Chapter 157: The Shock of You Yunzi

Jiang Fan couldn't help but frown.

Nangong Xiaoyun was already so formidable, yet the Deputy Pavilion Master of the Heavenly Mechanism Pavilion was personally guiding her. Wasn't that a bit unsportsmanlike?

It seemed he had to go all out to help Liu Qingxian. Otherwise, it would be too difficult for her to win.

The group of four entered the Martial Soul Hall.

Inside the hall, ancient stone statues exuded immense majesty.

Liu Qingxian was accompanying Jiang Fan for his cultivation, her full attention on him as she explained:

"Stand before a statue, and it will project a light phantom to battle you. If your incomplete moves or techniques match those the statue possesses, it will complete them for you. However, be aware that the completed techniques appear in several layers. You must complete one layer of cultivation before the next appears. And you can stay in the Martial Soul Hall for a maximum of three days. How many layers you can learn depends on your comprehension."

Jiang Fan nodded thoughtfully.

So, simply having a technique completed didn't mean one would learn it all. Strong comprehension was also required.

"Let's go to the other side," Jiang Fan said. He glanced at Nangong Xiaoyun and You Yunzi, then pulled Liu Qingxian to the back of a statue.

Liu Qingxian's heart fluttered slightly. She slipped her hand from his, muttering unnaturally, "It's just cultivation, why are you being so sneaky?"

Jiang Fan quietly took out a bottle of Unusual Path Powder, slipped it into her hand, and whispered beside her ear:

"First, try to see if you can break through to the Core Formation stage."

Feeling the warm breath on her ear, Liu Qingxian's body stiffened. Her heart pounded even faster. She forced herself to act calm and asked, "What's in this bottle?"

"'Unusual Path Powder,' a spiritual medicine for breaking through to the Core Formation stage," Jiang Fan replied.

"What?" Liu Qingxian was startled and shrieked, "Breakthrough to Core For—mmph!"

Jiang Fan quickly covered her lips, saying, "Do you have to let Nangong Xiaoyun hear us?" He was speechless. He had pulled Liu Qingxian to an unpopulated corner precisely so she could secretly break through to the Core Formation stage. This way, when they faced each other later, she could catch her opponent off guard, giving herself a greater chance of winning.

Now, it was too late. Nangong Xiaoyun had probably already heard, and there was no hiding it anymore.

"Oh?" You Yunzi indeed noticed, his eyes showing surprise. "Liu Qingxian is going to break through to Core Formation here?"Nangong Xiaoyun's eyes widened. "No way! Now? Where would the Azure Cloud Sect get a spirit pill for breaking through to the Core Formation stage?"Throughout the Nine Sects' territory, all spirit pills for the Core Formation stage originated from only one place: the Heavenly Mechanism Pavilion. After all, these were Grade 3 spirit pills, something ordinary One-star or Two-star Soul Masters couldn't possibly refine. And the Heavenly Mechanism Pavilion hadn't released any such pills for several years. Where would the Azure Cloud Sect conjure one from?

Nangong Xiaoyun muttered, "Could it be a psychological tactic to disrupt my cultivation?"

You Yunzi slowly nodded. "Cultivate diligently. Even if there truly is a spirit pill, breaking through to the Core Formation stage isn't guaranteed. That pill only has a maximum of a thirty percent chance of success."

On the other side, Liu Qingxian realized she had revealed the secret and embarrassedly stuck out her tongue. However, she didn't realize Jiang Fan's hand was still covering her mouth. When she stuck it out, her tongue brushed against Jiang Fan's palm. Jiang Fan flinched as if shocked, quickly pulling his hand back. His palm felt a strange tingle, making him clear his throat and say, "Go on, take it first." Liu Qingxian's face flushed even more. Her mind was a mess, so she quickly diverted her attention, saying, "Alright, alright, I'll try to break through first."

