Fragrance filled the chamber.
The Nine-Illusion Heavenly Orchid was lush and vibrant.
Sitting beside the jade pool, Qin Sang idly stirred the spring water with his fingers, lost in thought as he recalled the conversation he had just had with Yunyouzi.
Repairing one's foundation was merely one of the Crimson Cloud Purple Fruit's effects; to other cultivators, and especially to demon beasts, such a heavenly treasure was an object of absolute desire.
Yunyouzi had obtained an ambiguous piece of intelligence back in his sect. The Taiyi Dan Sect had always paid keen attention to all kinds of spirit herbs, gathering reports at the sect regardless of whether they were true or false.
To verify it, he had first spent several years lying low in Xianyao City, which was controlled by the Yuling Sect.
Xianyao City was the major cultivator city in the Lesser Cold Domain closest to the Heavenly Demon Mound. Supposedly backed by the Heavenly Demon Mound, it served as the gateway connecting the Heavenly Demon Mound with the cultivation world of the Lesser Cold Domain.
This showed just how close the Yuling Sect was with the Heavenly Demon Mound.
In the end, Yunyouzi had even joined merchant caravans and infiltrated the Heavenly Demon Mound several times. Though he had spoken of it lightly, Qin Sang could imagine how thrilling and perilous that journey must have been.
Since ancient times, humans and demons had found it difficult to coexist, and not merely because of prejudice.
Precisely because of this, after vanishing for all those years, Yunyouzi had only recently confirmed that the Crimson Cloud Purple Fruit truly existed. As for the specifics, however, he would only know once he saw it with his own eyes.
Yunyouzi had agreed to accompany Qin Sang first before attending to his own affairs.
Even with Yunyouzi's help, Qin Sang felt no assurance.
The Demon Core stage great demons of the Heavenly Demon Mound were nothing like the ignorant beasts living in treacherous mountains and foul waters.
Beasts that could obtain Emperor Flowing Dew and awaken their intellect all possessed extraordinary backgrounds and undoubtedly inherited the legacy of great demons. In both strength and intellect, they were on par with human Core Formation cultivators and could not be taken lightly.
Relying solely on the Flying Yaksha, there was barely any chance of winning against a single Demon Core stage great demon—not to mention that the Crimson Cloud Purple Fruit would very likely draw more than one.
In a situation like that, even fishing in troubled waters required sufficient strength.
The place where the Crimson Cloud Purple Fruit grew was bound to be extraordinary; without Core Formation stage strength, slipping inside quietly under the noses of Demon Core stage great demons would be practically impossible.
Precisely for this reason, Yunyouzi had advised Qin Sang to keep an even temper. Their primary goal upon entering Ziwei Palace this time was to locate where the Crimson Cloud Purple Fruit grew and find a way to break the restrictions.
Once he broke through to the Core Formation stage later on, with more than three hundred years added to his lifespan, he would certainly be able to wait until the next opening of Ziwei Palace. By planning carefully and making ample preparations in the meantime before making a grab for it, his chances would be far greater.
But who knew when Ziwei Palace would open next?
The timing of each opening was never fixed, closely tied as it was to the spirit tides of the Ancient Immortal Battlefield.
At the fastest, it took over a century; at the slowest, it could exceed three hundred years. Such a long time meant he would have to spend his entire Core Formation stage saddled with a damaged foundation.
Of course, if he could break through to the Core Formation stage before Ziwei Palace opened this time, everything would be different.
With himself, two magic treasures, and the Flying Yaksha, he would at least have the qualifications to put up a fight.
"Phew..."
Qin Sang looked up at the cave abode's dome and slowly exhaled. He then gathered his stray thoughts, refusing to let these distractions disturb his mind and become an obstacle during Core Formation.
Due to the spirit spring, the cave abode was rich with spiritual power—abundant enough to support his cultivation even if he were currently in the Core Formation stage.
There was no need to set up a Spirit Gathering Array.
Qin Sang sealed the restriction over the Nine-Illusion Heavenly Orchid, placed a prayer mat down right beside the jade pool, and sat cross-legged in meditation.
