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  Lie Teng shook his head, Qing Yi stared with wide eyes, listening carefully.

  "Because six layers are a cycle, only when the sixth layer is complete can one enter the next layer." The old man said slowly. As if it was too tiring for him, the old man's speech was somewhat labored, and he paused for a moment before continuing: "Compress the spiritual energy within your body, compress it continuously until you cannot compress it anymore, then condense the spiritual energy again, and compress it until the danhai is full. Only then will you have the opportunity to break through to the second layer. Remember, it's just an opportunity, some things can't be explicitly stated, and need to be understood by yourself."

  "Compressing spiritual energy?" Lie Teng's eyes flashed, and he thought to himself, looking at the old man's aged appearance. Lie Teng was somewhat suspicious and said: "Master Shibo, your body... how is it getting more and more..."

  "Heh heh, my time is almost up and there's not much left. Otherwise, I wouldn't have been arranged to be here." The old man said with a tone that was full of helplessness and bitterness.

  The old man's words struck Liet like a thunderbolt, his face turned deathly pale, and he exclaimed: "Shifu, aren't we cultivators supposed to live as long as the heavens...?"

  "Live as long as Heaven? Unless you reach a state of great enlightenment, otherwise, there will be a limit to one's years." The old man sighed.

  "What's the time limit?" Lie Teng was shocked in his heart. After coming to the cultivation world, he had always thought that he had a lot of time and would not end up like before, turning into a pile of yellow soil in just a few decades. The old man's words made Lie Teng's heart full of shock and horror, thinking that his revenge was still unavenged, Lie Teng's heart began to palpitate. Suppressing the emotions in his heart, Lie Teng asked: "Master, can you tell Qingyun what the time limit is?"

  "If one reaches the state of Kai Ling, they can live for a hundred years. During the Ju Ling period, their lifespan is two hundred years. In the Jie Dan period, it's five hundred years. The lifespan of a Dan Ying is two thousand years, and that of a Suo Kong is five thousand years. Only by achieving Da Wu can one be equal to Heaven in longevity!" The old man sighed, having cultivated for nearly two hundred years, only to end up as nothing but a pile of yellow earth in the end.

  "Can the Spirit Gathering Period live for two hundred years?" Lie Teng exclaimed in surprise, his face slightly easing up.

  "Do you think two hundred years is a long time? I have been cultivating from the age of ten until now, for one hundred and eighty-eight years, but my cultivation has always remained at the peak of the sixth layer of Gathering Spirit. I was never able to break through. Qingyun, cultivation is extremely difficult, it's not something that can be overcome with just diligence, you must understand." The old man said solemnly.

  Lieteng's heart was filled with shock, still unable to break through the Gathering Spirit stage after 188 years of cultivation? Seeing Lieteng's expression, the old man smiled calmly and said: "The first three layers of cultivation are a small hurdle, and the last three layers are a big hurdle. Many cultivators get stuck at these two hurdles. In my Gui Sect, there are nearly a thousand high-level cultivators who have reached the sixth layer of Gathering Spirit, but there are less than twenty high-level cultivators in the Condensing Dan stage. Qingyun, cultivate well, and maybe one day you'll be able to break through the Gathering Spirit stage and reach the Condensing Dan realm."

  Lie Teng had already stopped listening to the old man's words, his mind was buzzing with thoughts. The old man's words had reached the peak of Lie Teng's understanding and made him even more worried. If... if he couldn't reach the Dan stage in two hundred years, then he would surely die of old age, and wouldn't be able to avenge his father and brothers. Lie Teng's forehead was already sweating profusely, his face deathly pale, and his body trembling slightly.

  "Brother Qingyun, what's wrong?" Qingyi saw Lie Teng like this and anxiously asked.

  The old man sighed, thinking of his own bold and ambitious words when he was young. Now, however, he had to accept the reality of facing death. Looking at Lie's determined expression, the old man felt a pang of sympathy and said, "You're still young, with over a hundred years left before reaching the Cong Dan period. Cultivate well, you still have a chance." The old man shook his head in despair.

  Lie Teng nodded, his eyes filled with blood as he stared at the old man, and said with a clenched fist: "Thank you, Master Shibo. Qing Yun will work hard to cultivate." His voice was firm and unwavering, revealing Lie Teng's determination in his heart.

