Treasure Gathering Immortal Furnace

After returning to the sect, Lu Fan handed in the mission token, but the mission was still not completed.

However, the inner sect steward didn't say anything. After all, Lu Fan was a cripple and only at the eighth level of Qi Refining, so it was normal for him not to complete the mission.

After returning to the outer gate thatched hut, Lu Fan began to take stock of his spoils.

First came Zhou Shan's: a set of Six Armor Thunder Array formations, a broken Jade Spirit Armor pendant, a dozen or so Qi-stabilizing pills, twenty spirit stones, a low-grade magic weapon longsword, and a formation manual. Of course, there was also the low-grade magic weapon he had taken from Li Niu.

Overall, they weren't particularly poor, but they weren't wealthy either.

As for the female cultivator, hers was far too meager: ten spirit stones, a low-grade magic weapon flying knife, a low-grade magic weapon flying sword, a few healing pills, and that was it.

What Lu Fan valued most was Zhou Shan's formation, after all, it was quite effective at trapping second-tier demonic beasts for so long.

There's also that broken jade spirit armor pendant; Lu Fan had seen it in the illustrated guide to magical artifacts that Li Niu had bought for him.

It is a very powerful one-time defensive artifact.

With full power, it can withstand an attack from a cultivator in the early stages of Foundation Establishment, and even a full-force attack from a cultivator in the middle stages of Foundation Establishment will not be fatal.

Most importantly, it has automatic defense; it takes effect as long as spiritual energy is infused into it.

This is why Zhou Shan dared to sit still and adjust his breathing.

However, for ordinary cultivators, this kind of thing is a life-saving trump card.

After all, it's a disposable item, and its price isn't cheaper than a mid-grade magic weapon.

But for Lu Fan, this was no problem at all; as long as he put it into the alchemy furnace, it would immediately recover.

After taking stock of his spoils, Lu Fan planned to go into seclusion again.

After all, there are still ten years until the Demon Extermination Conference.

Judging from his battles with Zhou Tai and the Earth Fire Ox, he realized that reaching level 30 in Qi Refining was still insufficient; he needed to be able to instantly kill opponents within the same cultivation level.

The most important thing for Lu Fan right now is to be able to fight with ease against Foundation Establishment stage cultivators.

Lu Fan then plunged into the cave, determined to work his way up to the next level of Qi Refining.

...

For Lu Fan, seclusion was already second nature, and had even become the norm.

Therefore, this time we also plan to use a five-year period to continue to improve our capabilities.

In fact, it wasn't just Lu Fan who was in seclusion to prepare for his breakthrough; some inner disciples were also in seclusion in full swing.

After all, the Demon Extermination Conference ten years later will be one of the few opportunities for these disciples to turn their lives around.

It wasn't just Lu Fan who was thinking about making a contribution at the Demon Extermination Conference to obtain the Foundation Establishment Pill; most of the disciples shared the same idea.

Because Foundation Establishment Pills are extremely scarce, many disciples in the inner sect who are not valued find the mere act of waiting in line incredibly grueling.

Therefore, taking advantage of the demon-slaying event, they should give it their all. If they were to obtain the Foundation Establishment Pill, that would be an immense opportunity.

Therefore, the Dao Sect was also experiencing a grand occasion at this moment, with almost all of its secluded cultivation caves being occupied.

The entire Spirit Gathering Array was visibly surging with spiritual energy, which poured into the caves of the disciples in seclusion.

In fact, the secluded cultivation cave is also divided into six levels. Except for the first and second levels which are exclusively for elders and supreme elders, the cultivation speed of each level below is different.

To achieve faster cultivation speed, you need to go to a higher level, such as the third level.

Lu Fan has always been in seclusion on the sixth level, which is the lowest level. The spiritual energy here is only slightly better than that outside, but it is not very abundant.

However, Lu Fan has no shortage of Qi-stabilizing pills, which can completely make up for the problem of insufficient spiritual energy.

The main reason for choosing the sixth floor was that I didn't want to compete with those inner disciples. After all, once the competition started, one trouble after another would follow.

