CHAPTER 68: CHAPTER 68 MOVING FEAST_1

"You rascal! When did you advance to the Qi Gathering Realm? Why didn’t you tell me about such a momentous event immediately? You waited until your housewarming to inform me!"

Not long after Shen Mo and Guo Zhao had taken their seats, Chen An’s hearty laughter filled the air. His voice arrived before he did.

"It was only yesterday that my status was verified and I received my qualification for the Inner Door," Shen Mo explained. "Seeing as the housewarming was so soon, I decided to wait and let Uncle Chen know then, so you could come and celebrate."

"Hahaha!" Although Chen An grumbled, he was genuinely happy for him. "Now that you’ve entered the Inner Door, your parents, under the Nine Springs, can finally rest in peace."

He had watched Shen Mo grow up. Seeing him make no progress in his cultivation over the years, he had secretly worried for him. Shen Mo’s rapid cultivation progress in recent months had surprised him, but it was also a great relief.

"Hmm? And who might this be?" As he spoke, his gaze suddenly fell upon Guo Zhao, seated to his right.

"This is a good friend of mine from the sect, Senior Brother Guo," Shen Mo introduced, then leaned in and whispered to Chen An about Guo Zhao’s feelings for Chen Mengze.

"Ohh..." Chen An’s expression became peculiar upon hearing this.

So, some young boar was finally after his prize cabbage of a daughter!

As her father, he had mixed feelings. He was happy for his daughter, yet a father’s protective instincts also made him wary.

And Guo Zhao, the subject of this attention, felt quite nervous under Chen An’s appraising gaze.

The atmosphere suddenly grew a little awkward.

"Uncle Chen, why isn’t Mengze here?" Shen Mo spoke up, breaking the somewhat awkward atmosphere.

"That girl? Don’t even get me started." Chen An shook his head. "She only just returned to the sect a short while ago, and she’s already gone into closed-door cultivation again."

In the mere five years since Chen Mengze entered the Inner Door, she had advanced from an initial Qi Gathering Realm cultivator to Layer V of the Qi Gathering Realm. Her Cultivation Realm had already caught up with Chen An, who was nearly sixty years old. The most significant reason for this was her almost fanatical dedication to cultivation.

Chen An understood the purpose behind her intense cultivation. He could only sigh at his own incompetence as a father, which had led to the burden of their ancestors’ feud falling upon his daughter’s shoulders.

"Let’s not dwell on that," Chen An said, waving his hand. "Today is your housewarming, a joyous occasion! We must celebrate properly."

As he spoke, he took out a readily prepared gift box from his Universe Bag.

"Here. Your Uncle Chen doesn’t have much, so there’s nothing too fancy to give you. A few days ago, I heard that girl Mengze say you were quite interested in spiritual tea and spiritual wine, so I searched for some in the Market."

"Thank you, Uncle Chen." A warmth spread through Shen Mo’s heart. He accepted the gift and then invited Chen An to take a seat.

"What delicious food are you making?"

"It smells incredible!"

Soon, Cao Ren also arrived. His congratulatory gift was a collection of numerous elixir recipes gathered by Cao Shanyue in recent years, including several Grade I elixir recipes that Shen Mo had not yet mastered.

"Very thoughtful of you." Shen Mo looked at the gift, quite pleased. "When you have your housewarming, I’ll be sure to send you a grand gift as well."

These assorted elixir recipes might seem to have little value, but for Shen Mo, they were a timely blessing.After his recent period of practice, he had already gained an elementary understanding of the Alchemy Path, and the few elixir recipes he had initially learned were no longer sufficient.Having these now saved him the trouble of purchasing more from the Market.

Shen Mo hadn’t planned a large celebration for his housewarming, inviting only these few people. Once everyone had arrived, the feast began, and they all started drinking and celebrating.

Cao Ren didn’t stay for long. After a couple of drinks, he excused himself and departed. His father was waiting for him to return to teach him some unique techniques in preparation for the upcoming Newcomer Competition.

Shen Mo, Chen An, and Guo Zhao, however, drank a great deal.

After several rounds of drinks, Chen An, his eyes hazy with drink, patted Shen Mo’s shoulder. "Shen Mo, now that you’re in the Inner Door, you mustn’t slack off."

"Even in the Inner Door, you must remain diligent and strive hard. Only then can you progress further."

"Prepare well during this time, and aim for a good ranking in the Newcomer Competition."

Chen An reminisced about when he first entered the Inner Door, a hint of regret in his voice. "The Newcomer Competition is the first proving ground for newly promoted inner disciples. Experts from the Inner Door’s Three Peaks will all be there to observe."

"If you can distinguish yourself and catch the eye of a Peak Master, you’ll have the chance to become a direct disciple of a Peak, securing a powerful backer within the sect from then on."

The Riverside Sect had thousands of inner disciples, but fewer than a thousand could enter the Rising Sun, Bright Moon, and Stars Peaks to cultivate. This was also a chance for a meteoric rise.

