Returning to his residence, Fang Hao began to Cultivate the Metal Energy Sword Art. With the Myriad Manifestations Heaven Swallowing Art as his foundation, he learned very quickly, and within three days, he was able to condense pale golden Sword Qi.

One day, while Fang Hao was practicing the Metal Energy Sword Art in the courtyard, Chen Feng passed by and sneered, "Learning the Metal Energy Sword Art at the Qi Refining Fourth Layer? How ambitious. This Spell requires at least the Qi Refining Fifth Layer to unleash its power."

Fang Hao didn’t argue; he just continued practicing silently. When he sliced off a corner of the stone test pillar in the courtyard with a single sword strike, Chen Feng’s expression became quite remarkable.

Zhu Pang clapped from the side and cheered, "Fang Hao, you’re amazing. This Metal Energy Sword Art you’ve practiced is even stronger than some at the Qi Refining Fifth Layer."

Li Xuan also cast an admiring gaze, "Indeed, it is rare."

Fang Hao smiled modestly, knowing in his heart that this was thanks to the Myriad Manifestations Heaven Swallowing Art. With all seven types of Spiritual Roots, he received a bonus when practicing Spells of any attribute.

That night, while Fang Hao was cultivating in his room, he suddenly felt a strange movement in his storage ring. He projected his Divine Sense inside and found that the Jade Slip he had been unable to open was suddenly emitting a faint light.

Fang Hao took out the Jade Slip and tried to probe it with his Divine Sense. This time, he entered without any resistance.

Inside the Jade Slip, besides that treasure map, additional information actually surfaced.

"I am Xuan Yun, an outcast of the Azure Cloud Sect, harmed by treacherous people and forced into seclusion with heavy injuries. I leave this Legacy for one who is destined. Whoever obtains my Legacy must uncover the truth of that year for me and restore my innocence."

Following that was a complex set of cultivation mantras—the complete Qi Refining Chapter of the Myriad Manifestations Heaven Swallowing Art!

Fang Hao was stunned. So this Cultivation Technique was created by Master Xuan Yun? The same old Cultivator who brought him to the Sect?

He continued reading, and at the end, there was a line of small characters.

"A ring within a ring, containing its own universe."

Fang Hao was taken aback. A ring within a ring? What did that mean?

He carefully examined the storage ring and finally discovered a hidden mechanism on the grain-sized gemstone on the ring’s surface. With a gentle press, the gemstone actually popped open, hiding an even smaller ring inside!

This small ring was pitch black all over, its material indiscernible, but it radiated an ancient aura.

Fang Hao tried putting it on his finger, and immediately felt a surge of information flood into his mind.

"The qiankun ring, containing a space of a hundred zhang, where the flow of time is slowed tenfold."

Fang Hao sucked in a breath of cold air.

A hundred zhang of space? Time slowed tenfold?

This... what kind of treasure is this.

Fang Hao stared at the newly appeared black ring on his finger, completely dazed.

A hundred zhang of space? Time slowed tenfold? What kind of god-tier treasure is this?

He tried putting the water cup from the table inside; with a single thought, the cup disappeared. With another thought, the cup reappeared on the table. It was so easy to store and retrieve, countless times better than that Storage bag with only one cubic meter of space.

Fang Hao’s hands were shaking with excitement. If word of this treasure got out, even a Nascent Soul Ancestor would probably come to snatch it.

He suppressed his excitement and began to study the time-slowing function. According to the information in his mind, as long as he funneled Spiritual Qi into the ring, he could activate the time-slowing effect, making the time inside the ring only one-tenth of the flow outside.

In other words, cultivating for ten days inside the ring would only be one day outside!

Fang Hao tried inputting a sliver of Spiritual Qi, and sure enough, he felt the space around the ring undergo a subtle change. He took out a stalk of qingxin grass, placed it next to the ring, and then activated the time-slowing effect.

After checking a moment later, that stalk of qingxin grass was actually withering at a speed visible to the naked eye! The effect of time-slowing on living things was immediate.

Fang Hao quickly stopped inputting Spiritual Qi. It seemed this function couldn’t be used recklessly; living things would age rapidly in the time-slowed environment. But if it were for cultivating or comprehending a Cultivation Technique, it would be perfect.

He turned his attention back to the Jade Slip. Master Xuan Yun... was that the lean and elegant immortal master who brought him to the Sect back then? He hadn’t expected him to have suffered such an ordeal.

