"Confidence." Yaoguang mused. His mind flashed through his own understanding of body refinement, qi refinement, and psyche refinement.

After a long moment, he finally spoke. "In ancient times, there wasn't such a clear distinction between body, qi, and psyche refinements. The reason so many different branches were categorized was, fundamentally, because needs changed. The invasion of the Lunar Fiend Empire made it urgent for people to obtain the strongest combat capabilities in the shortest possible time. Therefore, the major cultivation systems were refined based on what different individuals excelled at."

He paused, his thoughts quickly expanding. "Perhaps at the stage of a great cultivator, these paths and professional classifications are very detailed. But what about the Golden Core Realm? Are the boundaries between body cultivators, sword cultivators, spell cultivators, and psyche cultivators still so distinct? And moving further up? When a cultivator collapses their own source of power into a black hole, what difference does it make whether they refined their body, qi, or psyche?"

He smiled. "It's like a shopping mall selling many good things; you want every single one of them, but your funds are limited, so you can only buy the one with the best value. But if your money is so vast that it's just a number, and you can buy everything in the entire mall, would you still need to agonize over this question?"

As soon as he said this, not only Zong Lian, but everyone else present was left speechless.

For a good while, Zong Lian did not speak, but the woman beside him burst into laughter. "So, the mindset of this Sacred Lord Yaoguang has already transcended the level of a great cultivator. He has fixed his sights on the Golden Core Realm, and even the Void-Piercing Realm. Truly full of confidence; his heart is higher than the heavens."

"This isn't confidence; it's arrogance," the man beside her remarked.

"Perhaps his understanding of the cultivation world is still stuck in an era from hundreds of years ago," the man who called himself Chen Shu said, seemingly losing interest in exchanging moves with him. "He thinks that with his talent, he can easily achieve the Golden Core Realm. But how could he know how much the Golden Core Realm of today has changed compared to hundreds of years ago? If you let a modern spell cultivator who is a great cultivator face a Golden-Core-Realm cultivator from centuries ago, that Golden-Core-Realm cultivator likely wouldn't even survive a single life-bound spell."

As he spoke, he looked somewhat puzzled. "Hasn't the Cangwu Alliance been holding meetings recently to discuss redefining the concept of Foundation Building? They wanted to call the most ancient version first-generation Foundation Building, the modern version second-generation, those who establish a Dao Foundation third-generation, and those who build an Immortal Foundation fourth-generation. Has that not passed yet?"

"No, I heard they want to change Foundation Building to the nine realms of the Alchemy Dao. They want to implement the Core Formation process earlier, improving and integrating it into the current Foundation Building Realm to avoid the problem of forming a core too late to extend one's life. After all, even though many are developing in that direction, the lifespan of cultivators in the Foundation Building Realm can hardly break the three-hundred-year limit."[1]

"Integrating the Core Formation process into Foundation Building? Doesn't that mean Foundation-Building-Realm cultivators can enjoy a lifespan of four to five hundred years, just like Golden-Core-Realm cultivators?"

Several core disciples in the courtyard quickly began to exchange ideas. Almost no one paid any more attention to Yaoguang, who had made such a grand claim.

Seeing this, Zong Yan grew somewhat anxious. He could tell that his senior brothers and his senior sister were doing this on purpose. However, having witnessed Yaoguang’s talent, while he couldn't speak for the Golden Core Realm, becoming a great cultivator was definitely not an extravagant hope. Just as he was worrying about how to speak up, Zong Lian spoke.

"Having a strong mindset is a good thing, but one should not be too ambitious or unrealistic." The sect master of the Hundred-Refinement Sect glanced at Yaoguang. "When I first arrived in Cangwu, I was just like you, believing I was a peerless genius, second to none. It wasn't until I truly joined the Artifact Sect that I realized how many geniuses there are. Among those who can stand here and take root, who isn't a genius?"

