Chapter 284 : Golden Core Stage Core Building——

Hua ‍​‌‌​​‌​‌​‌‌‌‌​​‌​‌​​‌​‌​​‌‌‌​​​​​‌‌​​‌​​​‌‌​‌​​‌​‌​​‌​​‌​​‌‌​‌‌​​‌​​‌​​‌​‌‌​‌​‌​​‌‌​‌‌​​​‌‌‌​‌‌​​‌‌​​‌​‌​‌‌​‌‌​‌​‌​‌​​​‌​​‌‌​‌​‌​‌‌​​​​‌​‌‌​‌‌​​​‌​​‌‌‌​​‌​‌​‌‌​​‌‌​​‌​​​‌​​​‌​‌​​‌‌‌​​‌​‌​‌‌​‌​​‌​‌​‌​‌​‌​​​‌‌‌​‌​‌​‌​‌​‌‌‌​‌‌​​‌‌​​‌​​​‌​‌​‌‌​​‌​​​​‌​​​‌‌​​​​​‌‌​​‌​​​‌‌​‌‌​‌​‌​‌‌​​‌​​‌‌​​‌‌​‌‌​​‌​‌​‌‌​‌‌​‌​‌‌​​​‌‌​​‌‌‌​​‌​‌​‌​​​​​‌​‌​​‌‌​‌​​‌​​‌​‌‌‌​​‌‌​‌​​‌​​‌​‌‌​‌‌‌​​‌​‌‌​‌​​‌‌​‌​​​​‌‌​​​‌​​‌​​‌​​​​‌​‌​‌‌​​‌‌​‌‌​​​‌​​‌​​‌​‌‌​‌​‌​​‌‌​‌‌‌‌​‌‌​‌​​‌​‌​​‌‌​​​​‌‌​​‌​​‌‌​​‌​​​‌‌​‌​​‌​‌‌​​‌​​​‌​‌​‌​​​‌‌​‌‌​​​‌​​​‌‌​​‌‌​​​‌‌​‌‌‌‌​‌​​‌​‌‌​‌​​‌​‌​‌​‌​‌‌​​​‌‌​‌‌​‌‌‌​​‌​​‌‌‌​​‌‌‌‌​​‌​‌​​‌‌‌‌​‌​‌​‌​‌​‌​​​‌​‌​​‌‌​​‌​​‌​​‌‌​‌​​‌‌​​‌​​‌​​‌‌‌​​‌​‌​​‌​​‌​​‌‌‌‌​‌​‌​‌‌‌​‌‌‌​‌​​​‌​‌​​‌‌​‌‌​​​‌​​‌​‌‌​​​​‌‌​​‌‌‌​‌‌‌‌​​‌​‌​​‌‌‌​​‌​‌‌​​​​‌‌​​‌​​​‌‌​‌‌​​​‌​‌​‌​‌​‌​‌‌​​​​‌‌​​​‌‌​‌‌‌‌​​​​‌‌​​‌​‌​‌‌​‌​‌‌​‌​‌​‌‌​​​‌‌​​‌‌​‌​​‌‌​‌​‌‌​‌‌‌​​‌‌​​‌​​​​‌‌​​​​​‌​‌‌​‌​​‌​‌​‌‌‌​‌‌​‌‌​​​‌‌​‌​​​​‌​‌​​‌​​​‌‌​​​​​‌‌​‌‌​​​‌​​‌‌​‌​‌​‌​​‌​​‌​‌​‌​​​‌​‌​​‌​​‌‌‌​​​‌​‌​​‌​‌‌​​‌‌​​​‌​‌​‌​​‌​​‌​​​‌‌​​‌​‌‌​‌​​‌​‌​‌​‌​‌​‌​‌‌​​‌​‌​‌‌​​‌​​‌‌​​​​‌‌​​‌​​‌‌‌​​​​​‌​​‌‌​‌​‌​​‌‌‌​​​‌‌​​​‌​‌​​​‌‌​​​‌‌​​​​​‌​‌​‌​‌​​‌‌​​‌‌​‌​​‌​‌​​‌​‌‌​​‌​‌​​‌‌​‌​​‌‌​​​‌​‌‌​‌​​​​‌‌‌​​‌​​‌​‌‌​‌​​​‌‌​​​​​‌​‌‌​‌​​‌​​​​‌​​‌​‌‌​​‌​‌‌​‌‌​​​‌​‌​​​‌​​‌‌​​​​​‌​​‌‌​‌​‌​‌​‌‌‌​‌​​‌‌‌​​‌​​‌​​‌​‌​‌​‌‌‌​‌​‌​‌‌‌​​‌‌‌​​‌​‌​‌​‌‌‌​‌​‌​‌​‌​‌​‌​‌​‌​‌​​​‌​‌​​‌‌​​‌​​‌​​‌‌​​​​‌‌​​‌​​‌‌​‌‌​​​‌‌​​​​‌​‌‌​​​‌‌​‌‌​‌​‌‌​‌‌​‌​​​​‌‌​‌​​‌​‌​‌​‌‌‌​‌​​‌​​​​‌​‌​​​‌​‌‌‌​​‌​​‌​‌​‌‌‌​‌​‌​‌​‌​‌‌‌​‌​​​​‌‌​​​​​‌​‌​‌‌‌​‌​‌​‌‌‌​‌‌​‌​​​​‌‌‌​‌‌​​‌‌​​​​‌​‌​​​‌‌​​‌‌​‌‌​​​‌‌‌‌​‌​​‌​‌​‌‌‌​‌​‌​‌​​​‌​‌​​‌​​‌​​