She made several hand seals one after another, and spiritual aura, which was almost tangible, hit the pill furnace. The spiritual medicines inside the furnace began to change violently.
Mo Tiange closed her eyes and used her divine sense to observe the medicinal liquid inside the furnace.
Dozens of materials dissolved and fused … Because of the hand seals, the changes became more and more intense.
This was the pill-melting process. It would last for a long time, and when the changes stopped, it would be the moment the pills were formed.
Therefore, in the next few days, she had to wait like this. From time to time, she would make hand seals to urge the materials to fuse and drain out the impurities …
Time passed bit by bit. Elder Qingmiao and Elder Qingxi would take turns every six hours. Elder Qingyi had been guarding the door. Xia Qing was recording Mo Tiange's pill-concocting steps and learning her hand seals, while Wei Haolan was assisting her.
One day, two days, three days … The materials inside the furnace were finally fused together smoothly.
Mo Tiange wiped the sweat on her forehead and heaved a sigh of relief. However, she soon regained her full concentration and made several hand seals to form the pills.
This was the last day. Whether she would succeed or fail would depend on this moment.
The medicinal liquid inside the furnace began to slowly gather and solidify …
"Who are you?!" Elder Qingyi's shout was accompanied by a strange wave of energy fluctuations.
The expressions of the five people inside the concocting room changed.
This was the crucial moment of pill-concocting — what happened?
When that strange fluctuation became clearer and clearer, Mo Tiange was greatly shocked.
She could already feel it — it was Ren Yufeng!
When she arrived at Linhai, she didn't find any trace of Ren Yufeng. Nothing happened in the past three months, so Mo Tiange almost thought he was washed away by the waves. But now, Ren Yufeng appeared at this crucial moment!
Nevertheless, she quickly calmed down. With three Core Formation cultivators here, Ren Yufeng wouldn't be able to gain any advantage.
Although Elder Qingxi's spiritual aura was almost exhausted because she used her Dantian Real Fire, Elder Qingyi and Elder Qingmiao were still in good condition.
With two Core Formation elders here, Ren Yufeng's cultivation level was improper, so he definitely couldn't win.
Elder Qingmiao, who was meditating, frowned and said seriously, "I'll go take a look. You two stay calm."
"Yes," Wei Haolan and Xia Qing answered. The two of them consciously ran to the door just in case.
Mo Tiange also calmed down and continued concocting.
Miserable cries rang out from outside, followed by the sounds of fighting.
"Are you a Devil Path cultivator?" Elder Qingyi shouted.
"Hmph!"
Originally, she was just guessing, but upon hearing this voice, Mo Tiange was now certain that it was indeed Ren Yufeng.
"What demonic cultivator?
I'm the divine dragon's son! "Ren Yufeng's tone was arrogant and conceited.
"Son of the divine dragon?" Elder Qingyi's voice was filled with doubt.
"Senior Sister!"
Elder Qingmiao walked out of the concocting room and said, "What divine dragon's son? In my opinion, he's a cultivator from the Devil Path. He even injured our disciple, so there's no need to say anything. Just kill him!"
"Not bad."
Elder Qingyi answered, "He's covered in devil aura, but he's still not a cultivator from the Devil Path. He actually injured our group's disciples — there's no need to be polite to him!"
"You —" Ren Yufeng was furious. "How dare you slander me?!
I am the son of the divine dragon, I am the son of the divine dragon! "
The fluctuation of spiritual energy was even more intense.
Mo Tiange knew they must be fighting, so she said to Elder Qingxi, "Senior, let's speed up so we can finish refining faster. Please strengthen your Real Fire."
Elder Qingxi, who also sensed the danger outside, nodded. "Alright, I'll have to trouble Little Friend Ye."
As she said that, she urged her spiritual aura, and the Real Fire in her dantian immediately became a bit thicker.
Mo Tiange was also rapidly making hand seals. Although she felt the two Core Formation cultivators could definitely stop Ren Yufeng, she still had to be prepared just in case.
