As the first ray of dawn broke, Xiao Fei had already been meditating and cultivating for two hours.
At this moment, he finished his practice and stood up. He took out a Qi Gathering Pill and swallowed it. After the Qi Gathering Pill entered his abdomen, it quickly dissolved within his body, emitting a dense spiritual energy.
Xiao Fei took off his clothes and circulated the "Body Tempering Art" cultivation technique. The spiritual energy within his body began to spread into his limbs and bones.
Only then did he pick up a sandbag and lightly pat it against his body, starting from his feet and moving upwards, not sparing any part, all the way to his face.
He did not hesitate, nor did he spare his face from the patting. In combat, enemies would not adhere to the unspoken rule of not hitting the face.
Throughout history, those who achieved great things were thick-skinned.
According to the technique's introduction, once it reached great accomplishment, all parts of the body would be impervious to blades and spears, and difficult for magical artifacts to injure, naturally including the skin of the face.
As the sandbag patted him repeatedly, the spiritual energy in his meridians was agitated into smaller collateral vessels, and then into minor and superficial collateral vessels.
Minor and superficial collateral vessels were fine branches extending from the meridians, distributing to every corner of the skin and flesh, akin to the fine roots of a tree.
Through these minor and superficial collateral vessels, this spiritual energy permeated the flesh and skin, continuously nourishing and strengthening the physical body.
After patting himself with the sandbag 36 times, his entire skin had turned red. Only then did he stop his actions.
He untied the sandbag, poured out the iron sand inside, sifted out the tendon-strengthening grass powder, and discarded it.
The medicinal effect of this powder only lasted for three days, and it had to be replaced every three days.
One stalk of 30-year-old tendon-strengthening grass cost 20 spirit stones. In a month, it would cost 200 spirit stones.
Xiao Fei refilled the sandbag with tendon-strengthening grass powder, tied the opening, and set it aside for future use.
At this time, the large pot of water he had boiled in the kitchen earlier was already boiling.
Xiao Fei poured all of it into a large wooden tub. He then took out a jade bottle and poured all the medicinal liquid inside into the water.
Instantly, the entire tub of water was dyed a dark green.
After the water cooled down slightly, Xiao Fei submerged his entire body into the wooden tub, not even exposing a single strand of his hair.
Warm and moist sensations penetrated his body, continuously remodeling his physique and repairing minor injuries.
Half an hour later, Xiao Fei emerged from the water. The originally dark green medicinal water had turned clear and transparent.
A bottle of such medicinal liquid cost 15 spirit stones and could only be used once, amounting to 450 spirit stones per month.
Body refinement was a very expensive endeavor. Everyone knew that body refinement was good, but very few people actually practiced it due to the cost.
The sect adopted a laissez-faire attitude towards outer disciples, only distributing 20 spirit stones each month. If they wanted better resources, they had to earn them themselves.
The vast majority of disciples could not afford the expenses of several hundred spirit stones per month.
Xiao Fei put on his clothes and went to the kitchen to bake two large flatbreads. He spread chopped sauce-beast meat inside, drizzled some meat broth, added a few green onions, rolled it up, and his meal was thus settled.
Many poor people envied cultivators, believing that cultivators could abstain from eating.
Xiao Fei had been cultivating for nearly ten years and still could not abstain from eating. If he didn't eat for a day, he would feel famished.
Especially since cultivating the "Body Tempering Art," his appetite had greatly increased. He always felt he could eat a whole cow in one sitting without looking up.
As Xiao Fei was rushing out after eating, he happened to run into Sun Dazhi.
He inwardly thought, "That was a close call."
"Good morning, Senior Brother Sun!"
"Junior Brother Xiao, are you going out? I've found some spiritual wine, and I was just planning to have a drink and chat with you!"
"My apologies, I need to go to the Pill Hall to submit a mission."
Xiao Fei greeted him and hurried away. He was truly afraid of this fellow disciple who had joined the sect at the same time. Sun Dazhi was too talkative.
Since they were among the five who joined at the same time, he often visited Xiao Fei's courtyard.
Every time, he would brag to Xiao Fei for a long time, talking about how capable, how wise, and how heroic he was.
He would clearly kill a lizard but insist on saying he had slain a ferocious dragon in a certain year and day.
Often, he would talk incessantly, while Xiao Fei would listen absentmindedly. It was truly exhausting.
However, one should not hit a smiling face, and he couldn't bring himself to drive the man away.
The Pill Hall was located next to the main peak's plaza. Xiao Fei walked all the way to the Pill Hall, and there were still a few people queuing ahead of him.
"Ah!"
"Why do I have to participate in the Alchemy Grand Competition? Can't I refuse?"
A disciple queuing ahead to submit a mission appeared very surprised. The Pill Hall was forcibly requiring him to participate in the Alchemy Grand Competition.
But he genuinely didn't know how to refine pills!
He had never properly refined a pill before. Participating in the Alchemy Grand Competition in front of everyone would be nothing but embarrassing himself!
"This is a new rule set by the sect. From now on, any disciple whose average pill success rate in regular missions is above eighty percent must participate in the competition."
A Foundation Establishment deacon from the Pill Hall said with a stern expression.
The fraudulent behavior of many disciples had become too rampant.
A batch of pills had a maximum of ten pills. The missions submitted by disciples all had success rates of eight or nine pills, or even ten pills.
Sometimes, there were even more outrageous cases. A disciple would take materials and end up refining 11, 12, or even more pills.
This unhealthy trend and evil spirit had to be curbed.
Therefore, the sect now intended to single out these disciples whose fraudulent behavior had been excessively rampant and give them a stern warning.
"According to your mission submission records, your average success rate for refining Qi Gathering Pills in the past year is ten out of ten.
Since you possess such excellent talent, how can the sect allow such a genius to be buried?"
The Foundation Establishment deacon said with a sarcastic smile.
"The disciple ranked first in the alchemy leaderboard only has a nine out of ten success rate for Qi Gathering Pills. It seems the top spot rightfully belongs to you."
"Uncle-Master, I am usually low-key and patient. I dislike being in the spotlight and don't want to participate. Can I not go?"
Although everyone knew in their hearts that this was the result of cheating, such matters could only be done, not spoken. They could only swallow their bitterness.
"Those who refuse to participate will have their Pill Hall mission qualifications revoked and will be forbidden from receiving any further missions from the Pill Hall."
Finally, the disciple, with a dejected expression, was registered.
The next few disciples were similar; they were all registered to participate in this year's Alchemy Grand Competition.
Xiao Fei had originally planned to register for this year's Alchemy Grand Competition, so he was indifferent to it.
As long as he could barely squeeze into the top hundred, he would receive an additional monthly contribution point income.
When it was his turn to register, the middle-aged deacon seemed to have already identified Xiao Fei as a cheater and kept staring at him with a mocking gaze.
Xiao Fei was helpless. He couldn't explain now, nor did he want to waste words on such matters.
Under the mocking gaze of the middle-aged deacon, he received his mission and hurried back to his small courtyard.
There were still about six months until the triennial ranking competition. In these six months, he could still make many preparations.
At that time, the sect would simultaneously hold competitions in five aspects: combat, alchemy, artifact refining, talisman crafting, and formations, to re-rank the top 100 disciples.
All disciples who made the list would receive a one-time reward and monthly contribution point rewards for the next three years.
Any disciple of the Danxin Sect who had some ability would want to have their name inscribed on the plaza stone tablet, not only for the tangible benefits but also for the honor.