He tapped the armrest of his chair lightly. "You don't need to rush to a conclusion. Stay here at the Hundred-Refinement Sect for now. Then, go to the Nine Cauldrons Sect’s assessment office and take a look. After you've seen it, consider your next direction: whether to join the Nine Cauldrons Sect, join the Hundred-Refinement Sect, or... persist in your decision to establish your own sect."

Hearing this, Yaoguang vaguely understood Zong Lian’s meaning. Rather than having him establish his own sect, Zong Lian preferred him to stay in the Hundred-Refinement Sect. But if establishing his own sect failed, Yaoguang could still choose to join the Nine Cauldrons Sect. Therefore, Zong Lian couldn't say those things directly. He would only speak plainly after confirming that Yaoguang truly had no intention of joining the Nine Cauldrons Sect.

For the moment, Yaoguang said nothing and took up temporary residence in the Hundred-Refinement Sect.

Early the next morning, Zong Yan and Ji Pingtian came to find him. "Sacred Lord Yaoguang, do you plan to visit the Nine Cauldrons Sect's branch today, or...?"

"Just call me Yaoguang," he replied. "On the way here yesterday, I saw a pill shop with a good selection. Let's go take a look."

"Is it the Immortal-Proving Tower? That's a branch of a large international group within the Immortal Alliance. They do have many kinds of pills. There are only four such shops in our entire Nine Heavens Domain. However..." Zong Yan paused. "The prices are very high, and they only accept spirit stones."

"We'll see," Yaoguang said.

Thus, Ji Pingtian and Zong Yan accompanied Yaoguang to the tower. Upon entering the Immortal-Proving Tower, Yaoguang once again sensed the changes in his surroundings. Even the air seemed to have a psyche-calming effect, and to be able to steady one's qi. Furthermore, the interior of the building was much larger than it appeared from the outside.

Effect of an array art. Yaoguang noted internally.

"Welcome to the Immortal-Proving tower. Is there anything I can help you with?" A fair-skinned woman in elegant clothing quickly came forward to greet them.

At first glance, Yaoguang thought she was a cultivator at the sixth realm of qi refinement. Reaching the sixth realm allowed one to return the acquired body to an innate state, which significantly optimized one's appearance, skin, and physique, matching the woman before him. However, after sensing carefully, he realized that wasn't the case. Then again, the woman looked to be in her twenties; a sixth-realm cultivator that young would likely be competing for a spot as an official disciple of the Nine Cauldrons Sect, not working as service staff here.

"I'd like to see pills for the seventh realm of body refinement and above," Yaoguang said.

"Certainly, this way please." The woman smiled and led him toward the high-end pill section.

Zong Yan, seemingly noticing Yaoguang’s curiosity, activated his psychic will to explain. "Some cultivators with clear career goals will specifically practice special arts. Just as a third-realm qi cultivator can apply for a job at the Energy Department if they develop the psychic consciousness that only a fourth-realm qi cultivator possesses, the requirement for service staff at the Immortal-Proving Tower is an innate body. Many cultivators will take medicine several years in advance and use the power of psychic consciousness to activate the latent medicinal properties, returning their bodies from the acquired to the innate state."

He paused. "After that, they only need to stick to the medication to ensure their innate body does not degenerate."

Yaoguang glanced at the woman. With the power of the sixth and ninth realms of his Psyche Dao, he quickly saw the truth. Although the drugs allowed her to maintain an innate body form, they also eroded her constitution. Not only was her cultivation path ruined, but her lifespan would also be significantly shortened.

"Is the income at the Immortal-Proving Tower very high?" Yaoguang asked.

"An annual salary of one hundred thousand."

"One hundred thousand? That's decent compared to the twenty or thirty thousand an average person makes, but for someone with the cultivation of a fourth-realm qi cultivator, isn't it low?"

"They get the right to purchase one spirit stone every year." Zong Yan paused. "The Nine Cauldrons Sect strictly controls the outflow of spirit stones. Working in these foreign-funded enterprises is one of the few ways low- or mid-level practitioners can obtain them."

