In the Qingfeng Sect, the sixteen newly concocted Foundation Establishment Pills had caused a great stir, and disciples everywhere harbored their own schemes.

Inside White Jade Tower, it remained silent as ever.

The master of the tower was still in seclusion, and no one dared to disturb him.

Another year passed. Just as the commotion over the Foundation Establishment Pills subsided, another piece of explosive news broke.

The former Sect Leader, Wei Dao, just a few years after advancing to Foundation Establishment Perfection, had chosen to merge with a Tier Three Demon King’s Core and become a Fake Pill Cultivator.

According to his disciples, Wei Dao had damaged his foundation while forcefully trying to break through, losing all hope of reaching Core Formation.

He could only settle for second best, using a Tier Three Demon Beast Inner Core as a vessel to house his Divine Sense and become a Fake Pill Cultivator.

He was in the prime of his life, so this was a great misfortune for Wei Dao personally, but for the Sect, it was a stroke of luck amidst the misfortune.

For at least the next hundred years, the Qingfeng Sect would have another Core Formation Level combatant.

Even if Ancestor Yangg were to pass away in a few years, the Sect wouldn’t have to rely solely on Ancestor Ge Cang, who, no matter how powerful, couldn’t be everywhere at once.

This matter affected several surrounding commanderies, and a number of sects found excuses to visit, attempting to confirm the news.

It was clear that although everyone looked down on Fake Pill Cultivators, they still took them very seriously.

In the end, it was Sect Leader Yu of the Hundred Flowers Sect who personally came to the Qingfeng Sect to negotiate a major transaction worth hundreds of thousands of Spirit Stones, and Wei Dao himself made an appearance to host her.

After returning, Sect Leader Yu told the disciples of the Hundred Flowers Sect that they now had another kindred spirit in the world.

Only then was it confirmed: Wei Dao had indeed become a Fake Pill Cultivator!

Everyone in the Liang Country Cultivation Realm knew that the Hundred Flowers Sect currently had no Core Formation True Man presiding over it. Only the stunningly beautiful Sect Leader Yu, a Fake Pill Cultivator, skillfully navigated the political landscape to maintain the Sect’s prestige.

Since the news that Wei Dao had become a Fake Pill Cultivator came from her, it had to be true.

「Three years had passed since Bai Zichen entered seclusion.」

Tong Huan walked into White Jade Tower, used a Dust-Removal Technique to clean the table and chairs, then kowtowed from a distance outside the Quiet Chamber, performing a disciple’s salutation before preparing to leave.

Three years had made him grow much taller. Having been active in the Spirit Fields since he was young, his skin was tanned, and he looked lean and sturdy.

Because his master had instructed him not to rely on Elixirs before reaching the Late-Stage of Qi Refining, Tong Huan’s Cultivation was still only at the Qi Refining Fourth Layer.

As an Elder’s Inner Chamber Disciple, he was automatically considered an Outer Sect Disciple upon reaching a certain age.

However, Tong Huan usually lived near White Jade Tower and didn’t interact with the other Outer Sect Disciples. Besides his own illustrious master, his teachings came from Senior Brother Lu Songx.

Although Senior Brother Lu Songx was somewhat older, he was a late bloomer and had finally stepped into the Realm of Qi Refining Great Perfection a few months ago, already in his fifties.

At this age, he was on the verge of his vitality beginning to decline.

Normally, he would still need to spend at least three to five years polishing and purifying his Magical Power and tempering his physical body.

Adding the time needed to gather Sect Contribution points and wait in line for a Foundation Establishment Pill, he would have very little time left for the breakthrough itself. His chances were basically slim.

But clearly, Senior Brother Lu Songx had not given up hope. He continued his arduous cultivation daily without any change in his mentality, earning Tong Huan’s deep admiration.

"Huh!"

Just as Tong Huan was about to leave, he suddenly heard a grinding sound from the stone door of the Quiet Chamber. The door slid open to both sides, and a dashing young Cultivator strode out.

"Greetings, Master..."

Tong Huan knelt on the ground, a trace of excitement and nervousness in his voice.

As Bai Zichen’s only Inner Chamber Disciple, Tong Huan had not spent much time with his master. Everything he knew about him came from others.

