Treasure Gathering Immortal Furnace

Yan Ruyu had been captured for more than ten days, and the spiritual energy fluctuations left behind by their previous fight had long since disappeared with time.

It can be said that there are no traces of fighting left on Tiandang Mountain now, and even if there are, they are completely hidden by the lush, towering trees.

If you want to find a few people who are still alive or dead in these mountains, you have to use your divine sense to do a thorough search, which will actually take more time.

Even with Wang Qingzhu and Steward Ma, plus fifty inner disciples, it would be impossible to find them in a short time.

In contrast, Lu Fan, who was inside the cave at this moment, was still at a critical stage of foundation building.

The third Foundation Establishment Pill had already been swallowed, and the blocked meridians were 99% cleared after being repeatedly impacted by the pill's medicinal power.

This means that the second step will be taken soon.

However, to ensure stability, Lu Fan still swallowed the fourth Foundation Establishment Pill. After all, with his cultivation at the fortieth level of Qi Refining, he couldn't afford to have any problems later on because of that 0.1% of his meridians not being opened.

Fortunately, hard work pays off. On the twentieth day of his secluded foundation-building retreat, almost all of his meridians were opened up.

Only then did Lu Fan have a little time to catch his breath.

Since the first step has been completed, we only need to stabilize it a little before moving on to the second step.

However, Lu Fan was not in a hurry to proceed to the second step. After all, the meridians that had just been opened still needed spiritual energy to strengthen them, in order to prepare for the subsequent cleansing of the marrow and strengthening of the physical body.

If any other cultivators saw Lu Fan like this, they would surely be greatly surprised.

Even though it has already been refined to level forty and is stable enough, it still needs to be repeatedly polished in these small details.

This is equivalent to further refining a piece of raw jade that has already reached its full potential, striving to make it flawless.

And so, Lu Fan spent another five days polishing and rinsing it.

Only then did they begin preparations for the second step.

But before Lu Fan could take out the Foundation Establishment Pill, his brows furrowed slightly, clearly sensing that the outer cave was somewhat quiet.

Although Ku Rong was some distance away from Lu Fan, Lu Fan's divine sense could detect any subtle sound. At this moment, he clearly sensed that someone was approaching.

"Fellow Daoist Lu, it's been almost a month. How are you? We can't stay here any longer," Kurong called out as he walked.

At this moment, Lu Fan could not exit his cultivation state. After all, if he got up, his spiritual energy would dissipate, and the first step would be in vain.

Thinking of this, Lu Fan immediately shouted, "Fellow Daoist Ku! Don't come in!"

They were almost at the cave where Lu Fan was when Ku Rong heard Lu Fan's voice and immediately frowned: "What's wrong?"

Lu Fan immediately established a connection with Zi Yuan beside him, and through his divine sense, he manipulated his vocal cords to emit a gloomy and hoarse female voice: "Two impudent juniors, unaware that I am here in seclusion, yet you commit such filthy acts in my cave! You are simply audacious!"

Upon hearing these words, Ku Rong's face turned pale instantly. The voice struck his soul directly, and the spiritual pressure pressed down on him overwhelmingly, causing Ku Rong's legs to buckle and almost collapse to the ground.

"A Core Formation cultivator! What's going on?!" Ku Rong was clearly frightened by Zi Yuan. Without thinking, he immediately knelt down: "We didn't know that Senior was in seclusion here! We have disturbed you greatly, please forgive us!"

As for why Ku Rong didn't run away, it's because if a Core Formation cultivator wanted to kill him, running away would be useless; he might even be easily killed by the other party.

"My soul is damaged and I need to meditate. Otherwise, I would have killed you all long ago. Now get out of here!" Zi Yuan shouted in a deep voice.

"Yes, yes! I'll get out of here right away!" At this moment, Ku Rong didn't dare to hesitate for a second.

Some might wonder why, given Zi Yuan's claim of a damaged soul, Ku Rong didn't seize the opportunity to launch a sneak attack? Killing a Core Formation cultivator would have been an incredible stroke of luck.

