"Yes, Sect Leader, I understand."

Sang Yanping replied solemnly, mentally raising Chen Qing’s importance by several levels.

He Yuzhou seemed a bit weary. He waved his hand and changed the subject. "Enough about him. In the past two years, who in the Sect has been stuck at Embracing Pill Force Perfection and intends to push for the Astral Force realm? What are their situations?"

Sang Yanping collected his thoughts, then reported after a moment’s consideration, "Sect Leader, there are currently nine members at Embracing Pill Force Perfection within the Sect, including a few elderly Elders who are still serving the Sect and living out their years in peace."

"Five of them are advanced in age, their vitality and blood essence in decline, so their hopes of reaching the Astral Force realm are slim. They mainly serve as defenders for the Sect in various locations. Only four have a real chance of breaking through the bottleneck: Shen Xiuyong, Yue City, Elder Zhou Yi of the Internal Affairs Hall, and Fan Yan, who is defending the Beilu Mine."

"Shen Xiuyong and Yue City have the most solid foundations and deepest accumulations, so they have the best chance. Zhou Yi and Fan Yan are slightly behind, but they are not without a chance either."

After hearing this, He Yuzhou pondered for a moment and said, "Issue my order. Grant each of these four individuals three drops of Centennial Earth Core Milk to help them refine their True Qi. Consider it a token of the Sect’s goodwill. Whether they succeed or not will depend on their own fortunes."

He sighed softly and rubbed the bridge of his nose. "The Earth Core Milk Cave’s output hasn’t been abundant in recent years, and our reserves of the centennial-grade milk have been heavily depleted, especially in the last few months... We’ll have to be more frugal from now on."

"Starting next month, temporarily suspend the monthly quota of Centennial Earth Core Milk for the Deans of each institute. In the future, anyone who reaches Embracing Pill Force Perfection or performs a great service for the Sect can apply for it according to protocol."

Sang Yanping’s heart tightened. He knew the Sect Leader was starting to conserve resources for a rainy day. He immediately replied, "Yes, I’ll make the arrangements at once."

....

Meanwhile, after leaving Lake Heart Hall, Chen Qing went straight to the rear courtyard of the Cyan Wood Institute.

Li Baichuan was still sitting askew on a cattail mat beside the Pill Furnace, as if he hadn’t moved at all. The furnace fire cast flickering light and shadows across his withered face.

"Disciple greets Master Li." Chen Qing stepped forward and bowed.

"Mm, you’re back."

Li Baichuan slowly opened his eyes. "Not bad. You truly didn’t disappoint me."

Chen Qing’s expression was calm as he relayed He Yuzhou’s words verbatim. "The Sect Leader asked this disciple to inform Master Li that the matter of the Earth Core Milk Cave concerns the very foundation of the Sect and is of grave importance. If you wish to go, you must be personally accompanied by the Sect Leader."

After speaking, he paused briefly before adding in a level tone, "The Sect Leader also rewarded this disciple with an additional thirty drops of Centennial Earth Core Milk and promised a single visit to the Fourth Layer of the Tingchao Armory. He said it was... a reward for preserving the Sect’s honor today."

His words were carefully chosen and he said no more, but his meaning was clear.

The Sect Leader’s generous reward was, in fact, a subtle inquiry into the origin of that drop of "Three Hundred Years Earth Core Milk."

Li Baichuan was old and shrewd; how could he not understand the deeper meaning in the little rascal’s words?

He chuckled and waved his hand dismissively. "The process doesn’t matter, only the result. Didn’t you get a drop of Three Hundred Years Earth Core Milk for free? You avoided the trouble of fighting with Miss Nie for it, successfully broke through to a new Realm, and your strength increased dramatically. Isn’t that a big enough advantage for you? Or are you trying to squeeze some more benefits out of an old man like me?"

Chen Qing wasn’t embarrassed at having his intentions exposed.

’He had indeed benefited greatly, but he didn’t like the feeling of being used and kept in the dark.’

However, he knew this old codger’s personality well enough to know that pressing the issue was pointless. So he smoothly changed the subject to a question that concerned him more:

"Master Li, today I witnessed Sect Leader Leng unleash two types of True Astral—Langyue and Cold Ice—perfectly fused and endlessly powerful. I venture to ask, if... if someone had multiple True Qi of differing attributes in their body, would they also need to find an Exotic Treasure like the ’Ice Soul Pearl’ to attempt a fusion?"

Hearing this, Li Baichuan straightened up slightly before slowly saying, "Relying on external objects for harmonization is indeed a clever shortcut. There are certain wondrous items in the world that contain pure Five Elements Elemental Power or have special harmonizing effects, but..."

His tone shifted. "You have to eat one bite at a time and walk one step at a time. Your most urgent task is to find a way to cultivate all the types of Qi in your body to the same level, balancing and strengthening them. If your True Qis vary greatly in strength and quantity, how can you even speak of a perfect fusion? Forcing it would be like playing with fire, leading only to your own destruction. The principles of the Five Elements Birth and Destruction are profound and mysterious, not something as simple as just stacking them together."

Chen Qing’s heart grew solemn. He knew that what Li Baichuan said was the undeniable truth.

’If my five True Qis are imbalanced in strength, it’s futile to even dream of fusing them!’

’The most pressing matter right now is to temper them all simultaneously. I’ll wait until they are all strong and at their peak before attempting any fusion method!’ 𝙛𝒓𝓮𝒆𝔀𝒆𝙗𝓷𝒐𝙫𝒆𝙡.𝒄𝓸𝓶

Chen Qing cupped his fist. "I understand. Thank you for your guidance, Master Li."

After a bit more casual chat, Chen Qing asked, feigning indifference, "Master Li, besides the ’milk eye,’ is there anything else special deep inside the Earth Core Milk Cave? Something that would make you so concerned about it?"

Li Baichuan’s eyelids drooped as he mumbled vaguely, "What could be so special? It’s just an old man like me getting nostalgic, wanting to see the place where I did my secluded cultivation back in the day... And maybe see if any little trinkets have formed alongside the milk eye."

The excuse was so perfunctory it was almost blatant. Chen Qing, naturally, didn’t believe a single word of it.

But he also knew that this old fox wouldn’t reveal an ounce of truth no matter how much he pried. So he didn’t press further and cupped his hands to take his leave. "In that case, I won’t disturb Master Li’s quiet cultivation any longer."

Watching Chen Qing turn and his back disappear through the courtyard gate, Li Baichuan finally lifted his eyelids. He clicked his tongue and cursed with a low chuckle, "That little rascal... getting more and more cunning. He’s sharp as a tack. Getting harder and harder to fool..."

After saying this, he returned to his drowsy-looking state, as if nothing had just happened.