The youngest Elder in the Qingfeng Sect in the last hundred years, Black Mountain’s First Sword Cultivator, the Sect’s Core Formation Seed, the most talented individual after Ancestor Ge Cang...

All sorts of evaluations, filled with the highest praise, and various titles had been heaped upon Bai Zichen.

Therefore, Tong Huan was constantly worried. ’With my rate of Cultivation progress, will Master think I’m dull-witted and unteachable, and expel me from his tutelage?’

"Ah, it’s Huan’er. Who else is here? Tell them to come over... And bring me the records of all major events from the past few years."

Bai Zichen slowly paced to the front hall. Three years of seclusion in one go was a new record for him.

In the past, his seclusions would usually last a year or so before he would emerge.

This time, in order to re-cultivate his Five Crystal Glaze Body from the Realm he had been knocked down from, he had endured the tedium and spent a full three years to master the initial stage of the Glazed Body.

’Three years again. Exactly the same amount of time it took me to cultivate the Glazed Body the first time.’

Comprehending the Glazed Fire Jade consumed a massive amount of Divine Sense.

Even with Spirit Tea to hasten its recovery, he couldn’t afford any distractions.

And during the phase of cultivating the Glazed Body, only his Divine Sense was free. Besides practicing Visualization of the Heaven and Earth Furnace Map and studying the True Enlightenment Sword Technique, he couldn’t do anything else.

During the two years of cultivating the Glazed Body, although he hadn’t made much progress with the Fire Dragon Returning Essence Scripture, he had integrated and consolidated all that he had learned, making significant, if not obvious, progress.

The first to arrive at White Jade Tower was Cai Heng. He first reported on the matters he was in charge of, then handed over the Spirit Field accounts for the past few years.

During Bai Zichen’s seclusion, they had harvested two cycles of Dragon Tooth Rice and three cycles of Red Light Rice, all of which were bumper crops.

The largest buyer for the Dragon Tooth Rice was still the Ten Thousand Treasures Pavilion with their bulk purchases. The Red Light Rice, due to its low price and the vast number of Qi Refining Cultivators, actually sold very well.

Thanks to Elder Jiangg, more than half of the Tier One Spirit Rice had been sold.

Currently, Bai Zichen had over fifty thousand Spirit Stones deposited in his account at the Ten Thousand Treasures Pavilion. With the voucher, he could withdraw them from any branch at any time.

"Has the dust settled on those sixteen Foundation Establishment Pills?"

Bai Zichen asked while flipping through the record of major events compiled by his subordinates, which covered all the important information both inside and outside the Sect.

"Aside from the five True Disciples, three Stewards and one disciple who was just promoted from the Inner Sect to a Steward also applied to exchange for the Foundation Establishment Pills. However, based on the information we’ve gathered, only five people have consumed them so far."

The fate of the Foundation Establishment Pills was a topic of utmost concern for every Sect Disciple, whether it affected them personally or not.

Cai Heng was no exception, even though he had long given up on the idea of Foundation Establishment due to his age.

"However, only two succeeded: one True Disciple and one veteran Elder."

"Senior Brother Wei chose to become a Fake Pill Cultivator?"

Bai Zichen’s heart trembled when he saw this piece of information.

Although a Fake Pill Cultivator possessed the strength of an Early-Stage Core Formation Cultivator, they had no possibility of further advancement in their lifetime. Crucially, their lifespan did not increase and remained the same as a Foundation Establishment Cultivator’s.

One would only choose to become a Fake Pill Cultivator when they truly had no other choice and were facing immense danger.

For this very reason, Fake Pill Cultivators were often not regarded as peers by true Core Formation Cultivators.

Nor would anyone bestow the respectful title of "True Man" upon a Fake Pill Cultivator.

"I heard he damaged his foundation while trying to break through, so it was a move of last resort..."

Bai Zichen remained noncommittal. ’I don’t believe Wei Dao would choose the Fake Pill path.’

’Besides, Ancestor Ge Cang himself examined Wei Dao and concluded that his Core conception was complete, and reaching Foundation Establishment Perfection was just a natural progression. How could he have suffered an injury that damaged his very foundation?’

’Recalling Ancestor Yangg’s questions back then, it’s highly likely the Sect adopted my own deception tactic.’

’They’re presenting Wei Dao as a Fake Pill Cultivator to make the surrounding, ill-intentioned powers wary.’