The two stopped whispering. Since it was already exposed, they might as well proceed openly with the breakthrough. After swallowing the bottle of powder, Liu Qingxian immediately sat cross-legged, circulated her cultivation technique, and gathered the surrounding spiritual energy.

The medicinal effect quickly took hold. Liu Qingxian's body steamed with white vapor, turning crimson as if she were a red-hot iron figure. A powerful aura flickered around her, gathering and dispersing. These were the signs of breaking through to the Core Formation stage.

From a distance, You Yunzi sensed it and was startled. "She's really going to break through!" Nangong Xiaoyun's eyes snapped open. She asked, astonished, "Does that Jiang fellow really have a spirit pill for the Core Formation stage? But why is his spirit pill so effective? Just one pill can form a core? I barely succeeded after taking three pills!"

You Yunzi also found it incredible, murmuring, "This Elder Jiang truly keeps a low profile! What he has must be a different, more powerful spirit pill."

Suddenly, You Yunzi's expression changed slightly. "Oh no, the breakthrough is about to fail. The aura appearing and disappearing indicates insufficient spiritual energy gathered, a sign of core formation failure. Either her cultivation technique needs to be strong enough, or she needs to be in an extremely concentrated spiritual energy area; otherwise, failure is unavoidable." But at this point, it was too late for her to change locations for the breakthrough. As for her cultivation technique, that was out of the question. "What a pity," You Yunzi sighed.

Liu Qingxian herself sensed the precarious situation, her face anxious. She was just a step away from breaking through to the Core Formation stage. This was the closest she had been to the Core Formation stage in years. Now, all she lacked was sufficient spiritual energy! Yet, no matter how desperately she tried to absorb spiritual energy, it was far from enough to meet the requirements for forming a core. The spiritual energy needed for core formation far exceeded her expectations.

Jiang Fan also perceived the danger. It seemed Liu Qingxian's cultivation technique couldn't sustain the spiritual energy required for core formation.

"Stay calm, keep cultivating. Leave the rest to me." Jiang Fan placed his palm on her head, and the transparent spiritual root within him quietly began to circulate. The powerful spiritual root, like a towering tree with countless roots, drew all the spiritual energy from every direction towards them.

In the blink of an eye, the spiritual energy became several times denser, almost forming a spiritual mist! And the spiritual energy continued to gather ceaselessly. Amidst such abundant spiritual energy, even if Liu Qingxian's cultivation technique was slightly lacking, every absorption brought several times the amount she had previously managed. Consequently, her dissipating aura reappeared and steadily strengthened. The core formation, which was on the verge of failure, was actually successfully salvaged!

Witnessing this scene, You Yunzi's eyes showed traces of shock, and he gasped. "What a terrifying spiritual root! It can actually draw in such a massive cloud of spiritual energy!"

Nangong Xiaoyun wrinkled her delicate nose, somewhat unconvinced. "No matter how powerful, can he be as powerful as our Pavilion Master?"

You Yunzi's aged eyes were filled with shock as he shook his head. "In terms of strength, Elder Jiang naturally cannot compare to our Pavilion Master. But in terms of spiritual root, that's hard to say."

"What?" Nangong Xiaoyun's already round eyes widened to the size of walnuts. She gasped. "But... but our Pavilion Master has a Grade Nine spiritual root! Grade Nine!"

You Yunzi also couldn't suppress the shock in his heart, muttering to himself, "Just who is this Elder Jiang?"

As time passed, half a day later, a faint rumble came from Liu Qingxian's abdomen. It was a sign of her spiritual pool shattering and transforming into an inner core!

She suddenly opened her eyes. Her beautiful, snow-like eyes were filled with uncontrollable delight. "I've formed my core! Jiang Fan, I've formed my core!"

Overwhelmed with joy, she scrambled up, grabbed Jiang Fan's hand, and spontaneously bounced around. It was like a child receiving a long-desired toy, expressing pure joy from the depths of her heart.

However, she suddenly noticed that Jiang Fan's gaze towards her body was shifty and seemed off.