Chapter 439 - 326: Middle Grade
Fang Yun’s chances of a successful Core Formation were now even higher than Bai Qinying’s had been.
After carefully storing the Middle-grade Golden Core Pills, Fang Yun went to get some much-needed rest.
...
「Several days later.」
Song Qiaoqiao went to see the Sect Leader, Duan Qingyun.
As the Management Elder of Dan Cloud Peak, she had plenty to report to the Sect Leader. This time, however, she had come about Fang Yun’s successful refining of the Golden Core Pills.
Fang Yun had already given her the newly refined Golden Core Pills.
"Sect Leader."
The moment Duan Qingyun saw Song Qiaoqiao, he knew what she was here for. Lately, there was only one reason she would seek him out.
"Elder Song, how many Golden Core Pills did Elder Fang manage to refine?" Duan Qingyun asked, his voice filled with anticipation. He had previously told Song Qiaoqiao to give Fang Yun the first batch of Spirit Medicine for the Golden Core Pills as a practice run, but now that the time had come, he still couldn’t help but hope for a yield of three pills.
For an influence at the Core Formation Level like theirs, every single Golden Core Pill was crucial.
"Three," Song Qiaoqiao replied.
"Excellent! Absolutely excellent!" The Sect Leader was overjoyed to hear there were three Golden Core Pills.
Fang Yun’s success with the Golden Core Pills had already surpassed their expectations.
Come to think of it, Fang Yun’s successes in alchemy had surpassed their expectations many times before. This was, without a doubt, a wonderful thing.
"And among those three Golden Core Pills, one is Middle Grade."
"What? Say that again." Duan Qingyun, who was at the mid-Core Formation stage, suspected something was wrong with his ears.
At the Sect Leader’s request, Song Qiaoqiao repeated herself.
"He actually refined a Middle-grade Golden Core Pill!"
"Sect Leader, you can see for yourself." As she spoke, Song Qiaoqiao took out three small, specially crafted jade vials, each containing a single Golden Core Pill.
Song Qiaoqiao was not at all surprised by the Sect Leader’s excitement.
After all, when she first learned of Fang Yun’s alchemy results with the Golden Core Pills, she had been even more ecstatic than the Sect Leader was now.
"It really is a Middle-grade Golden Core Pill!"
Three Golden Core Pills was already beyond his expectations. That one of them was a Middle-grade Golden Core Pill was something Duan Qingyun would have never dreamed of.
From what he knew, the quality of even the best batch of Spirit Medicine they had provided wasn’t exceptionally high.
Under these circumstances, for Fang Yun to produce a Middle-grade Golden Core Pill from the third cauldron... he was simply incredible!
Honestly, at this moment, Duan Qingyun even began to wonder if Fang Yun had secretly refined two or three cauldrons of Golden Core Pills in the past to achieve such a phenomenal result now.
Duan Qingyun knew this Middle-grade Golden Core Pill was of immense significance to the Celestial Cloud Sect.
When it was Fang Yun’s time to break through, using a Middle-grade Golden Core Pill would greatly increase his chances of a successful Core Formation. And once Fang Yun reached the Core Formation Stage, the sect’s future for the next three hundred-plus years would be secured.
The fact that even the Purple Mist Sect had come to ask Fang Yun for a favor was proof enough that even sects at the Nascent Soul Level highly recognized his talent.
In a Nascent Soul sect, a talent like Fang Yun would typically be groomed with the hope of raising them to the Nascent Soul Stage, where they could become a pillar of the sect.
If Fang Yun could refine Middle-grade Golden Core Pills now, it wasn’t impossible that he could refine Top-grade Golden Core Pills in the future.
"Sect Leader, with this development, we can now begin discussions with the other Three Sects about refining Golden Core Pills."
"Yes, I know."
Duan Qingyun nodded repeatedly at Song Qiaoqiao’s reminder.
Negotiations over the Golden Core Pills certainly couldn’t be handled the same way as those for the Foundation Establishment Pills.
When refining Foundation Establishment Pills, Fang Yun could consistently produce Top-grade ones, allowing them to demand four sets of the required Spirit Medicine as payment. They couldn’t apply the same terms to the Golden Core Pills.
Every Core Formation Sect had a similar, limited supply of the Spirit Medicines needed to refine Golden Core Pills—only a few sets per century. Consequently, it was imperative that every set of these precious Spirit Medicines be successfully converted into pills. Previously, this meant that seeking out the Purple Mist Sect’s Elder of Alchemy was the best option.
Duan Qingyun’s mind was already racing. ’When I negotiate with the other Three Sects, I can offer a slightly lower price for refining Golden Core Pills. Then I can guarantee that with high-quality Spirit Medicine, there’s even a chance of producing a Middle-grade pill.
