Cultivating Immortality Begins with Rejuvenation.

Chapter 252 Waste of natural resources
Memories of Dong Jiangling's granddaughter surfaced in Li Ji'an's mind, and he frowned secretly.

When I first met Tang Qun, she was just a little girl. Because of her stubborn nature, she was bullied by the children of the alchemist in the clan. She fought back and implicated her mother, Dong Ping.

Later, her maternal grandfather, Dong Jiangling, came to apologize to the alchemist who had offered his services.

At that time, Li Ji'an happened to be visiting the clan and helped out, thus getting them out of the predicament.

When they met again, Guagua was surprised to discover that she was actually a green tea bitch.

When Dong Jiangling finally met her on his deathbed, he realized that this woman was ruthless and would stop at nothing to achieve her goals.

Xiao Xiao gave her a little bit of the pill, thinking it was to settle the karmic debt.

Unexpectedly, more than forty years later, something strange happened again, and he even got himself involved.

“Fellow Daoist Tang, you have all misunderstood. My relationship with the Dong family stemmed from our fathers’ kinship as fellow townsmen. However, it all dissipated after Dong Jiangling passed away, and we have had no contact for decades. Why would I stand up for them?” Li Ji’an immediately clarified their relationship.

"..." Old Tang's expression froze, clearly surprised by what Li Ji'an said.

Li Ji'an guessed something and pressed him for answers again.

Only then did I realize that Tang Qun had been claiming all these years that Li Ji'an had a close relationship with her maternal grandfather, and that Li Ji'an had promised her grandfather that she would secretly take care of her.

Although the Tang family had some doubts about this, it was only because Li Ji'an's status had risen too quickly, so quickly that Old Master Tang was no longer in a position to test him.

Therefore, they preferred to believe it existed, and even hoped it was true.

His status as an elder of the Biyun Sect was sufficient to protect the Tang family.

At this moment, the lie was exposed, and a look of tragic solemnity instantly appeared on Old Tang's old face.

"My grandson..."

Once he had calmed down, Li Ji'an asked him further questions.

Mr. Tang didn't tell the truth just now, and he omitted many details.

After realizing he had been betrayed by the woman he loved, Tang Yu was consumed by rage and launched a desperate counterattack, killing the man who had attacked him and severely injuring Tang Qun. He then returned to the Tang family.

He also told Mr. Tang about the matter in detail.

His original words at the time were: "That scoundrel is treacherous and has the ambition of a wolf. Senior Li, as an elder of the sect, cannot be unable to distinguish right from wrong. Let your grandson go and tell him the truth!"

However, Elder Tang thought he was too young and didn't understand the rules of the cultivation world.

In this world of cultivation, how can there be so many distinctions between right and wrong?
As an elder of the Biyun Sect, Li Ji'an needed no reason to kill a mere Foundation Establishment cultivator from a small Qi Refining family.

In the end, in order to save Tang Yu's life, Old Master Tang decided to let him plead guilty in place of his grandson, while Tang Yu was allowed to escape, the farther the better.

"Old Tang, you're so confused!" Li Ji'an shook his head and sighed after hearing this.

When Old Tang realized that Li Ji'an hadn't lied to him, he immediately regretted it even more.

Unfortunately, in order to ensure that Tang Yu escaped far enough, he deliberately delayed for two months before coming to apologize. Moreover, just in case, he did not leave any means of communication and sternly warned him that he must never return unless he reached the Core Formation stage.

Li Ji'an patted Old Tang on the shoulder, waved his hand, and told him to leave.

He then shook his head with a smile, looking rather helpless.

"Hopefully, Tang Yu isn't some kind of overpowered protagonist!"

He slowly exhaled, the slight surprise not affecting his state of mind.

After bidding farewell to Ning Yutan and Chief Qiao, he returned to his sect.

Upon returning to his sect, to avoid any further unforeseen circumstances, Li Ji'an plans to immediately begin his attempt to break through to the Core Formation stage.

Before that, he came to Xiao Changfeng's cave.

"Brother Li, are you preparing to break through to the Core Formation stage now?" Xiao Changfeng frowned upon learning of Li Ji'an's plan.

For the past three years, apart from initially recuperating from his injuries, he has been cultivating the techniques and supernatural abilities of the Core Formation stage after consolidating his cultivation realm.

