Treasure Gathering Immortal Furnace

If a cultivator fails to form their core even once, not only will they suffer a great loss of vitality, but all the materials they have accumulated will also be exhausted, and they will have to collect them all again.

The difficulty lies in the collection process. Lu Fan not only witnessed Wang Qingzhu's arduous journey to form his core in the Dao Sect, but also saw many Foundation Establishment cultivators who had passed away during the years he collected corpses.

Without exception, after failing once, they spent a lot of time collecting materials. Even if they finally collected them, their lifespan could not support them, and they had no choice but to pass away.

This also served as a reminder to Lu Fan that, in any case, if he were to form his core, he had to succeed on the first try.

After Ye Lingxi explained what she needed to say, she hurriedly went to the secluded cave of the Linggu Sect. After setting up several isolation arrays, she began to work on forming her core.

"These next two years will probably be tough," Lu Fan sighed, looking at Ye Lingxi's secluded cultivation cave.

After all, protecting the path is different from seclusion. If you were in seclusion, several years would pass in the blink of an eye without you even noticing.

However, the guardians must guard the great formation every day and be alert to any external threats, just like ordinary people, enduring the days one by one.

Ye Lingxi was naturally aware of this, so Lu Fan's willingness to protect her for two years was an immense favor.

But Lu Fan wouldn't actually sit there for two years in vain. He could practice his sword techniques or release his three-eyed crows to keep himself entertained.

And so, the days of hardship passed slowly, one by one.

Five months later, as usual, Lu Fan finished practicing his sword technique and sat in a pavilion in the small square, wiping the Tungsten Heart Sword in his hand with a scrap of cloth.

suddenly!

The valley, which had been silent for five months, suddenly surged with spiritual energy, transforming into a vortex that converged towards where Ye Lingxi was in seclusion.

This is a sign that Ye Lingxi has made all the preparations and is about to formally form her core. It is estimated that this surge of spiritual energy will continue for several months.

Moreover, as Ye Lingxi forms her core, the surge of spiritual energy will become increasingly intense until the core is successfully formed or fails, at which point the surge of spiritual energy will disappear.

This also means that there will be a lot of commotion in Little Spirit Valley, which is the time when we need to be most vigilant.

Moreover, Ye Lingxi's Core Formation was very different from Wang Qingzhu's Core Formation.

Wang Qingzhu's core formation in the Daoist sect was aided by a spiritual vein, and the concentration of spiritual energy was several times higher than that of Xiaoling Valley. Only when the core was about to be formed would the phenomenon of spiritual energy surging appear.

But Little Spirit Valley is different. There are no spiritual veins here, so Ye Lingxi has to actively draw on the spiritual energy of heaven and earth to meet the requirements for forming her core. Therefore, a spiritual energy vortex will form in the early stages.

This is also the most dangerous and vulnerable time for rogue cultivators to form their core in the wild.

"It seems the days of peace and comfort are coming to an end," Lu Fan slowly stood up and looked at the secluded cultivation cave in the distance.

The spiritual energy surged like veins, rhythmically contracting and expanding, inhaling and exhaling, while the clouds in the sky, disturbed by the spiritual energy, took on a hazy hue.

This scene is clearly visible from a hundred miles away, meaning that any cultivator passing by who knows that someone is forming their core here will most likely come to take a look.

After all, whether a cultivator is forming their core or their nascent soul, it is the most vulnerable time, and no one would want to give up such an easy opportunity.

Lu Fan also changed his usual leisurely demeanor and began to seriously inspect the sect's protective formation, checking for any omissions or deficiencies.

Until the sixth month.

What Lu Fan feared has come to pass...

Just as he was dozing off on the pavilion bench, two whooshing sounds came from afar. Lu Fan suddenly opened his eyes, got up and looked up at the sky.

Two Foundation Establishment cultivators arrived at the front of the sect's protective formation at an extremely fast speed.

Leading the group was an elderly man with a small mustache, sitting on a gourd, with a late-stage Foundation Establishment cultivation level. Behind him was a bald cultivator, mid-stage Foundation Establishment, riding on a flying sword.

"Strange, the Spirit Valley Sect declined several years ago, with disciples dying or fleeing. How did it suddenly rise from the ashes?"

"Not only are there cultivators forming their cores here, but they've even deployed the sect's protective formation?"

The old man stroked his small beard, his face full of surprise.

"Could it be that some Foundation Establishment deacon of the Linggu Sect has encountered some fortuitous events outside, returned to the sect to form his Core, and is thinking of revitalizing the Linggu Sect?" The bald cultivator touched his shiny bald head and said.

"Haha, if that's really the case, then it's a rare opportunity!" The old man's eyes shone brightly, and he smiled broadly.

Just as the two were pondering how to break the sect's protective formation, a cold voice suddenly rang out.

"Fellow Daoists, those who have formed their cores here are not disciples of the Spirit Valley Sect. If you two are planning to commit murder and robbery, you should save your breath and avoid losing your lives in vain."

As the voice faded, Lu Fan, sword in hand, floated into the air, confronting the two outside the formation.

The old man and the bald man, upon seeing that he was a late-stage Foundation Establishment cultivator, showed no fear in their eyes, but rather their greed intensified.

"Haha, we've struck gold this time! A pseudo-Core Formation cultivator and a late-stage Foundation Establishment protector—their storage bags must be full of treasures!" the old man laughed.

"You're courting death!" Lu Fan's face darkened instantly, and he felt a surge of murderous intent.

"Fellow Daoist, you should take the initiative to close the great formation, hand over your storage bag, and leave. Don't interfere with our fortune-making. Otherwise, if we break the formation, things won't be so easy to talk to!" The old man was confident that he and Lu Fan, who was only one Foundation Establishment cultivator, were no match for them.

Lu Fan smiled slightly, then raised his hand and opened a gap in the great formation.

"Something's not right!" The old man was shocked to see Lu Fan easily open the great formation and immediately urged the gourd to retreat.

On the other hand, the bald cultivator was still looking at Lu Fan with a smile, thinking that the other party was afraid.

But the next second, wind wings appeared on Lu Fan's back, and he held the Tungsten Heart Sword in his hand. In an instant, he turned into a blur and rushed straight at the bald cultivator.

"Wait!" The bald cultivator's expression changed drastically, and he was about to summon his flying sword to block.

laugh...

A cold glint flashed, and the bald cultivator felt a dizzying sensation as his head and body plummeted downwards.

With a single sword strike, Lu Fan instantly killed a mid-Foundation Establishment cultivator, but his speed did not decrease as he headed straight for the old man.

The old man hadn't flown very far when he suddenly felt a chill run through his body. Realizing he couldn't keep up with the latter's speed, he immediately stopped, activated his gourd to spew out hundreds of low-grade flying swords that swirled around him, and shouted loudly.

"Fellow Daoist! I was blind! I didn't recognize your supernatural powers. Please show mercy and spare my life!"

However, Lu Fan, who was close by, then activated the Sword Shadow Splitting Light Technique, and two hundred sword lights swept towards the old man, instantly deflecting all the flying swords around him.

"This, how is this possible!" The old man was shocked. He couldn't understand how there could be such a huge difference between two people who were both at the late stage of Foundation Establishment!

But Lu Fan clearly didn't intend to give the other party time to consider. In the flash of sword light, the old man was powerless to resist and was instantly shredded into pieces of flesh!