Gou Zai Fei Men made up myths

Finally, it was A-Yuan's turn. The jade bottle she presented contained only three golden pills, emanating a unique, calming aura.

Shen Mo picked up one, carefully sensing it, a hint of surprise flashing in his eyes: "Hmm? This pill... can actually nourish the soul? A-Yuan, what did you add?"

A-Yuan was a little nervous and whispered, "Reporting to the sect leader, this disciple... this disciple followed Senior Sister's recipe to refine it, but I didn't control the heat well. When it was almost finished, I was afraid that the medicinal power would dissipate, so... so I tried adding a small drop of the 'morning dew' I collected last time, and a little bit of 'tranquil flower' pollen... This disciple knows my mistake and wasted the medicinal materials..."

Her voice grew softer and softer as she spoke, and she lowered her head.

Li Xiaocao hurriedly said from the side, "Sect Leader, this girl is being reckless! The Tranquilizing Flower herb is mild, but it's incompatible with the main ingredient of the Foundation Establishment Pill, which is potent! It almost caused an explosion! Luckily, Qingqing discovered it early..."

Shen Mo smiled, put the pill back into the bottle, and looked at A Yuan gently: "What's wrong with that? The path of alchemy sometimes requires this kind of unconventional 'fuss'."

"Although your pill is slightly less potent for Foundation Establishment, it is very beneficial for nourishing the soul and stabilizing the mind. It can be named 'Spirit Nourishing Foundation Establishment Pill,' which has remarkable effects on disciples troubled by inner demons or for consolidating their realm after Foundation Establishment. A-Yuan, you are intelligent, that's good."

A-Yuan looked up abruptly, her big eyes filled with surprise and disbelief: "R-really? Sect Leader, you don't blame me?"

"It's not my fault," Shen Mo said confidently. "In the future, you can be bolder when refining pills, but you must remember that boldness must be accompanied by meticulousness. Always do your calculations and prepare backup plans."

"Yes! This disciple remembers!" A-Yuan nodded vigorously, her little face flushed with excitement.

Shen Mo placed the three jade bottles on the table and looked at Li Xiaocao: "Junior Sister Xiaocao, the Pill Hall has made a great contribution this time. The new Foundation Establishment Pill formula should be classified as a sect secret."

"Elder Han will allocate resources later, and the Pill Hall will do its best to refine them, prioritizing supply to the newly initiated disciples who are about to establish their foundation. A Yuan and Mu Qingqing will each receive a reward."

"Thank you, Sect Leader!" the three women said in unison.

Li Xiaocao rubbed her hands together excitedly and said, "Sect Leader, with this batch of new medicinal herbs, I feel like we can try many ancient prescriptions! For example, the 'Golden Condensation Pill' recorded in the 'Flowing Cloud Pill Scripture' is said to be able to assist in the formation of the pill, but the main ingredient, the 'Nine-Leaf Golden Lotus,' has long been extinct, and the prescription is also incomplete..."

"I'm now thinking that using pansies and 'Emerald Lotus' as substitutes might actually work!"

Her eyes lit up when she talked about alchemy.

Upon hearing this, Shen Mo's heart stirred slightly. Condensing the Golden Core? Assisting in Core Formation? This perfectly aligned with his next plan.

He pondered for a moment and said, "The ancient elixir formula is extremely profound. If it can restore the body, it will be a great merit. Since Junior Sister Xiaocao has this intention, you may give it a try."

"If you need any books or medicines, just ask Elder Han. If you have any questions, you can also go to the Scripture Pavilion to look up those incomplete scrolls; you may find something there."

His words, seemingly ordinary encouragement, actually contained a deeper meaning. In the library, there were indeed a few "incomplete" records about ancient elixirs that he had "unintentionally" placed there in his early years, which happened to coincide with the direction that Li Xiaocao wanted to study.

This is both an affirmation of her abilities and a silent form of guidance.

Li Xiaocao didn't think too much about it; she only felt the sect leader's strong support, and immediately became full of energy: "Sect leader, rest assured! I will definitely figure out how to make the Golden Condensation Pill for you!"

After offering a few more words of encouragement, Shen Mo dismissed them.

After the three left, Han Lin stroked his beard and smiled, "Sect Leader, this breakthrough in the Pill Hall is truly a blessing for the sect. With the new disciples on the verge of Foundation Establishment, the sect's foundation will be even more solid."

