Chapter Seventeen: Ascending to the Fifth Tier

For an entire week, Xiao Cheng went nowhere but remained secluded in the villa, devoted to his cultivation.

From the age of ten to twenty-five is the golden period for cultivation. He had already wasted eight whole years and was determined not to squander any more time. Now, with the Ninefold Immortal Sutra, his progress was almost miraculous; in such circumstances, he had no intention of wasting a single moment.

Throughout the week, he thought of nothing else—not even how to deal with his fourth uncle. He had promised Fang Yujia to resolve the company’s troubles. Though the company appeared riddled with problems, at the root, there was only one: his fourth uncle. As long as Xiao Guowei was eliminated, most of the issues would be resolved, and the rest he could safely leave to his sister-in-law, confident she would handle them well.

As for what pretext he might use to kill his fourth uncle—did he, Xiao Cheng, need a reason to kill? Nor did he feel any pangs of conscience; his uncle would betray the family in two years anyway. He was simply cleaning house in advance. In fact, Xiao Cheng had barely thought about it: anyone who dared threaten his sister-in-law or the family had already received their death sentence from him.

But there was no rush—strength was the key. Without power, all plans were nothing but empty talk. Last time, he had been able to control his uncle by surprise, using his spiritual sense, but such tactics would not succeed a second time. His fourth uncle was no weakling; his mastery of internal martial arts was consummate, equivalent to a cultivator at the peak of the Condensation Stage.

But for Xiao Cheng, there was no need to reach the peak of Condensation—once he attained the first tier, he would be more than a match. After all, he was vastly different from ordinary cultivators, possessing not only peak innate spiritual sense but also cultivating the Ninefold Immortal Sutra.

The most extraordinary aspect of the Immortal Sutra was not merely its ability to absorb the spirits of plants and trees, but its comprehensive enhancement of the cultivator’s abilities—body, spiritual sense, and true energy alike. In the early stages, these benefits were not so apparent, but as cultivation advanced, the difference would become overwhelming.

Moreover, the jade slip contained not only the Immortal Sutra but also a vast trove of cultivation knowledge: Daoist arts, alchemy, talisman crafting, sword techniques, even the long-lost Five Elements Escape Technique. With such wealth of resources, if he could not kill a master of internal martial arts after reaching the Condensation Stage, that would truly be shameful.

Naturally, Xiao Cheng did not view Xiao Guowei as a significant threat. What truly concerned him was the annihilation of the family three years hence; that was his real enemy. Compared to the forces that would destroy the Xiao family, Xiao Guowei was nothing.

Sitting cross-legged on his bed, Xiao Cheng’s well-proportioned upper body was covered in grime, his face streaked with oily black residue. He opened his eyes, looked at the filth covering him, and smiled.

“I've finally reached the fifth tier of Foundation Establishment! If only I could reach the Innate Stage soon, then I could forge a flying sword and enter the path of the sword,” Xiao Cheng murmured.

This time, he had advanced to the fifth tier in just seven days. The grime on his body was all the impurities expelled from within.

Foundation Establishment, as the name implied, was about solidifying one’s base—purifying the body to make it more suitable for cultivation.

Upon reaching the fifth tier, Xiao Cheng felt his true energy in his dantian grow thicker; if it had previously been like a hair’s breadth, now it was a thread of cotton. His body felt more agile and flexible.

Releasing his spiritual sense, he noticed its range had increased slightly—a minuscule difference, but one he was meticulous enough to detect.

The enhancement of his spiritual sense was an unexpected boon. He had thought that, possessing spiritual sense at the peak of the Innate Stage, it would not improve as he advanced, yet it had risen along with his cultivation.

If this continued, perhaps by the time he reached the Condensation Stage, his spiritual sense would be as strong as that of the Golden Core Stage.

Such was the benefit of the Ninefold Immortal Sutra: all-around enhancement, unlike other mental techniques which required separate training of the body and spiritual sense after advancing.