’And if we do produce a Middle-grade Golden Core Pill, the payment for refining will increase accordingly.
’But the most important point is this.
’The other Three Sects don’t know about Fang Yun’s results. So, if he refines a Middle-grade Golden Core Pill for them, we can swap it with one of our own Low-grade Golden Core Pills.
’That’s exactly what the Purple Mist Sect does.
’When we’ve had the Purple Mist Sect refine Golden Core Pills for us, the Low-grade pills we received back were clearly not freshly made; they had been stored for some time. But since they were always well-preserved, we couldn’t really complain.
’If we were to question them, the Purple Mist Sect could even claim the refining process failed and that the pill they gave us was just their "guaranteed" compensation.
’Now, our Celestial Cloud Sect can finally do the same thing.’
...
「In the territory of the Demon Spirit Sect.」
Ma Qidong, at the Qi Refining Tenth Layer, was in the area, periodically scouting for information.
He was an Inner Sect Disciple of the Celestial Cloud Sect. Soon after becoming one at the Qi Refining Seventh Layer, he had joined the Evil Extermination Hall, one of the sect’s Three Halls.
Disciples of the Evil Extermination Hall focused primarily on intelligence gathering, with combat as a secondary concern.
Even during wartime, they were tasked with continuously gathering intelligence from the territories of the three Core Formation-level Evil Sects bordering their own.
Compared to wartime, gathering intelligence now was much safer.
Generally, as long as he was careful enough, there were unlikely to be any issues.
Sixty percent of the Evil Extermination Hall’s disciples were assigned to gather intelligence in the Celestial Demon Sect’s territory, while the remaining forty percent were responsible for the Demon Spirit Sect and the Black Ghost Cave.
Of that remaining forty percent, seventy percent were tasked with intelligence gathering in the Demon Spirit Sect’s territory, leaving the Black Ghost Cave with the least amount of coverage.
’What a powerful fluctuation of Spiritual Qi!’
Ma Qidong looked to the north.
From what he had learned about cultivation, a sudden, intense fluctuation of Spiritual Qi like this meant that a Heaven and Earth Spiritual Object had appeared.
’A Heaven and Earth Spiritual Object, appearing right here in the Demon Spirit Sect’s territory.’
Without a moment’s hesitation, Ma Qidong immediately transmitted this information back to the sect.
Then, he suppressed his aura as much as possible and cautiously approached the source of the powerful Spiritual Qi fluctuation.
This was a conscious decision on Ma Qidong’s part. In a situation like this, he had two options. The first was to do exactly what he was doing now. The second was to send the message and then immediately retreat in the opposite direction.
The latter was undoubtedly the safer course of action.
But his current path came with the potential for high rewards. ’What if I’m the one who ends up with the treasure?’
If this were Celestial Cloud Sect territory, he wouldn’t need to be so cautious.
To maintain optimal concealment, Ma Qidong moved slowly.
The Evil Extermination Hall drilled one lesson into its disciples above all else: when in the territory of the Evil Sects, be careful, then be more careful, and then be even more careful. Only by ensuring one’s own safety could one hope to gather sufficient intelligence.
Otherwise, what was the point of discovering critical information if you weren’t careful, got yourself killed, and couldn’t report it back?
’There’s a fluctuation of Demon Power.’
Ma Qidong glanced behind and to the side, then stopped moving and concealed himself completely.
The fluctuation of Demon Power wasn’t pure. Without a doubt, it was a Demon.
A Qi Refining Ninth Layer Demon.
’Looks like a Demon from the Mountain Demon Sect, a Foundation Establishment Influence subordinate to the Demon Spirit Sect.’
Lying in wait, Ma Qidong made an instant judgment the moment he saw the Demon.
As an Inner Sect Disciple of the Evil Extermination Hall, one needed the ability to make quick assessments after gathering information.
And among the disciples of the Evil Extermination Hall, Ma Qidong was considered exceptional in every respect.
’I could probably take care of a Qi Refining Ninth Layer Demon quickly, but it would likely expose my position.’ So, Ma Qidong chose to remain hidden.
If it had been a Demon at the Qi Refining Seventh Layer—or any level below the late Qi Refining stage, for that matter—he would have observed his surroundings, and upon confirming it was alone, struck without hesitation.
’A Qi Refining Ninth Layer Demon from the Mountain Demon Sect is already here. Getting my hands on this Heaven and Earth Spiritual Object is going to be much, much harder now.’
Now, he faced the same two choices as before.
The only difference was that the risk of pressing forward had increased. A Qi Refining Ninth Layer Demon from the Mountain Demon Sect had already shown up; soon, a Foundation Establishment Demon from the same sect might appear as well.