’Counting the days, it’s indeed about time for Ancestor Ge Cang to head to the Lotus Secret Realm. It’s time to release the smoke bomb.’

The remaining matters were not important to Bai Zichen.

...

’Genggeng is finally making some progress. Raising it all these years wasn’t a waste after all.’

Genggeng sensed its master’s aura, tossed aside the tender bamboo shoot in its paw, and waddled over excitedly.

Aside from its growing size and drastically increased weight, the most important thing was that it had finally become a Tier One Top-Grade Spirit Beast.

If it hadn’t advanced soon, Bai Zichen would have started to suspect his Spirit Beast had no future prospects for growth.

Genggeng’s current size meant it could no longer climb onto Bai Zichen’s shoulder to sit,

but it still tugged at his pants, trying desperately to climb up.

"Alright, stop fooling around... I have to make a trip to the Mountain Gate. I’ll take you with me."

Although he had reacquired the Glazed Body, he had no intention of going out to adventure and train.

The trip to the supposedly perfectly safe Zengguang Immortal City had nearly cost Bai Zichen his life, leaving him with some trauma.

In any case, he wasn’t lacking resources, and his Cultivation progress was smooth. Cultivating at home was much faster than roaming outside.

Right now, he only wanted to raise his Realm first. If he truly achieved Core Formation, the Fire Dragon Returning Essence Scripture would grant him the Divine Technique of transforming into a Fire Flood Dragon.

According to the scriptures, although the Fire Flood Dragon couldn’t incinerate all things like the Fire Dragon transformation could, it could still manipulate Spirit Fire and enhance the effects of Fire Element Techniques.

This trip back to the Mountain Gate wasn’t to attend an Elder council; he was heading for the Artifact Refining Hall.

Possessing several Flying Swords, as well as a Sword Refining Secret Method for a Tier Three Flying Sword, made Bai Zichen determined to become a Specialized Refiner who excelled at Sword Refinement.

He used two thousand contribution points to exchange for two complete sets of Tier One Artifact Refiner inheritances from the Artifact Refining Hall.

One was from the Sect itself, while the other was a Refining Inheritance that the Liu Family of Monkey Mountain had presented to the Qingfeng Sect. Since it came from an Outer Province, it followed a completely different path.

’I believe this will allow me to spend a great deal of time during my upcoming cultivation, at least to get my foot in the door.’

At the same time, he purchased a large quantity of basic Artifact Refining Materials and a Top-Grade Magical Artifact Level Great Cauldron, which was more than enough for Refining ordinary Magical Artifacts.

The first thing he did upon returning to White Jade Tower was not to immediately start learning the way of Artifact Refining, but to maintain his Flying Swords.

’The Sound Bamboo Sword is fine. With three to five days of nourishment from the Sword Nurturing Technique, the rice-grain-sized chip should be restored... My own Celestial Xin Sword has a nick and needs to be properly maintained. And then there’s this Willow Leaf Sword... I wonder if it can even be repaired.’

Bai Zichen took out a bottle of Tier Two Sword Tempering Spirit Water, poured it into a clean pool, and submerged both Flying Swords completely.

Afterwards, he opened one of the Tier One Refining Inheritances and found an item called the Ancient Bronze Ring, a Low-Grade Magical Artifact, to use for his initial practice.

The Ancient Bronze Ring was quite simple to use. It could only manifest a golden halo to block attacks.

For just this one Low-Grade Magical Artifact, Bai Zichen ruined over seventy sets of materials. Just from calibrating the fire intensity of the Top-Grade Magical Artifact Level Great Cauldron, he failed another five times, directly burning five sets of Artifact Refining Materials to charcoal.

A month later, an Ancient Bronze Ring finally popped out of the Great Cauldron. The Refining was a success, and he snatched it up.

’Artifact Refining is no easier than Arrays. It also takes a massive amount of time...’

Bai Zichen shook his head with a wry smile. Normal disciples entering the Artifact Refining Hall had to start as a Fire Burning Boy and work their way up step by step. Who would waste so many Spiritual Materials right from the start?

They would wait until the Artifact Refining Hall granted them a single chance at Refining, then carefully pour all their effort into showcasing their talent.

They lived in fear that a single failed attempt at Artifact Refining would get them demoted back to a Fire Burning Boy, forcing them to spend several more years stoking fires and adding wood.