The Hehuan Sect cultivates alchemy; my senior sister helps me refine alchemy throughout the world.

Shen Yifei stood there stunned for a long time before finally squeezing out a sentence through gritted teeth: "Di Yuan, say that again, you fucking idiot?"

Di Yuan fanned himself with a nonchalant air. "I said, those women are a gift left to you by Lord Wan Shuo. You inherited his legacy, so you should enjoy what he left you."

"Are you trying to pin all your crimes on me?"

Di Yuan snapped his fan shut, his smile fading. He stood up, hands behind his back, and walked to the center of the courtyard. "Shen Yifei, why do you think Lord Wan Shuo set up the Myriad Spirits Returning to One Pill scheme in the Spirit Ruins?"

"How should I know!"

"Because he wants to give his successor a shortcut."

Di Yuan stared intently at Shen Yifei. "Why did Lord Wan Shuo hide the Spirit Ruins and isolate it from the Immortal Realm? Because he saw the true faces of those people in the Immortal Realm! Every cultivator who transcends tribulation and ascends, if they have any talent, is either punished by the Immortals or have their soul extracted and blood refined. He didn't want his successor to take that path, so he created another way, leaving his successor in the Spirit Ruins a path to the Immortal Realm that allows them to reach the Immortal Realm without ascending."

Shen Yifei was somewhat dazed by his words, "That Myriad Spirits Return to One Pill... can it really grant immortality in one step?"

"Yes, it is possible." Di Yuan said decisively, "But its most essential element needs to be refined by your Myriad Things Cauldron!"

"Do you know I possess the Cauldron of All Things?"

"I know, I was watching from not far away when you were refining Xuanming."

Shen Yifei's skin broke out in goosebumps, which came off and then came back up again.

During the battle with Xuanming, Di Yuan was actually watching from nearby. In other words, at that time, killing him would have been as easy as turning his hand!

Di Yuan looked at Shen Yifei's somewhat pale face. "How about it? Now you should believe what I said, right? I'm not here to kill you, I'm here to send you to ascend to immortality!"

"Where are those women? Where is my mother?" Shen Yifei asked.

Di Yuan snapped his fan shut. "We're all in the Myriad Spirits Palace now. Have you come to your senses?"

Shen Yifei did not answer.

Seeing his hesitation, Di Yuan said, "Come with me..."

Having said that, he took to the air and flew towards the Palace of Ten Thousand Spirits.

Shen Yifei followed closely behind. No matter what, his mother was still in his hands, and he had to rescue her first.

The two flew one after the other for about an hour. Then the clouds and mist in front of them dispersed, and a mountain appeared out of thin air before them.

The mountain is extremely high, piercing the sky. A faint golden light shines over its summit, and the outlines of palaces and pavilions can be vaguely seen, with lights twinkling, as if a celestial palace has fallen to earth.

Shen Yifei thought to himself, the more he looked at this place, the more it resembled a celestial abode.

Di Yuan led Shen Yifei through layers of palaces. Along the way, Shen Yifei carefully observed and found that although the Wanling Palace looked magnificent, it was actually very deserted.

After walking for a long time, they didn't even encounter a servant to serve tea or water, let alone the grandeur of Hou Wanshan's mansion with guards every three or five steps.

Shen Yifei wondered to himself, why was Di Yuan, the dignified master of the Wanling Palace, acting like a lonely old man?

He had just thought of the phrase "elderly people living alone" when Di Yuan suddenly stopped and said without turning around, "Do you find this place lonely?"

Shen Yifei was taken aback: "You can hear what other people are thinking?"

"No." Di Yuan pushed open a white jade door in front of him, stepped aside, and said, "A normal person would think that way, but you won't think that way in a moment!"

Shen Yifei pursed his lips and stepped inside.

Upon entering, Shen Yifei was stunned by the scene before him.

Before him stood a gigantic sphere of light, its interior resembling a cauldron containing mountains, water, various pavilions and towers, and even people! Women!

Upon closer inspection, Shen Yifei discovered that they were all meditating and cultivating.

Di Yuan pointed to the ball of light and said in a calm voice, "Take a look. This is what I prepared for you. There are more than two thousand spirit beast cores here. All that's missing is your Myriad Things Cauldron."

Shen Yifei stared at the thousands of women meditating inside the sphere of light, his mind buzzing.

The women inside the sphere of light all sat cross-legged, eyes closed, breathing deeply, their faces serene, not appearing to be imprisoned. Some even had a sense of peace in their eyes, as if they had found a long-lost sense of tranquility.

"They...all volunteered?" Shen Yifei asked.

Di Yuan stood beside him, his tone calm: "Whether it's voluntary or not, do you think it matters? The result is the same anyway."

Shen Yifei looked at the woman inside the sphere of light. Were these the gifts Wan Shuo left for him?

Since arriving at the Spirit Ruins, he has truly felt the speed at which his cultivation level has improved!

It would be a lie to say you weren't tempted by the opportunity to achieve a meteoric rise in your career.

If he could refine these people into a pill and consume it, he could ascend directly to the Immortal Realm, find his father, and help him face the difficulties together.

However, he had principles when using the Cauldron of All Things to refine people into elixirs.

If you practice it on everyone you meet, what will you become?

A ruthless killer? How is he any different from those people in the Celestial Punishment?

Thousands of lives were lost, and they were all innocent women.

No matter how corrupt, greedy, or decent a person he is, he would never do something as simple as trading thousands of lives for his own meteoric rise to power.

He closed his eyes, took a deep breath, suppressed the restlessness in his dantian, and when he opened his eyes again, his vision was clear.

"Di Yuan," Shen Yifei said calmly, "I won't refine this pill."

Di Yuan seemed to have expected him to say that, and there was no surprise on his face. He simply turned his head slowly and looked at him.

"Are you sure? If you nod, you can ascend to the Immortal Realm in less than three days. You'll be qualified to touch everything in the Immortal Realm, including Immortal Emperors and Immortal Punishments."

"I will go to the Immortal Realm myself; I don't need you to pave the way for me. Even if I, Shen Yifei, am to ascend, I will do so honorably through fair and square. I cannot use a woman as a stepping stone."

"What if your mother wants you to do that?"

"My mother? Although I haven't seen her much, I trust her character; she must be a kind person!"

Di Yuan listened to his words and dismissed them, "Kindness? That depends on the situation. If she were to go to the Immortal Realm to save your father so that you could ascend to immortality as soon as possible, could you refuse?"

Di Yuan's words were like a needle, pricking his heart and causing him some pain!

He desperately needs strength.

For my mother, for my father, and even more so for the women who followed me!

All spirits return to the elixir, one step to immortality.

At that moment, the seemingly unattainable Diyuan became like sand beneath one's feet.

At that time, whether it's divine punishment or an immortal emperor, he will have the confidence to confront them head-on.

In that instant, he even pictured himself ascending to the immortal realm, cleaving open the gate of immortal punishment with a single sword strike, and slaying those white-robed, masked figures.

"I'll give you the time it takes for an incense stick to burn to consider it." Di Yuan seemed to see through his inner turmoil.

Shen Yifei closed his eyes, and the image of his father in flowing white robes appeared in his mind!

My father could have become a great man, standing proudly in the world.

Why did he make such a choice, willing to endure humiliation and live a wretched life in order to expose the crimes of the Celestial Punishment?

After a long while, Shen Yifei opened his eyes.

Di Yuan smiled and asked, "Have you thought it through?"

"Yes, I've made up my mind!"

"To refine or not to refine?"

"I won't refine this pill!"

"Why? Can you give me a reasonable explanation?"

"I'm afraid my dad will beat me!"