I courted death and then tried to escape, so the whole sect wants to get rid of me.

Go out happily, come back battered and bruised.

The Seventh Elder grabbed the furnace cauldron and rushed out, shouting, "Did that Sixteenth Brother mistreat you?! I won't let him get away with this!!"

Song Yao had done this kind of divisive thing many times before, and I almost forgot to stop him.

Only after the others carried the furnace and rushed outside did they snap out of their daze and hurriedly chase after them to explain.

The Seventh Elder grew increasingly distressed as he listened. He put down the furnace and earnestly advised her, "Why don't we just give up? Good child, your master knows you have ambition, but nothing is more important than your health. You can stay on Hundred Herbs Peak and learn as much as you can. If you can't learn it all, you can stay on Hundred Herbs Peak for the rest of your life. Once your master has paid off all the debts, I will definitely let you live a good life. What do you say?"

He spoke earnestly, and Song Yao's words caught in her throat; she neither said yes nor no.

The Seventh Elder then added to himself, "However, you must participate in the annual competition."

Song Yao: "Why?"

The Seventh Elder stroked his white beard, his expression unusually solemn: "I heard that the top prize for disciples of each age group in this year's annual competition is the Heavenly Thunder Marrow Cleansing Pill."

He paused, his gaze falling on Song Yao's slightly pale face: "For others, this pill can purify their spiritual roots and enhance their cultivation, making it a rare and precious treasure. For your body with a fragmented soul, the power of heavenly lightning can nourish your soul. Although it cannot repair the missing soul fragments, its effect is still considerable."

He Yu poked his head out from the second floor of the Pill Pavilion: "Why don't you just refine one for her?"

The Seventh Elder gave him a disgruntled look: "I'd like to refine it, but the main ingredient, Thunder Spirit Grass, only sprouts and bears fruit once every ten years. It's priceless and unavailable; you can't even buy it. Besides, refining pills requires drawing heavenly lightning into the furnace, and right now, the weather is unfavorable, the location is unfavorable, and people are not in harmony. How can I refine it?"

He Yu said, "Oh, but Junior Sister is a pill cultivator. How can a pill cultivator compete with others?"

"There's no need to worry too much about that."

I heard from the Ninth Elder and the others that this girl is exceptionally talented, and even without proper training, she has already surpassed others by a great deal.

and......

He laughed and said, "Your junior sister is only fifteen. She only needs to compete with disciples whose bone age is under sixteen. In the entire Nine Saints Hall, you are the only Golden Core stage disciple under sixteen."

There is a seemingly insurmountable gap between Foundation Establishment and Golden Core.

Even if you don't know anything, you can still beat others to a pulp with just your spiritual power.

Song Yao: "......"

It feels like I'm back in the beginner's village, stomping on newbies.

She wasn't particularly interested in whether or not the Heavenly Thunder Cleansing Pill could nourish the soul, but judging from the description, it must be quite valuable.

Selling it would save us thirty years of detours.

-

With only half a month left until the Lunar New Year, the atmosphere inside the Nine Saints Hall became slightly tense.

Firstly, all disciples had to participate in the annual competition and strive for the Heavenly Revelation Ranking, so they all secretly began to work hard in their cultivation.

Secondly, no one knows whether the hall master will emerge from seclusion smoothly. The elders not only need to pay attention to the situation on the main peak, but also to the external situation to prevent anyone from causing trouble.

Thirdly, the year-end is a busy time, and the Pill Pavilion is no exception. Pill cultivators come and go, spending all day in the Pill Pavilion refining medicine.

Song Yao became the most idle person in the entire Nine Saints Hall, spending his days sleeping with alchemical and medical books, and occasionally getting up to refine a couple of Qi-replenishing pills.

However, there is a pleasant surprise: as long as the temperature of the fire is well controlled, it is not easy for the pot to explode.

Furthermore, adding other medicinal herbs can give the Qi-boosting pills different effects.

