In the alchemy chamber on Dragon's Hidden Mountain, Shan Hu's pill refinement entered its final, crucial stage.
The essence of the five-element medicinal liquids, the Nine-Leaf Purple Ganoderma, and the Fire Ganoderma rapidly spun within the Nine Heavens Profound Fire. All conflicts between the medicinal properties were perfectly suppressed by the Immortal Emperor's powerful Divine Sense, and the medicinal mass began to coalesce into a solid form visible to the naked eye.
Accompanied by a low, decisive shout of "Coagulate!", Shan Hu abruptly brought his hands together. The azure Profound Fire extinguished instantly, and all the medicinal power retracted.
Only three round pills, emitting a five-colored light, remained suspended in the air within the chamber. Threads of profound Dao charm flowed across the pills' surfaces, and the potent aroma, upon being inhaled, made one feel the meridians throughout the body clear and eased, as if about to ascend to immortality.
The Foundation Establishment Pill!
One furnace, three pills, all refined to Upper-Grade quality.
Shan Hu nodded with satisfaction. Though they were merely mortal-grade Foundation Establishment Pills, under the tempering of his Nine Heavens Profound Fire, their quality had reached the pinnacle of Earth's alchemy. These three pills were enough to rapidly stabilize his Foundation Establishment realm, with one reserved for Qin Wan'er to rebuild her Dao foundation.
Without hesitation, he picked up one of the Foundation Establishment Pills and swallowed it.
The pill melted instantly upon entering his mouth, transforming into an extremely pure Five-Element True Essence that immediately surged through his entire network of meridians.
"Boom!"
A muffled sound exploded within his body. The bottleneck of his Ninth-Layer Qi Refining Stage was easily breached by this vast power, as if it were made of paper!
Immense spiritual energy surged from the surrounding Spirit Gathering Array, forming a gigantic vortex that rushed toward Shan Hu's head.
The Qi Refining Stage was complete!
However, the medicinal power of the Foundation Establishment Pill was far from exhausted. Under the Immortal Emperor's guidance, this power, carrying all the five-element essences, began to construct a brand-new core in his Dantian.
Within the Dantian, True Essence compressed and refined, eventually coalescing into a miniature "Dao Platform"—Foundation Establishment was successful!
Shan Hu abruptly opened his eyes, two sharp beams of light shooting out and piercing through the stone walls of the chamber. He felt his entire body filled with explosive power, able to command the spiritual energy of Heaven and Earth with every gesture.
"Early Foundation Establishment is complete. Power has increased by more than a hundredfold. Even Wang Xiaotian is now merely an ant that can be crushed at will in this Emperor's eyes." Shan Hu murmured softly, his tone calm but filled with supreme confidence.
He stood up, stored the remaining two Foundation Establishment Pills, and cast his gaze toward Longcheng.
"Wang Xiaotian, the guide to the Yellow Springs that this Emperor prepared for you has been refined."
Longcheng, The Following Day.
The events of the previous night stirred up monstrous waves within Longcheng's upper circles.
All major powers were frantically investigating the identity of the mysterious youth who dared to challenge the Foundation Establishment Ancestor. However, apart from the vague clues that "he came from Dragon's Hidden Mountain" and "he has an intimate relationship with Qin Wan'er," they found nothing concrete.
The Ye Family in the Capital.
Ye Qingyun sat in the top-floor office of the Capital branch, his expression solemn. In his hand was a piece of intelligence from Longcheng, containing only one sentence: "Near Dragon's Hidden Mountain, there was a spiritual energy anomaly at midnight last night, the intensity of which exceeded Early Foundation Establishment."
"Exceeded Early Foundation Establishment..." Ye Qingyun abruptly crushed the teacup in his hand.
He knew better than anyone Shan Hu's strength and potential. If Shan Hu had previously displayed the Innate power capable of crushing the mortal martial world, he had now stepped into the true realm of cultivation.
"Immediately relay this information to the Patriarch! The Wang family has hit a steel plate this time—no, they've challenged a divine mountain from the Immortal Realm! We absolutely must not participate in the Wang family's actions. Furthermore, dispatch someone to Longcheng to closely monitor the situation and prevent us from incurring any misunderstanding with that... Mr. Shan."
The Black Tortoise Society.
The Black Tortoise Society was the largest alliance of rogue cultivators near Longcheng. When they received the Wang family's plea for aid, offering a Foundation Establishment Pill as a reward, the organization was in an uproar.
"Ancestor Wang was forced to ask for aid? Just how strong is that young man?"
A high-ranking member of the Black Tortoise Society, a man with white hair and beard who was in the Middle Foundation Establishment Stage, pondered for a long time, eventually shaking his head. "The Foundation Establishment Pill is tempting, but the enemy the Wang family faces is absolutely not someone rogue cultivators like us can interfere with. He dared to openly challenge Wang Xiaotian; he is either a madman or he has the backing of a Gold Core Ancestor. Pass down the order: the Black Tortoise Society shall remain in seclusion for three days and must not step foot in Longcheng!"
The Qin Family.
Qin Wan'er's father, Qin Mingyuan, sat in his study, his hands trembling as he looked out the window. He knew his daughter had been taken away by a mysterious youth last night, and he had heard about the Wang family's fury.
He had originally resigned himself to despair, preparing to face the Wang family's retaliation. However, when his daughter, Qin Wan'er, quietly returned to the Qin family this morning, the unprecedented confidence and glow in her eyes shocked him.
Qin Wan'er only left one sentence: "Father, in three days, the Wang family will cease to exist. Prepare to take over all of Longcheng's resources."
Qin Mingyuan's heart pounded wildly. He finally understood that the Qin family's fate had completely changed. Instead of running, he began secretly summoning the Qin family's trusted confidantes, preparing to welcome the upheaval three days later.
The air in Longcheng grew heavier and heavier. Everyone knew that an epoch-making battle, one that would determine the future destiny of Longcheng, was about to begin.