Cultivation begins in Qingfeng Market.

It took a bit more effort this time, but the foundation-building cave dwelling of an ordinary Core Formation sect can never compare to the foundation of the Cloud Sea Azure Sea Sect.

A quarter of an hour later, the crimson-gold light shield emitted a soft sound and vanished without a trace.

Lin Zhao slipped inside.

The cave dwelling was simply furnished, and even somewhat empty.

It's clear that "Senior Brother Xu" carried all his valuable belongings and resources with him, and now it's unknown which fellow disciple has benefited from them.

Lin Zhao searched carefully and finally found several fiery red jade slips, a small pile of good-quality fire-attribute refining materials, and some mid-grade spirit stones in a hidden compartment in the quiet room.

He picked up the jade slip and immersed his consciousness into it.

A moment later, Lin Zhao smiled from the bottom of his heart.

The materials used for refining the weapon were of average value, but what truly satisfied him was what was recorded in the jade slip!

This is a complete three-stage cultivation technique inheritance called "The True Technique of Departing Fire"! It covers everything from the Qi Refining stage to the Foundation Establishment stage, and even includes the outline of the Core Formation stage!

What's even more precious is that, in addition to the twelve first and second-tier magic artifacts, it also contains detailed crafting diagrams for the two third-tier magic treasures of True Immortal Crimson Fire—the Seven Feather Fire Fan and the Crimson Feather Robe!

For Lin Zhao, who was cultivating a fourth-level technique, the "True Technique of Departing Fire" had little value in cultivation.

It can only be used as a supplementary reference.

But its strategic significance to the Lin family is extraordinary!

The Lin family's lineage only extends to the mid-Foundation Establishment stage; their subsequent cultivation methods have long been lost.

Although this set of "True Techniques of Departing Fire" leans towards the fire element and lacks the most crucial method for crafting the natal magic weapon "Glazed Jade Lamp,"

This results in significant flaws in the core formation process, making core formation virtually impossible.

Even so, it is a complete system that can lead directly to the peak of Foundation Establishment, enough to ensure that the Lin family will not have to worry about cultivation methods for the next hundred years and can cultivate more Foundation Establishment cultivators.

The sect's cultivation techniques are strictly forbidden from being passed on to outsiders.

"Loot" is unrestricted.

As for the crafting methods of those two magical treasures, they were invaluable knowledge for Lin Zhao, who was already a second-tier weapon refiner.

He had personally experienced the terrifying power of magic weapons in the hands of Core Formation cultivators. If it weren't for the Crimson Feather Robe, True Person Crimson Fire would have been crushed to death long ago.

If I ever have the chance to form my core in the future, I will refine these two magical treasures.

"This trip was totally worth it."

Lin Zhao carefully put away the jade slip. Although a crucial magical artifact was missing, this was still a gain far exceeding expectations.

He really hit the jackpot. Thinking about it carefully, although Lin Zhao has been in this cultivation world for over thirty years...

However, he did not receive any significant opportunities, just look at the magical artifacts he obtained during Qi cultivation.

The Four Elements Pearls were a gift from his family after he displayed his talent in the art of talismans; the Soul-Suppressing Bell was a spoil of war obtained after being ambushed; and the Azure Dragon Pattern Mask was his reward for protecting and rescuing the Rock Base.

Is there any cultivator in this world who is in a worse situation than him?

He was able to obtain this inheritance for two reasons: first, the sect arrived too quickly, and Crimson Fire Valley didn't have time to deal with it; second, the inheritance could be divided into many parts, which allowed Lin Zhao to pick up a lucky one.

Over the next few days, he also tried to search other parts of the valley, but there were too many disciples, and all the valuable materials had already been divided up. He only found a few auxiliary materials for refining fire-attribute magic weapons.

Ten days later, the figure of Master Mingjing appeared in the sky above Crimson Fire Valley, and his voice resounded in every corner:

"The sect's second grand examination has now concluded. All disciples, board the ship immediately and return to the sect!"

The expedition lasted for several months in total.

The procession that went forth with over ten thousand people returned with many of the spirit boats and flying ships noticeably emptier.

The final count brought the total number of people to over 7,600.

Behind those cold numbers are nearly two thousand Qi Refining disciples and over three hundred Foundation Establishment disciples, who are forever lost in Crimson Fire Valley. Many familiar faces will never be seen again.

On the return voyage, a heavy silence enveloped the fleet.