He hasn't reached the Foundation Establishment stage yet, so he needs to conceal his true abilities and naturally won't waste time on meaningless battles for battle qi.

During his seclusion, Lu Fan also continuously pushed his way to higher levels.

From the 30th level of Qi Refining, I rushed to the 31st, 32nd...

Even after five years, he had already reached the terrifying level of the thirty-fifth level of Qi Refining.

Both their spiritual sense and their spiritual energy reserves have been greatly enhanced.

This level of skill is probably unparalleled in the entire Canglan, and Lu Fan has unknowingly become the number one person below the Foundation Establishment stage.

...

As Lu Fan exited his cultivation state, he noticed that a few more strands of white hair had appeared on his head.

Although he appears to be just a slightly more mature young man on the surface, his true essence is depleted and he only has seven years left to live, which will greatly affect Lu Fan's reaction speed.

As for why Lu Fan didn't turn into an old man immediately after consuming his true essence, the main reason is that it has nothing to do with his skin.

Generally speaking, as cultivators age, without taking age-preserving pills, they will simply age slowly over time, and at a slower rate than ordinary people.

If you deplete your vital energy in your youth, you will only experience gray hair, not an immediate old age, because your skin's elasticity won't collapse instantly.

However, this is only temporary. If he depletes a large amount of his true essence in his youth, and does not take the Youth-Preserving Pill in the last few months before his lifespan is exhausted, or if his lifespan does not increase, Lu Fan will immediately age rapidly at a rate that changes every day.

This also served as a reminder to Lu Fan that while working on the Foundation Establishment Pill, he should also try to obtain a Youth Preservation Pill.

This is the only way to maintain the appearance at this moment.

Lu Fan didn't want to turn into a decrepit old man during the last two years of his Foundation Establishment breakthrough.

Rumble.

As the stone door, which had been closed for five years, opened, Lu Fan stepped out, his cultivation level controlled at the eighth level of Qi Refining.

However, as soon as he stepped out, he saw a sound transmission talisman floating at the door. Lu Fan touched it with his finger, and a voice came out.

"Come see me as soon as you emerge from seclusion, Wang Qingzhu."

"Uncle-Master Wang?" Lu Fan was stunned for a moment, then quickly flew towards the Hall of Affairs on his sword.

Upon arriving at the Hall of Affairs, Wang Qingzhu was in the courtyard, intently examining a bamboo slip in her left hand, while raising two fingers of her right hand and swaying them slightly. A flying sword hovered above her head, as if she were practicing some kind of sword technique.

Upon arriving, Lu Fan quickly cupped his hands in greeting: "Uncle-Master Wang."

"You've emerged from seclusion. Not bad, you've reached the eighth level of Qi Refining," Wang Qingzhu sheathed her flying sword, looked at Lu Fan, and praised him with satisfaction.

After all, it is no easy feat to reach the eighth level of Qi Refining with a mutated mixed spiritual root in just over twenty years.

"It was just a lucky breakthrough," Lu Fan said modestly.

But at that moment, Wang Qingzhu inadvertently noticed the few strands of white hair on Lu Fan's head and looked surprised: "You've depleted your true energy?"

"Five years ago, I took on a mission to go out and train, but I didn't expect to encounter a second-tier demon beast. I couldn't defeat it and had to exhaust my true essence to escape back," Lu Fan casually made up an excuse.

"You're really reckless. Do you think you can fight a second-tier demon beast? How many years do you have left?" Wang Qingzhu asked.

"Seven years," Lu Fan answered truthfully without hiding anything.

"Alas, you didn't know the true value of a young man when you were young, and now you're old and can only shed tears for your daughter. With your appearance, you can't even go down the mountain to get married, have children, and live an ordinary life," Wang Qingzhu sighed helplessly.

Lu Fan was also embarrassed and said, "If I can obtain the Foundation Establishment Pill, perhaps I can still give it a shot. After establishing my foundation, my true essence will be replenished."