Cultivation begins with alchemy and collecting runes.

Three days later.

A flying boat bearing the banner of "Kaihuangtang" headed towards Luofeng Mountain, three hundred miles away from Biyuefang City.

This is a flying vessel provided by Huang Zhongren, capable of carrying dozens of cultivators at the same time.

As long as you replenish and maintain the mana or spirit stones required for the airship, it can continue to fly.

The flying boat's full-speed escape is comparable to that of a cultivator at the peak of Qi Refining, making it extremely convenient for long-distance cargo transport.

There were six people standing on the deck.

The leader was naturally Li Xiuyuan.

"Senior, my men have sent word that the female cultivator plans to take advantage of the demon beast's weakened state during its breakthrough... The flamingo will break through in three days."

Huang Zhongren, dressed in a smart hunting outfit, stood respectfully beside Li Xiuyuan and whispered the news he had just received.

The brothers behind him didn't dare to breathe too loudly, afraid of making any noise that might displease this Foundation Establishment expert.

They were all at the late stage of Qi Refining cultivation. If they were placed in the market and no one was at the Foundation Establishment stage, they would be considered experts.

But when they actually faced a Foundation Establishment cultivator, the terrifying pressure hidden within their bodies made it hard for them to breathe, as if a huge boulder was pressing on their chests.

"If you can make amends this time and complete the task perfectly, I will forgive your mistake. As for that demon core, you can forget about it."

Li Xiuyuan gazed into the distance, speaking without a trace of sorrow or joy.

This person asked him for help, but instead of offering any reward, he actually set his sights on that demon core. He really doesn't know his own limitations.

Li Xiuyuan was well aware of his little scheme; he guessed that the news of the flamingo's impending breakthrough was deliberately leaked by him.

They wanted to trick Li Xiuyuan or other greedy second-tier demonic beast cultivators into coming to steal the treasure.

They would hide in the shadows, waiting for an opportunity to kill and plunder, or to incite other cultivators to fight the female cultivator, thus reaping the benefits.

He was already used to these tricks of demon hunters when he first entered Shanyang Market.

Huang Zhongren was overthinking things. The strength and cunning of a Foundation Establishment cultivator were beyond the comprehension of a Qi Refining cultivator like himself.

"I was going to spare your life, but you're courting death. Sigh, a few more lives are in danger."

A hint of reluctance flashed in Li Xiuyuan's eyes, but it was ruthlessly suppressed.

Li Xiuyuan gazed at the distant mountains and muttered to himself.

After reaching the Foundation Establishment stage, he found cultivation increasingly difficult.

According to the Golden Flame Burning Heaven Technique, after a year of cultivation, he still had three and a half drops of true mana liquid in his body.

It hasn't grown much, and it's estimated that it will take another year to break through and condense the fourth drop of true magic liquid.

The consumption of this mana essence can be replenished quickly, but increasing the quantity is indeed difficult.

"In this way, even if the Spirit Eye Spring condenses one drop of true liquid per year, it would take at least a hundred years to condense one hundred drops, reach the Pseudo-Core stage, and attempt to form a Core! And that doesn't even include the bottlenecks encountered when breaking through from the early to the middle stage of Foundation Establishment, or from the middle stage to the late stage..."

"Even with my proficiency system, honing my mana still takes a real toll on my skills!"

"The lifespan of a Foundation Establishment cultivator is only about two hundred years. Even with longevity pills, it's difficult to exceed three hundred years. With my mid-grade spiritual root aptitude, if I only cultivate diligently in my cave without external assistance, I might not even reach the peak of Foundation Establishment before I die!"

"No wonder those cultivators with average or below-average aptitude, even if they manage to reach the Foundation Establishment stage, can never even touch the threshold of Core Formation in their entire lives, and most of them waste their time in the early or middle stages of Foundation Establishment."

The methods for quickly improving one's cultivation level vary in difficulty.

The most difficult thing was naturally improving one's aptitude for cultivation, but Li Xiuyuan had read through many books in the library and still couldn't find a way to improve his aptitude.