While they were talking, the woman had already led Yaoguang to the pill section.

"The most affordable pill for the seventh realm of body refinement is the Heavenly Being Pill. It is specifically refined for tempering a heavenly being's body. One pill can save a seventh-realm body cultivator the equivalent of one month’s standard body tempering..." the woman explained with a smile.

Yaoguang took a look... Good heavens, a single bottle costs thirty spirit stones!

However, that was not the most shocking part; pills that merely increased body tempering efficiency were relatively inexpensive. After all, one could slowly grind through the progress of body tempering over time.

The truly expensive pills were those that enhanced one's comprehension of the realm of heavenly beings and aided in breaking through bottlenecks. Their prices were several times higher than those of body tempering pills.

"Hmm?! This is... the Indestructible Golden Body Pill!?" Yaoguang's gaze suddenly locked onto a certain pill. "The Immortal-Proving Tower actually sells this kind of medicine?!"

The books left behind by the Jiang family of the Crimson Star Empire recorded that a seventh-realm body cultivator once relied on a single bottle of Indestructible Golden Body Pills to elevate his physical strength by an entire tier in just one month.

"Of course. Moreover, our Indestructible Golden Body Pills have a twenty percent better effect compared to the older versions," the woman said with a smile. "Even the Five-Qi Origin Pills, which can condition the physical body to perfection, are available at the Immortal-Proving Tower, as long as you can afford the price."

Only then did Yaoguang turn his attention to the price tag of that pill... It was six hundred spirit stones.

The Jiang family had not paid tribute to the main family for over forty years, yet they had only managed to accumulate fewer than eighty spirit stones, despite controlling half the world. Although the Artifact-Nurturing World was not a spiritual power node and thus had very low spirit stone production, this still indirectly proved how rare they were.

Over the last year and a half, Yaoguang had spent a significant number of spirit stones using the Five-Emperor Soul-Refining Furnace to refine Soul-Nurturing Pills; his remaining stock had dwindled to fewer than thirty. With his current capital, he could not even afford a single bottle of Heavenly Being Pills.

As he pondered, Yaoguang searched the pill section for a moment and quickly found the Soul-Nurturing Pills.

"This..." When he saw the price of Soul-Nurturing Pills at the Immortal-Proving Tower, he was momentarily stunned.

By comparison, the cost of purchasing the Soul-Nurturing Pills was actually cheaper than the cost of the spirit stones he consumed to power the Five-Emperor Soul-Refining Furnace to refine them himself!

Zong Yan noticed Yaoguang's gaze and quickly understood the source of his surprise. He explained, "As I mentioned, every industry has now entered the era of large-scale industrialization. Alchemy is no different. As one of the six top powers, the Immortal Alliance possesses alchemy techniques far superior to ours, and they have pushed costs down to an extremely low level..."

He paused for a moment. "Recently, with the opening of the Nine Cauldrons Sect's markets, a massive influx of foreign goods has arrived. We can now easily purchase large quantities of cheap pills, refined artifacts, talismans, and array disks from the Immortal Alliance, the Infinite Star Palace, the Great Sun Sword Sect, and the Star Sea Sect."

After hearing this, Yaoguang regained his composure. This scene felt somewhat familiar to him.

Were the Immortal Alliance, the Infinite Star Palace, the Great Sun Sword Sect, and the Star Sea Sect trying to destroy the Nine Cauldrons Sect's manufacturing system through these cheap commodities? No wonder the Nine Cauldrons Sect repeatedly declared the need for trade protection.

He spent a long time wandering through the pill section until the woman's smile began to stiffen. Finally, he took two spirit stones from Zong Yan, which Zong Lian had provided for his use, to make up the full amount for a bottle of Heavenly Being Pills. After completing the purchase, he departed.

1. Core Formation refers to the process of forming a Golden Core. The whole concept of the Golden Core is based on alchemy. The Golden Core is essentially an internal pill that is formed when one uses their own body as a furnace. ☜