‌​‌‌​‌​‌​​‌‌​‌‌​‌‌​‌​‌​​​‌‌​​​‌‌​​​‌​‌​‌‌​‌​​‌‌​‌‌​‌​‌​​‌‌‌​​‌‌​‌​​‌​‌​‌​‌‌‌​‌​​​‌‌‌​‌‌‌​​​​​​‌‌​‌​​​‌​​‌​‌‌​​‌‌​​‌​​‌‌​​‌​​​‌‌​‌‌‌​​‌​‌​​‌​​‌​‌​‌​​​‌‌​‌​​​​‌‌​‌‌‌​​‌​‌​​‌‌​‌​‌​‌‌​​‌​​‌‌​‌​​‌‌​‌​​​‌​‌​​‌​​​‌‌​​‌​​‌‌‌​‌‌‌​​‌‌​​​​​‌‌​​​​‌​‌‌​‌​‌‌​‌​​‌‌‌​​‌‌‌​​‌​​‌‌​​‌​‌​‌‌​‌​‌‌​‌‌‌​​‌‌​​‌‌​‌​‌​‌​‌​‌​‌​‌‌​‌‌‌​​‌​​‌​‌​​‌​​‌​‌‌​‌​​‌‌​‌​‌​​‌​​​​‌​​‌‌‌​​‌​‌‌​‌​​‌​​‌‌​‌​‌​‌​‌‌‌​​‌‌​‌​‌​‌​​‌‌‌​​‌​​‌​‌‌​​‌‌​​​‌​‌​‌​​‌​​‌​‌‌​​​​‌‌​​​‌​​‌​​​‌‌​​‌​​​​​‌​​‌‌​​​​​‌​‌​‌‌​​‌‌​‌‌​‌​‌​‌​​‌​​‌‌‌​‌​‌​‌​‌​‌‌​​‌​‌​‌‌‌​‌‌‌‌​​​​‌‌‌​​​​​‌‌​​‌​​​‌‌​‌​‌‌​‌‌‌​​​​​‌​​​​‌​​‌​‌​​​​​‌​‌​‌​​​​‌‌​​​​​‌‌​‌​​‌​‌​​‌‌​​​‌​​​​‌‌​‌​​‌​‌​​‌‌‌​‌​​​‌​‌‌​​‌​‌​‌​‌‌‌​‌​​‌‌​‌​‌‌​‌​​‌​‌​​‌‌‌‌​‌‌​‌​​‌​‌​​‌​​‌​​‌‌​​​‌​‌​‌‌​​‌​‌​‌​‌​​​‌‌​​‌‌‌​​‌‌​​​‌​‌​​‌‌​‌​‌‌‌‌​‌​​‌​‌​‌‌​​‌‌​‌‌​​​‌​​‌‌​‌​‌​‌​‌​​​‌​​‌‌​‌​​‌‌​‌​‌​‌​​‌‌‌​​‌​‌​‌​​​‌​‌​​​‌​​‌‌​‌​‌​‌​​‌‌​‌​‌​‌​‌‌‌​‌​‌‌​‌​​‌‌​‌​​‌​‌​​‌‌‌​​‌​‌​‌​​​‌​‌​‌‌​​‌‌​‌​‌​​‌​​‌‌‌​​‌‌​‌‌​‌​‌​‌​‌‌​​‌‌​‌​‌‌​‌​​‌‌‌​​‌‌‌‌​‌​​‌‌​​​‌‌​‌‌‌‌​​‌​‌​​‌‌‌‌​‌​‌​‌​​​‌​‌‌​‌​​‌‌​‌​‌‌​‌​​‌‌​‌​‌​‌​‌​​​‌​​‌‌​‌​‌‌‌‌​​​​‌​​‌‌​‌​‌​​​‌​​​‌​​​​​‌​‌‌‌‌​​‌​‌​‌‌​‌​​‌‌​‌​‌​​‌​‌​‌​‌​​‌‌​​‌‌​‌​‌‌​​‌​‌‌‌‌​‌​​‌​‌​​​‌​‌‌‌‌​​​​‌​​‌‌​‌​‌‌​‌‌​‌​‌​​​‌​‌​‌‌‌​‌‌‌​‌​‌‌​​‌​‌​‌​‌​​​‌​‌​‌‌​​‌‌​‌‌​​​‌​‌‌​​‌​‌​‌​‌​​​‌​​​‌​‌​​‌‌​‌​‌​‌​‌‌​​‌​‌​‌​‌​​​‌​​​‌​‌​​‌‌​​‌​​‌​​‌‌‌​​‌​‌​‌‌‌​‌​‌‌​​‌​‌‌‌‌​‌​​‌​‌‌​‌​​‌​​​‌‌‌​‌​​‌​​‌​​‌‌​​‌‌​‌​​‌‌​‌​‌‌​‌‌​‌​‌​​‌​​‌​‌‌‌​‌‌‌​‌​​‌‌‌​​‌‌​‌​‌​​‌‌​‌‌​​​‌‌​‌​‌‌​‌​​‌​​‌​‌‌​‌​​‌​‌‌‌​‌‌‌​‌‌​‌​​‌​‌‌​​‌​​​‌​​​‌‌‌​‌​​​‌‌​​‌‌​‌‌‌​​‌​​‌​​‌​‌‌​‌​‌​​‌‌​‌‌‌‌​‌‌​‌​​‌​‌​​‌​​‌​‌‌​‌‌‌​​​‌‌​​​​​​‌‌‌‌​‌‍Yaoyue naturally could no longer hear Medicine King’s grief-stricken voice.