Supernatural powers, unlike ordinary spells, are superior techniques that are based on one's own elixir and are compatible with one's own personality. Only those who have condensed a magic elixir are qualified to cultivate them.

This is usually the trump card of a Core Formation cultivator.

Not only can it maximize the power of the magic pill, but it also merges with one's own magic pill, becoming stronger as the magic pill strengthens.

Its power is at least 20% stronger than ordinary spells, depending on the grade of the supernatural power practiced, its compatibility with the user, and the quality of the magic pill the user has condensed.

The higher the quality of the Dharma Elixir, the greater the chance of successful cultivation and the greater its power.

Generally speaking, only those with a mid-level True Core or higher have a higher success rate in cultivating supernatural powers; those with a False Core have virtually no hope of cultivating supernatural powers.

Li Ji'an nodded: "I ask Changfeng to protect me!"

Xiao Changfeng frowned slightly, and after carefully sensing it, he said thoughtfully, "Brother Li, you might as well wait a little longer. I will definitely master my supernatural powers within ten years. At that time, I will be able to explore the deep mountain ruins for you."

"Changfeng, you're so kind!" Li Ji'an smiled, understanding Xiao Changfeng's thoughts.

"However, my magical power is limited, and I had no hope of forming a core. I am already content with the earth essence you gave me."

Upon hearing this, Xiao Changfeng fell silent.

He then said with relief, "Alright, then let your foolish younger brother protect you, elder brother!"

Core Formation Treasures are extremely rare and hard to come by. He had originally planned to venture into the Black Pool Cave, known as the most dangerous place in the Tiancang Domain, once he had mastered his supernatural powers. However, even if he managed to escape unscathed, he was not confident that he could obtain a Core Formation Treasure.

"Thank you, Changfeng!"

After speaking, Li Ji'an went directly into the sect's third-tier mid-grade cave dwelling, which was specifically for those attempting to break through to the Core Formation stage.

The cave is fully equipped, filled with spiritual energy, various blessing and aiding arrays, and talismans.

Looking across the entire Cangyun Prefecture, it is undoubtedly the premier Core Formation Cave.

Of course, the best secluded cultivation cave in the Biyun Sect is the one where the Supreme Elder cultivates; it is a true third-grade high-quality spiritual vein cultivation ground.

However, it is generally not allowed to be used by ordinary disciples.

After all, the upper limit for ordinary disciples attempting to form their core is only a pseudo-core, and a low-grade third-tier core is sufficient; a mid-grade third-tier core would be somewhat wasteful.

Only true disciples deemed by their sect to have the potential to form a true core are qualified to use a third-grade superior cave dwelling.

After entering the cave, Li Ji'an activated all the restrictions, then sat cross-legged and began to accumulate energy for devouring spiritual energy.

When someone in a sect achieves the Core Formation, it is generally highly anticipated.

However, Li Ji'an's entry into the cave did not attract much attention.

Apart from Xiao Changfeng, who was secretly protecting Li Ji'an, only Yu Dan Zhenren on Dan Ding Peak, Xu Xiaochun, and Guo Wanzhi were secretly praying as they looked in the direction of the cave.

Even many within the sect didn't realize someone was attempting to break through to the Core Formation until six months later, when they sensed fluctuations in spiritual energy above their secluded cultivation caves.

Xiao Changfeng had only been building up his strength for three months when he began to devour everything.

Li Ji'an, on the other hand, spent a full six months accumulating strength before starting, which actually put him at a significant disadvantage, proving that his magical power was insufficient.

As he began to use the Devouring Technique, the spiritual energy in the cave slowly began to gather.

The gathering speed also increased under Li Ji'an's spell, until all the spiritual energy in the cave was condensed into a ball, and then it began to absorb the surrounding spiritual energy again.

Half a day later, spiritual energy from within a half-mile radius of Li Ji'an's secluded cave converged towards the cave.

"Half a mile..."

The fluctuations in spiritual energy finally attracted the attention of everyone in the sect.

"I heard that it's that Alchemist Li who's trying to break through to the Core Formation stage."

"Master Li was once a rogue cultivator, and his cultivation techniques were not very advanced. It is said that he was able to reach the late stage of Foundation Establishment by accumulating pills. It is already very rare for him to have the courage to try to form the Core."