Over the past few years, whenever he had the chance to return to his sect, Qin Sang would make a trip to Pagoda Peak to painstakingly study the texts related to Core Formation preserved there.
If an opportunity arose to seek guidance from Qi Yuanshou, he never passed it up either.
Unfortunately, paying his respects did not always grant him an audience with Qi Yuanshou; over these past few years, he had met with him only twice.
According to Qi Yuanshou's disciple, Gao Yang, Qi Yuanshou also seemed to be preparing to enter Ziwei Palace and was no longer managing sect affairs in person during this period.
Qin Sang had made ample preparations for Core Formation during this time, so after breaking through to the False Core stage, there was no need to return to the sect; he could enter seclusion right away.
After breaking through to the False Core stage, Qin Sang had hurried back and forth and fought a major battle against Daoist Jiupao, which had already thoroughly consolidated his cultivation.
After three months of quiet seclusion, Qin Sang awakened from his meditation.
He turned his inner vision upon himself.
His sea of qi was brimful, its spiritual power calm and rippleless.
His vigor was complete, and his spiritual sense was robust.
The False Core stage represented the perfection of Foundation Establishment; having attained this realm, one could advance no further and could only await Core Formation.
And that was indeed the case.
After breaking through to the False Core stage, no matter how hard Qin Sang strove during this time, his cultivation could not advance by even a sliver. Firmly stuck below the bottleneck, he once again tasted the agony of being constrained by a bottleneck.
If he were a cultivator with a heavenly spiritual root, he could now effortlessly forge a golden core. Qin Sang could only look on in envy.
During these three months, he had condensed the spiritual power in his sea of qi to its limit and smoothed away every shred of impetuousness in his heart.
When he opened his eyes, he calmly swept his gaze across the cave abode, then stared down at his dantian for a long while before closing his eyes once more.
In his mind, he carefully recalled the texts from Pagoda Peak several times, and pondered everything Qi Yuanshou had said—whether useful or not—in thorough detail.
Then, Qin Sang began his attempt at Core Formation.
He did not choose to use supplementary spirit items right away, opting instead to attempt forming his core through his own power.
If he miraculously succeeded by some stroke of luck, that would naturally be ideal, but Qin Sang knew such a possibility was virtually nonexistent. His aim was to accumulate as much experience as possible and integrate everything he had seen and learned.
When refining spirit items later on, this might increase his chances of success by a fraction.
Right now, he had only the Kanli Golden Pill, the snow spirit lotus, and the iris flower in his possession; he had to act with caution.
At the bottom of the great marsh.
Deep within the silt.
No daylight reached the cave abode, leaving time untracked.
Inside the quiet, secluded cave abode, Qin Sang sat motionless like a withered pine. His aura rarely stirred, and for several months straight, nothing seemed to change at all.
At last, Qin Sang swayed slightly and once again woke from his meditation.
It was just as he had expected.
During this period, Qin Sang had practiced his cultivation technique without pause, yet he could not sense the slightest sign of his spiritual power coalescing. He had no choice but to face reality: with his innate talent, trying to form a core through his own power alone was nothing short of a fool's daydream.
Success was utterly out of the question, and he had not even managed to accumulate the slightest bit of so-called experience.
Wasting several months, he had essentially gained nothing.
Qin Sang had anticipated this all along, and since his state of mind could not afford any turbulence, no disappointment arose in him; he was able to view it all with equanimity.
It seemed he had to take the Kanli Golden Pill and give it a try.
Qin Sang did not immediately enter meditation. Rising to his feet, he quietly slipped out of the cave abode and returned to that small island. Finding no message left by Yunyouzi, he headed back to the cave abode.
He and Yunyouzi had agreed that if Ziwei Palace suddenly opened during this time, Yunyouzi would leave a voice transmission talisman on the island to inform him.
When that time came, whether he had formed his core or not, Qin Sang would have no choice but to set all of this aside and enter Ziwei Palace first.
Chapter 497