Because ‍​‌​‌​​​​​‌‌​​​​‌​‌‌​​‌‌‌​‌‌​​‌​‌​​‌​​​​​​‌‌​​​​‌​‌‌​​‌​​​​‌‌​​​​​​‌‌‌​​‌​​‌‌​​‌‌​​‌‌​​​​​​‌‌​​‌​​‌‌​​‌​​​‌‌​​‌​‌​​‌‌‌​​‌​​‌​​​​​​‌‌​‌‌‌‌​‌‌​​‌‌​​​‌​​​​​​‌‌‌​‌​​​‌‌​‌​​​​‌‌​​‌​‌​​‌​​​​​​‌‌​​​​‌​‌‌​‌‌‌​​‌‌​​​‌‌​‌‌​‌​​‌​‌‌​​‌​‌​‌‌​‌‌‌​​‌‌‌​‌​​​​‌​​​​​​‌‌‌​‌​​​‌‌​‌‌‌‌​‌‌​‌‌​‌​‌‌​​‌​‌​​‌​​​​​​‌‌‌​‌‌‌​‌‌​​​​‌​‌‌‌​​‌‌​​‌​​​​​​‌‌​‌‌​‌​‌‌​‌​​‌​‌‌‌​​‌‌​‌‌‌​​‌‌​‌‌​‌​​‌​‌‌​‌‌‌​​‌‌​​‌‌‌​​‌​‌‌‌​‍by the time Medicine King let out that anguished cry, she had already brought Ji Yuan back to the Water Dragon Sect.

When ‍​‌​‌​​​​​‌‌​​​​‌​‌‌​​‌‌‌​‌‌​​‌​‌​​‌​​​​​​‌‌​​​​‌​‌‌​​‌​​​​‌‌​​​​​​‌‌‌​​‌​​‌‌​​‌‌​​‌‌​​​​​​‌‌​​‌​​‌‌​​‌​​​‌‌​​‌​‌​​‌‌‌​​‌​​‌​​​​​​‌‌​‌‌‌‌​‌‌​​‌‌​​​‌​​​​​​‌‌‌​‌​​​‌‌​‌​​​​‌‌​​‌​‌​​‌​​​​​​‌‌​​​​‌​‌‌​‌‌‌​​‌‌​​​‌‌​‌‌​‌​​‌​‌‌​​‌​‌​‌‌​‌‌‌​​‌‌‌​‌​​​​‌​​​​​​‌‌‌​‌​​​‌‌​‌‌‌‌​‌‌​‌‌​‌​‌‌​​‌​‌​​‌​​​​​​‌‌‌​‌‌‌​‌‌​​​​‌​‌‌‌​​‌‌​​‌​​​​​​‌‌​‌‌​‌​‌‌​‌​​‌​‌‌‌​​‌‌​‌‌‌​​‌‌​‌‌​‌​​‌​‌‌​‌‌‌​​‌‌​​‌‌‌​​‌​‌‌‌​‍they passed Forgotten Worry Island, Hua Yaoyue did not say anything. With a casual release of her hand, she simply dropped Ji Yuan, then headed straight back to Forgotten Worry Island herself.