  Immediately, Lie Teng took Qing Yi and slowly left. When Lie Teng stepped out of the gate, the old man looked at Lie Teng's back, as if he had made some kind of decision, and said: "Qing Yun, are you willing to become my disciple?"

  He lifted his foot, still in a daze, his body as if struck by lightning. He stood there, stunned, and after reacting, Lie Teng turned around to face the old man, kneeling on both knees: "Qing Yun is willing."

  "Good! From now on, you will be my only disciple." The old man's face lit up with joy as Lieteng agreed, and he slowly stood up, taking big strides towards Lieteng. The old man had only thought of taking Lieteng as his disciple on a whim, for he only had two years left to live. As the saying goes, "You can't bring anything with you when you're born, and you can't take anything with you when you die." Moreover, he admired Lieteng's character very much. Although Lieteng was once a junior of Jingying, nowadays, after being arranged to this place, he wasn't respected by the other disciples. Lieteng was the first person to call him "Shibo" (master uncle). From then on, the old man couldn't help but remember Lieteng. Today, when Lieteng came, looking at his expression after hearing about his remaining lifespan, the old man sighed inwardly and didn't want Lieteng to follow in his footsteps. So he had the idea of taking him as a disciple. Originally, the old man hadn't held out much hope that Lieteng would agree, after all, he was about to die soon. Moreover, a Kuizong disciple could only take one master, and once the old man passed away, Lieteng wouldn't be able to take another master and would have to rely on himself to explore.

  At the moment when Lie Teng knelt down, Zhang Hezi's entire body seemed to regain its vitality. His not-so-tall and slightly hunched back straightened up, his complexion improved slightly, and his dull eyes sparkled with light. He took big strides to stand in front of Lie Teng and said: "Qing Yun, from today on, you are the only disciple of Zhang Hezi."

  "Junior Yun pays respects to Master!" Lie Teng knelt down and kowtowed, knocking his head against the ground nine times in a row. The ground was pounded by Lie Teng's knocks, making a loud noise.

  "Good! Good! Good! I never thought that before my death, heaven would grant me a disciple." Changhezi seemed to be very excited and his body slightly trembled as he helped Lieteng up.

  Qing Yi stood on one side, full of joy, saying: "Congratulations, brother, congratulations, grandfather."

  Lie Teng glanced at Qing Yi and looked towards Zhang Hezi, saying: "Master, with two years of life left, why not try to break through in these two years?"

  "Disciple, in the last decade of one's lifespan, if a breakthrough has not been achieved, it can be said that everything is already set in stone and it's hard to change. I only have two years left, and breaking through is now hopeless. However, what allows me to die with my eyes closed is today's harvest. Disciple, go and tidy up, let's head to my former residence." Longhezi said.

  "Hmm" Lie Teng nodded in response, and led Qing Yi to hurry away, heading towards the small courtyard to tidy up.

  Watching Lie Teng and Qing Yi leave, Zhang Hezi pondered for a moment, saying: "Let the two of them come in and tell our master that from now on, I will no longer be here. Ask him to let the others come and guard this place."

  "Yes." A responding voice came from outside, and then Changhezi walked into the room and picked it up.

  In less than half a time, Lie Teng brought Qing Yi to the front of the Cang Qi Pavilion. Zhang He Zi was already waiting for them. Seeing Lie Teng arrive, Zhang He Zi smiled warmly and pinched his right hand into a seal. A five-foot-long spiritual sword floated at his feet, saying: "Follow me."

  Lie Teng nodded, controlling the Ling Sword to fly upwards. Qing Yi tightly grasped Lie Teng's right hand, her face filled with joy. She vaguely sensed that from now on, Brother Qing Yun would no longer be bullied by others.

  Under the leadership of Zhang Hezi, Lie Teng and Qing Yi flew towards the mountain peak for the first time. About half a minute later, Zhang Hezi stopped and landed on the main road. In front of them were nearly a hundred buildings, and two middle-aged men in black clothes guarded the gate. They were the ones who prevented ordinary disciples from entering this place. Seeing Zhang Hezi, the two men looked at Lie Teng and Qing Yi, one of whom asked: "Master uncle, who are they?"

  "Old Master is just a novice!" Chang Hezi said calmly.

  "Oh? So it's my junior brother?" The two men in black exchanged a glance, the corners of their mouths curled up in mockery for an instant before disappearing. Then, another man in black furrowed his brow and asked: "When did Master take on an apprentice?"

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