Su Xiao also said, "Pills are the foundation of cultivation. The strengthening of the Pill Hall is of great significance to our sect and even the entire alliance."

Shen Mo gazed at the still-glowing, magnificent Danxia landforms above the direction of Baicao Valley outside the hall, his eyes deep: "Yes, the foundation... this is the true foundation. However, these Danxia landforms are so dazzling, they're bound to attract a lot of attention."

Han Lin and Su Xiao's expressions tightened, realizing the unspoken meaning behind Shen Mo's words.

The breakthrough of Dantang is a good thing, but it also means that Qingyun Sect has more coveted resources, which will inevitably attract more covetousness.

"Junior Sister Xiao," Shen Mo instructed, "Raise the Shadow Guard's protection level for the Pill Hall to the highest level. Especially the herb garden and pill formulas, they must not be lost."

"Yes!" Su Xiao solemnly replied.

Shen Mo said no more, his fingertips unconsciously tapping the jade slip on the table that contained incomplete information about the "Golden Condensation Pill".

......

Behind the main peak of Qingyun Mountain lies a secluded valley called "Yanzhen Valley". This place is shrouded in mist all year round, with a unique terrain that naturally forms a nine-palace eight-trigram formation, making it an excellent place for disciples of the Formation Hall to practice martial arts and set up formations.

Normally, the only sounds in the valley are the spinning array plates and the buzzing of spiritual energy. Occasionally, disciples would argue heatedly over the location of an array eye.

But these past few days, the Array Training Valley has been unusually lively, even somewhat... chaotic.

In the center of the valley, the once flat sand table was now crisscrossed with ravines and filled with small flags of various colors, representing spiritual vein nodes and array bases of different attributes.

Zhao Qingyan, dressed in a plain white Taoist robe, stood in front of the sand table, her delicate brows furrowed, a wisp of spiritual light condensing at her fingertips, slowly moving above the sand table to outline an intricate three-dimensional array.

Behind her, Zhou Yi and several core disciples were busy, constantly recording the calculated data into the jade slip, their foreheads covered in fine beads of sweat.

"No! Still no good!" Zhao Qingyan suddenly stopped, the spiritual light at her fingertips dissipating. She wearily rubbed her temples. "The flow of spiritual energy between the 'Yaoguang' and 'Kaiyang' positions is stagnant. Forcing a connection will cause an imbalance of stellar energy, and the entire 'Small Heavenly Circuit' will collapse!"

Zhou Yi quickly came over and looked at the two flickering points of light on the sand table, his brows furrowed: "Uncle-Master, according to the traditional 'Zhou Tian Xing Dou Zhen' (a type of formation) diagram, these two nodes should be stabilized with 'Void Stones' to guide the stellar power through a smooth transition."

"But the Void Stones we currently possess are only of a quality sufficient to support basic, small-scale formations. To achieve the scale you envision—covering the entire mountain and drawing upon the true power of the celestial sphere—it's far from enough!"

A young disciple nearby, panting, chimed in, "Uncle-Master Zhao, the warehouse said that the last batch of high-grade Void Stones was approved by Elder Zhao of the Weaponry Hall last month to be used to refine the core array plate of the 'Flowing Cloud Boat'! Now there are only some scraps left..."

Zhao Qingyan sighed, her beautiful face showing signs of exhaustion.

Since returning from the Abyss of Ten Thousand Laws, she has observed the naturally formed law array in the secret realm and comprehended the array principles left by Ancestor Liuyun. She has come up with an extremely bold idea for upgrading the mountain-protecting array, transforming the existing "Small Nine Palaces Liuyun Array" into a "Zhou Tian Xing Dou Grand Array" that can truly draw upon the power of the stars in the heavens, integrate offense and defense, and even evolve and grow on its own!

If this formation is successful, Qingyun Mountain will be impregnable, and it will also be able to gather the essence of the stars, benefiting all disciples of the sect in their cultivation. However, although the idea is good, its implementation is fraught with difficulties.

The biggest challenge is the rare materials needed for setting up the array, especially the "Star Gold" and "Void Stone" which serve as the core array base and can bear and channel the violent star power. The demand is astronomical, and the quality requirements are extremely high.

Even with Qingyun Sect's current resources, they couldn't raise even one-tenth of the total, no matter how hard they tried.