Ji ‍​‌​‌​​​​​‌‌​​​​‌​‌‌​​‌‌‌​‌‌​​‌​‌​​‌​​​​​​‌‌​​​​‌​‌‌​​‌​​​​‌‌​​​​​​‌‌‌​​‌​​‌‌​​‌‌​​‌‌​​​​​​‌‌​​‌​​‌‌​​‌​​​‌‌​​‌​‌​​‌‌‌​​‌​​‌​​​​​​‌‌​‌‌‌‌​‌‌​​‌‌​​​‌​​​​​​‌‌‌​‌​​​‌‌​‌​​​​‌‌​​‌​‌​​‌​​​​​​‌‌​​​​‌​‌‌​‌‌‌​​‌‌​​​‌‌​‌‌​‌​​‌​‌‌​​‌​‌​‌‌​‌‌‌​​‌‌‌​‌​​​​‌​​​​​​‌‌‌​‌​​​‌‌​‌‌‌‌​‌‌​‌‌​‌​‌‌​​‌​‌​​‌​​​​​​‌‌‌​‌‌‌​‌‌​​​​‌​‌‌‌​​‌‌​​‌​​​​​​‌‌​‌‌​‌​‌‌​‌​​‌​‌‌‌​​‌‌​‌‌‌​​‌‌​‌‌​‌​​‌​‌‌​‌‌‌​​‌‌​​‌‌‌​​‌​‌‌‌​‍Yuan did not summon his Flying Boat either. He simply fell straight down, like a meteor from beyond the heavens, crashing into Forgotten Worry Island.

The ‍​‌​‌​​​​​‌‌​​​​‌​‌‌​​‌‌‌​‌‌​​‌​‌​​‌​​​​​​‌‌​​​​‌​‌‌​​‌​​​​‌‌​​​​​​‌‌‌​​‌​​‌‌​​‌‌​​‌‌​​​​​​‌‌​​‌​​‌‌​​‌​​​‌‌​​‌​‌​​‌‌‌​​‌​​‌​​​​​​‌‌​‌‌‌‌​‌‌​​‌‌​​​‌​​​​​​‌‌‌​‌​​​‌‌​‌​​​​‌‌​​‌​‌​​‌​​​​​​‌‌​​​​‌​‌‌​‌‌‌​​‌‌​​​‌‌​‌‌​‌​​‌​‌‌​​‌​‌​‌‌​‌‌‌​​‌‌‌​‌​​​​‌​​​​​​‌‌‌​‌​​​‌‌​‌‌‌‌​‌‌​‌‌​‌​‌‌​​‌​‌​​‌​​​​​​‌‌‌​‌‌‌​‌‌​​​​‌​‌‌‌​​‌‌​​‌​​​​​​‌‌​‌‌​‌​‌‌​‌​​‌​‌‌‌​​‌‌​‌‌‌​​‌‌​‌‌​‌​​‌​‌‌​‌‌‌​​‌‌​​‌‌‌​​‌​‌‌‌​‍instant he landed, a thunderous boom rang out, and the entire island trembled violently.

He ‍​‌​‌​​​​​‌‌​​​​‌​‌‌​​‌‌‌​‌‌​​‌​‌​​‌​​​​​​‌‌​​​​‌​‌‌​​‌​​​​‌‌​​​​​​‌‌‌​​‌​​‌‌​​‌‌​​‌‌​​​​​​‌‌​​‌​​‌‌​​‌​​​‌‌​​‌​‌​​‌‌‌​​‌​​‌​​​​​​‌‌​‌‌‌‌​‌‌​​‌‌​​​‌​​​​​​‌‌‌​‌​​​‌‌​‌​​​​‌‌​​‌​‌​​‌​​​​​​‌‌​​​​‌​‌‌​‌‌‌​​‌‌​​​‌‌​‌‌​‌​​‌​‌‌​​‌​‌​‌‌​‌‌‌​​‌‌‌​‌​​​​‌​​​​​​‌‌‌​‌​​​‌‌​‌‌‌‌​‌‌​‌‌​‌​‌‌​​‌​‌​​‌​​​​​​‌‌‌​‌‌‌​‌‌​​​​‌​‌‌‌​​‌‌​​‌​​​​​​‌‌​‌‌​‌​‌‌​‌​​‌​‌‌‌​​‌‌​‌‌‌​​‌‌​‌‌​‌​​‌​‌‌​‌‌‌​​‌‌​​‌‌‌​​‌​‌‌‌​‍stood up from the deep crater he had smashed into the ground, completely unharmed.

‘After reaching Peak Foundation Establishment, my physique really has strengthened by several levels again. With my current condition, Early Foundation Establishment spells should barely even hurt when they hit me.’

‘Unfortunately, entering the second layer of the 《Nine Revolutions Profound Yang Art》, the ‘Tendon-Forging Realm’, still won’t be that easy. Otherwise, my physique would already be able to fight Golden Core Cultivators head-on.’

After climbing out, Ji Yuan casually filled in the crater, then went to a nearby mountaintop and sat cross-legged, once again looking inward at his own body.