If Ku Rong really did that, he would definitely die a horrible death, because Zi Yuan said that his soul was damaged, but she didn't say that his body was damaged. Moreover, the spiritual pressure that was released was enough to show that his strength was not a problem.

If Kurong makes any small move, he will probably die on the spot. That is Kurong's inner thought.

Even a heavily injured Core Formation cultivator is not someone a Foundation Establishment cultivator can easily fool.

Even if they cannot move, they can easily kill a Foundation Establishment cultivator once they unleash a magic weapon or other magical artifact.

Cross-border challenges between cultivators are extremely difficult without the aid of any heaven-defying treasures. The process of Foundation Establishment and Qi Refining is like a thirty-year-old man beating up a five- or six-year-old child.

The process of a Golden Core cultivator advancing to the Foundation Establishment stage is similar, and even more brutal.

The fact that Lu Fan, with his Qi Refining Level 40, Foundation Establishment Mid-Stage Divine Sense, and Jade Spirit Armor, still couldn't gain any advantage over Yan Ruyu speaks volumes.

Just as Ku Rong was about to leave, he seemed to remember something and said, "Senior! This Fellow Daoist Lu inside the cave is a close friend of mine. Could you please release him? We'll leave immediately!"

Ku Rong felt that Zi Yuan didn't directly kill Lu Fan, which meant she didn't have much of a murderous intent, and there was still a chance for negotiation.

Zi Yuan said in a deep voice, "My soul is damaged, and I am unable to move easily. I still need this junior to take care of me. I will release him once I have recovered. If you don't want to leave, why don't you come in and serve me as well!"

Upon hearing this, Ku Rong broke out in a cold sweat. Serving a ruler is like serving a tiger. Serving a Golden Core cultivator is much fiercer than a tiger. If he is displeased, a magic weapon can flash and his head will roll off.

"Um... this junior hasn't bathed in half a year, and I'm afraid I'll defile your sacred place of cultivation, so please step back," Ku Rong said, adding, "Fellow Daoist Lu, you must take good care of this Core Formation senior. I'll come looking for you when you come out!"

After Ku Rong finished speaking, he ran outside in a flash.

At this moment, Bai Rou'er and the others, who were unaware of the situation, also sensed the commotion coming from inside. Only the bold Chen Zhi Qiu dared to come out and take a look.

Upon closer inspection, they saw Ku Rong rushing towards them at an incredible speed, like a frightened rabbit, intending to leave the cave.

"Senior Ku, what's going on inside?" Chen Zhi Qiu asked.

"Get out of my way!" Ku Rong casually swung his hand, knocking Chen Zhi Qiu to the ground, and then flew out of the cave in a flash, hoisting his greatsword.

Chen Zhiqi got up from the ground, looking completely bewildered.

"What happened to Senior Lu?!" Bai Rou'er asked with concern in her eyes.

"I don't know either. Let's not go in. Let's hide for now. It's too dangerous here. Running around could easily lead to our deaths," Chen Zhiqi said.

The others were obedient and stayed inside the cave without making a sound.

Seeing that he had finally escaped the cycle of decay and prosperity, Lu Fan relaxed slightly, then immediately sent a telepathic message to Chen Zhi Qiu: "Chen Zhi Qiu."

"Senior?" Upon hearing the telepathic message, Chen Zhi Qiu immediately stood up, his face filled with surprise and delight. "So you're alright, Senior!"

Upon hearing this, Bai Rou'er's tense nerves finally relaxed.

"Go to the outer cave immediately and check if the female cultivator is dead," Lu Fan said.

"Yes!" Chen Zhi Qiu cupped his hands and immediately walked towards the outer cave.

Upon arriving at the outer cave, they saw Yan Ruyu lying dead inside, completely naked and utterly humiliated.

"Senior, he's dead," Chen Zhi Qiu said.

"That's good. Take her body out of the cave immediately and throw it as far away as possible," Lu Fan said.

"Yes!" Chen Zhi Qiu nodded.