"If this first step of gathering spiritual energy only has a spiritual energy fluctuation of half a mile... it seems to be the weakest in the sect's history, right?"

……

The inner disciples who lived near the cave were discussing it amongst themselves. The peak masters and elders of each peak also secretly shook their heads.

On Dan Ding Peak, Master Yu Dan frowned deeply.

"Grandmaster, is this a good thing or a bad thing, Master?" Xu Xiaochun held the wine gourd for Yu Dan Zhenren, his eyes fixed on Li Ji'an's secluded cave.

Master Yu Dan shook his head slightly.

Guo Wanzhi instantly looked nervous: "Is it possible that Master's Core Formation will fail?"

"Pah, pah, pah, you jinx! Master will definitely be fine." Before Master Yudan could reply, Xu Xiaochun immediately glared at Guo Wanzhi.

Master Yu Dan was amused and immediately said with a light laugh, "Although the first step wasn't very good, anything is possible, so don't worry."

"Master will definitely be fine!" Guo Wanzhi secretly encouraged Li Ji'an.

Xiao Changfeng had been keeping a close eye on the movements in Li Ji'an's cave. At this moment, he couldn't help but sigh. He had started gathering spiritual energy in March of that year and managed to gather almost half of the sect's spiritual energy in one go. Li Ji'an, on the other hand, had been accumulating spiritual energy for half a year, but in the end, he only managed to gather half of Xiao Changfeng's amount.

Three more days passed, and the spiritual energy gathered in Li Ji'an's cave began to slowly dissipate, but ultimately no further breakthroughs were made.

Finally, the most crucial second step in Core Formation has arrived.

hum~
Half a day later, the magical clouds that everyone had been waiting for appeared above Li Ji'an's cave.

"Less than half a mile!"

"It's unlikely that you'll be able to successfully form your core."

"I thought our sect could have another third-tier alchemist, but alas, what a pity..."

……

Many people turned their attention away and stopped paying attention.

Inside the quiet room of the Enforcement Hall, Zhao Qi's divine sense surveyed the situation above Li Ji'an's cave, a mocking smile appearing on his face.

Seven days later, the cloud had not expanded beyond a mile in radius and had almost stopped moving.

This means that Li Ji'an currently has very little mana in his dantian, and his spiritual pressure is not even enough to solidify the mana liquid.

Many people are no longer paying attention.

Even Master Yudan took a deep breath, preparing to tell his two grand-disciples the truth.

However, a strange expression appeared on Xiao Changfeng's face at this moment.

"Brother Li is so composed! He spent three days gathering his spiritual energy and even seven days unleashing it, yet he still managed to remain calm and not consume any Core Formation treasures! I can only look up to him in the dark!"

Under normal circumstances, one can indeed endure the first two stages of Core Formation by accumulating spiritual energy and refining more magical power, but this process is very agonizing, as both the physical body and the dantian are subjected to immense spiritual pressure.

Therefore, when he formed his core, he did not patiently accumulate strength. Instead, after feeling that he had unleashed 80% of his potential, he decisively moved on to the next step.

Boom~
Suddenly, a booming sound came from the magical clouds in the sky.

"Finally, I've consumed the Earth Essence!" Xiao Changfeng hurriedly composed himself and had already arrived outside Li Ji'an's cave.

This is the most dangerous stage. If the dantian cannot withstand it, there is a possibility that the dantian will explode.

With this roar, the magical cloud that was originally less than a mile in diameter suddenly changed and rapidly expanded to a radius of four miles.

"Sigh~"

"This is... a rare treasure that Master Li possesses for achieving the Core Formation stage?"

"Could such a burst of power be a top-tier Core Formation spiritual treasure ranked among the top 100?"

"Not only that, Master Li's foundation is too poor. The cloud formation that was less than a mile long instantly expanded to four miles. It is probably not just a spiritual treasure ranked in the top 100, but possibly in the top 70 or 80!"

The elders of each peak were instantly drawn to the loud roar, their faces showing shock.

Of all the Core Formation elders in the Biyun Sect, apart from the three True Core Elders, fewer than five have used Core Formation Spiritual Treasures, and all of them are of relatively low ranking.

