After being jilted by the saintess at the beginning, why is she crying?

Lin Fengmian: "..."

Lin Fengmian watched as the dragon and phoenix fought fiercely in his dantian, and the corner of his mouth twitched violently involuntarily.

The fight between the little golden dragon and the little ice phoenix intensified. The two little creatures tumbled and pounced in the dantian, their golden and blue lights intertwining and colliding like two irreconcilable flames, clashing wildly in the narrow space of the dantian.

Each collision generated an extremely pure spiritual energy fluctuation that spread outwards, like ripples spreading outwards from the dantian.

Lin Fengmian was still trying to stop them with his mind, but the next moment, he suddenly froze.

"Um?"

He keenly sensed that the spiritual energy around him, which originally required his active guidance to slowly refine, was now surging on its own under the aftershocks of the collision between the two forces!

The spiritual energy that was entrenched in the meridians was stirred up by a pair of invisible hands, and began to accelerate its circulation, compression, and fusion, refining itself at a speed a hundred times faster than usual!

The pure spiritual energy was separated from the chaos, like strands of golden silk, slowly gathering towards the center of the dantian!

"This is... the first hurdle to achieving Core Formation?!"

Lin Fengmian's heart skipped a beat.

He originally only intended to absorb spiritual energy and temper his foundation in the Imperial Pool, and never thought of trying to break through to the Core Formation stage here.

After all, Core Formation is a major hurdle on the path of cultivation, and the slightest mistake can lead to utter ruin.

But now, the arrow is on the bowstring, and it must be released!

The refining of spiritual energy within the body has started on its own, like a surging torrent that can no longer be stopped!

"Alright! In that case, let's form our core right here and now!"

A resolute glint flashed in Lin Fengmian's eyes. He gritted his teeth and hardened his heart:

"Once I successfully form my core, I'll see how I deal with you, you little golden dragon!"

In his view, if the little golden dragon hadn't suddenly entered his dantian and fought with the little ice phoenix formed from the Xuan Yin Qi, he wouldn't have been forced into this situation.

In particular, the trace of Xuan Yin Qi bestowed upon him by the mysterious woman, which should have been a precious thing for nurturing the foundation of his core cultivation, was now being disturbed by this mischievous little golden dragon.

"Don't you dare destroy my Yin energy!"

Lin Fengmian cursed inwardly, but dared not be distracted any longer.

He immediately sat cross-legged, made hand seals, and immersed his mind in the天地间 (heaven and earth), re-establishing a connection with the mysterious aura of the Great Dao.

"Boom!"

It felt as if an invisible giant thunderbolt exploded in his dantian!

A vast amount of magical power suddenly began to surge and condense around him!

The spiritual energy that had been repeatedly refined and purified surged wildly toward the center of the dantian, like rivers flowing into the sea, and began to rotate, intertwine, and compress in an extremely mysterious trajectory!

"What's going on?!"

Outside the Imperial Pool, the Seventh Prince had just finished arranging for the other sect disciples to disembark when he felt a deep and powerful tremor coming from the depths of the pool!

The tremor came from the bottom of the pool, like an ancient beast turning over in its sleep, and dense ripples spread across the surface of the entire Imperial Pool.

"This is... someone is about to form their Core Formation?!"

The Seventh Prince's expression changed slightly, and his gaze unconsciously drifted towards the depths of the pool.

On the Hehuan Sect's side, Xiao Xiyue, Liu Shiyin, and the other women naturally noticed the unusual activity.

They had just reluctantly risen from the Imperial Pool, their wet clothes clinging to their bodies, outlining their graceful figures.

At this moment, they all stopped what they were doing and looked down into the depths of the pool, their beautiful eyes filled with astonishment.

"Junior Brother Lin... is he about to form his core?!"

Xiao Xiyue's red lips parted slightly, her voice carrying a hint of disbelief.

She was not far from Lin Fengmian just now, so she naturally felt the increasingly powerful magical energy surging from the depths of the pool.

That aura was several times stronger than that of an ordinary Foundation Establishment cultivator!

It even made her feel a slight sense of oppression!

Liu Shiyin also opened her beautiful eyes wide, gazing at the blurry figure deep in the pool, her eyes sparkling with wonder.

Although she had long known that Lin Fengmian was no ordinary person, she never expected that he would actually attempt to break through to the Core Formation stage directly in the Imperial Pool!

"Junior Brother Lin... how long has it been?"

Liu Shiyin was both surprised and amazed, and for a moment she was in a daze.

Chu Qingyi stood quietly on the shore, her plain white dress clinging to her delicate body, damp with water vapor.

Her clear, cold phoenix eyes narrowed slightly as her divine sense silently probed into the depths of the pool, taking in the unusual activity in Lin Fengmian's dantian.

A moment later, the corners of her mouth turned up slightly, and a hint of relief flashed in her eyes.

"Back then, he was just a little guy in the Qi Refining stage. He only embarked on the path of cultivation by practicing dual cultivation with me..."

"In just a few short years, he has already reached the threshold of Core Formation."

"This speed... well, it doesn't disgrace my judgment."

Chu Qingyi thought this to herself, but her face remained expressionless, revealing neither joy nor anger.

At this moment, the Seventh Prince had already invited all the disciples of the sects except the Hehuan Sect to come ashore from the Imperial Pool.

He stood by the pool, hands behind his back, looking at Chu Qingyi and the others with a somewhat troubled expression, and coughed lightly, saying:

"This... Senior Chu, esteemed fairies, the spiritual energy in the Imperial Pool is not inexhaustible; each opening has a time limit. The time limit has now expired, so please..."

Before the Seventh Prince could finish speaking, his gaze unconsciously fell upon the figure still sitting cross-legged in the depths of the pool.

He wore an awkward smile on his face, but inwardly he was groaning.

Why did Lin Fengmian have to form his core at this particular time?

Upon hearing this, Chu Qingyi glanced at the Seventh Prince indifferently, her voice as cold as ice:

"Junior Brother Lin is forming his core below; he must not be disturbed."

Her tone was calm, yet carried an undeniable air of authority.

The Seventh Prince's smile froze slightly, and he thought to himself, "Just as I thought," but he dared not say anything more.

He had personally witnessed the terrifying sight of Chu Qingyi unleashing her Nascent Soul cultivation in the main hall—a sight that even his elder brother, the Crown Prince, was terrified of!

He dared not risk this misfortune.

"Yes, yes, yes... I understand, I understand."

The Seventh Prince quickly smiled apologetically, cupped his hands, and took a few steps back, secretly praying that this Young Master Lin would not blow up the Imperial Pool.

Meanwhile, the other cultivators from various sects on the shore also noticed the unusual activity in the pool.

Several disciples of the Heavenly Sword Sect stood with their hands behind their backs, coldly glancing at the depths of the pool, their lips curling into undisguised contempt:

"That Lin Fengmian? He thinks he's worthy of forming a Core Formation?"

"Who does he think he is? A piece of trash with only five spiritual roots dares to dream of breaking through to the Core Formation realm?"

"I think he was blinded by the immense spiritual energy in the Imperial Pool, his dantian was about to burst, which is why he had to forcefully attempt to break through to the Core Formation stage! He's just courting death!"