His Foundation Establishment Stage had now already reached its peak.

Liquid Spiritual Energy could also fill his entire Dantian.

It was just that he had only recently broken through and his condition had not yet reached its peak, so there were still some gaps inside his Dantian.

But even once it was full, that would only be temporary, because Ji Yuan would definitely continue consuming Three-Colored Spiritual Eggs afterward, compressing the Spiritual Liquid inside his Dantian so that it could hold even more.

Next were the Sword Embryos of his nine Life-Bound Flying Swords. At present, all of them had already been frozen by his ice-attributed Spiritual Energy, but this still had no effect on Ji Yuan whatsoever. He could take them out and use them at will, and freely return them to his Dantian.

‘Forget it. I’ll fill the Dantian first.’

As he thought this, Ji Yuan took one step and returned to the 【Cave Dwelling】, then went down into the underground 【Spirit Vein】 and began greedily absorbing the surrounding Spirit Stones.

By the time Ji Yuan opened his eyes again after sitting there, twenty days had passed.

During these twenty days, he had absorbed who knew how many Middle-Grade Spirit Stones, and had finally filled his Dantian completely.

‘Next, I only need to consume one Three-Colored Spiritual Egg every day and slowly absorb it, letting it cleanse my Dantian.’

Ji Yuan was just thinking of getting up and leaving when, at that very moment, he suddenly discovered that the entire Panel in his mind had refreshed.

Immediately afterward, the entire Building Panel began glowing golden.

“This is……”

Ji Yuan’s eyes involuntarily widened.

The last time the Panel displayed such a phenomenon was when his cultivation reached Peak Qi Refining. Back then, the Panel had also behaved like this, after which the Foundation Establishment Stage core building appeared.

That was also the 【Meditation Room】, which had helped Ji Yuan tremendously all the way until now.

Then what about this time?

His cultivation had reached Peak Foundation Establishment and Spiritual Energy had once again filled his Dantian. Did that mean the Golden Core Stage core building was about to appear?

Actually, Ji Yuan had already pieced together clues from the Panel regarding this core building. If his guess was correct, then the Golden Core Stage core building should be called……【Grotto-Heaven】!

As though responding to his thoughts,

the other buildings on the Panel all shifted one step outward. Immediately afterward, a golden building gradually began appearing in the very center of the Panel.

“Gold……I pulled gold!”

Ji Yuan’s eyes involuntarily widened, and even his breathing stopped at once.

He simply stared silently at the newly appeared building.

At a vague glance, his first impression was that this building resembled the 【Cave Dwelling】 somewhat. At least, its exterior looked somewhat similar.

‘But why do I have a bad feeling?’

Ji Yuan inexplicably began feeling uneasy.

But a golden building had appeared. Shouldn’t this be an excellent thing? Why would he have a bad feeling?

In a daze, Ji Yuan suddenly remembered something.

A mysterious string of numbers appeared in his mind.

“51 Middle-Grade Spirit Stones, 314 Lower-Grade Spirit Stones, 3 Spirit Stone Fragments.”

The moment he recalled this string of numbers, Ji Yuan abruptly sprang up from the ground.

“Not good!!!”

He could not help crying out.

He finally understood where this ominous feeling came from……back when the first core building appeared, activating the 【Meditation Room】 had completely drained him of every Spirit Stone he possessed!

The Panel had not even spared the final 3 Spirit Stone Fragments he had left.

Then what about this time?

Before Ji Yuan could think any further, he discovered that the golden building, which had been continuously manifesting and solidifying, suddenly stopped.

It froze right at the moment when it was almost, but not quite, fully visible.

It was like edging——stop!

“Damn Panel.”

Ji Yuan cursed inwardly.

Immediately afterward, a line of text appeared on the Panel, a line of text that made Ji Yuan both love and hate it.

【The Host has advanced to Peak Foundation Establishment with the aptitude of a False Spiritual Root, while the “Spiritual Field” has reached level 4 and produced the first “Pill Origin Fruit”.】

【The Host has hope of Core Formation and may activate the Golden Core Stage core building “Grotto-Heaven” (Life-Bound Magic Treasure).】

Here it came, here it came!

The Golden Core Stage core building really was called 【Grotto-Heaven】, and this 【Grotto-Heaven】 actually appeared in the form of a Life-Bound Magic Treasure as the core building.

Judging from the previous sentence, to activate this core building, the 【Spiritual Field】 first had to reach level 4 and produce a “Pill Origin Fruit”.

Looking at it this way, he had accidentally stumbled onto the correct path.

Since that was the case, what was there to hesitate about?

This involved a Life-Bound Magic Treasure. How could he possibly not activate it?

With his heart pounding nervously, Ji Yuan chose to activate it.

Then another line of text appeared on the Panel……here it came, here it came!