Several elders felt a pang of envy; if they had possessed such a precious elixir back then, they might have had a chance to form a true core.

Judging from Li Ji'an's situation, his foundation is too weak. Even with such a precious treasure for forming the core, he can only reach the clouds within four miles and still has no hope of condensing the true core.

"Bastard!"

Zhao Qi, who was in the Hall of Enforcement, suddenly stood up, his eyes wide open, his face filled with disbelief.

"How is that possible? How could he possibly possess a top-grade Core Formation Spiritual Treasure!"

His magical power was profound and refined, his foundation was deep, and he was well prepared in all aspects. Now, it was only because he lacked a top-grade spiritual treasure for forming the core that he had no hope of forming a true core within the sect.

However, Li Ji'an, who came to the profession later in life and rose to prominence through elixirs, actually possessed a superior Core Formation treasure.

How can he maintain his mental balance?
If he possessed this rare treasure, he was confident he could guarantee the authenticity of the elixir!

He instantly looked toward the direction of the sect's main peak.

However, he calmed down in an instant: "It couldn't have been provided to him by the Supreme Elder, absolutely not!"

"It's Xiao Changfeng!"

"It's done! It's done! Haha, Little Li's fake elixir will definitely be successful!" Master Yu Dan had already started thinking about how to tell his two grand-disciples, but when he saw the surging clouds, he was instantly overjoyed.

"Haha, I knew Master would definitely succeed in forming his core!" Xu Xiaochun was overjoyed and danced with delight.

Guo Wanzhi bit her lower lip tightly, bursting into tears of joy. She pressed her hands to her chest and let out a long breath.

Seven days later, the four-mile-long cloud formation slowly expanded to five miles.

However, this process has been very slow, unlike the continuous surge that occurred during Xiao Changfeng's time.

Inside the cave, Li Ji'an felt as if he were on fire, his skin turning a bright red.

Within the dantian, a fireball formed from a cluster of dazzlingly compressed crystals could be clearly seen spinning at high speed.

He closed his eyes, holding a portion of the earth's essence in his hands, making a choice.

The effects of the Crystal Condensation Pill exceeded his expectations. He had thought that with the amount of spiritual energy he had gathered in the first stage, it would be quite impressive if he could refine three miles of magical power clouds in a short time.

In the end, we arrived at Wuli.

This level is sufficient to condense a fake elixir.

However, the earth essence he was originally planning to take now presented him with a dilemma.

If the Crystal Condensation Pill only reaches the Three Mile Clouds, he will not hesitate to consume the Earth Source Essence, at least to ensure it is a fake pill.

However, the magic power is now sufficient to guarantee the formation of a fake pill. As for whether it will succeed, it depends on the subsequent condensation and purification of the pill.

However, even if one were to consume the essence of the earth, the increase in elixir quantity would likely be insufficient to reach the threshold of the True Core stage.

Furthermore, he was unsure whether the protective pill he had taken could withstand the impact of the earth's essence, since his dantian was already under too much pressure.

Another point is that if he were to consume the Earth Source Essence at this moment, it would almost clearly inform everyone that he possesses two superior Core Formation Treasures.

Given his current status and position, he figured he wouldn't easily attract the covetous eyes of ordinary people, but high-quality Core Formation spiritual treasures would be somewhat risky.

After all, anyone could guess that a Core Formation Treasure was a gift from Xiao Changfeng, because when Xiao Changfeng formed his Core, in addition to the superior Core Formation Treasure given to him by the sect, he also received an unknown Core Formation Treasure of higher quality than the one given by the sect.

Half a day later, under everyone's watchful eyes, the cloud remained unchanged. Soon, the magical cloud formed a funnel-shaped structure that rapidly poured down into the cave below.

And Li Ji'an finally reached the third stage of Core Formation: Core Purification!
The key is to remove impurities from the solid pills and further compress them to make them more compact.

Moreover, at this stage, one's own spiritual root will merge into the pill, so that what was originally the spiritual root that absorbs the spiritual energy of heaven and earth will become the pill that absorbs the spiritual energy of heaven and earth.

Once the elixir is completed, the spiritual root will disappear.

The path of cultivation in the future will absorb the spiritual energy of heaven and earth, and will no longer rely on innate spiritual roots, but on the quality of the elixir formed.

(End of this chapter)