Chad Sullivan's father, William Sullivan, had ventured out to make his way in the world when he was young, traveling far and wide and befriending many accomplished cultivators. Among them, the most outstanding was a disciple of the Sacred Profound Sect, the strongest in Shunhe City with eighth-level Qi Refining cultivation—Michael Bolton.

Michael Bolton and William Sullivan were sworn brothers, renowned for their close bond, and had the glorious achievement of joining forces to wipe out over a thousand bandits at Fengjue Ridge. After that bloody battle, their friendship deepened, and they became sworn siblings. After retiring from the cultivation world, Michael Bolton accepted his elder brother William Sullivan's invitation to oversee the Qin family.

Setting aside his status as a registered disciple of the Sacred Profound Sect, his eighth-level Qi Refining cultivation alone, having reached the Innate Realm, was enough to secure his lofty position. Even the lord of Shunhe City would treat him with utmost respect and courtesy.

Michael Bolton devoted his life to cultivation and had neither wife nor daughter. He was especially fond of William Sullivan's son, Chad Sullivan, and, seeing his exceptional talent—having cultivated his first strand of true qi at the age of nine and reaching the first level of Qi Refining—he made an exception and took him as a disciple, imparting all his knowledge. Out of affection for the family, even his fiancée, Emily Thompson, often received his guidance, reaching the peak of the first level of Qi Refining at the age of eleven.

When Chad Sullivan and Emily Thompson arrived at the backyard, Michael Bolton had clearly been waiting for some time. Seeing this eighth-level Qi Refining expert, whom everyone in Shunhe City respected, the two hurried forward and called out, "Master." However, because they were worried about being punished, Chad Sullivan's voice clearly carried a hint of guilt.

Michael Bolton smiled inwardly. He had always understood Chad Sullivan's temperament and knew that if it weren't for something unusual, he would never delay morning training. So he carefully observed his complexion, as if trying to see whether he was unwell.

After all, Chad Sullivan and Emily Thompson were only eleven or twelve years old. Being stared at by a cultivator of Michael Bolton's level made them nervous. Before he could speak, Emily Thompson quickly said, "Master, please don't blame Little Chad. He accompanied me up the mountain yesterday, carried me back down, and even cut his hand and bled a lot. He must be tired, that's why he got up so late. If you want to blame someone, blame me. If I hadn't called him, he wouldn't have gone up the mountain, and he wouldn't have missed morning training today."

"You little girl, you're the first to get anxious."

"Master, no, it's not Emily's fault, it's mine..."

"Little Chad, what are you saying? Clearly it's..."

Hearing the two of them trying to take the blame for each other, Michael Bolton couldn't help but laugh and waved his hand to stop their bickering. "Alright, alright, I never said I was going to punish Chad. You two little lovebirds keep trying to take the blame for each other, making me look like some unforgivable villain."

Hearing this, Emily Thompson immediately knew that Chad Sullivan wouldn't be punished. She stuck out her little pink tongue at him, looking utterly adorable.

"Chad, did you hurt your hand? Did it injure your meridians? Do you need to rest for a day?"

"It's nothing, just a minor injury, Master. Let's start training."

Michael Bolton's gaze was extremely sharp. When Emily Thompson mentioned his hand injury, he had already noticed the small wounds that were about to heal and saw that it was nothing serious. He nodded, "Since that's the case, let's begin. Now that you both have cultivated true qi and become Qi Refining practitioners, physical training is still important, but after years of hard work, it's about enough. Today's training will focus on qi guiding." As he finished, his eyes sparkled as he looked at Chad Sullivan. "You've been stuck at the peak of the second level for half a year. Today, I'll guide you through another cycle and see if you can seize this opportunity to master the cycle and complete the minor circulation of true qi within your body."

Guiding the circulation of true qi is not an easy task, even for an eighth-level Qi Refining cultivator. Chad Sullivan immediately expressed his gratitude, "Thank you, Master, for your help."

"You silly boy, no need to be so polite with me." With that, he turned to Emily Thompson beside him and said, "You practice on your own for now."

"Oh, okay." Emily Thompson nodded, recalling that she hadn't finished her three hundred sword swings yesterday, and began practicing this basic skill again.

After instructing the servants not to disturb them in the courtyard, Michael Bolton had Chad Sullivan sit down and, following the method of true qi cultivation, circulate the faint strand of true qi within his body. Once he entered the state, Michael Bolton immediately pressed a single hand against his back's Du meridian, sending pure innate true qi into his body, protecting his fragile meridians while guiding Chad Sullivan's true qi to circulate within.

An Innate expert is a top master in the entire nation. Having an Innate expert personally guide one's qi is a rare and precious opportunity for anyone. Chad Sullivan quickly focused his mind, concentrating on controlling the flow of true qi within his body. With his master's innate true qi guiding him, it traveled through the Ren and Du meridians, completing the minor circulation within his body.

At first, things went smoothly, but perhaps because he hadn't fully rested, under such intense concentration, his mental energy, which could usually last for a while, was consumed like water. Before long, he felt a sense of mental exhaustion, as if he were about to fall asleep.

At this moment, there could be no distraction. As soon as his mind wavered, the faint true qi following the innate true qi immediately lost control, showing signs of dissipating within his meridians.

"Focus your mind, gather your qi!"