The simplest way is to find a high-level spiritual vein or a spiritual eye, or to consume pills that enhance cultivation and magical power.

"However, second-tier pills, especially those that break through to the next tier, are the most expensive. Next are pills that enhance mana... The sect does have these pill formulas, but the materials for refining these pills are all rare and hard to find."

"The Golden Flame Burning Heaven Technique can be cultivated without any bottlenecks before the Core Formation stage, and it can only be achieved with the help of rare fire-type spiritual materials, so collecting fire-type spiritual materials is the top priority."

This is why Li Xiuyuan personally took action, even resorting to bullying the weak and forcibly seizing the Flamingo Demon Core.

There's no other reason than that this substance was one of the main ingredients in a pill he used to enhance his cultivation.

At this moment, a pill formula kept flashing through his mind: "Fire Essence Pill, a mid-grade second-tier pill, made primarily from second-tier fire-attribute demon cores, flesh, blood, and bone marrow, which can assist Foundation Establishment cultivators in their cultivation..."

The pill formulas of the Blazing Fire Sect fully embody the characteristics of "adapting to local conditions and relying on the mountains for sustenance".

For Foundation Establishment cultivators who want to increase their magical power, the flesh of a second-tier demon beast is indispensable.

Of course, not all demon beast cores can be used as medicine. Therefore, the "Fire Essence Pill" is divided into two categories: one is made from demon beast cores with mixed spiritual power, using demon beast essence, blood and bone marrow as materials. The resulting pill is of low quality and is suitable for early-stage cultivators to increase their magical power.

If pure and impure demon cores are used as the main material, the pills can be made into medium-grade pills, and some can even be made into top-grade pills, which are suitable for cultivators in the mid and late stages of Foundation Establishment to improve their magic power!

"But second-tier demon cores are extremely precious. They are all used to refine Foundation Establishment Pills... It's too extravagant to use them to refine pills that enhance mana."

"This has resulted in many Foundation Establishment cultivators, even those in the early and middle stages, of the Blazing Fire Sect having to rely on the sect's spiritual veins for arduous meditation and cultivation..."

Li Xiuyuan aspires to master the Five Elements Primordial Chaos Method and embark on the path to Core Formation and even Nascent Soul. How could he possibly waste his time sitting idly in his cave?

But then another problem arises: most second-tier demonic beasts hide deep in the mountains, and to hunt them, one must venture into the barren lands of the Ten Thousand Demon Mountain Range and hunt in the perilous territory of the demon race.

Normally, Li Xiuyuan would never dare to have such an idea.

Unlike now, a third-tier demon near the Chu Kingdom has launched a massive invasion, bringing with it second-tier demonic beasts. The defenses deep within the Demon Mountain are now weak, and a weakened demonic beast on the verge of a breakthrough has appeared. It's like easy prey laid out before us. As long as we use skillful methods and don't alert the third-tier demonic beast, we can slaughter it to our hearts' content.

With a thought, another jade slip appeared in Li Xiuyuan's hand.

The text was densely filled with battle information, the most striking of which was an image of a third-tier demon.

"A Tier 3 Great Demon—The Mountain-Moving Giant Ape!"

In Li Xiuyuan's view, this giant ape stood tall and imposing, like a mountain walking on the earth, its back hair like earth spikes, exuding a fierce and menacing aura.

Even through the image, one can feel a terrifying aura emanating from it.

"As expected of a third-tier demon beast, it is comparable to a Golden Core cultivator... It is good at both offense and defense. Otherwise, it would have been able to withstand the combined attack of three Golden Core cultivators from our sect and drag the battle into a stalemate."

……

Splash!

The weather in the mountains is unpredictable; one moment the sky is clear and blue, and the next moment it's pouring rain.

In the midst of the storm, a flying boat unfurled its protective shield of light, remaining steadfast despite the wind and rain.

"The flamingo is hidden in these desolate mountains."

Li Xiuyuan followed the clues, speaking with certainty.

Huang Zhongren, standing to the side, looked at Li Xiuyuan with respect and humility.