Although disciples who entered a Peak and those who didn’t were all considered inner disciples, it was always better to have the shade of a large tree. The elite prodigies chosen by the Three Peaks often achieved far greater accomplishments on their cultivation path than inner disciples who were left to develop on their own.

"Back in my day," Chen An said with deep regret, "I was too mediocre. I was knocked out in the first round. Forget about being chosen for Peak cultivation; I didn’t even qualify to enter the Mountain River Realm to cultivate."

Apart from the Rising Sun, Bright Moon, and Stars Peaks of the Riverside Sect choosing disciples, those who ranked high in the Newcomer Competition—specifically the top fifty—received another reward. That was the privilege to cultivate for ten days in the Riverside Sect’s unique Fairyland, the Mountain River Realm.

"I’ve heard from others in the sect that the Mountain River Realm is a cultivation paradise, teeming with Spirit Beasts and spiritual medicines. One day of cultivation there is said to be equivalent to half a month in the Outer Realm."

"I don’t know if that’s an exaggeration, though."

"I have entered the Mountain River Realm before. It is indeed rich in Spiritual Qi," Guo Zhao said, taking a sip of wine and joining the conversation.

"You’ve been to the Mountain River Realm?" Chen An was slightly taken aback, looking at his daughter’s suitor with a new measure of respect. "When you entered the Inner Door, what was your rank in the Newcomer Competition?"

"Seventh," Guo Zhao replied promptly, seeing Chen An’s interest piqued.

"Senior Brother Guo is hardly ordinary," Shen Mo interjected, continuing the introduction. "He comes from a prominent family. It’s only been seven years since he joined Stars Peak, and his cultivation has already reached Layer VIII of the Qi Gathering Realm. Moreover, he’s also a Grade II Forgemaster."

"That impressive?" Chen An was stunned by this revelation, and Guo Zhao suddenly seemed much more agreeable to him.

For such an outstanding young talent to be interested in my Mengze... it seems my worries about her not finding a husband were truly unfounded.

As the dishes grew cold and the feast wound down, Shen Mo watched Senior Brother Guo and Uncle Chen chatting animatedly, not interjecting. He intentionally let Senior Brother Guo have the floor, hoping he would make a good impression, as a way to repay him for his many instances of help.

After some more conversation over drinks, Chen An found himself quite satisfied with Guo Zhao’s family background, character, and temperament.

The housewarming feast finally concluded late into the night.

After Senior Brother Guo Zhao took his leave, Shen Mo helped a thoroughly intoxicated Chen An back to his cave mansion.

"It’s finally over." Standing before his cave mansion on the cliff edge, the cold wind on his face sobered him considerably. "Entering the Inner Door... this truly marks a new stage."

"My next goal is to secure a good place in the Newcomer Competition."

"I have half a month to prepare. In this time, I must strive to achieve initial mastery of the ’Purple Mansion Heart Scripture’."

With these thoughts, Shen Mo returned to his cave mansion and retired for the night.

For the next five days, Shen Mo rarely left his cave, continuing to painstakingly cultivate the ’Purple Mansion Heart Scripture’.

[You cultivated for five Shichen, attempting to achieve initial mastery of the ’Purple Mansion Heart Scripture’. Your attempt failed.]

[You cultivated for a full day and night, attempting to achieve initial mastery of the ’Purple Mansion Heart Scripture’. Your attempt failed.]

...

[During your cultivation, you chanced upon a fortuitous opportunity, gaining the favor of Destiny. Destiny Point +1.]

The constantly appearing messages recorded Shen Mo’s diligent efforts over the past few days. However, achieving initial mastery of the ’Purple Mansion Heart Scripture’ was proving difficult. Despite Shen Mo cultivating to the point of neglecting food and sleep, his limited Talent meant he still hadn’t succeeded.

Having failed to achieve a breakthrough for so long, and thus unable to increase his Destiny proficiency, Shen Mo was growing impatient and decided to temporarily set aside his Cultivation Method. Instead, he turned his attention to the Universe Bag left by the evil cultivator.

"The sense imprint on this Universe Bag prevents me from inspecting its contents. To open it, I would either need to find someone whose sense far surpasses that of the one who left the imprint to erase it..."

Shen Mo immediately ruled out that option.After all, one would need to ask a Spirit Sea Realm expert to do such a thing.Shen Mo didn’t know any such experts. Besides... the contents of the Universe Bag were not something to be casually revealed to others.Therefore, it was best not to rely on others to open this Universe Bag.

"Earlier, at the table, I heard Senior Brother Guo mention a type of talisman called a Realm Breaking Talisman. If one encounters a Universe Bag that cannot be opened, this talisman can be used to force it."

The primary function of this Realm Breaking Talisman is to shatter spatial barriers, mainly used for breaking Prohibition formations.It could also be used on Universe Bags.

I should go to the Market and see. It ought to be for sale there!