With a thought from Leo, the mist churned, and several tendrils of mist wrapped around his soul once more, protecting him. When he made contact with the flowing blue-green threads, Leo's spirit lifted. He felt refreshed and invigorated after "consuming" one of the threads.

  He was about to devour the other blue-green threads when a hoarse, loud laugh rang out. "Hahaha... This damned place actually has spiritual energy to replenish? Fantastic!"

  Hearing the voice, Leo immediately grew anxious. Although he had the mist shield's protection and didn't need to worry about the black-robed old man's sneak attacks, their cultivation levels differed significantly, and his speed was ultimately nowhere near the old man's.

  Could these blue-green threads be the spiritual energy generated from consuming the spiritual herb just now? Leo guessed inwardly. So, he regained control of his body and consumed another leaf of the spiritual herb. Sure enough, aside from the portion his meridians could accommodate, the rest disappeared again. Then, more blue-green threads appeared within the barrier.

  The black-robed old man's soul was searching around. Seeing new threads appear, he was greatly delighted. He chased after them, swallowing them. His spirit form, which had grown faint after casting his spells, now appeared noticeably more solid.

  "Stop that! That spiritual energy is mine!" Having proven through experiment that this energy came from the herb, Leo was furious and shouted.

  "Ownerless things belong to those who are virtuous—whoever eats them gets them. If you want them, come in and take them yourself," the black-robed old man gave a sinister chuckle.

  "This spiritual energy appears within the Green Fruit barrier because I consumed the purple herb and can't fully absorb its energy all at once. If you use it all up, I just won't consume any more spiritual herbs in the future. I'll cultivate on my own, and not a single trace of spiritual energy will be born within this barrier again!"

  Leo's heart ached. The purple herbs he had put in so much effort to gather were being wasted like this, even falling into his enemy's mouth. He had consumed spiritual herbs and cultivated for over a year but was still only at the first level of Qi Refinement. If he relied solely on his own cultivation, it would probably take at least three years to break through to the second level.

  Cultivation would become increasingly difficult later. Reaching the third level of Qi Refinement might take six or seven years, or even longer. But after consuming the spiritual herb, aside from the portion he could immediately digest and absorb, the remaining surplus spiritual energy all appeared within the barrier. Entering the barrier required constant vigilance against the black-robed old man's sneak attacks. This problem had to be solved, otherwise, cultivation in the future would be as difficult as ascending to heaven!

  "You say so, and that makes it true? Any proof? And this place is called the Green Fruit barrier?" the black-robed old man hesitated for a moment before asking. He had been trapped in this barrier for several months without encountering a single trace of spiritual energy. Now, suddenly two waves appeared—it definitely wasn't without cause. And this prison-like place name also seemed odd.

  "If you don't believe me, name a time. I'll make one more wave of spiritual energy appear within this barrier," Leo snorted. The so-called "Green Fruit barrier" was a name he came up with himself. This place existed because of the green fruit and had a barrier-like membrane, so calling it the Green Fruit barrier was fitting.

  "Alright. In the time it takes for one incense stick to burn, if another wave of spiritual energy appears within the barrier, I'll believe you," the black-robed old man nodded.

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  One incense stick's time later, the blue-green threads within the barrier grew denser again.

  "So? Do you believe me now?" Leo's soul reappeared outside the barrier.

  The black-robed old man looked at the blue-green threads in the air, his eyes flickering, uncertain.

  "So what if I believe you?"

  "The spiritual energy born within this space, we split it 80-20. I get eighty, you get twenty," Leo proposed.

  "I'll use this spiritual energy as I please. Twenty percent is practically nothing. Your cultivation is so low, you can't use that much energy. I should get eighty, you twenty," the black-robed old man snorted in disdain.

  "Seventy-thirty. At most, we part ways, and you won't get a single bit of spiritual energy ever again."

  "No deal. At most, sixty-forty!"

  "Sixty-forty? Fine."

  "Fifty-fifty. Take it or leave it!"

  "Split it evenly then. Anyway, I only have two and a half purple herbs left," Leo felt a surge of frustration. Although he had to give half to his mortal enemy for nothing, it was still better than relying solely on his own meditation cultivation.

  The black-robed old man snorted. "Purple herb? Truly shortsighted. What you're talking about is Purple Spirit Grass. With your current cultivation, you can only absorb its energy without being overwhelmed. If it's refined into Qi Gathering Pills, the efficacy is at least three times greater than simply consuming the raw herb."

  "If I knew how to refine pills, would I need you to tell me?" Leo's eyes rolled. "How about this? Since we're both stuck in the same boat now, why don't you teach me the method for refining Qi Gathering Pills? Once I succeed, the spiritual energy you get will also increase."

  The black-robed old man rolled his eyes. "You think refining pills is some ordinary task? Even if I teach you the method, you're not even a pill refining apprentice right now. If you succeed in refining one furnace out of ten attempts, that would be good already. Two stalks of Purple Spirit Grass aren't even enough for your 'tuition fees.'"

  "If you don't agree, then forget it. Don't expect any more spiritual energy in the future," Leo threatened.

  "Fine, it's possible. But if you succeed in refining Qi Gathering Pills, the spiritual energy from the first two pills goes to me. Anything after that, we split fifty-fifty."

  The black-robed old man thought for a moment. Qi Gathering Pills were only useful for cultivators in the early stages of Qi Refinement. The spiritual energy from one stalk of Purple Spirit Grass was far from enough for him. Having fallen back to the eleventh level of Qi Refinement, returning to the twelfth required a significant amount of time. If Leo remain deadlocked with him, it wouldn't benefit him either.

  "Deal!" Leo nodded in agreement. No matter what, learning to refine Qi Gathering Pills meant gaining another skill for the future.

  "I need a red copper alchemy furnace?" Leo was annoyed that the black-robed old man stubbornly refused to give him his old alchemy furnace. By now, he was certain that the unopenable storage bag must belong to the black-robed old man. But the old fox wouldn't give in, and he had no way to force it. That storage bag definitely contained something very important.

  Having obtained the formula for the Qi Gathering Pills, Leo had no intention of continuing his cultivation in the cave. He returned to Nordgard County Town, sold two more herbal plants, and then visited several blacksmith shops. It wasn't until the third shop that he found one capable of forging a red copper alchemy furnace.

  After paying the deposit, Leo left the blacksmith's. Just as he entered a quiet alley, he saw two groups of people in a tense standoff. They were all teenagers, boys and girls around twelve or thirteen, dressed in tight-fitting clothes. The smaller group had six or seven people, the larger one fourteen or fifteen.

  "I was wondering which sect would dare be so arrogant in Nordgard County Town. So it's the Thunder Blade Sect. Meeting our Black Tiger Gang this time is your bad luck!" a lean teenager in brocade clothes from the opposing side said with a grim face.

  "You only have the advantage of numbers. If you have any guts, fight us one-on-one. Let's see how much your Black Tiger Gang's members have improved in recent years," From among the seven figures with their backs to Leo, a slightly taller martial artist in black stepped forward and spoke with disdain.

  Leo initially planned to turn and leave. However, upon hearing this familiar voice, his steps faltered, and he stopped. If they were ordinary Thunder Blade Sect members, he naturally wouldn't care. But he never expected to encounter Felix again here, having left Misty Veil Peaks. People in the martial world are never short of conflicts. It seemed the Thunder Blade Sect and the Black Tiger Gang had some past enmity. It looked like Felix was leading a group of disciples now. Leo felt genuinely happy for him.