Again, he released his spiritual sense, scanning his surroundings. Everything appeared in his mind, down to the tiniest insects crawling on the ground. His spiritual sense swept across and found his sister-in-law bathing—a minor transgression, but unavoidable for one who often used spiritual sense. Besides, spiritual sense was like thermal imaging; it lacked the clarity of direct sight.

He extended his spiritual sense further, reaching the villa opposite. Xiao Cheng frowned.

The family who owned that villa had left for Hawaii at the start of the previous week—no one should have been there. Yet, inside was a person—a powerful presence whose strength surpassed his own.

He had noticed something odd before, but his spiritual sense’s range had been smaller, and he had only vaguely sensed someone inside, so he had paid little attention. Now, with his range increased by a critical two meters, he could probe the exact room and saw equipment at the window—things like telescopes, clearly for surveillance, with the lens aimed right at his own room.

“Someone’s watching me?” Xiao Cheng let out a cold laugh. Though the other’s strength exceeded his, he felt no fear.

He intended to pay this person a visit. He had no intention of being under constant surveillance. Moreover, his cultivation technique was extraordinary; if discovered, it would surely attract unwanted attention. With his current strength, he could not yet protect the Immortal Sutra.

He prepared to head out, but then noticed the oily grime covering his body. If he went out like this, people might think him a specter.

He went to the bathroom to wash his face, but just as he was about to, the bathroom door swung open.

Fang Yujia, wrapped in a towel, stared wide-eyed at Xiao Cheng. Had she not been composed, she might have screamed like a startled girl. At that moment, Xiao Cheng looked like a demon king, his entire body blackened.

“It’s me,” Xiao Cheng said softly. He knew he looked frightening, his face reduced to just a pair of white eyes.

Fang Yujia had just bathed, water droplets still glistening in her hair and sliding down her skin like pearls on lotus leaves. Her delicate skin was like mutton-fat jade, radiating freshness. The towel barely covered her, and she was otherwise unclothed—a sight that stirred the imagination.

The towel wrapped only half her body, revealing a hint of cleavage at the chest and just covering her shapely hips, her gleaming legs dazzling to behold.

Fang Yujia was naturally beautiful yet always dressed conservatively. She had never revealed even her legs, let alone any cleavage, never worn spaghetti straps, short skirts, or shorts.

Xiao Cheng gazed at his sister-in-law, momentarily stunned; though his mind was firm and, in a past life, he had been exposed to the most explicit Japanese films, even he felt a flicker of distraction at this scene.

He circulated his true energy to calm his thoughts, reminding himself that this was his sister-in-law, the woman who had once saved his life.

Now that she saw it was Xiao Cheng, Fang Yujia felt even more uneasy.

“What are you doing here?” A rare flush colored her cheeks, suspicion in her heart—had her brother-in-law been peeping all along?

Startled, the clothes she was holding fell to the floor—a cute, lacy pink undergarment.

Seeing the item on the floor, Fang Yujia blushed furiously, rooted to the spot, not knowing what to do. If she bent to pick it up, her chest—and more—would be exposed; but leaving it there meant Xiao Cheng could see it.

Xiao Cheng looked at the lacy garment, then at his embarrassed, flustered sister-in-law. He realized her predicament—she was too shy to pick it up in his presence.

Should he pick it up or not? Xiao Cheng hesitated. If he did, she would be even more embarrassed, but if not, she would remain mortified.

Then he noticed the trash bin at his feet and finally had an idea.

“Yuer, this one’s dirty—let’s just toss it out. I’ll buy you a new box later!”

With that, Xiao Cheng hooked the little undergarment with his foot and tossed it into the trash. Only then did he realize how wrong his words sounded—a brother-in-law buying underwear for his sister-in-law? What was that supposed to mean?

Fang Yujia’s face turned even redder. Wishing she could disappear, she fled back to her room and slammed the door shut.

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