sweep of the battlefield yielded little of value from the four Storage Bags-whether the items were beneath Qin Xiao’s notice or the Elders were simply poor, he tossed the bags to Yun Man and told her and Lin Shimeng to split the contents evenly.

With that settled, Qin Xiao turned his attention to testing the changes brought by his breakthrough.

With a single leap, he rose straight into the air and hovered, able to control the lightness and heaviness of his entire body at will.

With one step, Qin Xiao appeared a hundred meters away. Even he was startled. That had taken only one second. A hundred meters per second meant three hundred and sixty kilometers an hour, as fast as a top supercar in his previous life.

Yet Qin Xiao knew this owed much to the Middle Grade Dharma Treasure boots on his feet; the moment he stepped, the Spiritual Qi released by the shoes propelled him forward. Without them, he likely could not have moved so quickly.

With another stride, he returned to his original spot. The movement was so rapid that his hair was thrown into disarray. Lacking a protective layer of Spiritual Qi, he would need to find a solution for that issue.

“Master, you can walk through the air as well?”

Yun Man stared in disbelief. Qin Xiao could not cultivate; how had he achieved mid-air travel without Spiritual Qi?

“That’s a minor matter. Now punch me. Use all your strength.”

Feeling terrifyingly strong, Qin Xiao noted that the later stages of Body Refinement brought immense power. His current physical strength far exceeded the Third Layer, having undergone a qualitative transformation that allowed him to manipulate his own weight freely.

“Are you sure, Master? I really will use my full strength. You’ve only just healed. It would be bad if this punch injured you again.”

Yun Man hesitated, worried about the wisdom of such a test.

“Just strike. Your master is frighteningly strong right now.”

Qin Xiao was confident; an attack from an early Nascent Soul cultivator would likely do no more than tickle him.

Seeing Qin Xiao’s confidence, Yun Man decided not to hold back. She had seen how strong his body was, growing stronger the more it was hit. She did not need to worry about killing him.

Yun Man clenched one fist, gathering Spiritual Qi around it until it was wrapped in a dense sphere. When she thought she had gathered enough, she punched Qin Xiao in the stomach.

Bang!

A heavy impact echoed across the clearing, and a figure was sent flying backward.

“How can this be?”

Lin Shimeng stared in shock. That punch had repelled Yun Man, while Qin Xiao remained rooted to the spot without budging an inch.

“Well? Do you still dare look down on your master, disciple?” Read this novel at novelping dot com for the best experience.

Qin Xiao asked smugly, looking at Yun Man’s discouraged face.

“Master, how many secrets do you have? I can’t beat you anymore. Yesterday you were badly wounded. Today you’re full of life, and you’ve become frighteningly strong. I concede.”

Yun Man returned feeling a little defeated, but Qin Xiao seemed more formidable than ever. He could not cultivate, yet how much had he changed in just a few months? When the people from Immortal Sword Peak had come to cause trouble, Master had struggled with a new disciple at the Qi Condensation seventh layer. Now even she was no match for him.

“Too bad the Tian Family Head was taken away. We could have let him try. Disciple, what cultivation stage do you think my body’s strength is roughly equivalent to now?”

Qin Xiao regretted missing the chance. He dared not compare himself to the Soul Formation stage, but a late Nascent Soul cultivator might have been worth a try.

“Master, never mind early Nascent Soul—even someone at mid Nascent Soul couldn’t withstand that punch. You were completely unhurt and even knocked me back. I think you could face a late Nascent Soul cultivator without any trouble.”

Yun Man knew that she had charged up that punch. If it hit a mid Nascent Soul cultivator, even if it did not kill them, it would at least leave them severely injured. Qin Xiao was completely unharmed, so his body could naturally match late Nascent Soul.

Meanwhile, Lin Shimeng stood off to the side, watching the two exchange banter. Feeling excluded, a sense of grievance welled up within her.

“Master, I feel as though you always treat Yun Man and me differently.”

After pondering for a long time, Lin Shimeng finally mustered the courage to speak.

“Hm? What do you mean by that?”

Qin Xiao did not know why Lin Shimeng had suddenly brought this up.

“Yun Man became your disciple before me, and I have no objection to her being First Senior Sister. But you always think of her first. When you share things out, when you discuss tactics—even when you talk. It always feels as if you’re keeping your guard up around me. Aren’t I your disciple too?”

Lin Shimeng demanded with evident dissatisfaction.

“Really? That was careless of me. I’m so used to it that I overlooked you. Don’t read too much into it.”

Qin Xiao had indeed grown used to relying on Yun Man, though other reasons existed that he saw no need to voice.

“I do not believe it. You are simply biased.”

Lin Shimeng rejected such a simple explanation.

“Biased? How do I explain it? You and Yun Man have different trust levels. Hers is a little higher, so I usually go to her first.”

Lacking a better explanation, Qin Xiao reduced it to a matter of trust.

“Trust levels? What’s a trust level? Don’t you trust me? Do you think I’ll betray you?”

Lin Shimeng found herself more confused than ever.

“How do you two see our relationship as master and disciples? Shimeng, you answer first.”

Rather than answering directly, Qin Xiao turned the question back to her.