【Do you wish to spend “83 Upper-Grade Spirit Stones, 98,373 Middle-Grade Spirit Stones, 888 Lower-Grade Spirit Stones, 98 Spirit Stone Fragments” to activate Grotto-Heaven?】

The instant Ji Yuan saw that long string of numbers,

he felt as though his heart had stopped for half a beat.

By the time his heart resumed beating, he had already gone from standing to lying down.

He lay atop the 【Spirit Vein】 covered in Spirit Stones, staring blankly at the cave ceiling that resembled a sky filled with stars.

The ceiling was densely embedded with Spirit Stones.

There were both Middle-Grade Spirit Stones and Lower-Grade Spirit Stones.

But……what use was that?

All the beauty in this world was just like these Spirit Stones. Very soon, none of it would belong to him anymore.

Ji Yuan now deeply regretted not remembering this matter sooner.

If he had remembered in advance, he would have spent all these Spirit Stones beforehand. Even exchanging all of them for Spiritual Artifacts would have been fine.

Then he could have left only a few Lower-Grade Spirit Stones as his entire fortune and used those to activate the 【Grotto-Heaven】.

After activating it, he could then resell the Spiritual Artifacts.

Even if he took a loss, it would not be too large.

But thinking about it again, that probably would not have worked either. If the Panel truly needed this many Spirit Stones, then exploiting a loophole would not help.

But the problem was……this was way too damn much!!!

I painstakingly saved like a hamster for dozens of years and only accumulated this little fortune, and now you want to drain me dry in one go. How the hell are you so capable?!

Ji Yuan lay there for a long time. In the end, all his countless words condensed into a single sentence.

“Actually, I still have to thank you, Mr. Panel. If not for you, I truly wouldn’t have known how many Spirit Stones I possessed. You even calculated it precisely down to the Spirit Stone Fragments. Thank you. I really, truly thank you.”

Ji Yuan was helpless, because this was fundamentally not something that could be negotiated.

Putting aside the fact that a Life-Bound Magic Treasure was itself one of the most important things throughout a spell cultivator’s cultivation journey,

even if it were not, the fact that this was a Golden Core Stage 【Core Building】 alone was enough to make him go all in.

So what was there left to hesitate about?

He would simply activate it with a thought.

As Ji Yuan’s thought fell, every Spirit Stone stored inside his Storage Pouch,

the Spirit Stones inside the 【Spirit Vein】 beneath him that he had been using like a mattress, the Spirit Stones embedded overhead in the Spirit Vein like countless stars,

and even the few Middle-Grade Spirit Stones he had placed inside his room as decorations all……vanished into thin air.

“No, no, my Spirit Stones!!!”

Ji Yuan hurriedly reached out and grabbed a Spirit Stone embedded in the stone wall beside him, clutching it tightly in his palm, but even so, he failed to save even a fraction of it.

The Spirit Stone vanished from his hand into thin air without leaving so much as powder behind.

With a single thought, tens of thousands of Spirit Stones disappeared.

Ji Yuan felt he had never before fought such an extravagantly funded battle.

And after that single thought, Ji Yuan completely and utterly became penniless.

From head to toe, he could no longer take out even a single Spirit Stone.

Forget Spirit Stones—even Spirit Stone Fragments were gone.

But as for the result……he closed his eyes and focused his mind, looking toward the Building Panel.

Once enough Spirit Stones had been provided, the 【Grotto-Heaven】 that had previously been on the verge of manifesting finally appeared completely.

His consciousness opened this core building.

【Grotto-Heaven (Life-Bound Magic Treasure): lv1 (Not Upgradeable)】

【Spiritual Effect 1: Once the Grotto-Heaven is unleashed, it shall ultimately suppress the Three Realms. A level 1 Grotto-Heaven possesses might comparable to a Golden Core Magic Treasure. Note: The more buildings it contains, the greater its might.】

【Spiritual Effect 2: By absorbing Voidstones, buildings can be contained within it. The more Voidstones absorbed, the more buildings it can contain. Note: The Cave Dwelling is compatible with the Grotto-Heaven and may be contained without requiring Voidstones.】

【Upgrade Requirements: Middle-Grade Spirit Stone ×30000. (Not Upgradeable)】

Simple?

Actually, it could no longer be considered particularly simple.

A mere level 1 building already possessed two spiritual effects, and regardless of which one he looked at, both seemed extraordinary.

As for Spiritual Effect 1, merely reading the opening description was enough to understand how serious this was.

“Once the Grotto-Heaven is unleashed, it shall ultimately suppress the Three Realms.”

What level would the 【Grotto-Heaven】 have to reach for that?

If it truly reached that point, once the 【Grotto-Heaven】 was released, wouldn’t it practically become a Heavenly Court?

Or perhaps a Divine Court?

Ji Yuan did not know.