Suddenly strengthening the concocting fire would impact the medicinal liquid inside the pill furnace. Mo Tiange used hand seals to weaken the impact while speeding up the concoction of the medicinal pills.
"Sect Head Wei, what's the situation outside?" Mo Tiange had no time to spread her divine sense while paying attention to the concoction of the pill furnace, so she had to ask Wei Haolan.
Wei Haolan, who was standing at the door, stuck her head out to take a look. "This person … This devil cultivator is very strong in fights of magical power. But rest assured, Fellow Daoist Ye, the two elders can handle him."
"That's good …" Mo Tiange felt a bit relieved.
She also felt Ren Yufeng couldn't defeat the two elders, but she kept feeling the space between her eyebrows twitching — it wasn't a good sign.
"Eh?" Ye Haolan said.
Mo Tiange tilted her head. "What's wrong?"
"It's Senior Martial Brother Shangguan," Ye Haolan said.
"Senior Martial Brother Shangguan has reached the peak stage of the Foundation Building realm. I hope he can help the two elders."
Mo Tiange wrinkled her brows when she heard what he said.
Her intuition told her something was wrong …
"Master, Martial Uncle Qingmiao, I've come to help you!" This was Fellow Daoist Shangguan's voice.
"Yunhao, why did you come here instead of at the Dao-Achieving Pagoda?" Elder Qingyi's voice sounded a bit strict.
Right, why did he happen to come here?
Shangguan Yunhao answered, "I just sensed a strange aura in the Dao-Achieving Pagoda, so I followed it here."
In front of a formidable enemy, Elder Qingyi couldn't blame him. She just said, "Then quickly come here. This devil cultivator's divine power is extraordinary — be careful!"
Although the peak stage of the Foundation Building realm was only a step away from the Core Formation realm, it was actually a lot weaker. Elder Qingyi really doted on this disciple. She was worried about him the moment he arrived, afraid he would get hurt.
"Senior Martial Sister Sect Head," Xia Qing asked in a low voice, "where did this devil cultivator come from?
Is there a flaw in our Bixuan Court's great sect-protecting formation? "
Wei Haolan wrinkled her brows. "Correct. According to reason, we should've known the moment this devil cultivator entered our great sect-protecting formation. How could he suddenly appear in the concocting room?"
Mo Tiange once heard Yi Liu and Yi Qiu say that the west side of Linhai was a branch of Demonic Mountain. Demonic Mountain not only had a towering main peak, but it also had many complicated branches. Those devil cultivators of the Path of Devil lived in these mountain ranges.
The reason why Linhai cultivators didn't dare to go to Kunwu through Demonic Mountain was not only because they were afraid of running into high level devil cultivators, but also because the terrain of these mountain ranges was peculiar — they basically couldn't jump over them.
All these years, no devil cultivators had ever reached Linhai for the same reason.
"Sect Head Wei," Mo Tiange said, "this person is the enemy I told you about. He has a strange temperament and willfully kills innocent people. You must be careful."
Since Ren Yufeng had already degenerated into a devil cultivator, his temperament must've also changed. During that year, Mo Tiange saw that he was irritable and capricious, so she knew he'd become a genuine devil cultivator.
Wei Haolan's and Xia Qing's expressions changed at the same time.
Although they knew about this matter, in the past few months, they didn't see any traces of devil cultivators, so they didn't take it seriously. They never expected that they'd actually come knocking on their door.
"Ah!" A scream suddenly came from outside. Judging from the voice, it was Elder Qingyi.
Wei Haolan was shocked. She looked outside and her expression changed. "Senior Martial Brother Shangguan …"
She didn't need to say anything because Elder Qingmiao's angry voice came from outside. "Shangguan Yunhao, what are you doing?"
"What am I doing?" Shangguan Yunhao's voice also became gloomy. "Of course I'm killing you!"
Everyone inside the concocting room was stunned. Elder Qingxi was even more shocked. Her hands trembled and she coughed up a mouthful of blood.
"Elder Qingxi!" Wei Haolan and Xia Qing's expressions changed as they rushed over.
Mo Tiange couldn't help but sigh when she heard a muffled sound from inside the furnace.