Along their journey, they encountered many first-tier demonic beasts that tried to harass them, but they hadn't even had a chance to make a move.

A golden light flashed from the man's body, and he slaughtered the invading monsters as easily as cutting melons and vegetables.

This made him fully realize the strength of Foundation Establishment cultivators, and it also made him increasingly disheartened about his own plans, fearing that if something went wrong, he would die on the spot.

Under Li Xiuyuan's unpredictable methods, those second-tier demonic beasts seemed unable to see Li Xiuyuan and his group's flying boat.

This allowed them to easily bypass the territory and head straight for the flamingos.

"The flamingo is skilled in fire-based techniques, its attacks are swift and powerful, it can absorb the power of the sun, and it can shoot arrows... After I drive that female cultivator away, you five should immediately set up a great formation to sever the bird's connection with the sun... You five should hold it off until it completes its breakthrough, then I will come back and kill it!"

Li Xiuyuan had already prepared a countermeasure.

A second-tier low-grade formation is as valuable as a top-grade magic weapon, so naturally he didn't have one.

Using several sets of top-tier first-order formations together can easily delay a newly broken-through early-stage second-order demonic beast for a short while.

"Yes, sir!"

After witnessing Li Xiuyuan's methods, Huang Zhongren began to consider himself a devoted "lackey."

With a solemn expression, he accepted the array flags and array plates handed to him by Li Xiuyuan, ready to activate the array with his magic power at any time.

"good!"

Whoosh!

Just as Li Xiuyuan was about to make a move, a surge of magical power, no weaker than that of a Foundation Establishment cultivator, came from afar, flying over on a magical artifact.

Li Xiuyuan looked alert and immediately took action.

The dangers of the demonic beasts within the Ten Thousand Demon Mountains are only part of the problem; more serious is the unpredictable betrayal by one's own kind.

Li Xiuyuan locked his divine sense firmly onto the streaking light hurtling towards him from afar, ready to strike at any moment.

A few breaths later.

A female cultivator in a colorful silk dress emerged from the storm. She was elegant, gentle, and charming, clearly at the early stage of Foundation Establishment.

However, her breathing was not very stable, as if she had just broken through and had not yet had time to consolidate her cultivation.

"Are you a cultivator from the Azure Water Sect, fellow Daoist?"

Li Xiuyuan's eyes darted around and he saw the jade hairpin, a magical artifact, at the feet of the woman in the colorful dress.

He directly revealed the Blazing Fire Sect token.

"So you're a fellow practitioner from the Blazing Fire Sect!"

When the gentle female cultivator saw Li Xiuyuan's token, she smiled warmly. Her gaze fell on Li Xiuyuan's otherworldly face, and she was momentarily dazed.

"Ahem!"

Li Xiuyuan looked at the woman with a strange expression. Seeing that she did not reply for a long time, he couldn't help but cough a few times.

Upon seeing this, the female cultivator's fair, jade-like cheeks flushed red, and she said softly, "Azure Water Sect, all is well."

"Li Xiuyuan of the Blazing Fire Sect."

In the cultivation world of Chu, the major sects are closely linked and stand above many cultivation families and independent cultivators.

An Ran ignored the Qi Refining cultivators behind Li Xiuyuan, assuming they were Li Xiuyuan's junior disciples or servants.

"Brother Li, my younger sister has been hiding in Luofeng Mountain for several months and has chosen this flamingo, intending to tame it as a spirit pet. I hope you will part with it."

An Ran immediately addressed him as "elder brother" and "younger sister," trying to get close to him with empty words.

His tone seemed soft and polite, but he didn't back down at all.

Li Xiuyuan chuckled, his tone initially calm: "Fairy Anran, this beast was discovered by my subordinates several years ago. At that time, I was still in seclusion. This demon is related to my path of cultivation, so I find it difficult to part with it."

"If the fairy is willing to give it to me, I, Li, can also offer some spirit stones as compensation for the fairy's hardships during this period of hardship."

"If the fairy is unwilling, then we can simply have a tryst together!"

As he uttered those last words, his anger at being deceived could no longer be suppressed, and his inner rage was about to erupt.