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Before her was a tub of cold pool water that Qin Shu had prepared in advance. She removed her clothes and lowered herself into the wooden tub.

The bone-chilling cold of the water, even after being left for some time, still made Qin Shu shiver uncontrollably as soon as she entered.

Clenching her teeth, she circulated her spiritual energy twice. Only then did the biting cold gradually subside.

She massaged her slightly stiff face, used a cloth to scrub off the dirt on her body, and couldn't help but feel relieved. Fortunately, her body was still that of a ten-year-old, or else squeezing into this tub would've been impossible.

"When resources permit later, I'll definitely get a proper bath barrel," she muttered to herself.

After cleaning herself thoroughly, she changed back into the clothes she arrived in and washed the "uniform" issued by the sect.

With everything sorted, she eagerly sat cross-legged on her mat to examine the effects of the three Cleansing Dust Pills. Would they really speed up her cultivation progress? Her previous cultivation speed had been utterly dismal.

Sitting cross-legged, Qin Shu calmed her mind and focused on the spiritual energy around her.

The moment her eyes closed, they abruptly opened again. She blinked, a perplexed expression on her face.

The effects of cleansing her body and refining her essence—were they this obvious?

The spiritual energy she sensed now was far denser than during her first cultivation attempt. Tiny, glowing motes of energy seemed to saturate the air. Breathing in even a little felt like it equaled a whole day of her previous efforts.

But no, this couldn't solely be the Cleansing Dust Pills. The sect wouldn't be that generous.

She pondered deeply. Over the past few days, she'd only cultivated inside her room. What was different now?

Her gaze fell upon the sliver of moonlight on her arm, and Qin Shu froze.

Could it... be the moonlight?

To test her theory, she grabbed her mat, opened the door, and moved out into the courtyard.

Seated under the moonlight, she once again entered a meditative state. Instantly, the spiritual energy around her thickened further, almost becoming tangible.

Meanwhile, inside the room, Xie Shiyuan, who had been in a deep sleep, suddenly opened his eyes—not his spiritual senses, but his actual eyes.

Sensing the astonishing density of spiritual energy outside, he extended his senses to investigate.

To his surprise, the source of the commotion was that little girl outside?

A trifling tri-spirit root girl could cause such a spiritual energy upheaval? Could she possess some kind of innate divine body?

Without time to dwell on it, Xie Shiyuan spat out his inner core, using his last bit of strength to cast a spell to conceal the anomaly.

After ensuring everything was concealed, Xie Shiyuan slipped back into unconsciousness. The minuscule amount of spiritual energy he had managed to recover was completely drained.

Before losing consciousness, his final thought was: "I hope that little girl doesn't stir up more trouble. If the old geezers of Xuantian Sect catch wind of this, we'll both be in hot water..."

Unaware of all this, Qin Shu remained oblivious to the commotion she caused. Even though she drew in copious amounts of spiritual energy, as a beginner, she could only absorb a tiny fraction of it.

She felt her pores and cells brimming with spiritual energy as it coursed through her meridians and converged in her dantian.

Thanks to the cleansing effects of the pill, her meridians, previously narrow like dirt paths, now resembled paved highways, allowing energy to flow smoothly.

This time, the three colors of energy in her dantian didn't remain distinct as before but merged automatically into a deep purple hue.

Even so, as the energy completed one great cycle, some still dissipated.

Qin Shu couldn't figure out why she was "leaking" energy, but given her current cultivation speed, she simply shrugged it off.

"Leakage? So what? As long as enough stays behind, who cares?"

After completing several cycles, the spiritual energy in her dantian had condensed into a rich purple.

A sudden thought struck her: What if she used this energy to temper her meridians? Would that speed up future cultivation?

With that idea, she directed the energy in her dantian to flow along her Ren meridian. This meridian, running along the front centerline of her torso, governed all yin energy and was one of the Eight Extraordinary Meridians closest to the dantian.

The energy tentatively brushed against her meridian. When nothing unusual happened, Qin Shu relaxed and began tempering it in earnest.

Little did she know, she had inadvertently chosen the correct path for herself.

Strong meridians not only provided advantages during battles but also eased breakthroughs to higher realms.

Qin Shu cultivated throughout the night. By the time the surrounding spiritual energy thinned out, she finally opened her eyes.

Her Ren meridian, tempered overnight, now emitted a faint purple glow.

She made a decision: she would finish tempering her entire Ren meridian before attempting a breakthrough!

Judging by her current speed, barring any interruptions, she estimated she could fully temper it and reach the second layer of Qi Refinement within a month or two.

Dusting off the morning dew on her body, Qin Shu glanced at the sky, where the sun and moon shone together. Her conviction solidified.

During her transmigration, something had clearly gone awry. Her current body was no longer identical to the novel's original character. While she wasn't a genius who could advance by leaps and bounds, she was confident she'd surpass the original body's paltry level-three Qi Refinement in eight years.

Stretching lazily, Qin Shu was in high spirits.

The biggest issue that had plagued her since joining the sect was finally resolved. From now on, she could focus wholeheartedly on cultivation!

Not only would she survive, but she would also ascend!

Finding daytime meditation inefficient, Qin Shu picked up some leftover branches and practiced the basic sword techniques she had learned in the forbidden grounds.

She practiced until sunrise, then freshened up, ate a leftover steamed bun, and tended to the little black snake, reapplying its medicine and feeding it half a spiritual fruit.

Perhaps it was just her imagination, but the snake's condition seemed worse. Its once-lustrous scales had dulled, appearing grayish.

Qin Shu had no solution for the snake's declining health. She couldn't bear to watch it die after caring for it so long. Her only hope was to find a remedy for spiritual beasts at the market in four days and pray the snake held on until then.

This marked the fourth day since the new disciples had joined the sect. By now, some outer disciples should have successfully drawn spiritual energy into their bodies. Qin Shu decided it was time to visit the official Hall of Transmission.

Without any spells at her disposal, no matter how much energy she absorbed, it would be meaningless.

At the hall, she found a boy already present—a tall, skinny youth who appeared to be fourteen or fifteen.

Upon seeing her enter, he cast her a wary glance.

Qin Shu ignored him and approached Senior Sister Shu Ying, who was teaching the class. She bowed respectfully.

"Senior Sister."

Shu Ying, remembering the pretty young girl, smiled warmly.

"Have you drawn spiritual energy into your body?"

"Yes, I succeeded last night and came to the Hall of Transmission to learn some basic spells."

Shu Ying gestured for Qin Shu to place her hand on the spiritual testing stone. Qin Shu, intending to hide her true strength, only released a sliver of energy. The stone emitted a faint glow.

"Not bad. You've succeeded in drawing energy in. Since you have a fire spiritual root, would you like to start with the Fireball Spell?" Shu Ying suggested with a smile.