After taking a Qi-replenishing pill she had refined, the Seventh Elder fainted for three hours before waking up. She gave a thumbs-up and said encouragingly, "I feel exceptionally energetic."

He Yu silently drifted by: "Sleeping for three hours must make you feel unwell, right? Also, your cauldron smells burnt; don't you really need to clean it up?"

Seventh Elder: "Why didn't you say so earlier?!"

"I told you, I couldn't wake you up just now."

"..."

Encouraged, Song Yao continued to experiment with the Qi-boosting pill.

Unfortunately, after experiencing vomiting, poisoning, and mental breakdown, the senior brothers and sisters in the Dan Pavilion refused to test the medicine on her anymore.

Left with no other choice, Song Yao went to Jiyue Peak to ask Ning Zhou for help.

In just two months, Ning Zhou's once thin body became much stronger, and he even seemed to have grown taller.

He carried a full water vat in one hand and said with a grin, "Side effects? What side effects could a Qi-boosting pill have? It's fine, it's fine. I'm in great shape right now. Here you go."

Song Yao immediately handed him the pills, reminding him, "Tell me if you feel unwell at all."

Ning Zhou put down the water vat and without hesitation stuffed the pill into his mouth: "It's just a Qi-replenishing pill, what discomfort could it possibly cause..."

Before he could finish speaking, everything went black before his eyes, and he fell backward, crashing straight into the water vat.

Song Yao was suddenly splashed with water and scrambled to the edge of the water tank: "Where are you going?"

"I'm fine, I'm okay."

A wet hand gripped the edge of the water tank. Ning Zhou struggled to his feet, squinting at Song Yao. "Why, why are there two shadows? What are you doing?"

"Ugh—why am I so dizzy? I feel like I can't stand up."

"I feel like throwing up, I feel nauseous..."

Song Yao struggled to pull him out of the water vat and took out a notebook to write down his symptoms.

Two hours later, Ning Zhou regained consciousness, his eyes wide open like saucers: "Lin Mu!! I feel incredibly strong right now!!"

Song Yao: "Really?"

Why would I lie to you?!

Eager to test it, he rushed to the backyard, lifted a huge rock, and exclaimed, "Even my fifth senior sister couldn't lift this! I couldn't even push it before! I lifted it!!! Lin Mu, you did it!"

Song Yao chased after her, her eyes shining: "Wow, I did it!"

Before he could finish speaking, Ning Zhou felt his arm go limp, and the boulder that he had just been holding firmly above his head suddenly pressed down on him.

"Boom—!"

The boulder fell, sending up clouds of dust and flying debris.

Ning Zhou was firmly pressed down, and he looked up at Song Yao with a dusty smile, his voice hoarse and simple: "Looks like it won't last long."

Caught off guard by the smoke and dust, Song Yao came to her senses and ran outside, shouting, "Wait for me, I'll get someone to rescue you!"

"No need, no need, I can manage on my own."

Ning Zhou took a deep breath, his muscles bulging and veins popping out on his forehead.

He struggled to lift it, and the boulder slowly rose a little.

Song Yao immediately turned back, drawing his Azure Water Sword and wedging it into the crevice in the rock.

She grabbed his arm and pulled him out, while simultaneously checking his pulse by holding his wrist.

The spiritual energy is relatively stable, and there should be no other side effects.

She took out her notebook and wrote it down, while also feeling somewhat troubled.

The Qi-boosting pill has a strong effect, but only if you go crazy for two hours.

I wonder if anyone will actually buy it...

Ning Zhou stood beside her: "This kind of enhancement pill is quite rare. You are very talented. If you need someone to test the medicine next time, just come to me. I am a body cultivator, so I am not likely to cause any problems."

Song Yao smiled at him and said, "Thank you."

That being said, with the grand competition of the New Year approaching, Song Yao couldn't afford to indulge the same person twice.

She modified the formula and refined another batch of pills.

Just as she was worrying about having no one to help her, Jiang Jin came to find her on the afternoon of the day before the New Year's competition.