Streams of pure spiritual energy poured into Li Ye's body. Under the operation of the Wood God Art, it quickly transformed into a thread of magical power and merged into his dantian and qi sea.
As the cultivation technique completed a full circulation, faint ripples stirred within his dantian.
A fresh drop of liquid magical power formed.
With that, Li Ye's total accumulation of liquid magic surpassed the three-hundred-drop threshold!
A flash of violet-blue spiritual light flickered in his eyes. In that instant, it was as if flowers bloomed, trees rose tall, and countless shadows of flora appeared.
Li Ye exhaled gently, calculating silently,
"Just sixty-five more drops of liquid magical power, and I will reach full cultivation… At this pace, it won't take more than a few years!"
"And over thirty percent of my liquid magical power has already solidified… It's not only due to the constant refinement from the Void Realm's spiritual energy, the Wood God Art also plays a role. The closer I get to the peak realm, the more it enhances the solidification of my magic."
"Once I reach full cultivation, a forty percent solidification rate is a baseline… maybe I could even push it close to fifty percent!"
His eyes gleamed with delight and anticipation.
He had achieved this level of foundation without the aid of any spiritual treasures. Now that he had obtained the Frost Condensate Water, even without the Profound Fire Essence, his chances of forming a Golden Core were already quite high!
Moreover, his custom Golden Core pill formula had nearly reached completion only some final experiments and adjustments were needed to ensure success.
With all this in place, once he reached full cultivation, he could attempt forming a core at any time. The constraints had significantly loosened.
Still, proper preparation was essential. Those suspected ruins of the Secret Pavilion once his cultivation was complete could be explored using blood-forged talismans and puppets.
Finishing his cultivation for the day, Li Ye walked out leisurely.
A maidservant soon arrived to attend to him, asking what he needed.
Li Ye gave a few casual instructions before heading to the pavilion, where he sat to enjoy the mountain-and-water scenery.
Before long, plates of exquisite snacks and dishes were served, and Rong Yue glided in gracefully.
"Young Master, here is the intelligence gathered on the Four Nations during this time..."
After presenting a jade slip, she naturally moved behind Li Ye, resting his head on her soft lap, and began massaging his pressure points with practiced hands.
Li Ye's expression grew relaxed and content as he began scanning through the information with his spiritual sense.
The biggest event in recent times was the conflict between Thousand Island Water City and Jiuding Valley.
During a decisive battle, Thousand Island Water City had nearly been crushed by JiudingValley's meticulous plans. Just as their fall seemed inevitable, a mysterious Golden Core cultivator suddenly appeared, turning the tide completely.
JiudingZi was slain on the spot, and the coalition forces of Jiuding Valley crumbled instantly. Thousand Island Water City made a stunning comeback.
The Wu Kingdom coalition, which had almost taken over half of the Jing Kingdom, retreated overnight. Meanwhile, the previously rebellious sects and clans scrambled to either flee or offer apologies.
Thousand Island Water City seized the chance to hit them while they were down. They rallied their loyal forces, consolidated their power, and pursued the Wu cultivators until all lost territory was reclaimed.
Without a Golden Core cultivator to hold it up, Jiuding Valley's grip on the Wu Kingdom weakened significantly. Should Thousand Island Water City wish for future revenge, it was now entirely feasible.
With external threats driven off, they turned inward, using lesser traitorous factions to wipe out the more severely rebellious ones.
They let those forces slaughter each other, then sent in their people to clean up the mess.
Within a short span, the land ran red with blood, and the remaining powers trembled in submission.
The Jing Kingdom, which had been on the verge of being swallowed whole, was swiftly reclaimed by Thousand Island Water City and its dominance was stronger than ever.
All of this had one main cause: the death of JiudingZi, and more importantly, the mysterious Golden Core cultivator linked to Thousand Island Water City one whose true identity was still unknown, making everyone wary.
Who knew if he might act again for them?
Even JiudingZi had died at his hands. What chance did any of these Foundation Establishment factions have?
If they happened to run into him… that would be a fate worse than death!
In the wake of such iron-fisted purges, many sects and families from both the Jing and Wu Kingdoms fled. Some turned their eyes to the Chidi Mountain Range, hoping to establish a new base there.
After all, compared to the terrifyingly active Tier-3 black flood dragon, the uncertain threat of Tier-3 fire beasts lurking underground seemed less daunting.
As for their fate well, it went without saying.
Li Ye didn't even need to act himself. He handed out a few scrolls of formation diagrams, and his Foundation Establishment subordinates Luo Feibai and the other three handled everything.
There was barely any resistance; the invaders disappeared without a trace.
Such efficiency greatly bolstered the reputation of Li Ye of Mount Pingyang. No one dared harbor thoughts of usurping his territory anymore.
Li Ye casually read the intelligence while sampling the pastries, occasionally chatting with Rong Yue.
"Young Master, regarding those locations you gave us, Vice Alliance Leader Luo has made several valuable finds. However, some were already looted or occupied when our people arrived..."
"But following your instructions, they acted cautiously and kept a low profile. They should be returning safely before long."
"As for the sites suspected to contain Tier-3 spiritual plants, we've marked out the regions and assigned people to guard and search them. All that's left is for you to inspect them personally."
"Mm. Nicely done… Report any abnormalities to me at once. Don't let our origins be exposed."
Li Ye nodded in satisfaction.
While he wasn't interested in managing affairs personally, building his power base certainly had its perks.
For now, all this mundane work could be handled by others saving him time and effort.
"We understand..." Rong Yue replied sweetly. With business out of the way, she suddenly sighed with emotion:
"If it weren't for that mysterious Golden Core stepping in, Thousand Island Water City would've been doomed. I never imagined such a dramatic turnaround..."
"To single-handedly shift the balance between two nations turning the tide with a wave of the hand… That kind of Golden Core expert is truly terrifying. I've never even heard of someone like that before. Who could that senior be…?"
"Truly a role model for us cultivators!"
Li Ye, too, looked slightly wistful, murmuring, "Golden Core… If I can one day reach that stage, I'll have no regrets in this life."
At least for now, that was true.
Rong Yue was briefly silent, then said earnestly:
"With your extraordinary talent and your deep mastery of alchemy, I believe no bottleneck can stop you from forming your core, Young Master!"
Her tone was sincere, clearly believing her own words.
Resting his head more comfortably in her lap, Li Ye chuckled,
"Then I'll borrow our little Yue'er's blessing."
.....
Thousand Island Water City
Having repelled the enemy forces and crushed the rebellion, the situation was finally under control.
Ou Cha and his fellow disciples sat together, raising their cups in celebration.
"We've survived this great calamity this calls for a proper toast! Come, brothers, let me offer you a drink!"
With a cup of spirit wine downed, smiles bloomed across everyone's faces.
Ou Cha spoke with emotion,
"That old ghost Jiudingzi is dead, and we've finally secured our footing."
"At first, we were preparing to flee to the Chidi Mountains, planning to seize their foundation, slowly uncover the hidden legacy buried beneath, and return for revenge once we reached the Golden Core stage..."
"But now we've managed to hold on to the foundation our master left us. We don't need to risk venturing into that dangerous place. Truly, I feel an immense weight lifted from my heart what a stroke of fortune for us!"
"From this day on, we must unite and give our all, not letting down our master's life's work. We'll build Thousand Island Water City into a lasting legacy thriving for centuries to come!"
As those words were spoken, the group suddenly felt, as if by some unspoken sense, that a great danger had passed them by like they had narrowly escaped a disaster.
Laughter and joy filled the room once more as they raised their cups again.
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