Chapter 264: Forming the Pill

Lu Yang was now in a profoundly mysterious state. He felt his perception of the outside world had significantly diminished, only sensing the Core Formation cultivators currently attacking him, while more distant areas had become blurred.

Conversely, the misty cloud in his dantian was becoming shallower, as if he could see what lay beyond the mist, just by parting it, revealing a halo of light.

A tiger-headed Jiao beast suddenly lunged at Lu Yang. This was a Tiger-Jiao, a demon beast that lived in water for a long time, now in the late Core Formation stage, capable of moving on land temporarily. Mu Tiancao had specifically brought it out of the lake to hunt Lu Yang.

Sensing the Tiger-Jiao's attack, Lu Yang lightly exhaled a wisp of Three-Flavored True Fire, which attached itself to the Azure Edge Sword.

The already sharp Azure Edge Sword, enhanced by the Three-Flavored True Fire, became even more formidable than before.

The Tiger-Jiao roared as it charged towards Lu Yang. Lu Yang twisted his wrist, lightly uttered "Sever," and the Azure Edge Sword sliced through. The Tiger-Jiao's head tumbled to Lu Yang's feet, and an enticing scent of barbecue wafted from the severed neck.

This was the "Sever" technique. While its power didn't match the "Break" technique, which drained a significant portion of his spiritual energy, it could be used consecutively, and its single-target damage was slightly stronger than the "Chop" technique.

Mu Tiancao tried to control the Tiger-Jiao's remains to attack, but Lu Yang, having anticipated this, once again activated the "Sever" technique, dismembering the Tiger-Jiao into eight pieces.

Another demon beast seized the opportunity, appearing at Lu Yang's feet. It was small, had three legs, and resembled a soft-shelled turtle. It held sand in its mouth and spat a mouthful towards Lu Yang's shadow.

This was a Yu, capable of "shooting sand and implicating shadows," poisoning enemies through their shadows.

Lu Yang, who had kept his divine sense active, had long noticed the Yu's subtle movements. He rapidly poured sword energy into the Azure Edge Sword, causing the Three-Flavored True Fire on it to flare up intensely, blazing fiercely and instantly altering Lu Yang's shadow.

Lu Yang stabbed back, piercing through the Yu's tough, dark green shell and killing it.

A Ba Serpent and a Fei Yi appeared on either side of Lu Yang. Both were ancient demon beasts, similar in appearance, both serpentine. They attacked simultaneously, intending to coil around Lu Yang and strangle him to death.

Lu Yang used "Ground as Prison," dragging the Ba Serpent underground. He also used the "Ground Shrinking" technique to follow. Since it was inconvenient to use the Azure Edge Sword underground, he covered his hands with True Fire and attacked with the Arhat Fist. The fist prints were radiant, turning the soil into scorched earth. The Ba Serpent didn't even have a chance to react before its dantian was shattered by the Arhat Fist.

Lu Yang emerged from behind the Fei Yi. While consuming a Great Rejuvenation Pill to restore his spiritual energy, he used the Azure Edge Sword to split the Fei Yi in half.

"I refuse to believe that so many Core Formation cultivators can't take you down! You're just a Foundation Establishment cultivator, stop struggling and die!" Mu Tiancao panicked, forced to speak loudly to cover his inner turmoil.

Whether it was the Tiger-Jiao or the Ba Serpent, these were his trump card servants, possessing immense potential in life, second only to Lu Yang as nourishment. Now, they were all slain by Lu Yang's fluid movements.

He felt Lu Yang was growing stronger step by step, his control over power becoming more refined, his movements lighter and more continuous, and his fighting style increasingly ingenious, allowing him to achieve victory with minimal cost.

This change must be stopped!

He shifted his focus from the Immortal Fairy to Lu Yang, dispatching more demon beasts to encircle and attack Lu Yang.

The Immortal Fairy noticed Lu Yang's transformation, and an involuntary smile appeared at the corner of her lips.

More and more demon beasts attacked Lu Yang; some were slain by him, while others had their dantians shattered by the Arhat Fist.

In contrast, Lu Yang's physical condition was worsening. Continuous use of sword techniques and the Arhat Fist rapidly depleted his spiritual energy, and even constantly consuming Great Rejuvenation Pills couldn't keep up with the rate of consumption.