At the last moment, the concoction of the Clear Sky Pill failed.
But now wasn't the time to worry about this. She took out a healing medicinal pill from inside her robe and gave it to Wei Haolan. "Quickly give this to Senior Qingxi. Also, take a Restorative Panacea!"
Since Elder Qingyi was plotted against, she could only try her best to preserve Elder Qingxi's strength.
"Shangguan Yunhao!"
Although Elder Qingyi's voice was a bit weak, it was very fierce. "The three of us have always treated you well — why are you biting the hand that feeds you?!"
"Treated me well?"
Shangguan Yunhao's voice was polite and restrained before, but this time, it was full of ridicule. "If you really treated me well, then why haven't I formed my Gold Core at 170 years old?!"
"It's not like you don't know about the lack of resources in Linhai!"
Elder Qingmiao said coldly, "But ever since we accepted you as our disciple, you've always been the first to get medicinal pills. You've just built your foundation, but we already let you enter the Dao-Achieving Pagoda!
When you reached the peak stage of the Foundation Building realm, we always sent disciples to Kunwu to look for Dustless Pills.
Bixuan Court is only a small cultivation group, but we've always treated you ten times better than other disciples!
Is there anything you're dissatisfied with? "
"Dissatisfied! Of course I'm dissatisfied!"
Shangguan Yunhao let out a "hmph"; he obviously didn't agree with Elder Qingmiao's statement. "Correct! As soon as I entered the sect, you gave me pointers. As soon as I reached the tenth layer of the Aura Refining realm, you gave me Foundation-Building Pills.
However, you treated me so well only because I was the disciple with the best aptitude Bixuan Court accepted in the past several hundred years!
What happened after that?
After I reached the peak stage of the Foundation Building realm, you delayed giving me Dustless Pills and didn't let me form my Gold Core. Just like that, you trapped me in the peak stage of the Foundation Building realm for fifty years! Fifty years! "
"Fifty years ago, I asked you to let me go to Kunwu so I could look for Dustless Pills or some fated chances on my own. But what did you do?
You'd rather send disciples with no future to Kunwu than let me go out!
Weren't you just afraid I wouldn't come back after I went to Kunwu?
Because you were afraid you couldn't control me, you made me unable to form my Gold Core for fifty years! "
Upon hearing what he said, Wei Haolan's expression changed. She stood up and walked out of the concocting room. "Shangguan Yunhao, check your conscience!
The elders didn't let you go out because they were worried about your safety. We have so many martial sisters and junior sisters who always run around for your Dustless Pills!
From the moment you entered the sect, did we ever ask you to do anything?
No, not only did we not, but we also provided you with everything you needed for your cultivation. It's fine if you don't feel grateful, but you actually made a false accusation! "
"Because of me?" Shangguan Yunhao sneered. "Wei Haolan, don't you feel guilty saying this?
Forty years ago, the former sect head abdicated and I wanted to be the sect head. With my qualifications and cultivation level, why did the position of sect head fall into your hands in the end?
Moreover, you didn't even allow me to take a step out of the group — you imprisoned me in disguise! "
"Shangguan Yunhao!"
Wei Haolan was furious. "Our Bixuan Court is a cultivation group for female cultivators. Every generation of sect heads has been a female cultivator. Is letting you be the sect head going to provoke others?"
"Yes, that's it!" Shangguan Yunhao said sarcastically, "Just because I'm a male cultivator, you're always on guard against me!
Don't think I don't know — in fact, you already got your hands on Dustless Pills a few years ago; you just didn't let me make a realm-breakthrough smoothly! "
"On guard against you?"
Elder Qingyi finally spoke. She coughed then continued to say, "Correct, I'm on guard against you!"
"Elder Qingyi?" Wei Haolan was bewildered.
"When you fought against Haolan for the position of sect head, I could already see your intentions weren't right!
Therefore, at that time, I didn't let you go out and didn't immediately give you Dustless Pills. But why do you think I did that?
If you didn't grind away your greed and didn't cultivate your mental state, you'd fall because of your Inner Demon if you wanted to form your Gold Core! "