"A ring within a ring, containing its own universe." Fang Hao murmured this sentence, his heart full of gratitude toward Master Xuan Yun. This seemingly ordinary guiding immortal master had actually given him such a massive Opportunity.

As for uncovering the truth and seeking revenge.

Fang Hao admitted his current strength was meager and he couldn’t do it for now. But since he had received the man’s Legacy, he would remember this Karma and would definitely investigate everything once he had the strength.

With the qiankun ring, Fang Hao’s cultivation plan completely changed. Every night, he activated the ring’s time-slowing function and cultivated the complete version of the Myriad Manifestations Heaven Swallowing Art in the tenfold time.

The complete version of the technique was indeed extraordinary; the efficiency of absorbing Spiritual Qi had more than doubled. Coupled with the time-slowing, Fang Hao’s cultivation speed was simply advancing by leaps and bounds.

A month later, Fang Hao successfully had a Breakthrough to the Qi Refining Fifth Layer.

This speed even frightened himself.

One must know that going from the Qi Refining Fourth Layer to the Fifth Layer usually takes an ordinary Outer Sect Disciple at least half a year. He had broken through in just one month; no one would believe it if he said it out loud.

Fang Hao didn’t dare to make a scene and continued using a Spell to hide his true cultivation, appearing as if he were still at the Qi Refining Fourth Layer on the surface.

But living in the same courtyard, it was inevitable that some clues would be revealed.

One day, while Fang Hao was practicing the Metal Energy Sword Art in the courtyard, a golden Sword Qi shot out, its power clearly much stronger than before.

Li Xuan happened to pass by and stopped in surprise, "Junior Brother Ning, your Sword Qi, it seems you’ve broken through to the Qi Refining Fifth Layer?"

Fang Hao’s heart tightened, but he played dumb on the surface, "No, I’m still at the fourth layer. Maybe I’ve just become a bit more proficient through practice."

Li Xuan gave him a thoughtful look and didn’t ask further, but his eyes clearly held suspicion.

Fang Hao knew he couldn’t hide it for long. In the Outer Sect, a Breakthrough in cultivation was a big deal and would be discovered sooner or later.

Sure enough, a few days later, the Mission Hall released a group mission: escorting a batch of supplies to a nearby market. It required at least a Qi Refining Fifth Layer cultivation, and the rewards were generous.

Fang Hao thought about it and accepted the mission. It was time to show a bit of his true strength; hiding it forever wasn’t a solution either.

At the group assembly point, Fang Hao met three other Disciples who had accepted the mission, two men and one woman. To his surprise, Chen Feng was among them.

When Chen Feng saw Fang Hao, he was clearly stunned for a moment, then immediately showed a mocking expression, "Fang Hao? Did you misread the mission requirements? This requires the Qi Refining Fifth Layer or above."

The other two also cast suspicious looks. The Female Disciple frowned and said, "Junior Brother, the mission requirements are written very clearly; you must be at the Qi Refining Fifth Layer or above to take it."

Fang Hao didn’t say a word and directly revealed his Qi Refining Fifth Layer cultivation.

The three of them were instantly dumbfounded. Chen Feng’s face especially kept changing colors, as if he had been slapped.

"You... when did you break through?" Chen Feng asked in disbelief. A month ago, he was clearly only at the Qi Refining Fourth Layer!

Fang Hao gave a faint smile, "Just a few days ago, I got lucky."

The leader was a Senior Brother at the Qi Refining Sixth Layer. Seeing that everyone was present, he called for them to set off.

Along the way, Chen Feng’s face remained gloomy, and he occasionally sized up Fang Hao with suspicious eyes. The other two were much more enthusiastic toward Fang Hao; in the cultivation world, strength is respected, and the Qi Refining Fifth Layer was already worthy of respect.

The escort mission went smoothly, and they didn’t encounter any danger. After returning, Fang Hao obtained fifty contribution points, which was a decent harvest.

After this incident, Fang Hao’s Qi Refining Fifth Layer cultivation was considered public. In the courtyard, Zhu Pang noisily insisted that Fang Hao treat them to a celebration, and Li Xuan also offered his congratulations, while only Chen Feng’s face remained dark.

Fang Hao didn’t care much; all his focus was now on cultivation and studying Formations.