But as for the following Spiritual Effect 2……it could contain all his buildings inside the 【Grotto-Heaven】, but doing so required consuming Voidstones.

As for Voidstones……Ji Yuan knew of them because upgrading the 【Cave Dwelling】 to level 4 also required this material.

But this thing was extremely scarce.

Because it inherently contained spatial properties, it was required to refine certain high-level Storage Pouches, as well as Magic Treasures and similar items.

Upgrading the 【Cave Dwelling】 alone required ten jin of Voidstone, and Ji Yuan did not even know where he was supposed to find that much.

Now refining his Life-Bound Magic Treasure also required Voidstones……

Ji Yuan recalled a previous casual conversation with Li Changhe, during which he had asked the Li Family’s eldest young master about Voidstones.

Li Changhe had also said that Voidstones were extremely scarce. In fact, throughout all of Eastern Shang, there was only one Voidstone mine, located on Shang Mountain and occupied by Eastern Shang’s largest Immortal Sect, the “Sword Ruins”.

At this thought, Ji Yuan could not help letting out a long sigh.

‘It looks like what I thought before was correct. The resources within the Cangluo Continent alone cannot support me very far. Forget everything else, even just upgrading my buildings will force me to venture across other continents.’

This made Ji Yuan think of the nautical chart he carried. With that, he could travel east to the Abyssal Continent.

He could also travel south to the Desolate Ancient Continent.

As for where exactly he would go, that could only be decided when the time came. The most urgent matter at present was still upgrading this 【Grotto-Heaven】 first.

If I upgrade this thing, does that mean I’ll already have a Life-Bound Magic Treasure while still at the Foundation Establishment Stage?

Wouldn’t that finally count as a true trump card of my own?

Moreover, according to what his Senior Brothers and Senior Sisters had told him, Life-Bound Magic Treasures were the easiest and most natural to wield.

Compared with using other Magic Treasures, the consumption required to use a Life-Bound Magic Treasure was also lower.

Since that was the case, what was he waiting for?

Even if he had to smash his pots and sell his iron, he had to upgrade this 【Grotto-Heaven】 Magic Treasure first.

As for containing buildings, he also had to take it extremely seriously, because Spiritual Effect 1 had deliberately included a “Note”.

The more buildings it contained, the greater its might.

Putting aside opening new buildings in the future, Ji Yuan did not even know how much Voidstone would be required merely to move all his current buildings into the 【Grotto-Heaven】.

Would one entire mine be enough?

Hard to say.

Afterward, Ji Yuan began thinking about how to smash his pots and sell his iron so that he could first upgrade this level 1 【Grotto-Heaven】.

30,000 Middle-Grade Spirit Stones……if the Panel had not just swept him clean,

upgrading it now would have been effortless.

But after being cleaned out, Ji Yuan turned and looked at the empty 【Spirit Vein】. It could almost no longer even be considered a 【Spirit Vein】.

Because there was not a single Spirit Stone left inside.

Without enough Spirit Stones supporting it, even the building effect of the Spirit Vein could not be activated.

‘Damn it. This Life-Bound Magic Treasure really sent me all the way back to square one.’

Thinking this, Ji Yuan walked out of the underground cavern in a few steps.

After returning to the surface 【Cave Dwelling】, he called Tu Yue over.

What should a master do when he had no money?

Naturally, ask his little maid for some.

“The production from these past few months……alright, these past few days?”

Ji Yuan had originally wanted to say the past few months, but just before speaking, he remembered that when he returned from outside several days ago, he had already cleaned Tu Yue out once.

Tu Yue did not speak. She merely obediently held out her Storage Pouch with both hands.

Ji Yuan accepted it and took a look.

There was not a single Spirit Stone inside. The only things remaining were a little Blood Essence, Spiritual Soil, and other basic guaranteed resources.

Who knew how many years ago Ji Yuan had already stopped caring about these things.

But now……he gladly accepted every bit.

He picked them up one by one and placed them into his own Storage Pouch before finally returning the completely empty Storage Pouch to Tu Yue.

After cleaning out his little maid, Ji Yuan began calculating how many things on his person could be sold.

First were some unimportant Immortal Materials, along with the pills and Spiritual Artifacts he had refined while stationed at the Pill Refining Room.

If he sold all of these……he estimated he could obtain around 3,000 Middle-Grade Spirit Stones.

And this was already the result of Ji Yuan working extremely hard, along with receiving some assistance from the 【Heavenly Craft Workshop】.

If this were an ordinary cultivator, it would be even less.

As for other things, he certainly could not sell the Spiritual Artifacts he commonly used. He could not neglect one thing for another and damage his own combat strength.

He could not sell the Thousand-Year Spiritual Milk either, and things like Talisman Treasures were even more out of the question.

After thinking it over again and again, there really were not many things he could sell……mainly because everything he could sell had already been sold before.

“Damn!”

Ji Yuan could not hold back and cursed inwardly again.

