Even so, Gu Qinghe was still a core disciple of the Yin-Yang Sect. Lin Ruyue had certain matters she needed to discuss with him, but she could not do so now due to his secluded cultivation.
"You're important to me. I won't allow you to be harmed."
Lin Ruyue formed hand seals, summoning four white flags and sending each one flying toward different positions.
"Formation… activate."
Red walls appeared, linking one flag to another and forming a sealed box. The location of Gu Qinghe's secluded cultivation was instantly concealed.
The red light on the formation walls gradually faded and vanished. No one could enter unless the formation itself was destroyed.
If that happened, Lin Ruyue would sense it immediately and respond without delay.
"This formation will help conceal your aura. Your conflict with Sect Master Han Shen means your life is constantly in danger."
Not long after, Lin Ruyue flew away and left the area. Her departure over the snowy hills went completely unnoticed by Li Xiaoman.
Core Formation is crucial for me. Only after reaching Core Formation can I cure Wang Yunxi's curse.
Gu Qinghe sensed the presence of a stranger outside his cultivation cave. However, that person did not attack him.
He realized the individual was trying to keep him safe. The formation she set up was capable of shielding his aura, making him undetectable to any cultivator below the Nascent Soul realm.
He tapped his bag of holding, summoning three qi essences.
The three orbs floated before him, each capable of accelerating his breakthrough into Core Formation.
The Realm-Breaking Foundation Pill rested in his palm. With the three qi essences and the pill, Gu Qinghe estimated that he could break through to Core Formation within six months to a year.
"I must break through as soon as possible!"
He swallowed the pill and began forming hand seals, activating Silent Yin Extraction.
His surroundings fell into absolute stillness as streams of qi continuously poured into his meridians.
Even so, Gu Qinghe knew that breaking through to Core Formation was far more difficult than advancing within the Foundation Establishment realm.
***
One year later.
Li Xiaoman arrived at the core disciples' hall together with Yun Shangxing.
Three months earlier, Sect Master Han Shen had promoted several inner disciples who had shown remarkable progress.
Now, the total number of core disciples had increased to twelve, including Gu Qinghe.
Ming Hui and Lin Ruyue entered the hall. All disciples lowered their heads in greeting.
"Greetings, Great Elder Ming. Greetings, Great Elder Lin."
The two elders stood on the platform at the front of the hall, surveying the core disciples.
There were eleven of them present. Gu Qinghe was absent—again.
"No news from Junior Gu?" Ming Hui asked.
Li Xiaoman shook her head. She knew nothing about Gu Qinghe's whereabouts. The young man had never explained much to her.
Ming Hui turned to look at Lin Ruyue. The woman smiled gracefully and met his gaze.
"I don't know. I don't manage male core disciples."
Ming Hui clicked his tongue in annoyance, irritated by Gu Qinghe's repeated absence from training.
No one knew where the young man had gone, leaving Ming Hui with no choice but to consider searching for him personally.
"I'll go look for him!" Ming Hui declared.
"You want to search for him? When will you be back?"
"And leave your duty of supervising their training?" Lin Ruyue asked sharply.
Ming Hui halted mid-step. His responsibility was to train the male core disciples and prepare them to break through to Core Formation.
Out of the twelve, seven were male core disciples. Lin Ruyue clearly refused to let Ming Hui dump that responsibility on her.
"There's no need to worry about Gu Qinghe. He'll show up when he needs something," Lin Ruyue said calmly.
She instructed Li Xiaoman and the others to begin meditating and focus on cultivation. Ming Hui let out a breath and relented.
"Fine. I'll punish him when he comes back."
A faint smile appeared on Lin Ruyue's face when she saw that Ming Hui had abandoned the idea of searching for Gu Qinghe.
The man soon led the male core disciples outside to train their techniques.
Lin Ruyue sat on the platform and cultivated alongside the female core disciples.
Time continued to pass. Lin Ruyue and Ming Hui alternated in their teaching duties.
When Lin Ruyue focused on cultivation training, Ming Hui handled techniques, and vice versa.
In the middle of one cultivation session led by Lin Ruyue, a violent surge of qi erupted from the location of the flag formation—far stronger than usual.
Even so, Lin Ruyue's formation was able to suppress the qi shockwaves, preventing them from spreading outward.
At most, a faint disturbance would reach the spring region, far too weak for Ming Hui to notice.
Lin Ruyue opened her eyes and rose from her meditative posture, drawing the attention of Li Xiaoman and the others.
"What is it, Great Elder Lin?"
"I need to attend to something. Continue cultivating."
"Yes."
Lin Ruyue left the core disciples' hall, her gaze briefly shifting toward Ming Hui, who was focused on training the male disciples.
She summoned her flying sword and departed. Her destination was clear—the winter region, to witness Gu Qinghe's breakthrough.
She increased her speed, passing the abandoned wooden house on the snowy hill before arriving behind the mountain.
The flags were intact, but her cultivation sight detected increasingly violent qi fluctuations.
It was a clear sign that Gu Qinghe's secluded cultivation was nearing its end.
A massive qi explosion erupted, blasting snow and dust in all directions. Lin Ruyue remained completely unaffected, protected by her own qi.
Gradually, the fluctuations subsided and slowed. The raging wind ceased, and a figure stepped out of the cave.
Gu Qinghe walked forward with steady steps. Golden qi formed beneath each footfall, and the aura radiating from him had grown significantly stronger.
[Congratulations!]
[You have broken through your cultivation level]
[Cultivation Stage: Early Core Formation]
[Qi: 150,000 / 300,000]
[Congratulations! Earth-grade techniques and formations can now be learned]
[Congratulations! Soul strength increased. Earth-grade pills can now be refined]
Gu Qinghe's attention shifted to the sky. He saw a woman flying atop her sword, her face familiar.
He summoned his own flying sword and moved toward her. The closer he got, the clearer her features became.
However, he could not approach any further, blocked by the walls of Lin Ruyue's flag formation.
"Greetings, Great Elder Lin Ruyue!" Gu Qinghe called out.
"Breaking through to Core Formation using only a Realm-Breaking Foundation Pill. Not bad," Lin Ruyue said.
"You praise me too much, Elder Lin."
Qi light gathered in Lin Ruyue's hand as she deactivated the formation.
The four flags embedded in the ground flew back toward her and vanished in an instant.
"Congratulations, Gu Qinghe," Lin Ruyue said. "Wang Yunxi would never have imagined that you'd manage to break through to Core Formation."
Gu Qinghe gasped, his eyes widening. "How do you know about Wang Yunxi?"
Lin Ruyue smiled as she observed his shocked expression. She had expected this reaction—after all, Wang Yunxi likely had never spoken about her past to him.
"That's because we were friends."
"Friends?"
"It seems she never told you anything, Qinghe," Lin Ruyue said calmly.
"Wang Yunxi… was once the Pill Refinement Hall Elder of the Yin-Yang Sect."