Some whispered amongst themselves, their voices filled with incomprehension and resentment:

"If the sect had given the order earlier, allowing everyone to work together in a unified manner from the beginning, let alone a Crimson Flame True Person, even five or six Core Formation cultivators, we could have worn him down... Why did so many die?"

However, the sect never gave any specific instructions from beginning to end.

It was as if those two thousand lives were just a natural part of the assessment.

Perhaps in the eyes of the sect, the loss of several thousand Qi Refining Foundation Establishment disciples is really insignificant.

The year has come since Lin Zhao joined the sect.

All the disciples who survived the second major test received a total of 5,000 points, many of whom were just a few points away from reaching the Foundation Establishment stage.

The immense pressure and the brush with death acted as a cruel catalyst.

In the months following his return to the sect, vortexes of spiritual energy, generated during the Foundation Establishment process, kept appearing throughout the various courtyards of the Dao Inquiry Hall.

An expedition and a bloody battle unexpectedly gave rise to nearly four thousand new Foundation Establishment cultivators! This brought the total number of Foundation Establishment cultivators among this group of disciples to over six thousand.

This is the result the sect wanted to see.

The remaining 1,600-plus disciples, still stuck in the Qi Refining stage, have very little time left in the sect, and their hopes of reaching Foundation Establishment are slim.

Their future will be as nominal disciples of the sect, navigating the complexities of external forces.

Even if they have the opportunity to successfully establish their foundation in the future, unless they are chosen as disciples by a Core Formation elder, it will be difficult for them to truly return to the sect.

The sect's core inheritances and third- and fourth-tier cultivation techniques will henceforth be out of their reach.

In the tenth year, Lin Zhao and his group will prepare to leave the Dao Wen Hall and come under the jurisdiction of the Yun Hai Hall.

The sect has five halls and seven chambers, with the Cangming Hall being the most supreme, where only Nascent Soul True Monarchs can be enshrined. The hall master is the legendary Supreme Elder God Heavenly Lord, who is the true core and foundation of the entire sect.

It can be said that the entire Yunhai Cangming Sect, to some extent, serves the "Cangming Palace".

The Cloud Sea Palace oversees all sect affairs except for the Azure Sea Palace. Its master is the sect leader and also a Nascent Soul True Monarch.

For the next hundred years, the sect missions, merit assessments, and resource allocations for Lin Zhao and his group will all be handled by the Cloud Sea Palace.

The next major event is the allocation of cultivation cave dwellings—or rather, choosing a long-term place to settle down among the three thousand spiritual lands designated by the sect.

After a brief discussion, Lin Zhao, Xu Chuan, Yan Chiheng, and Fang Yue jointly selected the sacred site numbered "756" to settle down.

This spiritual land is relatively quiet, and dozens of Foundation Establishment cultivators have already opened up cave dwellings here. It is neither too remote nor too conspicuous.

Within the 756 district, Lin Zhao ultimately chose a lakeside villa as her home.

He noticed that the cultivators in the sect seemed to prefer this kind of garden-style "secluded courtyard" rather than the traditional "cave dwelling".

This villa occupies a large area, bounded by walls and a simple array, and the surrounding area of ​​ten miles is considered his private territory.

Ancient trees reach for the sky in the courtyard, adorned with exotic flowers. The most eye-catching is a second-tier spiritual plant with naturally blue veins on its leaves—the Blue-Veined Jade Tree. These plants spontaneously and slowly gather the surrounding spiritual energy, forming a small spiritual energy cycle.

However, the core spiritual vein of the villa is only of the second-tier lower grade.

Want to improve? Sure, the sect's Spirit Gathering Hall has a clearly stated price.

"As expected, once we leave the Hall of Inquiry, we become like children without parents."

After his visit, Yan Chiheng exclaimed, "You have to earn everything yourself; contributing a little is everything."

Lin Zhao deeply agreed.

Exchanging cultivation techniques, applying for cultivation rooms, hiring high-level cultivators for guidance, purchasing rare materials, upgrading the spiritual veins of one's cave dwelling... all of these require contribution points.

He had considered earning contribution points using his skills as a second-tier weapon refiner, but he soon discovered that this path was difficult.

The Hundred Machines Hall, the head of the sect's seven halls, encompasses all arts of cultivation and has numerous members.

There are tons of Tier 3 masters inside, making the competition incredibly fierce.

Second-tier weapon crafting and talisman-making skills are far from sufficient to support cultivation needs.

Xu Chuan smiled wryly, "Sect contribution points are hard to earn. Staying in a sect is no easy feat."