As for other things, those techniques could actually be copied and sold, but he would have to take them somewhere farther away. He could not sell them within the Water Dragon Sect.

Firstly, most of Ji Yuan’s techniques had actually come from the Water Dragon Sect.

Secondly, selling cultivation techniques was itself taboo among Immortal Sects, and Ji Yuan was worried about causing unnecessary trouble.

When he went toward Medicine King Valley later, he could find somewhere nearby and see whether he could sell some.

Right!

Although Dong Qian had left, the shop she left behind was still there. He had previously consigned many things there, so there should also be a sum of earnings waiting for him.

He could stop by and check later.

If that still was not enough, Ji Yuan could only wait until he returned to the Pill Refining Room and borrow some from Li Changhe.

Asking Hua Yaoyue for more would definitely work.

But Ji Yuan could not bring himself to ask.

……Actually, the best method would be to sell some Immortal Spring water, but right now was truly not a suitable time.

He was worried that the moment he took such a thing out to sell, the Six Immortal Sects would all make a move. If they directly used their connections to trace it back to him, things would become difficult to explain.

After finishing his calculations, Ji Yuan took the many items and headed straight for Myriad Things Island.

With fewer disciples remaining in the sect, the once-bustling Myriad Things Island had naturally become much quieter.

After Ji Yuan landed, he released his Divine Sense and swept across more than half the island, only to discover that many shops had already closed.

Now it was truly deserted.

Fortunately, Dong Qian’s shop was still open, and business even looked fairly good. Even at a time like this, there were still four or five customers inside.

Ji Yuan silently arrived at the entrance of the “Miraculous Medicine Shop”, and the sharp-eyed Shi Xiu’er spotted him immediately.

“Senior Brother Ji!”

Shi Xiu’er came forward with a trace of excitement, causing the other disciples to cup their hands and salute Ji Yuan as well.

Before long, these Qi Refining Cultivators finished their purchases. Moreover, although they usually loved bargaining, this time none of them even opened their mouths to do so. They paid their Spirit Stones and hurried away.

“Senior Brother Ji, you finally came back!”

Once there were no outsiders around, Shi Xiu’er’s voice became somewhat emotional.

“What happened? Is something wrong with the shop?”

“No……it’s just that Senior Sister Dong came back once not long ago. She said, she said……”

“What did she say?”

Ji Yuan’s tone became noticeably heavier.

“She said that from now on, this shop belongs to you. Then she also left a Storage Pouch with me and said it was for you.”

Shi Xiu’er’s voice grew quieter and quieter as she spoke. In the end, she merely obediently held out a Storage Pouch.

Ji Yuan did not suspect anything. He accepted it and swept it with his Divine Sense, immediately freezing in place.

His gaze became blank and stunned, and he even felt somewhat dazed.

Truthfully, his feelings for Dong Qian had not actually been that deep. So when he saw the farewell message Dong Qian had left some time ago, he had not been especially devastated either.

That was why his thoughts had even drifted toward the fact that Dong Qian had gone to a place where Demon Cores were everywhere.

But now, when he saw what was inside this Storage Pouch,

he finally understood that Dong Qian’s feelings for him……had truly been very deep.

For a moment, Ji Yuan felt a sour ache in his chest.

He clutched his chest and sat down on the spot.

“Senior Brother Ji……Senior Brother?” Seeing this, Shi Xiu’er panicked slightly and hurriedly called out several times.

“I’m fine. Go outside first. I just need to be alone for a while.”

Ji Yuan waved his hand without even raising his head.

“Alright.”

Shi Xiu’er hurriedly responded, then tiptoed quickly out of the shop and thoughtfully closed the door behind her.

With no outsiders present, Ji Yuan let out a long breath, his entire person looking somewhat lost.

He lowered his head and stared at the floor in a daze.

What lay inside the Storage Pouch was not a letter, nor was there any Jade Slip, much less some heavenly material, earthly treasure, miraculous pill, or elixir.

It was simply Spirit Stones.

The Spirit Stones Ji Yuan needed most right now.

They were all spread across the floor inside, so with one sweep of his Divine Sense, Ji Yuan immediately knew the exact amount.

8,232 Middle-Grade Spirit Stones, 234 Lower-Grade Spirit Stones, and another 9 Spirit Stone Fragments.

It could have been 9,000 Middle-Grade Spirit Stones. It could have been 8,000 Middle-Grade Spirit Stones.

But it just could not be exactly 8,232 Middle-Grade Spirit Stones!

She had even taken out her final 9 Spirit Stone Fragments.

Ji Yuan leaned backward and lay flat on the ground, his mind filled with scenes from the times he had spent together with Dong Qian……

“Senior Sister Dong……”

Ji Yuan murmured softly.

The only response was the sobbing evening wind outside the door and the yellowing autumn leaves beyond the window.