Spirit-Sky City is the largest and most prosperous city in Greatsword State, and it is divided into an Inner City and an Outer City.
Ordinary people live in the Outer City, while the Inner City is home to nobles and powerful families—even many disciples of the Rift-Heaven Sword Sect own property there.
The Outer City is further divided into east, south, west, north, and central districts.
All the city’s shops are concentrated in the East Outer City.
Today, amidst the sound of firecrackers, a new shop opened in the East Outer City.
Nobody found this surprising, since shops open and close in the East Outer City every day.
But soon, crowds began to gather at the newly opened shop.
A black signboard hung outside the shop, with a line of words written on it: Today is our grand opening—third-grade Profound Pills and second-grade Breakthrough Pills are on sale at a ten-percent discount, first come first served.
“What? They’re actually selling third-grade Profound Pills and second-grade Breakthrough Pills here!”
A middle-aged martial artist read the words on the sign and couldn’t help exclaiming.
His shout immediately drew the attention of nearby passersby.
This middle-aged man was Ray Sun, a loose cultivator in his early forties. Because he never joined a sect, he lacked good techniques and pills, and his cultivation had been stuck at the ninth layer of Qi-Refining for years.
He had tried many times to buy a second-grade Breakthrough Pill, but even after scraping together enough silver, he couldn’t find a way in.
With doubts in his heart, he stepped into the shop called Pill Pavilion.
“Welcome!”
As soon as Ray Sun entered Pill Pavilion, two pretty girls standing at the door greeted him with sweet smiles and polite bows.
As a loose cultivator with no backing, Ray Sun’s status was low; even sect disciples with lower cultivation could bully him, and he didn’t dare fight back.
But the girls’ sweet smiles made him feel genuinely respected.
“Honored guest, is there anything you’d like to buy?”
Another delicate-looking girl in blue came over with a sweet smile. Ray had visited many pill shops before, but their attendants were always haughty, acting as if they didn’t care whether he bought anything or just left.
Thinking this, Ray Sun felt even better about Pill Pavilion. “Miss, may I ask how much your second-grade Breakthrough Pills cost?”
The girl in blue replied, “Honored guest, our shop offers two ways to buy: you can exchange ten portions of Spirit Medicine for one second-grade Breakthrough Pill, or pay five hundred thousand taels of silver for one.”
But since today is our grand opening, you only need nine portions of Spirit Medicine or four hundred fifty thousand taels of silver to buy one second-grade Breakthrough Pill.”
A first-grade Breakthrough Pill only costs ten thousand taels of silver, suitable for Qi-Refining cultivators.
But a second-grade Breakthrough Pill goes for five hundred thousand taels, because when a ninth-layer Qi-Refining cultivator takes it, there’s a high chance of breaking through to Grandmaster.
Compared to a Qi-Refining cultivator, a Grandmaster is on a whole different level.
It’s like earth and sky—there’s no comparison. That’s why second-grade Breakthrough Pills are so precious, and usually you can’t buy them even if you have the money.
For loose cultivators like Ray Sun, every tael of silver counts. Hearing that he could save fifty thousand taels today, he was instantly tempted. Still, he worried that such a big discount might mean the pills were low quality.
“Miss, may I take a look at the second-grade Breakthrough Pill?”
After making this request, Ray Sun was already prepared to be refused—such a valuable pill surely wouldn’t be shown so easily.
But to his surprise, the girl in blue smiled and nodded. “Of course you can.”
Soon, the girl brought out a transparent jade bottle. Inside was a flawless, jade-green pill with a smooth, lustrous sheen.
“This is a second-grade Breakthrough Pill. Why does it look different from the ones I’ve seen before?”
Ray Sun asked, a little skeptical.
The girl in blue smiled. “Honored guest, you may not know—every pill in our shop is refined by master alchemists, so the quality is extremely high, and the medicinal power is much stronger than ordinary pills. That’s why this pill looks so round and flawless!”
“So that’s why!” Ray Sun suddenly understood.
At that moment, he made up his mind—even if he had to sell everything, he had to buy a second-grade Breakthrough Pill. If he could step into the Grandmaster realm, he could easily join a small sect as an elder or deacon.
With a sect’s protection, his income and status would greatly improve.
Fifteen minutes later, Ray Sun was ready to leave, his face beaming with joy.
But the girl in blue called him back.
“Miss, is there something else?”
Ray Sun asked nervously, secretly wondering if she was about to go back on the deal.
The girl in blue seemed to notice Ray Sun’s worry and smiled gently. “Honored guest, don’t worry. I just wanted to let you know that our Pill Pavilion has special cultivation rooms, and each one is guarded by a late-stage Grandmaster expert. Since you’re our very first customer, you can use a cultivation room for free. I see you’re at the ninth layer of Qi-Refining—if a late-stage Grandmaster guards you during your breakthrough, your chances will be much higher. Would you like to use the cultivation room?”
Free use of a cultivation room?
A late-stage Grandmaster as a guardian?
Hearing this, Ray Sun was overjoyed and quickly replied, “Thank you, miss! I’d love to!”
“Please follow me, honored guest.”
Soon, Ray Sun was led into a cultivation room. As soon as he stepped inside, he felt an incredibly dense spiritual energy and couldn’t help but marvel—this was the perfect place for closed-door cultivation.
“Honored guest, I see you’re still too agitated. It’s not the right time to take the pill—please calm yourself first.”
An elderly man stepped in and spoke kindly.
“Thank you for the reminder, elder!”
Ray Sun quickly thanked him and sneaked a glance at the old man, sensing his unfathomable cultivation. He realized this must be the late-stage Grandmaster the girl had mentioned.
“I never thought I’d see the day when a late-stage Grandmaster would guard my breakthrough!”
He took a deep breath, calmed himself, and, under the Grandmaster’s guidance, began taking the pill.
Once he swallowed the pill, its powerful medicinal force surged through him. Instantly, Ray Sun felt his iron-solid bottleneck begin to loosen.
Half an hour later, with a booming sound, a fiery-red domain appeared around Ray Sun, extending ten meters in all directions.
Feeling the range of his domain, Ray Sun was incredibly excited. His cultivation method wasn’t even top-tier, yet he had condensed an Earth-Rank Domain.
He immediately realized it was thanks to the second-grade Breakthrough Pill’s extraordinary quality.
After a brief period of stabilization, Ray Sun stood up and respectfully bowed to the Grandmaster guardian. During the breakthrough, he had nearly fallen into qi deviation—if not for the elder’s timely reminder, he might have been ruined forever.
“Congratulations, honored guest!”
The Grandmaster guardian said with a cheerful smile.
A while later, Ray Sun walked out of Pill Pavilion. Just then, a middle-aged man approached—another loose cultivator, also stuck at the ninth layer of Qi-Refining for years.
“Greetings, Brother Sun!” The man smiled and cupped his hands. Suddenly, his eyes went wide in shock as he pointed at Ray Sun. “You… Brother Sun, you broke through to Grandmaster!!”
Seeing his friend’s astonishment, Ray Sun couldn’t help feeling proud. He laughed, “That’s right! I bought a second-grade Breakthrough Pill from Pill Pavilion, and with the protection of a senior expert, I successfully broke through to Grandmaster!”
Hearing Ray Sun’s confirmation, the other man’s eyes filled with envy and admiration. He quickly said, “Congratulations, Brother Sun! My felicitations, Brother Sun!”