Several Core Formation cultivators inflicted heavy injuries on Lu Yang: his left arm was broken, his abdomen and back were slashed multiple times, and the deepest wounds revealed raw bone.

He was covered in blood, staggering as he walked.

At this rate, he would soon die from exhaustion, fulfilling Mu Tiancao's wish.

This should have been good news, but Mu Tiancao couldn't feel happy.

He noticed that as Lu Yang's wounds multiplied, his eyes shone as brightly as the moon, conspicuously clear in the dim forest.

"What are you laughing at! What are you laughing at!" Mu Tiancao roared, feeling as if Lu Yang was mocking him.

Yes, Lu Yang was smiling, and he was smiling very happily.

"Why shouldn't I smile? A swarm of Core Formation cultivators couldn't defeat me, a late Foundation Establishment cultivator. Shouldn't I be happy?"

"Am I too strong, or are these Core Formation cultivators too weak?"

Lu Yang took step after step towards Mu Tiancao. Due to his severe injuries, he nearly stumbled several times, yet even this caused Mu Tiancao's heart to pound with fear.

Mu Tiancao frantically commanded the demon beasts to attack Lu Yang all at once, regardless of precise control. He wanted to crush this human prodigy, even if by sheer weight!

Lu Yang didn't even have the strength to hold his sword, facing the demon beasts with ordinary fists, intent on squeezing out his last ounce of strength.

Simultaneously, the dense mist in his dantian grew increasingly shallow.

Or rather, it wasn't that the mist was thinning, but that it was being absorbed by the halo of light behind it, making the halo more complete.

Lu Yang felt a sudden insight, guessing the source of the mist: "Is it the combat experience I've accumulated from fighting higher-level opponents in the dense forest?"

Lu Yang's body was subtly changing. The wounds on his abdomen and back gradually healed and scabbed over, his broken left arm miraculously reattached itself, and his essence, qi, and spirit merged into one, like a blazing torch, continuously fueled, causing the torch of his essence, qi, and spirit to burn ever higher.

The mist completely dissipated, revealing the true form of the halo—a perfectly formed, vibrant golden core.

This golden core was incredibly profound; its appearance signified invincibility. With a slight rotation, it swept away all of Lu Yang's fatigue.

Lu Yang felt an endless surge of power. This power was too immense, far beyond what a Foundation Establishment cultivator could possess.

Under the surge of this power, the bottleneck of the Foundation Establishment stage was easily washed away.

Core Formation Stage!

"Ya Zi, kill it!"

A majestic demon beast stood out among the Core Formation creatures. It was the demon beast Ya Zi, with a jackal body and a dragon head, born of a dragon and a jackal. It held a treasured sword in its mouth and glared furiously at Lu Yang.

This was a great demon, comparable to the Nine Infants, a hegemon of the dense forest, but before the current Lu Yang, it was not enough.

Lu Yang extended his index and middle fingers, joining them to form an incredibly sharp, ethereal sword image.

"Go."

The ethereal sword image swung down, then vanished.

Ya Zi glared at Lu Yang, as an extremely faint red line appeared on its head, extending all the way to its tail.

Lu Yang lightly blew, and Ya Zi split into two, falling to either side.

The power of this ethereal sword image alone surpassed Lu Yang's strongest "Break" technique!

"You broke through to the Core Formation stage!" Mu Tiancao stared at Lu Yang in disbelief; all his previous shocks combined weren't as great as this one. He had never heard of such a method of breakthrough.

Lu Yang ignored Mu Tiancao's shock; the latter no longer posed a threat. He was currently examining the golden core he had just formed.

"This golden core seems to possess many mysteries I haven't yet discovered, and it's not recorded in ancient texts. In other words, this golden core is unique. What should I name it...? Ah, I have it! I'll call it the Primordial One Qi Pill!"

Just as Lu Yang settled on the golden core's name, the Immortal Fairy's surprised voice rang in his ears.

"Isn't that my Invincible Pill!"

"Lu Yang, you hypocrite! You said you'd absolutely never form my golden core, but deep down, you still think my Invincible Pill is the most suitable for you!"

The Immortal Fairy, having dealt with the demon beasts surrounding her, lightly poked Lu Yang with her elbow, winked at him, and smiled brightly.

Lu Yang: "...What did you say?!"